# So are the auto-tune Husqvarna saws worth the extra $



## mstoelton (Apr 4, 2014)

I see that the 555 and 560 auto-tune husqvarna saws are about $100 more that the 455/460 series saws.

Is the money well spent?  If so what does the auto-tune do that you would normally need to do on your own (what is the benefit)? 

Or is the auto-tune just another gizmo that will go bad and need to be repaired/replaced in the future?

I would like to hear from someone who is running the saws and not advertising BS.


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## bassJAM (Apr 4, 2014)

There's more of a difference than just auto-tune, they are different saws.  The 555 is a "just under pro" level saw, while the 455 is more of a homeowners saw.  So you're getting other benefits as well, such as a better power/weight ratio.

As far as how reliable the auto tune will be in the long run, it's hard to say.  Mine's been great, but it's only been used occasionally for a year and a half now.  I haven't seen major complaints from heavy user tree service guys, but who knows what'll be like in 10-15 years.  I will say it was nice to to a muffler mod, and not have to re-tune the saw afterwards.  I'm no expert in tuning a carb, and I'm very much in the learning phase trying to get my Makita "just right".  So I see that as a huge benefit for people like me.  If you grew up around 2 stroke carbs, or had someone knowledgeable show you the ropes, or don't mind paying for a dealer to set it, the typical carb works fine, and there's not much to go wrong that can't be cheaply and easily replaced.


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## Jon1270 (Apr 5, 2014)

I don't own one, but I've read very positive reactions from people who would know the difference.  Mostly it's that you can count on them to work in a variety of conditions without having to fiddle with them.  Changes in temperature, altitude, whether the air filter is getting dirty, fuel mixture, etc. all matter to how well an engine starts and runs.  The gist of what I've read is that the self-tuning saws are always at their best.  If you can make your own adjustments then it's a matter of convenience and probably minor performance benefit overall.  If you have to take your saw to a dealer for minor adjustments then a self-tuning mechanism might pay for itself pretty quickly.


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 5, 2014)

I would never consider a 400 series Husky when you can get a 500 series.  If money is an issue the 545 is similar to the 550XP and the 555 is similar to the 562XP but are cheaper.  The XP saws have full circle cranks, a little different porting and timing thus they make a little more power.  All are the 500 series are auto tunes which are the wave of the future.

I just traded a 562XP for a 562XPG.  I cut about 25 full cord in a year with it and it was an awesome saw.  I put a tank through the 562XPG this morning and cut/hauled 2/3 cord home before the ground got soft.   My 550XPG is great too, but I am pretty partial to my 346XP that is ported.


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## NH_Wood (Apr 5, 2014)

There are some lovers of the autotune and m-tronic carb saws, but I'm still on the fence. I've heard of quite a few hesitation issues with autotune, but also many stories of no problems at all. I'm partial to older, simple saw construction. If I need to rebuild a carb, I can do so cheaply, tune it well and off to cut. If there is an out-of-warrantee problem with an autotune or mtronic carb - what do you do? How much to replace that carb? I don't know the answers, but I do know that the old model has worked, does work, and will continue to work. So.... I guess I'm not really on the fence. Cheers!


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## CenterTree (Apr 5, 2014)

With the autotune I know I won't need one of these anymore....








well worth the extra money to me.


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## NH_Wood (Apr 5, 2014)

CenterTree said:


> With the autotune I know I won't need one of these anymore....
> 
> 
> View attachment 131214
> ...



Tuning carbs is fun - I'd miss that little screwdriver - I guess old school, is, well....old school! Cheers!


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 5, 2014)

CenterTree said:


> With the autotune I know I won't need one of these anymore....
> 
> 
> View attachment 131214
> ...


 

Well a screwdriver like that is going to be pretty worthless on any saw made recently.


