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NEC TG-16/TE/TurboDuo => TG-16/TE/TurboDuo Discussion => Topic started by: Paisa49 on January 03, 2008, 03:29:15 AM
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I've been researching Flash cards, and they seem to work quite well. Have any of you had difficulties utilizing these flash cards on TG-16's? Are there any drawbacks to utilizing Flash Cards?
Also, will there be a mass ordering for the 128M cards soon?
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I've been researching Flash cards, and they seem to work quite well. Have any of you had difficulties utilizing these flash cards on TG-16's? Are there any drawbacks to utilizing Flash Cards?
Also, will there be a mass ordering for the 128M cards soon?
I've discussed the 128M cards with some folks and will probably be doing a mass order soon.
I've been using the 64M card on my TG16 and it works fine.
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My 64Mb version works great in my US Duo, so I don't see why a 128Mb version wouldn't work in a TG-16. The only difficulties that I had were getting the PC software to work properly, but that was due to a combination of user error and poor documentation, not a fault of the hardware.
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Necro, what difficulties did you have in getting the software to work properly on your computer? Will this only work with a particular version of Windows? I'm thinking of emailing the Turbo List to gauge interest, I'd like to jump in on a mass order.
Also, with these flash cards, can you add and subtract to the card whenever?
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Necro, what difficulties did you have in getting the software to work properly on your computer? Will this only work with a particular version of Windows?
We're all using XP and it works fine. I can't comment on other versions of Windows.
The problems he refers to stems from the fact this package includes the absolute worst f*cking documentation/driver bundle I've ever encountered. You get the drivers on these little tiny 3" CD-Rs. If your CD drive can even read them, you are then set up with the amazing task of actually finding the driver for the USB interface. It took me like 45 minutes to get everything installed correctly. The README consists of the following:
Install the driver and software
The End
What they don't tell you is that the CD contains drivers for 639 other flash cart/USB setups so you get the fun task of trial and error. To top it all off, the driver itself is incorrectly named (at least on the CD I got). I had to rename it for it to work with the provided .INF.
It's a good thing Team Neo's ability to create a good flash cart isn't tied to their ability to create a usable driver bundle.
The cart itself is awesome. Just don't use the RESET button.
Also, with these flash cards, can you add and subtract to the card whenever?
Yes and no. You can write to the cart whenever you want. But you have to rewrite the entire memory every time. So if you want to remove just one game you just have to re-write everything that was there before except the game you don't want.
It's not a big deal since writing only takes like 20 seconds.
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Like nat said, the installation instructions blow. I was lucky and had no problems installing the hardware (XP did it automatically), but the software kept telling me that it couldn't find the cart. After several kagillion insertions, it finally found it, so it may have had slightly corroded contacts or maybe I just wasn't jamming it in hard enough (that's what she said).
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I'd be interested in this flash card business. But I know the pain of finding drivers and whatnot. I had to do that with my LG Chocolate Phone. I bought software from eBay that had NO instructions, but it allowed me to download songs without buying the official MP3 player package, which costs twice as much. What a headache. ](*,) To top it all off I think it screwed with my phone because my MP3 player doesn't work anymore. Now the phone is sent back on warranty; hopefully they won't realize that I unlocked the phone's port. hehe :-$
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Now the phone is sent back on warranty; hopefully they won't realize that I unlocked the phone's port. hehe :-$
the repair guy at LG is likely a rabid pcengine fan who lurks this forum constantly..... #-o
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the repair guy at LG is likely a rabid pcengine fan who lurks this forum constantly..... d'oh!
Haha!! That would be just my luck too. :-#
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So, how do I get in on an order for one (via a group rather than individually) and what's the cost?
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So, how do I get in on an order for one (via a group rather than individually) and what's the cost?
The cost per unit at 10+ is $119 each before any shipping or fees. What's likely to happen is I'll just flat out buy 10 of the beasts and then make them available.
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I heard a rumor that tototek is coming out with USB only versions of some of their cards.
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Excuse my ignorance, but is a Flash card just a card that stores roms? So you can download them , and then play them on your Tg16 or Pc engine?
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Yes.
Great for playing JP->Eng game translations that you would otherwise be restricted to playing via an emulator (eww).
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Oh cool :) I should get my hands on one of these suckers!
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I heard a rumor that tototek is coming out with USB only versions of some of their cards.
The tototek flash cards don't look as nice as the ones that neoteam makes. What would be the benefit of purchasing the tototek one over the neoteam one?
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What they don't tell you is that the CD contains drivers for 639 other flash cart/USB setups so you get the fun task of trial and error. To top it all off, the driver itself is incorrectly named (at least on the CD I got). I had to rename it for it to work with the provided .INF.
Hi! What did you have to rename exactly? A file? A line in the .INF file? And what did you change - from what to what? Thanks in advance!
