Sneak peak at 2016 models.
We are slowly integrating some new improved models into the pipeline for mid year and into the late fall. I know that a lot of people are going to want to know when, where, how, etc. But that's not the exact point of this thread. Know how car magazines try to get glimpses of long rumored products...pictures of the mules or ready for production pre-release fun drives? That's this thread. So...we'll give out the information details more when we have things fully in stock. We will have a few of these models being released and integrated as we go. Already we have a couple.
But let's talk about what is going on a bit behind the scenes here... A good bit of our line as you know is digital. And it's proven to be reliable and serviceable with the modular component design where items or commonalized (is that a word?) to improve long term repair and service.
A few of our products that you know are digital:
PowerTIG 210EXT
PowerTIG 255EXT
PowerTIG 325EXT
Power iTIG 200T
PowerARC 280STH
A few of our products that you may not know are already digital:
PowerMTS 250S
PowerMTS 200
Power iMIG 200
Power iMIG 205
And we have a few more that will be digitalized(or is it digitized the more accepted term?) this year and released as the 2016 models...some already here in limited quantities for select customers.
A few of you are wondering about what we define as DIGITAL. That's a good question and definitely a valid one.
A lot of people see electronics and digital displays and think the unit is digital.
No, it's not necessarily so.
Some people see knobs and automatically think it's analog.
No, it's not so.
I am probably not qualified enough to point out the fine points in digital versus analog. I'll leave that to those that are. However, I constantly hear, "I'd rather have analog, they are simpler and I can work on it or its less trouble." Admittedly I thought the same thing when we first started considering digital production of some TIGs. But in reality, the digital versions have been far less complicated, weigh less, and have fewer parts and discreet circuits. In some cases, a single board design which makes repair and service quite easy, especially for customers a long way from our service facility who might be able to repair themselves. The biggest advantage is that it makes upgrading programming or refitting welders a possibility (as you will see in the video clip below) without having to completely rewire and retrofit components and part so that the newest versions will gee haw ( get along) with the older parts.
As we seek to define digital production for us and our goals for 2016 and onward, we are simply designating the unit as digital if the major processes of the unit are digitally controlled with a microcontroller (processor). The units may still feature control knobs which are either analog pots or digital encoders. For our new small MIG line (the 200 and 205), they are digitally controlled with analog potentiometers. But the MTS units have knobs that are digital encoders. Anyway google digital encoder if you don't know what it is. Both have been reliable and have improved our products greatly, not only in reliability, but also in the quality feel they have and the features we can offer.
As we promised our customers when we brought out the new digital line, the old line units weren't going anywhere, but if anything they'd be improved. And that's what we've done as we've begun to digitalize them. Yep. The new 250EX will be running a microcontroller and as you will see in the video I've put together with a couple short sneak peak clips from Duncan, it's the same 250EX, but it's not... it's better, simpler and well a whole lot neater inside. Still have the basic look and feel of the 250EX, but with a couple of minor differences. One we've done away with the rocker switches and replaced them with touch pads. This isn't wholly bad as now you can actually see from a distance what setting you've selected as it will be lit up.
This is a sneak peak at the NEW 250EX.
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Originally Posted by performance
The only constant is change.