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 5, 2014)

NH_Wood said:


> There are some lovers of the autotune and m-tronic carb saws, but I'm still on the fence. I've heard of quite a few hesitation issues with autotune, but also many stories of no problems at all. I'm partial to older, simple saw construction. If I need to rebuild a carb, I can do so cheaply, tune it well and off to cut. If there is an out-of-warrantee problem with an autotune or mtronic carb - what do you do? How much to replace that carb? I don't know the answers, but I do know that the old model has worked, does work, and will continue to work. So.... I guess I'm not really on the fence. Cheers!


 

Remember the old carbs on cars and how they stalled while warming up.  That solid state ignition on autos turned out to be a passing thing too.

One thing to remember on an auto tune saw is that the computer is constantly  monitoring the air fuel mixture and how the RPM is affected.  There are many other things that can go astray on a saw and make it run poorly or not at all.  Unfortunately everyone blames the auto tune.  When a conventional saw goes into a lean condition either through improper adjustment or an air leak, catastrophic damage is done and the saw will be ruined if continued to run in this condition.  Many users are blissfully ignorant of a motor "4 stroking" out of the cut and very very few have tachometers and specialty screwdrivers to adjust the carbs and then there are the EPA mandated limiter tabs.    An auto tune saw is much more tolerant of the ignorant user.

Run a 562XP against any  other non ported 60cc saw and tell me this technology is a step backwards.


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## Standingdead (Apr 6, 2014)

I am old school, but really like the autotune. IMO the few extra $ spent on an autotune XP when amortized over the life of the saw is money well spent.


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## NH_Wood (Apr 6, 2014)

Firewood Bandit said:


> Remember the old carbs on cars and how they stalled while warming up.  That solid state ignition on autos turned out to be a passing thing too.
> 
> One thing to remember on an auto tune saw is that the computer is constantly  monitoring the air fuel mixture and how the RPM is affected.  There are many other things that can go astray on a saw and make it run poorly or not at all.  Unfortunately everyone blames the auto tune.  When a conventional saw goes into a lean condition either through improper adjustment or an air leak, catastrophic damage is done and the saw will be ruined if continued to run in this condition.  Many users are blissfully ignorant of a motor "4 stroking" out of the cut and very very few have tachometers and specialty screwdrivers to adjust the carbs and then there are the EPA mandated limiter tabs.    An auto tune saw is much more tolerant of the ignorant user.
> 
> Run a 562XP against any  other non ported 60cc saw and tell me this technology is a step backwards.



Yes - I can see the benefit for the novice who might run lean saws - the cost of doing so would be much worse then autotune carb problems. Not saying autotune is a step backwards, just not sold on complicating a simple machine. Cheers!


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 6, 2014)

NH_Wood said:


> Yes - I can see the benefit for the novice who might run lean saws - the cost of doing so would be much worse then autotune carb problems. Not saying autotune is a step backwards, just not sold on complicating a simple machine. Cheers!


 

Another thing I did not mention is complaints about running related issues on auto tunes.  These come from 2 areas:

1.  People who did not read the manual regarding hot/cold starting issues.
2.  If a saw stumbles a little, you need to run it and run it hard in wood.  In a few minutes the computer will sort it out and reset the running parameters.  I have seen this happen when the temperature has changed drastically.  Be patient, run it and you will be fine.  Many of the complaints have been from people running immediately to a dealer with this symptom or those who start/stop and idle the saw many many cycles without actually doing any work.


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 6, 2014)

Standingdead said:


> I am old school, but really like the autotune. IMO the few extra $ spent on an autotune XP when amortized over the life of the saw is money well spent.


 

I agree, The ported 346XP is still my favorite go to saw.


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## NH_Wood (Apr 6, 2014)

Firewood Bandit said:


> Another thing I did not mention is complaints about running related issues on auto tunes.  These come from 2 areas:
> 
> 1.  People who did not read the manual regarding hot/cold starting issues.
> 2.  If a saw stumbles a little, you need to run it and run it hard in wood.  In a few minutes the computer will sort it out and reset the running parameters.  I have seen this happen when the temperature has changed drastically.  Be patient, run it and you will be fine.  Many of the complaints have been from people running immediately to a dealer with this symptom or those who start/stop and idle the saw many many cycles without actually doing any work.



