The Official Turbografx 16 Thread!

[Steven Pendleton]

17 minutes ago, SegaSnatcher said:

You aren't putting the SD Card in the IO board are you?  Always put the SD Card in the DE-10 Nano.

No, it's always gone in the DE10-Nano where it's supposed to go. I got the DE10-Nano several weeks before the other parts, so I had some time to figure out how it works in its stock configuration. I never used it without the other parts aside from setting it up and briefly checking out the menus.

[SegaSnatcher]

2 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

No, it's always gone in the DE10-Nano where it's supposed to go. I got the DE10-Nano several weeks before the other parts, so I had some time to figure out how it works in its stock configuration. I never used it without the other parts aside from setting it up and briefly checking out the menus.

What brand SD Card are you using?  

[Steven Pendleton]

5 minutes ago, SegaSnatcher said:

What brand SD Card are you using?  

The one that came with the system. Team, it looks like. I also tried a Toshiba, but that one belongs in my SD2SNES Pro, so after I found that there was no difference, it went back there where it belongs.

 

I forgot to ask my buddy what type his was when we tried it a few days ago.

 

Anyway, yeah, I think we should take this over to the MiSTer thread. It got buried a while ago, so I'll go revive it.

Edited May 1, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[SegaSnatcher]

1 minute ago, Steven Pendleton said:

The one that came with the system. Team, it looks like. I also tried a Toshiba, but that one belongs in my SD2SNES Pro, so after I found that there was no difference, it went back there where it belongs.

 

I forgot to ask my buddy what type his was when we tried it a few days ago.

Get a proper Sandisk micro SD card and reconfigure.  I guarantee it'll work.

[Steven Pendleton]

Just now, SegaSnatcher said:

Get a proper Sandisk micro SD card and reconfigure.  I guarantee it'll work.

I might have one of those just chilling in my desk, I think. If not, I think one of the convenience stores around here should have one. Can't go searching now, though; meeting in 20 minutes.

 

My friend just sent me a message and he says his is a Samsung. I guess we'll see what happens. Anyway, I suppose I'll summon you to the MiSTer thread with the results when I get a chance to buy a new SD card. Thanks!

[SegaSnatcher]

6 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

I might have one of those just chilling in my desk, I think. If not, I think one of the convenience stores around here should have one. Can't go searching now, though; meeting in 20 minutes.

 

My friend just sent me a message and he says his is a Samsung. I guess we'll see what happens. Anyway, I suppose I'll summon you to the MiSTer thread with the results when I get a chance to buy a new SD card. Thanks!

No problem, and I still recommend that USB hub.   

And if you are getting a new SD Card, I highly recommend at least 256GB, especially with PCE CD core coming soon. 

[Steven Pendleton]

Just now, SegaSnatcher said:

No problem, and I still recommend that USB hub.   

And if you are getting a new SD Card, I highly recommend at least 256GB, especially with PCE CD core coming soon. 

Yeah, I might just grab a cheap one now just to see if it works. I have real hardware for most of the consoles supported by the MiSTer that I am interested in, but we'll see. Now if the X68000 core was 100% complete, the MiSTer would probably be my favourite console ever just so I don't have to spend thousands of dollars on getting a functional X68000 and parts to keep it from breaking down.

[Eltigro]

On 4/26/2020 at 10:03 PM, CZroe said:

Regarding those extra consoles and CD hardware I have to trade off with the extra Rondo... well, you may have heard the State of Georgia was taking a lot of heat for reopening early so my friend just re-opened his shop and got these in:


I already picked up Bonk and Sidearms.

Of the others I only have Blazing Lazers, TV Sports Football, and Keith Courage in Alpha Zones. I'm thinking about trading Rondo with a Turbo Everdrive, a CD dock, and a mis-matched drive for a big chunk of the rest. If not, I still need Splatterhouse and Legendary Axe but I'm not ready to pay those prices.

I have TV Sports Football, World Class Baseball, Bonk's Adventure, Raiden, World Court Tennis, Blazing Lazers, The Legendary Axe, Galaga '90 and Keith Courage out of those.  ?