Personally, I had to hack my registry to make a registry based manual install of the drivers for the SL4 to get it to work - the .INF file way never worked for me with WinXP SP2 and full current patches.
The only other caveat I would say to people is to use a fully wall plug powered USB hub with the NEO units, otherwise, if the port on your computer cannot provide the voltage and current the NEO unit wants during writing (it varies it during the write process) your unit will hang. Having a guaranteed full voltage/current from a fully plug powered hub makes it work like a charm.
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In windows 2000 all you have to do is a normal driver install, which is automatic. It asks you where the driver is, you tell it "cd-rom" and it finds it right away. I suspect it is 100% the case in XP as well.
Plug card into card reader.
Plug card reader into USB port.
Windows automatically discovers the new hardware.
Copy the "NEO PC-E Flash Cart" folder to your HD and you are in business.
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What they don't tell you is that the CD contains drivers for 639 other flash cart/USB setups so you get the fun task of trial and error. To top it all off, the driver itself is incorrectly named (at least on the CD I got). I had to rename it for it to work with the provided .INF.
Hi! What did you have to rename exactly? A file? A line in the .INF file? And what did you change - from what to what? Thanks in advance!
In windows 2000 all you have to do is a normal driver install, which is automatic. It asks you where the driver is, you tell it "cd-rom" and it finds it right away. I suspect it is 100% the case in XP as well.
Let me respond to both comments at the same time.
For me, Windows would NOT recognize the driver right away. After pointing Windows at the location where the driver resides, I got the message "SlimLoaderV4.sys not found." My CD has a filed called "SlimLoad.sys" on it, however, that I had to copy out and rename by hand. Apparently there is more than one "version" of these driver CDs because other users are reporting that they do have a file called "SlimLoaderV4.sys" and Windows has been recognizing it straight away.
The problem in my case is that the .INF file Windows looks for on the CD contains a reference to "SlimLoaderV4.sys". That's a problem when a file with that exact name doesn't exist. So I took a stab in the dark and renamed "SlimLoad.sys" accordingly. Luckily it works.
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Mmmm, was another issue with mine then. The drivers were there and correctly named. WinXP would not recognize the .INF file itself as valid. I had to hand create the registry entries to install the drivers for it.
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I think it's safe to say at this point that the driver bundle with the cart is a joke from the drivers themselves right down to the goofy 3" CD-R they used.
Nobody had a consistent experience installing them.
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So I've been using my flash cart on my US Duo for the past month or so since I got it.
Over the weekend I decided to try it out on the core TG-16 (no CD-ROM) I have in my bedroom since I was feeling especially lazy and it sounded good to play a little TG-16 while laying in bed. It doesn't work. I mean, it boots to the blue screen but all the games crash as soon as you start them. Some crash before even making it to the title screen. Some crash on the title screen. The TG16 in question is unmodified internally, although I have a custom-built connector hooked up to the expansion port that pulls composite video and stereo sound straight off the pins back there. I can't fathom how this could possibly have any effect on the flash cart, but there you have it.
My first thought was maybe the flash cart's pins had gotten dirty. No, they are fine. Next I thought maybe somehow it's memory got corrupted so I took it back to the Duo. Nope, on the Duo, everything works 100%. I even played into the English version of Bubblegum Crash for like an hour and a half on the Duo and it worked without a hitch.
My next though was maybe the pins inside inside the cart port on the TG-16 are dirty. So I tried like 60 real HuCards I had on hand and every single one booted fine, first try. I've had this TG-16 for many years and I've never had any trouble like this before.
Has anyone else had any difficulty using these carts on core TG-16s without CD-ROMs?
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Has anyone else had any difficulty using these carts on core TG-16s without CD-ROMs?
I don't have a TG-16 to try it on, but I'll try it on my Express when I get home tonight. Have you tried disconnecting your custom cable and using the standard hook ups? I can't imagine why it would make a shit bit of difference, but it's worth a shot.
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No I haven't.
I'll try it though. But yeah, I can't imagine why that would affect anything.
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It works just fine on my TG-16 with Turbo Booster. I'd try disconnecting your cable and trying the RF. I know it doesn't make sense that it wouldn't work with the cable, but it also doesn't make sense that it won't work with my region modded Duo either. This sounds almost exactly what happens when I try to use it with my Duo. It seems that these flash carts are awfully sensitive to the smallest thing. So give it a try and let us know what happens. Good luck!
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What about the region detection problem? Will a US unit set to US settings (or unmodified) be triggering the region lockout system? Or is that only encoded at a software level?
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What about the region detection problem? Will a US unit set to US settings (or unmodified) be triggering the region lockout system? Or is that only encoded at a software level?
I thought the region lock out was entirely physical - two pins switch or something - which is why I can play Japanese PCE ROMs on my TurboExpress using my PCE Flash Card...
