Hello,
I have been thinking of making a low-cost Hucard with flash memory. I know there are some expensive (> $100) options for flash cards that hold multiple games. What I am thinking about making would be a simple 8Mbit flash Hucard, which could be used for game development or downloading a commercial game.
I did a search and saw an older topic of someone that was going to build something similar to this. Did it ever happen?
I will probably build one of these for myself, anyway. I just wondered if there was any interest, because if so, I would build a batch of them.
So I'm talking about an 8Mbit, flash-based Hucard, with a USB connector for loading a game. It would be as simple and low-cost as possible (but high quality). For price, I'm thinking around the $30 range. If someone wanted to sell a homebrew on Hucard, you could solder down a pre-programmed flash memory and leave the rest of the circuitry off, and it would bring the price down to $20 or so.
Here are some of the other projects I've done previously:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/
I just recently bought my PC Engine & a stack of Hucards, and am having a blast with it!
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
HuCard_Prod_Assy.jpg
Sounds good. I'd be down for soldering the components myself, too. Like, if you sold it as an unassembled kit, not just for the selling of homebrews.
If possible, I'm sure people would like 20Mbit capability.
I guess some people are going to get a little antsy about TG16 vs. PCE circuit board types.
having just bought a flash card it's not like i *need* another :) but always willing to support a homebrew project and the tools that help provide them :) so yeah id be keen to see what comes of this.
Yeah, I forgot to add that. This would work with either PC-Engine or Turbo Grafx. It is basically just up to the PC software to download the game in the correct format.
Sounds good, I'd be interested.
i like it.
any design help you need let me know
Jerry DaSilva made a TurboRom board back in 2001. I got mine from Dave Shadoff. It takes either a dip or surface mount rom. Damn nice looking board too. Dave Shadoff had the pcb design file for it too (I forget what the format's called). I soldered a zif socket on mine.
I am definately planning on making this flash card. Since I am doing it in my spare time, I don't know what the time frame will be. But I will be sure to post pictures when I get any prototype work done.
I will also be sure to ask here, if I need any further design information. Thanks!
I've been wanting to make myself one for a while not, but it's definitely more cost effective to make them in semi-bulk. I'd definitely be interested in one of yours.
Ok, I have looked into the HuCard interface. If anyone here is knowledgable about the HuCard pinout, I would really appreciate if you could take a look at what I have, for a sanity check. I am using a MX29F800C flash chip (cheap & available at Digikey). You can see the datasheet here:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/MX29F800C.pdf
And here is the circuit schematic for the HuCard/Flash interface:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Schematic_V01.pdf
I will work on the USB/PC interface portion of the schematic design next.
that looks right.
build a prototype first to test it
Definitely looking forward to this project!
You can count me in for buying one when they're done.
I'm interested, but I have some questions:
Can you add a reset button?
Will it be a generic HID device?
Will the source code be released? Or at least enough information to write a driver and the transfer software?
Quote from: Aladar on 03/21/2012, 05:08 AMI'm interested, but I have some questions:
Can you add a reset button?
Will it be a generic HID device?
Will the source code be released? Or at least enough information to write a driver and the transfer software?
If I have space, I can add a placeholder on the pcb for a reset button. Then I can always decide later whether I want to populate it.
I am still working on the design, but it will use an FTDI usb chip. So, you will be able to get drivers for almost any OS right from FTDI's webpage. I will document the transfer software well, so that anyone can write their own if they want. I will make the interface as simple as possible. The initial software will run on Windows (since that's what I have).
Will definitely take part in the batch if you get this done!
I have a small status update. I completed the schematic design. I just have to go through and double check everything. I am trying to be as careful as possible, so that I can get as much correct as possible on the first revision. Making prototype PCBs can get expensive, so I would like to make as few as possible.
I have also created all of the component footprints (see photo below). Most of the parts are only used to re-program the flash memory. If a pre-programmed flash was soldered to the board, that is the only part that would be required (& a couple capacitors).
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000200im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/PCB_Footprints.jpg)
And here is a closeup of the PCB outline. Basically, all of the components have to go to the right of the green vertical line. And they can only go on the top side. Hopefully, there is enough room. If not, I will have to add a notch in the PCB, and extend it longer than an original HuCard.
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000159im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/PCB_Outline.jpg)
After doing the placement and routing the traces, then I will have to write all the software. :wink:
i recommend making a dummy card (possibly from a dead huey) to test/prototype with.
that eliminates the need to have proto cards built.
the dummy cart could just be a card with a ribbon cable attached, allowing you to breadboard the circuit under test.
also using SMD adapters for prototyping has proven quite effective
Excellent work so far. It would be a real shame not to fit it on a standard sized HUcard. From the looks of your component sizes though, I'm optimistic :D
You've got the right idea on those SMD adapters, thesteve. Breadboards are awesome.
