Universal M-300 on a USB to Parallel

[Bill George]

Considering a 1999, Universal M-300 and the tube is new/rebuilt exchanged as of a month ago. Owner says Parallel and XP, but will it run on a USB to Parallel cable? I see Windows 7 drivers on the Universal website.

Wondering if owners of this machine can share some knowledge on how well it works?

[Brian Leavitt]

I'm sure it will be fine. I run our older X2-600 and X-660 on USB-to-Parallel cables. Only problem I've ever had was needing a USB repeater due to the length of my cables. Best bet, to be sure, would be to give ULS a call and ask them.

[Nicolas Silva]

I am currently running an M-300 on Windows 7 using a USB to Parallel cable. Never had a problem. Like you've already seen,
make sure you have the correct print driver from ULS.

[Art Swander]

I am also running an M-300 on Windows 7 and Windows 8. I use a USB to Parallel cable and have had no issues at all once I found a good cable. That was a little bit of an issue, as I tried about 3 different brands of cables before I found one that would work everytime. My recommendation is to find one with an FTDI chipset, the manufactures who use these will usually proclaim boldly that they do. Once I tried that one, I have been using it for about a year and a half with no issues at all. Just make sure that you go to the ULS Website, and get the latest drivers, available for free, and you will have no problems at all.

[Bill George]

I am also running an M-300 on Windows 7 and Windows 8. I use a USB to Parallel cable and have had no issues at all once I found a good cable. That was a little bit of an issue, as I tried about 3 different brands of cables before I found one that would work everytime. My recommendation is to find one with an FTDI chipset, the manufactures who use these will usually proclaim boldly that they do. Once I tried that one, I have been using it for about a year and a half with no issues at all. Just make sure that you go to the ULS Website, and get the latest drivers, available for free, and you will have no problems at all.

Art do you have a Brand name to post? I am about to do the same thing. my old XP computer with Parallel port is out in the shop. With my newest Lenovo ThinkPad I can get 5 bars out there, with my old XP it struggles to get 1 or 2 bars. Shopping for another Lenovo now and it will be only USB.

[Ed Newbold]

I haven't found a USB to Parallel cable that indicates it uses FTDI; I have found many USB to Serial cables that list FTDI. Is there a particular brand or manufacturer you recomment for the FTDI-compliant USB to Parallel cable? Thanks very much.

[Craig Kulbacki]

I haven't found a USB to Parallel cable that indicates it uses FTDI; I have found many USB to Serial cables that list FTDI. Is there a particular brand or manufacturer you recomment for the FTDI-compliant USB to Parallel cable? Thanks very much.

I have an M30, the 1997 version of the one the post was started about. I got usb to parallel to work for a while on windows 8 but then kept messing up with windows updates. I'm sure there's a better cable that won't mess up but I just said forget it and installed a parallel port on my pc and haven't had a problem since. USB to parallel can be tricky for some reason, my cable didn't say it was FTDI. But a lot of reviews on amazon said it worked great, so maybe it was just my setup.

[Ed Newbold]

I've just wasted a couple of hours trying to install the M-300 printer drive using Universal's instructions and driver download. Everything goes great (and according to the instructions) until the final step. Then it fails, saying "Printer driver was not installed. The system cannot find the file specified." Gues I'm going to have to call them in Arizona tomorrow and have a talk with their tech support. I'm the original owner, so that shouldn't be a problem. Good night guys.Screenshot 2023-04-26 214816.png

[Ed Newbold]

Humble pie. One more attempt to install the driver this morning, but this time I unzipped the files to my "Desktop" per Universal's suggestion in their installation document. Made all the difference in the world and installed correctly without any hiccups. I rushed off a msg to Universal tech support asking them to ignore my earlier request for assistance, which they did. Such a small thing but made such a big difference. As usual, RTM applies! Cheers folks.

[Mike Null]

Bill
I bought a new Universal 25 watt about 1997. It was a solid machine and easy to maintain. I don't remember for sure but it seems like it used a serial connection. Anyway, I have a good distance between my pc and the laser and had to buy new cables as communication issues would sometimes pop up. But it is a solid machine. FWIW, I paid $18,000 at the time.

[Bill George]

FYI folks that OEM post I put up was from 8 years ago.... long gone.

[Ed Newbold]

Just to finish off the discussion about the correct USB-Parallel cable for use with the Universal M-300, the one I found and worked perfectly was the TRENDnet USB to Parallel 1284 Converter Cable, TU-P1284. I bought it on Amazon for $12. Cheers.