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help with my 32x


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My brother found a copy of virtuia racing for the 32x at a swap meet.

 

Today I tried popping it in my 32x and shows the typical produced by/licensed by Sega jargon. After that I get a blank black screen. When I hit the reset button it says "Developed for use only with NTSC genesis systems."

 

What the? So I take it my genesis is the problem? I mean, its labeled as a sega genesis, not a mega drive. So wouldnt that mean my genesis is NTSC?

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Unless the 32X doesn't say "Genesis 32X" on it, sounds like you just need to clean it. The 32X is very sensitive to dirt (no reason why it shouldn't be).

 

For the cart slot on the 32X, use a toothbrush, dip it in rubbing alcohol and scrub the cart slot. Be sure to wipe off the bristles and dip the toothbrush in more alcohol every now and then. Alternatively, you can wet a cartridge in rubbing alcohol, then insert and remove it from the 32X. Again, wipe off the cart edge connector and wet it again multiple times to get a good cleaning.

 

For the 32X's edge connector (the part that goes to the Genesis), use Q-tips and rubbing alcohol. Do as above, just wet the Q-tip and wipe back and forth on the edge connector. Rinse and repeat until there is little dirt on the Q-tips.

 

Be sure to let everything dry for a bit before testing. A few minutes is enough.

 

Also, you DO have the short video cable that connects to the Genesis AV port, then to the 32X's AV IN port, right? If you don't, you won't be seeing much video in Virtua Racing Deluxe until you obtain that vital part.

 

Lastly, what kind of Genesis do you have? Does it look like this?

 

SegaGenesisHiDef-h450.png

 

Or does it look like this?

 

1084012-sega_genesis2_1_super.jpg

 

Which ever one you have will determine quite a few things you need to know about the 32X. You should read this article so you can get accustomed to the few kinds of 32X configurations:

 

http://www.whipassgaming.com/genesisreviews/32x_abe.html

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Unless the 32X doesn't say "Genesis 32X" on it, sounds like you just need to clean it. The 32X is very sensitive to dirt (no reason why it shouldn't be).

 

For the cart slot on the 32X, use a toothbrush, dip it in rubbing alcohol and scrub the cart slot. Be sure to wipe off the bristles and dip the toothbrush in more alcohol every now and then. Alternatively, you can wet a cartridge in rubbing alcohol, then insert and remove it from the 32X. Again, wipe off the cart edge connector and wet it again multiple times to get a good cleaning.

 

For the 32X's edge connector (the part that goes to the Genesis), use Q-tips and rubbing alcohol. Do as above, just wet the Q-tip and wipe back and forth on the edge connector. Rinse and repeat until there is little dirt on the Q-tips.

 

Be sure to let everything dry for a bit before testing. A few minutes is enough.

 

Also, you DO have the short video cable that connects to the Genesis AV port, then to the 32X's AV IN port, right? If you don't, you won't be seeing much video in Virtua Racing Deluxe until you obtain that vital part.

 

Lastly, what kind of Genesis do you have? Does it look like this?

 

SegaGenesisHiDef-h450.png

 

Or does it look like this?

 

1084012-sega_genesis2_1_super.jpg

 

Which ever one you have will determine quite a few things you need to know about the 32X. You should read this article so you can get accustomed to the few kinds of 32X configurations:

 

http://www.whipassgaming.com/genesisreviews/32x_abe.html

 

 

I can answer a few of these as Timaishu is my brother. :P The 32X we found at a thrift store brand new and sealed in its box so its absolutely mint and has everything needed that it originally came with. He also gave the game a good cleaning with high percentage alcohol before trying it and the Genesis is a model 2.

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I had to disconnect and reconnect the ribbon cables that connect between the two boards inside the 32x to get mine to stop crashing 1 second after power-on. You don't need to disconnect the boards from the bottom half of the case to do this. If nothing else seem to fix this, it's one more thing to try.

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I had to disconnect and reconnect the ribbon cables that connect between the two boards inside the 32x to get mine to stop crashing 1 second after power-on. You don't need to disconnect the boards from the bottom half of the case to do this. If nothing else seem to fix this, it's one more thing to try.

 

I had to this too with the last two I bought. One was in great condition while the other had rusted metal shields and a bit dirty, both work great now after this fix.

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Sorry if this is a dumb question, but are you sure it's the 32X version of Virtua Racing? The reason I ask is the regular Genesis version (the super tall cart version on left) will NOT work if plugged into a 32x due to some special circuitry in the cart.

 

He's not going to get a "This game was designed for NTSC systems" message with that. Just a black screen. But a good catch nonetheless, I think a lot of people forget that the Genny VR doesn't work on the 32X.

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Sorry if this is a dumb question, but are you sure it's the 32X version of Virtua Racing? The reason I ask is the regular Genesis version (the super tall cart version on left) will NOT work if plugged into a 32x due to some special circuitry in the cart.

 

I have the smaller cart 32x labeled cart.

 

And for those that missed my brothers post.

 

My 32x is literally brand new. Found it sealed at a thrift store. Has about 20 minutes play time on it.

 

I gave every game a good cleaning before inserting it for the first time to minimize transfer of oxidation. And yes all the cables are hooked up properly. Has both power cords plugged in as well as the link cable between genny and 32x and the RF shields installed properly.

