Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

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BrianC
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by BrianC »

I use the 4x FBX settings for Genesis, the 5x FBX for SG-1000, SMS, and Colecovision, and the recommended larger screen settings for Game Gear. I revert back to 4x for codemasters SMS games.
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BrianC
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by BrianC »

4.5/7.5JB firmware now available.
v4.5 notes:

- Player 2 controller can run the menu if it is a 3 or 6 button controller, and player 1 controller is not a 3 or 6 button controller.
- Different size font files are supported. If the file is 1K or larger, the first 32 characters are cut off.
- DVI Mode was added.
- Fixed scaler bug where the top scanline or two might not be visible.
- Scanlines have been totally redone. There are now more options to tweak and width is now adjustable.
(gen/md)
- fixed CD games that regressed in previous fw
- Some graphic issues on Mickey Mania CD and others fixed.
- Fixed bugs with Japanese Sega CDs.
- Silpheed and Vay bugs fixed.
- Popful Mail "CPU ERROR" fixed.
- CD bus timing improvements.
- Pier Solar cartridge + audio CD works and tested on US model 1, US model 2, and Japanese CD units.
- Added an option to automatically enable CD audio when CD unit plugged in.
- Fixed FM sound bug on Streets of Rage percussion on certain tracks.
- Fixed PSG sound bug (Phantasy Star IV).
- CRAM dots option added.
- X-Men 2 random character select on start is now random.
(sms)
- SMS Cropping setting added to crop the left side when a game used left cut.
- Fixed PSG sound bug (Alex Kidd in Miracle World).
- CRAM dots option added.
- VDP palette option added to select SMS or original TMS9918a palette for video modes 0-3.
- All 240 scanlines are now visible. Before, only 239 were visible.
Edit: Sega CD bios switching was broken in the update. Loading a different CD bios works from the Mega Everdrive x7.
PearlJammzz
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by PearlJammzz »

Anyone notice odd scanlines with the latest update (7.5)? Decided to dial in 720p instead of 1080p and enable scanlines. They are weird. It's like it changes the hue of every other line? So something will be light brown, scan line, dark brown, scan line, light brown, scan line, etc. This happens with both normal and hybrid scanlines checked.

I just loaded up Shining in the Darkness to test since that's what I've been playing lately and it's really weird. Color goes back to normal once you disable scanlines or if you go to 1080p. I am using the following 720p settings from FBX:

-- FirebrandX 720p, square for 320
* set horizontal pos=27, vertical pos=39
320: 1020x720 disable HV
256: 931x720 enable H, disable V

Loaded up sonic 2 as well and same thing.
Seraphic
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Seraphic »

SegaCD Fpga Cardridge
https://shop.terraonion.com/en/products ... ridge.html
• Fully compatible with Analogue Mega Sg!
Wolf_
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Wolf_ »

Seraphic wrote:SegaCD Fpga Cardridge
https://shop.terraonion.com/en/products ... ridge.html
• Fully compatible with Analogue Mega Sg!
Pre-order a 1st gen terraonion product?
Image
GameLifter
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by GameLifter »

Seraphic wrote:SegaCD Fpga Cardridge
https://shop.terraonion.com/en/products ... ridge.html
• Fully compatible with Analogue Mega Sg!
I saw this earlier and it looks really, really cool. With this I could just leave it in my Mega Sg and not have to have the CD attachment hooked up to it. I'm going to wait a while until I get one though just to see if people find any issues with it.
DaShad0w
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by DaShad0w »

PearlJammzz wrote:Anyone notice odd scanlines with the latest update (7.5)? Decided to dial in 720p instead of 1080p and enable scanlines. They are weird. It's like it changes the hue of every other line? So something will be light brown, scan line, dark brown, scan line, light brown, scan line, etc. This happens with both normal and hybrid scanlines checked.

I just loaded up Shining in the Darkness to test since that's what I've been playing lately and it's really weird. Color goes back to normal once you disable scanlines or if you go to 1080p. I am using the following 720p settings from FBX:

-- FirebrandX 720p, square for 320
* set horizontal pos=27, vertical pos=39
320: 1020x720 disable HV
256: 931x720 enable H, disable V

Loaded up sonic 2 as well and same thing.
They indeed tried to fix the scanlines, They told me the next Super NT firmware will feature the same Scanline solution as the Mega SG update.
At first site they appear correct at my tv, i will check some more.

kind regards,
Ronald
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Fudoh
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Fudoh »

The new scanline engine is made for 1080p output, on which is actually looks pretty good.

It's not really suited for 720p output though. This more or less results in blind adjusting until it looks somehow OK. On 720p the sliders work against each other.

Also 480p is still or even more broken on the new FW than it was before. Before it was possible to get proper (2x horizontal) 480p output in simple mode, just the advanced mode was broken. Now both are disfunctional. In simple mode the picture is missing a good portion on the right edge.

There might not be too many people out there to use 480p, but it's great for use on ED sets and it's a pity that bugs like these are overlooked (despite being reported).
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Fudoh
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Fudoh »

Really nobody messing with the scanline settings while using the latest FW version?

While I can manage to achieve proper results, I'm puzzled at what Kevin's intention with the new settings was. For regular scanlines we get the three sliders. Bottom one is the regular density/brightness of the scanlines. Top one adjusts the brightness of the secondary scanline in relation (in %) of the brightness set on the lower scale, but I just can't make any sense of the middle one, which - for the most part - does nothing and then within a % completely counters the top setting.

I think Kevin geared these for 1080p output and it manages to achieve good results on it, but it's acting really weird on 720p output and seems completely broken for 480p.
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BrianC
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by BrianC »

I messed a little with the scanlines in 1080p. They look better than before, but are too dark by default. The new sliders are very confusing for me, as well.
stuntman
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by stuntman »

Fudoh wrote:Also 480p is still or even more broken on the new FW than it was before. Before it was possible to get proper (2x horizontal) 480p output in simple mode, just the advanced mode was broken. Now both are disfunctional. In simple mode the picture is missing a good portion on the right edge.

There might not be too many people out there to use 480p, but it's great for use on ED sets and it's a pity that bugs like these are overlooked (despite being reported).
At present, I consider this more than an overlooked bug. This expensive device that I bought does not function as advertised.
Don't bomb. DON'T BOMB.
Damn! Should have bombed.
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evil_ash_xero
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by evil_ash_xero »

I haven't updated the firmware. I do 480. I guess I'll just stick where I am.
Dochartaigh
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Dochartaigh »

Can anybody confirm that the smokemonster firmware does NOT give you save states for ALL games? (i.e. in games that DON'T originally have a battery backup save option or whatnot).

If the above is the case (which I think it is), and you already have an Everdrive (which does save states for ALL games), and you're ONLY looking to play Sega Genesis games (i.e. don't care about the extra cores), and you HAVE to have save states, is there even a point to jailbreaking the system?

...just trying to see how I want to set this up. Smokemonster firmware seems kinda pointless if that's the case. Am I missing something? Any 'better' features the firmware has over stock? The main reason I got an Everdrive is so I could save since I usually can't play for more than an hour at a time and like to continue my game where I left off.

Does the stock and the smokemonster firmware have the exact same video tuning options as each other? Also interested in scanline options if one has something better than the other.
Johnpv
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Johnpv »

Jailbreaking gives you access to the Sega Master System core, Game Gear Core, and Colecovision core.
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6t8k
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by 6t8k »

I was looking forward to a neat way of playing Game Gear games, and am not really interested in the original hardware for once.
Does somebody happen have more insight into the whereabouts of the corresponding cardridge adapter than is available here?

"Coming 2019 and sold separately.³" 2019 is nice, but footnote no. 3 is nowhere to be seen. :mrgreen:

In light of the recent announcement of the Analogue Portable, which will support GG carts if we go by that, I'm hoping that they won't ditch it. Well, there's still time.
Johnpv wrote:Jailbreaking gives you access to the Sega Master System core [...]
This is already available without the Jailbreak; the Master System Adapter is included in box with the base unit, fortunately.

I'm afraid I can't say anything further about the smokemonster(=jailbroken) firmware though, as I haven't dabbled with it.
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Guspaz
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Guspaz »

It's not ideal, but the jailbreak firmware does let you play Game Gear games without the adapter, which should tide you over until the adapters ship.
Cannonballs
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Cannonballs »

Guspaz wrote:It's not ideal, but the jailbreak firmware does let you play Game Gear games without the adapter, which should tide you over until the adapters ship.
Any idea when they should ship?
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6t8k
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by 6t8k »

Guspaz wrote:It's not ideal, but the jailbreak firmware does let you play Game Gear games without the adapter, which should tide you over until the adapters ship.
Hrrrrm yeah, wanted to avoid that actually since the cart makes for a nontrivial difference for me. And it looks like playing ROM files can introduce compatibility issues for some games, that are not present when using a cart (be it due to enhancement chip emulation kicking in or not...), giving me more reasons to stay clear. All things considered, might grudgingly give it a shot nonetheless, just too curious about the games' look and feel through this thing :P

Surprisingly I haven't been able to find confirmation so far whether a "downgrade" to official FW is possible afterwards. Guess people just keep it- exactly the temptation I'll make sure not to fall for, hah :mrgreen:
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Fudoh
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Fudoh »

You can switch between official and jailbreak FW as often as you look.

