How to downgrade firmware?

GotMetalBoy

GotMetalBoy

Power User
I upgraded to firmware 18.07 but need to go back to 17.04 bc some of my presets changed and I can't figure out what settings I need to adjust. I may even have to go back as far as 16.04.1 bc some of my FX like Flange, Chorus and Rotary sound different.

I always make full backups of my Axe-Fx II Mark I, MFC-101 Mark I and LF+ PRO+ before updating or upgrading anything. I also save old versions of Firmware, Axe-Edit, Fractal Bot, Drivers, Fedit and LF+ Editor.

My MFC-101 has v3.08 and LF+ PRO+ has v4.18, will I need to downgrade these too?

I plan to record dry and processed tracks of my presets with the older firmwares and do the Axe-Edit Preset Settings spreadsheet trick CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+EXPORT. Then I'll upgrade back to 18.07 or newer and compare and tweak my presets bc I really like the sound and feel of it and all the other goodies.

FAS should stop calling it firmware and call it Spermware bc it impregnates the Axe-Fx II haha ;)

Are there any tips, suggestions, recommendations or tweaks I need to know about before downgrading?
 
Call up an empty preset before you downgrade, so you don't have to worry if your machine could hang after the downgrade. Restore your old backup then. Maybe that overcautios...it's the way I do such things.
 
Since you have backups of everything, just reload the old firmware, then reload your presets. You'll most likely need to reinstall an older version of AxeEdit as well, but I'm unsure which versions correspond to which firmware revision. I don't think the MIDI controllers need downgrading.

Other than that, good luck!
 
I tried rolling back to 17.04, but all my presets went blank... so back to 18.07. I just wanted to compare the sound.

I really wish we still had the option in the "utility" (or global) menu to roll back the firmware on the fly. I thought that was a very nice reference feature, I wish it wasn't deprecated.
 
As long as the company is operating 'hand-to-mouth' with respect to updates, it's always going to be painful to some degree.

If I update to a new firmware, I usually need to also update to new Axe-Edit (which makes sense, right?). But lately, new AE versions are almost firmware-specific; backward compatibility is no more. So if I then later want to roll back, I also have to find (if I was smart enough to maintain) the old AE install bundle.

The upshot is really, SAVE EVERYTHING, especially since Fractal doesn't host anything but the latest anymore.
 
If you go back to 17.x and you're using Axe-Edit, you should uninstall the latest version and install v3.1.4
You can get it from axefx.fr Courtesy of AlGrenadine.


You don't need to downgrade your MFC.
As 666was999 said, it's convenient to recall a blank preset before downgrade to avoid possible hang-outs caused by an incompatible preset.

By the way operate with an older version of Axe-Edit will be annoying 'cause it will prompt you to update everytime you launch it.
 
I keep a folder of the firmware and the Axe Edit that is compatible with it together. I never save presets directly to my Axe when I am trying new firmware or make any saved changes so my presets stay intact. I have a backup Axe Fx II unit that has 17.03 on it and I played thru it a few nights ago and was really happier with it than the new firmwares thats been coming out. Different strokes I suppose.
Back to your question, just load the firmware you like and switch to the editor that is compatible and you should be good.
 
666was999 said:
Call up an empty preset before you downgrade, so you don't have to worry if your machine could hang after the downgrade. Restore your old backup then. Maybe that overcautios...it's the way I do such things.
Click to expand...

Thanks! This is a great idea. All my user cabs are blank too, so they shouldn't cause any issues.

I think the way I'll do this is to:
Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On

Downgrade Firmware to v16.04.1 Released on 2014.11.08
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On
Restore my backup from v16.04.01
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off/On
Install Axe-Edit v3p1p2 Released on 2014.11.10
Export Preset Settings spreadsheets
Record Dry and Processed tracks of my presets

Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On

Upgrade Firmware to 17.04 Released on 2015.01.12
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On
Restore my backup from v17.04
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off/On
Install Axe-Edit v3p1p4 Released on 2014.12.10
Export Preset Settings spreadsheets
Record Dry and Processed tracks of my presets

Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On

Upgrade Firmware to 18.07 Released on 2015.04.08
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off
Hold the RECALL button and power on
Save the Blank Preset
Power Off/On
Restore my backup from v17.04
Power Off/On
Reset System Parameters
Power Off/On
Install Axe-Edit v3p1p9 Released on 2015.03.30
Export Preset Settings spreadsheets
Record Dry and Processed tracks of my presets

Compare all my Preset Spreadsheets and Processed recordings and adjust as needed
Make a full backup
Play really loud and enjoy! :)
 
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