[Magic Smoke] When you accidentally connect the cable the wrong way

Snapmaker 2.0
1

By writing this, I hope to start a thread about this common problem, tell my story and share some pictures to help others that have made similar mistakes. I also intend to bring this to the attention of design engineers responsible for the electronics and enclosure.

TL;DR: When you accidentally connect the module cable flipped, you burn the main controller AND whatever module is connected at the time. Most streamlined option is buying a replacement controller and you affected module. It cost me US$200 - US$250 to order directly from the factory.

How I burnt your module

I received my A350 printer and played with it for two months. I Loved it so much I ordered the enclosure for more controlled laser smoke and ABS printing. The enclosure is as beautiful as the advertised. I do recommend it for those who are on the fence about usefulness. However, the enclosure made it difficult to access the system. Itā€™s specifically difficult to change the head module.

One day I was enjoying getting engaged in conversations on the Facebook group. I actually disconnected my cable once just to measure it and report the length to someone asking for the length. When connecting the cable back, I accidentally connected it in reverse on the 3D printing module side. It was impossible to look straight at the connection because the head was so close to the top of the case. In retrospect I should have pushed the head way down before attempting to connect the cable. In addition, the LEDs donā€™t work when your system is turned off for head replacement.

The cable did struggle a little when going in. After all it has a security flap. But it went in and it clicked. I turned the system on. 5 seconds later, the power brick restarted. Again it restarted a second time, and then I saw smoke coming from the 3D printer head. I ran to the back of the box and turned off the power brick. After reconnecting the cable the right way, I was unable to see the status of the module on the SnapMaker display module. When attempting to heat up the nozzle, it did not move from zero.

I disconnected the 3D module, and connected the laser module. Laser module worked partially. The laser seemed to be always on but at different powers, probably due to a busted IC on the main controller.

Cause

When the head module controller cable is connected in reverse, it reverses the GND and +24v pins on the board. This causes at least three ICs to burn: two on the 3D module controller board (possibly a 24DC ā†’ 5DC buck converter and a Microstepping Driver IC), and one IC on the main controller. The ICs are physically and noticeably damaged. The Microstepping Driver IC was under a heat sink and still fried easily. The 5V and 3.3V test nodes on the 3D printing module controller board were shorted to GND.

Solution

I decided not to take the risk of trying to repair the control board myself, especially since I was not sure if any other components (such as capacitors) could have also failed. I contacted support@snapmaker.com. They replied after 4 days making sure I understood that this problem is caused by reverse polarity and is not covered by the warranty. I accepted the responsibility and asked for replacement for a main controller and a 3D printing module. They quoted me a price less than US$250 shipped to my door. I do not know if this is retail price or factory price, so while the ballpark should be the same, your mileage may vary. I have been waiting for the replacement so I decided to share my experience and pictures with you.

Pictures

I took pictures of the two parts in case someone is interested. Disassembling SnapMaker 2.0 A350 3D module and controller, after having connected the cable in reverse polarity - Album on Imgur

3 Likes
2

Thanks for sharing your experience for others to learn! I seem to remember reading something similar on Facebook, and the statement from Snapmaker itself that they change the plugs of the cables to make this mistake more difficult or even impossible.
IMHO, Snapmaker should not have used proprietary connectors at allā€¦

2 Likes
3

Fully agree with you

4

Yeah, if they were going to use proprietary cables, they should have been asymmetrical.

5

Was that 250 cost for both the module and the controller or just one?

Did you say it was the 3d module that went out? we know that price and the laser too. This would allow us to know what just the controller costs, which is valuable information.

Also, did they give you diagnostic firmware to reassign your port for testing? If so can you share this?

6

I didnā€™t want to give an exact price in case the price fluctuates with time. They quoted me exactly $89 for the controller and $119 for the 3D printer module and didnā€™t charge me for shipping. I paid by paypal through https://www.paypal.me/snapmaker to an entity called ę·±åœ³åæ«é€ ē§‘ęŠ€ęœ‰é™å…¬åø which translates to Shenzhen Fast Manufacturing Technology Co., Ltd. in the city of Quanzhou, Fujian, in China ā€“ if you can trust Google translate.

