Thread for Comments on Public Beta 1.5.249

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Friends,

Please use this thread to comment on Public Beta 1.5.249.

[Dean Harrington]

Any experiences with this update?

[Andrew Stone]

Dean,

So far it has been stable for me. You should note the tally bar option is not implemented as they thought it would, however, in my mind, the firmware is operationally stable.

-Andrew

[Luben Izov]

Hello Dan,
This evening I updated NF to firmware 1.5.249 and start recording playback from HV40 tape and for my huge surprise audio was scrambled.... I have done this before with firmware 1.5.31 and a firmware 1.5.126 without any problems. I did try it several times with the same setting I used with firmware 1.5.126 and with different settings on the new NF firmware and the result was always the same - Audio was scrambled!
Then, I rolled back to NF firmware 1.5.126 and it works just fine as it was before!!!
Other strange thing is that, that when I had NF firmware 1.249 installed, I changed Unit ID to the Company initials. When rolled back to NF FW 1.5.126 the Unit ID was the Company Initials!?! The truth is that I did not restore to Default Settings before I looked at the Unit ID. I left it with Company ID settings, simply because it worked well with the test. I do not know if may cause some other problems, but, when I am done with what I am doing (this tape) I will restore Default Settings and see if that will change Unit ID.
Any ideas about the problem I had this evening?
Thank you
Luben

an Update:
Dear Dan and Tommy,
After many attempts to record "that" tape with NF I finally succeeded by making some flips/flops with the firmware. What I've done is this - I did try with firmware 1.5.126 and had no luck with it. The only different thing from before was the Unit ID that was stating Company Initials and take #'s. The funny part is that under firmware 1.5.126 I was able to change the Unit ID!?? Because that option wasn't in the original 1.5.126 firmware I didn't attempt the change it. I flashed NF to the very new 1.5.249 firmware, Restored Default Settings, manually changed Unit ID (it didn't change with Restore Default) to what I had before the first firmware upgrade. Made the neccessery setting change for my needs and start recording again.

My hunch is that Unit ID has something to do with the trouble I had. Its not a cable, simply because I mounted everything solid and flat. I've never lost signal from the camera and it did happaned the same with 2 other HDMI cables.
Hope this helps for future fixes (if it is a problem... I could work without changing the Unit ID)
Thank you
Luben
Please let me know if you have changed your Unit ID and experienced some unusual trouble... anything... just curios...

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Friends,

With Public Beta, we have a problem when the wired Remote Control is used.

Specifically, when the System|Trigger options "Remote" and "Remote and Record Button" options are used, and triggered via the Remote Control, we sometimes fail to record the "Quicktime" footer.

Without this footer, the file can not be opened.

We can recover the footage.

Also, the footage can be recovered by playing it out of the nanoFlash into a second unit.

We will correct this in the next release.

We have not seen this problem, so far, when the record button is used, or when the "Trigger on Incremening Timecode" feature is used.


Also, we recommend, with this release, not using the "Power Save" feature.

When coming out of "Power Save" we may not see the source due to a problem in our firmware, in this Public Beta.

[Luben Izov]

Dear Dan,
On other thread ( I do not know why not here) you have said that some problems with the new NF firmware has been fixed but you have not mention anything about fixing the Remote Control. Would you please combine all the info regarding this 1.5.249 firmware in this thread so to be easy for everyone to catchup with the problems and problems solved.
Me, on other hand have an RMA from CD for my Remote Cable (I made an email to Tommy) stating the problems (my post above) with my Remote Control and more. I am on hold with that RMA simply if the problem is in the firmware not in my Remote control I don't need to send it to CD. Anyway, would be that kind to have all the info in this thread, please.
Thank you very much
Luben

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Luben,

Good Point!

I was responding to the questions posted in the other thread.

We found and fixed a problem that occurred when using the remote control.

(When the recording was stopped using the remote control, the QT Footer was not being written to the file, thus preventing the file from being opened in an NLE. We can recover the footage from the files).

We also fixed the "On-Screen Tally Bar"

And I should report that the "On-Screen Tally Bar" works with both HD-SDI and HDMI.

Our goal is to post a new firmware update as soon as we complete the testing of this new release.

[Luben Izov]

Quote:Originally Posted by Dan Keaton
Dear Piotr,

In our upcoming release, and (I believe) in the Public Beta 1.5.249, you will find that the delay before we start record has been drasticly reduced.

Also, the Audio/Video sync has been improved in our latest releases.

