Determining Motor Currents

:dizzy: This page is compatible with Klipper only.

Table of contents

:warning: The below guidance is for axis motors only.

Extruder motors/pancake steppers are a bit different, as there is more variance between models.

  • Check with the community first.

    • If you are using BoM motors, check the stock configs.

    • Check in Discord to see what others are running.

  • You should start off with a more conservative run_current.
    • You may be able to attain additional motor performance by increasing currents, but come back to that later. Get your printer working reliably first.
  • Some motors vary.

    • I have found my LDO 0.9° steppers to be able to achieve notably higher max accels/speeds with higher currents.

    • My OMC 1.8° motors, on the other hand, performed very well even at moderate currents.

  • Different stepper drivers have different maximum currents.

    • See :page_facing_up: here. Try not to exceed ~70-80% of the rated maximum of your drivers (and remember that higher currents need more stepper driver cooling).

      • For example TMC2209 drivers are rated to 2a RMS, but I would generally not exceed 1.4a RMS.
  • We are derating the motors/drivers for margin of safety.
    • Rated currents are the absolute maximum in ideal conditions. In reality, things like chamber and driver temperature come into play. Margin of safety is also standard practice.

Determining Initial run_current:

Start with around 40-50% of rated current.

  • For example, with a 2a motor, start around 0.8-1a.

Then you can :page_facing_up: test your maximum speeds/accels and make sure your motors are performing well. In most cases, the motors can handle speeds/accels much faster than what you would realistically be printing at, even at moderate currents.

  • If you are having issues reaching reasonable speeds/accels, you may have a mechanical problem. See :page_facing_up: here.

Determining Maximum run_current:

:warning: In most cases, your motors will reach maximum or near-maximum performance before this point. Don’t just slap them straight to max current.

  • Often that just results in extra heat (and potential driver overheating problems) for little actual gain past a certain breakpoint.

  • Most 1.8° motors already have way more performance than you realistically need. 0.9° motors are more sensitive, however.

  • The ideal current is usually somewhere in the middle. Experiment with different motor currents and :page_facing_up: test how they affect your maximum speeds/accels.

A good rule of thumb is to not exceed 70% of the rated current as absolute max.

For example, a 2a motor would be about 1.4a max.

  • Keep in mind that currents approaching maximum may need greater stepper driver cooling.

  • If you are pushing higher currents, you may also want to consider measuring the temperature of your motors. Ensure that they do not exceed 80C.

    • Measure the temps when actually printing in a heat soaked chamber.
      • Some multimeters come with a k-type thermocouple. You can kapton tape it to the motor housing.
    • You cannot accurately gauge this by feel. Even lower temperatures will feel “too hot”.
    • The motors themselves can generally handle much more. This temp limit comes from the printed parts rather than the motors themselves.

Determining hold_current

Recently, Klipper docs have started to :page_facing_up: recommend against using a separate hold_current. You can achieve this by commenting out hold_current, or by setting it to the same value as your run_current.

If you run a different hold_current, a good rule of thumb is about 70% of your run_current.