Fiio M3k

[gperius]

yep ，you can downgrade to any version if u want to

So I can remove rockbox completely if I want or anything goes wrong by installing the original fw?

[Thew]

So I can remove rockbox completely if I want or anything goes wrong by installing the original fw?

Yes, I've done it several times with no problems.

[JosephM]

Seems like the Fiio M3 Pro is the new hot budget player. Anyone messing around with it or is it similar to the M3k?

I just got one and have started messing around with it. There does seem to be one advantage to it: you can trivially get a connection over Android Debug Bridge (even though it's not Android). If you put a file named M3Pro20200418.bin in the root of the micro sd card, it adds an extra tools menu in settings. Once you do that you can put it in USB DAC mode, plug it into your computer, swipe from the left side of the screen to exit DAC mode, go to settings, go to the new tools option, select the 3rd option, then press the option labeled ADB.  Then it shows up on your computer as a Nexus 4, and you've got a root shell. Any changes you make to the system persist across reboots.

[RockBoxNewB]

Hi everyone!
First of all, thanks to all of you for your helpful insights. I bought myself a FiiO M3K simply because I found out there is a Rockbox port for it. Of course, I am aware that it is still experimental, but curiosity got the better of me.
I've got a simple, possibly stupid, question: How do you revert to an earlier version of the XVorteX rockbox port? I installed the latest one based on 1.4.3, but wanted to try out 1.3.0. I extracted the ZIP for it, placed the .fw file on the root of my SD, selected "Tools" - "Update Rockbox" - but nothing changed, it still boots up the M3K_v1.4.3_e99db03-191013. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks a lot in advance!

[Thew]

You need to load the old file as you would any Firmware ie: booting up with the Volume + power button. The older version of Rockbox is included in the older Firmware. It doesn't load as an update.

[RockBoxNewB]

You need to load the old file as you would any Firmware ie: booting up with the Volume + power button. The older version of Rockbox is included in the older Firmware. It doesn't load as an update.

That did the trick, thanks a ton! I already feared I killed my M3K because I created a bootloop by trying to update - but the Vol + and Power combination saved the day and allowed me to roll back. Amazing!

[DJKZ]

Hi All ,
Been Rockbox'n for a few years now .
have sucessfully installed on Sansa Fuze V2 ,,
Sansa c200 , and iPod nano 2nd Gen .
Was all pretty easy using rockbox directions .
On the FiiO M3K , ( May purchase one soon )
1 - Must you update to the NEWEST firmware
on the M3K first , before installing RockBox ?
2 - Is there a certain firmware number that
works the best ?
( asking because with all my previous install's on
my players ,,, they had said what firmware version
the unit should be using )
Thanks to ALL for any info .
.... update ....
I see when reading post from XVortex from 9/1/2019 ,,
the install was based on FW v1.3.0   .
Has recent owners of the M3K's installed Rockbox
with this firmware ,,,,, or If a M3K is purchased now
( being almost 2 years from XVortex post ) is the player
now shipped with a newer firmware installed ? ,,,, and
if so ,,,,, will the Rockbox install still work ?
Thanks again .

[Thew]

It doesn’t matter what version of the the firmware is installed on the M3K as it is replaced by a special version that includes Rockbox. XVortex’s last update loads Firmware 1.4.3. There is no version of XVortex’s update that includes the latest original firmware (1.4.5) but the differences are very small. After the update can choose at start-up whether to boot Rockbox (e99db03-191013) or the Fiio OS (1.4.3 VTX).

[Richie325]

Can the fix for scrolling up while typing to search a file in the search section be added to Vortex's rockbox build?

[Bilgus]

We will not be fixing problems in others unofficial builds

Thanks

[heyspencerb]

Can the fix for scrolling up while typing to search a file in the search section be added to Vortex's rockbox build?

I actually have a solution to this! Can't believe I didn't try this earlier, but you can use Vortex's M3K.fw file and the most current version of Rockbox at the same time. This way you get most of the best of both worlds, you can switch easily between RockBox and the official firmware, and you get all of the fixes from the most recent version of RockBox.

If you want this to work you need to follow these exact steps. This is the only way I have gotten this to work.

1. Go to this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/vuqcaf1ssk4j1ee/Files.zip?dl=0
 and download the zip file I uploaded there. I am posting a dropbox link because its too big to upload here, let me know if thats not the best way to do this.

2. Un-zip the file. You might only see one file, called M3K.fw, but there is actually two files, the M3K.fw and a hidden directory called '.rockbox'. To see it, on Mac press Cmd+Shift+[.]  and on Ubuntu press control+h I have no idea how to see it on windows, but if you can't see it you can always extract the zip directly to the right location in step 4.

3. Take your sd card you have formatted with the Fiio M3K and plug it into your computer

4. Drag or directly extract both the provided M3k.fw and the .rockbox directory into the home directory on the sd card, so not in any folders. Make sure the files are out of the 'Files' folder I sent them in, they need to be in the home directory on the sd. If you left the official M3K.fw file on the SD, you will need to replace it with the one I provided.

5. Put the SD back in your M3K while its turned off, and press and hold the 'power button' + 'volume up' until the firmware update starts.

6. once the update is done if things went properly, you should get a screen which will offer you either log in to Rockbox, the Fiio firmware, or a settings menu and there will be a countdown. Quickly navigate to the settings menu and enter it. If you miss the timing and log in to either of the other options, restart the device and be sure to go to the settings menu this time. Once in the setting menu, click on "Update Rockbox". This should then go to a screen which says 'Running update.sh ' for a few minutes, then it will say 'Done: 1'.

