BTT TMC2225 V1.0 Stepper Motor Driver - UltraQuiet, StealthChop2, Single Wire UART

With the world of 3D Printing and DIY at home growing rapidly in popularity, it’s no surprise that more and more brands are getting involved, competing for attention and market share with innovative new designs, fresh iterations on older designs, and unique inventions that could have easily appeared in Sci-Fi books from just 20 years ago. And while this can make it quite hard to keep up with the constant evolution of various different mechanical and Electronic Components, it also makes it a truly exciting world to be involved in.

These BTT TMC2225 V1.0 Stepper Motor Drivers are excellent examples of both newer designs of older TMC21xx drivers, as well as fresh new iterations on designs that are already great to begin with. These drivers are built by BigTreeTech, and are based on TMC2225 Drivers and the Pololu StepStick carrier board, offering UltraQuiet operations with the Trinamic StealthChop2 and SpreadCycle technologies, but also advanced Single Wire UART control. This gives users more control and more precision for hobbyist applications like 3D Printing and CNC, while maintaining an impressively low cost that fits well into a typical hobbyist budget.

The Key Features of TMC2225 V1.0 Stepper Motor Drivers:

Although these drivers don’t offer quite the plethora of different technologies like the TMC2130 drivers do, these TMC2225 Stepper Drivers feature the TMC22xx architecture, which is a step up from the TMC21xx architecture, offering more stability in the features, overall lower excess power usage, as well as an integrated pulse generator for standalone operations and single axis motion control. Fortunately, this means that if you don’t often use the very advanced features like StallGuard, the MicroStep Table or ChopSync, then these are actually an ideal upgrade, with all of the key features that makes Trinamic great, with all the benefits of the new architecture too.

So let’s take a look at these key Trinamic features, and how they will assist with your hobbyist applications like 3D Printing and CNC:

• StealthChop2: If you already know what the original StealthChop is, and the awesome benefits that it offers, then you will hopefully be just as excited as we are with the new StealthChop2, which is similar to original, but integrates a current pre-regulator to avoid overcompensation of step prediction, while allowing for more torque during acceleration phases. And while this may sound complicated at first, what it translates to is fewer missed steps or overshot steps, as well as a higher level of power even when motors are caught in an odd rotor position. This means more reliability and more predictability for your motors, and of course the awesome near-silent operations that both StealthChop and SpreadCycle are well-known for.
  
  
• SpreadCycle: This is a clever mode that is particularly effective in high load situations, as it spreads the current drive into four stages. This helps to smooth out the steps and eliminate skipped steps, but comes at the cost of higher noise levels – although the driver can in fact switch between StealthChop and SpreadCycle as necessary when set up in Hybrid Mode, offering the best of both worlds.
  
  
• UART Interfacing: While many of the stepper motor drivers from the past few years have been quite complex to set up, due to the fact that they weren’t originally designed for 3D Printing, one of the more recent improvements to the industry is in the way we interface with stepper drivers. This is why we’re so eager about the UART Interfacing that these TMC2225 drivers offer, as it allows for far more control than the old Step/Dir method, allowing users to control all of the control lines (EN / DIAG / INDEX / MS1 / MS2 / Analog Current / VRef) via a single line of code. Additionally, UART Interfacing also allows for quick and easy configuration without having to rewire pins, with the actual software being able to define motor current, Microsteps, Chopper Modes and more – all while sitting at your computer or laptop. Additionally, as if the above wasn’t enough, UART Interfacing also greatly reduces current consumption when the motors are in standby mode, helping to extend the lifespan of the motors and save electricity at the same time.

Additional Resources:

• If you’re looking for more basic information, check out this Trinamic SilentStepStick Drivers Page, where the most popular driver boards are compared against each other, listing some of the cool features that each offers.
  
  
• If you’re struggling to figure out how to install or operate these drivers, or are simply eager to find out more about the ever-awesome Trinamic brand, be sure to check out the Trinamic YouTube Channel, where they feature instructional, informational and also fun videos regarding all of the projects they’re involved in.
  
  
• If you’re at all confused about the complex art of UART Interfacing, we’ve found this UART Serial Driver Control Instructable to be a great help in figuring out the fine details. Just be aware, however, that the tutorial is a bit old, so it’s a good idea to cross-reference information just to be safe.
  
  
• Finally, although the models features on this site aren’t exactly the same as what we have in stock, this FYSETC Stepper Drivers Wiki Page offers a wealth of great information and insight into TMC22xx stepper drivers, as well as many other popular drivers and breakout boards.

As one of the rising stars in the world of 3D Printer Component Research and Development, BigTreeTech have certainly hit the ground running, entering the market in 2015 and spending their early stages primarily learning, researching, testing and developing, before producing some truly impressive results. From simple but effective upgrades to standard parts, all the way through to completely custom parts that no other brand offered at the time, BigTreeTech now have an incredibly diverse range, with almost no area of 3D Printing being left out.

Some of BigTreeTech’s most notable additions to the world of 3D Printing include the SKR Motherboard Range for numerous different 3D Printer models, the awesome TFT Touch Display Range with fancy features like dual-mode operation, as well as their very impressive Stepper Driver Range that cater to all tastes and preferences under the sun. And of course, to top it all off, BigTreeTech also have a sister company named BIQU, and we must admit that they have been producing some pretty impressive (and low price) 3D Printers, with the BIQU B1 possibly becoming a new rival to the Ender 3.

Of course, it’s easy to see that BigTreeTech are modern masters of 3D Printing R&D, and while we do still have a lot of different parts that we want to test out from them, so far we’ve been extremely happy with what they’re capable of producing – all while fitting into same kind of hobbyist budget that they used to operate on as Makers and Tinkerers themselves.