Guest Terry Posted January 27, 2007 Hi, Just a couple of questions. I heard on a few post that the cutter was loud, just want to be sure what I'm hearing is ok and normal, I don't want to damage anything. It is load with normal sounds but I also hear like a pinching binding sound like something is tight or rubbing on plastic or rubber. Is that a sound you have heard? and is it ok? :- Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thredz 1 Posted January 27, 2007 The reason I named my mh721 R2D2 was because it makes the sounds you describe.The rubbing and the modem sounds.But yes,loud is very normal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Terry Posted January 27, 2007 Thanks Billy, you seem to be the man on here LOL. One more question please... It smells a bit electrical hot, did yours? Read something about the boards going bad in some. Hey great idea about 4 meg upgrade, let me know if you here anything please. I would also buy it. I can connect with serial cable but not the parallel. Hope to figure that out. Sends and says holding then counts done progress but never goes to cutter. Windows XP, flexi starter edition, roland pnc 1000 chossen in setup. Also used the pen like you said on back of vinyl for testing instead of cutting vinyl all up in a waste. Thanks alot, keep up your great tech advice on here. Terry Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thredz 1 Posted January 27, 2007 I don't know about the electrical smell.Maybe you should get with marcel and talk to him about it.But R2 don't stink!When I got the copam,I had trouble with the usb install,and tried the lpt port.I have flexi,but I had installed signcut because it's the program that is bundled with the cutters and I wanted to be able to give support if possible.When I installed the cutter,it showed in signcut,but just like your problem,would not do anything.I had read in a forum a while back that it helps to install a generic/text only printer in your windows printers and scanners folderl.So,I went to the folder and installed the text only driver and when I went back to signcut,it read it with no problem.It has been working ever since.You might try that and see if it works.Just remember to restart your computer after the install.And if it doesn't work,you can always uninstall the text driver. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest fivestar Posted January 27, 2007 Terry check the power cord and make sure it is not melted any. Mine smelled a little when I got mine and the power cord looked like it was melted so I replaced it since I have about a million power cords laying around here and everything is working great now. I chalked it up to a bad power cord and mine sounds like a robot auctioneer when cutting too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Terry Posted January 28, 2007 Thanks guys, Robot auctioneer, R2D2... LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarcelC 5 Posted January 29, 2007 It is loud and sounds a bit like the old video Atari game defender to me but it shouldn't smell like you just fired off some rounds at alien robot ships :- First make sure the carriage is on the tracks, it will make an awful sound if it comes off the tracks. Don't be afraid to take the side panel off where the motherboard is to check the cable connections etc. Try to locate where the smell is coming from and let me know if there is still a problem. Replacing the power cord as suggested before is an excellent suggestion too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TaterNuts 3 Posted February 4, 2007 Noisy??? This sucker is like a whisper compared to my Master Plotter... I have the R2... I guess I am just used to really noisy plotters Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
munoz45 0 Posted February 6, 2007 generally rubbing sounds mean something is wearing against something, like metal to plastic, metal to metal, plastic to gears, etc. not healthy sounds at all, would you drive your car everyday when the rotors are scraping? you are doiung the same thing here guys, and those who think this is quiet must never have been around high quality machines - roland/ graphtec Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thredz 1 Posted February 6, 2007 My sounds are not rubbing and scraping.I've been around high quality machines.I may not have owned a cutter before.But I have been in the sign business for years.If you wanted a roalnd,why didn't you buy one?I don't really get off on people making comments about another machine just because their cutter they paid $500.00 dollars for doesn't match up to a $5000.00 machine.Kind of like someone buying a ford escort and bitching about it because it's not like a cadillac. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
munoz45 0 Posted February 6, 2007 billy, whenever you buy something you expect it to work, to work as represented in the ad, if not you have the right to complain, maybe you have a good unit and that is great for you, we don't have a unit that works, we have had unit 45 days and gotten 45 minutes usage, you claim to have been around sign business for years - so can you make a living on that amount of production. I just wanted a machine that works, i knew going in this wasn't a roland, but then it is suppossed to be the "highest quality cutter" in it's price range, for the uniformed roland cutters do not cost 5,000 for a 24" unit, they are about 1100.00 because we are buying one and sending this defectuive unit back - whether they want it or not - they will have possesion of machine Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thredz 1 Posted February 6, 2007 I have seen a few people with problems when they bought their cutters.Out of the hundreds that are sold.And I've seen Marcel help the people with the problems,some of them hardware,and some of them software related.They can't ,and don't think anyone would expect them to be responsible to fix computer or driver installations that are on the buyers computers.And I think it's a good thing if you have bought a roland ,and are sending the other back.I strongly believe if your are not happy with a product,and have the option to do so,you should return it.But I also very strongly believe that if you are having issues with a product you should be working with the people you bought it from,and not slamming an oviously good product on a forum.I understand problems,but slamming a company,or their product on a forum that is here for support doesn't make your cutter run any better,and it also doesn't make it easy for anyone to try to help you solve your problem. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
