You likely need to update the printer's firmware¹--here's a link to the Elegoo support page--select Mars 3 from the sidebar menu to find the download files and instructions.

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¹ - I had thought the M3 was shipped with "new format .ctb file" compatible firmware, but maybe not.

Select "System" from the main menu to determine what version of firmware is installed--you need v4.4.n or better to read the new .ctb files. Let us know what you find...

Thanks Cliff. My printer has v4.3. I've downloaded the update, not entirely sure I understand what to do with it, but here goes!

I understand, the update instructions lose a bit in their "translation". It reminds me of an editorial comment I read years ago regarding then state-of-the-art electronic 35 mm cameras--the author was commenting on the plethora of buttons and controls and coined the term "COIK" to describe their functions, "Clear Only If Known".

Let me translate:

some definitions:

disk (U disk)-- not actually a "disk", they mean the USB flash drive and seem to use two terms just to further confuse things;

print -- not actually "print", they mean select the update file as though it were a printable .ctb file, and press the "Print" button;

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① copy the update.LCD and 3_C2_FPGA_DXQ4K_L066_V5_D130_A_80_300_30C12_F2128.RBF files (from the Machine Firmware folder) and the mars3ChiTu Mainboard SpecificationV3.0.920210812.gcode.txt file (from the Travel Documents folder) files to the root directory of the flash drive (it needs to be 16 GB or less, formatted as FAT32).

The .bin file (in the UI folder) is not needed, it contains the bitmaps for the UI buttons;

② Insert the flash drive into the printer;

③ Assuming the printer was on, turn it off and restart, or just turn it on if off--the .LCD file will be updated automatically when the printer boots up;

④ "Print" the .RBF and .txt files, in that order;

Reboot the printer;

----------------------------------------------------

Cliff

Many thanks; it appears to be working - it recognised the .ctb file and has started printing....

Cool...

Me again. It worked fine but now has reverted to not recognising .ctb files, or rather ones I input. It recognises the test Rook.ctb but not ones I have created

Have you tried using v1.9.1 of Chitubox Basic?  I have found it to be the most stable release since v1.7.0. From reports here and elsewhere "Pro" seems to be a "poster child" for the fact that simply calling something "Pro" does no make it so--at $170/yr I'll never know--too rich for my blood and I don't "do" subscription software anyway...

Just got my Mars 3 printer. Have the 1.9.1 basic. software on printer is 4.4.3. Cant get it to recognize anything but the sample Rook file. Tried downloading the Chitubox pro that came with the printer but it wont even open on my computer. Any tips?

What are the filenames of the files that the printer does not recognize (full name including extension)? How were they created?
What operating system is your computer running?

Me again
I've gone back to Chitbox Basic. It has successfully printed one of my creations but while it shows other drawings on the scree, says the .ctb is an unknown file format. This is getting a bit fristraing!

Mike

To answer your reply to 'guest' I'm running windows 11, I'm using TurboCad and the filenames are
 _mounting-2fat.ctb
and
_single_type285.ctb
Mike

Mike To answer your reply to 'guest' I'm running windows 11, I'm using TurboCad and the filenames are _ ...

Are you using TurboCad to create the .ctb files? If so it may not be capable of creating a .ctb file in the latest format introduced by Chitu with v1.8+ of Chitubox--they changed it to further reduce file size during encryption and compression--they should have renamed is as well, ".ct2" or ".ctb2" would have gone a long way in minimizing the confusion that has arisen.

Apparently Autocad uses a .ctb extension for its "color-dependent plot style files" (click here), could it be that's what TurboCad is creating?

No. I work with .tcw files and when I'm ready to print save them as .stl which I then import into Chitubox . That saves them as .ctb. TurboCad doesn't have any option to save as .ctb

For a practical test, here's the rook from the Mars3 CD .stl file; loaded into Chitubox v1.9.1 on my Linux Mint box, sliced with the v1.9.1 Mars 3 printer configuration, and saved to a .cfg file--can your printer read it?

http://www.paladinmicro.com/images/EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb

My browser won't open the link, firstly because of a secuirty risk. When I overrode that (trusting aren't I?) it said that a file was missing and to re-install the chitubox app

You must be running Windows? What version? The QT development platform used by Chitu seems to have numerous issues with Win 10 and 11 on some hardware.
Can you just download the file without Windows trying to open it with an application (I haven't used Windows in 8 years, since Win 7) and only then because I had a customer using it.

