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retro_fan

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Posts posted by retro_fan

  1. Posted · Edited by retro_fan

    Smokemonster ROM/BIOS pack open source preservation project (GitHub)

     

    To learn more about this very interesting to FPGA devices' users game preservation project watch the interview with Smokemonster by RetroRGB (go to 18:41):

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnDvFr6Lpqo

     

    I wonder whether it will be adapted for computer FPGA cores (MiST, for instance) as well...

  2. Posted

    A "native timing over hdmi" signal option is unwise imo. My 2006 Sanyo blacked out when I attempted this setting on my ultrahdmi n64, and if the user inadvertently saves such a setting on their device, it could actually bork their device if they can't find such a display that accepts it in order to see the menu to revert changes.

     

    I can totally see your point. That's why I suggested Kevtris might want to add it to the jailbroken firmware. If your screen blacks out--just take out the SD card and you're back to the stock firmware. There also could be like two warning screens explaining what to do if your display turns black and asking for confirmation, and/or a special button combination to go back to the default settings, whatever... I've noticed that a few people asked for this functionality, that's the reason why I suggested it. If a user can cope with setting up the jailbroken firmware and searching for all the necessary game files, they should be fine with this option (plus maybe some safeguards).

  3. Posted

    “[Phil] did 30 different ’90s retro, 16-bit-inspired iterations of the Analogue logo,” Analogue’s Christopher Taber told Polygon. “And when you boot up the Super NT — and I don’t think there’s any video game system that’s done this, I think it’s pretty cool — it randomizes every single time. But they’re all sort of synced up to the same audio that Squarepusher did [...] and end with the same final logo.”

     

    Okay... 30 boot screens, there should at least one that you will like. :D

  5. Posted · Edited by retro_fan

    Whoa, this menu and the boot screen look (and sound) awesome!

     

    Kevtris, consider adding some simple sounds when navigating the menus (accepting, canceling, moving up/down), please, this could give some nice aural feedback... You might want to work on this together with Squarepusher.

     

    The buffer mode settings look really interesting, but I think we are still missing one setting, i.e. "zero delay/original speed (not compatible with some displays)". Maybe add it to the jailbroken firmware, if you think that it should be for "advanced users only".

     

    Also, I'm waiting for the "skull & crossbones" menu skin. :grin:

    • Like 1

  7. Posted

    You mean the color palettes?

     

    Nope, I mean this: "[Kevtris on how the composite video is generated for the NES core] in NES mode, it is outputting an *exact* reproduction of the NES composite. This includes all artifacts, voltage levels, timing, etc. The dot crawl and everything should be absolutely identical to a real NES, including emphasis bits. The s-video mode is the same... if the NES could've outputted s-video. It uses the same voltage levels, timing, etc. the luma levels are the average of the toggling signal that the NES uses to create luma+chroma."

     

    I'm waiting to see something like that on other FPGA boards.

  8. Posted · Edited by retro_fan

    If the hardware clock is accurate all FPGA boards can produce a video signal that matches the original machine, usually a 15khz RGB+sync video at 60hz or 50hz horizontal refresh. The problem is that signal is no longer recognized by modern displays.

     

    I was also referring to the replication of composite video on these boards, i.e. what Kev did with the NES core.

  9. Posted

    The ntm's edge rate is going to be a lot higher than the original system's.

     

    Is this something that can be tweaked? Or is this due to some inherent difference between the FPGA board and the original hardware? I really hope that you will go back to making YT videos after the Super Nt release--we can always learn so much from you...

  10. Posted

    Great Hierophant in the latest instalment of his Nt Mini overview series has noticed that:

     

    Although Kevtris has indicated that the analog voltage levels of his NES core matched his NES, I found that compared to my NES, Famicom and AV Famicom, the hue is shifted a little more toward the red on the Nt Mini.

     

    There are, of course, pictures included. I can also see the lack of "jailbars" in the Nt Mini images. I guess Kevtris might explain what is the reason for these discrepancies. Anyway, it's amazing that one can replicate these original outputs with such an attention to detail as well as go for the sharpest image possible with HDMI.

     

    I also do wonder whether other FPGA projects such as MiSTer or The Replay Board will try to replicate any original video signals.

     

     

  12. Posted

    Hopefully we'll see not only FPGA consoles but also open source cores, so that they are future proof. This work is great to preserve the feeling of the original machines.

     

    Well... Kevtris did not say that he will never open source his cores:

     

    "No, I will not be open sourcing anything unless someone pays me a lot of money, then I might :-) Or if the project took off and got popular I might as well."

     

    Of course, now he's working for Analogue (and I hope he's really well-paid), but what will the future bring, we'll see... With each new hardware release Kevtris gets more and more popular, and with the release of the Zimba 3000 living off something like Patreon might become a possibility and at that point we actually might persuade Kevtris with our money to open-source some of the cores. There is also crowdfunding, and probably other options. Whatever he will decide, I always keep my fingers crossed for him.

  15. Posted

    [...]

     

    I am not really sure if we will see any more work done on those existing 8 bit cores, but I really hope that Kevtris will at least tweak and update them a bit as many of them are still a bit imperfect with bugs and sound that is a bit off. This is just based on my current play time with them. The biggest issues I have been able to find mostly have to do with the sound implementation on the NES, SMS and GB cores.

     

    [...]

     

    If you want to help kevtris fix these issues, and you think you found some new bugs, please elaborate on this topic.

  16. Posted

    I have found this interesting book on FPGA prototyping (warning! it's also a promo material).

     

    And it looks like the Super FX chip began its life as an FPGA prototype too: "The Super FX chip is the marketing name for the "Mario Chip" that was employed in StarFox to make that game's 3D polygon graphics feasible. There's no way the Super NES by itself can handle that kind of math fast enough for a good framerate. At the time the Super FX was an attractive, reasonably low-cost solution to math-intensive, per-pixel graphic effects on the Super NES. StarFox was released in 1993 as the result of years of work, both on the game and on the Super FX itself. The Mario Chip is the brainchild of Argonaut Software in the U.K., who specified its functionality. Ben Cheese Electronic Design implemented the chip's design. It was prototyped using Actel FPGAs and manufactured by Sharp."

  21. Posted · Edited by retro_fan

     

    warning: long drawn out technical reason ahead.

     

    short reason: It's because paperboy is poorly written, and relies on open bus values to be correct in all cases on the controller port reads.

     

    long reason: [...]

     

    It's good that this issue exists just so that we can read this awesome explanation of yours. :)

  22. Posted

    Both MiST and MiSTer use an ARM microcontroller to reprogram the FPGA on he fly, and handle both USB and SD card access. It's nice because it simplifies the functions that a core must handle and because changing systems is just a menu away without rebooting.

     

     

    I find these two fragments from the MiSTer Wiki intriguing:

     

    "Linux on ARM provides support for many I/O devices and file systems."

     

    "Talking about the Linux, most people will think "Oh, Linux will take a lot of time to load." It's not true in this case. The Linux used on this board is specially tweaked and takes only 2 seconds to boot. Usually monitor/TV requires longer time to lock the video and start to display. So usually board is ready sooner than TV start to display the video."

     

    It looks like this Linux version has been very nicely streamlined.

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