My card plays perfectly in both my TG16 and my TurboExpress (and thank God for that!)... I've had one or two hangs during writes, and I've had problems with a couple ROMs, but eventually managed to find working copies in both cases. Over all, however, I'm extremely pleased with mine - I only wish I'd sprung for the 128Mb model...
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What about the region detection problem? Will a US unit set to US settings (or unmodified) be triggering the region lockout system? Or is that only encoded at a software level?
I thought the region lock out was entirely physical
That's one form. There is another form-- American carts have lockout code in the software that prevent them from being run on Japanese systems even if you switch the pins.
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I don't have a TG-16 to try it on, but I'll try it on my Express when I get home tonight.
By 'tonight', I musta meant 'some time next week'. :oops:
Anyway, I think the flash cart works fine on my Express. I say think because the screen has conked out since last I used it, but the games sound like they're working dandy. Time for some cap replacing, I suppose. Have you tried using plain old RF yet?
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Not yet, but only because the setup in the room that has the TG-16 in question is a real pain in the ass to get behind the TV. I'll do it one of these days when I feel like moving a cabinet and inhaling some dust.
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Worked fine on my TG-16 with or without a Booster. Both Rf and AV work fine with the Flash Cart.
Sounds like user error to me :dance:
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Sounds like user error to me :dance:
Be careful there, I'm not some noob that has no idea what's going on.
I'd be happy to post a video clip up. Believe me, it's baffling. I can't explain it. How it works 100% in my Duo and not in my unmodified TG-16 is beyond me.
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Be careful there, I'm not some noob that has no idea what's going on.
Are you going to track D-Lite down and beat him up, or just settle for linking this thread to your blog? :lol:
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How about both!?!
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How about both!?!
My first guess if it is not user error would be that maybe something in your console is grounding which shouldn't or something else like this, and the error is not so severe that it disrupts most Hucards. However it is something which is enough to upset this programmable card?
My only other guess is that somehow the data it writes to the card, contained in the flash program has become corrupted in some way, so that when it writes it to the card it ends up errored?
These are both kinda long shots though.
Maybe somehow it is your special custom video out cable too.
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How about both!?!
I.....just.....wet.....myself.
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How about both!?!
My only other guess is that somehow the data it writes to the card, contained in the flash program has become corrupted in some way, so that when it writes it to the card it ends up errored?
Not possible, since I can walk into another room and it plays fine in my American TurboDuo.
Maybe somehow it is your special custom video out cable too.
Coupled with your first theory (grounding), I am thinking this likely has something to do with it. I am grounding my video signal to a specific pin on the expansion port that is supposedly a ground. Before I try RF I'm going to try grounding to a different pin and see if it affects anything.
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is it a turbo booster plus? Maybe thats the problem. :-k
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How about both!?!
The key is under the mat :pray:
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Kidding, dude.
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Kidding, dude.
Haha, I know. But you missed my horrible "Come over to my place :wink: " attempt....
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Hey, if anyone is looking to get one of these 64 MB cards, I bought 2 from Bt and decided I only needed 1. The other is still unopened, in it's plastic baggie. I'll sell it for my cost ($85) plus shipping. Anyone interested, message me. Thanks!
MjC
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Hey Nat, my purple PCE to TG-16 converter would play all Japanese HuCards fine, but would not see the Arcade Card Pro. I had to cut a trace on the converter and then it worked. Are you using a converter for this flash device? Forgive me, as I have only read this page of the thread.
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No, no converter. I suppose I can forgive you this time. :D
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Well I guess you shouldn't be too tremendously surprised, as most flash card type things are usually cheaply made "hacker quality" products that rely on ancient technology like parallel ports.
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It seems like a pretty good product. I guess what baffles me is that it works great on my Duo 100% of the time but it won't work on a regular TurboGrafx.
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Well I guess you shouldn't be too tremendously surprised, as most flash card type things are usually cheaply made "hacker quality" products that rely on ancient technology like parallel ports.
Hey I wish more products these days used parallel ports! I'm sick of everything using USB now!
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What possible reason could you have to want to use a parallel port? That is just insane.
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I'm sick of everything using USB now!
I KNOW!!! Convenience sucks ASS!
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If only the flash card required a VLB slot, that would just be super! :clap:
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I KNOW!!! Convenience sucks ASS!
teehee
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I vote for the next flash card supporting a NuBus card interface only.
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Or better yet, ADB which is only available on ancient Macs.
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NuBus slots are available on fewer Macs (and computers in general) than ADB. ADB survived until Apple's blue G3 towers and NuBus died off shortly after the original PPC revolution.
Wow, I just ranted to try and win an obscurity pissing contest. That's kinda embarrassing.
