7i77 for analog +/-10v and upgrade to geckos later

hey all,
I'm very new to all this.  I'm just starting a retrofit project on an old bridgeport BTC-1 BOSS 7.2 machine.  I'd like to try to use the existing NC400 servo drives to get started.  However, I don't know If i'll use them long term and I don't even know if they work (seems the main LSI-1 board is toast on the boss controls, so can't test).  If I buy a 5i25/7i77 setup, can i use that for both the NC400 drives as well as gecko 320x drives in the future?

Thanks so much!
-Jordan

I don't think so. The G320X takes step/dir position commands, whereas the 7i77 will be outputting analogue voltage velocity commands.

If you do decide to swap the drives, then you could either look for analogue-controlled drives (lots of AMC drives on eBay) or add a Mesa step-dir card such as the 7i85S or 7i78 to the expansion port on the 5i25.

Pretty sure the geckos have some non standard signalling that is difficult to work with. I seem to remember one member returned them in the end.

Error out / reset in
it is the same pin in Geckos
I still have 4 of them i think collecting dust in the shop, need to get 1 out and put it to work tomorrow.

tommylight wrote:

Error out / reset in
it is the same pin in Geckos
I still have 4 of them i think collecting dust in the shop, need to get 1 out and put it to work tomorrow.

Tommy, I think with the number of motors you use that dust kind of sums it up!