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polyend / TrackerBetaTesting

Beta firmware and reporting. For official releases go to https://polyend.com/downloads/
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Document the hardware and let users flash custom firmware #1455

Open calebccff opened 2 years ago

calebccff commented 2 years ago

Providing an SDK for users to write their own FX, or modify the behaviour of the tracker would allow for almost unlimited potential, similarly to the Korg Nu Tekt NTS-1 for example.

Open sourcing the firmware (or at least the core fw) used by the tracker would also allow users to contribute to development, many open source projects benefit hugely from community contributions. The community would be able to fix bugs, implement highly requested features etc.

The tracker uses a custom (is it??) .ptf file format for firmware upgrades. I've done some initial decoding here: https://github.com/calebccff/polyend_tracker_fw_decoding

I don't see any mechanism for firmware signing/signature verification, so hopefully it will be possible to produce and flash custom firmware in the future, even if Polyend aren't willing to release more technical information about the tracker.

FWIW, I really love the tracker, it's a fantastic device and has made me find a new enjoyment in music. As a developer I just wish I was able to have the freedom to modify/add features, fix bugs and generally improve the experience for myself and others.

patois commented 2 years ago

It's entirely possible to flash whatever you want onto the Tracker. You could build your own custom firmware using TeensyDuino for example and you'll be able to go back to any official Polyend Tracker firmware anytime using the Tracker's emergency update procedure. The process is documented on the RETracker project, which also allows for customization of the official firmware.