prestonservco 26 Posted June 11, 2016 I need a longer serial cable, but which one to buy? I want to use a serial connection for my MH871 MKII. I've owned 3-4 of these cutters, and realize that serial is the best connection. I moved my office location and thought it was time to buy a new cutter. After all, the other one has been in use for about 5 years. Not bad for a $300 machine. The 8' cable that came with the machine works fine, that is if I want to sit on top of it while in use. I have a U shaped desk, and need an 15 foot cable to extend around the desk. I tried to extend the cable with a serial cable from a previous MH871, but that didn't work. After much aggravation, I found that the second cable didn't work at all, even when used by itself. I read in one of the threads that a Null Modem Serial Cable is what I need, so I bought one. It doesn't work, either. Only the cable that came with the machine works. So.....which cable should I purchase? Scott Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dakotagrafx 7,297 Posted June 11, 2016 I believe all the mh series use a null modem serial cable Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BearlyRich 167 Posted June 12, 2016 Not all RS-232 cables are created equally. Many cheap ones are only 3 wire. That's the minimum needed for communications but won't work for most of the equipment out there. Make sure you get a quality null modem cable with all the wires. (Disclaimer: My head is currently screwed up fighting a tooth infection) I believe you need at least a 5 wire cable that would include the DTS and CTS lines. Wait a sec, what about the DSR line? I think there a total of 7 wires in a complete 9=pin RS-232. But not that I think about it... I thought there was only one pin unused? Aww-heck, someone with a clear head can straighten that out Another option that I went with is an RS-232 extension cable. Again you have to make sure it has ALL the wires! If you have a working cable, then it will work with the extension cable... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites