correct Z-offset is too low

[reach]

Hi there,
I’m new to 3D printing. Got an Artillery Sidewinder X1.
After a few very satisfying first prints I successfully used a tutorial to fit a BLtouch sensor, printed the mounts for it etc…

The problem I’m facing now is that the Z-offset, when correctly adjusted produces obviously wrong results: the skirt is so thin that it’s almost invisble and also the rest of the first layer looks awful. The end result is ~0.5mmm less high than it should be. The skirt and the printed piece stick so hard to the plate that I literally have to cut them off it. The skirt is almost like a coating on the glass.

I achieve correct/better results when I use a slightly higher offset (-1.8 instead of -2.10).I have verified via G-codes that the printer uses indeed the adjusted Z value and I’ve measured that the -2.10 offset is the “good” one, where a thin piece of paper is just stuck between nozzle and plate.I have done some tests without filament to ensure no drop is under the nozzle messing with the test-paper.Before I used the same piece of paper for manually levelling the bed and had zero issues.


On a related subject: before flashing the mainboard and the display, the entire printer behaved differently. The sound of the motors was different, “smoother” and I never had filament dripping out of the nozzle when it moved between the two lines one the side of the bed and the actual print-piece. Now I have this on a regular basis.

It almost seems like the stock firmware was better optimized, although both of course are Marlin.The actual results are still good as far as I can tell, but the different soundtrack bothers me. There is a whining, and sometimes a ratteling noise which wasn't there before.


So these are several questions in one, but they seem related. Anybody here who can give me some advice?
Is it possible that the stock firmware had optimizations which the new one hasn't? I used the tutorial and firmwares from https://pretendprusa.co.uk/Thanks!