SKR board wiring/flash

Software / Firmware SKR Boards
1

Hi there,

I am in the midst of building my Lowrider V3. I’m at the point where I’m trying to get my board all put together and flashed. Unfortunately, I’m having trouble getting power to my board. I purchased the hardware Kit from Ryan which came with a power cable. When I try to rig it up to provide power with the provided power cable, I get nothing. When I switch the SKR board to the USB power and plug the USB printer cable into my computer/SKR board, it lights up like a Christmas tree. Am I doing something wrong?

Since I couldn’t get power to it using the power cable, I thought I’d try and flash the board with USB power.
I’m trying to flash the board with the firmware since I had to buy mine online since V1E didn’t have any in-stock when I purchased my supplies. When I power it up with the SD card plugged in, I don’t get any indication that the flash was successful.

Any words of wisdom for a complete newby!?

Thanks

2

There is a tiny jumper for choosing to power from the big cables (vcc) or the usb. You need to move it to the vcc side.

If you have any questions. Share a picture and we can show you where the jumper should be.

1 Like
3

Thanks Jeff. I have it set for VCC - I only moved it when I plugged it into the USB. Still no power with it on VCC. I’ll try to send a picture when I’m home from work to show you what I’m working with, but I have been moving the Jumper based on what power source I’ve been trying to use

2 Likes
4

Howard - I will explore the Github information and try to load the correct firmware.

I have the SKR pro set up with the V1 firmware. I want to use the extruder signal to drive a paste applicator stepper motor but it sends an error that the temperature is not correct. I get an error that stops the cycle. Is there a code I can send to the firmware to turn off the thermistor or replace it with a 100 ohm resistor? How do I cancel the firmware checking the temperature? I have never changed code before so please explain the steps I should do… thank you

5

Take the microSD card out of the SKR and plug it into your laptop/computer and look at the files on it. If the flash was successful the firmware.bin file will now be called firmware.cur

Got a test meter? Is the power supply outputting a voltage?

6

I the exact same problem with 3 SKR pro boards that I have purchased and can’t for the life of
Me get them to load V1 firmware.

I disconnect all wires.
Connect only the usb cable.
Change the jumper to USB 3vt
Insert the V1 firmware.
Connect the USB port power.
Connect the touch screen black cable. Then grey cables.
Usually the touch screen works when powered but not the Marlin.
Changing the power volt and jumper to 24 volts
Will drive the steppers in some boards.
The firmware never changes status and seems like it’s not loading.

7

You are placing the SD card in the slot on the SKR Pro? You don’t have to disconnect the display nor set the board up for USB power to get it to flash. You can tell if it did flash if the file name on the SD card changes to firmware.cur. Given that you’ve tried multiple boards, the most likely problem is the SD card. It needs to be formatted as FAT32. Larger SD cards will not format as FAT32. I think the dividing line is 32GB, but it might be 16GB.

8

yes I plug a 8mg micro card into the skr pro.
It’s fat but formatted. I have tried several cards and several loads to no avail. I want to try Marlin firmware but don’t know enough to make all the changes. Which V1 version would work best for a laser? How do I get any of these to load? I have a brand new SKR pro board but don’t dare to do anything with out more instruction…

9

I have four Pro boards plus the new one.

10

The Marlin firmware needs to match your machine, and I’ve not provided any details about your machine or your endstops. You will find the versions of the V1 maintained firmware on this page. If you built a Primo with dual endstops, then you want is V1CNC_SkrPro_Dual_2209. If you built a Lowrider, then the one you want is V1CNC_SkrPro_DualLR_2209.

After downloading the ZIP file at the provided link, unzip the file and put firmware.bin on your SD card. It should be as simple as inserting the card in the slot on the SKR Pro with the power off, and then applying power. As mentioned above, you don’t need to run the board on USB power, nor disconnect the display. The file name will change to firmware.cur if the flash is successful.

Both of the firmware versions I’ve referenced above are setup for TMC2209 drivers. Laser support is enabled in both versions. I am very happy using my laser on my Primo with Marlin firmware.

If you try the above (including an alternate SD card formatted FAT32), and you still cannot get the boards to flash, it is possible you’ve lost the bootloader on the boards. On the forum, we occasionally see lost bootloaders, but it would be extremely unlikely to have three boards lose their bootloaders…unless you are doing something with your wiring that is shorting the board out.

11

When I flash the bin firmware - where does it show the change to cur?

Do I put the micro chip into an adapter and then plug it into my computer?

Does the SKR pro connect thru a USB cable? Can I load the firmware through the USB?

