LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Hi, first post is a problem, I know it already looks bad on me. My calibration and prints have been great, if that gives me some benefit of the doubt
I got my mk2 9 days ago. I got it set up and printing as soon as I could. Everything was working great, except I noticed, periodically at first, the LCD was sort of frozen and scrambled. It sometimes worked itself out as I scrolled through the menus, and if not, a power cycle seemed to get rid of it. By the second or third day, though, it had gotten to where I usually couldn't resolve it. With patience I could navigate somewhat blind through menus and start a print, but with almost no real control, and sometimes the wrong print. I'd also occasionally accidentally load or unload because they're next to "print from SD", but no big deal, at least I could sometimes print. When I couldn't get one going, I'd step away for some hours, usually a bit frustrated, and come back to it occasionally working normally, for a few minutes at least. In the past two days, the display has been almost completely frozen, so the problem seems to be getting worse.
A chat with tech support focused on the LCD ribbon cables. He had me confirm the ribbon cables were plugged in correctly, oriented correctly, then we ensured the cables weren't kinked or bent by the frame/clips. I also unplugged and plugged back in each end of the two cables, trying them reversed, trying them plugged in rotated (into Rambo, the LCD prevents that w the notch). The problem never changed. I eventually unplugged everything from the Rambo, unmounted it from the frame, and have it sitting beside the frame. I plugged everything back in per the instructions, i.e. no variations, and there's no change.
Interference seemed a possibility, so I have tried keeping the ribbon cables away from any of the others. It's a bit tight in the Rambo case, but I have them fairly separated, no change. I also tried a few different circuits in my home, in case another device was causing it.
I'm frustrated with support, who says they're discussing the problem. For six days. The tech mentioned they had similar problems with the i3 plus a year ago, but FW, cable management and updated ribbon cables have resolved those issues. With that info, my next action would be to replace the LCD cables, but hoping to get a set sent.
Any ideas? Thanks for reading. Pics to follow.
Seth
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Here are a few pics.
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Hi Seth
ribbon cable is a good chance as well as interference.
Never the less I have another idea:
As you describe the fault got worse over time and no chance even if you move the cables away from others.
This might lead to look a bit closer on the LCD board. What you describe can be a broken solder joint or a broken capacitor or...
The List might be long and is not supposed to exclude the ribbons 😉
Don't get frustrated with the support team. It is pretty difficult to figure a faulty part if you don't have direct access 😉
Give them a chance and maybe another chat with the details what you have tried so far. This might help them.
All the Best
Frank
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
As you describe the fault got worse over time and no chance even if you move the cables away from others.
This might lead to look a bit closer on the LCD board. What you describe can be a broken solder joint or a broken capacitor or...
The List might be long and is not supposed to exclude the ribbons 😉
Yes, that's a good point, and I thought getting another visual on the LCD PCB and the Rambo PCB was a good idea, so I took them each out of their housing. Everything looks legit, no corrosion, burns, cracks.
I'm not sure about support. I gave them all this info w videos. I'm not giving up yet, but...haven't been impressed. I'm not on here to complain, though, just to try to fix my mk2!
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Yeah, this is a problem with early Mk1 printers (still happens to me with firmware 3.0.3 after replacing the cables and the LCD panel).
I have not heard of this issue with the Mk2, so it will be either the ribbon cables, the positioning of the cables (my excess cable is at the LCD end) or an issue with the LCD panel.
There are a couple of things you can do:
Re-route the cables to have the excess at the LCD end.
Remove and reinsert the plugs on the cable - this is possible (I have done it) - but it has to be done very carefully.
Peter
Please note: I do not have any affiliation with Prusa Research. Any advices given are offered in good faith. It is your responsibility to ensure that by following my advice you do not suffer or cause injury, damage…
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
There are a couple of things you can do:
Re-route the cables to have the excess at the LCD end.
Remove and reinsert the plugs on the cable - this is possible (I have done it) - but it has to be done very carefully.
Peter
PJR, thanks for the reply. I have tried every cable position and nothing changes the problem. If it made it worse, I would zero in on it, but it does nothing.
When you say reinsert the plugs on the cable, you mean re-terminating? That's something I have been considering, but it looks like that plastic end connector might not survive the operation :/
Edit: ok, I just did an amazon search, I think I can afford to mess up here. 5-packs of the whole cable are about 9 bucks.
Seth
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Well, I pried those tabs out of the connectors on one cable. Definitely broke, I will have to source some at an electronics shop. I have it back together, but unsecured, and I did a continuity check on each pin (it's good). At that moment I realized I definitely should have just done that before destroying a cable! Not being able to use your new printer will make you do crazy things...
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Hi Seth
if you are in an Amazoned area 😉 you can check for on of the cheaper (apr. 15 USD) LCD replacements.
The RAMPS 2004 (20 characters 4 lines) LCDs should work out of the box.
I believe they come with cables. This would give you a chance to see if it is the LCD.
No change in behavior with all the tests on the cabling makes me more and more thinking it might be the LCD.
Unfortunately a cold solder joined or a bad part is not always a visible damage.
All the Best
Frank
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Also, something to consider... If you think it may be interference, you could always look into adding some ferrite(s) to your cable(s). This should help cut down on outside influences. They can probably be bought pretty cheap somewhere...
Or if you find an old CRT monitor somewhere or a printer, they're all over the ribbon cables inside... Some microwaves too..
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Beware of reckless use of ferrites since they act as low pass filter. Yes, they filter out peaks caused by interference, but they also could filter out signals required for proper function. Ferrites are OK on power cables but could be undesirable on signal cables.
If you successfully tested some specific product, please link exactly that product.
In this application proper cable management should be sufficient. Place LCD ribbon cables so they don't go parallel with heater cables. They are most likely the biggest source of interference.
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
You can swap the both cables I and II. If the same LCD display error persists you can be very sure that the cables are ok.
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
@david, as far as my electrical skills, I am a hobbyist at best. Thank you for the information, I didn't know that it could make a difference.
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Update: After some more troubleshooting, the techs have decided to send me a new LCD board. I was getting a bit impatient, but I'm glad they came through for me. Its at customs so I should see it in around a week.
I'll update when it arrives. I know cable management is not the issue. I disassembled everything and had the LCD cables completely separated from every other cable, and each other. I also know my cables are good (even the one I took apart and the connector is now glued together XD), having done a continuity check on all pins.
In the meantime I've been using pronterface to print, but missing some feedback and features of the LCD. I'm also looking into getting the OctoPi setup, seems like a great way to streamline the process, yeah?
Thanks for all the great suggestions, you guys.
Seth
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
Hi Seth
good to hear that you get a new display. Chances are good that this solves the issue.
For your question about Octoprint:
I have OctoPrint running on both my Printers and I don't want to miss it anymore.
The additional Informations like temperature curves and GCode viewer during print helped me already several times in optimizing settings.
Gina is doing a fantastic job in improving OctoPrint even further!
All the Best
Frank
Re: LCD screen jumbled/scrambled
I got the replacement LCD. I plugged it in and it's working like a champ! Pronterface was nice to have in the meantime, but it's great to have the display back! One thing I realized was that even when it was functioning, my screen never went blank when it was supposed to. The old text just stayed there, with new text just replacing the old. It sounds strange now, but I just got used to it and never knew otherwise. Thanks to the prusa research techs. I'd hug them if I was in prague.
Seth