T-Balancer bigNG review

• Introduction
• Device features
• Specification
• Package content
• Installation and Setup
• Software
• Fan control
• WCS control
• Safety features
• Light control
• Conclusion

Software

When Windows is loaded, it had immediately found new hardware and offered to search drivers for it. I recommend you to cancel that driver search — I’ll explain it later.

The supplied software autorun window allows direct software installation:

A visit to the official T-Balancer site revealed that the last version of T-Balancer Navigator 2.12 (Windows device control software) is dated 30.12.2008 and has an alpha status. The last stable version, 2.9, was launched on 20.08.2006 and can also be found on supplied disc. According to the latest software updates and mCubed company′s speciality changes no tech support will provided.

The first software launch offers to choose the interface profile:

Depending on profile chosen software can offers different settings. I have chosen the professional profile for bigGN usage. In future, navigation profile can be changed in appropriate setting tab of the software.

Controller software interface has a tree-like menu. After clicking on the desired section in the main menu an appropriate setting submenu appears. Submenu windows are stuck to the main menu. To move submenu windows freely you have to remove a tick in the bottom left-handed corner. If you click the question mark button in the bottom right-handed corner the context help menu will appear:

To complete device to PC connection you need to install the driver. There is a special software section for that:

Buttons in the bottom right-handed corner should install and uninstall the device driver. But supporting OS list only includes Windows 2000, XP and Windows Server 2003. So if you are using Windows Vista or Windows Seven and install the device using drivers supplied or the ones that Navigator offers — you are in for some serious troubles concerning device software, including OS crash.
Installation of drivers that come together with the supplied CD ended in Windows Vista crash during loading process on my PC. It continued crashing until I disconnected T-balancer from PC.

Solution to problem found:

• If you are using Windows Vista or Windows Seven don’t install device drivers that come together with the supplied CD or the ones that Navigator offers
• If you have already installed the wrong drivers or in case of a driver update — you can’t uninstall the old ones using Navigator tools, this is because of the specific OS functioning. You can only uninstall them manually by following these steps. First open Device Manager, find USB Serial Port (COM…) in the device port section and delete them from the appropriate tab:

• Next, do the same with “USB Serial Converter”:

• After uninstalling controller’s drivers and cancelling the offer to install drivers for the newly found T-Balancer visit IC FT232B manufacturer’s site. This IC is responsible for USB interface functioning. Download the latest driver version (by the time the article was written the latest version was 2.06.00). This time the list of supporting OS includes all Windows family including the newest Windows Seven. Go to the Device Manager and install the “USB Serial Converter” driver by manually setting the path to the folder containing the driver you downloaded and unpacked. Do the same for the “USB Serial Port (COM…” driver.

New drivers were tested for compatibility with Windows Vista x64 and Windows Seven OS. I met some other problems with supplied software but they were insignificant. Now it is time to set the controller properly.