What number pin is set up for a laser signal in Ryan’s firmware?

How many amps can the board handle before it needs a separate power supply? 5 watt laser.

12

I have an MPCNC with out endstops. It has 2209 drivers and the pins clipped. It’s set with the touchscreen and 24 volt power 30 amps.

What firmware version should I use?

13

When I flash the bin firmware - where does it show the change to cur?

The file on the SD card gets renamed. You need to view the SD card on your windows computer to see if the name has changed.

Do I put the micro chip into an adapter and then plug it into my computer?

If that is required to view the SD card, then yes, you need to put in an adapter and view the contents.

Does the SKR pro connect thru a USB cable?

You can use a USB cable to send g-code commands to your SKR Pro (after successfully flashing it with Marlin). You need some sort of program, like Repetier-Host, as a g-code sender.

Can I load the firmware through the USB?

I don’t know for sure, but, on the forum, I’ve never read of an SKR Pro being flashed that way. Everyone just uses an SD card.

What number pin is set up for a laser signal in Ryan’s firmware?

It is set for PC9. That pin is on Extension-1. You can find a pinout diagram here.

How many amps can the board handle before it needs a separate power supply? 5 watt laser.

It is safest to pull the power from where the power supply attaches to the control board, BUT you need to feed the correct voltage to your laser. You have a 24V power supply, but most lasers take a 12V power supply. If your laser requires 12V, you will have to step down the voltage, or you will need to use a separate power supply. Note that PC9 just controls the laser, and does not carry any significant current. If you pull the power from where I suggest, there is no “board” issue with respect to current.

What firmware version should I use?

This will depend on how you wired your steppers. If you have a separate cable running from the SKR Pro to each stepper motor (recommended), then you will want to use V1CNC_SkrPro_Dual_2209. If you wired your motors in series/serial (only using 3 drivers), then you will want to use V1CNC_SkrPro_2209.

14

It sounds like you are trying to program this like an arduino using the USB cable. Just take the SKR, disconnect the LCD and everything else. Put the SD card in the SKR SD card slot (not on the LCD) with the correct .bin file. Power it from the DC power source. Wait for a minute or so or for the lights to stop blinking. pull the SD card and check on your computer if the .bin file has been renamed to a .cur file and you know it worked. If the file name did not change, then try again using the USB cord plugged in to a power jack, not your computer. You can also try them powered at the same time, but you should not need to.

I had a similar problem with my Skr pro and when using just the USB to try and power the board. I didn’t mess with the jumper and after using the wired power, got it to flash. Once you get that power combination set correctly, it will flash and then you are good to go.

Once the file name has changed, reconnect the LCD and verify it works, then reconnect everything else and test it.

15

I am using a SKR pro board that was formatted by V1. I don’t have the original chip and don’t know how to get access to the code. Can I connect thru the USB? Can I download the firmware to a chip? Is there a gcode I can send thru Repetier to turn off the thermistors? I can get the gantry to respond but it sounds the alarm and shuts down. If I could disconnect the temperature controls I would be closer……

16

https://docs.v1e.com/electronics/skrpro/

This is the information for the SKR Pro, and has the links to all of the firmware builds you might need for it for V1 machines, as well as the roll outs and flashing information for the TFT35 E3 screens.

17

Not easily. But the firmware is at MarlinBuilder releases. M115 shows the current version installed. It should be something like 515DL. Since this isn’t your post, I can’t see what machine you are trying to use it on. It would be best to make your own post, with details and pictures about your machine, and we can follow some debugging steps relevant to your issues.

18

Thanks Jeff,
I have a new SKR pro that Ryan sold as flashed for a series wired board. I get a V1 3dp 515P ready code.
I have the gantry working and can run the crown test from the chip on the TFT screen. What I want to do is use the extruder circuit to run the stepper motor for a syringe paste applicator but the print/run function is looking for the bed and hot end to have a thermistor response before it will continue running. It goes into alarm mode and error shuts down. Is there a code I can send to disable the temperature requirement? It needs to be simple because I am not a programmer…

Can I use the SKR Pro with a USB connection and Repetier to send the code?

Thanks in advance.
Rand

19

That isn’t possible. You need to disable the cold extrude safety feature, or set a dummy thermistor to a temperature high enough to trick it. Both these options require changing the configuration and recompiling.

Please open a new topic. You’re going to want a lot of specific help, and we want all the info in one place.

20

Uh. Go back to the marlinbuilder releases and get firmware for the MPCNC. 515P is printer firmware, and you want CNC firmware, I think