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rbandrewsI updated the firmware on the Replicator tonight, from the 5.5 version it came with to the latest: 6.2, called "Sailfish". It's an unofficial firmware update, made possible by the fact that all the Makerbot stuff is open-source (except their newest one).
It's supposed to enable faster prints, which it seems to, and quieter prints, which it definitely does, and higher-quality prints, which I can now also say it does. They're better, although still not perfect. You can't really tell the difference in a photo (at least not one I can take), but surface details show up better and it's generally smoother. The big difference is "acceleration"; instead of instantly changing direction (and causing backlash), the print head smoothly decelerates and then accelerates in the opposite direction. So, it prints more stably at higher speeds.
It's supposed to enable faster prints, which it seems to, and quieter prints, which it definitely does, and higher-quality prints, which I can now also say it does. They're better, although still not perfect. You can't really tell the difference in a photo (at least not one I can take), but surface details show up better and it's generally smoother. The big difference is "acceleration"; instead of instantly changing direction (and causing backlash), the print head smoothly decelerates and then accelerates in the opposite direction. So, it prints more stably at higher speeds.
