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IndustryArena Forum > CNC Electronics > Gecko Drives > Wiring Schematics wrong for G250.
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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
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    498

    Wiring Schematics wrong for G250.

    A quick warning to those who are about to wire up any gecko G250s.

    There are some wiring diagrams out in circulation (official gecko diagrams) which show the wrong pinout on pins 26 and 28. Using these diagrams will kill your stepper cards, I have killed two by following this diagram.

    The incorrect diagram I downloaded from geckos website in late august, the current one for download is correct but the revision number has not changed so it is not obvious whether you have the right wiring diagram.

    Here's how you tell.
    On page #1 the written descriptions are correct on both instruction sheets.
    On page #2 the diagram in the dodgy sheet contradicts the description on page 1.

    If your description and diagram agree (the correct version is pin 26 - no connection and pin28 - step) then you're good to go.
    The wrong version has these two pins reversed.

    I have emailled gecko my dodgy diagram and told them that following their pinout has killed two of my G250's. I have yet to get a response from them.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Posts
    8082
    Thursday was Thanksgiving holiday in the USA and the Gecko folks may (or may not) have taken Friday off as well. I wouldn't expect a reply until Monday. It's remotely possible that one of the employees will check in here over the weekend.

    CarveOne
    CarveOne
    http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
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    15

    Smile How is it possible to blow up a G250 by connecting a logic signal to the wrong pin?

    Dougal,

    How is it possible to blow up a G250 by connecting a logic signal to the wrong pin?

    I don't mean to say you are telling a whopper but it sounds fishy to say the least.

    What is pin 26 anyway?

    The Gecko guys should be around here and answer you pretty quick so don't worry.

    PDB

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
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    8082
    Looking at the rev.4 manual, page 1, it says that pin 26 is "Reserved", and pin 28 is the STEP input pin. Reserved usually means that it is not connected to anything. However, page 2 says "Do not Use". I take that to mean that it MAY actually have something connected to it inside the board. Without the schematic it is hard to know for sure. I didn't find that yet. Mariss will clear this up.

    CarveOne
    CarveOne
    http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com

  5. #5
    The original G250 manual had pins 26 and 28 transposed on page 2 while it was correct in the text on page 1. The current manual on our website is correct on both pages.

    The "Do not use" pin 26 is actually +12VDC and we use it in the G540 to power the HCPL-2531 STP/DIR optoisolator detector side.

    The +12VDC regulator in the G250 is designed to blow open a 33 Ohm surface mount resistor if that pin is overloaded (>60mA). This limits the damage to one resistor and protects the rest of the drive. Replacing that resistor restores the drive.

    Please return the G250s for repair.

    Mariss

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
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    8082
    Mariss,

    Thanks much for the clarification. Especially on your "time off".

    Seems that I saw mention of this somewhere (Yahoo Groups?) but things don't stick in my mind like they used to.

    CarveOne
    CarveOne
    http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com

  7. #7
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    Jul 2008
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    498
    Quote Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis View Post
    The original G250 manual had pins 26 and 28 transposed on page 2 while it was correct in the text on page 1. The current manual on our website is correct on both pages.

    The "Do not use" pin 26 is actually +12VDC and we use it in the G540 to power the HCPL-2531 STP/DIR optoisolator detector side.

    The +12VDC regulator in the G250 is designed to blow open a 33 Ohm surface mount resistor if that pin is overloaded (>60mA). This limits the damage to one resistor and protects the rest of the drive. Replacing that resistor restores the drive.

    Please return the G250s for repair.

    Mariss
    Thank you for your reply.
    I really hope I haven't damaged my CNC Brain.

    Unfortunately I'm in New Zealand so returning the geckos for repair is going to take weeks and cost me a similar amount in postage to new drives and I really don't want to lose those weeks.

    Is it possible to replace these resistors myself?
    Can you send me a schematic to find them?

    When I say "replace myself" I mean I have people who do such jobs, but pointing them in the right direction on the board will save a lot of time at this end.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by poordumbbastard View Post
    Dougal,

    How is it possible to blow up a G250 by connecting a logic signal to the wrong pin?

    I don't mean to say you are telling a whopper but it sounds fishy to say the least.

    What is pin 26 anyway?

    The Gecko guys should be around here and answer you pretty quick so don't worry.

    PDB
    There goes your answer. Pin 26 is +12vdc.

    Really hoping it hasn't damaged anything else.

  9. #9
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    Jul 2008
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    The CNC Brain seems to still work okay with one of my remaining G250's.
    Big relief, there must be some decent internal protectin inside that thing.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
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    15

    Unhappy

    Dougal,

    Well that explains everything.

