no need to be sorry, it's like a game bug or something... on my system it crashes on yours runs fine
thanks for testing, is the map screen of Gimmick! fine? the one that shows the island before you start the game? (the jp version)
just to make sure, you have a straight connection: famicom av -> scart rgb input on your tv, right?
I am also sending the 2nd famiAV to the friend that owns it, he will test it as well
Last edited by keropi on Wed Feb 19, 2014 8:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
When the picture is scrolling up or down the picture doesn't really load properly.
I've noticed this in all of my games and don't know what to make of it.
I'm running an NESRGB PAL front loader to XRGB-mini to 46" LED TV (if it makes a difference)
When the picture is scrolling up or down the picture doesn't really load properly.
I've noticed this in all of my games and don't know what to make of it.
I'm running an NESRGB PAL front loader to XRGB-mini to 46" LED TV (if it makes a difference)
Any ideas?
If all else fails you can always enable zoom on the mini, and set zoom size to 90 to remove the garbage on the top and bottom. You'll get square pixels this way too!
I know some NES games have errors when scrolling (mostly discolored squares on the edge of the screen as you scroll, noticeable in something like Kirby). Maybe it is something like that and it would fall outside of the visible range on most consumer TVs?
I'm convinced you guys are right.
In the pics below you can clearly see that the top and bottom are cut compared to mine.
(Btw pressing the PPU or even jiggling the NESRGB board a bit didn't help at all)
This is a pic from what i believe is recorded on a CRT tv.
maybe the "wrong tiles" in the red square area I made are not meant to be visible, ie they belong to the overscan area and are "cut off" on tv sets... but because you are running with the framemeister it includes that screen area as well... I would do the zoom setting someone suggested before and just hide that area like it was meant to be...
maybe, not a fact
keropi wrote:no need to be sorry, it's like a game bug or something... on my system it crashes on yours runs fine
thanks for testing, is the map screen of Gimmick! fine? the one that shows the island before you start the game? (the jp version)
just to make sure, you have a straight connection: famicom av -> scart rgb input on your tv, right?
I am also sending the 2nd famiAV to the friend that owns it, he will test it as well
I'll check the map on Gimmick! after work tomorrow, wife just went do bed and I don't want to disturb her.
But yeah, AV Famicom -> SNES RGB Scart (NTSC), NTSC output on everything on the NESRGB.
I am really puzzled about the method to write back the fixed firmware.
I tried two computers, I soldered the cables directly via the cable from the usb blaster (also tried the pin header thing), I mounted the RGBNES board in the famicom AV and I am applying power to it while im trying to burn the firmware.
I always get jtag error 44. I am really getting frustrated...
any idea on what to do? I have been through all the pages of this thread and I do not think I found a solution to my problem...
I am really puzzled about the method to write back the fixed firmware.
I tried two computers, I soldered the cables directly via the cable from the usb blaster (also tried the pin header thing), I mounted the RGBNES board in the famicom AV and I am applying power to it while im trying to burn the firmware.
I always get jtag error 44. I am really getting frustrated...
any idea on what to do? I have been through all the pages of this thread and I do not think I found a solution to my problem...
thx!
Error code suggest a user/setup issue. What are you doing to get that error? Are you loading the proper pof file? Did you select both rows of boxes for Program/Configure and Verify as indicated in Tim's page?
nesfreak wrote:keropi, I pretty much did the installation as sammargh did, and cut the trace for pin 9 as in this picture: http://i.imgur.com/Nt3isN4.jpg
I did the same to the 1st famicom, on the 2nd I just used the nesrgb pads to solder Tim's socket and used Tim's cable like this:
no modifications on the mobo av port or Tim's cable , with this test setup they were not needed at all... I've posted pics of my installation a couple of pages back.
It's not that I am not getting a good picture, it works perfect on every CRT I tried it and even an older Samsung LCD screen (that is crappy in RGB as expected). It's just the LG sets that give me problems when they shouldn't
Last edited by keropi on Wed Feb 19, 2014 10:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
nesfreak wrote:keropi, I pretty much did the installation as sammargh did, and cut the trace for pin 9 as in this picture: http://i.imgur.com/Nt3isN4.jpg
I did the same to the 1st famicom, on the 2nd I just used the nesrgb pads to solder Tim's socket and used Tim's cable like this:
no modifications on the mobo av port or Tim's cable , with this test setup they were not needed at all... I've posted pics of my installation a couple of pages back.
It's not that I am not getting a good picture, it works perfect on every CRT I tried it and even an older Samsung LCD screen (that is crappy in RGB as expected). It's just the LG sets that give me problems
Have you tried installing the board in your console, turning it on, and while it's on, trying to reprogram it?
