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Unread 22-08-2016, 22:10
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AKA: Nicholas Dal Porto
FRC #5940 (B.R.E.A.D.)
Team Role: Tactician
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Rookie Year: 2012
Location: Burlingame, California
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Re: Optimal motor controllers?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bkeeneykid View Post
I would highly recommend against the SD540B, and you can see the reasons why here: https://www.amazon.com/review/R1JCF3...toys-and-games

TL;DR: The case is 3D printed, feels like it's going to fall apart, the solder joints are pretty bad, and (not mentioned in that review) only seven teams used them this year.

I'd recommend going for the SPARK unless you REALLY need the space or the CAN abilities. The CAN is nice, but unless you're really tight on wiring space or need those nice features, like built in PID control or more control over aspects of the motor controller through code, you don't need it. I made the mistake of thinking we did need these this year, and I wasted $40 and a free motor controller through the voucher.
HUGE second on the SD540B. You can also read more about why in this CD thread: https://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=139581. The banking capability is also something you generally don't want, because when one fails you are essentially stuck with a dead controller on your robot.

I think the Spark is great for a budget model, but I'm also a huge fan of the Talon SRX. They have a small form factor, and the ease of wiring just CAN is the main selling point for me. It's way easier to chain all of the controllers together with just one wire on each, rather than have half a dozen PWM wires going to your RoboRio. We used them this season and they were fantastic.

TL;DR: SD540B is not very good, Spark is a good all-around inexpensive option, and the Talon SRX is awesome.

Hope that helps!
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