Muse Research

madjack · Post by **madjack** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 1:49 pm

I was away from this Forum for a few months and missed the offer from Muse to upgrade your old receptor from Rev c to Ver. 2. I was slightly miffed that they didn't email everyone that has bought a Ver 1 to make sure they didn't miss the deadline. Anyway, last year I bought a Receptor 2 Pro Max because I felt a bit exposed going on tour with no backup. I soon realised that my old receptor wouldn't be much use as a back up because it's not able to run some of the VSTs I've since started using..

I thought about cloning the Receptor 2 HD and sticking it in my Receptor 1. If you're still reading this you probably already know that it's not as easy as you would think to do this. Once I got inside both machines, it became clear that it's not much work to replace the motherboard, processor, RAM and HD in the old Receptor and turn it into a real Receptor 2.

The hardest part for me was finding the Intel motherboard as they are a bit old and hard to find. I bought one s/h but unused for £79. The processor, RAM and HD together were another couple of hundred quid.

I used a program called Clonezilla (I think HD Clone will also work)to clone the HD and the whole process of swapping the parts took about an hour. The only component you will need to get is a cable to go from the power switch (at least I think it must be for that) to the new MB as it's different between the machines. I also had to cut a bit out of the fan housing on the processor heat sink as it's a different shape to the one in my "official" Receptor 2 and it gets in the way of the audio board

It all appears to be working as it should but don't come complaining to me if you do this and yours doesn't!!

cheers

Mark

madjack · Post by **madjack** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 9:16 pm

Quick update: that cable I mentioned isn't for the power switch, It's the serial cable to interface with the front panel display. It needs to be made up as the pins from one end to the other don't match. If you want to attempt this and don't have access to a Receptor 2 you might want to ask Muse for the pin configuration, or failing that I can probably tell you....

Do I need to update the BIOS on this new motherboard? Is there something special about the BIOS on the Muse version? It seems to be working fine but I was just wondering....

jeamsler · Post by **jeamsler** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 9:22 pm

Interesting.
Did you use the existing audio board from the Receptor 1?

madjack · Post by **madjack** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 9:27 pm

Yes, everything apart from the MB, HD, RAM, processor and the cable I mentioned were from the original Receptor 1. I was worried that the power supply might be a problem but it seems fine too.

projektio · Post by **projektio** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:08 pm

madjack wrote:Do I need to update the BIOS on this new motherboard? Is there something special about the BIOS on the Muse version? It seems to be working fine but I was just wondering....

Very interesting thread. I would hazard a guess that so long as it is working, why mess with updating the BIOS? The old adage of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" seems to apply here.

Which Intel mobo was used on this project?

projektio

madjack · Post by **madjack** » Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:18 pm

I used:

Intel Desktop Board DQ35JO Executive Series
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Socket 775 (3.0GHz) 1333FSB 6MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor
Crucial 2GB DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL6 - Qty: 2

batgab · Post by **batgab** » Thu Jun 03, 2010 4:38 am

Thanks for blazing this trail, madjack, and sharing this info with us! If you plan to use your modified Receptor fairly regularly, think about keeping us posted from time to time on how it's working out for you.

c3boy · Post by **c3boy** » Mon Jun 07, 2010 10:01 am

Way to go! Thanks for sharing this info.

madjack · Post by **madjack** » Mon Jun 07, 2010 3:29 pm

batgab wrote:Thanks for blazing this trail, madjack, and sharing this info with us! If you plan to use your modified Receptor fairly regularly, think about keeping us posted from time to time on how it's working out for you.

I've been using it for a week in rehearsals without a problem. We've got a gig next weekend so I may switch to my unmodified Receptor 2 for that just to be on the safe side.

batgab · Post by **batgab** » Tue Jun 08, 2010 4:10 am

Very cool, madjack.

morphbay · Post by **morphbay** » Fri Jun 18, 2010 8:24 am

Thanks to madjack's post, I successfully upgraded my Receptor 1 by cloning my Receptor 2!

batgab · Post by **batgab** » Sat Jun 19, 2010 5:50 am

Sweet...

projektio · Post by **projektio** » Sun Jun 20, 2010 6:00 am

If only I had a Receptor 2 to use for cloning purposes... *sigh*

projektio

c3boy · Post by **c3boy** » Sun Jun 20, 2010 2:18 pm

Ditto, would love to do this but don't have receptor 2 to get 1.8.

xsys · Post by **xsys** » Sun Jun 20, 2010 2:18 pm

projektio wrote:If only I had a Receptor 2 to use for cloning purposes... *sigh*

I would have to say that this does not really qualify as a DIY upgrade because of this...you do indeed need a Receptor 2 to accomplish the upgrade. Well, you at least need the image from a Receptor 2 hard drive, and that is going to be very difficult (and arguably illegal) to acquire.

The posted specs and info are much appreciated though...any details that expose the Receptor as merely a PC in disguise are always welcome

Muse Research

KVR Audio

DIY upgrade from Receptor to Receptor 2 PRO MAX