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My razer Blackwidow Ultimate was working perfectly for the 8 months I have had it. Until yesterday.
I decided to update the firmware on the keyboard from 1.05 to 1.08
After I downloaded the updater and installed, my keyboard turned off (which I expected). So I let the updater do it's thing...
30minutes later, it still showed 0%
so i closed the updater and opened it again.
This time there was no blackwidow ultimate detected
I tried reinstalling the drivers and different USB ports (each time it installed razer bootloader)
restarted my computer a few times, still nothing
Any Ideas on how to fix this?
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How intensely do you use the Macro keys? Have you tried operating the keyboard without any Drivers/Firmware at all? Tried older versions 1.07 or such?
I only have the normal variant (not the ultimate) and use it since over a year with the 1.07 Firmaware - no problems.
(Except my 0 key on the Numblock died which is pretty annoying for calaculations -.-)
Oh yea and tried it on a different machine to make sure nothing internal maybe got fucked up?
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I have tried using old drivers
I use the macro keys for some things but not very heavily (1-2 times a day?)
I tried it on 2 other computers same thing
device manager now recognizes an "unknown device"
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anyone have any ideas? I contacted Razer support, but so far their solutions haven't worked :/
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Yeh man I have the EXACT same problem that occurred in exactly the same way.
I just bought my brand new Blackwidow Stealth Edition (Ultimate is a gimmick... you just get two usb ports, audio ports, and backlighting...). Grabbed the latest software updates and firmware.
Firmware stuck at 0% trying to go through the bootloader. Manually closed it... keyboard is now dead. It is like all the software on the keyboard is wiped and now nothing else recognises it. Doesn't seem to be any way to reset it to factory settings.
Can't even use the firmware updater again because it now claims there is no Blackwidow plugged in. Trying multiple USB ports did not fix the issue. System restore did not fix the issue. Reinstalling keyboard drivers did not fix the issue.
Restarted the computer with the keyboard unplugged, plugged it in. Driver started installing, after a while it said 'success - razer bootloader installed.' Yet the keyboard was still unresponsive.
I am thinking of fucking around with the BIOS, maybe flashing it. But you said it doesn't work on other computers? Uh oh.
We may have just permanently fucked our keyboards. If there is one lesson I've learned from this - never touch firmware.
EDIT: Ok so when plugging in the keyboard it is recognised as a "razer bootloader'. It seems the boot loader firmware has transferred intself onto the keyboard... but since we cancelled it. it is like, stuck on there? I'm trying to figure out how to erase it or reset it back to default.
The good news is the computer DOES pick up the keyboard... it just doesn't recognise it AS a keyboard.
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Uhm, cancelling during Firmware-updates is always a really really bad decision 
If you dont have a problem with the current firmware or the new firmware doesnt fix a major lack of performance or sth. similar I'd stay with the current one.
Chances are good your ruined your devices.
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Well it is not like we had a choice. It was stuck at 0%.
Also how does it ruin the device exactly. I mean it is just software. We just need to put that software back on. It is not like physically it has been ruined.
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It's software that tells the keyboard literally everything it is, without that the keyboard doesn't even know it's a keyboard.
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Sounds like you broke your keyboard.
If u messed up during the firmware upgrade, and it didnt roll-back to the old version, id say you either have "no" firmware or firmware that isnt working. This is supported by the fact that your computer is unable to communicate with it.
What u need is a way to flash firmware to your keyboard, but your computer doesnt know that the keyboard is a keyboard since there is no firmware on it. You cant just flash shit randomly onto devices connected to USB-ports without your computer knowing what it is. Chances are you bricked your keyboards wich is what happends when u get like half a firmware or a broken firmware onto a device, and in that process loosing the possibility to communicate properly with other devices.
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On April 06 2012 01:37 OhManTFE wrote:
Well it is not like we had a choice. It was stuck at 0%.
Also how does it ruin the device exactly. I mean it is just software. We just need to put that software back on. It is not like physically it has been ruined.
Ignorance of the fundamentals does not prevent them from being the fundamentals. I mean, from that point of view, I could plug a 110v device into a 220v outlet, because it's just electricity.
Imagine if a SC2 pro got amnesia. They wouldn't physically be ruined, but if they didn't even know anything about the game, they probably wouldn't be winning a tournament, right? That's what you (probably) did to your keyboard. It doesn't know it's a keyboard anymore.
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OK, so it is currently running the bootloader firmware. This seems to be what it reverts to in emergencies like interruptions. I just don't know how to put the firmware back on. The firmware program itself doesn't work because it needs to detect a Blackwidow plugged in in order to to work...
I have checked out that link, the instructions aren't detailed enough. When I try to install from the RzrBtLdr.inf I just get an error message.