Good news, I was able to fit all of the components onto a standard HuCard sized board. I was also able to route the board using two layers. J3 is not a populated part (only briefly held down to program the microcontroller) so I was able to place its footprint on the other side of the green dividing line. Here are the photos.
All layers:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000159im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/All_Layer.jpg)
Top layer only:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000200im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/Top_Layer.jpg)
Bottom layer only:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000200im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/Bot_Layer.jpg)
It is a good idea to do the prototyping work with a dead HuCard, but after reviewing the schematics I really don't see a lot of items with high risk. Also, I need to test the pcb routing, footprints, spacings and mechanical dimensions anyway, so I think I am just going to go for it & build a pcb.
Very cool, way out of my league when it comes to electronics, most impressive, look forward to seeing your results
im not saying not to build it
just a system test could save you a rebild
Totally up for this when you get them done, looks really nice! =D>
Yep, I'm game for one of these too. Hucard forever!
Still amazed by what all of you guys continue to come up with!
Looks like you did a nice job on the routing. I'm really looking forward to this. It just might get me to finally fooling around with some PCE programming.
Freakin' sweet, man.
A small update:
I have been working on both the firmware (that executes on the circuit board) and the PC software (which will be used for downloading the games). They are both coming along pretty well.
I will get my prototype pcbs on Monday (supposedly). They are very low-cost protos (no solder mask or silkscreen or beveled edge). I will try to upload a picture Monday if I get time. Once I get the protos working, I will order some full-spec pcbs.
One challenge will be assembling these boards. The parts were only available in surface mount packages and the pitch of the pins is quite small (0.5mm), on some of the parts. I will have to crank up my soldering skills a notch for this board. lol.
One other thing I am debating is whether to get gold flashing on the connector pins. It looks like it may add significant cost to the pcbs to do this ($5 or more). From what I know now, I believe that I could set the price for the assembled boards at $40 (plus shipping), without the gold flashing. That's not too far from my original goal of $35.
One last thing is that when the time comes, I may want one of you to be a test user for this flash HuCard. Preferably someone with a Turbografx-16 (since I have only a PC-Engine). If anyone would be interested in this, just shoot me an email (from my GamingEnterprisesInc site). I'm probably still a month or so away from being at that stage, though.
Glad to hear that things are going smoothly :)
I have a PC-Engine Duo, but I've installed the region switch mod. I don't know if that's helpful to you or not...
Regardless, looking forward to ordering one of these bad boys when they're available.
Sounds great. I'd love to be a tester, but I don't have a TG16. There are a few guys on this forum with electronics knowledge AND a TG16 (BlueBMW? thesteve?), so they'd be better suited to help you test.
Personally, I'd say the gold plating is worth the $5. These boards will probably see a lot more insertion/removal than your average HuCard, so longevity on the contacts is definitely worth it. Of course cheaper is better, but I think the price is probably already cheaper than what some people were expecting. Just my opinion.
Looking forward to more updates! Really excited about this.
Quote from: grahf on 04/16/2012, 07:55 AMSounds great. I'd love to be a tester, but I don't have a TG16. There are a few guys on this forum with electronics knowledge AND a TG16 (BlueBMW? thesteve?), so they'd be better suited to help you test.
Hear hear. Plus, if something IS wrong, they'll have more insight into what the problem is rather than "it doesn't work :("
id love to test a proto board.
id even test it on several systems
Quote from: soop on 04/16/2012, 08:00 AMHear hear. Plus, if something IS wrong, they'll have more insight into what the problem is rather than "it doesn't work :("
lol. Good point!
Quote from: thesteve on 04/16/2012, 12:07 PMid love to test a proto board.
id even test it on several systems
That would be great! I'll contact you when I'm ready.
currently have 2 american tg16 systems, and hopefully a duo on the way that i could use for testing.
Here's a photo of the bare low-cost prototype circuit board:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510000235im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Bare_PCB.jpg)
I do hope you're gonna round off those corners just a hair on the production model ; )
lookin sharp
Your knocking this project out rather quick. Looks good. Can't wait to see the finished product.
Awesome! Have fun soldering those components :D
I know you said you haven't yet started on the flash code. I'd be interested in porting it to Linux, if you don't already plan to do that.