 

The system works fine with my other games. Just this one is posing a problem.

 

I also have the model 2 genesis MK-1614S and 32X model MK-84001A

Edited by timaishu
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Your system is like new old stock, not actually new. Metal oxidizes with time and exposure to oxygen, not use. It could still be the ribbon cables needing to be unplugged and reinserted.... which are *inside* the 32x and require a screwdriver to get at them.

 

Considering it's just this one game though... maybe it's just the game? You only have one copy of it? It's probably screwed up. Sometimes game cartridges go bad.

 

You're not even mentioning if your other games that worked are even 32X specific. Are they? or are they just regular Genesis Games?

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The fact that it brings up the region lockout screen is very weird. Here's a picture of the PAL and Japanese versions of 32X -- I assume your cart isn't one of these:

 

33vm77k.jpg

 

Otherwise I guess something must be happening to make your cart think that it's playing on a PAL or, maybe, Japanese system. IIRC the Genesis "defaults" to US-NTSC mode, so if a trace were broken or something that'd be the most likely possibility. I don't know how the 32X handles region checking, if at all -- it may just have 50 vs. 60 Hz modes.

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Hmmm, actually, the fact that it says it was developed for NTSC Genesis systems seems to strongly indicate that the problem is downstream from the cart, and that your Genesis somehow ended up in Japanese mode. That's my best guess.

 

There's also some discussion here (Google translation of a no-longer-extant French site) that may be helpful. Based on what I'm reading here, I think the lockout message would say "Mega Drive" for a PAL or Japanese cart.

 

BTW, the Japanese cart is actually fairly desirable because, unlike the US version, it includes FRAM for saving your best times. Totally stupid that they didn't put that in the US version!

Edited by thegoldenband
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The fact that all his other carts work fine & he's got a NTSC/U genesis, 32x, and cartridge strongly indicates that his cart is fried.

Could be, but there are plenty of games for both Genesis and 32X that don't have region lockout, and it's entirely possible (I'm not saying it's likely) that his library is otherwise all region-free. I've never, ever heard of a cart frying in just the right way so as to (erroneously) trigger the region lockout.

 

I don't know much about the pinouts of the Genesis and 32X cartslot -- is there any pin, or set of pins, that governs region detection? I'm trying to unpack what I'm reading here but no luck so far.

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The fact that it brings up the region lockout screen is very weird. Here's a picture of the PAL and Japanese versions of 32X -- I assume your cart isn't one of these:

 

33vm77k.jpg

 

Otherwise I guess something must be happening to make your cart think that it's playing on a PAL or, maybe, Japanese system. IIRC the Genesis "defaults" to US-NTSC mode, so if a trace were broken or something that'd be the most likely possibility. I don't know how the 32X handles region checking, if at all -- it may just have 50 vs. 60 Hz modes.

 

My cart looks like none of those.

 

I took a video showing a 32x game and genesis game that work. Then the 32x copy of virtua racing that doesnt. Now you guys can see what I am seeing. Click the image to see the video.

th_VID00014.jpg

Edited by timaishu
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Everything points to a bad ROM chip in your game cartridge. If all your other Genesis and 32X game carts play fine, then what is the common factor?

 

I would use sandpaper and alcohol thoroughly on that cart's pins before officially calling it dead though.

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The TMSS (Trade Mark Security System, always displays before game) screen and nothing else is a tell-tale sign of non-working cartridges (and sometimes just dirty connections). If Virtua Racing Deluxe does not work on either of your 32X systems, which do play other 32X games, then it's safe to assume your cartridge needs fixing. Ask on Sega-16 for more details, someone can surely assist you further from there.

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Dead cartridge ROM chips are mostly a total loss. I have never lost a Genesis/32X game, but have had a few Atari VCS games go bad over the years. Unless you have a need to keep the case, it is really trash at this point. I have never heard of a single dead cartridge being revived.

 

Before you toss it out, I would advise asking the question over at Sega-16's forums. There are plenty of knowledgeable people on the Sega side of things at that site. Be forewarned, Sega-16 does not allow new members to post any new posts until they have posted in at least ten existing threads. It is to prevent SPAM on the site, but can be frustrating to some. There is a thread, though, for newbs to ask tech support types of questions, and that is definitely what I would categorize this issue as.

 

Best wishes.

 

TZ

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TMSS isn't really a BIOS. It's akin to the 10NES lockout chip and all the anti-piracy methods on the SNES, just a way of preventing unlicensed software from being playable on new Genesis revisions. Most of the old Model 1 Genesis systems have no TMSS.

 

And just for the record, TMSS has nothing to do with regional lockout. That is all game-specific. Most games before 1993/94 had no lockout, but there are certainly later releases that only work on localized Genesis/Mega Drive systems.

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Whatever you do, don't toss the game into the trash without testing it on a different system. And even if the game turns out to be bad, the shell can be used for making a 32X repro or homebrew.

 

I still think the region lockout screen (NOT the TMSS screen) is a sign that something weird is going on here, or at least weirder than the usual "just a dead cart" business. Maybe one of the Sega hardware gurus at Sega-16 will have insight; at least one of them, Chilly Willy, posts here.

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