Broken SD card reader in Replicator 2X

[Darvell Hunt]

I've had my Replicator since February and I LOVE it! I have had relatively few problems with it. I had my gantry get out of square, but that wasn't too hard to fix.

But now I think I have a major issue: my card reader seems to have failed. When I turn the machine on, it repeatedly beeps, as if you're inserting the card, and never stops. It plays the insert beeps over and over and I can't do anything. The menu pad is unusable and I can't do anything at all with it. It seems to be checking the SD card and can't access it, then keeps trying. If I fiddle with the card, the beeps change, but don't start.

I'm pretty sure there's a short in the card reader, or perhaps the card reader is just dead.

I'm pretty bummed about it. I ALWAYS use the card instead of the USB cable. In fact, I've never even tried the USB cable--until tonight. I discovered I can still print using the cable, as the Replicator 2X apparently ignores the card reader when it's getting input from the cable. So I'm up and printing, but when it stops, I start getting the beeping again.

How do I replace the card reader? Can I get a new card reader and replace it? From MakerBot or somewhere else? Do I have to order the LCD panel assembly or what? Anybody have this issue before? If I can replace the card reader myself, I'd prefer to replace it with one that readers higher capacity cards, if possible. Is it?

Unfortunately, I maxed out my finances to by the printer and didn't get the warranty plan. What kind of company provides no warranty and makes you purchase one, anyway?

So, what are my options? I LOVE this machine, but I'm pretty bummed right now.

Darvell

[Scottbee]

I assume you have triple-checked with a flashlight to verify that you don't have shards of filament down in the SD slot...?

[Dan Newman]

On 24/04/2014, 10:49 PM, Darvell Hunt wrote:
> I've had my Replicator since February and I LOVE it! I have had relatively
> few problems with it. I had my gantry get out of square, but that wasn't
> too hard to fix.
>
> But now I think I have a major issue: my card reader seems to have failed.
> When I turn the machine on, it repeatedly beeps, as if you're inserting the
> card, and never stops.

Ummm, the firmware has no "card inserted, beep code". It sounds like
your bot has had a problem since day 1 and what has changed is that the
problem has gotten worse. When you inserted a card, the card detect
switch was changing state but MBI's firmware absolutely, 100% ignores
that switch: the firmware doesn't have code to beep when the switch
changes state. That leaves some sort of electrical problem which is
having some sort of interference with the piezo buzzer.

I would contact MBI and tell them that the LCD / button / SD reader
module was broken since Day 1 but you lived with it. Now, it's gone
100% kaput and could they please send you another one.

But before you do that -- call MBI -- look in the SD card slot with
a flashlight (and maybe a magnifying lens) and make sure there is
no debris stuck in it. Fine strands of filament and other junk can
fall it. It was supremely silly of them to put the card slot into
the orientation they did as it just invites problems.

Dan

[MrScottJD]

I've finally now got to witness this issue. It acts like the center button is stuck, but it's not.
Somehow the command for the center button is being activated, which intern triggers the "print from sd card" in the menu.
It then checks but does not see an SD card and the beeps are generated from the "no SD card" error.
I was wondering if anyone has received parts from Makerbot for this, and if it's the control/LCD panel replacement that fixes this or if it's being caused by the board going bad.

I've seen 3 post now in regards to this issue and I'm curious to find out what part of the hardware failing is casing this.
The one I checked had no plastic in the SD card tray which leads me to believe this is a component on one of the circuit board failing.
Another common factor has been they are all rev H boards.

[Jetguy]

There is no electronic component to fail but the main 1280. Each button is an input line using the internal pull-up in the 1280 and shorted to ground by the rubber conductive button touching bare traces on the board.

Simple answer is something shorting aka- solder bead, ROHS tin whisker (aka Toyota uncontrolled acceleration), or the rubber button falling apart shorting the contacts.

It's that simple.

[Scott]

Interesting, so wonder if the board can be repaired?
Makerbot seems to think it's the SD card board that the LCD and touch pad consoler board plugs into. But when doing some further testing I realized that I'm not able to communicate to the board over USB either. Maybe they have to manufactured producing the same boards with slightly different parts.

I've noticed a difference in the board also. The one I was looking at with this failure seems to have regular black capacitors and not the short silver ones on the stepper break outs.
Also the thermocouple hook up is and plastic spring push down and not the screws tightening that I've seen on others.

Thank you,
Scott

[Dan Newman]

They've used both: early Rep 2's had the spring push terminals for the t/c's and the heater power
and other hookups. Truly dreadful but faster to assemble. Remember time == $$$. THen for a while
they went back to screw terminals. Then they switched back to push terminals.

BTW, there is a change in the Rev H electronics as regards the SD card. It necessitated
a firmware change: the clock for reading from the SD card had to be slowed down from 8 MHz
to 1 MHz. Running it at the old 8 MHz leads to lots of read failures. My assumption is
that they put in some sort of signal conditioning to improve the SD card read reliability.
(As opposed to slowing things down for FCC noise reduction. If it was merely a slowdown
to pass FCC muster, then running at 8 MHz would still work.)

Dan

[Scott]

Well I found the answer to the USB issue and found out his computer failed recently and was plugged into the USB port.
Behind the USB plug in port is 2 resistors solder points R48 and R47, R48 has a resistor in it.dykbv
Then next to those , one in each side is L23 and L22.
L22 is blown up, I guess the USB was plugged in to the computer when the computer power supply failed.

Thank you,
Scott

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[Dan Newman]

On 29/07/2014, 3:39 PM, Scott wrote:
> Well I found the answer to the USB issue and found out his computer failed recently and was plugged into the USB port.
> Behind the USB plug in port is 2 resistors solder points R48 and R47, R48 has a resistor in it.dykbv
> Then next to those , one in each side is L23 and L22.

Well it's anyone's guess what cause and effect were, but I leave my computer plugged in as
little as possible over USB to my bots. Too much DIY in the typical bot electronics for me
to want to trust nastiness to not get injected into the bot's ground plane. For MakerBots
at least, the bot has it's USB ground tied directly to the bot's ground plane. And that USB
ground then goes to my computer. I have no idea just how cautious the computer designers
are -- they know crap can come in over USB -- but can they handle, say, 24V+ at 10A for
a second? I'm less worried about my computer doing something bad and killing the bot. As
far as I can tell, the EE's hired to design computers do a good job. (A lot more money on
the line.)

Dan

[Jetguy]

Well in that case, consider that mainboard junk.

 

The 8u2 USB processor will not accept any fault- especially not any signal over xactly 5 volts. It's proven that 5.5 volt WILL BLOW THE CHIP.

And since it's an exposed pad chip- all but impossible to do without serious SMT soldering equipment.

 

I cannot stress enough, if saw damage to the inductors- we KNOW the 8u2 is blown sky high and everything else on that board took a decent jolt too.

[Scott]

Oh well, I checked a good board and found out it was a resister that blew out, look like it arced from the metal ground USB surrounding some how. Lazy electricity and its path of least resistance.

I was hoping to get another board I could fix for the 2560 chip swap and build a printer. I guess this is not the one. And since you mentioned everything on the board took a jolt, then the stepper controllers are trash also and I won't risk putting them in good board and causing damage to a good board.

Thank you,
Scott

[Nick Moretto]

I had the same problem with mine and called them up, sent me a new one for free but it ended up shorting my mightyboard also so they then sent me another mightyboard and another card reader