Unfortunately ready to ditch 3.8.8

[Mark Farris]

Just thought I would add my experience to the rest. I just finished getting my 2010 PRS Alpha up and running. During assembly I had loaded 3.8.6 as it was the newest available and I hadn't checked for updates before I tried a large 3D carving, around 580,000 lines. Everything started of wonderful but had most of the previously stated problems (stopping, moving at slow speeds, spindle shutting down) but kept stopping and resuming, and using FG until I got to around 80% when it all just shut down, and I had had it. Uninstalled 3.8.6 and installed 3.8.8, updated firmware, and finished the carving although it went into slow mode 3 times. I had to stop and resume to get the speed back. Uninstalled 3.8.8, deleted any Shopbot folder I could find, unplugged the bot usb, reinstalled 3.8.8 and re-set up for my machine, updated firmware, and air cut the same file until the slow down occurred about 40,000 lines in. I am running an Anthlon dual core processer, 2.8 Ghz, Windows 7 Home Premium, 4 gb ram. Anybody have any suggestions before I revert back to 3.6.44? I do like the features of 3.8.8 but it's driving me insane. I have never had any of these problems on my PRT V4g running 3.6.44.
Thanks,
Mark

[ted]

Hi Mark,

Not sure whether it is related to the file or the processor. Would you mind sending me the file via support at ShopBot, or one that slows-down in a similar way. (I am assuming that all power-save functionality on that computer is set to never-never-never.)

Thanks,

Ted Hall, ShopBot

[Jerome]

Ted

Don't mean to HiJack this thread but I am having similar problem with 3.8.6. Mine isn't as serious but it is still occurring about once a week.

It will slow down to a very low feed speed but a pause and resume seemed to cure that.

A few times the spindle has stopped running and stopped moving but the contol software window still thinks the bot is moving.

The last time it happened everything stopped and when I hit the space bar the control software shut down too.

A couple of weeks ago I called and the very helpful gentleman I talked to suggested I disable the USB suspend settings in the advanced power settings. I thought this fixed it but I am still having the same problems.

I am running Windows 7 on a new HP that I have turned off everything I could and uninstalled all the junk programs that came with it.

By the way the problems have all been with different files. One was a 3d carving file but most have been simple 2d profiles.

I would like to hear any ideas you come up with.

Thanks
Jerome

[woodshopcnc]

I've had serious issues with 3.8.6. Today, I'll reload 3.6.44 and run the same file which was messed up by 3.8.6 (9.5 hr file). I'll let you know if it does the same thing.

My bot does the same thing, changes ramp values intermittenly, or slows down to a crawl, it does not turn off the spindle however. If I hit the space bar to stop and then resume the file, it runs fine. I have stripped the computer down to only shopbot on it. Reloaded windows XP fresh and turned off all sleep modes, additional things running in the background, etc. I mostly run 3D files and have not had any problem on the 2D cutouts.

Whoever can figure out what's up or what version software will actually work, please let me know.

Stephen

[Brady Watson]

Dump 3.8.6 and update to 3.8.8 - Be sure to also update your firmware. See if this cures your issues before you go back to 3.6.46. No sense in having a discussion about the most current version if you aren't using it. 3.8.8 runs differently than 3.8.4 or 3.8.6 - so give it a whirl & report back.

Also - for those having issues, mentioning the issues you are having is only partially helpful. Also list your computer processor brand & model, how much RAM you have installed, and operating system (XP Pro, XP Home, Win7 Basic, Pro etc - AND whether you are running an x32 system or x64 system) - Without this information, it can be hard to nail down what is going on.

Be sure that you have your USB plugged into a 2.0 regular port and NOT a blue Super Speed (SS) port - since these are known to be flaky.

-B

[woodshopcnc]

As stated before I've had problems with the new software.

My Specs: PRS Alpah 48 x 96 (older version with out the middle steel support, has 4 legs)

Computer: Laptop, Pentium 1.73 ghz, 1 MB Ram.

