Problem with Fanalab or my wheel?
This is a weird one! Over the last week or so whilst running AMS2 using my DD2 with the Porsche Wheel on a Podium Hub with the PBME, Fanalab running in the background (like I've been doing for months) randomly the ITM will stop displaying on the PBME and occasionally the wheel will totally freeze - no buttons will work.
Removing and reattaching the wheel fixes it. Occasionally clicking the refresh button on the Fanalab home page fixes it, but at other times it no longer recognises the PBME and only sees the hub - the image changes to show this. Sometimes closing and restarting Fanalab fixes it - but not always.
I'm using beta driver v373 - all included firmwares and Fanalab 1.47. I've tried deleting and reinstalling the driver, deleting and reinstalling Fananlab, deleting PodiumControl folder and also reinstalling the hub and PBME firmwares.
Anyone any ideas what might be causing this? I'm not even sure if it is a PBME issue, a Podium Hub issue or a Fanalab issue!
Comments
Hey Gary,
I have had the exact same issue in terms of the buttons freezing in the middle of the driving with my DD1 and with me also other users. We are around 10 different reports at this point. They told me I had an hardware issue (something at this point I struggle to believe) so I sent them the wheel back for repairs. In this moment it is at their warehouse. I will let you know when they are finished.
regards
Thanks Francesco, like you I don't think this is hardware, I'm inclined to suspect that Fanalab is the culprit - all seems to work ok if that is not running - of course then I don't benefit from the ITM and the other marketed features and benefits that are the reason we buy these wheels. I'll be interested to hear how you get on with your repair.
I can exclude it is Fanalab since one day (actually the day when I decided I had enough to deal with this issue and sent my wheel to Fanatec) I had a freeze with Fanalab running. I then decided to close Fanalab and have an immediate run again without the program running after rebooting my wheel, and guess what it took 2 minutes to experience the same exact freeze. An hypothesis is that some software update is stressing too much the hardware leading to a technical failure. Otherwise what is the probability that all of a sudden after the 373 release all of us are experiencing randomly the same hardware faultiness?
That's interesting. I will try it myself later to confirm whether I still have issues without Fanalab. If so it is not good news - the software development cycle is glacially slow so can't imagine this will be fixed anytime soon.
I'm sure you have done the same but I also tried using various USB ports just to check it wasn't an issue with particular ports becoming saturated - doesn't seem to affect things.
It could be hardware related as although I never notice any flex and the wheel is always fitted extremely tight, it is flexing as I have witness marks on the QR shaft to attest to this. I wouldn't have thought that it would be enough for the pins to lose contact though as any movement is imperceptible.
So like you say things are pointing towards an issue with the driver, I wonder if this has manifested since the release of Windows 10, 2004 and there is some sort of incompatibility.
Sorry if my message is doubled but I have tried to modify a grammar mistake and it somehow erased my comment: I have tried everything: grounding the cockpit, changing USB ports getting the most distance between my HE pedals and my wheel but nothing worked. I have also tried to mount the optional screw to prevent any QR flex but nothing. I was told more than once that it is not the software issue to cause the freeze. The way I read it is the following. It is not the software that causes DIRECTLY the freeze, but more the software that pushed the hardware in a new direction of functioning that causes its faultiness and therefore it causes the freeze. So to me it is this way to sum it up:
Software--> Hardware --> Freeze
Not: Software --> Freeze
Otherwise the amount of reports that you can see on the forum (just search for "freeze") recently allows 2 other options:
1) Fanatec is extremely unlucky
2) The design of the bases has some critical hardware flows that some users will experience, no matter what the software is.
Thanks again Francesco - I see that just as all these faults get reported a new beta has been released - I'll give it a try - can't be any worse.
https://forum.fanatec.com/discussion/21463/fanatec-driver-380-release-candidate-for-csl-csw-and-podium-bases-all-wheels#latest
Nice... Let me know...
Well, I thought it was fixed but after 45 mins the PBME locked up again - lights stuck and no buttons worked. Shifter pedals and steering still fine. Tabbed to Fanalab and refreshed my devices - the PBME disappeared and Fanalab only saw the Podium Hub. Opened the Fanatec Wheel Property Page and it also couldn't see the PBME. Pulled the wheel off then replaced it and all back to normal - until the next time!
My tip for you is to open a ticket and send it back for repairs...
Yes - been trying to, support page is broken again and can't raise a ticket!
e-support@fanatec.com Just email them at this address.
This is NOT recommended. That address is only used for active ticket threads. If you send a random new message to this address, it will not be sorted in the system correctly and can cause delays in response. It is better to go through the Contact form on the Contact page of the site.
[Fanatec Community Manager]
https://forum.fanatec.com/discussion/21400/podium-dd1-freezing#latest
Fixed!