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# Mainboard

## TriGorilla V_4.0.1 (Stock)

The stock mainboard is the "TriGorilla V_4.0.1".
It's a 32bit 24V mainboard with a GigaDevice MCU labeled as "GD32F303" which seems to be an ARM Cortex-M4 with 120MHz, 512K flash and 64K SRAM.
---

## TriGorilla Pro B V_1.0.2 (Stock)

The stock mainboard is the "TriGorilla Pro B_1.0.2".
It is a 32bit 24V mainboard with a Huada HC32F460 KCTA ARM Cortex-M4 with 192KB SRAM and 512KB Flash.
The speed of the ARM chip is listed as 200MHz by the manufacturer.
It offers a microSD card reader, a USB-C connector and a 10 pin connector for adding the control unit.
The mainboard comes with TMC2208(?) silent stepper drivers *soldered* onto the board (so they can't be just swapped out!).
The mainboard comes with TMC2208 silent stepper drivers *soldered* onto the board (so they can't be just swapped out!).

<!--
??? info "GC6609 stepper drivers being used as well!"
??? info "Maybe GC6609 Stepper Drivers Are Being Used As Well!"
It seems that Anycubic changed the stepper drivers from original TMC2208 to cheap 2208/2209 clones, called "GC6609".
When exactly this change took place and whether it's a permanent solution or if only a certain batch of these mainboards have been populated with these kind of stepper drivers is unknown. It seems though that the mainboards which are equipped with these drivers are set up with silver heatsinkns instead of black heatsinks.
Expand All @@ -24,24 +26,78 @@ The mainboard comes with TMC2208(?) silent stepper drivers *soldered* onto the b
Thanks again to @aspiringnobody who came across this and reported it!
-->

![Mainboard TriGorilla front](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Neo_fullview_labeled_web.jpg)
![Mainboard TriGorilla front](../assets/images/mobo_K2_full_web.jpeg)

<!--
![Mainboard TriGorilla back](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Neo_back_web.jpg)
![Mainboard labeled](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Neo_complete_labeled_web.jpg)
-->

![Mainboard label](../assets/images/mobo_K2_label_web.jpeg)

![Mainboard MCU](../assets/images/mobo_K2_processor_web.jpeg)

The microSD card reader slot and the USB-C connector can be accessed from at front of the printer, you find them at the right hand side of that black plastic aperture of the frame as shown in the picture below.

![microSD card slot and USB-C connector](../assets/images/printer_slot-USBc_web.jpg)
![microSD card slot and USB-C connector](../assets/images/mobo_K2_front-connectors_web.jpeg)

---

### Accessing The Mainboard
If you need to access the mainboard, you need to open the housing where the mainboard is located. For doing so, you need to access the underside of the printer.
The lid is screwed and clipped into the housing's base, so make sure to be careful when opening.

<!--
Once you opened the lid, you can see that there's quite a lot of space left inside of the enclosure. If one re-routes the wires, it should be possible to add an [external MOSFET](powersupply.md#add-an-external-mosfet-mod) for the bed here.
![Housing opened](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_mobo-in-case_web.jpg)
Please see the expandable textbox below for further instructions and illustrations about how to actually open the housing and access the PCB.
??? example "How To Open The Mainboard's Housing"
- When looking at the underside of the machine, you can see the housing of the mainboard being located it the front, between the outer rails of the baseframe.
![Mainboard's housing](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_lid_web.jpg)
- In the middle you can see two hex screws. These are holding the whole housing in place as they're screwed into the Y-rail in the middle, but they also hold down the lid. So take them out first.
- After you took out the screws, you then have to 'unclip' the lid of the housing. As you can see in the following picture, there are plastic 'noses' which rest in the belonging nothes of the housing's base part. Use a thin tool like a screwdriver or a plectrum and insert it in the slot between the housing's lid and the base part.
You then need to *carefully* bend the base part slightly away to make the lid come out. I'd suggest to start at one edge like show in the picture below - once you have lifted that up, it's much easier to go around the rest.
![Lid unclipped](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_lid-halfopen_web.jpg)
- Once you have released all clips, I'd recommend to unplug the flat ribbon cable of the control unit and lead it through the belonging cutout of the lid for being able to flip the lid over.
- Once you have done that, you can flip the lid over as shown in the following picture.
![Lid flipped](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_lid-open_web.jpg)
- Be careful and don't rip off the wire of the fan!
**That's it - you successfully opened the housing of the mainboard!**
- If you need to take out the whole mainboard now, take out the four screws located in the corners of the mainboard.
Then lift up the PCB in the back first, as the USB connectors are positioned in those cutouts in the front of the housing.
For **reassembling** everything, just follow the steps in reverse.
In addition to that, mind the following:
- Pay attention to the wires though, so that they aren't positioned between the posts where the screws will be screwed through later.
- Also mind the black ribbon cable of the control unit - don't forget to lead it through the belonging cutout of the lid and reconnect it to the control unit.
- Also make sure to reconnect the black grounding wire at the lower right corner in case you took out the PCB.
If you want to **take away the whole housing** to e.g. place it outside an enclosure you put the printer in, mind the following:
- You have to take off the mount which holds the control unit.
- You have to pull out the black plastic cap of the face of the other side's rail. That one is just stuck in the aluminum frame, so you can pull it out. Be careful to not break those little plastic posts though which are shoved into the threads of the middle parts of the 4040 rail.
![Released cap](../assets/images/frame_K2Pro_cap-rail_web.jpg)
- See the following picture for getting an idea of how it should look like when all parts are dismounted for taking away the housing.
![Released caps](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_open-box_underside_web.jpg)
- You now have to disconnect all wires.
- Once you have completed this step, you can then just pull out the enclosure. It's shoved in between those two outer rails of the base frame, some plastic noses are guiding it in one of the v-slots.
![Plastic nose in v-slot](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_case-sliders_web.jpg)
??? danger "Add Ferrules To The 24V Wires!"
**It's highly advisable to cut off the soldered tips of the wires without a plug (power supply and heated bed) and add ferrules to them.**
When you are screwing down the soldered tip inside the clamp, the solder will get cracked a bit and may get deformed a bit as well. When the wire gets warm due to the current and the solder gets softer, the contact may become loose which could lead to malfunction or even cause fire in the last consequence. So it's always a good idea to just use proper ferrules. <br> ![Ferrules instead of soldered tips](../assets/images/mainboard_ferrules_web.jpg)
-->

