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Installing Klipper on TronXY X5SA

Installing Klipper on TronXY X5SA

** obligatory "your warranty in now void" disclaimer ** THIS GUIDE IS FOR CHITU V6 BOARDS ONLY

So, you've decided to upgrade you printer software-wise. You are in for a ride!

What can you expect

You'll get Klipper experience. That includes speeds up to 300 mm/s (I've tested infill at 180, and it was pretty much flawless), proper linear advance, low vibration on high accelerations without relying on approximations like S-Curve, no lags on dense GCode files — it's nothing like Marlin or the stock firmware.

Also, you won't be able to control your printer from it's screen anymore.

IDK, maybe that's a deal breaker for you, but controlling printer from WiFi is much more comfortable IMO.

Getting a Klippy machine (Klipper host)

First of all, you need a Raspberry Pi 2 or later you want to use as a Klipper/Octoprint machine. Other ARM-based computers are good as well — e.g NanoPi, BananaPi, etc.

Follow this guide to get and install OctoPi, and follow this one up to "Building and Flashing" section to get Klipper on your OctoPi.

Use this printer.cfg as your printer config.

Getting Klipper onto the printer

Copy update.cbd onto SD card, insert it into your printer, reboot. If you heard some beeps, and then your screen does not light up anymore — it's been installed!

You can build your own update.cbd, instructions are on top of the config file, follow with regard to "Building and Flashing" section we skipped earlier. If you ever reconsider your life's choices, you can always reflash stock firmware the same way.

Now connect your printer to Pi via USB, and reload host in the Klipper tab in the Octoprint.

Enabling Linear Advance

If you would also want to enable Linear Advance, you'll need

  • Some skills with soldering iron
  • 1k resistor.
  • Serial adapter

You can kind of live without that, especially if you aren't handy with a soldering iron.

Connect to your E-stepper as per this guide. Use ground from PSU, and connect uart pin to one marked with red arrow.

That's an image of E-stepper driver with arrow pointing at third bottom pin

Open OTP tab and write 2.7 and 1.2. This will disable StealthChop, thus allowing you to use Linear Advance feature.

Graz, you successfully reprogrammed your stepper to be usable with Linear Advance! Your lines will look better than ever.

@poladrix
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Hi there,
I wanted to install the firmware, I put on the card to turn on my printer, black screen, no beep, but fan at the bottom.
Since as soon as I turn on my printer, the fans turn on all the way but nothing else and klipper detects nothing.
What do you recommend that I do?

@Phatslam
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Hi there, I wanted to install the firmware, I put on the card to turn on my printer, black screen, no beep, but fan at the bottom. Since as soon as I turn on my printer, the fans turn on all the way but nothing else and klipper detects nothing. What do you recommend that I do?

Well, the TronXY screen not working is expected behavior. In my experience klipper does not detect printers, the serial port is specified in the printer.cfg

@JustABiologist
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Hey guys super retarded probably. Have a V6 board. trendy X5SA. But my Z axis won't move either up or down. xy is working like a charm... thanks in advance if anyone can think of a reason!

@JustABiologist
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Hey guys super retarded probably. Have a V6 board. trendy X5SA. But my Z axis won't move either up or down. xy is working like a charm... thanks in advance if anyone can think of a reason!

Okay now it's getting weirder. Tried reflashing. Does not beep anymore :').

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