 

Legendary Axe I got when I got my system back in the day.

[CZroe]

Well, that PAL CoreGrafx arrived. It's much heavier than I thought. I thought those little grounding bumps under the rear port cover were part of the internal EMI shield but I was wrong... the springs and contacts went everywhere when I took it apart!

 

Anyway, they removed a capacitor to fit the RF modulator:

http://imgur.com/a/AjyI8RL

 

I believe removing the capacitor also disconnects the 60hz clock from the PC Engine's on-board crystal which lets them pump a 50hz clock through the Vertical Sync pin on the EXT port (black wire goes to VSn).

 

It's definitely running at 50hz and all the other connections seem to be composite AV and power. Their add-on board has a Sony CXA1145P PAL video encoder along with a couple other chips (one NEC). It also has a couple crystals, presumably to generate the 50hz clock.

 

I have TV Sports Football, World Class Baseball, Bonk's Adventure, Raiden, World Court Tennis, Blazing Lazers, The Legendary Axe, Galaga '90 and Keith Courage out of those.  [emoji2]   Legendary Axe I got when I got my system back in the day.

 

 

 Of those, I have:

TV Sports Football

World Class Baseball

Power Golf

Sidearms

Bonk's Adventure

Blazing Lazers

The Legendary Axe

Keith Courage in Alpha Zones

 

I hope to trade a CD dock, Akumajou Dracula X Chi no Rondo, and Turbo Everdrive for the rest.

 

Looks like Raiden is a real jewel!

 

 

 

 

 

[Steven Pendleton]

7 hours ago, CZroe said:

Well, that PAL CoreGrafx arrived. It's much heavier than I thought. I thought those little grounding bumps under the rear port cover were part of the internal EMI shield but I was wrong... the springs and contacts went everywhere when I took it apart!

 

Anyway, they removed a capacitor to fit the RF modulator:

http://imgur.com/a/AjyI8RL

 

I believe removing the capacitor also disconnects the 60hz clock from the PC Engine's on-board crystal which lets them pump a 50hz clock through the Vertical Sync pin on the EXT port (black wire goes to VSn).

 

It's definitely running at 50hz and all the other connections seem to be composite AV and power. Their add-on board has a Sony CXA1145P PAL video encoder along with a couple other chips (one NEC). It also has a couple crystals, presumably to generate the 50hz clock.

 

I'm still not sure what those little ball bearings are supposed to be. At first I thought there were grounds for the IFU, but only 1 of my IFUs actually has contacts inside. Then I figured there were just there to hold the EXP cover in place. I do not have the actual cover for either of my PC Engines so I don't know if they have anything to do with each other. Of course one of those is the SuperGrafx, which has 2 rows of 3 ball bearings instead of the 2 rows of 2 on the CoreGrafx. The SuperGrafx doesn't fit in the IFU for sure. I don't have a RAU-30 to see if it has the connections for the ball bearings, either.

 

Anyway, I should probably open my CoreGrafx to compare it to this one. Do you think this might have been a SODIPENG unit? I'm not sure what's up with PAL vs SECAM, but I know they are different, so if it was French, it should be SECAM, not PAL. An interesting system, for sure.

Edited May 2, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[CZroe]

I'm still not sure what those little ball bearings are supposed to be. At first I thought there were grounds for the IFU, but only 1 of my IFUs actually has contacts inside. Then I figured there were just there to hold the EXP cover in place. I do not have the actual cover for either of my PC Engines so I don't know if they have anything to do with each other. Of course one of those is the SuperGrafx, which has 2 rows of 3 ball bearings instead of the 2 rows of 2 on the CoreGrafx. The SuperGrafx doesn't fit in the IFU for sure. I don't have a RAU-30 to see if it has the connections for the ball bearings, either.
 
Anyway, I should probably open my CoreGrafx to compare it to this one. Do you think this might have been a SODIPENG unit? I'm not sure what's up with PAL vs SECAM, but I know they are different, so if it was French, it should be SECAM, not PAL. An interesting system, for sure.

