VIOFO A129 non-IR 1080p Modified Firmware MODs Archive

[monologue]

My front camera seems to be a bit too sharp, while my rear camera is perfect (with the stock firmware). Would you recommend the medium sharpness or low sharpness firmware in my case? Will the mod firmware only lower the sharpness of the front camera or also the rear camera?
I also wanted to ask, does the dash cam consume more power with these higher bitrates? Could this have a negative effect on my car battery? (I'm not using parking mode).
Thanks

 

[BCHobbyist]

My front camera seems to be a bit too sharp, while my rear camera is perfect (with the stock firmware). Would you recommend the medium sharpness or low sharpness firmware in my case? Will the mod firmware only lower the sharpness of the front camera or also the rear camera?
I also wanted to ask, does the dash cam consume more power with these higher bitrates? Could this have a negative effect on my car battery? (I'm not using parking mode).
Thanks

Suggest prioritizing the Front camera image quality since these MODs adjust both cameras using same sharpness level. I'd rather not create even more MODs with independent camera Lens sharpness levels. Lens focus varies depending on production batch, sharpness option allows additional image control and compensation when the Lens isn't focused perfectly. Eventually Viofo will per-fect lens focus and image quality, until then its best to have options even if we must create them ourselves.
There is no noticeable increase in power when using 22Mbs or 42Mbs bitrate.
Most common vehicle battery damage and premature lifespan degrade occurs while battery isn't charging with ignition off but still powering any accessory including parking mode dashcams, radio or lights for extended duration repeatedly.

 

[Adamrwood]

Just been skimming through the thread and have a question about parking mode. I have the 3 wire kit and would like to use the higher bitrate mods that I've used previously before I had the HW kit. Am I right in thinking that low bitrate parking mode will work with the higher bitrate (I use 4wi) or will I have to use the standard bitrate for parking mode to work? Currently I've downgraded to the medium sharpness PWI mod and using 10fps parking mode.

 

[BCHobbyist]

Just been skimming through the thread and have a question about parking mode. I have the 3 wire kit and would like to use the higher bitrate mods that I've used previously before I had the HW kit. Am I right in thinking that low bitrate parking mode will work with the higher bitrate (I use 4wi) or will I have to use the standard bitrate for parking mode to work? Currently I've downgraded to the medium sharpness PWI mod and using 10fps parking mode.

A129 Duo Dashcam higher Bitrate MODs work normally when using Parking Low Bitrate Recording Mode since it doesn't activate the motion or G-sensor algorithms. Other Parking Modes require Parking Mode MOD or official FW.

I noticed this bitrate restriction was corrected with the new A129 Pro 4K dashcam official firmware. Not sure if the 4K Pro will work reliably in hot weather.

 

[Mennismonk]

If read through the thread about an issue I've been having. Whenever my car is in parking mode after a day or two I get the message saying to erase all data. I understand that this is likely to do with the ro folder but I'm just running out of ideas. Reformatted card in camera and used software on my laptop I believe recommended on here to fully wipe it and over write it. I was not having this issue on the old firmware I used to run however some new features such as the parking mode sensor has come up so I don't really fancy running an older firmware version. I've tried official software v1.9 I believe and some of the modified firmwares and the problem still persists. I have the tiny feeling that it could be an sd card issue but at the same time I haven't got money to splash especially if that's not the case. Sorry for the VERY lengthy post this has just really been stressful for me. Tia

 

[BCHobbyist]

If read through the thread about an issue I've been having. Whenever my car is in parking mode after a day or two I get the message saying to erase all data. I understand that this is likely to do with the ro folder but I'm just running out of ideas. Reformatted card in camera and used software on my laptop I believe recommended on here to fully wipe it and over write it. I was not having this issue on the old firmware I used to run however some new features such as the parking mode sensor has come up so I don't really fancy running an older firmware version. I've tried official software v1.9 I believe and some of the modified firmwares and the problem still persists. I have the tiny feeling that it could be an sd card issue but at the same time I haven't got money to splash especially if that's not the case. Sorry for the VERY lengthy post this has just really been stressful for me. Tia

currently the Viofo baseline firmware (which I use for MODs) versions 1.7 - 1.9 are bugged causing unreliable issues with Parking Mode when loading official or MODs. We all must wait for Viofo to fix the issue. Good idea to troubleshoot recording issues with different cards. If your issue also has RO folder with over 50 clips that is why it halts with erase all prompt, because that ReadOnly folder reserves card space. verify the loop recording setting is 1/2/3 mins.

