MESA 7i85 - Why the screw connectors

Hi PCW,
I was just butchering another CAT 5 cable to wire my 7i73 into the 7i85, and I was wondering why the 7i85 has screw connectors to terminate the RS-422 ports, when it would seem to have been cheaper for you, and easier for the user to have put five RJ-45 jacks on that board.
Just curious.
Mark

There are a couple reasons:

1. The serial ports are not always for SSerial devices so having a fixed
SSerial compatible pinout is not always desirable
2. The 7I85 and 7I85S use the same PCB and the 7I85S uses the sserial TBs
for step,dir

One option if you want RJ45s for sserial is a 7I94T

Mark,
This will save you some grief. I agree about cutting up good cat 5 cables.

www.amazon.com/Ethernet-Connector-Breako...%2Caps%2C221&sr=8-40


Scott

Thanks PCW. I am using my 7i92/7i85 for both the axis and spindle encoders, and to interface the 7i84, 7i83 and 2x 7i73 in my Schaublin 125CNC,  so it is working well for me. I just wondered about the connectivity.
Is that 7i94T new?
Thanks Scott, but i was given some CAT 5 cables, and had one just the right length, so I already butchered it.
Cheers,
Mark

The 7I94T is new but replaces the equivalent 7I94 that's been around
for several years.

I would normally assume that cables would be made by cutting
a patch cable in half (so you get 2 cables rather than just one)

In this case, I had one just the right length and only needed the one for now. I guess CAT5 cables are heading for recycling as everyone upgrades through 1GbE to 10GbE.

Andy`s good solution here...
forum.linuxcnc.org/27-driver-boards/4332...erial-cables?start=0