We are having problems with "so far" 3 out of 8 machines taking firmware updates. KMA tech recomend sandisk CF 64M, format CF card on FAT, unfzipped to C drive and cut and past to CF card, tried it with no joy. machine will get a format error after MMI, or it will take the update but will lock up with program loading. after about 1.5 Hr with 3 CF cards it took and worked. KMA tech thinks possable MAIN PCB ground, or DIMM read write problem. tried the CF with errors on shop machine with two thumbs up.

any help
thanks

You are not alone in this, I have been using a 128 meg sandisk after trying CanRam, Lexar, and the 64 meg sandisk, I have flashed quite a few 30's 40's with the 128 and have had no failures (as i knock on wood), hold my breath every time I flash one.

I have had this many time in differant degrees
1. Do a complete redown load of all file from
kma connect
2. Smaller Cf cards seem to work best like
20meg or 32meg if you can find one
3. Format the card 3 times before loading

Glad to see I'm not the only one.
I have only one reliable CF card for these models right now, a 8MB Lexar Media that is rated for 8x read/write speed. My theory is the flash memory being used in the copier Main/Engine pcb's was changed during production and now requires a CF card with much faster R/W speed. I'll bet it was never evaluated by the engineers before the substitution was made. It is definitely the CF cards themselves, My experimentation shows that 2 cards of the same manufacturer (Memory Experts) and size both formated and written in the same way on the same PC had different performance. One works, the other doesn't.

Tech support has now reccomended flash cards from buffalo, which is the same people I buy mem DIMMS from. It works everytime, but when I had a PNY card it failed often, they blamed it on static electricity.

gentlemen, i have had firmware loading on the 35 series many times before, it is allways the same issue. If the machine has been flashed before, one of the pins(on the board side) can start to pull out and therefore the next time the firmware is flashed, you may have a problem with the load. If to carefully check and push the pins back, it allways works. The issue seems to be the black plastic on the main pcb doesnt allways hold all the pins firmly in place. Give it a look next time.

Yes, I agree I have seen this on the desktop printers, never checked the copiers though, but I will start. Thanks Furnfuz!

I just bought some new 64MB SanDisk CF cards for another tech, and no matter what I do I still get a "CF FAT ERROR" at startup on a 4035 or 5035. If I use an older 32MB card that has the latest firmware it loads properly, both cards were formatted and loaded from the same download, reader and computer. Maybe SanDisk has a problem with thier new cards?

Thanks for all the input.
As per fernfuz the pins have been checked, the pins are good, but note that two pins on the board are longer on the opposite corners, had one pcb with a missing pin.
pro I would like to know the info for the CF cards in Buffalo.
thanks.

Just had a KM-3050 that would start up and work fine but when trying to firm it would lockup on "Loading Program". I resolved it by replacing both the "parts, PWB panel code DIMM ass'y, sp" p/n 302GR94181 and the "parts, PWB main code DIMM ass'y,sp" p/n 302GR94201. It all came about after installing a new hard drive as the customer wanted to keep the old one. The new HDD went in and formatted fine and the machine would work; it just wouldn't take a firmware update until I swapped these two cards. Also, sometimes you will need to firm it twice when replacing these PWB's. My old PWB's had yellow silk screen writing where the new ones will be white silk screen.

Also, when you fire it up after replacing the DIMM's you need to immediately firmware it. It will fail the first time. Then fire it up normal mode and it will fail again (something like a CFB30 error). Then fire it up with a firmware again one final time. I kept trying to firmware it twice in a row without a normal CFB30 error start in the middle and it would keep failing until I firm updated EXACTLY in this order.

we were always told to use single speed cards. very hard to find now.

If you have any 16MB Hitachi cards, like those used on older Konica print systems, they work in every instance I have tried them. My Kyocera Tech rep even bummed one off me because they work so well.