Quote from: guest on 04/17/2012, 09:54 PMI do hope you're gonna round off those corners just a hair on the production model ; )
This is just a low-cost proto made for test/debug purposes. When I order the final board design, it will have a green soldermask layer, white silkscreen layer, beveled edge along the connector contacts, and (depending on price) gold flash on the connector contacts.
Quote from: Mishran on 04/17/2012, 10:58 PMYour knocking this project out rather quick. Looks good. Can't wait to see the finished product.
Thanks, I have been spending a LOT of time on it. I have a window of opportunity to get it done, before I have other obligations on my time.
Quote from: grahf on 04/18/2012, 07:32 AMAwesome! Have fun soldering those components :D
I know you said you haven't yet started on the flash code. I'd be interested in porting it to Linux, if you don't already plan to do that.
I bought some magnifiers to help with the soldering, but this 0.5mm pitch stuff is going to take some practice. It is definately the smallest stuff I have ever soldered (by far). They don't make these parts in different packages, though, and paying to have them assembled would really jack up the price.
As far as the software, I have both PC software and microcontroller code written. They just have to be tested/debugged. If you want to do a Linux port, that will be great. I plan on posting all the info required, after the project is complete.
trick for soldering the small stuff is small tip and flood it with flux
Hmm. I have an idea, which may be stupid, but I'll say it anyway.
What if... the card gets tested, and everyone signs up for their cards. And everyone pays. But to share the workload, the people on the forum who are good at soldering could recieve around 5 bare cards and parts, solder them up, and send them on to other people in their area? As a consequence, the people who recieve these cards would pay a small fee to the solderer, meaning the solderer would end up getting a reduced/free card?
Like I say it may be ridiculous, but considering the interest these things are generating, I don't see GameofYou having time to solder together 100s of these things. And I suck at soldering, so I would gladly pay someone to solder mine (if I get one).
Quotethis 0.5mm pitch stuff is going to take some practice.
Quote...the people on the forum who are good at soldering could recieve around 5 bare cards and parts, solder them up, and send them on to other people in their area?
Quotetrick for soldering the small stuff is small tip and flood it with flux
You have to be really, really good at soldering to do the tsop stuff. And have a really good tip on the iron.
Which limits it to probably a half-dozen people here.
Might I suggest a toaster-oven? (Don't laugh, Google it.)
I did, and it was interesting (and well written): http://store.curiousinventor.com/guides/Surface_Mount_Soldering/Solder_Paste_and_Toaster_Oven/
what a project! wow!
Quote from: soop on 04/20/2012, 10:20 AMHmm. I have an idea, which may be stupid, but I'll say it anyway.
What if... the card gets tested, and everyone signs up for their cards. And everyone pays. But to share the workload, the people on the forum who are good at soldering could recieve around 5 bare cards and parts, solder them up, and send them on to other people in their area? As a consequence, the people who recieve these cards would pay a small fee to the solderer, meaning the solderer would end up getting a reduced/free card?
Like I say it may be ridiculous, but considering the interest these things are generating, I don't see GameofYou having time to solder together 100s of these things. And I suck at soldering, so I would gladly pay someone to solder mine (if I get one).
lol. I think 100 is a little optimistic, but who knows? Over time maybe that many people will want them.
Right now my plan is to offer two options. One option will be to buy a fully assembled (and tested) HuCard. The second option will be to buy a bare pcb only (no parts soldered down). I will also supply a Bill Of Materials, and all the parts are common enough to be available at vendors like Digi-Key. This way if other people want to build some up for others, they can.
Quote from: TheOldMan on 04/20/2012, 11:07 AMMight I suggest a toaster-oven? (Don't laugh, Google it.)
Ha, that's a good idea. I'm actually getting the hang of it though, with an iron. I think each board will get faster as my skill improves.
Ok, I have the first prototype assembled:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510022504im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Assm_PCB.jpg)
And good news, I have successfully gotten the USB communications working (after fixing a couple dumb software mistakes). It won't be long now, before I can insert it into my PC-Engine...
I hate to say this, in part because I'm perpetually low on funds, but I'm itching to shell out for one of these.
Quote from: gameofyou on 04/20/2012, 09:56 PMOk, I have the first prototype assembled:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510022504im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Assm_PCB.jpg)
And good news, I have successfully gotten the USB communications working (after fixing a couple dumb software mistakes). It won't be long now, before I can insert it into my PC-Engine...
That is beautiful. A tear is rolling down my cheek. :pcgs:
Seriously, though, you have been making excellent progress with all aspects (no just the hardware) of this project. :pcds:
Really looking forward to this since my neo pce flash cart is out of commission for the time being. Everything is looking great so far =D>
That's awesome! Nice job!
