CC-40+ System Roms - Let us try to preserve it

[kl99]

Hi, this is Klaus. We managed to dump the 99/2 on the last weekend.

 

So now it is time to complete the picture by also getting the other machines into the next preservation stage.

We will try to dump the system roms of the never released/produced CC-40+, Compact Computer+.

Steve Eggers is having one prototype unit and according to acadiel also ksarul is one prototype owner.

The basic steps will be started off like acadiel managed to do all his dumps on the CC-40 unit.

 

[+acadiel]

I've got the raw ROMS dumped now for the +.  I just need to concatenate them and make actual binaries.

 

cc40-plus-processor-rom.txt cc40-plus-main-rom-duptest.txt cc40-plus-main-rom.txt

[+acadiel]

Merry Christmas

 

(Correction: New version of the main rom was uploaded, 4/21/2021)

 

cc-40plusROMs.zip

[+acadiel]

Also, just some trivia for all of you.  Stephen Reid is the one that did the port from the CC-40+ to the TI-74.  Here's some nuggets about this:

 

Stephen "took CC-40 code as basis; reworked paging routines to be TRAPs instead of CALLs, removed various built in subroutines to make space for the calculator mode functionality, etc.  The TMS70C46 processor variant used in the TI-74 integrated the Hexbus chip into the processor itself.  And the processor ROM code started with the CC-40+ ROM... had the cassette recorder code built in.  But not the hardware which was provided by the CI-7 cable on the TI-74.  The external parts in the CI-7 kept console parts lower and unit price lower.  (The CC-40+ has the cassette parts inside the unit on a TDK module.)  The technical resource manual (TRM) for the TI-74 was put together in support of our custom software dev program for the TI-74, and a network of value added resellers that Stephen  and a marketing manager supported into the late 80s and early 90s.   The TI-74 removed the banking lines from the cartridge port.  To get the multi page stuff working for the 64K and 128K modules that were produced by a 3rd party for the 74, he had asm routines that existed in the module memory space at identical locations and the paging circuitry was inside the module itself.  The 74 cartridge pinout was reduced."

 

[+acadiel]

Well, found an issue with the main ROM 32K dump for the +.

 

Don't worry (or don't panic).  The main 32K ROM for the + is the same as the CC-40!  The only difference between the CC-40 and the CC-40+ is that the + has a 4K Mask ROM, and that was dumped properly.

 

Also, Hap has updated the MAME emulation to support the CC-40+, including cassette save!  

 

I'll update the archive here shortly once I get the MAME formatted archive from HAP. It will be in MAME 0.231.

Mame link:  https://github.com/mamedev/mame/blob/master/src/mame/drivers/cc40.cpp

 

 

[+acadiel]

As promised, here is an archive with the MAME drivers for the CC-40 and CC-40+.

 

Can someone please upload to the proper place on WHTech?

 

cc40-mame.zip

[+mizapf]

I uploaded them to "System ROMs". Just to avoid confusion, these are the ROMs for the CC-40/40+, not the drivers.

 

(Driver is the MAME term for the actual system emulation; the driver is the component that uses the ROM dumps.)