Settings & firmware · FM-1 guide

10.1IntermediateManual §3.1 p.5, §3.2 p.8

Global settings (GLO)

Press GLO for the settings that apply to everything rather than to one preset. The manual calls this the Globe page. Don’t confuse it with GLO KEY on the keyboard, which holds the settings of the current preset (Voice settings: algorithm, feedback, sync and transpose).

GLO · Global · page 1 (V15)Press GLO.

MIDI Channel

The channel the FM-1 receives notes on. See MIDI channels: notes and effects.

KNOB 1Range ALL / 1–16

GLO · Global · page 2 (V15)Press GLO, then turn SELECT to page 2.

Reset Patches

Turn clockwise to reset a bank to its last imported presets. See Resetting a bank.

KNOB 1

Global settings are saved with everything else when you hold SAVE on V15, and with Globe or ALL in V16’s save menu. The keyboard Transpose is saved to them automatically.

10.2IntermediateFirmware V13+Manual §3.1 p.5, §3.2 p.8

Keyboard velocity

Velocity on page 2 of GLO (KNOB 2, 1–127) adjusts the overall velocity response of the FM-1’s keyboard. The manual doesn’t say more than that, so set it by ear: play a preset whose operators use KeyVelocity (see Velocity, LFO sensitivity and fixed frequency) at a few settings and keep the one that feels right.

10.3BasicsFirmware V16+

Screen colours and backlights (V16)

V16 adds a display page to GLO where you can set the colour of each part of the screen in RGB: the page background, parameter widgets, footer, oscilloscope trace, text, page text and borders. Changes show straight away, and the knobs speed up as you turn them fast; they behave normally again when you leave the colour editor.

Btn BL: Whether function buttons that are not in use glow dimly.
Key BL: Whether keyboard keys that are not in use glow dimly. Neither setting affects OCT- or OCT+.

10.4Intermediate

Updating the firmware

Firmware updates add features, so it is worth keeping up — V13, V15 and V16 each changed a lot. Updates are installed from a Mac or Windows computer with M-VAVE’s M-UPGRADE tool, over USB.

Back up what you care about. On V16, export your banks first (Exporting a bank (V16)).
On the M-VAVE downloads page, get M-UPGRADE for Windows or Mac from the PC software section, and the FM-1 firmware file (FM-1.fwsc) from the PC firmware section.
Connect the FM-1 to the computer with a USB data cable, directly rather than through a hub.
Open M-UPGRADE, choose the firmware file and start the update. Keep the cable connected until it finishes.
On V16, check the version on the last GLO page.

From the community

The FM-1.fwsc file is listed under “PC Firmware” on M-VAVE’s downloads page, but it is the right file on a Mac too. Choose it with the Select Firmware button in M-UPGRADE. via Elektronauts: M-VAVE FM-1 thread
An owner whose FM-1 seemed dead after experimenting brought it back by reinstalling the official V16 firmware with M-UPGRADE and giving it a few minutes to finish. via Elektronauts: M-VAVE FM-1 thread

M-VAVE FM-1 Firmware (V09) Feature Overview & Upgrade Installation Tutorial
M-VAVE
Official walkthrough of installing firmware with the M-UPGRADE desktop tool (shown with V09).

M-VAVE FM-1 Firmware (V14) Feature | MIDI Program Change Support & Feature Updates
M-VAVE
Official V14 rundown: global, arp and sequencer changes plus MIDI Program Change support.

M-VAVE Q&A Ep.4｜How to Update FM-1 Firmware & Connect a MIDI Keyboard
M-VAVE
M-VAVE Q&A on recovering from a failed update and wiring up an external MIDI keyboard.

M-VAVE FM-1 Firmware update
abominable music
Community walkthrough of the official update process as a companion to M-VAVE's own video.

10.5Advanced

Custom firmware, and getting back to stock

Because the FM-1 is cheap, well built and updatable over USB, it has become a platform. Hundreds of community firmwares exist, from tiny experiments to full grooveboxes, and in October 2026 M-VAVE published FM1 Open, an official open-source firmware with a browser-based Workbench and an SDK for developers. None of the community firmwares is made or supported by M-VAVE.