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I've got the Neo Power 64 meg version and have had it for over a year now. It works great. All of the games both US and Japanese have worked great on it except for one. I have trouble with TwinBee having trash in the graphics while it is playing. It boots up great but plays with distorted graphics. It's the only game that does this for me. I'm playing on an American Duo with a Region Switch. Ive programed the card for both regions and I have even used the numerous hacked versions of the rom and they have all had the same trash in the graphics. Has anyone else experienced this?
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What possible reason could you have to want to use a parallel port? That is just insane.
Parallel ports (and RS232 serial ports) are rather simple designs that are well documented and easy to program for... great for homebrew projects.
As long as we're on the subject of obscure computer buses, I feel compelled to suggest IBM's MCA and Amiga's Zorro...
And come on, ADB was never really designed for data transfer [-X :wink: It was originally introduced on the Apple IIgs for mice and keyboards and then was adapted for the Mac line. It only transfers a few kilobits/second, so it would take quite a while to transfer the contents of a Hucard.
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What possible reason could you have to want to use a parallel port? That is just insane.
I was somewhat joking. It does piss me off though when stuff like printers use USB ports because then you just have a parellel port available for no reason. I want to use my USB ports for other things, not printers! Not to mention parallel ports are way cooler. It's not like there is anything wrong with using a parrellel port, it's just not hip like you anymore.
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What possible reason could you have to want to use a parallel port? That is just insane.
I was somewhat joking. It does piss me off though when stuff like printers use USB ports because then you just have a parellel port available for no reason.
Computers still come with parallel ports? I had no idea.
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It's not like there is anything wrong with using a parallel port, it's just not hip like you anymore.
If a USB device is like putting glue on your CPU, using a parallel port is like burying it in cement and dropping it in the ocean. They are very system intensive to use, I have 4 use ports, 1 of which has a hub and card reader on it. I have plenty of usb slots to use so my parallel port goes unused and dusty.
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I've never used my parallel port. I'm assuming that it is that big ugly oblong pink think on the back of my pc, right? All of my 2 printers have been usb. All of my accessories are usb too! I have always wanted to use that parallel port for something though. Seeing it there taking up space with no use makes me angry, haha.
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Parallel ports were invented in 1784 and are virtually obsolete in today's world. Like I indicated earlier, I'm genuinely surprised to hear that computers manufactured today still have them.
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Not very many still have them, but some. There are some devices of older design that continue to be manufactured without engineering update, or devices which were made like tanks and just won't die that continue to need them. For example, dot matrix and tractor feed printers. These may still be used for label printing in libraries, for receipts, or for certain types of reporting. Also, some ID card printers, being expensive, are expected to only be replaced on pain of death. For many businesses, then, especially small businesses, parallel ports are still indispensable.
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I've recently obtained a flash cart, and I was hoping to get some advice on something that I observed regarding its functionality with my TG-16. Specifically, I noticed that my TG-16 doesn't recognize my flash cart as easily as it does any of my Turbo Chips. Sometimes it'll take me turning the TG-16 on and off a few times to get the Flash Cart to load up. When it doesn't load up, I just get a purple screen. Has anyone else experienced this?
I've looked at the end (the part that goes into my console) of my Flash Cart to ensure that it's not dirty. Is there anything that I can do to make the Flash Cart more compatible with my TG-16 so I don't have to turn my console on and off so many times?
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I had to get pretty aggressive in cleaning the contacts on mine; they never looked dirty or corroded, but it wouldn't work at all without a thorough (and slightly abrasive) scrubbing of the contacts. Beyond this initial problem, mine has worked flawlessly and hasn't exhibited the problem you describe.
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I had to get pretty aggressive in cleaning the contacts on mine; they never looked dirty or corroded, but it wouldn't work at all without a thorough (and slightly abrasive) scrubbing of the contacts. Beyond this initial problem, mine has worked flawlessly and hasn't exhibited the problem you describe.
Other than utilizing a non-abrasive, non-latex eraser, what would you recommend for cleaning the chip contacts that won't damage the contacts? What did you specifically use and do to get yours to work better?
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I used some 000# steel wool, but any fine sandpaper would work just as well. Neither is abrasive enough to quickly remove a lot of material, so a few light passes won't do any real damage (though you have to be careful not to sand any other part of the card). You could even try one of those Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. If you're not familiar with 'em, they're a block of melamine foam and are slightly abrasive - slight enough to be safely used on walls, counters, appliances, etc.
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I used some 000# steel wool, but any fine sandpaper would work just as well. Neither is abrasive enough to quickly remove a lot of material, so a few light passes won't do any real damage (though you have to be careful not to sand any other part of the card). You could even try one of those Mr. Clean Magic Erasers. If you're not familiar with 'em, they're a block of melamine foam and are slightly abrasive - slight enough to be safely used on walls, counters, appliances, etc.
