New Firmware update

[LuckyTheCat]

There are going to be some cases where 16.8m color mode isn't optimal for certain lighting profiles due to the byproduct of flicker. This was why the box when checked/unchecked affects the lighting in real time so you all can decide what is best.

 

Shouldn't it be possible to group together keys that are temporarily static to have some sort of false group? This would help with people that have a heatmap profile where many of the groups could be combined until an action is taken place.

[Corsair James]

Well.. I'm not sure there is much you can do to make most people overlook this. 16.8m colors and fluid transitions were probably the most important things you guys put out there. While you're trying to fix these things, the competition has caught up and they do have both 16.8m AND fluid transitions. Heck even GTA took advantage of one of your competitors RGB keyboard and did crazy stuff with the lightings in game (police lights flashing when the player is wanted etc). So... I'm not sure there is stuff you can do that 1) hasn't been already done and 2) outshines your competitors. I guess LUA scripting is what you're trying to say, but there aren't that many people out there that will take full advantage of it, and even if they do, fluid color animation is a bug issue. I am a programmer myself, and if you release LUA of course I'll tinker around with it, but it already feels like a waste of time.. The whole point of having LUA is to make it do crazy things, have the keyboard come to life by animation is a HUGE part of it. It won't be the same without having fluid animation .. :/ Such a shame. I love this keyboard, but it really seems a shame..

 

But anyway.. Thanks for the update guys ;) I just hope you guys learn from the mistakes made on this keyboard, and make the v2 much better.

 

Game anchors are typically universal as long as the developer inputs it into the game for third party software to grab onto. We have some bigger plans regarding lighting than this which is was why Lua for the time being is pushed back.

 

As for the lessons learned, no one knows better than me. :sunglasse Part of the reason why this sub-forum was created is to better collect the feedback users like yourself are providing so we can gauge what matters and what doesn't as well as be proactive about resolving the bugs and errors we couldn't duplicate in the lab during testing.

[Iceycold]

@Corsair James

 

So a completely smooth gradient animation like say the one on the Blackwidow Chroma won't be possible to due to hardware constraints correct?

[stevvie]

Game anchors are typically universal as long as the developer inputs it into the game for third party software to grab onto. We have some bigger plans regarding lighting than this which is was why Lua for the time being is pushed back.

 

As for the lessons learned, no one knows better than me. :sunglasse Part of the reason why this sub-forum was created is to better collect the feedback users like yourself are providing so we can gauge what matters and what doesn't as well as be proactive about resolving the bugs and errors we couldn't duplicate in the lab during testing.

 

OOPS, looks like the feedback is too late for this keyboard as it seems to have been made to weak and slightly out of USB spec( hence the locking up/disappearing/not being recognized on some PC's) seems these RGB are in fact now showing that they are in fact hardware limited, as the software adds some more problems with flickering/stuttering. We can Only hope that there is a V2 hardware and we are offered an upgrade for a MINIMAL fee for being the beta testers.

[Paul S]

Same here: K70 RGB (FW 1.20 and CUE 1.5.108)

 

I am now able to spam caps scoll and num lock without the keyboard completely locking up :) Even Steam appears to be functioning correctly with CUE now!!!

 

While you can see the steps when the full rainbow effect is enabled, it is both smoother and less noticeable than it was previously (I have the 16.8 million color option enabled in the settings tab).

 

 

One bug I did find was: When enabling the type lighting by key and setting it to a random color, the whole keyboard does flicker slightly when a group of keys are pressed. (confirmed it was the 16.8 million color setting that is causing the flickering)

 

yes! im getting the flicker too

[CodilX]

The keyboard is capable of 16.8 million colors now. It isn't the perfect ideal solution as there is some flicker that occurs for certain types of animation on the keyboard. I won't convince you otherwise either but there is definitely improvement over what existed before.

 

However, I do want to speak honestly and say that there were ways to reduce the flicker. This would have, however, required us to cut down on the types of light customization you've all enjoyed since day 1 and we felt this would not have been acceptable whatsoever at all. I think for certain profiles like rainbow gradients look much better with all the colors available. Despite some of the side effects of this product, I still believe that in terms of customization, this keyboard delivers an amazing experience that can't be matched by our competitors and we still have more plans to come to go beyond what is offered today. I think as we get closer to releasing what we have planned, the issues with some of the color on this keyboard will be overlooked with the advance features we're going to implement.

