Gee Emm

That thought has occurred (though the documentation explicitly states not to connect the 'ecu-in' from the Solo). What ECU? Was any bridging of DB9/25 pins required?

Thanks for the quick response!

AussieMSM

Adaptronic select and now Modular. No DB9 connector, it has a dedicated serial out molex connection.
Maybe contact the ecu manufacturer about the bridging of pins. They should have advice for how to wire dashes etc to their ecu if pins need to be bridged etc.
I assume the DB9 connection is the only connection on the ecu? I have both USB and serial out but serial out disconnects if a laptop etc is connected to the USB port. That catches me out every now and then.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

I lol'd the harrys homepage with a laptime/datalogger on the windscreen - sloppy! Anyway, I'm not buying a phone to use an app if I can help i
[/QUOTE]

Spammer

Gee Emm

I think I was one of the first to get a SoloDL2 here, and my initial problems were documented above. First problem was that, contrary to what the promo said, the '1000s' of compatible ECUs were not compatible, the new OS used required all the ECU protocols to be ported across, a process that took some months. I reckon there was the makings of a misleading advertising case there, but that is history now, and my ECU protocol is in.

The second problem to emerge was that the unit just didn't want to talk to the ECU via serial (no CAN or OBD available). Nothing the distributor suggested worked. With Covid and other issues, the problem was put on the backburner, until this last week. The Autronic guru came up, and along with some other jobs, spent a full day working on this problem, with nil result. He consulted other dash gurus, including ones that had installed working AiM dashes, but nothing worked. We know the serial works at the Autronic end, because that is how it is tuned. The SoloDL2 has the latest firmware.

We are now looking at the Solo, as maybe the problem lies inside it, not outside. Before going back to the distributor, I'd be interested if anyone on here knows of any current generation (since mid-2018) AiM Solo2DL or MxM etc users who have (or had) any serial (or other) connection problems? Psreynol, how'd you go?

I am pretty much over this, but I have a decent investment in it and I would like to get it up and running.

Z33Taxi

As far as using it as just a lap timer is a Solo II worth it? I currently use trackaddict and while I like it I'd like to get something a little more advanced in terms of a laptimer and I really like the predictive function on the Aim II.

Is it fairly easy to pull info for data overlays in race render with the SoloII?

curly

iTrader: (25)

I consider it easy, yes, but I work with aims almost every day. Their software isn't the most user friendly, but it's not impossible for the every day user to navigate. The first thing you want to do is make sure any tracks you plan on racing at are loaded. It comes standard with a number of European tracks most of us don't need.

Gee Emm

Update on post above:

Unit is with distributor. Appears to be an internal problem, conflict or disconnect between FW and SW.

This is a major relief to the highly competent people who have been working on it, and following instructions, wondering 'WTF have I done wrong, it still isn't working?'.. Not a great reflection on the distributor who kept insisting that we only had to follow instructions and all would be well.

ETA: This issue relates to the serial connection. It is not yet clear to me if this is a generic serial issue, or if it relates to the Autronic only. I will attempt to clarify this next time I talk to the distributor, but in the meantime, if you want to use a new gen AiM device on serial, tread carefully.

I will also post this on the FB user group.

Gee Emm

...... and the latest is that the Vatican says it might work with SM4 v1.11, never mind that all the documentation says V1.09, and clearly the local; distributor hadn't been let into that secret because I'm sure he would have passed it on given the many and somewhat strained communications that he has fielded on this one. I'll talk to my tuner after Easter, and see if he sees any issues in upgrading the ecu (I'd be amazed if he did, but you never know ...) .

Maybe there is a faint light at the end of this tunnel!

Gee Emm

Yes, it turns out that was an April Fool post.

Still waiting on a fix. Reading between the lines, I suspect the mothership is saying that the new gen OS dashes are working with Autronic, so no problemo, it will work in the Solo! But OS implementation is different in SDL2 ...

A couple of weeks ago the distributor was going to ship a new SoloDL2 to Autronic, and get them to test Ver1.09, 1.11 and 1.12 on the SDL2, see if any of them work. It seems the new dashes will work with V1.11 and/or 1.12. We already know V1.09 doesn't work on my unit, maybe my unit has some issue though and it will work on another (later production) unit. Unlikely V1.11 or V1.12 will work if V1.09 doesn't, as the Autronic serial implantation is the same on all three versions.

However, today the distributor says that he has no stock, and hopes to have some in a couple of weeks. So end of month will be crunch time - units are here or have shipped, or it is money-back time. Or, if they are here or on the way, they work with one of those three versions, or again it is money-back time. I'm out of patience, it is almost three years and either they work or they don't - I am not going to sit still waiting for them to fix it.