People say that RF-modded PAL units were sold in Germany and the UK though I think it's weird that these ever would have been imported for sale in the there. Definitely not Sodipeng, since their CoreGrafx had no RF and included an external video adapter that plugs into the EXT port.

The metal contacts are definitely meant to bridge/connect the EMI/RF shielding between the IFU-30A and the CoreGrafx/SuperGrafx. The reason the original IFU-30 and white PC Engine did not do this before is because Japan was more lax about interference in the early/mid-'80s but started tightening up regulations to be more in-line with the FCC and other standards.

The US took the opposite approach where they grossly over-reacted to consumer electronics generating television frequencies and then gradually eased their restrictions... which is why the Atari "heavy sixer" VCS and Atari 800 are basically entombed in a giant block of aluminum!

The RAU-30 does not use the contacts, probably because it does not send video to the IFU. Strangely, you are expected to get video from the SGX and audio from the IFU. You will get mono CD-audio if you only use the SGX outputs and you will not get any video if you only use the IFU outputs.

I don't have a Super CD-ROM² attachment but I believe it has the metal contacts and it does fit directly on the back of an SGX without an RAU-30.

Both my SGX and my CGX came with their port covers. They are identical to each other but different from the earlier design included with the white PC Engine. They do rely on the spring contacts to fit securely so they fit rather loose on a white PC Engine. I actually don't have a port cover for my white PC Engine so I assume it was a friction fit. The SHX/GCX cover has a long oval groove that the contacts slip into regardless of the 2x2 or 2x3 arrangement.

So, yeah, I spent a lot more time digging into the PAL RF-modded CoreGrafx and tried to identify the connections and chips I could identify:
http://imgur.com/a/YOrzWiz

It seems to use a strange NEC chip made for converting 50hz to 60hz: the NEC MK5060-A. See? It even has 50 and 60 in the model number! Strangely, I couldn't find a datasheet but Google did lead me to some info at NESDEV. It seems that it was used in making NTSC-compatible PAL Nintendo Entertainment Systems for the Hong Kong market. As such, they worked out a pinout!

One of the pins says you can pull it low or high to toggle 50/60hz, but maybe they are talking about specifying the input and not setting the output... I dunno. I don't really know digital electronics. I think pulling "high" and "low" involves something like connecting a resistor between it and voltage or ground, but I wouldn't know how to begin without a datasheet. I mean, what resistor value and what is it even supposed to do?

There wasn't enough room for the RF modulator even after they removed the large DIN jack so they also removed a 470uF, 16v capacitor normally connected through a resistor to Composite Video output on the DIN. It doesn't seem that they added an equivalent one to their mod board so the signal levels out of the CXA1145-P must be drastically different.

[Steven Pendleton]

1 hour ago, CZroe said:

People say that RF-modded PAL units were sold in Germany and the UK though I think it's weird that these ever would have been imported for sale in the there. Definitely not Sodipeng, since their CoreGrafx had no RF and included an external video adapter that plugs into the EXT port.

The metal contacts are definitely meant to bridge/connect the EMI/RF shielding between the IFU-30A and the CoreGrafx/SuperGrafx. The reason the original IFU-30 and white PC Engine did not do this before is because Japan was more lax about interference in the early/mid-'80s but started tightening up regulations to be more in-line with the FCC and other standards.

The US took the opposite approach where they grossly over-reacted to consumer electronics generating television frequencies and then gradually eased their restrictions... which is why the Atari "heavy sixer" VCS and Atari 800 are basically entombed in a giant block of aluminum!

The RAU-30 does not use the contacts, probably because it does not send video to the IFU. Strangely, you are expected to get video from the SGX and audio from the IFU. You will get mono CD-audio if you only use the SGX outputs and you will not get any video if you only use the IFU outputs.

I don't have a Super CD-ROM² attachment but I believe it has the metal contacts and it does fit directly on the back of an SGX without an RAU-30.