Well then would you consider having an option with less colors? Right now you should be able to achieve 24bit colors (~16.8million). Before you had 512 colors which was beyond stupid, but if you added an option for 16 bit colors (~65 000) that would be more than enough for most if not all users, and hopefully it could help achieve better transitions. This keyboard isn't a monitor, and subtle color difference don't really show up. I can instantly tell how bad 512 colors was compared to what I see now, but I'm guessing 16bit would be almost the same as 24bit. The reasoning for me, is that even now with 24bit colors, the housing is doing a poor job of diffusing the light, and the colors are far from perfect. That being said, I don't think 16bit vs 24bit colors would make a huge loss visually, but maybe it could help achieve better transitions when having to deal with less data flowing?.. I dunno.. Before the obvious issue was the lack of colors, thus the transitions where very poor. Now we have more than enough colors for having fluid transitions, but the controller can't keep up.. I think there is a middle ground here, and I'd love to hear what the developers think about that.

[ScarredMecha]

Well then would you consider having an option with less colors? Right now you should be able to achieve 24bit colors (~16.8million). Before you had 512 colors which was beyond stupid, but if you added an option for 16 bit colors (~65 000) that would be more than enough for most if not all users, and hopefully it could help achieve better transitions. This keyboard isn't a monitor, and subtle color difference don't really show up. I can instantly tell how bad 512 colors was compared to what I see now, but I'm guessing 16bit would be almost the same as 24bit. The reasoning for me, is that even now with 24bit colors, the housing is doing a poor job of diffusing the light, and the colors are far from perfect. That being said, I don't think 16bit vs 24bit colors would make a huge loss visually, but maybe it could help achieve better transitions when having to deal with less data flowing?.. I dunno.. Before the obvious issue was the lack of colors, thus the transitions where very poor. Now we have more than enough colors for having fluid transitions, but the controller can't keep up.. I think there is a middle ground here, and I'd love to hear what the developers think about that.

 

I think that would be an acceptable compromise between not actually having 16.8m colors and not having the flickering that occurs. 16.8m colors is nice and all but isn't worth the flickering that happens when you try and use them in something that is more complex than a simple single-key type lighting profile on a black background. I'd be willing to bet that 16-bit color could be introduced without all the flickering, and that it'd still be visually appealing.

[Paul S]

The flicker really doesnt bother me at all it is VERY slight its certainly not eyecatching enough to be worried about, i do love my k70rgb and i know nothing else on the market matches it, i know ive tried!

 

Now if corsair could make a seperate piece of software called "WCU" or whitelevel calibration utility i would be over the moon, a seperate piece of software that allows flashing to the keyboard your own personal white level settings for the keys as everyones will be very slightly different in different places.

 

As far as keyboards mice and ssds, i have ALWAYS bought corsair as i know theyre the best out there.

 

And reapex your sig picture is awsome! i wish corsair would make a transparent keycap set!

[NuttyTecc]

I do love this keyboard but the initial software and now the apparent hardware limitations are insane. Corsair clearly went into this project only for the money (Well duh), without researching what the components used in these keyboards are capable of.

 

The flicker really doesnt bother me at all it is VERY slight its certainly not eyecatching enough to be worried about, i do love my k70rgb and i know nothing else on the market matches it, i know ive tried!

--SNIP--

I wouldn't even have made an account but the flickering is VERY noticeable

[ame=

]

[/ame]

[delslow]

I do love this keyboard but the initial software and now the apparent hardware limitations are insane. Corsair clearly went into this project only for the money (Well duh), without researching what the components used in these keyboards are capable of.

 

 

I wouldn't even have made an account but the flickering is VERY noticeable

 

Have already requested a return via the kbinquiries address. Let's see how this goes. Not sure if I'll ever buy another corsair product.

 

edit: Here's my "minor" flickering issue... barf

[ame]

[/ame]

[carphedon]

Have already requested a return via the kbinquiries address. Let's see how this goes. Not sure if I'll ever buy another corsair product.

 

edit: Here's my "minor" flickering issue... barf

 

Mine is exactly like that, 16.8m colour mode seems unusable right now...

[chrisgzy]

I just wish I could get my hands on a no-compromises RGB mechanical keyboard.

