PCM Tuning for Dummies?

[ezobens]

I'm VERY new to EFI tuning and I have a ton of questions on tuning, what all the terms mean and how the different parameters affect one another.
I'd also like to find some sort of guide that covers "best practices" on this type of tuning as well as the "do's and don'ts" of tuning.

I recently purchased an EFI Live V2 Scan and Tune set and have been poking around existing tun files to get familiar with the software and what it can do.
I'd like to learn what all this stuff does and how it can be manipulated before I start hacking on anything and would love to find a document that I could just read and learn from before I do any hands-on tuning.
Do such publications exist?
Thanks!
Elm

[Taz]

I was going to point you toward the manuals & tutorials - but it looks like someone already did on the other website where you posted this same question.

[ezobens]

Thanks! I will read through them and post any questions when I'm through.
Elm

[joecar]

Like Taz said, read the user manual pdf's first, and then the tutorials.

Then start reading here: Collecting-links-to-scattered-material

As you read, capture logs and analyze them, play with the software to get comfortable with it, don't flash anything until you understand it.

There are no definitive tuning guides... everything you see here and elsewhere is based on peoples' "reverse-engineering" experience.

What vehicle/year/model do you have...?

[ezobens]

I have a 69' Corvette with a 409 SBC and a 5 speed stick that I plan to upgrade from carb to a First TPI system utilizing a 12200411 PCM.
I've been running through an example tun file from a 2002 Express Van that I will most likely be utilizing for my base configuration and I'm just trying to make sense of it all and how the various bits fit together.
I have plenty of time to learn this stuff as I won't be installing the hardware till this time next year-
My goal is to have a pretty good understanding of it all and hopefully a tweaked tun file that accommodates my particular install and will allow me to fire it up and have it at least running out of the gate.
Thanks for the links- I'll be doing some serious reading and I'll post my questions as they come up.
Elm

[ezobens]

OK- I'm finally starting to play with the software and checking out all the fields and options-
The first thing I've run across that I can't seem to find an answer for is what are the DTC value definitions?
What exactly does "1 Trip, Emissions Related" and "2 Trip, Emissions Related" mean and what is the guideline for using one over the other?
Sorry if this is a stupid question but I want to fully understand what I am doing.
Thanks!
Elm