Ultimately I would like to convert my homebuilt cnc router table to carry a laser. I use linux and am not going to use linux for the laser. I wish to keep the motor drivers and install a different motorcontroller. I really hope I have these terms correct.
I love lightburn and operate a creality falcon 2 with it. My understanding and guessing here, Lightburn only creates the gc. The laser gantry has a computer component that using the gc calculates the number of motorsteps to then power the motors. OR, Lightburn, since I told it what laser it was connected to not only creates the cg but also calculates microrsteps….
My question would be what would someone recommend I buy as a motorcontroller and how do I teach the set up what the microsteps are.
You can buy laser-ready 2- or 3-axis controllers that run GRBL 1.1h or later. There are other controllers that are very “Lightburn compatible”, but you will have to do some research. Most decent table-top lasers are shipped with 32-bit boards now.
It is up to you to decide which of the hundreds of controller board versions best suit your DIY project.