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The Smoothie project is about creating an open source platform for controlling digital fabrication machines and to make that platform as useful to as many people, projects, and use cases as possible.

Smoothie firmware can run : 

• 3D printers
• Laser cutters
• CNC mills
• Other types of machines with minimal effort

By combining all of the jobs into a single modular firmware Smoothie allows different communities that would otherwise be working apart to share a common basis and to add their specific uses on top of it.

By making one board that can run all of these different machines Smoothieboard creates a hardware platform that different projects can share and build upon. In the smoothie community progress on one aspect of the project benefits all of the different communities using the platform.

Smoothieboard 5x v1.1 features:

• 5 integrated Allegro A5984 stepper drivers with digital current control able to drive up to 2A each with 32x microstepping
• 3 large FETS for controlling large resistive loads like heated beds
• 3 small FETs for controlling external peripherals such as small fans or hotends
• USB-B supporting simultaneous serial control and sdcard access
• MicroSD card
• 6 endstops
• 4 thermistors
• extra i/o including spi, i2c, uart, and more gpio

The latest round of Smoothieboards, v1.1, is the biggest upgrade yet. The biggest change is the upgrade to A5984 stepper drivers which support 32x microstepping. The addition of back-EMF protection to the small mosfet outputs makes them safer for use with small fans. A complete changelist is available in the Github repository.

The different variants simply have more or fewer components populated. It is always possible to upgrade a board all the way to 5x with appropriate soldering skills and tools.

The -xC variants include nice polarized connectors pre-soldered to the board as pictured in the first photo. The -xM variants include the same connector set as the -xC kits but not soldered on yet as pictured in the second photo. The -x variants do not include connectors, just the Smoothieboard as pictured in the second photo. The -xS variant has been dropped for simplicity.

For more details and specifications check out the wiki here: http://smoothieware.org/smoothieboard

All of the board design files and firmware source are available on github: http://github.com/Smoothieware

The ethernet jack now comes pre-installed on all 4x and 5x boards. Smoothieware hosts a website that allows you to upload files and control your printer via any web browser.

To run a Smoothieboard without the USB connected requires an external 5v power supply. The other option is to add one of these switching 5v regulators to your board which will then pull logic power from your main 12v/24v power source: http://shop.uberclock.com/products/switching-regulator-dc-to-dc-5v

Buy a Smoothieboard for your 3d Printer in Canada without the surprise cost of the exchange rate!