For the final design, have you considered using a mini-usb connector instead of the type-b connector? Everything else is fairly low-profile, so mini-usb would be awesome. Or instead of having only mini-usb, it looks like you could add headers for both types of connectors on the PCB, if you wanted. What do you think?
I'd opt for micro-USB myself... The whole point being to get the thing as flat as a card.
The mini and micro USB connectors really don't have that much difference in overall size. I suggest using the same USB connector most phones are currently using for charging. That way everyone will already have half a dozen or so loose USB cables sitting around.
This is a very nice, clean design. Good work :)
I'm going to need to learn more about USB... everything I make still requires a chip programmer. Being able to flash with just a PC is so nice.
Quote from: grahf on 04/21/2012, 09:14 AMThat's awesome! Nice job!
For the final design, have you considered using a mini-usb connector instead of the type-b connector? Everything else is fairly low-profile, so mini-usb would be awesome. Or instead of having only mini-usb, it looks like you could add headers for both types of connectors on the PCB, if you wanted. What do you think?
My original thought on the USB is that it would be nice to have a full-size connector so that you can grab onto it to pull the card out. Adding a footprint for both types is a good idea. I will look into this if I get time.
Hopefully this isn't against board rules, but can anyone send me a KNOWN GOOD PC-Engine game file? It doesn't matter if it's commercial or homebrew, I just need something to test. My email address is gameofyou _at_ sbcglobal.net. Thanks!
You can always try out (plug time) some demos from my page: https://www.chrismcovell.com/creations.html
The BRAM tool, for example, won't work on the Tototek flash card, for whatever reason. (Tototek one erases/disables BRAM randomly for regular HuCard games too...)
Thanks ccovell !
I have made a major breakthrough today and got one of ccovell's demos up and running on the HuCard !!!
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510022504im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/Rolling_Demo.jpg)
Before I tested the demo, I had done a test where I loaded AfterBurner II into the flash memory, over the USB link. I then read the data back out of the flash memory and compared it to the original game file and they matched exactly. This meant that the flash writing routines and the USB communication routines are working correctly.
However, when I attempted to play the game on the PC-Engine, I got nothing but a blank screen. However, ccovell's demo works correctly. The only thing I can think of is that maybe the two highest address lines are backwards. Because ccovell's demo is small enough that A18 and A19 will both always be zero.
One other interesting thing is that I had to do the "bit swap" operation on all of the databytes, in order to get ccovell's demo to run.
Holy crap! I have finally gotten my first commercial game up and running on the flash HuCard! I downloaded the USA version of Alien Crush, and enabled the "Bit-flipping". This allows the game to run perfectly on my PC-Engine!
Alien Crush is also a 256KByte game, which reinforces my belief that the larger games don't run because I have a couple address lines flipped.
:dance:
ya might have better luck using JP region games, as the PCE has a secondary region lock
unless your PCE has the pin29 mod
Quote from: thesteve on 04/22/2012, 04:22 PMya might have better luck using JP region games, as the PCE has a secondary region lock
unless your PCE has the pin29 mod
My AfterBurner II attempts were with a JPN region game.
i cant believehow quicky you have put this together.. i shudder at the thought of soldering those fine components.. Most impressive.. put me down for one :)
Quote from: gameofyou on 04/22/2012, 03:44 PMHoly crap! I have finally gotten my first commercial game up and running on the flash HuCard! I downloaded the USA version of Alien Crush, and enabled the "Bit-flipping". This allows the game to run perfectly on my PC-Engine!
Alien Crush is also a 256KByte game, which reinforces my belief that the larger games don't run because I have a couple address lines flipped.
:dance:
Remember the single tear running down my cheek a few days ago? Well now it is a gale-force hurricane of tears as you rip through this project faster than I can recycle screenshots. :pcgs:
This is truly amazing stuff. Really nice work!
Oh hell yeah!
Any chance you could test it with Chris's new wave sound generator?
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=11401.0
That would make my day!
WOW!
Possibly try removing the header from the file?
Commercial games are going to have a header from the dumping tools used, homebrew likely does not have this.
Quote from: burn_654 on 04/23/2012, 03:05 PMPossibly try removing the header from the file?
Commercial games are going to have a header from the dumping tools used, homebrew likely does not have this.
I think you might be on to something there burn_654 !
I have done some further testing. My address lines are correct as originally routed. I proved this by having a large game loaded (Soldier Blade) and trying the address lines swaped. It played music, but the graphics were messed up. I switched the two address lines back to the original configuration and the game played perfectly!
