TunerStudio MS

TunerStudio Menus

This section covers the menu items that are general to all TunerStudioMS installations. Other menu/tab items are covered by the specific hardware guides found elsewhere.

• File

  TunerStudioMS can store and retrieve set-up files, both entire set-ups (.msq files), and gear or line pressure table files (.vex). 

  • Open a previously saved .MSQ settings file. This is a file that contains the set-up parameters specific to your transmission.

  • Save Tune a .MSQ settings file. This is a file that contains all the set-up parameters specific to your transmission. You can (and should) save your set-up regularly to allow you to recover your settings and to see that changes you have made. It is especially useful if you are trying different combinations while tuning, find the transmission runs worse, and want to revert to a known good set-up. MSQ files also allow you to exchange set-ups with other people with similar combinations.

  • Save Tune As saves an .MSQ file, but allows you to change its name or location.
    

  • Work Offline allows you to work with TunerStudioMS without having it constantly polling for a connection, which can slow it down a lot. This is helpful if you want to edit an MSQ file without connecting to MegaSquirt^® EFI Controller, for example.

  • Exit: This will close TunerStudioMS, shutting any current log files in the process.
    

• Options
  • Language: Select the language you prefer. This will affect some menus, but not those in the INI.
  • Look and Feel: You have the choice of four styles for the look of TunerStudioMS. These affect the title bar area, the border color, and the menu font style. You can try different settings to get the most readable and pleasing display. This does not affect the gauges, indicators, or the contents of the menus themselves.
    • Metal:
      
      
    • Nimbus:
      
      
    • CDE/Motif:
      
      
    • Windows:
      
      

    You can see the images 2x larger by right-clicking on them, and selecting 'View Image'.

  • Navigation:
    • MegaTune Style: This places all the menus (TunerStudio's menu items and those contained in the INI(s)) in a single row of menu items near the top of the window (like MegaTune).

      This is without 'MegaTune Style':
      

      

      This is with 'MegaTune Style':
      

      
    • Toolbar Style: This places TunerStudio's menu items in a single row near the top, then underneath that are tabs for each of the main INI menu items. Th is makes it clear which menu items are specific to TunerStudio or the code. It might make the text easier to read (or it might make it harder). You will have to experiment with combinations of 'Toolbar Style' and 'Look and Feel' to get the look you prefer.
    • Navigation Options:
      • Show Disabled Menu: If a menu item is disable (X-Tau, or a second VE table, for example), it will appear grayed out if this box is not checked. If this item is checked, the menu won't appear at all. Having this checked cleans up the menus, but can make it hard to find some settings if they haven't been enabled.

  • Advanced:
    • Report corrected INI Warnings: TunerStudioMS will automatically correct most INI formatting problems. If you check this box, those corrections will appear in a pop-up dialog (so you can correct the INI if you wish). Unchecking this box will prevent the pop-up from appearing.

  • Preferences:
    • Load Last Project on startup: When you open TunerStudioMS, having this checked will cause TunerStudioMS to automatically load the last project you opened. If you have just one project, or only switch between them occasionally, this can be useful. If this is checked and you attempt to connect to a controller for which the project is not suited, you will be asked if you want to open another project, update the INI, or work-offline, etc.
    • Load Project Full Screen: Allows you to load the the project 'maximized'.
    • Settings Dialog Font Size: You can change the dialog font size here. Note that this does not affect the menu font size (set that using the 'Look and Feel' and 'Navigation' options).
    • Perform Difference Report on Connect: Checking this will cause TunerStudioMS to check the current parameters on your controller against those used the last time TunerStudio was connected, and issue a warning if they are not the same.
    • Automatically Load and Save Current Tune: This will automatically load the last tune save, and automatically save in your project folder any changes you make to to the user parameters.

  • Performance:
    • Gauge Float down on start: Checking this starts all the gauges at their highest values on a TunerStudio start, and then lets them float down to zero (before reflecting the current value). If unchecked, the gauges start at zero on a TunerStudio start, and they stay there until valid values are received). Checking this box adds 'eye appeal', but can cause TunerStudioMS to load more slowly.
    • Modal Dialogs: Turning this on will aid performance for old and slow computers.
    • Run in Lite Mode: Turns off some less-used TunerStudioMS features to conserve resources and speed performance. May not be available in all versions.