Also, doesn't the Retrofreak GG (oder Hyperkin 3-1) adapter work with the Mega SD jailbreak FW already?
Last edited by Fudoh on Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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6t8k
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by 6t8k »

Fudoh wrote:You can switch between official and jailbreak FW as often as you look.
Awesome, thanks for clarifying. :)
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BrianC
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by BrianC »

From what I can tell, you can even still use flashcarts with JB firmware. I didn't seem to be able to use FM sound from the Mega Everdrive V2 on the latest firmware, though. In many cases, it sounds just as good, but the mega sg's own FM sound sounds terrible in some games like Rastan. Most SG-1000 games are playable from the mega everdrive v2 on mega sg without jailbreak, though it doesn't support the stand alone version of Othello or The Castle (which do work directly on the mega sg jailbreak firmware).
EnragedWhale
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by EnragedWhale »

Firmware 4.7 released

https://support.analogue.co/hc/en-us/ar ... pdate-v4-7

notes:

- 32X support added in DAC mode
- Cartridge/CD audio selection fixed. Checking 'enable cartridge and CD audio' will work now regardless of the 'automatic' setting checkbox.
- 32X is detected and will enable audio by default.
- Chuck Rock CD is now working.
- Many CD fixes- NHL 94, Willy Beamish, and other games now work.
- Zesenilia demo text fixed.
- Turbo Outrun graphics seem to be fixed.
- Audio pitch shifting on some games in zero delay mode fixed.
- Support for cartridge adapters added.
- Game Gear adapter supports the tuner now.

And a twitter announcement promising news on the cart adaptors in the next week which I am particularly happy about. Let’s hope the shipping cost is sensible!
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6t8k
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by 6t8k »

EnragedWhale wrote:- Support for cartridge adapters added.
- Game Gear adapter supports the tuner now.

And a twitter announcement promising news on the cart adaptors in the next week
Also "estimated price of $9.99 USD each" Image
Wolf_
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Wolf_ »

6t8k wrote:
EnragedWhale wrote:- Support for cartridge adapters added.
- Game Gear adapter supports the tuner now.

And a twitter announcement promising news on the cart adaptors in the next week
Also "estimated price of $9.99 USD each" Image
Then in size negative one font after that: "+ $70 shipping and no way to combine orders."
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Guspaz
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Guspaz »

As somebody with a retail busines shipping retro gaming products, I do kind of get the "no combined shipping" thing if they're doing their own logistics. I try to stock a few different types of packaging to accomodate various possible order combinations, but it's impossible to have packaging on hand for every possible order somebody might make, so sometimes I get to the poing of saying "Did I buy anything from Amazon recently whose shipping box I can re-use for this? No? I guess I'm taping packages together, then." It can be a big pain, both in terms of taking much longer to pack an order, and in terms of me having to eat additional shipping costs that the software platform didn't account for due to larger/heavier packaging.

That said, they're still overcharging for shipping, which tells me that they're either marking it up or intentionally choosing higher priced shipping services and tiers than they need to, and if you're the actual product manufacturer like they are, you can afford the overhead of a fulfillment service, or even just dumping your products on Amazon and letting them figure it out.
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Larrs888
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Larrs888 »

Nice to see another update, just waiting on the JB now. Just a quick question, does anyone know what this fix does exactly?

"Audio pitch shifting on some games in zero delay mode fixed."

I have noticed some games sound noticeably quieter than others, Sunsoft's Batman the Video Game is one example, is that normal? I would test with my real Japanese Model 1 Mega Drive but its packed away at the moment.

Many thanks if anyone can shed any light.
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6t8k
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by 6t8k »

Because I didn't find info on this anywhere: the Master System adapter does not work with the original Mega Drive/Genesis just like the Power Base Converter (regardless of the console's region), because the convex shape of the console's plastic shell around the cartridge slot prevents the adapter from being inserted.

It would probably work with the top part of the shell removed; I see no technical reason why it wouldn't. "Raising the slot" with something like the Game Genie might be an option, but I'm not sure if these things prevent the console from booting in Master System mode.

Just a short note, the Master System adapter already worked before Firmware 4.7. The notes kinda make it sound like it didn't.
Johnpv
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by Johnpv »

6t8k wrote:
Just a short note, the Master System adapter already worked before Firmware 4.7. The notes kinda make it sound like it didn't.

I believe the notes are talking about the other announced adapters that supposedly are finally going to be released soon. This would be the Game Gear, SG1000, and something else.
copy
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by copy »

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ApolloBoy
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Re: Mega Sg (FPGA Genesis)

Post by ApolloBoy »

Johnpv wrote:
6t8k wrote:
Just a short note, the Master System adapter already worked before Firmware 4.7. The notes kinda make it sound like it didn't.

I believe the notes are talking about the other announced adapters that supposedly are finally going to be released soon. This would be the Game Gear, SG1000, and something else.
Game Gear carts, Mark III/SG-1000 carts and Sega Cards.

Also I don’t think they’ll be out until February since apparently Analogue had to get new connectors manufactured to meet their standards.
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