Soon be three years

Gee Emm

So, it has been confirmed there is a problem in the Solo2DL that is stopping it communicating with the Autronic SM4 ecu. Am I the only person in the world to experience this problem?

I understand there are a lot of these ECUs over there used in marine engines, as well as automotive obviously, so I am keen to find out if anyone else has, or knows someone who might have, a problem getting a Solo2DL talking to an ECU on serial.

The mother ship will hopefully be working on it, but it would help if other affected users could be identified. I'll also post on the FB user group.

Gee Emm

I updated a thread on this problem elsewhere, it has been brought to my attention that I didn't update here.

The unit is back in my hands, allegedly fixed. It involved me going direct to Italy, which got right up the nose of the local distributor - he of 'just follow the instructions' fame!

The fix involved a modification to one of the boards, I/O or main board. This is a modification to the current (mid-year) boards, as my original boards have all been replaced with the latest boards and I have a new serial number. But when the unit was shipped to Autronic, it still wasn't working, and then either the dealer here, or the factory, came up with the board mod. I have not tested it, as my car is in bits getting a new heater core in, but as soon as it is running, the Solo will be plugged in and we'll see if the BS has really stopped.

AiM are a really crappy company, three years of telling us we are idiots who can't follow the instructions because there is nothing wrong with OUR products. Finally they admit there is a problem, but not a word of apology.

I see that the FB page is littered with people having PDM problems (and some Solo2DL too), I feel sorry for them. I would not buy from AiM again, and I would recommend anyone else look very hard at alternatives before putting any money AiM's way - caveat emptor for sure! The ethos seems to be 'we have your money, the rest is up to you'.

Gee Emm

Resurrecting this old thread, confirming that it was fixed and is operating properly (as far as I can tell as a user) and updating on the fix.

I am now contemplating upgrading my ECU, probably a Haltech Elite 1500. maybe even a dash too ...

In that event, the Autronic, WB and maybe the Solo will go onto the block, so I rang the distributor about what implications the fix for my problem will have for a purchaser. He advised that 'absolutely none, it will work as advertised on any ECU*'. Hmm I seem to have heard that before, somewhere ...

I will take him at his word, and draw the conclusion the solution to my problem was a firmware kludge fix to the handshaking (or other) protocols, subsumed by subsequent 'official' FW updates which talk about such modifications. My earlier understanding of hardware fixes may therefore not have been correct, though that is what the distributor described.

Suffice it to say the bad taste remains in my mouth as a result of the difficulty in getting the problem promptly recognised, diagnosed and fixed - AiM will never see another of my dollars notwithstanding that the product is now working as advertised.

psreynol

I share your frustration having experienced a similar issue. that said there were multiple issues that complicated things beyond simply not being able to pull data from my tec2 but worse the solo 2dl would not replicate the performance of the solo1dl in terms of simply starting a recording session on track. perhaps user error, perhaps a hardware issue but certainly there was a rush to assume the dl2 worked with all or most of the ecu profiles from the solo 1 dl. for a time I called many times and got different information which is also somewhat understandable but also frustrating. the product is amazing when it works, which it will for people who use it in a verified and tested scenario. I'm perhaps not as soured as you on the experience, knowing the stock Miata ECU data is super slow anyway and that the tec2 was discontinued 25 years ago. on top of all that, they advertised the iPhone app for a quick review of data. for track day guys, its an appealing function because we might not always have time to deep dive with a laptop. well, that never happened. I understand the iPhone app isn't really a core function for professional racing, teaching or training but it certainly highlights that they've made the mistake of releasing claims of functionality before it is tested or anywhere near being ready for prime time. years later, an iphone interface still, at least to my knowledge, does not exist. so what. it does what it does well for those using it in a tested environment. so for those thinking about buying their timer simply make absolutely sure what you're trying to do will work in your situation with your setup. lots of assumptions get thrown around about compatibility. for anyone with an older ecu, assume nothing or just except sometimes you gotta give it a shot, and if it works great, if not you can sell pretty easily. its a great tool, with many configurations for data collection but for the casual users the Garmen catalyst is pretty neat. it doesn't have nearly the same capabilities for data collection but itis very intuitive and will provide ideas on how to be faster. it is limited in some ways but an excellent tool for those who want an easy plug-and-play solution.

Gee Emm

Yes, this point I have made here above (I think), and certainly on my home MX5 forum.

It is extremely important for those of us running something a little out of the ordinary. I have pretty well always taken the view 'don't be the pioneer, it too often ends badly' and in this case I was an unwitting pioneer given the AiM assurance that it would work. So, lesson is that even if you are confident you are buying right, do some checking, get some 'money back guarantees', etc.