I did a quick risk analysis and decided that it is very likely a legitimate transaction given both the diagnosis claim and the correct email/paypal link with snapmaker brand.

They did not give me anything to re-assign my ports and I didnā€™t ask for it. It was obvious for me there is damage on 3D module control board (2 ICs) and Main controller (1 IC). The laser module was not connected to the system at the time of magic smoke, so I believe itā€™s not damaged, even though there is a small chance the upstream controller IC could affect any module attached to it.

1 Like
7

I just did exactly the same thing. The new 10W laser has the connector 180 degrees out, so when I changed to the 3d print head, I just plugged the cable in the same orientation, went in pretty easily. Turned on, and BANG !
Would be much better if all connections on the heads were the same way round. Doesnā€™t excuse me not checking, but would reduce the likelihood

1 Like
8

image
image1591Ɨ2079 276 KB

And this is the capacitor that makes all the smoke when it pops

1 Like
9

Good thing that capacitor is a couple bucks to replace. If thatā€™s the only thing thatā€™s broken thatā€™s pretty much a best case scenario

10

Iā€™m not convinced thatā€™s the only part that went, but itā€™s the most obvious. Iā€™ll change the cap & check whether it works when I get a replacement board/main controller (which also blew) & post update here.
Snapmaker being pretty helpful so far :+1:

11

Same thing has happened to me. @RichRickett - did replacing the cap work?

12

Nope. Iā€™m away for a few weeks, when I get back Iā€™ll try other components; I suspect the voltage reg may also be popped. Definitely worth talking to support - theyā€™ve been great :+1:

13

I ended up shorting or reversing the 1505 part cooling fan mod and saw the magic smoke. Luckily I had ordered a spare module a few months ago when on sale. Now I need to try to repair the 3d print head module board and trouble shoot the circuit board.
Thank you for sharing your photos and experience!

14

Just had this happen to meā€¦
Have done this switch multiple times, donā€™t know how/why I failed to rotate the plug this time. Expensive learning experience for sure. Super irritated with myself.

This is definitely a design flaw. Wondering why they chose to rotate the input on the 10W, knowing that this reverse-polarity flaw already existed. I never considered this might be an issue either. Seems like this should be heavily pointed out. I donā€™t recall hearing anything about this, until I created the problem for myself.

Already re-ordered the print module, just waiting on support so I can pay for a new controller.

2 Likes
15

Thanks for sharing your experience and photos, I only wish I had been following the forum a bit closer as I have just done exactly what you did. Bugger! What a stupid mistake and stupid plug design! I have just ordered some replacement parts. I pleased that another follower has pointed out that the new 10w laser has the plug around the other way. I have just purchased one and have done some test cuts but didnā€™t even notice the plug was reversed. Hopefully the replacement parts will arrive quickly. An expensive mistake which the user shouldnā€™t be able to make. They should have a huge warning sticker if they are going to use these plugs.

16

Hi all, same problem here. Connected the plug on the 3D printer module reversed, realized that and turn it off. Plugged it back in the correct way but the SW couldnā€™t find the module anymore, neither could heat up the heated bed. Switched to the laser module, it was recognized but the laser wouldnā€™t turn on, not even to test laser status.
After talking to the support they told us we need to buy a new control board, they didnā€™t mention the printing module. The new controller arrived yesterday, it works well now with Laser or CNC module, but still cannot recognize the 3D printing module. Opened it and looked pretty thoroughly (will post more pictures under the microscope), nothing seems to be damaged on the board just at the look, but I ordered a new capacitor to test. @RichRickett wondering if you tried replacing some other ICs in the meanwhile with any luck.
Thanks

snap_image_67175169
snap_image_671751691920Ɨ2560 282 KB

17

snap+image_67110145
snap+image_671101451920Ɨ2560 182 KB

18

snap_image_67151873
snap_image_671518731920Ɨ2560 242 KB

19

Been there and done that. Terrible cable design. Custom cables that donā€™t protect anythingā€¦

20

Hi Marianna, I replaced a few parts but it still didnā€™t work and I didnā€™t want to risk blowing the new controller. At the time, support were able to send me a replacement board, which worked. They were very helpful !