Gerber Edge Le Gs-15 Plotter With Graphix Advantage

[Ray312]

To admin: Please relocate thread if this isn't the proper place to post. THX

I just recently acquired a Gerber Edge & a GS-15 plotter on a deal I couldn't turn down. The printer has a bad head. 2 inches of the vinyl has several pixels burnt out. But I can work around it.
I have the PC tower & dongle that came with the system. However, the computer will not power up so I can't access the software. I've been wanting this type of print system because of being able to print white onto film something other printers can't do.
So I am trying to find software that would run this printer & plotter. I don't need to have the latest software which can get pretty pricey. I just need something that could get me up and running with reasonable costs something that I can run on Vista.
I would also need to locate the cable to the printer to PC connection which is missing.

I also bought the plotter GS-15 with the printer and that cable has the dongle Graphix Advantage hooked up to it, that is where I am told the software runs from.

Anyone with experience with these machine that is willing to help me out would be highly appreciated.

The plotter had a continuous beeping sound till I press reset, but I'm not sure if that's because it's not connected to the computer software, so I keep it off. I did hit the skew buttons and nothing happened, so I don't know if the plotter is damaged or it just won't function without it recognizing the software.
If I can't get the plotter working for some reason I will try and cut my designs off of the Roland. (yes, I know it's pin fed & & uses a different system But I found a guy that does it this way because his Edge does't have the plotter.)

Well, again thanks to anyone who is willing to help me out with this issue.

 

[Jburns]

Welcome,

To Start-
1. the Dongle for Graphix Advantage may be the software you need. The downside is that its like 16 or 32 bit ?? compatible - so Windows 98 etc or a really old computer.
2. You can upgrade the software to Omega 6.0 for probably 900.00- verify serial number with Gerber. (Graphix Advantage was first version- then omega, 2, 3, 4, and now 6.0). You need the CP version.
3. The GS-15 is throwing an error code-check a post that I made I believe in the Gerber section to see what the error is ( may be the same for HS / GS). It does not need to be connected to software to move the carriage or drum.
4. you can use a USB- Parralel cable - sold by Gerber for their printers - and compatible with Omega 6.0
5. The dongle should be connected to the computer- I am not aware of it working when connected to the plotter.
6. You can use the RS-232 cable to the computer for the plotter.

Hope this helps.

 

[signgirl]

Back in the Casmate days my dongle was connected to the parallel port then my plotter connected to the dongle. Heck I still have my graphix advantage dongle and Casmate dongle!
Grab yourself a laptop on eBay with windows 98 op, parallel port and serial port for the plotter along with a keyspan. Keyspan make everything old work lol!

Best of luck to you! I've been down this road often!

 

[signgirl]

Back in the Casmate days my dongle was connected to the parallel port then my plotter connected to the dongle. Heck I still have my graphix advantage dongle and Casmate dongle!
Grab yourself a laptop on eBay with windows 98 op, parallel port and serial port for the plotter along with a keyspan. Keyspan make everything old work lol!

Best of luck to you! I've been down this road often!

 

[GaSouthpaw]

I seriously doubt you're going to be able to run the Gerber software on a modern computer, but I'm kind of a pessimist. (Plus, you're unlikely to find one with a printer port to plug that dongle into). On the plus side, most newer sign softwares will run the Edge. And, as JBurns mentioned, you can likely get Gerber to give you an upgrade deal.
The plotter sound, I second the previous comments- it's some kind of error. If you can't see the error code, or it's no help- take the cover off around the roller and see if anything looks amiss underneath. If you're not able to stop the noise, the plotter most likely won't function- but, you should be able to plot your printed items on any plotter, as long as you're using the correct plotter marks. I've run Edge graphics on Graphtec and Mimaki plotters and it will work.

 

[Hielorojo]

Buy a old laptop with XP(with parallel&serial port) and you can use your equipment without problems. The beeps from the plotter is because there is not connection with the computer, do not worry about it.