I put the .ctb file in an .zip archive, that may make Windows more accepting of it. See if you can download it to disk, "unzip" it and test it on your printer...

www.paladinmicro.com/images/EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb.zip

FWIW I downloded the file with no problems using Firefox on Linux--and opened it with CB v1.9.1...

Error 404. The requested URL /www.paladinmicro.com/images/EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb.zip was not found on this server.

I'm using firefox running on Windows 11. If its any help, I have previously done a drawing (to repair a grandchilds toy) on Turbocad, sliced it using Chitubox and printed it on my Mars 3. However it was quite a small file.

Incidentally, I can print the Rook file that came with the printer without any problems

The forum seems to have decided my link was on it's server--the full link it embedded is:

 https://forum.chitubox.com/www.paladinmicro.com/images/EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb.zip

If this one doesn't work:

http://www.paladinmicro.com/images//EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb.zip

then copy and paste this into your browser:

http://www.paladinmicro.com/images//EleGoo-Etc/CIK_Rook_Mars_3.ctb.zip

There is at least one other thread re: problems with the new .ctb format and the Mars; it may be an Elegoo firmware problem, have you contacted them--it's their firmware...

twice, but no response

of your ones above, the first got an Error 404, the next two were deemed a security risk. Having bought a printer which to me wasn't cheap, and software which I paid for an upgrade and can't print anything except for a pair of rooks and a a replacment arm for my grand daughters trebuchet, I am feeling a little miffed

The security risk thing is just Windows knowing better than you. It's miffed because it never before "heard" of my domain, and that it's not "https" certified. It does not actually analyze content of the target or anything like that.

The file is just a .ctb file, a "slicing" of the rook .stl file supplied on the Mars 3 CD, performed by me using CB v1.9.1 and the Mars 3 printer configuration, on my Linux Mint 20.3 machine. If your printer recognzes and loads it then we will have determined there is a CB issue on you computer, if not then it points to a printer firmware problem.

My plain ol' Mars will read and load it, throwing an error only hhen I try to print it because it's a Mars 3 file (the "slice" images are too big).

You decide how you wish to proceed...

I've just realised my problems all started after upgrading to Windows 11. My Mars 3 sees the file, but without a picture but when i print it comes with 'unrecognised file format .ctb'. The printer will print the file I mentioned earlier that I created (trebuchet). The problem to my mind lies in the windows/chitubox area.
I can't go back to an earlier windows. So what do I do?

At the risk of being obnoxious; 'twas Linux you could restore the system "snapshot" taken just before upgrading and be back where you were. However there must be someway to downgrade from Win 11 to 10--isn't there?  I see several websites describing various processes.

The QT dev platform is yet another "one size fits all' "magic' solution for primarily graphics applications. i can find no direct links however it sounds too much like Apple's failed "QuickTime" endeavor to be a coincidence--also QuickTime's demise and QT's emergence seem loosely spaced in time.

In any event, if over the years I had a nickel for each "come and gone" magic cross platform development system I've seen, I'd have well over a dollar.

Unfortunately it sounds like you will have to wait for QT to catch up to Windows 11--or for Chutu to move to QT 6.x (claimed to be Win 11 compatible) which will undoubtedly create problems for the rest of us--switch to Linux and tell Gates and his global domination dreams to stuff it...

I suppose you can't answer this, what other slicing software is available? My modelling project is stalled

There is one called Lychee slicer that is adware in the "freebie" package (displaying 20 second ads for miniature "dolls" each time you save a sliced file). Otherwise it is subscription based (I do not do subscription software). It is much slower than Chitubox and annoyingly tied to the "Cloud" for a variety of things it does. It does seem stable though (on Linux)--I don't think it can create the latest .ctb files though...

I dug out a laptop that I haven't used for many years. It runs windows 7. I insattled CB both from the stick that came with the printer, hung for about three mins at about 98%installed, but finally installed. Then wouldn't run. Deleted it and then the same thing happened when I downloaded it from the CB site. It would appear that I have an expensive bit of junk occupying a chunk of my work bench.

Is the Win-7  32 or 64-bit?

Chitubox Version 1.6.5.1 was the last to run on 32-bit Windows. I believe the version on the Mars 3 CD is v1.9.0--it will not run on 32-bit Windows...