 

[Mennismonk]

currently the Viofo baseline firmware (which I use for MODs) versions 1.7 - 1.9 are bugged causing unreliable issues with Parking Mode when loading official or MODs. We all must wait for Viofo to fix the issue. Good idea to troubleshoot recording issues with different cards. If your issue also has RO folder with over 50 clips that is why it halts with erase all prompt, because that ReadOnly folder reserves card space. verify the loop recording setting is 1/2/3 mins.

Will take that on board I know the ro folder probably ain't the issue as it normally has 4 clips max in it. So I think for now il go back to some older software before v1.7 whilst I wait for funds for an sd card to check that. Thanks for the info. Hopefully they sort this issue out in the near future

 

[maxxpowa]

I see this line on the download page "All 7 Parking Modes only work on MOD-PWk or PWl or PWm. "
Can you clarify for me what this means exactly? Does that mean that only the "MOD-PWl - Parking Mode Default Bitrates = Average Detail = Small MP4 size" file for example will allow the parking mode to work?
And if so - am I sacrificing image quality on normal driving mode using this?

Parking mode is very important to me.

Thanks for the help!

 

[BCHobbyist]

I see this line on the download page "All 7 Parking Modes only work on MOD-PWk or PWl or PWm. "
Can you clarify for me what this means exactly? Does that mean that only the "MOD-PWl - Parking Mode Default Bitrates = Average Detail = Small MP4 size" file for example will allow the parking mode to work?
And if so - am I sacrificing image quality on normal driving mode using this?
Parking mode is very important to me.
Thanks for the help!

The A129 Duo 1080p model has locked down the bitrate in Parking Mode so the default is used. MODs PWk / PWL / PWM only adjust the Sharpness and color as indicated. None of the other high Bitrate MODs will work when Buffered Parking Mode is enabled. If recording issues occur change to official Viofo firmware and install the Viofo 3-wire hardwire kit.

 

[DesertBike]

BCHobbyist, do you have any plans to make modified firmwares for the new Viofo MT1 system?

Full specs are not yet available, but I would not be surprised if Viofo sticks with a subpar-quality, 12 Mbit/s per camera default bitrate. I asked them whether it would be possible to make bitrate user-selectable.

 

[Tomba]

Hello, is there any way to add support for speedcam?

 

[DarthMaul]

@BCHobbyist - I hope you're fine, you didn't post here for a while....
Do you still have the mod 4uf somewhere? I cannot find it on your blog anymore. Thanks!

 

[SlurmSlurper]

@BCHobbyist Just a quick thank you for your work. My A129 Duo had pretty ropey video quality when driving in the countryside, as the camera's video encoder was struggling to cope with the folliage detail and dappled light, before installing your mod, now it looks great!

 

[HonestReview]

@BCHobbyist Just a quick thank you for your work. My A129 Duo had pretty ropey video quality when driving in the countryside, as the camera's video encoder was struggling to cope with the folliage detail and dappled light, before installing your mod, now it looks great!

How does surrounding detail look? I realize picking up the foliage in more detail is praiseworthy, but does this come at the cost of anything else? Can license plates be read in the same lighting? Street Signs? Able to post any screenshot comparisons by chance?

 

[CaptureYourAction]

How does surrounding detail look? I realize picking up the foliage in more detail is praiseworthy, but does this come at the cost of anything else? Can license plates be read in the same lighting? Street Signs? Able to post any screenshot comparisons by chance?

Some of his mods caused issues with parking mode, but don't know if the A129 was affected or not. BCHobbyist hasn't been on DCT since Feb 24, 2020.

