From 2.04 to 3... Pros and cons?

drmaestro

Hi,

I have a Duet 2 Wifi and I am on the latest 2. firmware (2.05.1). I am trying to decide if I need to upgrade to 3. firmware.

My main concern is print quality, not speed, so any progress in that front is a justification for me to make the update. I've read that input shaping is being planned for the 3. series, so this is a factor could be important. Are there any other advantages to upgrade to version 3 print quality wise?

Also, are there any disadvantages on upgrading? I've read some problems with loss of performance (decreased available steps) but I think this issue is getting better and not that important if you aren't running on very high speeds or very high microsteps.

Is the best way to upgrade is by using the reprap configurator, as it seems there are important changes on the config files and maybe starting from zero is a better solution.

Thanks...

Phaedrux

There's unlikely to be any difference in print quality from upgrading. Input shaping with an accelerometer might help you.

Step rate should be very similar and may even better in the most recent firmware. But again, unlikely to have any effect.

Some of the main benefits of RRF3 is the more logical and flexible configuration of pins, the improved DWC and PanelDue firmware, conditional gcode and variables for more complex macros, plugins for DWC.

If you still have access to DWC. Upload these 3 zip files, one at a time in the system tab. Don't extract them. Reboot after each. Use M115 to verify the firmware has been applied.
https://github.com/Duet3D/RepRapFirmware/releases/download/2.05.1/Duet2Firmware-2.05.1.zip
https://github.com/Duet3D/RepRapFirmware/releases/download/3.0/Duet2and3Firmware-3.0.zip
https://github.com/Duet3D/RepRapFirmware/releases/download/3.2.2/Duet2and3Firmware-3.2.2.zip
That will get your firmware and DWC up to date.

You can see the change logs here:
https://github.com/Duet3D/RepRapFirmware/wiki/Changelog-RRF-3.x

For your config, might be a good idea to run through the configurator tool and generate a fresh set for RRF3.
https://configtool.reprapfirmware.org/Start

Backup your existing config files in the sys folder in case you want to switch back to RRF3. IT’s easy to switch back and forth, just upload the zip file for the version you want and then upload your config files.

These documents will come in handy during the conversion.
https://duet3d.dozuki.com/Wiki/RepRapFirmware_3_overview
https://duet3d.dozuki.com/Wiki/Gcode

drmaestro

@phaedrux Thank you. I've followed a similar reply you'd given in another post and upgraded to 3.2 It was a very easy process, and didn't cause any complications (except the Wifi not connecting when I upgraded to 3.2 form 3, but a reset did fix the problem).

To be fair, the firmware wiki makes the upgrade process sound harder than it really is. IMHO using RepRap configurator is definitely the way to go when upgrading form 2. to 3. as it creates a very clean configuration file. Having the old config.g is very handy, as most of the info required by the configurator is already there.

The only problems I've encountered were the reversal of direction on the X and Y axis, easily corrected by changing them in the firmware (have no idea why. Probably something changed with the way firmware 3 handles the directions on these axis) . Also, the homeall.g and homez.g files didn't include the G30 command required for my BLTouch (I am almost sure that I choose it in the configurator but maybe I missed it, maybe there is an error with the configurator), which could be a real problem creating a crash if I didn't check the files before using the commands.

I also checked the change logs. Most of the information there is quite technical in nature and mostly geared towards newer cards (Duet 3). And you are also right, I haven't seen any mention about print quality improvement, so no real need to upgrade just for the quality (which could change of course with input shaping).

Thanks again for all the information you've provided....

Phaedrux

For the BLtouch in the config tool you need to choose the pins for it in the I/O page and then in the endstop page make sure you choose bltouch there.