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OK yeh, so the bootloader firmware comes with the firmware updater, installing it puts the firmware onto the keyboard.
But I can't put the ACTUAL firmware onto the keyboard because the program doesn't recognise the bootloader??
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OK guys I have fixed it.
I had to go all the way back to the Firmware version 0.5, which isn't even on the downloads page! It seems the future versions of the Firmware are unable to detect the bootloader (WTF Razer??). So with the boot-loader installed, I then ran 0.5 firmware which DID pick up the bootloader. I then ran the 0.8 firmware (the latest firmware) after that to update it to the current version.
WHY IT FUCKED UP ORIGINALLY
-It seems factory keyboards don't have the boat-loader firmware installed, only the keyboard firmware. So when we went to update the firmware, it tried to load the boat-loader (which wasn't there) and was just stuck on 0%.
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On April 06 2012 03:28 OhManTFE wrote:
OK guys I have fixed it.
I had to go all the way back to the Firmware version 0.5, which isn't even on the downloads page! It seems the future versions of the Firmware are unable to detect the bootloader (WTF Razer??). So with the boot-loader installed, I then ran 0.5 firmware which DID pick up the bootloader. I then ran the 0.8 firmware (the latest firmware) after that to update it to the current version.
WHY IT FUCKED UP ORIGINALLY
-It seems factory keyboards don't have the boat-loader firmware installed, only the keyboard firmware. So when we went to update the firmware, it tried to load the boat-loader (which wasn't there) and was just stuck on 0%.
Yes, all the fault lies with Razer. None with the person who didn''t do enough research before beginning a process that can potentially make hardware useless. Be glad it worked out, but take it as a warning. Don't be so fast to just mess with things, it can have negative consequences, some of them permanent and warranty voiding.
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Congrats OhmanTFE. Man, that just seems way stupid on Razer's part.
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Good thing it worked out, and the next time: Dont fix it unless its broken 
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Same issue with my SWTOR keyboard. I followed the quick install guide, plugged it into two USB 2.0 slots, downloaded the Synapse 2.0, it installed some stuff, asked for a restart so I restarted at which point the LCD screen and 10 adaptive buttons quit working but the rest of the keyboard was lit and appeared to be working. I logged back into Synapse and it automatically started downloading and installing a new firmware and hung at 25%. I didn't want to mess with the firmware update and had a date anyways so I let it sit for about 9 hours and when I came back my keyboard was not lit at all and the screen said it was still at 25% after 9 hours, from 6pm to 3am. I let it sit until I woke up at 9am and it was still at 25% only now the splash window was pixelated. I pulled up MS Word and tried to type and it was unresponsive. So yes, I did a restart and when the MB bios came up it said keyboard not detected. I plugged it into multiple USB 2.0 ports (it requires 2) and no go. Then I installed it into my laptop, no go. Each time I put it into USB ports however, it came up that drivers were installing, but in Device Manager the keyboard was no longer showing up.
The brings up two issues:
First, some of you are acting like people had a choice in the matter of rebooting their system. There is no choice, after a total of 15 hours, the firmware update should have progressed and it didn't. And at least in my case, the keyboard stopped working before I hit restart.
Two, this is obviously a problem across multiple Razer keyboards and something Razer needs to address with a fix. They also need to quit forcing firmware and driver updates.
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Forcing? How is it forcing if you are downloading it on your own? Surely plugging in the keyboard does not open up a browser page telling you to update the firmware or your keyboard will explode
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The Razer Synapse 2.0 software is the method razer gives you to manage settings and update drivers and firmware for their entire SWTOR line and some of their other newer products. When you log into it, Synapse automatically downloads drivers and firmware, you don't have the option to say no and the only way to set up your keyboard is through the Synapse software.... so they force you to update and don't tell you that it is going to update without your consent.
For instance in the quick start guide it says "download current drivers at www.razersupport.com", when you go there and select the SWTOR Keyboard and then "Drivers" and it only gives the synapse 2.0 program. The Synapse 2.0 software is razers all in one total control program to update drivers, firmware and manage the settings on the keyboard... even if you don't want the updates. All I wanted to do was get current drivers and set up a few macro's, instead I got a bricked keyboard and I had no choice in the matter.
Unfortunately this is a new product, and the cost limits the audience significantly, so there are almost no articles online addressing how to fix this problem with this particular keyboard. I just posted on here because I saw that another razer keyboard was having the exact same problem and people were making the posters with the problem seem like idiots for restarting the computer when it hung up during the unsolicited firmware update when as best as I can tell with my keyboard, the firmware update bricked it before restart was ever selected.
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EPT
