sorry i posted this in october and didnt relize it would close after 30 days so reposting because im back on trying to get this fixed
Please help. Ive had my laser for 4 years omtech 80w red and black its always run off my imac. In april a storm come and i had to get a new imac so I was unable to get the same exact computer so i got a new version of the one I had before. Ive redown loaded lightburn and tried so many different versions and i can not get my machine to connect ive added the laser but it will not pick up my laser. My machine is run by USB and i even tried bypassing the USB plug thinking it was bad and plugged directly into the computer on the machine and still nothing. My machine has one saved file on it and i can run it so i know nothing is wrong with my machine . ive been in contact with email support for months but its a neverending circle with them talking like a robot telling me the same thing over and over again. So ive been unable to use my machine for months and i just need it back up and running so someone please help point me in the right direction
Have you installed the USB driver?
CH340 Drivers for Windows, Mac and Linux
i hate to say this but idk i dont think so. When i first got the machine i didnt have to install anything other than just download lightburn so when getting a new computer i assumed thats all id have to do this time but it seems to not be the case. so can you please explain what i need to do.
I have macOS BIG SUR
and ive only downloaded lightburn
I asked some questions on your last thread that never got answered.
Specifically, are you connecting directly to the computer with the USB cable or going through a hub or a dongle?
Is connecting Via your LAN an option? That connection type seems more stable, particularly when using a MAC.
yes im so glad you found me again it was closed before i had the chance to reply im so very sorry i had no idea it would close.
So i have always used usb from the machine usb port to the computer usb port and it worked just fine
but i cant even get it to “find my device” this time. last time it was pretty simple i didnt have to do anything other than download the lastest lightburn and everything worked great as to my knowledge but that was back in 2020
can you explain more on the via LAN im unclear on what this is
Make sure you’re in the correct USB port on the laser. Both are physically the same, but one is for flash drive and one is for computer connection. Some have reported better success connecting to a Mac by going through a “Dumb” USB 2.0 Hub rather than direct conection.
How old is the iMac? Big Sur is a couple generations old.
It’s using an ethernet connection rather than USB. You can connect directly from computer to laser or connect through your Local Area Network (LAN). It is a more stable connection than USB, I connect through my LAN and I have 3 computers that can control my laser. This artice gives more info.
umm im not real sure i got it from the local best buy when lighting hit my other imac but im fairly certain this one is 2019 and my old was 2017
and yes my machine worked fine from the usb before and im using the same one i went and bought an brand new usb cable and also had my husband check the usb port to make sure it was working correctly
ive read some on this and still to me it seems so scary and im still really unclear on how to do this right can i mess it up?
You won’t damage anything by trying the Ethernet connection if that’s what you’re asking. It will either work and you’ll be happy or it won’t work and you’re still where you currently are.
Is your iMac connected to the internet? Is it connected wirelessly or with a cable?
Do you have pyhsical access to the router or network switch from your laser?
The way mine is set up is I have a wireless access point in my garage with a few ethernet ports on it. My Laser is connected with a cable to the access point. It has it’s own IP Address on my network. I can access it from the PC that is connected to my Diode Laser, the Mac Mini in my office, which is the main computer I use for that laser or my Macbook in the house.
ok im going to try to answer this right, my computer is out in my office its connected to the internet wirelessly my router is inside my house but my office has a booster box to boost the internet but there isnt a out port to connect to anything in the office other than the cords coming into the box but yes id have to have my husband rewire it to bring it to the office but this is how things have been nothing has changed here other than getting a new computer
and please let me express my thankfulness for you trying to help me out
OK, you will need to go with the direct connection then, rather than through your network. Does your iMac have an Ethernet jack? I believe they still did in that vintage. The article doesn’t address that connection method. You will need to do some searching.
Lets try something different. With your laser disconnected from youy iMac Open Terminal and type ioreg -p IOUSB, then connect your laser and type it again. Look for the item that is new. That is your laser. If nothing changes, you have a connection problem, either bad cable, bad USB connection in the machine or your iMac.
If it appears in the list try creating a new device in Lightburn manually.
yes i do have an ethernet port on the imac
Do you have any other computer you could test with? preferably a PC
not at this moment what in my computer would make it not work? because its a brand new cord and my husband checked the usb port
Do what I said with Terminal a couple posts up. That will verify that your computer is seeing the laser or not.
Please note that the Mac hasn’t required a third-party CH340 driver since Monterey, when Apple included it with the OS. I run a diode laser (Roly LaserMatic) without ever having loaded a driver with no issues at all. I did need to mak esure I chose the interface, as it defaulted to the Bluetooth interface. Also make sure the buad rate matches betwen your Mac and the device.
The best option is what @thelmuth advised using Ethernet.
Unless you understand DHCP and how the network talks, direct connection to your mac via Ethernet may prove difficult and you could end up disabling your network. I’ve done this with my machines and it works fine, but you need more networking experience to direct connect a static ip machine to a mac port with no IP address, expecting a DHCP server to get an IP.
A network connection doesn’t have driver issues as it talks just like your internet. I have an Amazon tp-link wireless bridge out on my machine, you can also use the Lightburn PI Bridge.
The tp-link works but doesn’t have the Lightburn code layer like the PI to help with the communications to the controller but is much less expensive. It cost me $12 US, but the price has doubled in the last few years… Just set it up as a bridge.
If possible use Ethernet, once working, there are no other issues.
Some macs use USB 3.0 and the Ruida is USB 2.0, some use only a usb converter to ensure the mac talks via usb 2.0. I don’t have one of these so I can’t help you much here.
Good luck
