1756-ENBT – Now Silver Series (2015)

By
Shawn Tierney
-


Earlier this month the widely used ControlLogix Ethernet module, part number 1756-ENBT, had it’s status updated to “end of life” on Rockwell’s Product Lifecycle Status page.

The product is now listed as going out of production in roughly 18 months, on December 31st, 2016.

1756-ENBT Goes Silver

The seemingly logical choice to replace the 1756-ENBT would be the newer and more capable 1756-EN2T.

Compared with the ENBT’s 64 TCP & 128 CIP connections, and 5000 I/O Packets per second limit, the EN2T is far superior with 128 TCP & 256 CIP connections, as well as supporting between 10,000 and 25,000 I/O Packets per second.

All versions of this newer module include a USB port for access to the module’s own configuration, as well as to the rest of the ControlLogix system.

This allows programming and configuration of interconnected devices, including the EN2T’s own Ethernet address.

The EN2T includes other enhancements over the ENBT, with one of the most versatile being Open Sockets support.

With a free AOI from Rockwell’s sample code website, users can quickly enable Modbus TCP communications over the EN2T using the open sockets feature.

1756-EN2TOpen sockets can also be used for interfacing with Ethernet based printers, bar code readers, and RFID systems.

On the down side, the 1756-EN2T currently carries a published list price 20% greater than the ENBT, which itself has seen a 20% price increase over the last few years.

And the EN2T, with it’s substantialy larger connection limit and packets per second rating, seems a little over powered for smaller systems or when used as a remote Ethernet I/O adapter.

Hopefully Rockwell realizes this and will release a new lower cost and lower functionality Ethernet module prior to the ENBT’s last day of production.

I hope you found the above article about the ENBT’s end of life announcement helpful.

If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions please feel free to share them by filling out the “post a comment or question” form below.

Until next time, Peace ✌️ 

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Shawn M Tierney
Technology Enthusiast & Content Creator

Eliminate commercials and gain access to my weekly full length hands-on, news, and Q&A sessions by becoming a member at The Automation Blog or on YouTube. You'll also find all of my affordable PLC, HMI, and SCADA courses at TheAutomationSchool.com.

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4 COMMENTS

  1. Rockwell’s Product Lifecycle Status page no longer lists the 1756-ENBT as “End of Life”, but instead as “Active Mature”. I contacted Rockwell TechConnect and on 11/17/2015 received the following response:

    “Dear Kell Pryor,

    You asked the following question in a recently submitted SAQ:

    Rockwell’s firmware download site lists the 1756-ENBT as “End of Life”. However, the Rockwell Lifecycle Status website lists it as “Active Mature” with no discontinued date listed. Several industry blogs provide screenshots of the same site, but showing the discontinued date to be 12/31/2016.
    – What is the correct current Lifecycle status of the 1756-ENBT?
    – Is Rockwell planning on discontinuing the 1756-ENBT in December of 2016?
    – What is the recommended migration for smaller systems, 1756-EN2T?

    Descriptive Answer to the question:

    The 1756-ENBT is an active product.
    Rockwell has not announced any discontinuation date for this product.”

    Perhaps they have changed their decision to end production of the 1756-ENBT.

  2. Last time I checked EN2T was $900 more then ENBT. I don’t know where your are getting that 20% increase, but I have not been that fortunate from my distributor. I will have to check again. Thanks for the warning.