I've been using the Nano for a few months with zero issues, until today. Inserted and formatted one of my usual 64gig UDMA6 Delkin cards, punched record and a few seconds later got the warning "card too slow." The unit then locked up when I hit stop. Re-formatted the card again and had the same issue. I then replaced the card with another pair of identical Delkins with no problems for the rest of the day. I'm recording QT at 100mb.

So, did my card go bad? The only thing I noticed was the Nano seemed a little warm with the problem card inserted. By the way, I'm curious about the fifo test I've seen mentioned here...is there a way to test the card in the Nano?

Thanks for any insights or ideas...

Dear John,

Delkin is a very good company and can examine and replace your card if necessary.

Here are the keystrokes to enable the on-screen display of our FIFO buffer levels.

You must use the record button as the trigger (System|Trigger|Record Button), then simultaneously hit the record and left arrow to display the FIFO meter.

You will notice that the FIFO (First In, First Out) Buffer level will jump at times.

This is when we are simultaneously recording the video, while going back to close out the previous clip.
Or it could jump when a card is doing "Wear Leveling".

After this "Double Duty" is finished, the FIFO level will tend to go back down if the card is fast.

But, it may just jump to a new level and stay there until we have to close a new file.

But, if it jumps up to a new level and stays there, it is still ok, as long as it does not reach 100% before the end of the recording or both cards are filled.

Watching the FIFO levels gives one insight into what is happening internally, and allows one to evaluate their CompactFlash cards' performance levels.


Thus, you can use this as a tool to compare the possibly defective card with your other cards.

Another thing to try would be to attempt to format the card in a PC or MAC (Use FAT-32, 32K Cluster or Allocation Unit size)

The attempt to format it in the nanoFlash again.

Please feel free to send me a Private Message, then I will send you my phone numbers, and I will be happy to assist.

Hi Dan:
Can this test also be performed on the Flash XDR ?

Dear Mark,

Both of my Flash XDR's are on assignment, so I can not test it.

I feel that this feature is in the Public Beta version for the Flash XDR.

Hello Mark,

The FiFO Buffer Overflow Function is nanoFlash and nano3D only,

Best Regards

Dan- Do I need to be feeding the Nano video during the test or is it an internal-only test?

Hello John,

To perform the test you will need video fed to the nanoFlash via SDI or HDMI,

Imagine it as if you were doing a normal record except when you are ready to record, hold the left arrow when you press the record button.

And the nanoFlash will be recording while the buffer is being displayed.

Best Regards