Power Fc V's EMU

ian

Member +
I know a good tune is all down to the tuner and what he's used to doing but what and why is the better of the two ?
 

JDubz

Member +
a power fc is next to a standalone ecu. where the emu is more of a plug n play ecu. Hence why guys who have the emu usually upgrade to a power fc lol.

so with the power fc there is a few extra features. I had a a write up about the difference between the 2. But i cant seem to find it right now. If i came across it ill post it up.
 

jabran200

Member +
power has a 20x20 map the emu has 16x16 for starters.

doesnt sound like a lot but its an 16 cells to work with if you setup the scale properly.
 

Rory

Lifer
a power fc is next to a standalone ecu. where the emu is more of a plug n play ecu. Hence why guys who have the emu usually upgrade to a power fc lol.

so with the power fc there is a few extra features. I had a a write up about the difference between the 2. But i cant seem to find it right now. If i came across it ill post it up.

The Power FC is a stand alone ECU..
And the Ultimate is NOT a plug and play, its a piggy back :rolleyes:
And there is no way i would upgarde to the PFC from the Ultimate.
For starters there is no knock control in the PFC!

As for which one is better, it depends on what you want from the car, what your tuner knows best, and how deep your pockets are.
 

ian

Member +
The Power FC is a stand alone ECU..
And the Ultimate is NOT a plug and play, its a piggy back :rolleyes:
And there is no way i would upgarde to the PFC from the Ultimate.
For starters there is no knock control in the PFC!

As for which one is better, it depends on what you want from the car, what your tuner knows best, and how deep your pockets are.


What is knock control rory ?
 

MentaLEP91

Member +
it allows u to see the knock sensor reading via the pfc commander so u can map it safer!

alltho i think there is a knock controller on pfc for starlets...
i think Aga has..
 

Toby@ToyTuning.com

Banned - DO NOT BUY FROM TOYTUNING
He basically means the Power FC won't adjust (retard ign) if knock is detected it just tells you on a screen, good unit that is the one downfall.

Both setups have seen people produce good results, Emanage is a lot easier to find Power FC for Starlets is getting rare. If money no object Link LEM all the way, like anything management is only as good as the mapper and you need to get a unit that someone can actually map for you as not everyone can map every unit, most will specialise in certain setups.

T
 

Toby@ToyTuning.com

Banned - DO NOT BUY FROM TOYTUNING
it allows u to see the knock sensor reading via the pfc commander so u can map it safer!

alltho i think there is a knock controller on pfc for starlets...
i think Aga has..

Sure it's just a knock display unit, don't have much experience with them never used one on our own cars although we know lots that do.
 

chris250

Fresh Recruit
they don't have the safety parameters of the standard ECU, like it's been said the PFC won't retard timing if there is knock detected where as the EMU will as the standard ECU will do it.

the EMU has launch control, the PFC doesn't IIRC. i think thats the only major differance in the end up
 

sx_turbo

Lifer
the pfc has more tuning points and can handle big injectors better than the emu.

yes the emu does have the launch control feature, but very few people use this.

and yes the pfc doesnt retard the timing for knock, but if the tuner is any good it shouldnt get to that point, and loads of people run the pfc's without an issue.
 

Kelly

Member +
Good points there Ricky.

TBH i wouldnt want an ecu retard the timing if it detects knock as quite alot of the time it can be picking up different noises in the engine bay.
 

azerty

Supermoderator
I use both.
they are both great unit.
if they were same price I would choose PFC.

I would choose PFC for the simple fact it is a real standalone.
now you might be surprised to hear EMU has more features than PFC. EMU has launch control, it has dual map in memory that you can switch anytime. you can control a fith fuel injectors or even WaterMeth injection. it would be able to automaticly switch map if your WI system fails. it will allow your ECU to retard timing if it reads knocks (if you don't want to, then a knock adapter is available). EMU has datalog included, it can autotune with a wideband
So do not underestimate EMU, it is a great EMS that has more features than PFC.
some might like it better as they need one of its specific features.

Now PFC is a stand alone, it is plug and play. it has more cells to play with in your map.
the knock reading isn't really a prob to me. it will display knocs level on commander, and will switch on engin check light if it reads any level considered as knock.