 

While I agree with you from the consumer end, the perfect world scenario would be what? Having them come out with a newer version with the issue totally solved, give us all refunds or free upgrades, and use the new one. All they would be doing is shooting themselves in the foot financially, though.

 

Even if they came out with another keyboard that had this fixed, we are looking at higher costs for better controllers and possibly little to no MX RGB Blue yields. I'd only want Blues anyways. Then, everybody would be complaining that they just bought a keyboard, didn't do what it was advertised to do, and feel they got ripped off.

 

It's kind of a lose/lose either way. I'm sure more vendors will come out with MX RGB keyboards, or do custom switches like Razer. The best, most-honorable thing in that case for Corsair to do would be to honor refunds if another vendor did come out with a better-equipped keyboard - at least for purchases before they updated product descriptions.

 

In the end, I think or at least hope that one of the lessons they learned is to wait before announcing products until everything is fleshed out technically. Small technicalities will kill product launches if they do not, just as we see here. The wait before the release was really too long anyways, in my opinion.

[Proffo]

I`ve set all keys to white, but any key pressed will change from white to red and back to white again over 4 seconds. Just pressing a single key will make the rest of the keys flicker, almost like a faulty florescent lamp.

 

Looks like this guy should be employed to design K** RGB Mk 2.....

 

It doesn't sound easy at all, but if they optimize it well, yes. With the new numbers we have 144 LEDs updating at 194Hz. 144*194 = 27936 LED scan frames per second. That means 35uS per LED frame. Considering that the palette supports 7 (possibly 8 but I'm not certain) independent PWM values at once, that means you only have to update the palette every 7 LED frames, or 7*35 = 245uS. That is more lenient than the 115uS I came up with earlier. Since we know now that the SPI clock frequency can be up to 10MHz as opposed to 1MHz, that cuts our previous bit time of 1uS down to 0.1uS. The SPI write takes 16 bits (making my 2-byte assumption correct) which is 8 bits for write flag and address and 8 bits for data. It looks like you must specifiy address for each byte written. 16 bits * 0.1uS = 1.6uS per write. However, now you're updating the entire palette rather than just one LED, so that becomes 1.6uS * 7 = 11.2uS to update the entire palette (not including delays between transfers). Now you need to do this three times because there are three drivers to update. If they wired all of them on the same bus, this takes 11.2uS * 3 = 33.6uS but if they are using three independent SPI busses this could still only be 11.2uS plus a bit of processing time. That means updating 11.2uS over a period of 245uS, which seems more reasonable. This still seems to be a very high demand on the CPU and will require perfect synchronization, but if they optimize well it does seem doable, though pushing the limit.

[ApexAU]

Game anchors are typically universal as long as the developer inputs it into the game for third party software to grab onto. We have some bigger plans regarding lighting than this which is was why Lua for the time being is pushed back.

 

James, what would you say to reassure customers who doubt Corsair's ability to implement advanced software features when other programs like Link have frankly been a disaster from day one?

 

The 16.8m update has fallen short of the no-compromise fix many of us were hoping for. Customers have waited months for a feature than was written on the box and the solution is less than ideal. In that time both of your main competitors have released similar offers that exceed the capabilities of your products in many ways. Is there anything you can tell us to help us believe these keyboards will be improved by powerful software that works correctly and is released in a timely fashion?

[Sitedrifter]

For me, I love the fixes and my keyboard looks awesome. The flickering I have noticed (even duplicating patterns the complainers are using) On a scale of 1-100 with 100 being as bad as some people make it seem, is a weak 5. Totally acceptable and I can tell you if it came like this out of the box (which it should have) this board would not being beat up right now by some, rather it would have been praised by everyone.

 

Corsair --> Great Job but it should have been this way from release.

 

I can now look forward to even more features down the road since Corsair has a grasp on CUE and the firmware.

[Gil80]

Is it possible to force update firmware? because I'm getting "Failed to update device firmware" with the new CUE version.

[Inheritance]

OOPS, looks like the feedback is too late for this keyboard as it seems to have been made to weak and slightly out of USB spec( hence the locking up/disappearing/not being recognized on some PC's) seems these RGB are in fact now showing that they are in fact hardware limited, as the software adds some more problems with flickering/stuttering. We can Only hope that there is a V2 hardware and we are offered an upgrade for a MINIMAL fee for being the beta testers.

