Edit - Fixed it. The gauge wasn't pre programmed from AEM. Details a few posts down.

I'm having trouble getting a new AEM serial gauge to display anything other than 888 and could really use some help. At this point I'm just trying to use the default settings in the gauge.

Here is what I've done so far:
- Power and both grounds are hooked up and the two black gauge cables are connected.
- I've gone into AEM Pro and enabled the Telemetry Wizard
- The green box is checked next to "AEM Serial Datastream Gauge"
- I've cycled power to the EMS by turning the car off and on.

I've tried getting the gauge to display by connecting the black DB9 cable that is attached to the gauge directly to the EMS, but it only shows 888.

I think I might not be using the null modem cable (the white cable, right?) correctly. When is that used in the setup? Should I be connecting the gauge directly to my laptop at any point?

Edit: Added a pic of the white cable that I think is the null and the black cable that goes to the gauge:


Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Are the gauges new? They might not come with any calibration pre loaded on them. If that is the case, you need to hook the gauges up to a laptop and load their settings. Or the calibrations can be wrong and reading the wrong info, therefore displaying the 888.

Once in use, the gauges get hooked into the EMS using that white serial cable.

 

The gauge is new.

Is it possible to change the gauge settings with AEM Pro? I've looked at Setup|Advanced|Telemetry|Telemetry Setup and it's not clear what is enabled and what isn't.

I don't see how to use the female-female white cable to connect to the EMS. The EMS has a female connector, and the black gauge cable has a male connector. Those can connect directly, but there it's not possible to put the female-female white cable between them.

Also, the pic in the instructions shows the black cable connected directly to the EMS. Is that wrong?

 

I think on my setup I might have been using the white cable to increase the length from the EMS. That way when I wanted to hook up a laptop, I didnt have to try reach back to the EMS to unplug the gauges.

Regardless though, the black bundled cable coming from the gauges is what eventually plugs into the EMS.

The gauge software is what is needed to update the gauges. You use the info found in AEM Pro telemetry setup and plug that info into GaugePro software. It takes some messing with to get the hang of it since the gauge software is not the best program.

Use this thread to help you out:
http://forum.aempower.com/forum/inde...c,14826.0.html

 

Can anyone confirm if the null modem cable needs to be used between the gauge and the EMS?

 

If by Null modem cable you mean that one in the pic, then YES as that is what I am currently using.

 

I uploaded the base config from Gauge Pro. I think. The software appeared to connect to the gauge and --- was displayed. Still doesn't work though.

When the black gauge cable is connected directly to the EMS it displays 888 and all the LEDs flash.

If the female-female null is between the gauge and the EMS it displays 888 with no LED flashing. I have to use a male-male adapter like this:

EMS->male-male->female-female null->gauge

What does the flashing/no flashing LEDs mean? I'm not sure if the male-male is good so I may try picking up a new one tomorrow.

 

There is a black and a white DB9 that came with the gauge. The black is connected to the gauge wiring, and is the one in the picture. The white is a loose female-female, and I was under the impression that is a null.

Here is a pic of both:



Are you using the white cable?

 

Ok, I got it. The white female-female is a null and is only used when connecting the gauge to the laptop running ProGauge. The female-female isn't used when connecting the gauge to the EMS.

The problem I was having is that contrary to what all the docs from AEM said, the gauge didn't come preconfiged.

When I ran ProGauge the first time I saw "Updated" at the bottom of the window and thought that it had updated the gauge setup. It didn't.

I went to File|Open|Base Cal, opened that config, cycled power to the gauge and then hit the "Download to Gauge" button at the top. It took a couple minutes and the gauge displayed _ _ = while downloading.

Now with the gauge connected directly to the EMS I'm getting output from the in-use gauges. The AEM instructions completely blow.

 

Haha, it is rather confusing. Took me a while to figure it out. I'm still stuck with the default settings, I haven't had time to change anything.