Firmware
Updater

Chapter 1About Us

Modbap. Built different. On purpose.

Modbap is an independent music technology company founded by Corry Banks. We design creative instruments and sound-shaping tools for musicians, producers, beatmakers, sound designers, and people who simply love working with sound. Our approach combines opinionated sound, intuitive control, and performance-forward design to create tools that feel immediate, musical, and inspiring to use.

Modbap began in the world of modular synthesis, developing Eurorack hardware shaped by the intersection of electronic music technology, beat culture, and hands-on performance. That foundation still runs through everything we make. Today Modbap extends beyond the rack into software, developing plugins and creative audio tools that bring the same philosophy to the desktop.

1.1 Modbap

Whether hardware or software, the goal is the same: build tools that encourage exploration, spark ideas, and become part of the creative process. Modbap is rooted in beat culture, informed by electronic music, and built for anyone who approaches sound creatively.

1.2 About the firmware updater

Modbap modules are built on the Electro-smith Daisy platform, and the code that gives each module its voice can be replaced. New firmware brings fixes, refinements, and occasionally new behavior to a module you already own, without sending it anywhere and without buying anything.

The updater at updater.modbap.com is how you install it. It runs entirely in your browser and talks to the module over the USB cable, so there is nothing to download, nothing to install, and no driver to find. The page holds the current firmware for every Modbap module, and it walks through the four steps in order.

An update takes about two minutes, most of which is the module writing to its own flash memory while you watch a progress bar.

Chapter 2Before You Start

Three things have to be true before an update can work: the right browser, a data-capable cable, and physical access to the Daisy Seed on the back of the module.

2.1 What you need

• A Chromium browser on a desktop computer. Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera, or Arc, on macOS, Windows, or Linux. The updater uses WebUSB, which Safari and Firefox do not support.
• A USB cable that carries data. See below.
• Access to the back of the module, where the Daisy Seed sits. You need to reach its BOOT and RESET buttons and its USB port.
• Power to the module, from your case as normal.

You do not need a Modbap account, and you do not need to be signed in to anything. Firmware is free and the updater is open to everyone.

2.2 The cable is the usual culprit

Many USB cables sold with phone chargers and battery packs carry power but no data. They are physically identical from the outside. A power-only cable will charge a device and will look completely normal, but the updater will never see your module, or will lose it partway through a write.

If the module does not appear in the browser's device dialog, or an update stops with Device Disconnected, change the cable before you change anything else. Use a cable you know has moved files. It is the single most common cause of a failed update.

Connect the module directly to the computer where you can. USB hubs, and especially unpowered hubs and monitor ports, are the second most common cause.

2.3 Supported modules

The dropdown at the top of the updater lists every Modbap module and the current firmware for each. Selecting a module loads its picture, its version number, its changelog, and instructions written for that specific module.

Trinity 2.0 is the exception. It runs from external memory through the Daisy bootloader, so both the button sequence and the name of the device you pick are different. The updater shows you the correct instructions once you have selected it, so follow what is on screen rather than what you remember from another module. The optional firmware check described in Chapter 4 does not work on Trinity 2.0 and is not offered for it. Updating Trinity 2.0 works normally.

A Legacy firmware group at the bottom of the dropdown holds older releases. You will not normally need it. It exists so that a specific older version can be reinstalled deliberately, usually because support asked you to.

You can link straight to a module by adding its identifier to the address, for example updater.modbap.com/#/?fw_id=clrs. Support may send you a link in that form.

2.4 What can and cannot go wrong

The usual outcome of a failed update is a module that does not start, because the new firmware was only partly written. In almost every case that is recoverable rather than damage. The bootloader that receives firmware normally sits in a separate area of the chip that an update does not write to, which is why a module that will not start can usually be put back into update mode and programmed again.

Rarely, a module will not enter update mode afterward at all. If that happens, stop and open a support case rather than repeating the attempt.

An update does not erase anything you have saved on the module unless the changelog for that release says so. Read the changelog before you update. It is on the page, under Show Changelog.

Chapter 3Updating Your Module

Four steps, in order, on one page. The step you can act on next is marked with a pink rule down its left edge.

3.1 Select your module

Choose your module from Select Module To Update at the top of the page. Everything below changes to match: the version number, the changelog, the instructions, and the firmware that will be written.

Read Show Changelog before you continue. It tells you what this release changes and whether it affects anything you have stored on the module.

3.2 Step 1: Connect USB

Connect a data-capable USB cable from the Daisy Seed on the rear of the module to your computer. The module should be powered from your case as normal.

3.3 Step 2: Enter update mode

The module has to be told to listen for new firmware rather than run its own. There are two small buttons on the Daisy Seed, marked BOOT and RESET.

Nothing dramatic happens on screen. The module simply goes quiet and waits. If the module's lights behave as usual afterward, it did not enter update mode, so try the sequence again.

3.4 Step 3: Connect to the device

Press Connect. Your browser opens its own device dialog listing the USB devices it can see. This dialog belongs to the browser, not to us, and nothing can be selected on your behalf.

Choose the entry named in Step 3 on the page: DFU in FS Mode for most modules, or Daisy Bootloader for Trinity 2.0. Then press Connect in the dialog.

The log reports Device connected and Step 4 becomes available.

If the list is empty, or your module is not in it, the module is not in update mode or the cable does not carry data. Redo Step 2, then try a different cable.

