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FPGA Based Videogame System


kevtris

Interest in an FPGA Videogame System  

682 members have voted

  1. 1. I would pay....

  2. 2. I Would Like Support for...

  3. 3. Games Should Run From...

    • SD Card / USB Memory Sticks
    • Original Cartridges
    • Hopes and Dreams
  4. 4. The Video Inteface Should be...


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26 minutes ago, Jagasian said:

The fact that both the cartridge connector and the UI are confirmed to be updated suggests that Kevtris has likely added other improvements in the firmware.  He is the only person at the company that works on the UI, which is part of the firmware.  I am crossing my fingers for interpolation support.

What about an adapter for the improved connector for V1!?

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The fact that both the cartridge connector and the UI are confirmed to be updated suggests that Kevtris has likely added other improvements in the firmware.  He is the only person at the company that works on the UI, which is part of the firmware.  I am crossing my fingers for interpolation support.
They had others working on the UI for Super Nt and Mega Sg... like the Fez creator who did the intro to the Super Nt or the musician guy who did the into to the Mega Sg.

Still, you're right: it's likely Kev's work.
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9 hours ago, Fafner said:

Hey guys!

 

I know this has been answered But I’m having trouble finding...

Can someone point me towards a guide for the best settings for the NT Mini?

 

Also anyone know how to flip the difficulty switch in the 2600 core?

 

Thanks!

I believe I got my settings from a 'my life in gaming' vid. (probably this one)

IIRC the 2600/7800 scaling settings were a little illogical and needed extra fiddling.  It was so long ago I can't remember the exact details on that one. 

Generally handhelds are super easy since they've got square pixels, so you just make it as big as you can, while TV consoles get whatever integer scaling is somewhere around the aspect ratio you kept your TV on BITD. (Opinions vary greatly, but the my life in gaming vid above gets pretty close for me)

 

I'm sure some of my settings are still wrong even after all this time.  I've never even seen an adventure vision, so I suspect I've got its aspect ratio a bit off.  That's a really neat display.  The oddball systems of NT Mini are really my favorite parts. 10 years ago ask me if I ever thought I'd be playing watara supervision at 1080p with a full arcade controller.

 

For the difficulty switches it's l/r on the 8bitdo controller.  I don't believe it can be done with regular NES controllers, and it's required to unpause burgertime, koolaid man etc. (link)

Edited by Reaperman
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7 minutes ago, Reaperman said:

For the difficulty switches it's l/r on the 8bitdo controller.  I don't believe it can be done with regular NES controllers, and it's required to unpause burgertime, koolaid man etc. (link)

The L/R buttons!

That was the missing piece of the puzzle for me!

I wasn’t a big fan of that particular 8BitDo controller so I rarely use it and forgot it had them. 
I hope the 2.4 GHz ones have a better Dpad...

Thanks a bunch!

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I believe I got my settings from a 'my life in gaming' vid. IIRC the 2600/7800 scaling settings were a little illogical and needed extra fiddling.  It was so long ago I can't remember the exact details on that one.  Generally handhelds are super easy since they've got square pixels, so you just make it as big as you can, while TV consoles get whatever integer scaling is somewhere around the aspect ratio you kept your TV on BITD. (Opinions vary greatly, but the my life in gaming vid above gets pretty close for me)

 

I'm sure some of my settings are still wrong even after all this time.  I've never even seen an adventure vision, so I suspect I've got its aspect ratio a bit off.  That's a really neat display.  The oddball systems of NT Mini are really my favorite parts. 10 years ago ask me if I ever thought I'd be playing watara supervision at 1080p with a full arcade controller.

 

For the difficulty switches it's l/r on the 8bitdo controller.  I don't believe it can be done with regular NES controllers, and it's required to unpause burgertime, koolaid man, etc...

 

Guess that means you could use a Capcom Power Stick Fighter if you have one with the NES cable. Mine only had the SNES cable but, amazingly, I recognized the NES cable when I saw it at Goodwill one day. ;)

 

Maybe reliance on the NES30 for some functions is why they tweaked the UI... though it was a jailbreak thing. What do the L & R buttons do normally?

