Changing the Control board of PROVerXL 6050 Plus

Updated 5 months ago by Lynn

credit by Graham B

If you try and connect the App and the WiFi module and get the error “Warn: WiFi module not connected or ESTOP Button issue.” And you have checked that the Estop button has been released, email support@sainsmart.com for a replacement 6050 control board, proof of purchase will be required. As all these will by now be out of warranty I applaud their customer service.

As my PROVerXL 6050 Plus was a very early version it is affected and I have just received a replacement control board.

If you need to replace the control board for any other reason this may also help but a free replacement depends on your warranty and why you need one.

Back up your Grbl Settings

Before you start back up your Grbl settings. You may have changed some and it is also possible that the new board does not have the same settings as the old one. Boards can be used on different models of routers.

From a Gcode Sender send a $$ command to display all the parameters, copy the results to a text editor and save to a txt file.

Removing the old Board

There is no need to remove the cabling from the rear of the control unit. Apart from the power cord! Definitely remove the power cord before you start!

Remove all the screws at both sides of the control unit case. The inner part will now slide out from the outer case.

The board is held in place by five nuts on standoffs, remove them all.

The connection to the side fan seems to be tricky to get to, and the cable does not have a lot of slack so I undid the two bolts holding the side fan to its support. And placed the fan on the control board.

There are quite a number of cables connected, these are not marked and they obviously have to go in the same places on the new board. Do not disconnect any yet!

Installing the heatsink

If your replacement board came with a heatsink and fan fitted skip this step.

If the heatsink is fitted without the fan then just undo the two screws securing the fan, disconnect the cable, screw it to the new heatsink and connect it to the new board.

The heatsink for the stepper motor drivers is screwed in from the back of the board, only three stepper drivers are fitted so just remove the six screws. Be careful, thermal grease has been applied to the top of the motor drivers and the heatsink so avoid touching these areas.

Mount it onto the new board in the same way and connect the fan cable.

If you plan to keep the old board as a spare cover the top of the motor drivers where the thermal grease is with a piece of clingfilm it will prevent any from being rubbed off and messing things up!

Swapping the cables

Starting next to the heatsink swap the cables one at a time from the old board to the same connector on the new board.

Once a ‘bank’ of cables has been moved continue with the next ones. Doing it this way lets you move the new board over the top of the old one making all the cables accessible in turn. Allowing them to be swapped one by one.

Install the new board

First check the DIP switches, there are three, one in front of each stepper motor driver. While it is unlikely that these have been changed the board has been transported, manipulated and had cables dragged over it, the check takes around 2 seconds. In each set 1 and 2 should be Off, 3-6 being On.

Slide it back in and locate the standoff screws through the board holes.

Apply the nuts and tighten them down.

Re-attach the case side fan using the two bolts.

Use two new tie warps to gather the cables back as they were. This keeps them from getting too close to the board components which may get hot. It also stops them from rubbing against anything which could damage the insulation. BOTH OF THESE ARE FIRE RISKS, not very large risks but still best avoided.

Testing

All electrical connections have been unplugged and removed, so before finally re-assembling the case, while the plugs and sockets are still available to check, I would test everything. Does each switch work? Do the stepper motors work and are they the right ones…

While there should be no problems it is worthwhile running a few simple tests.

At the most basic level plug in the power cable and turn it on, the LED rings round all the front switches should light.

Re-Assemble the case.

Make sure the outer case is the correct way round, the side cutout to access the voltage selection switch on the power supply aligns with the switch.

The inner case does not sit on the bottom, it is slightly raised, so lift the inner case a little to align the screw holes and reinsert all the screws.

Restore Grbl Settings

Connect a Gcode sender via the USB connection, issue a $$ command and compare the output with the ones from the old board.

Adjust any individual settings as needed by sending $xx=yyy commands where xx is the value to change and yyy is the value.

Grbl nor any Gcode sender I have seen does not have a mechanism for reloading all the settings from a file.

If you did not save the settings before removing the board you can still access them, just plug the USB cable into the bare board and connect to a Gcode Sender. The USB will provide enough power to run the processor and the $$ command will still work!