 

IF you do not like the keyboard you may contact Corsair at KBinquiries@corsair.com and ask for a refund. There isnt going to be a option to send the K70 RGB back for a new v2 for a "small fee".

[IcyPwnage]

I am just pleased that I have a keyboard that doesn't appear to crash with Steam now (or crash randomly now). While 16.8 million colors is nice, IMHO software crashing was by far the biggest issue. So, with the latest fix, I am a happy customer :)

If 16 bit colors are possible without the flickering, I would say go for it. Just make sure that the CUE software remains stable :)

[delslow]

There isnt going to be a option to send the K70 RGB back for a new v2 for a "small fee".

 

No "g-sync" like module to solder onto our current keyboards? =P

 

And I'd appreciate it if you would stop with the "STFU and return the keyboard if you don't like it" responses. It isn't very helpful. People have legitimate concerns and are venting on the official forums about an expensive product that does not function as advertised.

 

I've personally put in for a return and am hopeful they'll have this resolved with their next iteration. The other problem is now I have a set of translucent keycaps and no keyboard to put them on. =/

[Inheritance]

No "g-sync" like module to solder onto our current keyboards? =P

 

And I'd appreciate it if you would stop with the "STFU and return the keyboard if you don't like it" responses. It isn't very helpful. People have legitimate concerns and are venting on the official forums about an expensive product that does not function as advertised.

 

I've personally put in for a return and am hopeful they'll have this resolved with their next iteration. The other problem is now I have a set of translucent keycaps and no keyboard to put them on. =/

 

If you do not like the keyboard you may contact Corsair at KBinquiries@corsair.com and ask for a refund.

[1komail]

How do we know they're making a version 2.0 to this keyboard? Is their any official statement regarding a newer version yet, other then refund if you don't like what you see.. It just doesn't seem right to make people wait so long and then say just return it we couldn't get it exactly right, which I personally don't see that flickering as much of a issue, its just more about the product you pay for and it to be out date and under-priced when a new one is released.

[Proffo]

I think there will be a version 2 of this keyboard.

 

I don't think they'll carry on churning out flickering keyboards when their competitors are selling RGB keyboards that don't flicker.

 

The question is, how long until they update the design, and what will they say to owners of the old model ? Thanks for being beta testers ? Thanks for the money, we've invested it in developing a better keyboard that works properly, want to buy one ?

[Corsair James]

James, what would you say to reassure customers who doubt Corsair's ability to implement advanced software features when other programs like Link have frankly been a disaster from day one?

 

The 16.8m update has fallen short of the no-compromise fix many of us were hoping for. Customers have waited months for a feature than was written on the box and the solution is less than ideal. In that time both of your main competitors have released similar offers that exceed the capabilities of your products in many ways. Is there anything you can tell us to help us believe these keyboards will be improved by powerful software that works correctly and is released in a timely fashion?

 

I started at Corsair in Tech Support so I thoroughly understand the issues with Link. The development for that has always been rough and slow (similar to the first version of Corsair Gaming software). However, the development of CUE is a completely different team and I work with them on a near daily basis to get things corrected and enhanced. This is why you see many more updates with CUE than you do with Corsair Link.

 

I agree that the 16.8m color fix isn't 100% ideal. It is a lesson to be learned without going into details as to how this came to be, but regardless of how it started, we at Corsair of course are primarily responsible.

 

Yet the keyboard is still a very good piece of hardware. I also believe that our software is actually more advance than anything out right now even in comparison to our competitors. We may lack some of the features they have (brightness for example) but the type of profiles being uploaded on a daily basis far exceeds what you find from any other vendor. We also have even more plans to enhance CUE that we are due to be announced soon. As someone who is working on this since day 1 of implementation, I can assure you we are doing everything we can to make the user experience a great one despite some of the setbacks.

[MikeOnX]

I started at Corsair in Tech Support so I thoroughly understand the issues with Link. The development for that has always been rough and slow (similar to the first version of Corsair Gaming software). However, the development of CUE is a completely different team and I work with them on a near daily basis to get things corrected and enhanced. This is why you see many more updates with CUE than you do with Corsair Link.

 

I agree that the 16.8m color fix isn't 100% ideal. It is a lesson to be learned without going into details as to how this came to be, but regardless of how it started, we at Corsair of course are primarily responsible.