Both my SGX and my CGX came with their port covers. They are identical to each other but different from the earlier design included with the white PC Engine. They do rely on the spring contacts to fit securely so they fit rather loose on a white PC Engine. I actually don't have a port cover for my white PC Engine so I assume it was a friction fit. The SHX/GCX cover has a long oval groove that the contacts slip into regardless of the 2x2 or 2x3 arrangement.

So, yeah, I spent a lot more time digging into the PAL RF-modded CoreGrafx and tried to identify the connections and chips I could identify:
http://imgur.com/a/YOrzWiz

It seems to use a strange NEC chip made for converting 50hz to 60hz: the NEC MK5060-A. See? It even has 50 and 60 in the model number! Strangely, I couldn't find a datasheet but Google did lead me to some info at NESDEV. It seems that it was used in making NTSC-compatible PAL Nintendo Entertainment Systems for the Hong Kong market. As such, they worked out a pinout!

One of the pins says you can pull it low or high to toggle 50/60hz, but maybe they are talking about specifying the input and not setting the output... I dunno. I don't really know digital electronics. I think pulling "high" and "low" involves something like connecting a resistor between it and voltage or ground, but I wouldn't know how to begin without a datasheet. I mean, what resistor value and what is it even supposed to do?

There wasn't enough room for the RF modulator even after they removed the large DIN jack so they also removed a 470uF, 16v capacitor normally connected through a resistor to Composite Video output on the DIN. It doesn't seem that they added an equivalent one to their mod board so the signal levels out of the CXA1145-P must be drastically different.

That's a lot nicer inside than I thought it would be. I'm still wondering where it came from, although perhaps it was someone in a PAL country that imported it from Japan and converted it. The UK and I think Spain got the grey TurboGrafx (not 16), but that whole thing with the PC Engine in Europe is really strange.

 

Yes, from what I can tell, the original white PC Engine's EXP cover is held in by friction, if it's anything like the one on the mini, but it does have a tiny little tab that sort of latches on. I posted a picture of the back of the mini with the cover on a while ago and I'm guessing the original one is just like it.

 

This PAL CoreGrafx is just weird. I wasn't able to open my CoreGrafx to compare, though. The screws are super tight and I have only the bit, the pliers on my Leatherman, and my hands to open it, so I think I should get a proper tool instead or I won't be able to put that clear case on. I might just see if I can find a regular white PC Engine and another CD-ROM2 for it just so I can have a second complete IFU setup, preferably with a 100% functional CD-ROM2. Now that I think about it, I need to open my RGB modded IFU and see what the hell is wrong with it.

Edited May 2, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[Steven Pendleton]

Um, yeah, how DO I open this thing? I got the screws out and the side where you put the PC Engine wants to come apart, but the side for the CD-ROM2 doesn't want to. The sliding power switch thing fell out and now I have no idea what to do. How annoying.

 

Okay, I got it disassembled. I think it was just stuck or something. It's a bit of a mess inside... perhaps I should take some pictures. I have absolutely no idea how to put this thing back together, now that I think about it. I just kind of pulled on random crap until the whole thing came apart. Nothing is broken, though, aside from the RGB out and the ability to save, which is what I opened it to inspect.

Edited May 2, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[Steven Pendleton]

Okay, here it is. I got this pre-modded RGB IFU-30 (not IFU-30A. My functional non-RGB modded one is the A) from a dude in France maybe 5 or 6 months ago. Sorry for my typical trash-tier photography skills and horrible camera. Pretty sure that a newborn baby might even be able to do better than this.

 

 

NEC RGB amp in the top takes RGB out through the left side. Looks like it is stuck in there with double sided tape or something. The R signal stopped working after the first time I powered it off, though, so instead of an RGB mod it's just a GB mod.

 

 

lol PSP go. Here are the things taking the RGB signal from the pin input thingy.

 

 

They continue to this point ^ where 1 yellow + 2 white + 1 black cable (no idea what they are for, but they are there) go to the output jack and the RGB goes to the NEC RGB amp. Also Super Nt is visible here! MASSIVE bonus points if you can identify my flashlight! Good luck!