*** All background applications, hibernation, power save, usb power mgt, etc., have been turned off.

I've fought with the 3.8 software (slows to a crawl, loses ramp values, etc) for weeks now, destroying multiple 3D parts. The only way I could even get to run somewhat is to stop the file every 20 or so minutes and restart.

So, I ran the same part on 3.8.8, then uninstalled everything from the computer and loaded the older 3.6.44, see attached pic of the results. This 3D file was a smaller one that I run, approx 57,000 lines about a 4:15 machine time on the 1/8" pass.

*** When viewing the pic, disregard the rough pass above the relief, look between the leaves on the 3.8.8 side, then check out the 3.6.44 side. All that wavy stuff (3.8.8) is from when the SB decided to forget the ramp / speed values. Needless to say for what I do (99% 3D), 3.6.44 is superior. Of course there is a little fuzz to clean up but the wavy offset junk you cannot clean up easily.

When running the 3.8.8 for 2D it worked fine.

Mark, if you are cutting 580,000 + line files (as I do), try the 3.6.44. Since my recent reload is has not skipped a beat yet, and I carved the same wreath file 3 times (total of 12:45 hrs machine time) and one carved animal file for 7 hrs since my last post on this tread). I forgot what it's like to not watch the machine carve 24 / 7.

*** I'm not trying to bash the new software, just stating my experience on my machine.

Stephen

[woodshopcnc]

forgot to mention.

I run XP sp3.

On the 3.6.44 the firmware version shows 1.62

when 3.8.8 was loaded, the firmware showed 1.74.

The tech guys said that the newest firmware was 2.?? something but it would not load on my machine for whatever reason.

[Mark Farris]

Stephen, I have run 3.6.44 on my PRT since I upgraded to the V4g board over a year ago with absolutely no problems. Since I got the PRS Alpha up and running of course I wanted the newest control software. I have been emailing with Ted Hall and he has offered some suggestions one of which was that 3.8.8 should be run without the hub in between the computer and usb cable, I did not know that. I took the hub out and ran a Z level roughing pass and everything was fine until line 16000 when it just stopped, but the spindle kept running, and the software closed. I tried to do a FG, but it wouldn't "go to" line 16000, it just closed. Finally gave up, cleared out 3.8.8 and the .ini file,reloaded 3.6.44, updated firmware, and presto.....she runs like a champ again. Did a FG and finished the file without incident. I know Ted and the crew are trying hard to make this work and I appreciate their efforts, but I have work to do. I think you can add me to the list of those who will wait until the bugs have been worked out.

[Brady Watson]

Computer: Laptop, Pentium 1.73 ghz, 1 MB Ram.



I think you meant 1GB - but that is still not enough. RAM is cheap - pop in 4G if you can. I've noticed that 3.8.x uses a lot more RAM than 3.6.44. Open up the Windows Task Manager & have a look at how much SB3 uses. Chances are, it is using at least 350Mb, which leaves little room for Windows and anything else that may be minimized in the background like PartWorks or Aspire.

-B

[bleeth]

Interesting Brady-I actually never checked that before. Yep: 384000 K in preview on my home computer.
My first computer, A Gateway, had a 4MB drive and 520K Ram and was considered a "powerhouse"

[jhedlund58]

I must be the only guy happy with 3.8.8 I have had it installed for a couple of weeks. I do have 214 firmware etc properly installed. I did have problem un-installing previous versions. After updating several times, I getting good at it. There are a few important things in the process..... check the registry for leftover entries as was documented on forum and delete said entries. I had to call support and frank helped me out with that. After that it was easy to make sure spindle was communicating properly. Mine was set to router in installation, but after reading the better documentation on how to set spindle back up... works fine. I do not lose positioning between sessions etc. SO FAR, I very happy with the upgrade. Fingers crossed

my big question is what version of software is TJ using for his web cast... and has shopbot corporate had the same problems others have experienced.

[adrianm]

You're not alone Jeff. It runs perfectly for me too and my Alpha runs so much sweeter than compared to 3.6.

