SD card error and blank screen

[HauptlingHD]

Hi

I've just finished soldering the main PCB of the cartreader. I first flashed the latest 12.8 release and wanted to turn on the cartreader, but nothing really happened. The screen of the MKS MINI stayed blank. The RGB LED does change color when I turn the knob. So I searched around and learned that with this problem, it is advised to check the output in SERIAL_MODE. After getting an SD card error, I checked for continuity from the 2560 to the EXP connector, and everything seems fine. On one pin, I also get continuity to the SD card slot. I believe this is also correct. So I searched through the discussions and found many people having problems with certain SD card models and formatting.

I tried older and newer SanDisk models ranging from 1 to 32 GB and even a micro SD with an adapter. All were tested with formatting by the SD formatter and exFAT formatted with Windows Explorer. Always SD card error on the serial output...

Does someone have a suggestion on what to check next?

PS: All SD cards work on all other devices and are tested sector by sector.

[Ancyker]

SD cards 2GB and under should be formatted FAT16, cards 32GB and smaller should be formatted with FAT32, and larger than 32GB can be FAT32 or exFAT.

To properly format an SD card and remove all doubt:

1. Press Win + R.
2. Type cmd.
3. Press Ctrl + Shift + Enter.
4. Click "Yes" if prompted.
5. Type diskpart and press Enter.
6. Type list disk and press Enter.
7. Figure out which disk is the SD card. If you aren't sure then remove it and run the above command again, reinsert it, and run the command again. The disk that vanished and reappeared is the SD card. If in doubt, disconnect all other drives. C: should always be Disk 0.
8. Once you are sure you've found which disk is the SD card, type select disk N where N is the number of the disk (i.e. select disk 1) and press Enter.
9. Type detail disk and press Enter.
10. Ensure the information looks reasonable (likely it will mention being an SD USB reader, i.e. mine says "SABRENT SD USB Device").
11. Type clean and press Enter.
12. Type convert basic and press Enter. This command may fail if the disk is already a basic disk, ignore it.
13. Type convert mbr and press Enter.
14. Type list partition and press Enter, it should say there are no partitions on the disk.
15. Type create partition primary and press Enter.
16. Type list partition and press Enter.
17. Verify partition 1 exists, that its type is primary, and that it is the only partition.
18. Type select partition 1 and press Enter.
19. Type active and press Enter.
20. Type format fs=fat32 label="OSCR" quick and press Enter.
21. Type exit and press Enter.
22. Type exit and press Enter (again) to close the Command Prompt.

You should now have a clean disk:

If you are still having issues let me know :)

Example output:

C:\Windows\system32>diskpart

Microsoft DiskPart version 10.0.19041.964

Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation.
On computer: AQUILA

DISKPART> list disk

  Disk ###  Status         Size     Free     Dyn  Gpt
  --------  -------------  -------  -------  ---  ---
  Disk 0    Online         5723 GB  1024 KB        *
  Disk 1    Online           29 GB      0 B

DISKPART> select disk 1

Disk 1 is now the selected disk.

DISKPART> detail disk

SABRENT SD USB Device
Disk ID: DBD446A5
Type   : USB
Status : Online
Path   : 0
Target : 0
LUN ID : 0
Location Path : UNAVAILABLE
Current Read-only State : No
Read-only  : No
Boot Disk  : No
Pagefile Disk  : No
Hibernation File Disk  : No
Crashdump Disk  : No
Clustered Disk  : No

  Volume ###  Ltr  Label        Fs     Type        Size     Status     Info
  ----------  ---  -----------  -----  ----------  -------  ---------  --------
  Volume 3     F   OSCR         FAT32  Removable     29 GB  Healthy

DISKPART> clean

DiskPart succeeded in cleaning the disk.

DISKPART> convert basic

The selected disk is not a dynamic disk.
Select a dynamic disk to convert to basic.

DISKPART> convert mbr

DiskPart successfully converted the selected disk to MBR format.

DISKPART> list partition

There are no partitions on this disk to show.

DISKPART> create partition primary

DiskPart succeeded in creating the specified partition.

DISKPART> list partition

  Partition ###  Type              Size     Offset
  -------------  ----------------  -------  -------
* Partition 1    Primary             29 GB  1024 KB

DISKPART> select partition 1

Partition 1 is now the selected partition.

DISKPART> active

DiskPart marked the current partition as active.

DISKPART> format fs=fat32 label="OSCR" quick

  100 percent completed

DiskPart successfully formatted the volume.

DISKPART> exit

Leaving DiskPart...

C:\Windows\system32>

[HauptlingHD]

Thank you for the detailed answer, but the error is still there. Isn't there some way of getting a clearer error description? What does "SD Error" mean exactly? Can I bypass the error and run the serial diagnostic program over serial? It says "check pins D50-53" in the wiki when experiencing this error. Is it sufficient to test for continuity from the 2560 to the EXP connectors, or is there something else to check?

[HauptlingHD]

I meant the SELF diagnostic program.

[cmcm711]

Are you copying the files in the "SD card" folder to the SD card after formatting?

[HauptlingHD]

Yes, I copy the contents of the SD folder to the root of the SD card and mark them as hidden, as described by the guide.

[Ancyker]

Sounds like you have either a bad solder connection to the SD card or the SD card reader is bad. Can you take a picture of the back of the LCD module?

[HauptlingHD]

There you go

[HauptlingHD]

Also, it could be a huge help if someone could send a known-good SD card that worked on another OSCR before to a German address. That way, I could be sure it was not a problem with my SD cards, since the error "SD Error" would lead me to believe so. If anyone is interested, let me know.

Alternatively, it would be nice to know exactly what SD cards are known to work. If there is a model that I can buy that works for someone else, I can test it and be sure that it is my MKS MINI that is the problem.

[Ancyker]

Does the OSCR stay powered when set to 3.3V?

[HauptlingHD]

Yes, the soldered wire on the Arduino and the bridged connection on the MKS MINI seam to work. The OSCR behaves the same in 5 and 3.3 V mode.

[HauptlingHD]

I tested two newly bought SD cards from Samsung and SanDisk. No luck. :( I guess my MKS MINI is bed. Just one last thing before I order a new one. Are the Pins D50-53 supposed to have a direct connection to the SD card itself, or does the Arduino "talk" to a chip on the MKS MINI? I'm getting continuity for ground and between pin D50 of the Arduino and the X/DATA1 pin of the SD reader. (referencing a picture of the "SD on back" model) Can someone confirm that this is correct?

[Ancyker]

The SD card slot is connected through the chip above EXP2 which converts the 5V logic to 3.3V.

[HauptlingHD]

I ordered a new MKS MINI and now the SD card works.🥳 Unfortunately, now I have a similar problem. In "normal" mode (#define HW5), the OSCR behaves similarly to before. The backlight of the LCD turns on, and the LCD stays blank. Before, the RGB LED of the button changed color when turning, now it does not. In serial monitor mode, I get the same SD Error as before with no SD inserted (obviously), but when I insert an SD card, the serial output gets stuck at some point. Sometimes it writes:怘⸮�f⸮⸮�~�f⸮⸮xf��⸮fx��xf⸮⸮f⸮⸮⸮
Cartridge Reader
2`

or`Cartridge Reader
2023 github.com/sanni

OS`

[HauptlingHD]

Now it works 100% with all SD cards. There must have been dirt on the contacts of the reader or something.