elite update

[tonystrains]

Whilst trying to update my elite on windows 7 it became bricked. Hornby customer care have just told me they think it now costs £15.00 for them to do update although all threads on the forum seem to say this is a free service for elite and the select.Does anyone know how best to proceed. Customer care suggested a way of inserting power lead for 30 secs but this did not help. Do i need windows xp? Thankyou in advance from not a computer buff.

[WilliamDavid]

I updated mine on a Windows 7 laptop without any issues.

[Yelrow]

There have been an awful lot of probs with these updates, which, as there is little new in the latest firmware, is why i have not updated mine. There is certainly a charge for the select, but return postage is free. john

[Chrissaf]

I bricked my Elite using Windows 8.1 when trying to install firmware 1.42

.

Using Windows 8.x for this, is now a well documented problem, but most users (but not all) report that using Windows 7 is usually OK. Using Windows XP never seems to fail.

.

I borrowed a neighbours old defunct XP desktop. It upgraded the Elite, recovering from the 'bricked' condition at the very first attempt. I think the main benefit is that XP (and Vista) uses the Hornby provided software driver. Windows 7 and above use a driver from the Microsoft driver repository.

[96RAF]

Never had any problems with 7 or XP, but 8, 8.1 &10 have always proven troublesome for Elite updates to the extent of providing a definite brick every time.

I thought it was down to my HP machine but apparently not, so someone , somewhere must have a the answer as to why this happens.

I have tried the advanced startup method and even had Tommy Cooper wave his magic wand over it but to now avail. yEs I know he is dead but so was the Elite.

[Fishmanoz]

Elite updates have always been free, at least until now, only the latest Select has been charged.

 

But Tony, Elite upgrades have always been reported to work with 7, I did mine on 7.  I suggest you try again, mine worked on the second attempt and I would be trying a number of times if necessary.  You also have to be meticulous at following the instructions, starting with all the button pressing and delays to get it into upgrade mode in the first place, then making sure you are on the correct comm port with Device manager.

 

Let us know how you go.  I also have another thought about trying a different driver from latest RM rather than the supplied one with the upgrade. 

[Flashbang]

Whilst trying to update my elite on windows 7 it became bricked. Hornby customer care have just told me they think it now costs £15.00 for them to do update although all threads on the forum seem to say this is a free service for elite and the select.Does anyone know how best to proceed. Customer care suggested a way of inserting power lead for 30 secs but this did not help. Do i need windows xp? Thankyou in advance from not a computer buff.

Hi

The Elite is updated by the owner themselves downloading the latest version from the Hornby web site, which is free, and by using a USB lead to connect the Elite to the PC the download is passed to the Elite.  Latest Elite version is V1.42. Elite downloads and advice on some Windows applications are here... https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/downloads/view/index/cat/9/  Suggest you retry installing the latest version.

 

The Select doesn't have any USB connections and has to be returned to Hornby should a firmware update be required. The cost of Hornby doing this work on the Select is £15.00 GBP.   Note the Selects latest version is 1.5.  This shows on start up as a series of three double digits with the version being the first pair.

[Leighton Cook]

/uk-en/forum/elite-update/764b66b970107f36d3661be2308898fa.png/media/tinymce_upload/764b66b970107f36d3661be2308898fa.png

Comment: Elite version1.42 firmware update trouble shooting.

Hi, I have been trying to upload and install the Elite 1.42 firmware update to my Elite DCC controller with out success. The downloaded firmware is downloaded into the download queue box but will not load into the Elite. The error message is " update failed" The Elite is now blank with only the green light showing that the Elite is powered up. I have followed all the Hornby Instruction to the letter many many times without success. I am unable use the Elite as the original firmware is now removed waiting for the 1.42 update to be installed, The Elite is only about 6 months old and now useless as a DCC controller in this state. 

 The Windows 8.1 is my computers software loaded into a Toshiba Satellite laptop.

Success at last. Two full days and half the nights but it is now working!!! It worked by using PC 2 type on COM 4 port at low download speed. The download speed is what made the download capture correctly and be received by the Elite.   That is why people using windows XP have no trouble because of the download slow speed.   Hope this helps some Elite owners to overcome the error message ' Update failed" when downloading version 1.42 into their Elite.   This is my first post after many years of being a member but not a contributor. Cheers.

[Leighton Cook]

Comment:   Elite firmware 1.42 download Windows 8.1  Error message - "update failed'  🤔

BUT NOW LOADED AND RUNNING WELL   😀

Hi, I have been trying to upload and install the Elite 1.42 firmware update to my Elite DCC controller with out success. The downloaded firmware is downloaded into the download queue box but will not load into the Elite. The error message is " update failed" The Elite is now blank with only the green light showing that the Elite is powered up. I have followed all the Hornby Instruction to the letter many many times without success. I am unable use the Elite as the original firmware is now removed waiting for the 1.42 update to be installed, The Elite is only about 6 months old and now useless as a DCC controller in this state. 

Windows 8.1 is my computers software loaded into a Toshiba Satellite laptop

Success at last. 😛 Two full days and half the nights but it is now working!!!   It worked by using PC 2 type on COM 4 port at low download speed. The download speed is what made the download capture correctly and be received by the Elite. That is why people using windows XP have no trouble because of the download slow speed.   Hope this thread helps some Elite owners when doing firmware upgrades in the future.

[Fishmanoz]

Hi Leighton, welcome to the forums and I'm glad you got it working.

 

You might note you added to a thread last posted to 11 months ago.  Since then, the variable speed update file has become available and it works reliably on all Windows versions as long as you select the correct speed for your machine.  If it takes a very short time to download, you selected too fast a speed and it fails. Slow down the speed/PC type and it works as you found.

 

There's lots of content on this on the forums in other Elite Update threads giving specifics of how to select the right PC type.

[Leighton Cook]

Hi Fishmanoz.Thanks for your welcome as I have been a member of Hornby for some years but this was my first post. I just had trouble finding threads to this subject so I just posted on this old thread hoping it may help others.

I need to get to know how to locate the particular thread that I am looking for.

I guess the wording I type into the search box needs to be spot on  -  any help would be good

[RDS]

... I guess the wording I type into the search box needs to be spot on  ...

 

I always say that the more words you put in, the less chance you have of finding what you are looking for because, if you type a phrase, it needs to be spot on.

 

For example, trying searching for 'Hornby Elite' and it gives many hits but try 'Elite Hornby' and there are none.

 

Just try individual words to start with.  If that gives too many hits, add another.  You can also search on just the Title, or the Content by selecting the appropriate Tab.

[96RAF]

I just searched on Elite update and got 8 applicable hits and that was on title search only.

https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/search/

As Fishy said the Elite update installer has been improved recently to take account of your PC spec and is now foolproof.

 

The rate of progress is your guide as to the end result, if it loads in less than 1-2 minutes it will fail, so pick a slower rate. The best solution for your pc is when it takes 3-5 minutes when a load is guaranteed. If you choose too slow a rate then no problem, it just takes forever to do it maybe over an hour, but it will succeed.

 

One thing to note is that if it does fail at any point you have to go through the full restart procedure of unplugging the Elite, including the USB, then hold down the STOP button for 20 seconds before plugging in the power jack. After 20 more seconds release the STOP button and wait for 20 more before plugging in the USB, then you have guessed it wait another 20 before executing the update file. If in doubt pick Type 2 unless you have an XP or Vista machine, then go for the slowest rate. Only pick Type 1 if you have a Win 10 - i5 or i7 machine.