I don't envy the task that Shopbot has getting to the bottom of the issues.

[jerry_stanek]

My PRS standard runs really smooth with it. It doubled my speed and I have not had any problems.

[Mark Farris]

I am curious what you three with good results have for control computers as far as specs.

Thanks,
Mark

[adrianm]

I am curious what you three with good results have for control computers as far as specs.


Dell Optiplex 745 intel core 2 duo with 2gb memory running Windows XP.

Shopbot is connected with the standard Shopbot hub and the spindle is directly connected to the PC.

[jerry_stanek]

P4 2.8 ghz with 2 gigs of ram XP Pro to run mine. I have run 11 hour cuts with this set up and I can surface my table a 600 IPM

[jhedlund58]

Toshiba Satellite C665D Laptop, Win7 home premium, 4G ram, AMD E-240 processor 1500 Mhz 1 core, standard io gear hub with spindle plugged directly into machine. This was purchased off the shelf from Amazon dot com in march 2011. I notice the newer ones have 3 usb ports which wood eliminate the io gear hub for me. I use a usb wireless mouse also.

[Max Girouard]

I've got a Lenovo laptop with an AMD 1.4 GHz processor, 4 gigs ram on a windows 7 64 bit machine. Other than a failed second zero plunge every so often on the z zero routine, I've had no problems at all. I also shut everything off that was not needed via the Black Viper bare bones configuration from this site:http://www.blackviper.com/service-configurations/black-vipers-windows-7-service-pack-1-service-configurations/
My machine runs only my bot. I have no other program installed on the computer except for SB3 and the SB3 editor. I remember buying it for around $250.

[Mark Farris]

Max, thanks for the link to the Black Viper site. I know that site has been mentioned several times on the forum, and I have looked at it a couple times without knowing what I was looking for. Now I see the configurations for Windows 7 and I am pretty sure I still have several things running in the background. The inner workings of the computer is not my strong point, but after learning to open the task manager while SB 3 is open, I noted several items running. I am trying to finish a large 3D job with 3.6.44 then I may try 3.8 again. I ran the speed test in 3.6.44 yesterday out of curiosity and found that I am shy of 70, so I have some transmission problems I need to fix. Possibly this was contributing to my 3.8.8 problems. It is nice to know there are some Windows 7 users out there successfully running 3.8.8.

Jeff, One thing in your first post caught my eye. What problems did you have getting the firmware version 214 installed, and where to you find the version that is currently loaded.

I'm sure there are a lot of owners out there like me without in-depth computer knowledge so you computer geeks keep posting as I am very grateful for what I am learning from you.

Thanks,
Mark

[adrianm]

For what it's worth I've never bothered stopping anything on my PC other than the automatic windows updates and the screensaver. It's just a plain install of Windows XP SP3.

[jerry_stanek]

I have run my prs with my laptop running windows 7

[PNast]

I was having all the same problems using a new laptop with all running apps turned off. I found out a lot of laptops have a power saving CPU that can't be disabled. I bought a new desktop computer and upgraded to 3.8.8 and have not had a single problem since. I cut signs all day long so I have really put many hours in with this setup. Do Not use a laptop to run your SB! The computer I am using now is a Dell XPS 8700 4th Generation Intel Core i7-4770 processor (8M Cache, up to 3.9 GHz) 12GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz - 4 DIMMs Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit.

[jhedlund58]

@Mark... I think my problem was insecurity and un-install from operating system. I totally un-installed all control software and had to delete entries in registry. there is a post that shows the registry entry to delete. once I was happy all previous software was gone, I ran CCLeaner and a defrag. then, I installed from install Setup_sb3_8_8 file I moved from my development machine to my control machine. the firmware is in there and all should be good.

I very happy with the way my buddy is performing with new software. I am using a laptop as a dedicated machine with no problems.

I am a hobbyist!!!

[PNast]

I should have said don't use a laptop unless your sure it does not have a power saving CPU. Some allow you to disable this in the bios, the one I had couldn't be disabled.