I guess to me it sounds like the tuning will be placed back on the mechanical timing on the motor, as well as the resistance found in the ESC like the old days.

It may not matter much though in offroad. Easy way to tell run the same vehicle using a "race" speedo and a sport speedo with same motor using the same timing.

Also, from what I read from some of the onroad guys, some motors allow A LOT more timing than others since they don't have a stop of sorts. One person reported that since that motor didn't have that limitation, it was pretty much the one being run by everyone just to keep up.

Probably be time to break out the super sized pinions too.

Does that mean we'll need to break out the hotwire and laptop to switch into blinky mode? That makes reconfiguring something some of us change fairly often much more cumbersome...

I am assuming you are running more than just 1 class with the same vehicle?

If not, why would you be changing between configurations when you are running blinky?

Different tracks with different class structures. It used to be that there was one blinky and the rest allowed boost, now two are blinky and I can run competitively with the 17.5 in mod with boost at one track (saves all the work of swapping motors)...

I have another that I sometimes run in blinky even though it has a mod motor and I usually run boost settings. It all depends on the track...

Guys, we've been approached by some of the largest promoters and race organizers all over the world to bring this feature to the existing product.

Yes you will be required to use a Hotwire to engage Spec or "blinky" mode and yes it will be locked into this mode until you use a Hotwire to pull it out of spec mode. This will prevent cheating and swapping profiles post tech at large events.

Should you choose to swap between 0 timing and a boosted profile you still can using C1 and C2 both of which are custom profiles. There will however be no blinking led's to prove you're in 0 timing mode.

While blinky or spec racing isn't a huge tech issue at your local level. It's a huge time constraint and labor intensive issue at large events all over the world. While we are essentially taking the RS and altering a really cool feature we feel that his will help large events such as the Nationals, Snowbirds, JBRL, and many other large events worldwide be more effective, fair, and efficiently ran.

The best part is as a consumer you can choose to not do the update. However not doing this update will not allow you to race spec mode at a ROAR sanctioned event without the new lockout mode.

Anyone racing a Tekin esc's has already had to update their esc to get the current spec or blinky mode software. I will also add to that statement that they did so at no additional cost aside from the Hotwire itself. The RS and RS Pro are the longest running active competition esc on the market today. If you invested in your Tekin esc nearly 4 years ago you still have a competitive esc. Not too many if any other esc manufacturers can say that. Sure some of them are becoming competitive again now that boost is going away but to me that is not progression...

Essentially yes. If you use the same car in say a boosted class and a blinky class, yes. However I will say that if you're likely doing this you're already changing gearing,etc.

If it's to change for different tracks then you are really not being inconvenienced- I can adjust via hotwire in less than 5 minutes, and inbetween race weekends 5 minutes to set my esc pales in comparison to the other time I spend to keep everything running the way I want it to.

As for the rule change, I have recently had a change of heart. For the entire length of this debate (basically ever since Tekin gave the masses timing adjustments in the esc- I could never justify $400 for the Advanced unit...) I was against blinky mode. I like the extra speed without running mod class (and still do), but after racing a few weekends at Trackside where that's what they run, I'm all for it because the racing is better. I do firmly believe that my motor costs will go up because they will see more temperature and wear out faster, but if it makes the competition better while also making it easier for beginners to enter the class then I'll gladly buy an extra motor or two without complaint.

Jonny5, I like your explanation, completely agreed. I havnt been in the hobby that long but it will def be nice to see a distinct difference between mod and stock!

This just brings back a battery war and hot motor of the month club. Stock is never gonna be fair, get used to it.

Tekin, I really appreciate that you are doing another free update so our ESC's don't become outdated for the new ROAR spec. This is why Tekin is leading the pack. It just seems that the other ESC companies are following in Tekins footsteps, or slow at following, or not even following at all. Tekin has the badass 4 pole motor and now my truck is 100 grams lighter. Tekin was one of the first with a programmable ESC and they are still supporting that product and it sounds like it will still work just fine in the new spec class. Tekin must have an awesome R&D department, look at all they are STILL doing! We can all count on Tekin to keep our ESCs up to date! I am so glad that I own 4 Tekin ESCs and that they are still so HOT!!! Keep it up Tekin!

Maybe at the national level but club racing is more about being consistent and making it the quickest around the corners. I've seen many stock races won by guys with no boost or crazy gearing against guys with loads of boost and electronic timing.

True, but busting out a netbook, hotwire, pulling the throttle plug, starting the netbook, starting the program, plugging everything in, navigating to the setting, changing it, applying it, shutting down, disconnecting, connecting the throttle back up, then swapping pinions vs. just swapping pinions and pushing a couple buttons a few times... Big difference.

Your answer above will work (being able to set it to any of the existing modes at will from the buttons). I can't show off my blinking esc without a netbook (that I don't usually carry), but club racing (where there is no tech) is almost always on the honor system anyhow.

I could see this making pre and post tech at some bigger races a headache. Imagine someone coming up to the table that doesn't have the netbook/hotwire, doesn't know anyone that has one, and the tech has to check that it's in the right mode manually or find someone that can change it (then, potentially, check it again after the race the same tedious way)...

At the least, there should be some simple one-way method (cannot be reversed without a hotwire, just like you can't configure your C1 and C2 without one) to change it into the locked blinky mode with some basic dance like holding both buttons down before turning it on, then it is set after 3-5 seconds if the user keeps holding them down.

If you're at a large race and you're walking up to tech you'd better know you're in blinky mode. This reason alone is why the race organizers have asked for the change. They do not want the timing profile to be that easy to alter on the fly.

Rumors and accusations of racers doing this after they've gone through tech while waiting in line changing the profile has already happened.

This feature will prevent that possibility.

Besides the actual convenience there's no reason that I can think of that this is bad for R/C Racing.

We all drive $1000+ racing vehicles and we're complaining about a $30 USB interface? Really?

Here's my side of the story:

Our local track runs mostly stock because it's too small for mod to be a benefit. Fine and dandy, but I went to my first big national event last year (Columbus) and even though I had 3 perfect heats within .4 seconds of each other, I still only qualified 22nd out of 55 cars. Between my ESC (which didn't have boost options) and my motor (which could only go up to 15 degrees of timing), I was at a pretty big power disadvantage versus the guys running 60 degrees of motor timing and boost through the roof. Tebo, Cav and the top guys in mod buggy were running 21.0's - the fastest stock buggy time I saw all weekend was 21.9, and a heat time that would have put him high in the B-main for mod buggy. Oh, and this was a high-speed, super fast track where RPM and power did make a difference. After that race, I vowed to never run stock again anywhere other than my local track, where we pretty much have to.

With this new update, and maybe mandating a locked motor like Trinity/Epic has come out with, stock racing MAY become fun again, and with good batteries at a decent price, it may actually make things more fair than we've seen in a long time.

+1

I would expect the argument to be that blinky is too slow, or makes for tire wars, or battery wars, or motor wars... But over an interface cable? Unless you race with an entire group of jerks it is nearly impossible to go to a track and not be able to find someone with a hotwire you can use.