am-2816a encoder

[Ether]

Originally Posted by wildaburk3160

do you believe that a PID system would be better and more precise than the system I have described?

Yes. Especially when you decide to put a load on the motor.

You will need to re-tune the PID gains when you put a load on the motor.

Or would another sensor such as a potentiometer be better for our purposes?

If the encoder is working properly, the problem is not the encoder.

An absolute sensor (like a potentiometer or absolute encoder) might be slightly easier to use, because with the relative encoder you need to tell it where zero is.