Blackbox Ecu (M3)

[Aggroman]

The drivability issues, lack of input/outputs, the only issue thats mentioned which is an actual known issue with the computer itself is the powerfc's little glitch.

There work obviously doesnt speak well enough to promote it to the point were people are still going blackbox? wtf is that.

If they dont have "time" to update there website they obviously dont value sales highly. for every person that isnt in sydney itself that could be a potential buyer as they come across this thread and read the great reviews it seems to get.. the website provides f**k all information that would encourage myself or anyone interested to buy such a computer.

For the software download that is available on there website to not work is even more of a deterant.

No... no its not considering this black box ecu has apparently been around since 2008 according to the copyright on its website, 5-6 years and if you mentioned "black box ecu" to A LOT of people in the car scene across the country i'd happily put money on it that 75% of them have never heard of it and no idea about it. Mention Vipec, Link, Haltech, Motec, microtech to all of those people and 100% of them would have heard of them all some good some bad.

So the AVI on the plugin board which go to the factory AFM wiring were in use? The majority of those listed above also has onboard data logging in plugin versions. blaming it solely on the onboard map sensor only rated to 2.5 bar is a piss poor excuse. roughly 100-150 to put an external 3 bar map sensor in with out needing any additional wiring from the ecu by tapping into the factory harness.

Alot of the drivability issues mentioned in this thread i'd actually blame on people using the internal map sensors as the vacume/boost line running from the intake manifold is that long there is a delay. It is always best to run your map sensor as close to the pressure source possible.

Do that for me.. tell me how long is the vacume line to your map sensor with the black box ecu compared to when you were running the previous ecu?

I run a Haltech PS2000 in my car and have played with a couple others including the vipec, the drivability gains from the putting in an external map sensor as close as possible to the intake manifold is amazing. my vacume line went from being almost 2 meters running inside onto the internal map and down to 15cm's onto the external map sensor with no changes to the mapping made it drove 1000 times better.

ur an idiot.. please go away

[Marko R1]

Moving right along...how many ppl are actually running the BB in their car?

[XKLABA]

ur an idiot.. please go away

I 2nd this, Marko decided his current comp wasn't up to the job he had for it and wanted to upgrade to something that will do what he wants and the BB fit that bill and I'd say that's why he get it I stead of just patching up the old one

I have a Syvecs S8 ecu in my R34, ever heard of that one, it is one of the most technically advanced computers on the market including Motec, but cause no one has heard of it it must be rubbish

[zebra]

I was looking into those Syvecs the other day

damn nice piece of kit!

[XKLABA]

Yeah thanks, it is quite amazing what they can do but as anything it comes at a cost, I was just glad Scott had had experience with Pectal and was able and willing to tune it

[Lithium]

I have a Syvecs S8 ecu in my R34, ever heard of that one, it is one of the most technically advanced computers on the market including Motec, but cause no one has heard of it it must be rubbish

I don't think he was saying it's rubbish, so much as saying the apparent driveability issues with the Link may not have been a Link specific issue.

Jury is currently out with me on the whole Link versus xxx ECU driveability, I have driven a car running a Black Box and it was definitely really good - though I also in honesty am not sure that I could tell anything about it off hand that a Link wouldn't be able to do, I am most definitely not saying that I *know* the Link would be able to match it - but for the sake of discussion, I am taking this thread as input into Unigroup's ability and the fact that Blackbox is a very good ECU... but as much as the guy you guys are calling an idiot for telling him OP shouldn't have changed, I feel it is also folly to indicate it means everyone else SHOULD change.

Driveability is a really interesting thing to try and gauge, I have got into cars which have already been tuned using Links/PowerFCs and the owner have been perfectly happy with the existing driveability - I was retuning to suit new changes etc, and the owners have told me afterwards that the cars have ended up way more driveable than they were before hand. As a tuner it's always pretty nice to hear that, whether or not it is true or if it is partly a placebo as the car has tended to end up going better (whole reason I am tuning it is to unlock new potential due to some mod or another)... who knows.

I guess what it means is that maybe a car can seem perfectly driveable and its inconceivable that it could improve, but who knows if another tuner or another ECU could improve it from that point - and if it does, how much is just placebo or from something else which has changed? Its a pretty hard topic to debate about, because you can't exactly measure this kind of thing - so I guess all this thread really says is that the Black box is a good ECU and Unigroup do a good job of tuning it.... I reckon bagging any alternative choices is not at all constructive, as it can't exactly be proven one way or another.

[jangles]

What issues are being mentioned exactly?

They probably dont have time to update their* site as the work speaks for itself. Unlike other company's and products who advertise the hell out of them selves so people think they know what their doing

ironic.... they're*

[GTR_JOEY]

Haha nice spot!

[Marko R1]

point taken & yes, i guess in my case, moving from 1 tuner with the vipec to Unigroup with the BB may not be a fair comparison as i am not using the same tuner (BUT it does rev much quicker & drives better hands down), however, paul did run a link/vipec with Unigroup then moved to the BB on the same tuner...this to me is the best comparison u can get as it eliminates any tuners' differences or inadequacies.

if u have met paul, he is pretty straight up & built like a little chicken - the point im making is that paul would be the first person to tell u that something is shit, even if he is using that particular shit part on his own car - the differences he experienced is aligned to mine - what more can i say

I don't think he was saying it's rubbish, so much as saying the apparent driveability issues with the Link may not have been a Link specific issue.

Jury is currently out with me on the whole Link versus xxx ECU driveability, I have driven a car running a Black Box and it was definitely really good - though I also in honesty am not sure that I could tell anything about it off hand that a Link wouldn't be able to do, I am most definitely not saying that I *know* the Link would be able to match it - but for the sake of discussion, I am taking this thread as input into Unigroup's ability and the fact that Blackbox is a very good ECU... but as much as the guy you guys are calling an idiot for telling him OP shouldn't have changed, I feel it is also folly to indicate it means everyone else SHOULD change.