 

Anyway, I have no idea what I'm looking at/for to fix either the R signal or my not being able to save, so advice is welcome. I don't mod stuff at all so I have literally no idea what I am doing or looking at. This was to be the only modded console I ever got aside from my still not-modded-because-it's-expensive Nomad, but then this RGB mod stopped working properly immediately and then I said screw it and bought the SSDS3. I'd like to fix this if I can, though.

 

And just for confirmation, this thing is supposed to go like this, right? It kind of fell out when I first tried to open the thing. Hard to imagine that that little spring has sat like that in there for 30+ years without breaking or wearing out, but there it is.

 

Edited May 2, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[Steven Pendleton]

Finally got my CoreGrafx open. I had to find an alternate way to use the bit with my Leatherman (ended up grabbing it right below the wire cutters on the handles, not holding it with the pliers) and it was super awkward and the screws were still extremely stiff, but I got it. It looks pretty interesting in comparison to that PAL modded CoreGrafx. The huge ribbon cable inside is so stiff that I was worried that it might snap in half, so I put it back together without really probing too much.

 

Also learned some interesting stuff about the SuperGrafx just now. Madou King Granzort released exactly 1 day before I was born. The RAU-30 released exactly 1 day after I was born. These facts have nothing to do with anything, but I thought they were interesting.

Edited May 2, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[CZroe]

That's a lot nicer inside than I thought it would be. I'm still wondering where it came from, although perhaps it was someone in a PAL country that imported it from Japan and converted it. The UK and I think Spain got the grey TurboGrafx (not 16), but that whole thing with the PC Engine in Europe is really strange.

It definitely wasn't modded by an individual for personal use with a purpose-built PCB engineered for cost reduction (single-sided). That NEC chip from an obscure Famicom/NES version seems pretty obscure since I can't find a datasheet on it. Makes me think NEC themselves came up with this schematic though it doesn't look like they were the ones implementing it. 

 

 

Um, yeah, how DO I open this thing? I got the screws out and the side where you put the PC Engine wants to come apart, but the side for the CD-ROM2 doesn't want to. The sliding power switch thing fell out and now I have no idea what to do. How annoying.

I've actually never been inside of one but I can take a look when I get home. I'm surprised to see that no one has ever made an IFURGB install video which would show this! 

 

 

Okay, here it is. I got this pre-modded RGB IFU-30 (not IFU-30A. My functional non-RGB modded one is the A) from a dude in France maybe 5 or 6 months ago. Sorry for my typical trash-tier photography skills and horrible camera. Pretty sure that a newborn baby might even be able to do better than this.

I had to chuckle since you live in The Land of PC Engine and still imported your IFU.  

 

 

NEC RGB amp in the top takes RGB out through the left side. Looks like it is stuck in there with double sided tape or something. The R signal stopped working after the first time I powered it off, though, so instead of an RGB mod it's just a GB mod.

I see. That usually means a broken connection somewhere which would be really easy to trace down using a multimeter that beeps for continuity:Just touch your probes to either end of the connection and find the one that doesn't beep! It should be either between the EXT port pins and the RGB board or the RGB board and the DIN. It looks like someone put components in-line with the RGB board/DIN instead of building them into the board, which means you might not get a beep with the meter (try both polarities).

 

I assume this is a DIN8 with all pins wired, right?

 

 

 

lol PSP go. Here are the things taking the RGB signal from the pin input thingy.

Jealous of that PSPGo dock! All I can do is 3D print a stand but I'd love to get the full functionality. 

Just found an official PSPGo charge cable at the flea market so no more crappy USB cable for me!

 

 

They continue to this point ^ where 1 yellow + 2 white + 1 black cable (no idea what they are for, but they are there) go to the output jack and the RGB goes to the NEC RGB amp. Also Super Nt is visible here! MASSIVE bonus points if you can identify my flashlight! Good luck!

The DIN8 typically gets RGB connections from the mod board and Composite video, L-ch, R-ch, from the original AV outputs. The other connections are probably power or ground, which also need to go to the DIN8 but they can come from anywhere. 

