M:Robe 100 charging problem

[verdigris]

Hello,

I'd like to say thanks to Rockbox developers as without it, I would have had to throw away my still functioning M:Robe (the original software wasn't working).

The issue that I've been having with the M:Robe is that when I plug it into the wall A/C charger, the unit stays on, as opposed to just charging. I think because of this, I haven't been able to get the M:Robe to last longer than 3-4 hours. I'm worried that this will reduce the unit's battery life in the long run.

A more minor (but possibly related issue) is if the unit's on hold when I plug it into the A/C charger, it crashes and has to be resetted. This doesn't happen when I charge it via USB.

I've been using r17432 and but have upgraded to a newer build. The problem still persists.
Any help will be grately appreciated!

[Chronon]

Hmm.. I charge via the cradle and I get a "BATTERY CHARGE" screen with an animated battery graphic.  The unit eventually turns off -- probably when it has reached full charge.  I also don't get a very long run time -- in the neighborhood of 6 hours, though my last runtime test was a couple of months ago.  The charging screen seems to be part of the original firmware (it's not a Rockbox graphic).  Maybe the flaw in your original firmware is leading to this problem that you're seeing?

[verdigris]

That's interesting because I get the originally charging battery graphic when I plug it into the computer though I haven't yet seen it turn off (likely because I've never done a full USB charge; maybe it's just misperception, but mine seems to heat up really quickly when it's plugged into the computer). Right now, when I charge with the cradle, the screen just darkens but the unit doesn't turn off even if it's charged overnight  Do you know if there's a way to check the firmware version of the M:Robe without unloading Rockbox? And could you post your firmware version?

Thanks!

[Chronon]

You can boot into the original firmware by pressing and holding Power as the unit boots up -- until the Rockbox bootloader informs you that it's loading the original firmware.  I'll try to remember to check the firmware version tonight.

[verdigris]

Thanks! I'll try mine out!

--Edit--
Sorry for the late reply; I was trying to use the dual-boot function but it wasn't working properly. I guess my original Olympus firmware is broken. I tried downloading the firware upgrade from Olympus but that didn't work probably my M:Robe wasn't syncing with my computer anyway -___- Thank goodness for Rockbox!

[Chronon]

Hmm.. that's too bad.  Are you unable to get into USB mode then?

By the way, my firmware version is currently 2.01.  I might load it with some music via m:trip and see what sort of runtime I get.  It would provide some kind of standard to see how well Rockbox is doing in comparison.

[verdigris]

Heya,

Sorry for the late reply; got caught up with some things over the past few days.

It still works in USB mode...I think there's just some problem with the syncing. I read somewhere that the M:Robe only syncs on one computer. I reformatted my computer a while back and couldn't get it to sync (and add new songs). I wasn't thinking and tried to force a firmware upgrade (which failed), then I tried Rockbox (good timing, 'cause a only a few months before the port for the M:Robe 100 wasn't released yet). Yep, I remember how my firmware got broken now 

Strangely enough, after I tried to boot into and download the (broken) Olympus firmware, failed and switched back to Rockbox, the battery charging graphic is back to the original Olympus one, as opposed to just the Rockbox main menu screen.

This may or may not be worth knowing, but when I was trying to get the Olympus firmware on again, I found a config type file which seems to be an Olympus file and it said firmware 2.17. Thanks for all your help. It's nice knowing I'm not the only M:Robe 100 owner out there ^___^

[Chronon]

It sounds like everything is basically working (at least from the perspective of Rockbox).

It would be nice to get the OF to work again so that we can compare its runtime against Rockbox.  I'll try a simple runtime test in the OF today.

[verdigris]

That would be nice if I could get it to run, but since it refuses to sync with the M:Trip software, I dont' think there's a way to do so unless there's a file that I can just copy over in USB mode. About the runtime, how often the unit's been used might affect its battery life, right?

[Chronon]

Yeah.  Though, I recently replaced the battery so as far as I know I'm dealing with a new battery.

Edit: I ran the OF yesterday, but have to do it again with more consistent settings and in an environment where I can hear where it shuts off.  I was in the machine shop yesterday and took the headphones out while using a lathe.  Consequently, I didn't catch the shutdown time.

[verdigris]

Let me know if there's a way I can help with timing the M:Robe with rockbox firmware and an old-ish battery (I've had this for about 2-3 years now?)!

[Chronon]

Hi.  You can read the info on this page: http://www.rockbox.org/twiki/bin/view/Main/BatteryRuntime

If you use the battery_bench plugin it will make it easy to do.  It will automatically log the voltages periodically until the unit shuts down.  More data is always helpful.  I also need to contribute the results of my battery benchmark test.

[verdigris]

Will do! 

--edit September 7th: posted first battery_bench.txt--