I may not be the best judge for all conditions, because I rarely (ok, never) use 'T' mode...but happy to post my thoughts.
I'd never met Randy before yesterday, but we sent a few PMs back and forth, and found a time where we could meet for lunch. After that, we mounted the opposite steed and were off. Total miles? Hard to say as I didn't keep track. ~30? More than just a spin down the road and back, and enough to get a decent feel for the bike(s).
'Testing' conditions? Road type was a good variety on everything from in town riding, paved 2-lane country roads, state highway, and gravel roads. We didn't do a full on drag race or anything, but I rolled into his pretty hard (not as hard as I would my own, mind you...never hit the limiter) and he followed suit right behind me. Don't read into the 'behind me', as he was only following because I was more familiar with the area.
These two bikes are probably about as close as you can get for an apples/apples comparison, when meeting at random like we did. Mileage was the only 'big' difference, if you want to call it that. Mine is ~23k, and his ~10k IIRC? Same year range. Same pipe (2Bros, slip-on). Same tire, well, the rear anyway. Both running panniers, though mine were loaded slightly. Both riders roughly the same weight (guessing). Similar farkle weight. Not scientific by any means, but it just conveniently worked out that way. All of my experimenting with his bike were with TCS off, and I believe it was the same for him.
As Anthony said, I've got the original version. Keep that in mind when reading my review. If you want to read my original review of his flash, see here:
http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=10522.msg174819#msg174819
I'm sure everyone is dieing to know which is better, so just get to it already....right?! ::024::
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The short version is that they are
very close. They've both got their slight differences, but the overall result is real close. Again, this is with what I'm used to on mine 'S2' (or SuperSport, Hooligan, whatever you want to call the bonus map) vs. Randy's in the ECUnleashed (Gen2) 'S' mode.
Right away I noticed that his throttle response felt 'smoother', where mine is more...what's the word...crisp? Responsive? Sensitive? It's admittedly 'hyper'sensitive, as AVC told me it was one of his experiments, and I've grown to really like it. The power/acceleration is probably about the same, but mine 'feels' 'faster' because of the increased throttle input variable(s). Nothing wrong with his, as it definitely pulls harder than stock, but does so with throttle response in a (only slightly) less reactive manner. Not better or worse, just different. I'm used to mine, so that's what I like. The same for Randy, I'm sure. Mine may have even felt too 'snatchy' for him at first, but I won't put words in his mouth.
I did rolls-ons in multiple gears, on different terrain types, and his pulled well. They both run about the same RPM, at the same speed, just as you'd expect. I also didn't notice any difference in running temps, just as you'd expect. I won't even comment much on 'T' mode, because I don't use it. I did switch his over, but only for one whack of the throttle. That's all it took, and I was back in 'S'.
The more I type, the more I find it difficult to describe the two without being completely subjective. But hopefully between both of our inputs you guys can figure out what works best for you. Randy said it best, and that's the point that AVC's version is a bargain. I have no regrets with mine.
Randy commented on something yesterday that I'm sure a lot of people have asked themselves. Paraphrasing, "That's quite a gamble to send off your ECU to a complete stranger half way across the country, not knowing what's going to happen?!" That's true, I suppose, but I didn't look at it much differently than sending it to AF1, or any other vendor. Considering he can fine tune it to work however you want, that makes him better than the big guys in my book. After a few emails I saw a guy who enjoyed his bike, but found a way to make it better, did so, and then was willing to share his knowledge with other owners. As the guinea pig, I guess the same could be said for me.
The reduced rate? That's an internal battle you'll have to deal with on your own. Some people have the "I paid more, it's gotta be better!" mentality. I'm not one of them. Considering that this is a S10 forum, and not some other brand, there are probably a few more like me. I read a post one time from AVC that was in defense of his 'marketing' posts. I think it was on ADV. He said, "...it doesn't matter where you get it flashed...me, Flash-Tune, etc....just do yourself a favor and get the damn thing flashed!" I've never met the man in person, but I'll agree, and if we ever do get to meet the first beer is on me.
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