BR-864 Compact Flash Card Question

[64Guitars]

I checked out shipping on that ebay auction, and they want $37.00 for shipping to Canada.  Unbelievable!  I could ship those cards to New Jersey for under $5.00 using Canadapost.  I have bought and sold hundreds of items on ebay and nothing sours me more than over-inflated shipping costs.  Ugh.

The winning bid was $32 US. Would have been a great bargain if the shipping had been reasonable. Actually, even with the ridiculous $37 shipping fee it would have worked out to $6.90 US per 1GB card. That's still a great price if they all worked.

[iluvchiclets]

I did initally try out the Sandisk 2gb card on the BR864, but kept getting the "unsupported message".  I read the CF card through my computer, and noted that the Boss card was formatted FAT while the 2gb card was formatted FAT32 (whatever the difference is?)

I formatted the 2GB card in FAT, and inserted the BOSS files onto that card and it still would not read.

The working 256 card I bought is simply entitled "Compact Flash Max", it appears to be the most generic kind of card one might find.

I just now returned from another music store, and they too had the 1GB CF cards for $35.  The employee had to scrounge around on the bottom of the store shelf because they had fallen off the display and he was only barely able to recall seeing them there.  I mentioned I thought it was priced a bit high for only 1GB, and he offered $15.00, so I bought it.  It is a Delkin brand.

So, from one day I have little memory, to today where I have too much!  Such is the fun of hunting around.

I sincerely appreciate all of your help and information, 64Guitars.

[64Guitars]

I did initally try out the Sandisk 2gb card on the BR864, but kept getting the "unsupported message".  I read the CF card through my computer, and noted that the Boss card was formatted FAT while the 2gb card was formatted FAT32 (whatever the difference is?)

I formatted the 2GB card in FAT, and inserted the BOSS files onto that card and it still would not read.

You should always initialize (format) your memory cards in the BR before using them to record. Don't format them on your computer. It's possible if you get the settings right (FAT with 16kb sectors and volume label set to "BOSS_BR-864"), but not recommended. The card will work more reliably if it's formatted in the BR (see page 149 of the BR-864 manual).

I just now returned from another music store, and they too had the 1GB CF cards for $35.  The employee had to scrounge around on the bottom of the store shelf because they had fallen off the display and he was only barely able to recall seeing them there.  I mentioned I thought it was priced a bit high for only 1GB, and he offered $15.00, so I bought it.  It is a Delkin brand.

Sounds like a great deal. When the BR-864 first came out, Delkin was the only brand that Roland recommended. So you should have no compatibility problems with it.

[iluvchiclets]

Hi again,

Sorry, I neglected to mention that I did try several times to format the 2GB card in the BR864, but kept getting unsupported card errors.

[iluvchiclets]

Arrgh!

I'm still having troubles!  I put the new Delkin card in, and it says "Unsupported Card".  I go to Card Initialize (under Utility, System) and it still says "Unsupported Card"

So I took the Delkin to my computer, reformatted it (Volume name BOSS_BR-864, FAT format, 16 kb sectors) and copied the info from my smaller cards (ROLAND>BR0, SMF, TONELOAD, USB) and it still won't work.

Back to the store, I guess.  Who knew it would be such an adventure?

[64Guitars]

I'm still having troubles!  I put the new Delkin card in, and it says "Unsupported Card".  I go to Card Initialize (under Utility, System) and it still says "Unsupported Card"

That's very strange. Delkin is the one brand that Roland has always said is compatible. What is the part number? Roland's list says that the Delkin DDCFFLS2-1G is compatible with the BR-864.

Have you inspected the card slot for dirt, debris, or bent pins? I've heard of BR-864/900/600 users having similar card problems and it turned out to be a bent pin in the card slot. If you have a bent pin and you can straighten it without breaking it, the BR might then recognize your card. The same goes for debris in the card slot. A tiny bit of paper from a card label, for example, can prevent one or more pins from making contact.

It's easy to bend a pin when inserting a card, so you have to be very careful. Once a pin is bent, the metal becomes fatigued. So even if you manage to straighten it without breaking it, there's a greater risk of it breaking or bending again in the future. I always try to insert the card as straight as possible with very light pressure. The slightest angle can cause the pins to misalign with the holes and bend when you apply more pressure. Once I'm confident that the pins are lined up with the holes (you can feel it), then I increase the pressure to firmly seat the card. I've never had a problem in nine years of use, but I've heard of several others who managed to bend pins.

Do your other cards still work? If you bent a pin today, for example, then I would expect all of your cards to be giving you similar trouble. But not necessarily. It could be that lower capacity cards don't need all of the pins because they have fewer address lines. So it's conceivable that a bent pin might only affect 1 GB cards which would need all of the address pins.

[iluvchiclets]

Excellent troubleshooting tips,

The inside of the BR-864 looks fine - no bent pins there.  I tried my original 128 BR card and the other 256 card and they both work fine.  I would not be able to tell if there was something wrong with the actual CF card itself, as those holes are awfully tiny.

I went to my local L+M store, and explained my predicament.  He too could not understand why the Delkin card would not work, as "it's the card that Boss recommends."  He was kind enough to find a Kingston 1gb card laying around, and we tried without success to format it as well.

Roland's list says that the Delkin DDCFFLS2-1G is compatible with the BR-864.

Where would I find the part number on the Delkin?  The L+M number is MEM-CF-1GB, and on the card itself it has the numbers CF01GSTPT-XX000-P 7996

[64Guitars]

Roland's list says that the Delkin DDCFFLS2-1G is compatible with the BR-864.

Where would I find the part number on the Delkin?  The L+M number is MEM-CF-1GB, and on the card itself it has the numbers CF01GSTPT-XX000-P 7996

It should be right on the front label at the bottom. For example, here's a picture of a Delkin DDCFFLS2-1GB.



Of course, if Roland has re-labelled them you might not be able to find a Delkin part number. "MEM-CF-1GB" is Roland's part number. Anyway, it doesn't matter. I was just curious if it was the one on Roland's list or a different Delkin card that they didn't test.

[64Guitars]

Just found this picture via Google Images. Is this what your card looks like?



If so, then Roland has obviously re-labelled it so who knows what it actually is. Might not even be a Delkin. But it should work with the BR-864 since it's clearly labelled for BRs.

[64Guitars]

What version is the system software in your BR-864? To find out, switch the BR off, then press and hold the Rhythm Guide's ARRANGE/PATTERN/OFF button and the PROGRAM button simultaneously while switching the BR back on.



It will display three numbers. The middle one (EXT) is the version of the BR's system software. The latest version is 1.02. System updates often improve memory card compatibility. So if your BR is at version 1.01 or 1.00, then an update to 1.02 might make a difference. I've updated mine twice. It was 1.00 when I bought it and I updated to 1.01 when it was released, then 1.02.