Help with a conversion?

[Orladin]

I have a SteelTailor CNC Plasma cutter that the original control died on and I was looking to convert it.  I want to keep everything contained within the original enclosure so I'm looking at using an all-in-one touch panel PC, but all the ones I've found are lacking a parallel port so I would need to connect via USB.  I think I've decided on using the PMDX-126 with a SmoothStepper so I would have the USB capability I need, but the machine is simple (X axis stepper, Y axis stepper, and a plain motor for the Z axis torch up/down).  There are very few other connections like torch on/off, E-Stop and servo disable.  Is this setup overkill for what I'm trying to do?

Thanks,
Justin

[Steve Stallings]

The SmoothStepper may be more than you need, but it is a workable solution. We
would recommend the EtherNet version and Mach3 software because this is a
combination that can work with a Torch Height Controller. I suggest talking with
Warp9TD specifically about plasma configurations.

I assume that the original machine had torch height control capability. You will
need to add another board/device to provide the signals for this function. PMDX
does not make or sell Torch Height Controllers at this time. If you are not familiar
with what is needed, I suggest that you contact www.CandCNC.com who are
plasma control vendors familiar with Mach3.