I'll be the first to admit I'm not very "technology-inclined," but I'm a little hesitant to use steel wool or sand paper to clean the contacts. If the problem persists, I may have to go that route.
Has anyone else gone a different route to get their flash cart to work better with the respective console? Most of the folks that post on this board seem so knowledgable that I'd like to hear some other flash cart cleaning alternatives.
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Interestingly enough I have problems using the flash cart on my stock TG-16 as well. Mine always boots to the blue menu screen, but locks up when you try to play the games. No amount of cleaning has remedied this (although it didn't look dirty to begin with, but I thought I'd exhaust all options).
It works flawlessly on my Duo though. Go figure. Both are unmodified American consoles.
Hmm, I should try it on my SuperGrafx sometime and see what happens.
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Interestingly enough I have problems using the flash cart on my stock TG-16 as well. Mine always boots to the blue menu screen, but locks up when you try to play the games.
I've had that happen on certain games. It seems to be an issue with bad roms. I'll try cleaning with isopropyl alcohol first, and if that doesn't work, then it'll probably have to be some sand paper action.
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Interestingly enough I have problems using the flash cart on my stock TG-16 as well. Mine always boots to the blue menu screen, but locks up when you try to play the games. No amount of cleaning has remedied this (although it didn't look dirty to begin with, but I thought I'd exhaust all options).
It works flawlessly on my Duo though. Go figure. Both are unmodified American consoles.
Hmm, I should try it on my SuperGrafx sometime and see what happens.
It might be a power issue (internal or the AC adapter) with you're TG16, Nat. There was recent talk about this for another project where a person was driving some other logic/IC/LEDs via the hucard port. The flash card more than likely requires more power than a normal hucard rom, so you're not seeing the problem with them.
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I'll be the first to admit I'm not very "technology-inclined," but I'm a little hesitant to use steel wool or sand paper to clean the contacts.
I don't blame you for being hesitant, as it almost always pays to err on the side of caution. On that note, #000 steel wool and super fine sand papers (800 or 1000 grit) would do more polishing than sanding. Much like a chemical cleaner that dissolves a very thin layer, your goal is to remove just a tiny bit of material. In any case, please keep us updated.
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Well, I tried using an 800 grit sand paper to clean the contacts, and that didn't work either. I've tested the flash cart on my Turbo Express as well, and the Express does the same thing as my TG-16. I'm thinking that the American systems just don't react well to these flash carts. I wish the American systems weren't so problematic, even the American Duo has technical issues. The funny thing is that the flash cart worked perfectly the first time I placed roms on it, and only after subsequent switching of roms, did my tg-16 not feel like loading up the flash cart. Now, it won't even load up the blue flash cart menu screen at all. Has anyone had this similar experience as me, and if so, have you come up with any solutions?
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Sorry, but I'm hoping a cheap bump up will get a discussion going, in case anyone else out there is having similar problems with their flash cart as me. I hope someone out there can provide some suggestions. :pray:
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Sorry, but I'm hoping a cheap bump up will get a discussion going, in case anyone else out there is having similar problems with their flash cart as me. I hope someone out there can provide some suggestions. :pray:
If I try to load a non-japanese game on my CGII, it will make a slight flash/distortion in the screen of the load menu but will not progress any further. Every Japanese game though I have tried works (though Space Invaders crashes in the advanced mode sometimes :cry:). If I format the flash card for TG-16 instead of PC-E, I get a white screen, but no blue screen will ever load.
I do not have an americal Turbos to test the flash card on. But I assume with an american system, an american game, and TG-16 formatting of the card that american games will load. Assume might be a big word here though.
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Sorry, but I'm hoping a cheap bump up will get a discussion going, in case anyone else out there is having similar problems with their flash cart as me. I hope someone out there can provide some suggestions. :pray:
If I try to load a non-japanese game on my CGII, it will make a slight flash/distortion in the screen of the load menu but will not progress any further.
This is because American ROMs have region lockout code. They can tell you are running them on a JP console and won't load.
This isn't related to the issue Paisa is having.
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Sorry, but I'm hoping a cheap bump up will get a discussion going, in case anyone else out there is having similar problems with their flash cart as me. I hope someone out there can provide some suggestions. :pray:
If I try to load a non-japanese game on my CGII, it will make a slight flash/distortion in the screen of the load menu but will not progress any further.
This is because American ROMs have region lockout code. They can tell you are running them on a JP console and won't load.
This isn't related to the issue Paisa is having.
Is there a way to alter the file to make it load? I am specifically trying to get the haxxord Galaga '90 to load so that the kids I watch sometimes could play it.
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Sorry, but I'm hoping a cheap bump up will get a discussion going, in case anyone else out there is having similar problems with their flash cart as me. I hope someone out there can provide some suggestions. :pray:
If I try to load a non-japanese game on my CGII, it will make a slight flash/distortion in the screen of the load menu but will not progress any further.