munoz45 0 Posted February 6, 2007 I have contacted Marcel, three time now, each time the machines works for a few minutes then when I shut unit off, go to another program, etc. I loose all communication, I have done what Marcel has recommended, installed a serial port, a parallel port, tried a usb port, all do not work consistently. I think the processor board is out now, because software sends information but units just sits there, stupidly. I contacted Marcel yesterday and today and he has not contacted me back. So what do you think I should do, what would you do, what would anyone do at this point??? Marcel told me there is no return on machines, well what do you think of that. Do you offer money back to a dissatisfied customer at your business? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TaterNuts 3 Posted February 6, 2007 I agree Billy... The Refine is a Great Product for the money, Its not a Roland or a Graphtec, but then, I dont want to pay upto 4 times as much just for it to be silent... My Refine will do just about ANYTHING that any other machine will do... I feel that Munoz problem is probably software related, and not hardware related... It could also be shipping damage because I know that when shipping UPS, it doesnt matter to them if there is a fragile sticker or not... (I used to work there as an unloader)... I feel that I had problems with my cutter, all I wouild have to do is contact Marcell and he would be more than happy to resolve ANY issue that I was having with my machine... But its like they always say... Bad news travels fast... There are hundreds of people that have had zero problems with there machines, and, just like everything else you will ever buy, There will be a bad apple or 2 in a bushel, Just like Rolands! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thredz 1 Posted February 6, 2007 I do offer reurns on defective parts,or orders that are filled wrong from my own ignorance.But this is a whole different animal here.You are dealing with a machine that has to interface with a computer.And all computers are not the same,even if they use windows xp.When I tell somone to check their bios settings,I usually get the reply "what is the bios".If your ports are not set correctly in the bios,it will kick out any drivers you have set up when you turn the computer off because the bios simply won't allow the driver to communicate after the memory has cleared in the computer.I also found when I set up the cp-2500 that if you use the wrong driver,the machine will run slowly and run jagged cuts.I tried using a hpgl driver at first and thought it worked,until I did a few cuts and saw the jags.After I uninstalled all of the drivers I had tried and restarted my computer,I set it for a roland pnc1000 driver and it works x-o-lint now! It could be the bios settings,or if you are running a printer on a usb port,it could be a conflict between the drivers.If you are running it through a serial port,you can have irq conflicts with the mouse driver or the modem driver or the bios is set to disabled on the com ports.If you go through the lpt port you have to deal with printers or scanners that share the port or not have the cut software set up to run an ecp/epp driver,instead of a standard printer port.And that;s just a few of the problem areas.If you don't like artcut (which I hate as well),go to signcutx2.com and download the signcut program.I haven;t used it as much as flexi,but I am working with it,trying to understand how to run the program.And for the money it a good program for cutting. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TaterNuts 3 Posted February 6, 2007 WinPCSign has support for the Refine Cutters... Demo here - http://www.download.com/WinPCSIGN-Pro/3000-2191_4-10617735.html?tag=lst-0-1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarcelC 5 Posted February 7, 2007 That is good to know about winpcsign. I know it does work with the Refine plotters but haven't had much feedback yet from customers who use it. I know you can download a demo of that software but if I'm not mistaken you can't actually cut with the demo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarcelC 5 Posted February 7, 2007 Marcel told me there is no return on machines, well what do you think of that. Our return, shipping, and other policies are clearly stated on the ebay auctions. We offer very low prices on good products, and have hundreds of customers that are satisfied using our products. If we change the way we do business our prices will have to change to reflect that. We do our best to offer support and resolve any hardware issues with the plotters which is what this forum should be used for. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TaterNuts 3 Posted February 8, 2007 You can cut with the Demo, however, it pauses the plotter every once inawhile, and you have to click on the nag screen to continue cutting. I like the designing elements that are included with WinPCSign Software... Shadows, arc, Import just about any image... It has WYSIWYG cutting... Allows you to weld, It supports digital printing, also has standard and metric measurements. you can set the panel for the size of the vinyl you are using and actually layout everything just as you want it to cut down the roll. Ive attached a Screen Shot to show you what Im talking about. Ive been using this software for years, however, I am still learning new things with it. I can offer some support for anyone who has it or gets it. [attachment deleted by admin] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blake2415 0 Posted February 14, 2007 Noisy??? This sucker is like a whisper compared to my Master Plotter... I have the R2... I guess I am just used to really noisy plotters Hey, You mean this is quieter than the Master Cutter? Mine hasn't arrived yet but that's a good thing to hear. From the photos, it looks like this unit and the Master are built by the same factory in China. that could be good. But if so, I just hope they don't use the same mechanism on the cutter head. The Masters tend to swell after a while in the coil and it binds the up/down movement. I'm on my 3rd head for this, but the machine keeps running... Not bad! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TaterNuts 3 Posted February 14, 2007 Honestly, I believe that they are the same head... I put them next to one another and all the screw holes appear to be the same, even the carriage appears to be identical. I took the cover off each of the heads to see if they were the same, it looks like they have alot in common... On my master, the part that holds the blade holder on the head got broken, i think a replacement thru desay was around 80 bucks, (i just glued mine with crazy glue, and its still holding up)... But i believe the same head at uscutterdirect.com is only like $25 bucks... I will order one and see if it works when it eventually breaks again. I think what makes this plotter quieter is on the master, the fan is on the bottom, and its open, so it echos against the vinyl roll, on the refine, it is built diffrently, definately alot quieter... Let us know your opinion when you get your refine up and running... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
