Recommended motor drivers for SMC3 + Arduino UNO? BTS7960 overheating

Hello everyone,
I am working on a DIY motion simulator project using Arduino UNO with SMC3, DC motors, potentiometer feedback, and motor drivers.
At the moment, we are testing the system with one motor only, not connected to the final simulator mechanism yet. The power supply we are using is a Mean Well SDR-960-24, 24VDC, 40A, 960W.
For the motor driver, we initially used a BTS7960 / IBT-2 driver module. However, during testing, the driver became very hot, even at this early stage. Because of this, we are concerned that this driver may not be suitable for our motors and for reliable use with SMC3.
I wanted to ask:
Which motor drivers do you recommend for use with SMC3 and Arduino UNO for DC motors in a motion simulator?
Are there specific drivers that are known to work well and reliably with SMC3?
Would you recommend avoiding the BTS7960 / IBT-2 modules for this type of application?
Any advice regarding suitable driver current ratings, voltage compatibility, cooling requirements, or wiring considerations would be very helpful.
Thank you very much.

Use a fan to keep them cool.

That doesn’t sound right they shouldn’t be warm with no load. Under load a fan is a good idea but not mandatory. Maybe try a different BTS7960?

My experience is that there are a high number of infant failures. Once you get one that works they are just fine. Most of the alternatives cost 3 times as much (at least) so if you loose a few you’re still ahead.

BTS7960 modules often overheat with motion sim motors because of high current spikes. Better cooling can help, but many people have better results with Sabertooth or Cytron drivers for SMC3 setups.

Thank you for your reply, that makes sense.

I want to ask one more thing regarding Sabertooth or Cytron drivers with SMC3. Do they work with the standard SMC3 Arduino code, or do I need to use a different/modified version of SMC3 for these drivers?

At the moment, I downloaded the regular SMC3 code from the forum/site and used it with an Arduino UNO and BTS7960/IBT-2. If I switch to Sabertooth or Cytron, should I change the Arduino sketch, the SMC3 mode, or any specific settings?

Ok, I have one more question about using Sabertooth or Cytron drivers with a 24V switching power supply.

My supply is a Mean Well SDR-960-24, 24V / 40A. I read that with regenerative drivers, the motors can feed energy back during braking or direction changes, and some people recommend adding a battery in parallel with the power supply.

Is a battery/buffer required or recommended for Sabertooth 2x60 or Cytron MDDS60 in a 2DOF motion simulator?

Can I safely use only the switching power supply, or should I add two 12V lead-acid batteries in series / another protection method?