Description
At the centre of every modern 3D printer sits a small, unglamorous board that quietly decides whether the machine is a tool or a toy. The Cortex CB1 was designed for the moment when a Raspberry Pi Compute Module was unavailable, overpriced, or simply impossible to source, and it refuses to treat that moment as a compromise. Powered by an Allwinner H616 quad-core Cortex-A53 processor at 1.5GHz with a Mali G31 MP2 graphics core, it carries the same BTB connector as the CM4, which means it seats into the same Manta M4P, M8P and PI4B carrier boards without a single adapter, bracket or workaround.
Married to the PI4B Adapter V1.0 the board becomes something much closer to a Raspberry Pi 4 than a mere accessory. You get two Micro HDMI outputs, four USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, CAM and CSI interfaces, a 40-pin header with the same pinout as Raspberry Pi, and a Type-C port that can flash an eMMC module while it feeds power to the whole system. ESD protection sits on the USB and network lines, a detail that matters in a workshop where static is a constant companion. A reserved 5V header lets you bolt a fan directly to the board and keep the compute module cool through long unattended print jobs.
This is the hardware layer underneath Klipper, and it behaves accordingly. The CB1 boots a full Linux stack, exposes 100M Ethernet and 100M WiFi, drives a 4K display over HDMI 2.0A, and hands the timing-critical motion work to a dedicated MCU on the Manta board, which is exactly how the architecture is supposed to work. The result is a control stack that stays responsive under high acceleration, where a single host board trying to do everything at once would stutter and lose steps.
This is not an accessory for your printer. It is the second brain that lets the first one concentrate on motion.
Key Features
- ✦ Allwinner H616 quad-core Cortex-A53 at 1.5GHz with Mali G31 MP2 GPU supporting OpenGL 3.2
- ✦ Drop-in CM4 form factor with an identical BTB header, so no adapter board is required
- ✦ Runs Klipper host firmware on BIGTREETECH Manta M4P, M8P and PI4B carrier boards
- ✦ Dual Micro HDMI outputs, four USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet plus CAM and CSI interfaces
- ✦ Type-C power input that also flashes eMMC modules through a single connection
- ✦ 512MB or 1GB DDR3L SDRAM with 100M Ethernet and 100M WiFi networking
- ✦ Open hardware project: board files, schematics and firmware published on GitHub
Technical Specifications
- Product Type: CM4-compatible compute module and carrier adapter
- Model: CB1 compute module / PI4B Adapter V1.0
- CPU: Allwinner H616, Quad-core Cortex-A53 at 1.5GHz
- GPU: Mali G31 MP2, OpenGL 3.2 support
- Memory: 512MB or 1GB DDR3L SDRAM
- Display: HDMI 2.0A interface, 4K output
- Networking: 100M Ethernet plus 100M WiFi
- Interfaces: 2x Micro HDMI, 4x USB 2.0, RJ45, CAM, CSI, Micro SD, 40-pin GPIO
- Power Input: Type-C 5V plus reserved 5V fan header
- Board Size: 85 x 54.29mm, mounting pattern 58 x 49mm
- Compatibility: Raspberry Pi CM4, Manta M4P and M8P, Klipper host stack
- Origin: Mainland China
Where It Belongs
This board is for the builder who has outgrown a stock mainboard and wants a host that keeps up. It is equally at home running Klipper on a Voron or RatRig conversion, acting as the control layer in a Manta M8P build driving eight stepper drivers, or simply replacing an unavailable CM4 in a PI4B carrier so that an existing printer keeps working instead of sitting idle. Repair shops use it to bring older printers back under modern firmware, and small production cells use it because a host board that can be replaced for a fraction of the cost of a Raspberry Pi 4 makes far more commercial sense when you run six machines instead of one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is the CB1 a direct replacement for the Raspberry Pi CM4?
A: For most 3D printing workloads, yes. The CB1 uses the same BTB connector and the same 55 x 40mm module footprint as the CM4, so it fits the same carrier boards. It is a different SoC, so you should flash an image built for the H616 rather than a Raspberry Pi OS image.
Q: Will it run Klipper and Mainsail out of the box?
A: It runs Linux, so yes, provided you use a CB1-compatible image. BIGTREETECH publishes firmware and board files for the CB1, and the board is intended to be paired with a Manta M4P or M8P where the MCU handles motion timing.
Q: Can I use the DSI or CSI camera port with the CB1 installed?
A: The DSI and CSI ports are wired for the CM4. If you are using the CB1 module, those ports will not function, so plan your camera setup around a USB camera instead.
Q: How much RAM do I need?
A: The 512MB version is adequate for a single Klipper printer running Mainsail or Fluidd. Choose the 1GB version if you plan to run additional services such as KlipperScreen, an IP camera stream or OctoEverywhere alongside the host stack.
Q: Does it support 4K displays?
A: Yes. The CB1 exposes HDMI 2.0A and can drive a 4K display, which is useful when you want a large shop-floor dashboard or a KlipperScreen interface on a full-size monitor.
Q: What comes in the box?
A: It depends on the option you purchase. The CB1 option ships the compute module, while the PI4B adapter option ships the carrier board. Review the variant list before ordering so you receive exactly the combination your build needs.
Customer Reviews
Payment and Security
Vos informations de paiement sont gérées de manière sécurisée. Nous ne stockons ni ne pouvons récupérer votre numéro de carte bancaire.