x motor buzz only

yeah. It can be a bit daunting at first.

 

Does the whole black piece move or just the board on top?

 

It's the same connection type as between the ramps board and arduino, only much tighter so it's harder to remove. I definitely don't advise this but if you absolutely can't get it out you can use a tongue and groove pliers to remove it, but use your judgement on if this is something you're capable of and i can't be blamed if you knock something off your driver (true story)

 

I eventually figured out what moved and what didn't. For some reason it works! But I'm scratching my head why. I can't actually get the middle board back down. The space is too tight because I plugged the X board back in first. Maybe there was a slightly bad connection due to stress.
Why did you suggest switching boards anyway? I didn't think that would change anything...

 

We were trying to determine if there was a faulty stepper driver or if the issue was with the RAMPS board itself

 

That makes sense. But why it works now doesn't to me...unless it happens again. I have not had the unit on very long. Is this little board I moved available at Radio Shack?

 

Nope, you need to buy it online. http://www.ultibots.com/pololu-a4988-stepper-motor-driver-heat-sink/

As to why it's now suddenly working? Hard to say. Probably a loose connection that just needed to be reseated. Printers are fickle like that.