Most are wired to use composite video for sync so that they will also work with original AV cables. Some mod boards will also offer optional CSync but there aren't enough pins on the DIN8 to wire both. If that's the case here and someone wired it for CSync, well, the mod board should have all of its outputs labeled (might say S or CS). Since the IFU has standard AV jacks there's less reason to maintain compatibility with multi AV cables so they may have done that.

 

 

 

Anyway, I have no idea what I'm looking at/for to fix either the R signal or my not being able to save, so advice is welcome. I don't mod stuff at all so I have literally no idea what I am doing or looking at. This was to be the only modded console I ever got aside from my still not-modded-because-it's-expensive Nomad, but then this RGB mod stopped working properly immediately and then I said screw it and bought the SSDS3. I'd like to fix this if I can, though.   And just for confirmation, this thing is supposed to go like this, right? It kind of fell out when I first tried to open the thing. Hard to imagine that that little spring has sat like that in there for 30+ years without breaking or wearing out, but there it is.

 

I'll find out for you. It's unfortunate that your first modded console is proving to be problematic. Hope it doesn't leave a bad taste in your mouth for these things! 

 

 

Finally got my CoreGrafx open. I had to find an alternate way to use the bit with my Leatherman (ended up grabbing it right below the wire cutters on the handles, not holding it with the pliers) and it was super awkward and the screws were still extremely stiff, but I got it. It looks pretty interesting in comparison to that PAL modded CoreGrafx. The huge ribbon cable inside is so stiff that I was worried that it might snap in half, so I put it back together without really probing too much.

RetroManCave recently refurbished a white PCE and the cable connections broke so, yeah: definitely want to be careful with those! 

He talks about it just after the 2-minute mark:

 https://youtu.be/0VxAmCYXp_0

 

Didn't set him back much but I'm sure it's tedious to re-solder.

 

 

 

[Steven Pendleton]

10 hours ago, CZroe said:

It definitely wasn't modded by an individual for personal use with a purpose-built PCB engineered for cost reduction (single-sided). That NEC chip from an obscure Famicom/NES version seems pretty obscure since I can't find a datasheet on it. Makes me think NEC themselves came up with this schematic though it doesn't look like they were the ones implementing it. 

 

 

 

I've actually never been inside of one but I can take a look when I get home. I'm surprised to see that no one has ever made an IFURGB install video which would show this! 

 

 

 

I had to chuckle since you live in The Land of PC Engine and still imported your IFU.  

 

 

 

I see. That usually means a broken connection somewhere which would be really easy to trace down using a multimeter that beeps for continuity:Just touch your probes to either end of the connection and find the one that doesn't beep! It should be either between the EXT port pins and the RGB board or the RGB board and the DIN. It looks like someone put components in-line with the RGB board/DIN instead of building them into the board, which means you might not get a beep with the meter (try both polarities).

 

I assume this is a DIN8 with all pins wired, right?

 

 

 

 

Jealous of that PSPGo dock! All I can do is 3D print a stand but I'd love to get the full functionality. 

Just found an official PSPGo charge cable at the flea market so no more crappy USB cable for me!

 

 

 

The DIN8 typically gets RGB connections from the mod board and Composite video, L-ch, R-ch, from the original AV outputs. The other connections are probably power or ground, which also need to go to the DIN8 but they can come from anywhere. 

Most are wired to use composite video for sync so that they will also work with original AV cables. Some mod boards will also offer optional CSync but there aren't enough pins on the DIN8 to wire both. If that's the case here and someone wired it for CSync, well, the mod board should have all of its outputs labeled (might say S or CS). Since the IFU has standard AV jacks there's less reason to maintain compatibility with multi AV cables so they may have done that.

 

 

 

 

I'll find out for you. It's unfortunate that your first modded console is proving to be problematic. Hope it doesn't leave a bad taste in your mouth for these things! 

 

 

 

RetroManCave recently refurbished a white PCE and the cable connections broke so, yeah: definitely want to be careful with those! 