This is because American ROMs have region lockout code. They can tell you are running them on a JP console and won't load.
This isn't related to the issue Paisa is having.
Is there a way to alter the file to make it load? I am specifically trying to get the haxxord Galaga '90 to load so that the kids I watch sometimes could play it.
I've never heard of the hacked Galaga '90. How was it hacked?
As far as your other question, I don't believe there is any way to modifiy the ROMs to remove the region lockout. Bonknuts could probably give you a definitive answer.
The only way around the lockout that I'm aware of is to physically ground one of the pins on the CPU inside the CoreGrafx. An unfortunate side effect of this mod would render your flash cart useless, thus completely defeating the purpose.
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It's hacked so you cannot die and you start off with the super ship (3 shots).
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This is because American ROMs have region lockout code. They can tell you are running them on a JP console and won't load.
I'm pretty sure it's actually the other way around...it would explain why US systems are far easier to region-mod than JP systems. And, cards won't run on the wrong system because the byte order of the data lines is different.
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So, I was looking at one of these, are they really that good? I am looking at the idea of playing some fan translated stuff, but would I still need an adapter for a US system? ](*,)
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So, I was looking at one of these, are they really that good? I am looking at the idea of playing some fan translated stuff, but would I still need an adapter for a US system? ](*,)
You can set the card to either PC-E or TG-16 when you write to it. But you can only play the proper region of games on the system. So if you want to play translated games, most of them would play on a Japanese system since they are Japanese games to begin with.
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I'm pretty sure it's actually the other way around...it would explain why US systems are far easier to region-mod than JP systems. And, cards won't run on the wrong system because the byte order of the data lines is different.
Both Japanese and US games have region codes, but only Japanese systems bother to check this code, hence the need to ground a pin to disable the region check.
So, I was looking at one of these, are they really that good? I am looking at the idea of playing some fan translated stuff, but would I still need an adapter for a US system? ](*,)
They're not as good as sex, but they're pretty damn good. No adapter needed for US systems, as you set the region when you write the roms to the card.
You can set the card to either PC-E or TG-16 when you write to it. But you can only play the proper region of games on the system. So if you want to play translated games, most of them would play on a Japanese system since they are Japanese games to begin with.
I don't think so, Missa. I played through Bubblegum Crash on my TurboDuo without any problems.
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You can set the card to either PC-E or TG-16 when you write to it. But you can only play the proper region of games on the system. So if you want to play translated games, most of them would play on a Japanese system since they are Japanese games to begin with.
I don't think so, Missa. I played through Bubblegum Crash on my TurboDuo without any problems.
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That one specifically might work, but my wonderboy translated game for example will not work on my PC-E specific emulator, but will work on the flash card and the CGII. I have couple of other english translated games but I have not played/tested them.
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That one specifically might work, but my wonderboy translated game for example will not work on my PC-E specific emulator, but will work on the flash card and the CGII. I have couple of other english translated games but I have not played/tested them.
Emulators and consoles are two different beasts, so I'd bet that either the emulator isn't emulating the hardware correctly or the translation is buggy. Proper Japanese roms should work fine on a flash cart in US hardware.
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Hmm, must look harder now . . .
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You guys have the region thing all wrong. I was not incorrect in what I said.
American games have region lockout code that executes before the game is booted. ONLY AMERICAN GAMES HAVE THIS CODE. By "code" I mean a microprogram or subroutine, whatever. IIRC it was up to the developer to implement this code to comply with Hudson/NEC's policies. There is at least one US cart that doesn't have this code (Night Creatures I think) and that cart will play on a Japanese system. This code checks a condition on the CPU that is only present in Japanese hardware. You can trick the lockout code into thinking the condition does not exist by grounding a pin on the CPU of the Japanese console. This has nasty side effects that break certain games as well as break the ability to use a flash cart.
There is nothing going on in the hardware itself with regards to region protection other than the swapped cartridge port pin layout; it's all in the ROMs.
Therefor, I can play Japanese ROMs all day long on my US system using a flash cart regardless of what region the cart is set to (although if it's set to JP I'll need a Kisado to use it on my US console). This is because Japanese games don't have a lockout routine checking anything. American ROMs will only ever be playable on my American system, regardless of whether or not I swap the pinout to be JP-correct because of the routine that checks for the presence of a Japanese CPU is part of the ROM itself.
Make sense?
So, I was looking at one of these, are they really that good? I am looking at the idea of playing some fan translated stuff, but would I still need an adapter for a US system? ](*,)
T2KFreeker, the flash cart will work absolutely great for what you want it for-- no adapter required. That's precisely the reason I got mine and it works like a dream on my US TurboDuo.