Our latest release 1.6.6 is in test. We will release it as soon was we finish testing it.Quote


Thanks Dan! That's great. A question to you please. My NF some how did slowdown after I upgraded to the new beta firmware. The slowdown is quite visible when booting and going through the menu. Going back to the Production firmware does not fix that problem. I am sure that this has happened.
Would you please comment on this.
Thank you
Luben

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Luben,

I composed an answer to your question last night. I do not know why it was not posted.

I recomemnd that each time you update the firmware, going forward, or reverting to a previous release, that you perform a System|Restore Defaults.

This is now a very important step in the firmware update process.

With recent releases, upon startup, we now show more information about which cards are inserted in the system, this takes additional time. This may be part of the slowdown you are witnessing, but there may be other areas that you feel are slower.

I will wait on additional information from you.

[Luben Izov]

Dear Dan,
I am sorry that you had to type your answer twice...
The truth is that I have perform a System Restore Defaults (you say perform a System|Remote Defaults - I cant see anything like that).. If you read the second half of my post (up in this thread) you would see that restoring does not change things as expected. I did it 3 times and is still the same. I use the production firmware now, but, I still have control of functions that was optional only with the beta x.x.249
Based on that and the troubles I have explain in my post up, I am waiting for a better firmware then this beta version that change all the settings and I am not sure any more when I rolled back if I really have the production version working properly or not with some option still available.... Thank you Dan
Luben

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Luben,

The point that I am attempting to make is that it is now necessary to perform a "System|Restore Defaults" immediately after each firmware update or revision to a previous release.

From reading your post above, I could not tell if you did that when you reverted to an earlier release.

If the System ID is not want you want after a firmware update, please set it to the value you want.

If you did not change it, but the system changed it when a new firmware was installed, then this is an indication that the System|Restore Defaults should be run and the Unit ID and all other settings set manually.

"I use the production firmware now, but, I still have control of functions that was optional only with the beta x.x.249".

Are you saying that when you revert to a release earlier than 1.5.249, you still have features, in the menu system, that were introduced in 1.5.249? If so, then something is wrong. Specifically, please check the System|About and report to us firmware release number.

[Luben Izov]

Dear Dan,
Yes, as you could read in post #4 second half I say that and in my last post I say that too. I have control over ID and who knows what else with production firmware 1.5.126 and is slow... way slow than before I attempt the upgrade to Beta x.x.249
Luben

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Luben,

I was asking you to confirm that your nanoFlash currently reports 1.5.126 in System|About.

Also, could you please elaborate on what specifically is slow?

[Luben Izov]

Dear Dan,
If we do not say exactly the words you want to hear it seems you don't understand what we say. I have said in post #10 and clearly #12 that I use production firmware x.x.126.
Yes, NF System/About says 1.5.126
By saying slow, I mean booting and going through the menu. It takes some time before the functions are available to be chosen. If that is not part of the system being slow other option is that my NF buttons do not trigger response from the menu, meaning not working buttons..., but they do after some time.... go figure!?! My guess is that the beta firmware caused some change the way the NF worked before. If there is a other way to clear the NF and restore it please advise. I still hold on my Remote Record Cable RMA not sending it to CD, hoping that the problem is in the beta firmware rather the cable. BTW the cable act the same now under x.x.126
Thank you Dan

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Luben,

I hope you understand that I have to be precise, otherwise we can draw the wrong conclusions.

Specifically, you said that some features were available, from x.x.249, after you went back to 1.5.126.
This should be technically impossible, so I needed confirmation that you were actually using 1.5.126.

I have tested my personal nanoFlash with an internal release 1.6.4.

While on the System Menu, I press (and release) the Right Arrow Key, and the System Menu comes up instantly. (No CompactFlash cards were in the nanoFlash for this test.)

I downgraded to 1.5.126, when I do the same test, it performs the same, the System Menu comes up instantly.

I have changed the Unit ID to letters, then performed the test, same results.

I then installed 1.5.249, then performed the test, same results.

Please note that in 1.5.249, there is no "Unit ID" in the System Menu.
Instead, there is "File=", where you can specify the first two digits of the filename and the next three digits of the filename (which typically is the "Clip Number").

I performed all of these tests without a CompactFlash card in the system.

With a CompactFlash card, at times the card name will come up, which slows down the responsiveness, until this process (showing the card volume name) is done.



Could you please remove all cards from your nanoFlash and see if, while you are in the main menu, with 'System" highlighted, that it almost instantly displays the system menu when you press the Right Arrow Key?