• Datalogging
  • Datalogging allows you to turn on the logging of real-time variables to a file on your PC. Once you have enabled datalogging, TunerStudioMS polls the GPIO controller when any of the front page, runtime display or tuning screen are active, and writes this data to a file. The file has a comma-separated value format and defaults to having an extension of “xls”, so Microsoft Excel will open them automatically. There are three datalog formats: classic, full and raw. The classic format is useful for interfacing to older programs (old versions of MST3k require this format). The full format is the most useful for examining values manually and for making plots and such (it is the only format with a continuous real-time clock). Datalogs may be used as input to Phil Tobin's excellent MegaLogViewer program to view the parameters as graphs (even in real time), as well as automatically correct your VE table. Get the MegaLogViewer at www.ideasandsolutions.biz/MegaLogViewer/download/. MegaLogViewer will process your datalog, automatically detecting which type of log is being read and acting accordingly. When datalogging is enabled, the second box in the status bar on bottom of the front page contains a bold “LOGGING” indicator.

    You can find all the variables available for datalogging in the [OutputChannels] section of the INI.

  • Start Logging (CRTL-L) - starts a datalog. The runtime values will be saved to a file once you give the file a name. A default name is 'suggested' by TunerStudioMS, and has the format 'datalogyyyymmddhhiii.msl' (or .xls), where: 
    • yyyy is the year,
    • mm is the month (0-12),
    • dd is the day (0-31),
    • hh is the hour (0-24), and
    • ii is the minute (0-59),
    all based on the time of creation of the datalog. The frequency of the datalog is set under 'Data Rate' in the Communications dialog.

  • Stop (CRTL-B) - stops the datalog from recording additional runtime variables.

  • Burst Logging Mode datalog at the maximum speed the com port will support, regardless of the data rate set in the communications settings. This will result in very large datalogs in very short periods of time.
  • Import/Conversion: Converts a datalog file.
    • Palm Import Utility: Converts a Palm log file.
    • Convert Binary Log (MS3/FRD):

  • View with MegaLogViewer: Opens a datalog file for viewing in MegaLogViewer. If you are actively datalogging, this will open the current datalog up to the point in time it is opened.

• Communications
  • Settings:
    • Configuration: This is the project name from which the initial communications settings have been taken.
    • Port The communications port number should correspond to the port to which the MS controller is attached. Usually you will select port 1 or 2, but some machines force you up to higher numbers (for instance, we have seen COM5 as the default on some IBM Thinkpad laptops). If you are using a USB/serial adapter, it may be as high as COM8 or COM9, or even higher. You can either look in the Control Panel under System/Device Manager, or simply try each COM port until you get a connection.
    • Baud Rate The data rate is hard coded into your MegaSquirt^® embedded code, use: 115200 for MegaSquirt-II™. Other values will NOT work without re-coding and reprogramming and you will spend a lot of time trying to figure out what is wrong.
    • Test Port: Click this button to attempt serial communications with the controller. Success will be reported if TunerStudioMS is able to contact MegaSquirt.
      

  • Data rate: Select the data rate (in output channel reads per second) you would like to use on your serial connection. You have choices from 1 per second to maximum per second. Some options may be grayed out if your hardware doesn't support that speed,. you may need to choose a lower speed for some serial connections (such as a USB/serial converter or Bluetooth connection).

  • Mini-Terminal:
    This is an 'internal' version of hyperterminal for low level communications with MShift™ for troubleshooting, etc.
  • Diagnostic Log Comm:
    This creates a detailed communications log for troubleshooting. It is *NOT* the normal datalog of MShift™ variables.

• Tools
  • Binary Log Viewer: This utility will let you open a raw binary log file and view it in a number of formats.

  • Expression Evaluator: This utility will let you design mathematical expressions using number, math operators, and the output channel variables and give you the value based on the current inputs. It can be very helpful for designing new variables to put into the INI.

  • Calibrate TPS: This will allow you to calibrate the throttle position sensor from the 1024 ADC counts that MS-II™ uses to the 0-100% that TunerStudioMS uses.

    To calibrate the throttle:

    1. Shut the engine off and leave it off until the procedure is complete.
    2. Take your foot completely off the accelerator pedal, and click on the 'Get Current' button beside the 'Closed Throttle ADC Count' value.
    3. Press the throttle pedal all the way down, and click on the 'Get Current' button beside the 'Full ADC Count' value.
    4. Click the 'Close' button and you are done.

    Note that you may have to re-calibrate if you have changed the idle stop using the throttle stop screw.

  • Calibrate Thermistor Table: This calibrates the thermistor (for the transmission fluid temperature) based on the bias resistor value and three temperature/resistance pairs (usually freezing, boiling, and room temperature - but if you have a source that gives values from a table for your sensor, choose one in the middle and the others from each end of the table).

• Help