Seeking PC recommendations

Well, it's only a month away... (:>) I'll write you again, shortly.

What are the benefits to waiting for the new board/combo?
(remember, I'm not completely saavy yet)

Thank you.

Advantages of 5I25/7I77:
Cheaper
Simpler cabling (single DB25 out back of computer to 7I77 daughtercard)
Low profile possible
(With low profile bracket, 5I25 Will fit in low profile Mini ITX boxes)

Advantages of 5I20/7I48/7I37COM:
More flexible I/O
More output voltage/current on field I/O
Available now
More mature EMC support
Easy firmware updates

PCW wrote:

Advantages of 5I25/7I77:
Cheaper
Simpler cabling (single DB25 out back of computer to 7I77 daughtercard)
Low profile possible
(With low profile bracket, 5I25 Will fit in low profile Mini ITX boxes)

I'm planning to mount the PC's motherboard in the same fashion it exists now.
Out in the open, inside the control cabinet. No ATX/mini ATX case.

I take it that the daughter card just mounts on standoffs? And, that I'd be
able to simply mount it on those standoffs in the cabinet, and run the cable to it?

PCW wrote:

Advantages of 5I20/7I48/7I37COM:
More flexible I/O
More output voltage/current on field I/O
Available now
More mature EMC support
Easy firmware updates

Can you explain the "More flexible I/O" and "More output voltage/current on field I/O" statements? I don't understand.
Reading a prior post, it seems to me that you say that the 7I77 has "common V+ for the outputs and a common V- for the inputs (this is how the 7I37COM is connected)."
Originally, you had recommended the 7I37COM for me. So, I'm guessing that in my case this would not necessarily be a bad thing for me. Correct?

What does the firmware statement mean to me (others)?
Why would I need to update it? Does that mean that the 5I25 cannot be updated?

All in all, I don't mind waiting until January.
I'm more concerned about making the right choices.

Thanks! I appreciate the help.

1 Yes, daughtercards just mount on standoffs
2 there are more I/O options with the50 pin FPGA cards because there are more available daughtercards
3. the 7I77 field I/O is limited to 300 mA max per output ~28 VDC max (7I37 in comparison is 1A and up to 48V)
4. Yes 7I37COM has same input output arrangement as 7I77s I/O (sourcing outputs, sinking inputs)
5. 5I25 firmware update is like flashing a BIOS, 5I20 firmware update is changing a file name in the .INI file

I went with the Intel AtomD525 board

This one: www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121442

My Latency is something like 7500 (Worst case), so it looks like it should work well

PCW wrote:

1 Yes, daughtercards just mount on standoffs
2 there are more I/O options with the50 pin FPGA cards because there are more available daughtercards
3. the 7I77 field I/O is limited to 300 mA max per output ~28 VDC max (7I37 in comparison is 1A and up to 48V)
4. Yes 7I37COM has same input output arrangement as 7I77s I/O (sourcing outputs, sinking inputs)
5. 5I25 firmware update is like flashing a BIOS, 5I20 firmware update is changing a file name in the .INI file

1. Great.

2. Oh... okay... I guess I really need to get a handle on just exactly how many I/Os I need...
Don't know why, but I'm having a hard time getting a handle on that.

3. How does that affect a normal user? In other words, I'm not completely sure
what impact that has upon me, can you (or anyone) explain that in more detail to me?

4. Okay, cool. Thanks.

5. Oh, BIOS flashing! That I know about... (:>) That's of no major concern to me. (:>)

Thanks, Peter. I appreciate the help.

Harry_Y wrote:

I went with the Intel AtomD525 board

This one: www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121442

My Latency is something like 7500 (Worst case), so it looks like it should work well

Thanks. I've been following that board, here, and will likely use it for my machine. Appreciated.

Zahnrad Kopf wrote:

Harry_Y wrote:

I went with the Intel AtomD525 board

This one: www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121442

My Latency is something like 7500 (Worst case), so it looks like it should work well

Thanks. I've been following that board, here, and will likely use it for my machine. Appreciated.

Do a lil reading here: wiki.linuxcnc.org/cgi-bin/emcinfo.pl?The..._Parameter_And_GRUB2

It tells how to limit you to one processor, than plus turning off hyper-threading makes a big difference