He talks about it just after the 2-minute mark:

https://youtu.be/0VxAmCYXp_0

 

Didn't set him back much but I'm sure it's tedious to re-solder.

 

 

 

Yeah I forgot to mention that it is a DIN8.

 

Be careful when you open your IFU; after some inspection, I found that there are a few broken parts inside. It's basically some hooks? Latches? Some stuff that holds the cream/white part of the IFU in place. Not sure how to describe it. I didn't break them, as I opened the thing on my bed and would have noticed random parts stabbing me as I tried to sleep. Must have been broken by the guy who modded my IFU. I do not see a way to open the thing without breaking those parts, though, and I have absolutely no idea how they assembled these things because it just doesn't seem possible.

 

I have been meaning to get a multimeter for a while to check this, so I should finally get around to buying one.

 

As for PSP go dock, I paid about 10000 yen for it on Amazon Japan after searching all of Akiba for it and not being able to find one. When I was in the Marines, they had tons of them at every PX I went to for like $10~$20 each. I got the system itself when I was still active duty, so I really hate myself for net getting the dock. I did get the component cables around the same time I got the system, though, and it never occurred to me at the time that you need the dock to charge it while using the TV out at the same time. PSP go TV output with the OSSC is very soft and I have no idea what settings I should be using for it. I made a topic here a while ago but nobody even looked at it. I just gave it its 35th view to get the URL.

 

 

[CZroe]

Thanks for the tip on the clips. I took it apart and put it back together and everything still seems correct/functional.

Took pics along the way:
http://imgur.com/a/acfYNSh

Hope this helps. It seems the white/cream part only has clips on the left and right and my metal spudgers made quick work of them.

These are the GameBit drivers I prefer:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/383521517480

Believe it or not, I keep finding the 3.8mm drivers like this at a flea market for $0.50 (vendor sells a bunch of Amazon returns).

Regarding the PSPGo, I looked on eBay and found some $20 component cables with built-in charging which supposedly approximate the functionality of the dock but without the drop-in convenience. I'm tempted to order one and 3D print a dock that fits this cable inside except I can't even imagine a good-looking one since the cable protrudes straight out. $20 is too much to risk cutting up the cable to make something lower-profile.

[CZroe]

Oh, man... I took apart the PAL CoreGrafx again to take a closer look at what the mod was doing and where everything was going and hunting for top-side alternate points (found many) and then it suddenly just stopped working on me. I was just getting set up to try disconnecting some specific wires to see what would happen and I turned it on one last time without changing anything only to find I was getting a white screen that rolls, like it couldn't read the game.

I put in F1 Circus '91 and the screen came up with a solid blueish-color screen (still rolling) which turned black a second later. The game was supposed to turn black of your IFU's backup memory wasn't formatted, and mine wasn't, so I figured the game may be running in some way. I used the white PC Engine to format the BU memory so that the game would continue on to the title screen with music but when I tried the Core Grafx again but it still just went from bluish to black and seemingly stopped there (no sound).

I was freaking out because I hadn't actually done anything with it but probe around for connections and everything appeared to be connected. I wasted way too much time checking every connection between the card slot and the motherboard, cleaning, and inspecting all over, triple-checking every connection. I'd occasionally try it and get the same white screen with some cards and bluish screen that turns black with others. I was starting to think that I had killed it with ESD until I finally just started yanking wires and it booted in 60hz.

*WHEW*

Now I'm scared to reinstall the PAL mod with my alternate points since it wasn't working the last time that mod was installed... before I changed anything. I think I will eventually so I can see if it's possible to manipulate the chip to output 50 or 60hz.

Anyway, I spent the rest of the night piecing together a large order from Console5 and GsmeDoctorHK only to lose it all when the browser glitched. Now it's 9:30AM and I haven't even made it to sleep yet. I swear, I spend 20x more time fighting with this stuff than playing with it!

[Steven Pendleton]

I finally put the IFU back together an hour ago or so. It was sitting on my desk as a pile of parts for like 3 or 4 days. I imagine I put it back together correctly, but since it already doesn't work properly there really isn't much point in checking.