So, I am satisfied that my hardware is 100% correct now, which is a big relief. But I would still like to figure out why a lot of games won't play. So far I have successfully run Alien Crush, Devil's Crush, and Soldier Blade. They were all USA games, so I had to enable BIT-swap in my software to play them on my PC-Engine. Also I edited each hex file at offset 0x0B, and changed the 0xF0 to an 0x80, like is described in the HuCard pinout documents online (this is a secondary form of region protection).
So, I have yet to actually get a PC-Engine game running on my PC-Engine. I think burn_654 has the right idea about there being unwanted data in the files I am trying. When I look at the PC-Engine rom files that I have, there are a bunch of zeros up until 200 Hex. The USA games do not have this large group of zero data.
If anyone has any expertise with HuCard files or any insights, I would appreciate the help.
Well, the header is 512 bytes. I'd use PCEToy
(http://www.zophar.net/utilities/tg16aud/pcetoy32.html (http://www.zophar.net/utilities/tg16aud/pcetoy32.html))
to remove it or windhex's 'Remove SNES header' will do the trick.
(http://www.zophar.net/utilities/hexutil/windhex.html (http://www.zophar.net/utilities/hexutil/windhex.html))
PCEToy can also do some of the bit-swapping operations.
It's entirely possible that the games you got working did not have headers, I wouldn't rule it out.
Everything else sounds correct from what I've read - the bit-swapping and the region bit for us games.
Did you try the japanese versions of those respective games? (Alien Crush, Devil's Crush, Soldier Blade)
You are a genius, dude. That was it! After stripping the stupid header, I was able to play Liquid Kids!!!
Ok, I have a little more testing to do with my PC-Engine, and then I am going to ship the proto-card to 'thesteve', where he can test it on multiple systems. After that, I am going to have production pcbs made, and order all the components.
I have come up with a final price of $45 for the flash HuCard. I know that's a little higher than my original estimations, but there were a couple factors that raised the price: 1) the pcb needs to be a custom thickness (not the standard .062") and 2) the added cost of gold flash on the edge connectors. At that price, I will still be able to make a little money for my time (both development and assembly), and reinburse some of the development costs. Also, any money I make will go towards future pcb and component purchases if there seems to be demand for it.
We can keep this on the "down-low" until everyone here that wants a card has gotten one. After that, feel free to post about it wherever you like.
I have already started a website for the flash HuCard. It is just a first draft, but there is software and documents available if anyone wants to take an early look:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
Thanks to everyone on this board for their help, and enthusiasm which helped keep me motivated. :D
as to the custom thickness
if you can get plastic sheets the proper thickness to glue to the back to make it right it would be better than having the board made special
having a plastic sheet on the back will help protect the board
Quote from: thesteve on 04/25/2012, 07:22 PMas to the custom thickness
if you can get plastic sheets the proper thickness to glue to the back to make it right it would be better than having the board made special
having a plastic sheet on the back will help protect the board
smart!
Quote from: thesteve on 04/25/2012, 07:22 PMas to the custom thickness
if you can get plastic sheets the proper thickness to glue to the back to make it right it would be better than having the board made special
having a plastic sheet on the back will help protect the board
Yeah, that's what I'm doing now for the proto-board. It is much easier to just have the correct thickness board made. I intentionally didn't route any traces under the edge connectors. So it will just be bare fiberglass pcb under the edge connectors. It will hold up just fine.
Did you test this out with 3Mbit and 6Mbit hu-card games? IIRC, they have an odd way of mapping their banks.
I'm really looking forward to ordering one of these. Any idea on shipping costs to Japan?
Quote from: ccovell on 04/25/2012, 08:51 PMDid you test this out with 3Mbit and 6Mbit hu-card games? IIRC, they have an odd way of mapping their banks.
If you can give me any specific game titles, I can give them a try. It sounds like if there is an issue, that it could be addressed by an update of the PC software. There is enough flexibility in the existing communication protocol for placing a gap (or gaps) in where the rom code is located in the flash memory of the HuCard.
Quote from: grahf on 04/26/2012, 07:29 AMI'm really looking forward to ordering one of these. Any idea on shipping costs to Japan?
A quick look at usps.com shows that standard airmail is $10 (no tracking), and Priority Mail (faster, & with tracking) is $17. This is going to be typical pricing for any location outside the USA.
I am interested as well, as this may be another good thing to use for demoing and testing games from Aetherbyte
I'll be in on one of these too. It's very cool being able to follow the development of the card!
Quote from: gameofyou on 04/26/2012, 08:52 AMIf you can give me any specific game titles, I can give them a try. It sounds like if there is an issue, that it could be addressed by an update of the PC software. There is enough flexibility in the existing communication protocol for placing a gap (or gaps) in where the rom code is located in the flash memory of the HuCard.