 

 

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41 minutes ago, CZroe said:

 

Guess that means you could use a Capcom Power Stick Fighter if you have one with the NES cable. Mine only had the SNES cable but, amazingly, I recognized the NES cable when I saw it at Goodwill one day. ;)

 

I actually have a couple of those but hadn't thought to try them.  I wonder if the lights work.  Build quality isn't my favorite, and the buttons are kind of tiny and paddish.  Those cables are often worth more than the controllers, nice find.

 

I went a little more nuts, making a rather unique adapter (link to adapter vid with NT Mini footage) for my fleet of custom neo geo/supergun controllers to NES.  It's especially odd since it has the option of disabling up and down on the stick and mapping them to buttons.  Great for games that do strange things with up/down (asteroids, moon patrol, certain racing games/platformers) 

 

Weirdly , the NES version of the epyx 500xj is a great controller for the 'core store,' assuming your hands can tolerate the ergonomics.  I think the engineers at epyx/konix must have been time travellers, since that controller is *completely* useless for NES, and only of interest to NT Mini users. :)  I slightly prefer my atari version of the 500xj, and have a 2600-to-neo geo adapter for use with the above adapter because

 

'yo dawg, I heard you like adapters, so I put an adapter on your adapter so you can adapter while you adapter'

 

Edited by Reaperman
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23 hours ago, Drunk_Caterpillar said:

Someone on Reddit is claiming that Kevtris answered some question in Discord. The only takeaway so far is that the current version of the Jailbreak can be installed on the V2, which kind of confirms that no new hardware is present in the machine. If interpolation wasn't possible on the V1, we're probably not getting it here...

If anything, the FPGA would have to be the same generation, but that doesn't mean it has to be the same model. So it's probably still a Cyclone V 5CEBA2U15C8N. A2 and A4 have the same pins, and so does A5 with the U BGA. Vs the Super NT 5CEBA4F23C8N. So presumably if they were able to source the exact same FPGA they might have just used the same FPGA again, but if not, there would be some kind of minor redesign to fit a FPGA that is a slightly different model with the same number of pins.

 

With that said, unless they needed to order a certain number of FPGA's to get a bulk discount, it would seem a bit weird to stick a model with more LE in it since the per unit cost still have to be more for a better chip.

 

 

 

 

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54 minutes ago, Reaperman said:

I've never even seen an adventure vision, so I suspect I've got its aspect ratio a bit off.  That's a really neat display.  The oddball systems of NT Mini are really my favorite parts. 10 years ago ask me if I ever thought I'd be playing watara supervision at 1080p with a full arcade controller.

 

Yes, I think these are what I am most excited to finally try. I saw videos on Adventure Vision and thought it would be fun to tinker with. All of the oddballs really.  Plus, A2600/7800 will be joy for me.  I thought about modding a heavy sixer and even a 7800 but some of these older systems I'd rather have in FPGA form. 

 

Now being an expecting NT-mini owner, I do have to think about my controller arsenal. I must look into whatever full arcade controller options there are. It will be interesting to compare playing Sega SMS games with a NES controller instead of on my SG or real model 1 Genesis. I always loved the SMS pad but would love to see if I actually prefer the NES pad. I hope the pause button is mapped to select or start. I wasn't crazy about the 7800 joystick so I imagine the afterthought official gamepad can't be any better than a NES pad. I can use a real atari 2600 stick on mist and mister, so the NES pad might be fun to try again here.  For those with a V1, how do you control the oddball cores within the limitations of a NES controller?

 

I also have to check on my MegaSG if the coleco's numpad is supported.

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I actually have a couple of those but hadn't thought to try them.  I wonder if the lights work.  Build quality isn't my favorite, and the buttons are kind of tiny and paddish.  Those cables are often worth more than the controllers, nice find.
 
I went a little more nuts, making a rather unique adapter (
) for my fleet of custom neo geo/supergun controllers to NES.  It's especially odd since it has the option of disabling up and down on the stick and mapping them to buttons.  Great for games that do strange things with up/down (asteroids, moon patrol, certain racing games/platformers) 
 
Weirdly , the NES version of the epyx 500xj is a great controller for the 'core store,' assuming your hands can tolerate the ergonomics.  I think the engineers at epyx/konix must have been time travellers, since that controller is *completely* useless for NES, and only of interest to NT Mini users. [emoji4]  I slightly prefer my atari version of the 500xj, and have a 2600-to-neo geo adapter for use with the above adapter because
 
'yo dawg, I heard you like adapters, so I put an adapter on your adapter so you can adapter while you adapter'
 
Awesome!