Hard to say which problems are due to what issue (operator or equipment) - some good saw builders have posted vids on the autotune problems from the equipment perspective - not the operator. Solutions have included reducing the overall length of the needle spring, to widening the throttle butterfly openings, and beyond. These solutions were mainly to fix issues related to very high pop-off pressure on the autotune carbs. Regardless - the new system will have good points and bad points - just like the old, simple carbs. Stock up on them old carbs boys! Cheers!


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## Treacherous (Apr 6, 2014)

Not sure if I need extra power of a 562XP but it will be between that and a 550XP.  I'm tired of tuning stuff.  If there was an EFI saw I would get that.


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## ihookem (Apr 6, 2014)

Doesn't the autotune use less gas?


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## NH_Wood (Apr 6, 2014)

ihookem said:


> Doesn't the autotune use less gas?


Less than what? My 262xp and 61 are hogs on gas - I had a MS362 that sipped gas - I'd expect the autotune to be comparable to what I experienced with the MS362 - if there is a difference, I'd expect it wouldn't be noticeable. Cheers!


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 6, 2014)

NH_Wood said:


> Hard to say which problems are due to what issue (operator or equipment) - some good saw builders have posted vids on the autotune problems from the equipment perspective - not the operator. Solutions have included reducing the overall length of the needle spring, to widening the throttle butterfly openings, and beyond. These solutions were mainly to fix issues related to very high pop-off pressure on the autotune carbs. Regardless - the new system will have good points and bad points - just like the old, simple carbs. Stock up on them old carbs boys! Cheers!


 

You are reinforcing my point.  The Zama carb issues you are describing above are CARB issues and is not attributed to the auto tune system.  BTW, Zama is owned by Stihl.  If the carb worked properly, there wouldn't be an issue.


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 6, 2014)

ihookem said:


> Doesn't the autotune use less gas?


 

Yes, my 562XPG will run longer than I want it to, I want a break before it runs out of gas generally.  I haven't timed it but it must be in excess of 35 min.  You don't have that exhast/raw gas smell on you near as much either.


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## NH_Wood (Apr 6, 2014)

Firewood Bandit said:


> You are reinforcing my point.  The Zama carb issues you are describing above are CARB issues and is not attributed to the auto tune system.  BTW, Zama is owned by Stihl.  If the carb worked properly, there wouldn't be an issue.



Gotcha - I see what you are saying - mechanical issues vs. the software. I was lumping the two together and that's not fair. There is obviously a big fan base of the new autotune saws - e.g. 562xp, 555, etc, and I'm sure they are fun to use, cut excellent, and are nice saws - I'm still a fan of making decisions about tuning myself and not worrying about a possible computer glitch - but I'm sure at some point I'll cave and try one out! Cheers!


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## Firewood Bandit (Apr 7, 2014)

NH_Wood said:


> Gotcha - I see what you are saying - mechanical issues vs. the software. I was lumping the two together and that's not fair. There is obviously a big fan base of the new autotune saws - e.g. 562xp, 555, etc, and I'm sure they are fun to use, cut excellent, and are nice saws - I'm still a fan of making decisions about tuning myself and not worrying about a possible computer glitch - but I'm sure at some point I'll cave and try one out! Cheers!


 

Keep in mind I am not a saw mechanic but do talk a great deal to my dealer regarding issues. 

From what I gather, the whole push for the auto tune is to meet ever stricter emission standards.  The new saws do run longer on a tank, don't smoke so much and seem to idle like a dream.  Also saws can have hundreds of hours on them and carbon buildup is nonexistent.

The early ones according to me dealer had issues with raw gas getting into carb from the vent tube from the tank.  He would cap this off and install an Echo one way check valve to vent the tank.  My first 562 and 550 have this but my newest 562 does not.  He said this has been fixed. 











Obligatory firewood pics:


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