Try Neutopia (3M), Neutopia II (6M), and Raiden (6M). There are many other 3M games as well...
I'd like to by one of these as well. Finally a way to play all the Japanese to English translated roms that are out there besides using an emulator.
I might be interested in one depending how it turns out in the end!
100% count me in.
I will buy one as well :)
Me too! Me too! Of course.
Would it be possible to use a flashcard as a Arcade Card on US systems?
I want one too. :mrgreen:
Yeah, I want one. I'm in.
Quote from: Keranu on 04/26/2012, 08:51 PMWould it be possible to use a flashcard as a Arcade Card on US systems?
no due to the arcade card being a memory bank and mapper
WANT.
Also keen, but would need shipping to New Zealand
Quote from: ccovell on 04/26/2012, 11:15 AMTry Neutopia (3M), Neutopia II (6M), and Raiden (6M). There are many other 3M games as well...
I tried Raiden and it worked correctly, with no problems. However, I couldn't get the Neutopia games to boot. I am not sure of the reason for this yet.
In the meantime, I have mailed the prototype card to 'thesteve' today, for further testing on different systems. Maybe he will have better luck than I did with the Neutopia games.
Quote from: gameofyou on 04/28/2012, 01:31 PMQuote from: ccovell on 04/26/2012, 11:15 AMTry Neutopia (3M), Neutopia II (6M), and Raiden (6M). There are many other 3M games as well...
I tried Raiden and it worked correctly, with no problems. However, I couldn't get the Neutopia games to boot. I am not sure of the reason for this yet.
In the meantime, I have mailed the prototype card to 'thesteve' today, for further testing on different systems. Maybe he will have better luck than I did with the Neutopia games.
Superb progress! :pcgs:
id love to have my own, and would have no issue building it.
willing to assemble a few for others as well
Have you considered, once this is complete, telling the people who created ucon64 so that they can add support for it?
WOW!! Truly amazed at how fast this churned out from the time you announced your project! Put me down for a couple as well. :)
One thing you might want to look into while testing is trying games that have level selects, and jumping around to make sure it's getting at data in all difference places.
the proto is here
first impression (nice board)
i like the power light
arrived with raiden installed
tested in my modded express
works perfect in JP mode power draw slightly less then my SF2 cart 10-20mA diff
will test software later
the large USB plug makes my TE sit funny (needs a smaller plug)
Quote from: thesteve on 05/03/2012, 02:23 PMthe large USB plug makes my TE sit funny (needs a smaller plug)
The production board will be fitted with a mini-usb connector. Actually, there are patterns for both (standard size or mini), but I will be assembling them with the mini-usb.
Good luck with your testing!
So if a small menu, similar to the Neo, was made up for this, it could also hold between 2-4 smaller 1 and 4Mbit games couldn't it? Would definitely add to this project's favor. I may have to bite on one myself regardless. Your doing a damn fine job though! =D>
I don't think it would work easily. You'd need some sort of mapper chip or to hack all the ROMs.
Could I have a couple people here do me a favor?
thesteve had a couple issues with the PC software & I want to see if runs correctly on another persons PC. If you have Windows XP, Vista, or 7, and you can download the software from my page:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
Nevermind any of the usb driver stuff, just install the PC software with setup.exe.
You won't be able to do much with it once its running (obviously) without the HuCard, but just check that it runs and you can select a file for download.
It runs fine on my XP machine, but it will be good info to see if a fresh install has any issues.
Thanks!
Windows 7 64bit.
Installs and runs OK. Can select a file for download with no issues.
I tried it on a laptop running vista. It installed fine, launched, loaded a game, and error+exit when I click to flash. Looking nice :)
^ Thanks much, guys !
Quote from: cabbage on 05/04/2012, 01:39 PMI tried it on a laptop running vista. It installed fine, launched, loaded a game, and error+exit when I click to flash. Looking nice :)
Same here, except I'm running XP.
Win XP 32bit SP3, runs correctly.
i wonder why its launching an installer when i start it on mine.
i had the same issue on 2 systems running different windows versions Win2K and WinXP
after i force close the installer it works on the 2K system but didnt find any ports on the XP system
You are installing the software first, right? Not just running the HuCard_8M.exe, without first having run the setup.exe? If so, I'm baffled.
on xp i ran the setup.exe and it sad it was sucessful
on 2k setup.exe errors out, but hucard_8m works without install
tg16 compatibility fixed
i cut the trace to the system reset pin and now it boots every time
Awesome. Would either of you guys mind posting more pics of the thing? I'm sure everyone would like to see more.