I think EMU is a great EMS to start with as it is very user friendly.
but a stand alone stay a stand alone. PFC is a cleaner approach just for this fact.
EMU is probably one of the best piggyback computer if not the best. while PFC is one of the cheapest standalone.
 
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fur

Member +
granted emu is the best piggyback you can have

BUT

a piggy back is just a piggyback, O2 feedback from the oxygen sensor makes it almost impossible to tune AFRs in closed loop with the EMU as the stock ecu will keep trying to get back to stoichiometric........simply put, no piggyback can even compare to the control granted by a standalone, once the value is set there is no fighting back from the stock computer....

also, ignition timing with a standalone is absolute whereas with a piggyback ignition timing is a function of adding or subtracting to the base map's (within the stock ecu's memory) original timing, so when running +6 deg in the emu, u only know ure adding 6 degrees of advance, u don't know what u are adding it to so you can never get a grasp of the actual timing the car is running

for some this may suffice but i prefer to know exactly what i'm dealing with
 

sx_turbo

Lifer
I use both.
they are both great unit.
if they were same price I would choose PFC.

I would choose PFC for the simple fact it is a real standalone.
now you might be surprised to hear EMU has more features than PFC. EMU has launch control, it has dual map in memory that you can switch anytime. you can control a fith fuel injectors or even WaterMeth injection. it would be able to automaticly switch map if your WI system fails. it will allow your ECU to retard timing if it reads knocks (if you don't want to, then a knock adapter is available). EMU has datalog included, it can autotune with a wideband
So do not underestimate EMU, it is a great EMS that has more features than PFC.
some might like it better as they need one of its specific features.

Now PFC is a stand alone, it is plug and play. it has more cells to play with in your map.
the knock reading isn't really a prob to me. it will display knocs level on commander, and will switch on engin check light if it reads any level considered as knock.

I think EMU is a great EMS to start with as it is very user friendly.
but a stand alone stay a stand alone. PFC is a cleaner approach just for this fact.
EMU is probably one of the best piggyback computer if not the best. while PFC is one of the cheapest standalone.

granted emu is the best piggyback you can have

BUT

a piggy back is just a piggyback, O2 feedback from the oxygen sensor makes it almost impossible to tune AFRs in closed loop with the EMU as the stock ecu will keep trying to get back to stoichiometric........simply put, no piggyback can even compare to the control granted by a standalone, once the value is set there is no fighting back from the stock computer....

also, ignition timing with a standalone is absolute whereas with a piggyback ignition timing is a function of adding or subtracting to the base map's (within the stock ecu's memory) original timing, so when running +6 deg in the emu, u only know ure adding 6 degrees of advance, u don't know what u are adding it to so you can never get a grasp of the actual timing the car is running

for some this may suffice but i prefer to know exactly what i'm dealing with


it was for these reasons i sold my emanage ultimate and bought a pfc.

ok the pfc doesnt have as many features, but tuners prefer to tune these more than they do the emu's just purely because they can get a nicer tune.

if you need the other features like launch controll etc etc then the emu is a good cheap option into this territory.

an emu will do the job no problem.

theres not really a wrong and right answer to which should be bought.

i used to think that the emu was better than the pfc but after being shown the error of my ways i changed my mind, and feel that a no nonsense standalone (although rare and expensive) is better than a cheaper feature packed piggy back.

not many people will be using the features of the emu, so i would say to you to just go with what ever you feel is best, or whats easier for you to get hold of
 

azerty

Supermoderator
very true guys.

I first started with an EMU, which was a great choice to learn I think. (still use it on my glanza)
but then when I bought the STI I went for a PFC as they are pretty much same price on this car... less feature, but a real proper stand alone...

about the knock debate. I was one of those who was happy to know ECU does retard timing if knocks occurs (EMU). but now I'm one of those who is much more happier to know when it actualy does happen, then I can react myself and correct timing or solve problem. I'm much more happier to know I have knock and correc problem myself than having the ECU retarding timing cause of it without knowing I'm on my map unsafe edge... (you are not always dataloging...)

That said, both do the job well enough for me
 
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