The 165 has the longer Memcal. The 870 has the shorter one. I'm not sure what the TBI or carb units look like......

So does the 165 need the adapter or not? Everything I read seems to point to "not", but Bill, would you please confirm?

Thanks,

Mike

Yes!

i was just wondering how many people have these?

and can you use the switchs with the standard ver.?

and i belive i got everthing ; laptop and a bin program correct?

Yes, you can use the switch with both the Standard and Pro versions.

Does your laptop have a parallel port?

yep

cant wait to get the money to send my ECM for the prominator

I just released a new revision of the Prominator software...can be downloaded from http://www.speedtronics.net/software.asp. Nothing much different functionally...just some cosmetic changes and a couple of bug fixes. There is a revhistory.txt file included in the zip archive that explains what changed. If anyone finds any "bugs" or something that doesn't seem right, do let me know! As I'm sure Mr. Mangus will agree...I'm not much of a programmer!

You'll also notice that the web site looks just a "little" different and has a new URL. We decided misterbill.homeip.net just wasn't "catchy" enough (downright lame if you ask me, LOL).

Also, a few of you have open orders right now. I'm doing a shipment tomorrow...so if you have an open order and don't get it in a few days let me know.

Bill

30-something

does anyone have one yet?

Did I miss something? The post right above yours states that 30 something people have one (I'm sure its about 50 now).

Or, did I miss something?

Just finished building #50 last night.

If I weren't so damn slow I'm sure it'd be more than that!

NO website for this????

I am interested too. But I am a newbie to custom tuning. I don't have achoice but to do it myself, as no one near me knows how.

How you even put one together is beyond me. Buying 2 has been some of the best money I've ever spent.

SOrry if this has been covered, but there is now 5 pages of info here and I am cross eyed after reading as much as I could.

What should I look for in a laptop to be able to use the PROMinator? I can't afford a new one, and will probably be ebay hunting for it.

or can I do this from my PC at home? Probably not?

I know it needs a parallel port right now, but what else????

I just missed a couple of P II 133s


I mainly just want to be able to tune the car with it.... no games, no bs.....

You can do it with pretty much anything. I'm using an old Pentium 133 laptop with 32mb of ram running Win 98. I wouldn't get anything under Win 98 though on there because I don't think TunerPRO supports 95 or below.

From this, it's illegal. Is there any real way of getting a ticket?

Jaywalking is also illegal. So is speeding. Neither one really stops anybody.

98% of all aftermarket products for these cars are labeled "not legal for highway use." It's mainly so they can avoid the insane costs of getting DOT, EPA, and federal approval to use the stuff on public roads, and not go to jail.

There's no way anyone is going to know unless you tell them, they see the laptop hooked up, or they start digging around in your dash.

When I go to order it, they ask for a bin size. How do I figure this out??

When I go to order it, they ask for a bin size. How do I figure this out??

You ask them for their recommendation .
Or how I would go about ordering it;
730 can run on the 64k and 32k since the standard bin is 32k
165 stock bins are usually 16k but they can run on 64 and 32 as well, just needs the correct offset.
7747/8746 and other c3 ecms use 4k.
In other words, tell me what ecm you're using and I'll give you a better/specific answer.

I have the 1228063 ECM out of an 88 Camaro 305 TBI. I believe it is a C3 chip which means it is 4k??

Yup

So then for bin size I simply put 4k??

Yup

Thats 4096 bytes, right? Just kiddin'.

If you think you might, at any point in the future, use your Prominator in another ECM (say a 165 or 730/749), you might want to go ahead and order a 32k version. It complicates things in that you have to offset or pad your bins when uploading, but it saves you the trouble and expense of having to buy another Prominator in the future.

M

I have absolutely no experience at all in programing chips so I want it to be as easy as possible. Also is there a place I can find a .bin to start with. I will be dropping in a 350 TBI so I need something that it will at least run with and then go from there. I understand that the prominator has a parallel port on it but my laptop does not. Can I use an USB to parallel cable from Radio Shack??

When is the order page going to be back up and running???

I need to start budgeting for this............

Soon! We will have Prominators on hand in about a month or two. There was a group buy here recently but unfortunately it's over now.

Fortunately we will have several in stock, so if you order one once the page is back up, it won't be a long time before you get it.

Sorry to bring up a year old topic but on your website the order form isnt working? Is there any reason for? You guys still offer the system?

Sure do...just in the middle of doing some server upgrading right now. It'll be back up next week.