 

Is there a huge list of PC Engine game resolutions out there anywhere? I tried to start Tokimeki Memorial but using the SuperGrafx and not the PC Engine mini. Then I remembered why I didn't play it already: the resolution is not the typical 256x240 in all screens, so I get flickering and stuff with the OSSC sometimes. Other times it looks fine, but it seems that the game only uses one resolution since my monitor would lose signal if the game changed resolutions. I also tried R-Type's resolution and basically the same thing happened but in reverse. The screens that flickered before no longer did and the ones that didn't now do. How annoying.

 

By the way, the 3 official shirts are back at Amazon.

 

https://www.amazon.co.jp/DOTLIKE-PCエンジン-ターボグラフィックス16-Tシャツ-ブラック/dp/B07V6SR6XB/ref=sr_1_5?__mk_ja_JP=カタカナ&dchild=1&keywords=PCエンジン%2Bコアグラフィックス%2BTシャツ&qid=1588660120&sr=8-5&th=1

Edited May 5, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[DragonGrafx-16]

1 hour ago, Steven Pendleton said:

I finally put the IFU back together an hour ago or so. It was sitting on my desk as a pile of parts for like 3 or 4 days. I imagine I put it back together correctly, but since it already doesn't work properly there really isn't much point in checking.

 

Is there a huge list of PC Engine game resolutions out there anywhere? I tried to start Tokimeki Memorial but using the SuperGrafx and not the PC Engine mini. Then I remembered why I didn't play it already: the resolution is not the typical 256x240 in all screens, so I get flickering and stuff with the OSSC sometimes. Other times it looks fine, but it seems that the game only uses one resolution since my monitor would lose signal if the game changed resolutions. I also tried R-Type's resolution and basically the same thing happened but in reverse. The screens that flickered before no longer did and the ones that didn't now do. How annoying.

 

By the way, the 3 official shirts are back at Amazon.

 

https://www.amazon.co.jp/DOTLIKE-PCエンジン-ターボグラフィックス16-Tシャツ-ブラック/dp/B07V6SR6XB/ref=sr_1_5?__mk_ja_JP=カタカナ&dchild=1&keywords=PCエンジン%2Bコアグラフィックス%2BTシャツ&qid=1588660120&sr=8-5&th=1

Well this is what the wikipedia page says:

Quote

• X (Horizontal) Resolution: variable, maximum of 565 (programmable to 282, 377 or 565 pixels, or as 5.3693175 MHz, 7.15909 MHz, and 10.738635 MHz pixel dot clock)^[34] Taking into consideration overscan limitations of CRT televisions at the time, the horizontal resolutions were realistically limited to something a bit less than what the system was actually capable of. Consequently, most game developers limited their games to either 256, 352, or 512 pixels in display width for each of the three modes.^[35]
• Y (Vertical) Resolution: variable, maximum of 242 (programmable in increments of 1 scanline). It is possible to achieve an interlaced "mode" with a maximum vertical resolution of 484 scanlines by alternating between the two different vertical resolution modes used by the system. However, it is unknown, at this time, if this interlaced resolution is compliant with (and hence displayed correctly on) NTSC televisions.
• The majority of TurboGrafx-16 games use 256×239,^[34] though some games, such as Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective did use 512×224.

 

[Steven Pendleton]

8 minutes ago, DragonGrafx-16 said:

Well this is what the wikipedia page says:

 

I mean like a list that has every title for the system listed with its resolution.

[Steven Pendleton]

I tried TokiMemo on the PC Engine mini just now and it seems that it does use a resolution other than 256x240. Uneven pixels with lots of crazy shimmering at both the 4:3 and square pixels modes unless I use the scanline filter, which basically adds interpolation. Oh well. I guess I'll figure something out. The game also unfortunately has automatic text boxes that you can't set to manual, which means that I might have some trouble reading fast enough. How joyous.

[SegaSnatcher]

I just put this badboy up for sale on Craigslist.  

 

[CZroe]

I just put this badboy up for sale on Craigslist.  

 

How much?