# Replacement Controller - Fried Z Driver **URL:** \ **Category:** LulzBot TAZ\ **Created:** [June 9, 2016, 2:04am UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571 "2016-06-09T02:04:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![XScorpion2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac91a4/32.png) [@XScorpion2](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/XScorpion2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 2:04am UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/1 "2016-06-09T02:04:00Z")
Hey All, so I’m the unlucky guy who’s heatsink fell off and it managed to touch something it shouldn’t have frying the z stepper driver. So now I’m in the market for a new controller. I’ve done a decent level of research into boards, firmware, etc and have come down to two choices and was hoping to get some input before pulling the trigger: 1. Buy replacement RAMBo. This is the obvious first choice, it’s a simple drop in replacement, load the same firmware, and off I go printing the same quality as I have before. The downsides I’m currently weighing against it is that compared to similar feature set boards it’s more expensive. It’s also a fully integrated board, which as above if a driver fails, I have to replace the entire thing. Something I’ve never been fond and why I have never purchased an All-In-One PC either (laptops included). 2. Buy an Azteeg X3 w/ SD8825 stepper drivers. The highlights of this choice are the modular design making catastrophic failures like above easier to manage. Capable of higher 1/32 microstepping (YMMV on if this matters). Cheaper by far as the total cost would run almost $100 less than option 1. The downside would be getting the LCD on the TAZ 5 working with this board. It’s definitely doable but would take some firmware hacking and a bit of rewiring to get it up and running (90% confidence that I could do this in a weekend). So anyone care to chime in? ---
**Author:** ![kmanley57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/13edae/32.png) [@kmanley57](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/kmanley57)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 2:59am UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/2 "2016-06-09T02:59:13Z")
I would be worried about pull that much current(near maximum) through two pins onto the board for #2 choice. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![XScorpion2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac91a4/32.png) [@XScorpion2](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/XScorpion2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 3:25am UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/3 "2016-06-09T03:25:55Z")
Ya I’m not all that worried about current as the Azteeg drivers and board are rated for 2.5A while the RAMBo is only rated for 2A. Also I can always run the second z stepper in parallel off a separate driver if necessary. ---
**Author:** ![kmanley57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/13edae/32.png) [@kmanley57](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/kmanley57)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 2:05pm UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/4 "2016-06-09T14:05:59Z")
It is more the ~15 amps the heat bed draws along with the stepper motors, and the extruder. Which works out to around 17+ amps possible. ---
**Author:** ![XScorpion2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac91a4/32.png) [@XScorpion2](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/XScorpion2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 2:26pm UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/5 "2016-06-09T14:26:09Z")
Dang, solid point. I could have sworn it had 2 power inputs. I know the Pro version has 3, so maybe I just got confused. Edit: It appears that it does include a secondary power input that is dedicated for the stepper motors: [http://files.panucatt.com/datasheets/x3\_v2\_wiring.pdf](http://files.panucatt.com/datasheets/x3_v2_wiring.pdf) I do have to wonder though it that secondary power input will work with what the taz power supply is pushing, it looks a bit small. ---
**Author:** ![franksanderdo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecc23a/32.png) [@franksanderdo](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/franksanderdo)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 3:16pm UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/6 "2016-06-09T15:16:21Z")
Hi Scorpion, not sure about space in the Taz Controller Box but I guess you could use one of those Pololu stepper driver modules as a fix for the Z Axis. This would give you some extra time to evaluate the details for a new board 😉 all the Best Frank ---
**Author:** ![XScorpion2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac91a4/32.png) [@XScorpion2](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/XScorpion2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 4:32pm UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/7 "2016-06-09T16:32:31Z")
I’m not sure how I would go about hooking up a separate Pololu stepper driver to the RAMBo. I’m sure it’s possible, but I’m not in any rush to get back and printing otherwise I would have already gotten a RAMBo replacement. ---
**Author:** ![Keebie81](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/858c86/32.png) [@Keebie81](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/Keebie81)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2016, 7:53pm UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/8 "2016-06-09T19:53:18Z")
you can get a refurb rambo and save some money. [https://itworks3d.com/product/rambo-3d-printer-controller-board/](https://itworks3d.com/product/rambo-3d-printer-controller-board/) ---
**Author:** ![XScorpion2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ac91a4/32.png) [@XScorpion2](https://forum.lulzbot.com/u/XScorpion2)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2016, 2:00am UTC](https://forum.lulzbot.com/t/replacement-controller-fried-z-driver/3571/9 "2016-06-12T02:00:47Z")
> [@Keebie81](#): > > you can get a refurb rambo and save some money. [https://itworks3d.com/product/rambo-3d-printer-controller-board/](https://itworks3d.com/product/rambo-3d-printer-controller-board/) Excellent, I’ve done just that. Still dislike the all-in-one solution, but at that cost I can live with it.