3.5 Step 4: Program firmware

Press Program. The module erases its flash memory, receives the new firmware, and restarts into it. Two progress bars fill, one for the erase and one for the write.

Do not unplug the cable, close the tab, or power down the case while this is running. It takes well under a minute. The updater will warn you if you try to leave the page during a write.

3.6 What success looks like

A completed update ends like this:

The green line is the one that matters. Your module has already restarted into the new firmware by that point, which is why it disappears from the browser: it is no longer in update mode, it is running.

Disconnect the USB cable and use the module as normal.

Chapter 4Checking Installed FirmwareBeta

An optional step between Connect and Program that tells you what is on the module before you write anything over it.

Use it to answer the question people actually have, which is usually not "what version am I on" but "do I already have the latest".

4.1 How the check works

A module in update mode is running its bootloader, not its own firmware, so it cannot be asked what version it is. There is nobody home to answer.

Instead the updater reads the installed firmware back off the module and compares it, byte for byte, against the firmware images it has. If every byte matches a release, that release is what is installed, and there is no interpretation involved in saying so.

Press Check Firmware after Step 3. The result appears in the status bar above the log.

4.2 What it can and cannot tell you

The result is not symmetrical, and it is worth understanding which half you are looking at.

A match is certain. If the check names a version, that version is installed. A byte-for-byte match across the whole image cannot be a coincidence.

A non-match is not. It proves only that the firmware is not one of the images the updater has on hand. It cannot name what is there. In practice that usually means an earlier release that is no longer hosted here, but the check has no way to confirm that, so it does not claim it.

Two consequences follow:

• It compares against the module selected in the dropdown. Choose the wrong module and the answer will be technically correct and completely useless. Check the dropdown first.
• It can only name a version whose exact image is available here. CLRS and Hue each have one earlier release hosted, so those can be named. For every other module only the current release is hosted, so anything older reports as a non-match without a name.
• It does not work on Trinity 2.0. The step does not appear at all when Trinity 2.0 is selected. See the note below.

4.3 Reading the result

Chapter 5Reading the Log

The updater tells you what is happening in two places, and the difference tells you where to look for a problem.

5.1 Two places, two jobs

The status bar is the colored band under the four steps. It carries one message at a time about the tool: which device you chose, what a check found, what to do next.

The log is the black box at the bottom. It is a running transcript of the conversation with your module: erase, write, commit, reboot.

That split is useful when something goes wrong. A red line in the status bar means the update never started. A red line in the log means it started and stopped.

5.2 What the colors mean

5.3 A normal update, line by line

Chapter 6Troubleshooting

Work through this chapter in order. The first section solves most of what comes into support.

6.1 The module does not appear

You pressed Connect and the browser's dialog is empty, or your module is not in it. In order of how often each turns out to be the answer:

1. The module is not in update mode. Redo Step 2. Note that Trinity 2.0 uses a different button sequence from every other module.
2. The cable carries power but not data. Swap it for one you know has moved files. This is the most common cause of all.
3. A hub is in the way. Connect the module directly to the computer.
4. The browser cannot use WebUSB. If you are in Safari or Firefox, the page will say so near the top. Use a Chromium browser.
5. The module is not powered. The USB connection alone may not be enough. Power the case.

6.2 Messages in the status bar

6.3 Messages in the log

6.4 Messages that are not errors

6.5 An update that stopped partway

If a write was interrupted, the module has an incomplete image on it and will not run. The lights may not come on, or it may appear dead.

In almost every case this is recoverable rather than damage. The bootloader that receives firmware normally sits in a separate area of the chip that an update does not write to, so it is usually still there waiting for another attempt.

If the same failure repeats at roughly the same point twice, or the module will not enter update mode at all, stop retrying and open a support case. A failure that lands consistently in the same place is worth investigating rather than repeating.

6.6 One message you may have seen before

Updates before September 2026 ended with a red line reading:

That was never a failure. Your module reboots into its new firmware the instant the transfer finishes, which means it leaves the USB connection before the browser's final status question can be answered. The browser reported the missing answer as an error, and the updater printed it in red.

The updater now recognizes that as the normal end of a successful update and prints Module rebooted into the new firmware instead. If you are looking at an older screenshot or an older support thread that shows that red line above a Done!, the update in question succeeded.

Chapter 7Support

If an update fails twice in the same place, or something here does not match what you are seeing, we want to hear about it.

7.1 Before you open a case

Two things will get you an answer much faster.

1. Try a different USB cable and a direct connection. It resolves most failed updates, and it is the first thing we will ask.
2. Copy the whole log, not just the red line. The lines above a failure say which step was running when it stopped, and that is usually what identifies the cause. Select the text in the black box and copy it, or send a screenshot that includes everything from Device connected down.

Tell us the module, the firmware version you were installing, your operating system, and your browser.

7.2 Getting help

Sign in at hub.modbap.com and open a support case. Signing in lets us see which modules are yours and keeps the whole conversation in one place.

7.3 Credits and licensing

The Modbap Modular firmware updater is built on the Electro-smith Daisy Web Programmer and on Infrasonic Audio's updater. Both are open source, and the licenses that cover them are published alongside the updater itself.

© 2026 Beatppl Inc. All rights reserved. Modbap™ is a trademark of Beatppl Inc.