 

[Ray312]

Here lies my problem at this moment. I have the s PC tower that came with the printer when I bought it with the program loaded onto the hard drive,, but the computer won't power up so that I can run the software. The other problem I'm having is that I bought the printer from a shop that closed down and there was no disk with all the items, I have the dongle. Will Gerber give you a trade in/upgrade without the disk.
Also, what if I am not the original buyer of the software, since I bought it used will they honor it and place me as the current owner, such as someone that bought a used car?
Sorry for all the noobie questions.

Thanks. To everyone that has chimed in,

 

[signgirl]

Here lies my problem at this moment. I have the s PC tower that came with the printer when I bought it with the program loaded onto the hard drive,, but the computer won't power up so that I can run the software. The other problem I'm having is that I bought the printer from a shop that closed down and there was no disk with all the items, I have the dongle. Will Gerber give you a trade in/upgrade without the disk.
Also, what if I am not the original buyer of the software, since I bought it used will they honor it and place me as the current owner, such as someone that bought a used car?
Sorry for all the noobie questions.

Thanks. To everyone that has chimed in,[/QUOTE

 

[GaSouthpaw]

Normally, as long as you have the dongle, they will do the upgrade. They'd normally ask you to register with them as the owner, too. This might not be the case anymore, though, but it used to be their SOP.
Unfortunately, if they won't agree to that, you've got a boat anchor until you get a program to run it. You might be able to get a computer repair shop to get the PC working again (sounds like a power supply), but- sooner or later- it's going to crap out.

 

[signgirl]

I would give them a call and explain your situation then go from there I did notice a graphics advantage program on eBay if omega doesn't work out for you

 

[Ray312]

Well, thank you all for the help. After calling one of Gerber's distributors I was able to get some good information. I can upgrade the software to the latest version of Omega which is now 6.5 for around $900. Which is way better than purchasing it at $2,000+.
For the price of some older software where people are asking around the $500 range an extra $400 isn't too bad of a price to pay for an updated version which will give me all the current tools to the software as apposed to using GA which will not have many of the features I'd like to have. So even if i was able to open GA on the current system it wouldn't offer me the tools a new version would have.
So that's what i'll be doing.
I paid $600 for the printer,plotter, software & 30 print cartridges n several rolls of film, an additional $900 for the correct software doesn't seem like too bad of a deal.
$1500 for a full system isn't too shabby.
So I think I've gotten a helluva deal at this point.

Thank you all for your help!
= )

 

[Jburns]

I agree - you will really like the new software - the old GA would be so hard to use if you use current computers. I have 6.0 and its pretty cool to work with. Don't forget the USB cable for the printer from Gerber. Omega 6.0 ( 6.5) only works with the USB cable - about 100 bucks. ( been there - tried that).

Also - the GS-15 is a very nice plotter - the new versionGS15Plus costs 7K.

 

[Ray312]

I agree - you will really like the new software - the old GA would be so hard to use if you use current computers. I have 6.0 and its pretty cool to work with. Don't forget the USB cable for the printer from Gerber. Omega 6.0 ( 6.5) only works with the USB cable - about 100 bucks. ( been there - tried that).

Also - the GS-15 is a very nice plotter - the new versionGS15Plus costs 7K.

Thanks for the tip on the cable. I more than likely would've gone through them for the cable because of Gerber being the main source for parts, but anything I should know about these machine and how to get them working together would be highly appreciated.

At the moment I'm still running on Vista 32bit. It's an older version of Windows but I have all my other printers n plotter running on it and so far no major hicups, so I just leave it. (if it ain't broken, don't fix it) I don't load much software onto this PC to keep from getting conflicts and the PC itself has been running good, so I am not looking to retire it anytime soon.
Do you think Omega would run ok on Vista on an older PC?

Also, what are the main issues with these machines? I do have some bad pixels on the head already and I have to replace the shocks, but what other things should I know about replacing or maintaining?