7. Finally, at this point you can restart the device and you should have the correct version of Rockbox, and the option of switching to the Fiio firmware as well.

If you later want to update the Rockbox version to a new version, you need to do all the same steps but replace the .rockbox file I gave you with the new one you want to use.
Important! in order to update the rockbox, you still need to go through steps 5 and 6! For some reason, you need to do the 'power button' + 'volume up' in order to update the RockBox version too!!

Finally, here are my necessary warnings:
This version of RockBox fixes some bugs in the Vortex version, like seeking, scrolling up, using the top button as a lock button and a few other things, but it introduces a bunch of new issues too!

Some of the bugs this version has that Vortex's does not have:
We do not yet know how to fully turn the device, so right now if you "shut down" in rockbox mode the keypad stays on and the device rapidly loses battery. The only fix to this is to hold the power down for about 8 seconds to trigger the hardware power off whenever you want to turn it off.

I don't personally like how the text entry is laid out in this version with super tiny letters, so I am personally working on a much better entry system. Let me know if you want me to share that version too.

So, if you want to try this, understand that it is still under development and to solve some issues, some other issues are created.
If you want to go back to the standard firmware permanently, delete the M3K.fw file, and the .rockbox directory, remembering that it is a hidden directory so it might not actually be deleted properly if you can't see it, then download the official version on the Fiio site and follow step 5.

Pease give me feedback on this process and let me know if it doesn't work for others, I will try and respond as best as I can. Also, If im breaking rules, let me know

[Thew]

Can the fix for scrolling up while typing to search a file in the search section be added to Vortex's rockbox build?

Pease give me feedback on this process and let me know if it doesn't work for others, I will try and respond as best as I can. Also, If im breaking rules, let me know

I did try your amended version of Rockbox but swapped back to the version I had before. My main problem was that I couldn’t get my own custom Theme to work (I don’t use or need the search function).

I’m pleased with my Theme and the 18-DejaVuSans.fnt provides a much improved look and readability for me at least.

https://i.postimg.cc/jSTrVBCh/M3K.jpg

[ZoRG172]

heyspencerb
I flashed it according to your instructions. Everything worked out! Now the rewind is working, what was most annoying in the vortex port. The player has been idle since summer, so thank you very much!

But there is a problem with the Advanced Key lock function. The device perceives the mechanical play key and the touch key as one and responds to both. Therefore, only the volume buttons can actually be left unlocked. In addition, the player turns on the backlight when you touch any touch button, even if you turn off the lock messages.

I have seen the "Disable Touch" feature in the Advanced Key lock settings on other players, but this version does not. Can this be returned? Or change it in the Advanced Key lock settings so that the signals from the sensor module are completely ignored when the lock is active?
possible to somehow change in the smart blocking settings so that the signals from the sensor module are completely ignored when the blocking is active?

[heyspencerb]

heyspencerb
But there is a problem with the Advanced Key lock function. The device perceives the mechanical play key and the touch key as one and responds to both. Therefore, only the volume buttons can actually be left unlocked. In addition, the player turns on the backlight when you touch any touch button, even if you turn off the lock messages.

I'm glad it worked out for you! As for the other points, Huh! I had never actually seen the 'Advanced Key Lock' setting before, thats really helpful, learn something new every day. To your point about the center button and side button both being counted as the same, this is a frustration I have for the whole program. I personally think that side button should always be play/pause the same way the volume buttons always maintain the whole function. I am close to hacking this function into my own personal branch, but a proper solution with this as an option in the settings would take more work and time. And the backlight turning on isn't so much a bug as a feature that maybe not everyone likes. I personally like being able to click any button in order to see what's playing currently without changing anything. but this should be made as a setting that can be changed because I can see how not everyone would like that and you should be able to change that.
 
Long story short, to both the Key Lock problem and the backlight problem, see my warning at the end of the last message; this is software that is under constant revision so to fix some bugs, you have to accept new ones. The only way I've found to get it "perfect" is to start compiling it yourself and hacking together the changes you want on your personal branch. If thats not for you, my recommendation is file a bug report on the left side of the site and myself or others might get around to it soon if we also think it's a big deal. I'll say that I personally have been thinking of looking at the center button/side button annoyance so that has a decent chance of getting worked on soon.

EDIT:
I found the issue of why that menu option is gone, and I will test it and hopefully submit a pull request with it tomorrow!

[ZoRG172]

To your point about the center button and side button both being counted as the same, this is a frustration I have for the whole program. I personally think that side button should always be play/pause the same way the volume buttons always maintain the whole function. I am close to hacking this function into my own personal branch, but a proper solution with this as an option in the settings would take more work and time.

This functionality is already in the rockbox and it works, you can only block the touch buttons. It's just that this build does not have a menu item: "Disable Touch
Blocks touch screen buttons like the original (only for touch devices) "
Which would solve the problem of the play button.



If you activate Advanced Key lock in the settings and select so that the volume buttons are not locked, variables appear in config.cfg:

No Screen Lock For Selected Actions: on
Selective Screen Lock Actions: 545

It may well be that it is enough just to add the required variable to the config to activate Disable Touch, but I don’t know where to look.

I found this thread on this matter https://forums.rockbox.org/index.php?topic=51589.0