 

Yet the keyboard is still a very good piece of hardware. I also believe that our software is actually more advance than anything out right now even in comparison to our competitors. We may lack some of the features they have (brightness for example) but the type of profiles being uploaded on a daily basis far exceeds what you find from any other vendor. We also have even more plans to enhance CUE that we are due to be announced soon. As someone who is working on this since day 1 of implementation, I can assure you we are doing everything we can to make the user experience a great one despite some of the setbacks.

 

Dear Corsair James, I'm a K70 costumer who was really exited about this board, it has nice looks, nice specs on paper, cherry switches etc. But from out of the box the brushed anodized aluminum had a pair of dents/scratches, went to the store for a replacement and the owner got really upset with me and told me that it was the way this keyboard is, that he checked the other keyboards in her office and all of them were like that or worse.

 

http://imgur.com/1Mif9qC

 

http://imgur.com/Sg9XdUo

 

so i kept the board...

 

Now with the 16.8 million colours you are incurring in something called "false advertisement" under current consumer rights regulations in my country; Mexico. It is advertised in the box and everywhere but only now you have been able to achieve it in a non advertised nor advised below optimal quality levels. I will be grateful if you communicate with your Mexico representatives and tell them to receive any keyboards being returned under this circumstances, because if tomorrow or the day after tomorrow i go to the store to return my keyboard and get a denial of my refund, i will have to go to the Consumer Rights authorities and create a ticket, which under investigation, it will rise or create unexpected costs for both your company and the resellers. It will be very nice of you if you optimize the refund process for your Mexican consumers who have bought your products with a official retailer, which under national law should be immediate.

 

This is a very tense and difficult case for your company and i don't know what it would be better for you, to discontinue this current hardware version or to put a stamp on your boxes advising the consumer of the flaws and compromises for the 16.8 million colours. I went for this board because i trusted your brand being quality leaders in other IT supplies. I hope you have luck sorting out the problems of this board, as for now, my intentions are to return this one. Greetings.

[Corsair James]

Dear Corsair James, I'm a K70 costumer who was really exited about this board, it has nice looks, nice specs on paper, cherry switches etc. But from out of the box the brushed anodized aluminum had a pair of dents/scratches, went to the store for a replacement and the owner got really upset with me and told me that it was the way this keyboard is, that he checked the other keyboards in her office and all of them were like that or worse.

 

http://imgur.com/1Mif9qC

 

http://imgur.com/Sg9XdUo

 

so i kept the board...

 

Now with the 16.8 million colours you are incurring in something called "false advertisement" under current consumer rights regulations in my country; Mexico. It is advertised in the box and everywhere but only now you have been able to achieve it in a non advertised nor advised below optimal quality levels. I will be grateful if you communicate with your Mexico representatives and tell them to receive any keyboards being returned under this circumstances, because if tomorrow or the day after tomorrow i go to the store to return my keyboard and get a denial of my refund, i will have to go to the Consumer Rights authorities and create a ticket, which under investigation, it will rise or create unexpected costs for both your company and the resellers. It will be very nice of you if you optimize the refund process for your Mexican consumers who have bought your products with a official retailer, which under national law should be immediate.

 

This is a very tense and difficult case for your company and i don't know what it would be better for you, to discontinue this current hardware version or to put a stamp on your boxes advising the consumer of the flaws and compromises for the 16.8 million colours. I went for this board because i trusted your brand being quality leaders in other IT supplies. I hope you have luck sorting out the problems of this board, as for now, my intentions are to return this one. Greetings.

 

MikeOnX, if the keyboard had any dents or scratches (which seem to be from a result of poor handling or shipping), we would be more than happy to exchange it for you if your retailer won't do so. Our RMA policy exists for this reason. Unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, we have no control over our retailer/etailer's policy on returns and exchanges. We would have no way of instructing them how to conduct their own business practices.

 

Second, we can do 16.8m colors which was why we provided this update.

 

Third, you don't need to go through any trouble of raising a ticket through your government or anything of that nature. We've always been open about accepting returns/refund requests if you're not satisfied with your purchase. Simply send an email to kbinquiries@corsair.com and our customer service team can assist you with the refund process.

 

I'm more than happy to answer any other inquiries through PM as well.