    Gecko should pay for the shipping and replace all the damaged parts including your CNCBrain since it was a mistake on there part.

    From what I have been reading here on the Zone they take care of all there customers no matter what.

    PDB

  11. #11
    The 33 Ohm safety resistor is on the extreme edge of the pcb under the big (8mm dia) blue capacitor. It is immediately adjacent to the regulator thru-hole pad and it is marked '330' meaning it's 33 Ohms. Read it with an Ohmmeter; if it is blown, it will read substantially more than 33 Ohms. Replacing this resistor will restore the drive to proper operation.

    The G250 is safetied in as many ways as possible for a price-sensitive drive. The 33 Ohm resistor is one example. The 60mA current necessary to burn open the resistor is below a level that would have harmed any logic connected to it.

    Mariss

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis View Post
    The 33 Ohm safety resistor is on the extreme edge of the pcb under the big (8mm dia) blue capacitor. It is immediately adjacent to the regulator thru-hole pad and it is marked '330' meaning it's 33 Ohms. Read it with an Ohmmeter; if it is blown, it will read substantially more than 33 Ohms. Replacing this resistor will restore the drive to proper operation.

    The G250 is safetied in as many ways as possible for a price-sensitive drive. The 33 Ohm resistor is one example. The 60mA current necessary to burn open the resistor is below a level that would have harmed any logic connected to it.

    Mariss
    Yes I have found it.
    My blown drives show between 0.5-1.5 kohm across these resistors, my healthy drive show ~33ohms.

    Thank you for that, I will now be able to at least get it running.
    But I still haven't received a response from my emails to gecko just over a week ago now. I want to get some new drives and relegate these two (once repaired) to spares.

  13. #13
    Please return the damaged drives first.

    Mariss

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis View Post
    Please return the damaged drives first.

    Mariss
    Before my email will be answered?

    I cannot wait for the weeks it will take to send the damaged drives away and receive new ones. It will also cost a considerable amount in freight, for some strange reason it costs around 3x the price to send to the US from here as it does to receive from the US.

    This is why I will attempt to get the drives repaired here. But I would like to get some replacements underway in case the repairs fail. I have already lost a week.

  15. #15
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    I got the impression that you were going to buy two more drives then get the others repaired afterwards for use as spares. If that is the case, you don't need to wait for a reply, just order the new drives online and deal with the repair seperately.

    bob

  16. #16
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    Jul 2008
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    Quote Originally Posted by rowbare View Post
    I got the impression that you were going to buy two more drives then get the others repaired afterwards for use as spares. If that is the case, you don't need to wait for a reply, just order the new drives online and deal with the repair seperately.

    bob
    I have blown up two gecko drives by following instructions downloaded from the gecko website. The least they can do is answer my emails.

    Having to buy new drives at retail is not IMO an acceptable resolution to this situation.

  17. #17
    If you repair the drives yourself, the drives then work good as new. If you don't wish to repair the drives yourself, please return them for repair. If you don't want to wait while they are in transit, please purchase 2 new drives. Once we get the damaged drives back we will refund you the price of the new drives.

    Mariss

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis View Post
    If you repair the drives yourself, the drives then work good as new. If you don't wish to repair the drives yourself, please return them for repair. If you don't want to wait while they are in transit, please purchase 2 new drives. Once we get the damaged drives back we will refund you the price of the new drives.

    Mariss
    If I purchase two new drives, will there be a discount to reflect that this problem was caused by geckos documentation and has cost me both time and money to rectify?

  19. #19
    No.:-)

    I try to do my best doing what I do. I'm sure it's the same with you and what you do. I'm only human and I make mistakes. I'm guessing you occasionally make mistakes too; the manual had the correct pinout on the first page. We don't get indemnified for time and money when our vendors make mistakes. The industry norm is they only repair or replace the bad goods.

    Mariss

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mariss Freimanis View Post
    No.:-)

    I try to do my best doing what I do. I'm sure it's the same with you and what you do. I'm only human and I make mistakes. I'm guessing you occasionally make mistakes too; the manual had the correct pinout on the first page. We don't get indemnified for time and money when our vendors make mistakes. The industry norm is they only repair or replace the bad goods.

    Mariss
    If I buy a replacement from you at retail, then you are profitting financially from a situation you have manufactured.

    Yes we all make mistakes, it's how we recover from them that counts.
    Expecting your customers to pay full price to fix them is not right.

    As you've said above, the industry norm is to repair or replace the bad goods. Replacement would be good.
    I've offered to pay a discounted replacement cost. Retail is not acceptable.

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