Some of the most used (November 2026)

Firmware	Turns the FM-1 into	Notes
FM1 Open (M-VAVE)	An eight-track groovebox with FM, bass, drum, chip, pluck and sampler engines	Official, open source. The Workbench runs in Chrome or Edge and can also restore stock V15.
SLOOP	A four-track groovebox: three synth tracks and drums, 12 engines	Free, open source, the most popular. No Bluetooth MIDI. Our SLOOP guide covers it in depth.
Felucca	A four-track multi-engine synth and sequencer	Free, open source; SLOOP is built on it. No Bluetooth MIDI.
Melodee	Four instrument tracks plus four MIDI tracks	Free, open source; keeps Bluetooth MIDI.
FM-1+VA (Baud Girl)	The stock FM synth plus virtual-analogue and 8-bit engines and a longer sequencer	Free, closed source. The closest to stock.
Groove OS	An eight-track groovebox	Paid; closed source.

Getting back to stock

From most community firmware: install M-VAVE’s FM-1.fwsc with M-UPGRADE, as in Updating the firmware. Some firmwares, such as FM-1+VA, have their own installer that can put the stock file back.
From FM1 Open: use “Restore original V15” in the FM1 Workbench. It reinstalls V15 and the 128 factory presets; update to V16 with M-UPGRADE afterwards.
If the unit won’t start at all: the community tool FM-1-transporter can rewrite the firmware using a small microcontroller board wired to the USB lines. It is a last resort.

From the community

One owner who had installed M-VAVE’s FM1 Open had to put V15 back through the Workbench’s device update before M-UPGRADE would install V16. via Elektronauts: M-VAVE FM-1 thread

M-VAVE FM-1 Open-Source Firmware｜Workbench & Operation Guide
M-VAVE
ALT-FIRMWARE OVERVIEW: M-VAVE's own guide to its open-source firmware and the browser Workbench at open.m-vave.com.

Can You Restore The M-VAVE FM-1 Back to Stock Firmware After Sloop/Felucca/Baud Girl?
Darren Lock Music
How to return to stock firmware with the official updater after trying community firmware.

Every M-VAVE FM-1 Firmware Explained, and What Happened When We Tested V16
AIKellogg
ALT-FIRMWARE OVERVIEW: explains official vs open vs community firmware, the V15-to-V16 changes, and real M-Upgrade gotchas.

Alt Firmware Options For The M-Wave FM-1 Pocket SynthesizerSynthtopia — ALT-FIRMWARE OVERVIEW: quick roundup of the main community firmwares (Felucca, Baud Girl, Groove OS, SLOOP, X0X and more) with links.

10.6Basics

Troubleshooting

Most FM-1 puzzles have a simple cause. Find the symptom, then follow the link for the details.

Symptom	Likely cause and fix
Speaker keeps playing with headphones in, or there is hiss	Use a standard TRS plug (Speaker and headphones).
`ARP` shows `Disable SEQ to enter`	Switch the sequencer off first (Arpeggiator or sequencer — one at a time).
`PLAY/STOP` shows `Enable SEQ first`	Press `SEQ` to switch the sequencer on.
PRESETS does nothing	On V15 the sequencer is on, and the pattern decides the sound (Patterns, presets, length and chains).
The filter type jumps when you move the mod wheel	V15 reads CC1 on the Effect channel as filter type; send the mod wheel on another channel (MIDI channels: notes and effects).
A controller stopped changing the effects after updating	V16 moved the effect CCs to 70–93 (Controlling the effects over MIDI).
The FM-1 goes quiet when a DAW connects	The DAW may be sending CC7, which V16 treats as master volume (What the FM-1 responds to).
Effects change, or don’t change, when you switch presets	On V16 effects belong to FX groups, not presets (FX groups (V16)).
Notes are stuck	Hold `PLAY/STOP` on V16 (Panic: clearing stuck notes (V16)).
A bank reset didn’t bring back the factory sounds	Reset restores the last bank imported into that slot (Resetting a bank).
A DX7 bank won’t load over the 3.5 mm input	Send it over USB instead (Loading DX7 banks).
`Failed to enter upgrade mode!`	Leave M-UPGRADE open, unplug and replug USB, and continue (Updating the firmware).

From the community