"Thanks for the nice reply. I do offer to do work without hot glue too if people prefer it that way." - Drakon
keropi wrote:maybe the "wrong tiles" in the red square area I made are not meant to be visible, ie they belong to the overscan area and are "cut off" on tv sets... but because you are running with the framemeister it includes that screen area as well... I would do the zoom setting someone suggested before and just hide that area like it was meant to be...
maybe, not a fact
Yeah i will try out some framemeister zoom thingies, i tried it quick on the TV and it could hide it really well by zooming and repositioning the screen, but it resets every time i shut it down, i think the framemeister will save it's last settings, at least it does it with the scan lines etc.
CkRtech wrote:I remember seeing lots of garbage in the sides/top/bottom of the screen from the NES even when CRTs ruled the earth. Overscan didn't always hide it.
Do you guys toss your RF shielding or attempt to reintegrate it after modding your consoles?
I kept the RF shields, no idea if they are uselss or not, just doesn't feel right to get rid of them
keropi wrote:yes, I did try that... one board is running 1.0 and the other 1.3 , both have the replacement SRAM chips from Tim and they behave the same .
It seems to me that the connection from your Programmer to the JTAG programming points on your board are A) incorrect or B) not solidly connected. Could I ask you to post a photo of your programmer and the board?
"Thanks for the nice reply. I do offer to do work without hot glue too if people prefer it that way." - Drakon
Update for switchless mod:
I updated the zip file to include a hex file with the fourth "palette" disabled. The fourth palette disables the NESRGB and outputs the original to the PPUV pin and video connector. If you only want RGB and won't ever miss the original composite, use this hex instead.
opt2not wrote:How does the switchless mod interact with the powerpak's reset-to-menu function?
I think so, yes. You can't go back to the menu because holding reset isn't sending a reset signal to the CPU, only short presses do. I guess you could modify the code to make a short press (<0.5s) generate a short reset and a longer press (0.5-2s?) generates a "Powerpak" 4 second reset. How does the Powerpak detect that the reset button is pressed?
I'm not sure, I'm no engineer. but I am an ideas man, so would your mod be able to be activated by a momentary switch? A small button installed in the back that cycles through the palettes would be cool.
keropi wrote:yes, I did try that... one board is running 1.0 and the other 1.3 , both have the replacement SRAM chips from Tim and they behave the same .
It seems to me that the connection from your Programmer to the JTAG programming points on your board are A) incorrect or B) not solidly connected. Could I ask you to post a photo of your programmer and the board?
Either a case of wrong quote or I didn't write it correctly
I can update the boards just fine with my usb blaster, I don't have a problem at all in that.
I have 2 boards, currently one at 1.0 and the other at 1.3 firmware, updating was a breeze but it did not affect the screen flashing problem I face on LG sets.
Finally bumped my wires up to a thicker gauge. Seems to have helped a little bit, but I still appear to have a bit of interference on the set.
Granted, right now the NES is in half, the wires are hanging over the edge and are temp-soldered to the nine pin connector board. Plastic is plastic, but perhaps finally drilling the hole and closing up will do it. I am still holding off on that because I haven't decided where I want to drill, what switches I want to use, etc.
CkRtech wrote:Finally bumped my wires up to a thicker gauge.
I find that's totally unnecessary. I keep seeing people here use thick gauge wire soldered onto the pads for their installs and it makes me cringe big time. For my install and the two I've done for others so far, I use 28 AWG wire in conjunction with pin headers and crimped connectors. It's super clean and makes things so much easier if something goes wrong. I also have zero issues with interference.
I was using radio shack wrap wire (like 30 AWG) and moved up to 22 AWG to see if it would make a difference. Doesn't really seem like it did. It is barely noticeable, but kinda sticks out once you see it.
I don't really want to drill and "close up" until it is gone.
opt2not wrote:I'm not sure, I'm no engineer. but I am an ideas man, so would your mod be able to be activated by a momentary switch? A small button installed in the back that cycles through the palettes would be cool.
Yes, that would work, and you don't have to cut the trace if you do that. Just make sure that the switch ties pin 10 to ground when not pressed and Vss when you press it. I made a version that does exactly what I said earlier (0.5-2 second button press will result in a long reset of 4 seconds), but I haven't tested it yet...
Can somebody tell me exactly how long you have to press reset for the Powerpak to jump back to the menu?
the small push button idea is very nice indeed
normally though small momentary buttons only have 2 pins , so I guess you can send VCC to the PIC when you press it but it's not possible to have it grounded when the button is in it's OFF state ...
Last edited by keropi on Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:34 am, edited 2 times in total.
but I am an ideas man, so would your mod be able to be activated by a momentary switch? A small button installed in the back that cycles through the palettes would be cool.