Bill

I am a newbie to tuning and have read this article in its entirety. Someone had asked if it would work in a blazer but never got a full answer. I was just curious to know if it would work in my '93 S10 blazer. The ecm code is '9571, im not sure if i abbreviated that wrong so the whole thing is 16179571. I have found next to nothing in regards to this ecm including on the GMECM forums. I think the prominator is an awesome idea!

Is the Promintaor dead?

is the prominator still for sale, checked through moates and found nuthing on there website.

Did you try www.speedtronics.net and send them an e-mail? The website is still running, but not sure if they are still making prominators. I would assume that they still are, but it is probably best to e-mail them before ordering.

I emailed them at speedtronics as well as moates. I think i may be behind the curve as it came out in '04 is there something new and better I haven't read about yet.

I'll bring folks up to speed on the Prominator.

Bill Hitchcock approached me a few months back. He asked if I'd be willing to take over and purchase the project and design rights. This is a very amicable agreement situation, he approached me and specified the terms. We went forward with the hand-off and I have been chewing on the design a bit (no pun intended) since.

So, with that being said, here's what is in the works:

- A new device, called the PromulGator. Availability possible by September if all goes well.
- Based on the spirit and essence of the Prominator. Changes include design simplifications and ease-of-use enhancement.
- Native mini-USB, no parallel or serial. To be natively supported by TunerPro and Flash-N-Burn software.
- Keep-it-simple design, up to 64k, no bin switching, no CPLDs or FPGAs.
- Single micro and discrete logics with AT29C512 onboard memory.
- Program in-vehicle (not on-the-fly, it's disruptive) via USB. Vehicle on or off (preferably off so your ECU doesn't flip out).
- 100% SMD with removeable pin headers, can be installed wherever you would otherwise install a 27SF512 or other 28-pin chip.
- Target price sub-$100.

Again, this is something simple and low-cost. Think of it as a chip replacement that can be reprogrammed via USB without a programmer while it's in the ECU. Nothing fancy. It won't do everything the ProminatorPro was able to do, but I think it accomplishes the essence of what is needed while keeping the feature-creep and end-user cost under control.

Hope this helps,
Craig

Wow! awesome, terrific update.

I have a Prominator Pro, and also use TunerPro RT and have used Flash-n-burn before going to the Prominator. so, the perfect combo.

I like the price projection, especially since I was looking for a second unit for my second L98 TPI car and had to resurrect my flash-n-burn last week as an interim measure.

I had to stop and think about the "no-bin-switching" but then when I'm in the experimenting mode, I have the laptop hooked up or nearby most of the time, so for the price tradeoff, sounds good.

Although I've used the on-the-fly switching occasionally (only while stopped at idle), IMHO definitely a "nice-to-have" feature but not critical to me.

I'm very interested, and was kinda wondering what happened to the Prominator. I like your thinking and am looking forward to the PromulGator.

So, this would make the OBDI ECMs closer to how the OBDII PCMs can be programmed (as I understand it), "flashed" with the engine off. Making easier bin changes, without the need to actually remove and re-install the EEPROM? Just wouldn't be through the ALDL.

That's pretty cool.

So how does this fit in with the NVSram then? The way I understand the NVSram to work is very similar, just through ALDL port, but requires a bin with specific changes (a patch) to work with the NVSram.

The PromulGator wouldn't require any specific patch to the bin, like the NVSram, since it's flashed directly through USB, correct?

any update on this? its getting close to time to start looking for a prominator for a project and i found its not really being built anymore. this PromulGator will do nicely thou as a replacement thou.

What's the advantage over what I been using for the last 5 years?
Xtronics Romulator mounted directly on to the 165 case with serial usb cable. Don't need external power.
I use Tunerpro RT it automatically recognizes and connects to the Romulator.

My Romulator years back held the .bin on it. I believe it was dependent on a 9V battery. Are the newer ones different?

No updates currently, but September is still looking good.

No distinct advantage I know of really over existing options.

do you think it would fit inside a 727 ecm and seal up?

the old style fits, but wires have to be hooked up at all times, so sealing is an issue.

any chance this can be unplugged and the cover put back on when done flashing the bin?

Yes it will, that's the intention.

Just wanted to give a *High Five* "You Da' Man!"

thats just what our 93z28 project needs. count one sold and if it does handle any size up to 64k all in one, without having to be reconfigured for each size like the old one does, count me in for 2

Mr. Moates, would it be possible to package a beginners guide (if not already included) with this just to point self-admitted newbs to programming such as my self in the right direction? It would be greatly appreciated as I'm ready to dive into this

still very interested...

Are you aware of stickies above and "come in free tune" sticky in TBI section?