According to the update notes from 8BitDo the NES Retro Receiver added SNES support for things like the RetroN5 where the SNES and NES ports are electrically the same... but I guess the Nt Mini always needed this too if it was able to see the L and R buttons as anything other than duplicate or turbo NES buttons.

I bought a ton of NES Classic Edition Retro Receivers with NES30 controllers last year when they were $8 on eBay and got a bunch of NES Retro Receivers when they were under $5 at Fry's Electronics, so I'm set. :) ...not to mention the Switch SNES controllers, SN30, NES30 Pro, Switch Online NES controllers, 8BitDIY-converted SNES pads, etc. I actually think the Switch Online NES controllers are even more ideal since they only add L & R and they are embedded in the rail that attaches to the switch. IOW, it doesn't flaunt more buttons than the original for a bit of extra authenticity. Also just got a second set from a friend today. :)
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4 hours ago, Fafner said:

The L/R buttons!

That was the missing piece of the puzzle for me!

I wasn’t a big fan of that particular 8BitDo controller so I rarely use it and forgot it had them. 

Also if I recall correctly, if you want the RIGHT difficulty switch, you have to use the controller plugged into the player 2 slot. 

 

 

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5 hours ago, CZroe said:

Awesome!

According to the update notes from 8BitDo the NES Retro Receiver added SNES support for things like the RetroN5 where the SNES and NES ports are electrically the same... but I guess the Nt Mini always needed this too if it was able to see the L and R buttons as anything other than duplicate or turbo NES buttons.

I bought a ton of NES Classic Edition Retro Receivers with NES30 controllers last year when they were $8 on eBay and got a bunch of NES Retro Receivers when they were under $5 at Fry's Electronics, so I'm set. :) ...not to mention the Switch SNES controllers, SN30, NES30 Pro, Switch Online NES controllers, 8BitDIY-converted SNES pads, etc. I actually think the Switch Online NES controllers are even more ideal since they only add L & R and they are embedded in the rail that attaches to the switch. IOW, it doesn't flaunt more buttons than the original for a bit of extra authenticity. Also just got a second set from a friend today. :)

Not sure if I'm following....are you are the switch controllers compatible with the retro receivers? 

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Not sure if I'm following....are you are the switch controllers compatible with the retro receivers? 

Yes. FW1.34 lets you use Switch Online NES or FC controllers as well as normal Switch joycons.

 

I use a DualShock most of the time but it totally works.

 

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5 minutes ago, CZroe said:

Yes. FW1.34 lets you use Switch Online NES or FC controllers as well as normal Switch joycons.

 

I use a DualShock most of the time but it totally works.

 

Hmmm....that's interesting....it works with the switch online SNES controllers too? Although honestly, I'm not sure I'd wanna use them over my SF30....Is it just me or do the the switch online controllers have more lag than the 8bitdo ones? For me that seems to be the case (I use my SF30 on my Switch sometimes), but admittedly, I see differences between the 8bitdo controllers too. I have one of the orginal SF30's and it's great, I don't notice any lag, but I also have one of the redesign SN30's (the black model to go with my black Super Nt) and it doesn't work very well. Misses button presses, d-pad not as good and seems a little laggier....

Edited by jamon1567
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8 hours ago, Fafner said:

I wasn’t a big fan of that particular 8BitDo controller so I rarely use it and forgot it had them. 
I hope the 2.4 GHz ones have a better Dpad...

 

I've tried a number of their controllers, and have been disappointed with the dpad on all of them except the M30 genesis ones.  I have no issues with that one at all, actually my preferred controller for genesis. 

 

The snes one I was able to fix with some electrical tape covering part of the pads, but I never ended up really using it.  I use a ps4 controller linked to the snes/nes receivers for most things, just feels more comfortable to me, but I'm not a purist by any means and have no particular nostalgia for any controllers.

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If you want a SNES controller with a good dpad, the Cirka S91 uses the exact same mold as the OEM Nintendo SNES controller.  Is it pirated?  Sort of.  If Nintendo still manufactured SNES controllers, I’d buy them.  But since they don’t, the Cirka fits my needs because I want the exact same feel as an OEM SNES controller.  It is wired, but wireless adds lag, so there is that.