??? danger "Avoid Shortcuts!"

Expand All @@ -53,6 +109,30 @@ The microSD card reader slot and the USB-C connector can be accessed from at fro

*So always turn off the whole printer first to avoid a shortcut which will destroy your mainboard!*


??? info "Red Glue Across All Connectors"

When you look at the mainboard, you'll see some red glue spread across all connectors. That's just for securing the connnection. You can get that stuff off by carefully pulling it off. It works better if you warm up that stuff *a little bit* for making it more flexible, a hair dryer is good for that. It then becomes a bit softer and easier to be pulled off. Don't heat it up too much though as it'll become too soft then!
You can also use a thin screwdriver to lift up a part of that stuff and then use some tweezers to grab it.

However, be *very careful* to

- not harm the mainboard by slipping off with the screwdriver or tweezer!
- not overheat the mainboards of parts of it when heating up that red glue!
- not rip off the heatsinks of the stepper drivers!
This can happen really quick as they're just glued onto the stepper drivers with some thermal paste and the red glue is usually spread across the fins of the heatsinks as well!
So *if* you have to pull off that stuff from those connectors of the motor wiring, then *make sure that you press down the heatsink with your finger when trying to pull that stuff off!*

---

### Connecting To The Printer / Mainboard

You can connect to the printer's mainboard with your computer by using a USB-C cable.
You need to make sure to
- use a USB-C cable which has a DATA line (many cables for charging smartphones for example don't have a DATA line and therefore won't work),
- have the driver for the CH34x USB serial chip installed at your computer and
- set the baud rate for communication to 115200bps.

??? warning "Use A USB Power Blocker"

When connecting the printer to a computer or a Raspberry Pi, it is highly recommended to use an additional USB power blocker.
Expand All @@ -70,30 +150,20 @@ The microSD card reader slot and the USB-C connector can be accessed from at fro
![USB pin tape attached](../assets/images/USB_taped5V_web.jpg)

Keep in mind though that you have to pay attention that you *only* cover the 5V pin and that you have to make sure that the tape is still in place every time you plug in the cable after you unplugged it.


??? info "Red Glue Across All Connectors"

When you look at the mainboard, you'll see some red glue spread across all connectors. That's just for securing the connnection. You can get that stuff off by carefully pulling it off. It works better if you warm up that stuff *a little bit* for making it more flexible, a hair dryer is good for that. It then becomes a bit softer and easier to be pulled off. Don't heat it up too much though as it'll become too soft then!
You can also use a thin screwdriver to lift up a part of that stuff and then use some tweezers to grab it.

However, be *very careful* to

- not harm the mainboard by slipping off with the screwdriver or tweezer!
- not overheat the mainboards of parts of it when heating up that red glue!
- not rip off the heatsinks of the stepper drivers!
This can happen really quick as they're just glued onto the stepper drivers with some thermal paste and the red glue is usually spread across the fins of the heatsinks as well!
So *if* you have to pull off that stuff from those connectors of the motor wiring, then *make sure that you press down the heatsink with your finger when trying to pull that stuff off!*



---

## Mainboard Cooling Fan

The following picture shows the fan of the mainboard. It's a 70x70x15mm, 24V, 0.08A type ("Coolcox CC7015M24S").
The following picture shows the fan of the mainboard. It's a 80x80x15mm, 24V, 0.06A type ("HSC BCY8015S24L").

![MCU fan](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_fan_web.jpg)

As you can see, the fan is covered with a metal grille to avoid that any wires might get caught.
The following picture shows the mounting direction of the fan.

![MCU fan mounting direction](../assets/images/mainboard_K2Pro_fan-mounting-direction_web.jpg)

![MCU fan](../assets/images/fan-mainboard_web.jpg)

---

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