British Railway Modelling (BRM)
Diary with a 3D printer: Klipper with Sonic Pad
One worthwhile upgrade involves providing better computing power to your 3D printer. This involves adding a tablet, or Raspberry Pi, along with software such as Klipper or Marlin. Creality provides an all-in-one easy option called a Sonic Pad, which is what I used.
The Sonic Pad is a separate unit with a screen that you plug into the printer that disables the old firmware and screen display. Upon powering up, the unit tells you what to do as you go along and a manual is also provided and there are videos on YouTube. You will need to reset the z axis height and you should warm up the print head to get accurate settings. I would advise leaving the manual print head height settings as they are, though.
Once installed, the printer is accessible via Wi-Fi, meaning that you can enter the IP address in a browser in order to control it remotely. You can also send prints and start these from your desktop PC, although I couldn’t get this to work using the Creality Slicer software; however, you can add a network printer in PrusaSlicer. Alternatively, you can control the printer using the larger touchscreen of the Sonic
Pad. You can access the configuration files and change the way the printer operates. For example, I adjusted the coordinates of the ABL probe to get the auto bed levelling working correctly on my Ender 5 S1. The main improvement that you will notice is quicker printing time, as the unit can perform many more calculations in order to work out the most efficient way to print out objects.
Another advantage is that you can setup input shaping. A sensor is provided to temporarily fit on the hot end for which a mount is required. Creality provides a downloadable model for you to print out or you may already have a modification that caters for this. My new hot end cover and probe mount that I fitted in last month’s instalment both had the holes in place already. You can then perform a resonance test where the hot end is vibrated and the data collected to adjust future printing for improved print quality.
You can set up a camera, and monitor the printer remotely using the Sonic Pad. Large prints can take many hours or even days to print out, and it is important that you observe and take corrective action should things go wrong. You can then intervene to prevent filament waste and possible damage to the printer.
The Sonic Pad is very powerful and just about every piece of data and setting is available for you to adjust so that you can set the printer up just how you want it. If you want ultimate control over your 3D printer then this is a great option. If you don’t want the added complexity, then you can just ignore the advanced menu options and still get a worthwhile upgrade.
The Sonic Pad comes with a desktop stand, but you may want to 3D print a stand that attaches to the printer enclosure for neatness and to improve ergonomics. Search for these on a site such as Printables.