I have one of these in a piece of audio equipment that I'd like to store the settings made inside of.

How would I best accomplish this? 3V coin cell in parallel with the Vcc?

This is the particular chip in question:
EN29LV160AB

Inside of this unit (which I love aside from that it forgets the settings when unplugged).
https://khronscave.blogspot.com/2019/04/39-m-audio-profire-2626-teardown-and.html?lr=1741892459691

 

Do you have a datasheet for the part? The answers to all your questions are contained within.

 

From the webpage you attached, italics are mine.
“The main processor / controller is a TC Applied Technologies TCD2220 Dice Jr., with the associated 64Mbit (8Mbyte) K4S641632N RAM chip, and an EON EN29LV160AB 16Mbit (2Mbyte) flash storage chip for the firmware and settings.”

Flash memory doesn’t require power to store the memory contents. It is intrinsically non-volatile. Something else is going on here.

 

From the webpage you attached, italics are mine.
“The main processor / controller is a TC Applied Technologies TCD2220 Dice Jr., with the associated 64Mbit (8Mbyte) K4S641632N RAM chip, and an EON EN29LV160AB 16Mbit (2Mbyte) flash storage chip for the firmware and settings.”

Flash memory doesn’t require power to store the memory contents. It is intrinsically non-volatile. Something else is going on here.

Thank you! I know so little about computer type electronics that I wouldn't know where to look. I may try keeping the 3.3V supply active with a battery after power down and see what happens. I wish the manufacturer would have made the device to hold the config after power down but such is not the case.

 

RAM is fast and free to access but data is not retained through power down.
EEPROM or FLASH are retaining data though power off periods but write times are slow and cause wear. so after sufficient numbers of writes, parts of those ICs may no longer hold the values. this is why you need to read the datasheet and get familiar with specs.

some products are only good for about 5000 write cycles and after that - they toast. this is the case of RDC boards for KUKA robots from 90s (KRC1 controllers). later RDC boards use ICs with newer technology and much longer write endurance (100000 writes or so). today you can find products that have higher endurance.

also there are other technologies like FRAM

 

Battery backed RAM memory has been used in a number of scanner radios for many years. It is also used in many personal computers, and video cameras.
BUT a personal stereo system, adding a backup battery involves circuit changes will certainly involve more than just adding a battery.
This is why my choice will always be equipment with knobs instead of menus.

 

Not only that, but fiddling with knobs and switches is sooooooo satisfying!
Turning the knobs and feeling the strong detent and listening to the “tok-tok-tok” as it rotates.

 

Not only that, but fiddling with knobs and switches is sooooooo satisfying!
Turning the knobs and feeling the strong detent and listening to the “tok-tok-tok” as it rotates.

I am by no means "a Knob Junky", but in many instances having a device think that it knows what I want to do next is rather irritating. And today I may want my music a little louder than I did today. Or possibly not.