Cliff, Get rid of the older firmware modeling options to free up space!!

Older firmware modeling option

  • Remove it. I can live without it.

    Votes: 398 94.3%

  • Leave it. I have to have it.

    Votes: 24 5.7%
  • Total voters
    422
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IMHO...changing anything hardware related is going to cost money and risk damaging the unit.

Someone stated in the 4.01 beta thread, for a couple hundred bucks they cold have it done somewhere like a cell phone repair company. You probably could, but if you sold the Mark I and added maybe $400 more you could have an XL or XL+.

Only Cliff and company can answer how many more updates would be possible if the modeling option got removed, but if it is limited to only 1 or 2 more updates then it really isn't beneficial. If there is another year or 2 left in there after removing it, then I am all for it.

I love my MK1! and would hate to be without it. I would like to wait for the AXE III to come out before I upgrade though.
 
AX-FX MkII owner and I have never used the older firmware rollback except to see if It worked when it first came out. Seems at this point to be completely redundant and there is a work around for the small percentage of users that use it based upon this small survey. Not sure if it is a sufficient sample size. I am sure Cliff will come to a decision all can accept.....
 
muudrock said:
No, its soldered to the motherboard.
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No it's not. What makes you think this? In fact, FAS sells a replacement boot rom (for when a flash goes bad; for 5 bucks, oh the irony) it's a 32pin PLC package device I checked mine last night. There is a 4x larger pin compatible version of said part too. Although the write interface may be different, etc; only Cliff could say if it is a viable replacement.
 
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zenaxe said:
No it's not. What makes you think this? In fact, FAS sells a replacement boot rom (for when a flash goes bad; for 5 bucks, oh the irony) it's a 32pin PLC package device I checked mine last night. There is a 4x larger pin compatible version of said part too. Although the write interface may be different, etc; only Cliff could say if it is a viable replacement.
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Hmm, don't think it's socketed, mate --it's soldered. I think you're confusing the emergency EPROM you could buy for the MkI/II with the main DRAM in the unit. It's been a while since I've been inside a MkI/II but the EPROM sold by FAS was in addition to the one in the unit IIRC. There's an empty socket in the box you can seat in to -- it's been permanently flashed with a diagnostic firmware that gets your unit back to a state where comms function again so you can re-flash the main ROM.

Here are the emergency EPROM instructions you receive with the chip: http://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/emergency-boot-rom-installation-via-usb.80166/#post-975100

This picture is a little low-res but here's the MkI board: http://wiki.fractalaudio.com/axefx2/index.php?title=File:Pcb.png -- all the memory chips are soldered on that board.
 
of course I ment a upgrade FAS Boot Rom package.
i dont mind paying 100 bucks, but do not have the money for xl+ (yet)
and its not sure when axe 3 comes, etc...
and what axe 2 mk1&2 will do now when selling

it was just an idea....
 
OMG I'm so used to new firmwares and new sounds, it'll be disaster for me to loose upgrade possibility :(((
 
iaresee said:
Hmm, don't think it's socketed, mate --it's soldered. I think you're confusing the emergency EPROM you could buy for the MkI/II with the main DRAM in the unit. .
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Thanks for the tech info; yep, my response was based on the emergency boot rom, I was not aware that this is a parallel thing to the main onboard part(s). Darn, it is probably more complicated and likely not viable for a hardware solution. Bummer! :(
 
musicman0001 said:
of course I ment a upgrade FAS Boot Rom package.
i dont mind paying 100 bucks, but do not have the money for xl+ (yet)
and its not sure when axe 3 comes, etc...
and what axe 2 mk1&2 will do now when selling

it was just an idea....
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I'm not rich, but I could swing a minor sum like that plus having a tech remove the old boot ROM and install a new, bigger one. It's for more cost effective than selling the old unit and buying a XL+.
 
gittarzann said:
Someone stated in the 4.01 beta thread, for a couple hundred bucks they cold have it done somewhere like a cell phone repair company.
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That was me. I suggested that before Cliff mentioned that the main reason the ROM in the MKI/II is nearly out of room is due to having to incorporate the rollback versions of firmware. Since he made that statement, changing the ROM (even if it's possible) is not something I would even consider. If Cliff decides to remove the rollback option, which seems to be a popular option, then the issue is resolved for the time being, without having to modify the hardware.
 
Maybe there should be 2 polls one for XL users and one for non XL since for non XL users there really is no choice. Maybe there is an alternative solution that is easier to code for Fractal. Perhaps we can pay for the next upgrade to cover costs of adding the #Ifdef code? Maybe the Mark II users can go to a pay for upgrade model since it is more work to keep it going?
 
iaresee said:
Why?
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Not in the immediate future.

If the option to rollback modelling versions is removed, there's no need to update the ROM ...for now.

If the rollback feature is removed and the firmware gets to the point where it's going to max. out the ROM, then I would re-evaluate what Fractal products are available at the time and where the existing firmware is at and make the decision to a) keep the status quo, b) replace the ROM assuming firmware updates are still available or c) buy the Axe-Fx III with quad CPU's, the ability to play MIDI controlled BT's and the ability to play the guitar for me...like a player piano! :)
 
AtomicBlaze said:
Maybe there should be 2 polls one for XL users and one for non XL since for non XL users there really is no choice. Maybe there is an alternative solution that is easier to code for Fractal. Perhaps we can pay for the next upgrade to cover costs of adding the #Ifdef code? Maybe the Mark II users can go to a pay for upgrade model since it is more work to keep it going?
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No because there's not going to ever be two firmware trees.
 
well... aside from the possibility that it might just be that he Mark I/II is closing in on end of life, if you've paid for presets and an upgrade changes them, I can see how someone who gigs regularly might want to keep this option around.

However, i'm thinking right now the unit holds multiple updates in the boot rom. If you removed all but one, wouldn't the size of the rom have to increase exponentially in the next version or two for it to hit the limit that quickly? If there was only one, I would imagine that it would extend the life for quite some time - until such time as the one update equaled the size of all of the current updates.

Microsoft has worried about backwards compatibility for years and given them no end of problems.

Apple is quick to cut off their compatibility with the past when it comes to gains of the present and future.

I'd be fine with an upgrade option through FAS to upgrade the boot rom but it sounds like it wouldn't mesh with the motherboard. To me, that just says it's end of life.

Considering the upgraded memory and changes made to the XL & XL+, I wonder what the projected end of life is for those units?
 
Sustainerplayer said:
Cliff could remove all those ... what's their name? ... ahh ... Marshalls ... they are noisy and no good at all. That would free up some space!
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Don't tell anyone, but I secretly agree. :) Marshall and clones, except maybe a couple of Friedmans, and a bunch of weird amps with strange names I've never even tried and most probably never will would be much easier to lose than the modeling version selector.

But then again, there are a bunch of people who love those things. Choosing whom to hurt isn't all that easy, I guess.
 
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