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....OK, the flashcard is now finally making sense to me. 8-[ Thanks for that info nat. :)
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So, I was looking at one of these, are they really that good? I am looking at the idea of playing some fan translated stuff, but would I still need an adapter for a US system? ](*,)
T2KFreeker, the flash cart will work absolutely great for what you want it for-- no adapter required. That's precisely the reason I got mine and it works like a dream on my US TurboDuo.
Hmm, sounds cool. I should get one then.
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Hmm, sounds cool. I should get one then.
It seems like most folks that are using their flash cart on U.S. Turbo Duo's aren't having issues. However, if all you have is a TG-16 or TEx, you may want to think about plunking down money for the flash cart. It just seems to strange that both my TG-16 and Nat's have had similar issues, and my TEx reacted the same way.
All my turbo chips work fine on my console. After comparing the contacts on my turbo chips with those on the flash cart, I've noticed that they're arranged differently. Again, being that I'm not very tech-saavy, is it at all possible that even if I write all my roms in TG-16 mode onto my flash cart, that the region lock-out is being engaged by my console because the flash cart doesn't have the same contact configuration as TG-16 turbo chips?
I wish I could find someone around me with a TG-16, so that I can test my flash cart on their console just to see if I got stuck with a strange console that just rejects the flash cart. If anyone on here is around Tampa, FL, and willing to let me test out my flash cart on your console, let me know. It's too bad that the flash cart is giving my problems now after it started off working so well on my console.
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Paisa49, I think I've come to the conclusion that the power output of the TG-16's AC adapter is just a HAIR too weak for it to work consistently. The power draw of the flash cart is higher than a normal cart. I think it works fine on the Duo because the Duo has a more powerful AC adapter (it's gotta power the CD-ROM after all) and gets more juice.
So far, it seems to work flawlessly on my TurboDuo and also on my PCE GT handheld when the GT is plugged into the wall using the AC adapter. I haven't tried it on the GT using only batteries yet, though.
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That was my initial suspicion, as well. When the flash cart was first working on my console, it was doing so with an ac adaptor from radio shack that was giving me 9 volts. As a result of getting less "juice" to the flash cart, the cart would start up, but there would be an annoying buzzing sound coming from my TV whenever I played a rom. After I switched the radio shack adaptor to an original TG-16 adaptor, the buzzing sound went away, and the flash cart continued to work. Then, after sometime, it would only load up my rom menu screen every so often. Now, it won't even load it up at all. I really can't think of anything else other than my console not liking the contact configuration for the flash cart.
I'm so glad this forum exists. Your collective knowledge is appreciated.
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You can play US games on a Jpn system but you have to do some editing to the rom with a hex editor, i changed the code in the us version of magical chase so that it would work on my core grafx.
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That would be very useful information for you post, IE, what address range needs to be changed and what it needs to be changed TO.
Missa was looking for information like this for a pet project, and I'd like to have this info on hand for reference purposes.
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First you need a hex editor, you can download a trial version for free if you don't have one already, you have to know how to use it of course, its not hard it took me about 10 min's, then you need to search for this line $54 $A9 $FF $53 $01 $AD $00 $10 $29 $40 $F0 change the $F0 to $80.
Obviously its ideal to have the ability to put both US and Jpn roms on one flash card even if you have a US and Jpn system.
If you need any help let me know.
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I'm already familiar with how to use a hex editor, etc, and all that.
A couple questions:
a) Will this work for disabling the region program in all US ROMs or only Magical Chase?
b) How did you figure out where the region check was located in the ROM? Is there documentation somewhere I don't know about?
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I have been able to find this line in 4 out of 6 US roms that i looked in, so they might all be the same and i just couldn't find it.
And to your second question, i read it some where on the net but i cant remember where, some one allot smarter than me figured it out
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Hmm, maybe someone over on the Assembler forums.
Thanks for the tip, I'm going to do a little digging on this.
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Boy, I could really use a TG16 flash card so I can play import games on my TG16. Do they even exist?
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Of course! Why do you think this thread is here?
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I did the hex edit trick to all of the US roms except the following of which I cant find the standard code:
Cadash
Final Lap Twin
Ghost Manor
Legend of Hero Tonma
Night Creatures
I did this about 2 years ago when I first got my NEO Flash Card with nice R-Type decal. Too bad I get just a white screen when booting it up on my DUR-RX console. I cant even get the main menu. Maybe I need to do this non abrasive cleaning methods as stated in this thread. Funny thing is that regular Hucards work great. I'm pretty much having the same problems as Paisa49. The card worked the first couple times now doesnt work at all. The card appears to write the roms correctly cause I get no errors on the PC side. I"ve come to point where I'm playing Turbo roms on my modded XBOX.
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First you need a hex editor, you can download a trial version for free if you don't have one already, you have to know how to use it of course, its not hard it took me about 10 min's, then you need to search for this line $54 $A9 $FF $53 $01 $AD $00 $10 $29 $40 $F0 change the $F0 to $80.
