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More Motoron motor controllers!

Posted by Jan on 23 June 2023

We recently added six new low-power variants to our Motoron line of basic serial motor controllers: four Mxx550 1- and 2-channel versions, as well as 3-channel versions for Arduino (M3S550) and Raspberry Pi (M3H550).

1- and 2-channel micro motor drivers

The new M1T550, M1U550, M2T550, and M2U550 are single- and dual-channel serial motor controllers in a micro footprint. With a maximum motor supply voltage of 22 V, the Mxx550 versions are a great way to control small motors powered by power supplies up to 12 V and battery packs up to 12 cells in series for alkaline, NiCd, and NiMH, or up to 4 cells in series for LiPo. These are lower-voltage, pin-compatible versions of the Mxx256 models we released earlier this year, which have a maximum motor voltage of 48 V and can deliver slightly more current but are otherwise almost identical.

Here is the full array of tiny Motoron options, including I²C and UART serial interface versions:

Motoron motor controllers
micro versions

M1T550



M1U550

M2T550



M2U550

M1T256



M1U256

M2T256



M2U256
Control interface: I²C or UART serial
Motor channels: 1 (single) 2 (dual) 1 (single) 2 (dual)
Minimum motor
supply voltage:
1.8 V 4.5 V
Absolute max motor
supply voltage:
22 V 48 V
Recommended max
nominal battery voltage:
16 V 36 V
Max continuous
current per channel:
1.8 A 1.6 A 2.2 A 1.8 A
Available versions
with I²C:
Available verions
with UART serial:
Price: $12.49 – $14.49 $15.95 – $17.95 $16.95 – $18.95 $23.95 – $25.95

3-channel motor drivers for Arduino and Raspberry Pi

We also released larger (but still small!), 3-channel versions in Arduino (M3S550) and Raspberry Pi (M3H550) compatible form factors. These again have a maximum motor supply voltage of 22 V and correspond to the 48 V max M3S256 and M3H256 versions we released in 2022. Here is the full line of larger Motoron serial motor controllers, including the even higher-power, dual-channel Motorons in full-size Arduino Shield or Raspberry Pi Hat form factors:

Motoron motor controllers
Arduino and Raspberry Pi form factor versions

M3S550



M3H550

M3S256



M3H256

M2S24v14



M2H24v14

M2S24v16



M2H24v16

M2S18v18



M2H18v18

M2S18v20



M2H18v20
Control interface: I²C
Motor channels: 3 (triple) 2 (dual)
Minimum motor
supply voltage:
1.8 V 4.5 V 6.5 V
Absolute max motor
supply voltage:
22 V 48 V 40 V 30 V
Recommended max
nominal battery voltage:
16 V 36 V 28 V 18 V
Max continuous
current per channel:
1.7 A 2 A 14 A 16 A 18 A 20 A
Available versions
for Arduino:
M3S550 M3S256 M2S24v14 M2S24v16 M2S18v18 M2S18v20
Available versions
for Raspberry Pi:
M3H550 M3H256 M2H24v14 M2H24v16 M2H18v18 M2H18v20
Price: $20.95 – $30.95 $34.95 – $44.95 $59.95 – $69.95 $115.95 – $124.95 $59.95 – $69.96 $95.95 – $104.95

The great thing about the Motorons is that you can easily string together or stack multiple controllers, mixing and matching sizes to fit your application. For example, you could use one high-power dual motor version for drive motors on a mobile robot and then add a smaller 3-channel motor controller for additional actuators. This arrangement with three stacked Motorons on an Arduino Uno allows simple control of up to 9 motors:

The common protocol between versions also makes it easy to change motor sizes and to reuse your code between projects. Want to make a bigger version of your first prototype? Just use a higher-power Motoron! Want to make a tiny robot next time? Use a tiny Motoron! Want to… you get the idea.

While the 3-channel boards are designed to stack on Arduinos or Raspberry Pis, they are also easy to use on breadboards:

It may be easy to view the six new Mxx550 Motorons as just lower-voltage versions of the previously available Mxx256 Motorons, but I am especially excited about them because we are able to offer them at a very low price, extending the legacy of the Dual Serial Motor controllers that were among our first products over 20 years ago. We are launching the 2-channel M2T550 and M2U550 at just $15.95, a lower price than the original Dual Serial Motor controller from 2001 (without even adjusting for inflation!).

The chip shortages of the past several years have made it especially difficult to introduce new products and to keep their prices down, but things are finally seeming to get better on that front. You can see in the tables above that the higher-power 2-channel Motorons are much more expensive; those prices are still elevated because we are limited on some critical components we use there and in our other products. We should be able to manufacture plenty of the new Motorons without being constrained in a similar way.

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