Driveability is a really interesting thing to try and gauge, I have got into cars which have already been tuned using Links/PowerFCs and the owner have been perfectly happy with the existing driveability - I was retuning to suit new changes etc, and the owners have told me afterwards that the cars have ended up way more driveable than they were before hand. As a tuner it's always pretty nice to hear that, whether or not it is true or if it is partly a placebo as the car has tended to end up going better (whole reason I am tuning it is to unlock new potential due to some mod or another)... who knows.

I guess what it means is that maybe a car can seem perfectly driveable and its inconceivable that it could improve, but who knows if another tuner or another ECU could improve it from that point - and if it does, how much is just placebo or from something else which has changed? Its a pretty hard topic to debate about, because you can't exactly measure this kind of thing - so I guess all this thread really says is that the Black box is a good ECU and Unigroup do a good job of tuning it.... I reckon bagging any alternative choices is not at all constructive, as it can't exactly be proven one way or another.

[XKLABA]

I don't think he was saying it's rubbish, so much as saying the apparent driveability issues with the Link may not have been a Link specific issue.

Jury is currently out with me on the whole Link versus xxx ECU driveability, I have driven a car running a Black Box and it was definitely really good - though I also in honesty am not sure that I could tell anything about it off hand that a Link wouldn't be able to do, I am most definitely not saying that I *know* the Link would be able to match it - but for the sake of discussion, I am taking this thread as input into Unigroup's ability and the fact that Blackbox is a very good ECU... but as much as the guy you guys are calling an idiot for telling him OP shouldn't have changed, I feel it is also folly to indicate it means everyone else SHOULD change.

Driveability is a really interesting thing to try and gauge, I have got into cars which have already been tuned using Links/PowerFCs and the owner have been perfectly happy with the existing driveability - I was retuning to suit new changes etc, and the owners have told me afterwards that the cars have ended up way more driveable than they were before hand. As a tuner it's always pretty nice to hear that, whether or not it is true or if it is partly a placebo as the car has tended to end up going better (whole reason I am tuning it is to unlock new potential due to some mod or another)... who knows.

I guess what it means is that maybe a car can seem perfectly driveable and its inconceivable that it could improve, but who knows if another tuner or another ECU could improve it from that point - and if it does, how much is just placebo or from something else which has changed? Its a pretty hard topic to debate about, because you can't exactly measure this kind of thing - so I guess all this thread really says is that the Black box is a good ECU and Unigroup do a good job of tuning it.... I reckon bagging any alternative choices is not at all constructive, as it can't exactly be proven one way or another.

That was how I read some of it, now as much as I agree with a lot of what he said I don't agree with how he said, like you said this thread is about the BB M3 ECU and the people that tune and use it and their experiences not a BB v Link/Vipec contest and as soon as it was established it was a PnP Link and the V88 is better then the Link PnP version then that's where it should have ended so there was no need for the post he did

It just shits me when someone posts something about X ECU or part or what ever and some else just has to jump in and try waging a war trying to defend it with stuff normally off topic and out of context

My point was it's Markos car and his choice what computer he wants to replace the current one with now it no longer serves he's needs which in this case just happens to be a PnP Link

I also agree with what your saying about drivability and different tuners-setups etc but again this is not what this thread is about so I'm not going to go into it here

[Lithium]

My point was it's Markos car and his choice what computer he wants to replace the current one with now it no longer serves he's needs which in this case just happens to be a PnP Link

Totally agree, too I hadn't heard of the Blackbox until Paul showed up with the white beast when I was over for WTAC, and then much interesting conversation ensued... my curiosity is definitely piqued, seems like a good unit by all accounts. I'll have to download it and have a closer look.

[Lithium]

Just downloaded the M1 Software, needed to be run as administrator and then appeared to be locked down to the point where you actually couldn't tell at all whether it was worth even thinking about.... so I guess they aren't really trying to sell it. I have removed it from my machine, because as is it's a bit unnerving needing to allow software Admin rights - but when it turns out that it also may as well just be a bunch of dialog boxes with rajab-knows-what happening in the back end, the paranoid side of me makes it feel like a trojan.

Regardless, I recommend people not download the software from the site - if nothing else, because it's an utter waste of time... at least until someone who knows more can put me right?

In the mean time, I have Link, MoTeC M1 and other very capable ECU software on my computer which I was able to download and run for free with no issue at all

[Piggaz]

Dan, it's because Daniel hasn't 1000000% tied up everything with it. Mark at Unigroup told me there was an update to go on my car next time it's in which is just a case of plug the laptop in, upload it and unplug it. I Spose almost every time it goes in it'll have some sort of minor software patch. Who knows what it's for.

When it will be released to the public, who knows. This is why at the moment only Unigroup can/is tuning it.

One of the guys at UE emailed me the software last year, I've since deleted it.

[Lithium]

Dan, it's because Daniel hasn't 1000000% tied up everything with it. Mark at Unigroup told me there was an update to go on my car next time it's in which is just a case of plug the laptop in, upload it and unplug it. I Spose almost every time it goes in it'll have some sort of minor software patch. Who knows what it's for.

When it will be released to the public, who knows. This is why at the moment only Unigroup can/is tuning it.

No doubt - but in the time being, for the general populace I think my suggestion to not bother trying to download the software from that site is sound.... at this stage it is a complete waste of time. They would be better off not making it seem like you can download it and check it out as a mature product, IMHO, it came across quite amateur.

Going by your results etc, they are a good product - however. Would have been good to have managed more time to chat with Yavuz etc while I was over there. Next time