Quote from: thesteve on 05/04/2012, 09:30 PMtg16 compatibility fixed
i cut the trace to the system reset pin and now it boots every time
Great troubleshooting! This is an easy fix to perform, but I wonder why it doesn't like to be connected to reset? The reset button was a good idea for a feature, but it looks like it may not be possible on all systems.
Quote from: grahf on 05/05/2012, 01:44 AMAwesome. Would either of you guys mind posting more pics of the thing? I'm sure everyone would like to see more.
What we have right now is just a low-cost prototype. Wait until you see the production boards....They will be dead sexy.
I for one will certainly be getting a couple. Great way to play those translated roms. :) Thanks for all the efforts and work that you guys are putting into this.
Yep I'll definitely be getting one - I want to test my (definitely WIP) translation hacking for Momotarou Katsugeki on a real console :)
I have ordered a small amount of production boards. The lead-time is 3 weeks. You can get them faster, but it starts to get expensive. When I get them in, I'll put up some photos of the bare board. Then I will build one up, test it, and put the photos of the assembled board on my website. Barring any unforseen circumstances, I plan to open the checkout basket on my page on June 3rd.
Wow this is getting exciting! I'm so impressed at all the electronics Mcguyvers we have here.
Quote from: gameofyou on 05/05/2012, 06:14 PMI have ordered a small amount of production boards. The lead-time is 3 weeks. You can get them faster, but it starts to get expensive. When I get them in, I'll put up some photos of the bare board. Then I will build one up, test it, and put the photos of the assembled board on my website. Barring any unforseen circumstances, I plan to open the checkout basket on my page on June 3rd.
Hmm, I think I know what I might be getting for my Birthday!
And hey, I totally called it - TheSteve was a perfect choice for testing - I never would have been able to figure out that problem!
I just came across this thread & read through all 8 pages of goodness.
I am *very* impressed with the speed & quality of the development. Well done!
Put me down for a pre-order, please--this sort of work should be encouraged & rewarded.
Thanks!
-Jason
Quote from: jasonbar on 05/18/2012, 05:50 PMI just came across this thread & read through all 8 pages of goodness.
I am *very* impressed with the speed & quality of the development. Well done!
Put me down for a pre-order, please--this sort of work should be encouraged & rewarded.
Thanks!
-Jason
Thanks, I appreciate it!
Good news, it looks like they shipped the circuit boards slightly ahead of schedule. So I should still be able to open orders around the June 4th time-frame.
I will post a photo, when I receive the boards.
When you open orders, will you be accepting PayPal payments?
If you'll ship to Japan, please count on setting one aside for me. :)
Hell yeah. Cant wait to get a couple these bad boys.
In!
Quote from: guest on 05/19/2012, 11:54 PMWhen you open orders, will you be accepting PayPal payments?
Yep. Paypal, and optionally credit card (through paypal checkout).
Got the production boards today:
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510052538im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Prod_PCB.jpg)
Now I just have to build one and make sure I didn't jack anything up with the new usb connector, or any of the other minor changes I made.
sweet looking.. keen to get one :)
have you thought about using a microsd card slot (expandable/removeable memory) instead of flash chips, or would that be more expensive?
Quote from: PikachuWarrior on 05/23/2012, 07:26 PMhave you thought about using a microsd card slot (expandable/removeable memory) instead of flash chips, or would that be more expensive?
This has always made more sense to me, but the price range could be a killer. Maybe. Or just make the board and let people get their on SD cards.
Great job!
SD Cards are serial in nature. The pce is parallel.
To use SD cards, you would have to build 2 serial-parallel circuits (one for adresses, one for data) and a clock circuit running about 8x as fast as the pce. Not to mention the latches and such you would need.
Now you might do it with a compact flash card....Charlie has done that, iirc.
Quote from: PikachuWarrior on 05/23/2012, 07:26 PMhave you thought about using a microsd card slot (expandable/removeable memory) instead of flash chips, or would that be more expensive?
There's a little more to it than that. Like TheOldMan said, SD cards have a serial interface. It would require a lot more design (and cost) than what I have done.
Having said that though, maybe I will create a higher cost version HuCard design at some point in the future. I haven't really thought about it yet.
This is fucking amazing. It looks sweet.. Please hurry so I can send you money.. :)
Awesome work, am eagerly watching this thread to see the final product come to fruition. :)
Here's a photo of an assembled board. I have added a photo to my website, also.