 

[HonestReview]

Some of his mods caused issues with parking mode, but don't know if the A129 was affected or not. BCHobbyist hasn't been on DCT since Feb 24, 2020.

Appreciate the feedback. It does seem @SlurmSlurper found one of his revisions, so curious as to the results @SlurmSlurper noticed from the changes.

1. Does Parking Mode Work?
2. Does more detail on "Foliage" come at a cost of further detail on other aspects (plates, signs, etc)

The A129 is a pretty old camera at this point, so even if no future revisions from @BCHobbyist get released, it'd be noteworthy to see how his current firmwares compare to existing ones offered by Viofo.

 

[SlurmSlurper]

How does surrounding detail look? I realize picking up the foliage in more detail is praiseworthy, but does this come at the cost of anything else? Can license plates be read in the same lighting? Street Signs? Able to post any screenshot comparisons by chance?

Sure. I'm using FWA129_MOD-9Wm_v1.90+29F+15RMbs+Sharp32+Dice.bin , plus a Sandisk Endurance 256 GB SD card, which gives me a good duration of recording despite the higher bitrate (29 mbps vs 16mbps for the stock FW).

I've tried to match the location to make it as fair as possible, but obviously there's some difference in terms of time of day/sun angle as the clips were filmed a month apart.

Stock FW:


MOD-9Wm FW:


For number plates, I've taken the frame grab as near to each other as possible location wise and have picked the first clearest number plate frame. For the stock firmware, this was the only frame near legible, for the modified firmware there were several frames when the vehicle was closer where the plate could be partially read and so a good guess at the plate could be made.

Stock FW:


MOD-9Wm FW:



For signs I've again matched the location as closely as possible to the nearest frame

Stock FW left, MOD-9Wm FW right (or below if it wraps):

 

[SlurmSlurper]

Appreciate the feedback. It does seem @SlurmSlurper found one of his revisions, so curious as to the results @SlurmSlurper noticed from the changes.

1. Does Parking Mode Work?
2. Does more detail on "Foliage" come at a cost of further detail on other aspects (plates, signs, etc)

The A129 is a pretty old camera at this point, so even if no future revisions from @BCHobbyist get released, it'd be noteworthy to see how his current firmwares compare to existing ones offered by Viofo.

1. Sorry, I don't use parking mode as I've not got the dashcam hardwired

2. Generally speaking, the much higher bit rate of the mod does make number plates and signs easier to read sooner and make them more clear in the footage I've reviewed.

 

[HonestReview]

Sure. I'm using FWA129_MOD-9Wm_v1.90+29F+15RMbs+Sharp32+Dice.bin , plus a Sandisk Endurance 256 GB SD card, which gives me a good duration of recording despite the higher bitrate (29 mbps vs 16mbps for the stock FW).

I've tried to match the location to make it as fair as possible, but obviously there's some difference in terms of time of day/sun angle as the clips were filmed a month apart.

Stock FW:
View attachment 59062

MOD-9Wm FW:
View attachment 59063

For number plates, I've taken the frame grab as near to each other as possible location wise and have picked the first clearest number plate frame. For the stock firmware, this was the only frame near legible, for the modified firmware there were several frames when the vehicle was closer where the plate could be partially read and so a good guess at the plate could be made.

Stock FW:
View attachment 59064

MOD-9Wm FW:
View attachment 59065
View attachment 59069

For signs I've again matched the location as closely as possible to the nearest frame

Stock FW left, MOD-9Wm FW right (or below if it wraps):
View attachment 59067View attachment 59068

The vehices do look more detailed and image more clearer on the mod firmware vs. stock. Thanks for the comparison.

 

[TonyM]

The A129 is a pretty old camera at this point, so even if no future revisions from @BCHobbyist get released, it'd be noteworthy to see how his current firmwares compare to existing ones offered by Viofo.

The most recent MOD is not necessarily the best. As I recall, there were A LOT of different MODs and some fared better than others, or were tailored to specific needs. User beware.

In general, I think all the MODs that I tested were a noticeable IQ improvement over the stock Viofo FW. However I can't comment on any impact on the long-term reliability.