Hmm, that string is not present in either the Air Zonk ROM nor the Space Harrier ROM, two games I own the US versions of but I'd like to be able to play on my GT handheld.
I even tried variations on that to make sure it wasn't just slightly different or something. The last three bytes, $29$40$F0 don't exist together anywhere in that order in either ROM.
Sideshow, if you patched all the ROMs to work on JP hardware, can you tell me how you did Air Zonk and Space Harrier?
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Check your PM Nat.
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I just looked in Air Zonk and it was the first line in the hex dump, make sure the rom is unzipped and if that does not work find another rom, lat me know if you need to know where.
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Not only is it not in the first line, it's not in the first 25 lines, or anywhere in the dump at all. Take a look for yourself:
(http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n132/nathall_1/hex.jpg)
I used my hex editor's handy "search" function to make the looking go a little easier. To be honest, I haven't found that line in any of the ROMs I've looked at, period.
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Nat, you have one of those crappy "bit-swapped" roms that haven't seemed to die yet (no thanks to some old EMUs). This is why you can't seem to find it. Does your flash card software support bit-swapped roms? I know tototek software doesn't detect it (as it shouldn't, those dumps need to disappear).
The first 0x200 bytes is the header. The real rom starts at 0x200. The correct rom would read "78 54 A9 FF" at 0x200 (or 0x00000 if it has no header) for AirZonk. US roms actually have the word "NEC" in the detection code.
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Like Bonknuts said, it looks like a bad rom.
In addition to what Bonknuts said you can also try this, go to your search option in your hex editor, copy and past this line 00 AD 01 53 FF A9 54 78, under search type, choose: QWORD (64bit integer) search.
Ive been able to find the line in every rom i looked in using this search method, including Air Zonk and Space Harrier, i found the line in position 486 for Space Harrier, i will also send you a pm.
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I did this about 2 years ago when I first got my NEO Flash Card with nice R-Type decal. Too bad I get just a white screen when booting it up on my DUR-RX console. I cant even get the main menu. Maybe I need to do this non abrasive cleaning methods as stated in this thread. Funny thing is that regular Hucards work great. I'm pretty much having the same problems as Paisa49. The card worked the first couple times now doesnt work at all. The card appears to write the roms correctly cause I get no errors on the PC side. I"ve come to point where I'm playing Turbo roms on my modded XBOX.
Not even the non abrasive cleaning has helped. I've all but given up on my flash cart. I really can't figure out anything else that could get my flash cart to work again.
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Since Turbokon has a working flash cart we shall see if my card works on his system. If it does work I will probably crap my pants cause regular hucards work fine on my DUORX just not this flash card. At least it used to work. It would of sucked if I never got it to work in the first place.
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All these stories of people flash carts stopping working have me really scared that mine will just quit one day. It works great so far as long as I use it on my Duo.
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It would of sucked if I never got it to work in the first place.
I think I actually would have preferred it if it never worked in the first place. Now, I'm just dumbfounded on how my cart stopped working. I liken my experience to being given the greatest toy of all time to then only being told that you can play with it for 5 minutes, after which, you'll never see it again.
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Well, it's likely very static sensitive, and static sensitivity seems to vary wildly. I've seen motherboards fried with barely a touch and others withstand painful zaps. I'm going to guess, then, that it maybe took a charge it didn't like.
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Thats a very good guess. I could of zapped my flash card without even knowing it. I didnt realize they are sensitive to static. The thing is that the card still appears to successfully flash roms onto the GBA side.
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Thats a very good guess. I could of zapped my flash card without even knowing it. I didnt realize they are sensitive to static. The thing is that the card still appears to successfully flash roms onto the GBA side.
Mine still accepts ROMS as well. So, is it possible for a flash cart to be totally zapped and still accept ROMS?
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Does the computer recognize that it took the ROMs? Can you do a test on them, like check their checksum or something to confirm they were copied OK? Also, if it's the PCE/TG-16 bank switching code that fried it wouldn't affect computer transfer. Basically, I don't know if it WAS static, but it's something to consider.
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Thats another good theory that the bank switching code could of damaged the flash card. Still thats absolute rubbish that a modified rom can ruin the flash card inoperable. This flash card should of been sold for like 50 bucks.
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Stupid question but this seems to be how to make US ROM's work on a Japanese console as I am trying to edit some (J) region games for my TG16. Which string do I look for to edit a Japanese game for US use. In particular I am trying to edit Fire Pro Wrestling 3.
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You don't need to do it the other way around. JP ROMs will work as-is on US systems without modification.
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Thanks that is nice to know as I was lost :lol: I take it is because of the region lockout. Now if I get a Japanese model DUO later down the road if I ground that pin would I still need to edit the ROM's or would they work similar to the TG16 with no needed editing?