Edited by Jagasian
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Hmmm....that's interesting....it works with the switch online SNES controllers too? Although honestly, I'm not sure I'd wanna use them over my SF30....Is it just me or do the the switch online controllers have more lag than the 8bitdo ones? For me that seems to be the case (I use my SF30 on my Switch sometimes), but admittedly, I see differences between the 8bitdo controllers too. I have one of the orginal SF30's and it's great, I don't notice any lag, but I also have one of the redesign SN30's (the black model to go with my black Super Nt) and it doesn't work very well. Misses button presses, d-pad not as good and seems a little laggier....

I assume it will work with the SNES pads but I haven't tried it yet. Others have also reported that there is more lag. I hope it doesn't have something to do with the Headset Profile feature in the Switch Online Family Computer Player II controller (vestigial in the NES and Player I FC controler).

If you want a SNES controller with a good dpad, the Cirka S91 uses the exact same mold as the OEM Nintendo SNES controller.  Is it pirated?  Sort of.  If Nintendo still manufactured SNES controllers, I’d buy them.  But since they don’t, the Cirka fits my needs because I want the exact same feel as an OEM SNES controller.  It is wired, but wireless adds lag, so there is that.

People claim that the AsciiPad uses the exact same mold too and yet the D-pad performance is decidedly inferior. The 8BitDo molds look almost like they cloned the originals too but they also suffer in comparison. That's because the plastic D-pad is only part of the mix.

The rubber membranes and board contacts make a huge difference. This is why covering up part of the contacts on an SN30 makes them perform much better (fewer errant diagonals).
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37 minutes ago, CZroe said:

The rubber membranes and board contacts make a huge difference. This is why covering up part of the contacts on an SN30 makes them perform much better (fewer errant diagonals).

Yeah, this is exactly the issue, the layout of the contact pads is totally different and it affects what counts as a press.  The actual dpad feel is fine in their controllers, but can't play the first level of contra on basically any of them.  Trying to duck under the wall guns only works half the time, the other half it is triggering down + right instead of just down.  You can just be extra deliberate in your presses to fix this, but it's an annoyance that isn't present on official controllers. 

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Hi,

 

I ordered the NT Mini and just saw that the ofw is 2.3 and JB from Kevtris is at 2.0. I would be highly disappointed to pay 550 dollars (including shipment) when there will be no updated JB firmware. I know that this is not official, but is it kinda is. I hope Kevtris can confirm to bring the JB firmware on par with the ofw. This is still a big selling point of this device!!

Edited by eewoke
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6 minutes ago, eewoke said:

Hi,

 

I ordered the NT Mini and just saw that the ofw is 2.3 and JB from Kevtris is at 2.0. I would be highly disappointed to pay 550 dollars (including shipment) when there will be no updated JB firmware. i know that this is not official, but is it kinda is. I hope Kevtris can confirm to bring the JB firmware on pat with the ofw. This is still a big selling point of this device!!

You can expect to get everything the current fw contains, that how it is.

As a old Nt Mini owner Im glad since its more likely than before to get some fw updates. It has been abandoned since 3 years now.

 

Im still hoping for that Intv core.. (brought a NES data controller and was hoping for support)

Its wierd how Intv cores seems to be missing, no MiSTer support for that either.

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I got some criticism from people on the discord for stating that I believe they likely updated the 49K LE FPGA found in the Super NT and Mega SG.  

The reason I believe this is because of the new UI.  I'm going to assume the new UI is more resource heavy than the old one and Kev said he was basically tapped out of resources on the V1 NT Mini.  

People said if this was true they would advertise it, which in all honestly is a good point, but maybe they didn't want to annoy previous buyers.  Anyways, for $500 they should have updated to the new FPGA so they could finally add interpolation.  There is no excuse not to outside of Taber just being cheap.  And honestly NT Mini can no longer even claim value for the price given what else is on the market.  

This came out in 2017 originally, you are telling me they couldn't have updated the FPGA and perhaps even lowered the price a bit?  I just don't believe the aluminum casing and analog outputs justifies an over 2x premium over the Mega SG and Super NT.   Mega SG + DAC is about $325 shipped,  NT Mini Noir, with the possibility of still having the weaker 25K LE FPGA will run you $525+ shipped.  Nobody can convince me that aluminum shell warrants a $200 premium. 

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