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510064653im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Prod_Assy.jpg)
I have some family commitments next week, so I won't be available to work on this. But after that, I am going to build up a bunch and then open up orders.
Its beautiful...so pretty...
WOOT!
Excellent! Looking forward to ordering one.
So, what is the estimated cost of one of these going to be now?
Sexy. The cost is going to be sexy, just like the board. If you cannot afford sexy, you need to listen to more Right Said Fred until you can.
I want one too!!
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510064653im_/http://media-worlds.theotaku.com/9964-569235-20090117171658.jpg)
Quote from: guest on 05/25/2012, 11:53 AMSo, what is the estimated cost of one of these going to be now?
I'm committing to $45 for the assembled card, even though I've now decided to include the USB cable, too. The information currently on my website is accurate. I will determine the cost for the bare board soon.
I see you have drivers for Mac OS X. What about Mac software to download the games?
Count me in for an assembled one
Quote from: FiftyQuid on 05/31/2012, 03:21 PMI see you have drivers for Mac OS X. What about Mac software to download the games?
I have only written software for Windows. If there are any Mac or Linux programmers out there, I have posted the interface requirements on my web page. There are USB drivers available for both Linux and Mac. I will be happy to supply extra information about the software requirements, also.
Ok, I'm back from my trip :)
I didn't get as far as I wanted to on the assembly, yet. For the first batch (48 boards) I have microcontrollers soldered down and programmed. The microcontroller is the most difficult (& time consuming) of the 3 ICs, so I did that first.
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510064653im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Batch1.JPG)
I am planning to complete assembly of as many as I can next weekend, and then open orders late Sunday night (June 10).
If I end up selling out of the first batch, don't worry. I will order more materials and build more until everyone that wants one, gets one.
Am I the only one that is slightly aroused seeing all those PCB's? :^o
Quote from: gameofyou on 06/03/2012, 09:37 PMOk, I'm back from my trip :)
I didn't get as far as I wanted to on the assembly, yet. For the first batch (48 boards) I have microcontrollers soldered down and programmed. The microcontroller is the most difficult (& time consuming) of the 3 ICs, so I did that first.
(https://web.archive.org/web/20190510064653im_/http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Batch1.JPG)
I am planning to complete assembly of as many as I can next weekend, and then open orders late Sunday night (June 10).
If I end up selling out of the first batch, don't worry. I will order more materials and build more until everyone that wants one, gets one.
Nice work man!
45.00 bucks. Im in.
sounds good to me as well hope you can send it to the uk.
Ok, I have enough of these built up now, that I am going to start selling them.
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
It takes me about an hour to build one, so I haven't gotten them all assembled yet, but I have about half of them built. I will probably not be able to ship anything until Saturday, but the checkout basket is open for orders.
Alright, I've put down some cold, hard cash. Now I am in anticipation of the great massive awesome.
Also, doing Obeybrew tutorials on real flash will help me overcome teh stupids.
Ordered!
Quote from: guest on 06/11/2012, 02:35 PMOrdered!
Review once you get it all setup and stuff? Please :D
Quote from: Nando on 06/11/2012, 02:57 PMQuote from: guest on 06/11/2012, 02:35 PMOrdered!
Review once you get it all setup and stuff? Please :D
I'll review it in the next issue of PC Engine Gamer, but it might delay release (lol, as if it was going to be out on time anyway)
I'm interested in the bare version, but I'd like to see the BOM before I commit. Also, would there be a DIY option where I can get the bare PCB with chips all from one place (you)?
Quote from: Flavor on 06/11/2012, 05:55 PMI'm interested in the bare version, but I'd like to see the BOM before I commit. Also, would there be a DIY option where I can get the bare PCB with chips all from one place (you)?
Send me an email (through my site), & I'll email you the BOM when I get it finished (will be soon). But right now I'm feverishly working to fill the orders. O:)
I am thinking of maybe making a seperate topic for 8Mbit Flash HuCard faq. Then we will have a place to pool all the questions, comments, suggestions, etc for the card.
Quote from: guest on 06/11/2012, 03:59 PMQuote from: Nando on 06/11/2012, 02:57 PMQuote from: guest on 06/11/2012, 02:35 PMOrdered!
Review once you get it all setup and stuff? Please :D
I'll review it in the next issue of PC Engine Gamer, but it might delay release (lol, as if it was going to be out on time anyway)
No pressure... Right?
These new cards have me all sorts of giddy.
How many orders have you had for these, already? Good response or only so-so?
Quote from: guest on 06/12/2012, 06:05 PMHow many orders have you had for these, already? Good response or only so-so?
Yes, very good response. I will build up some more this weekend, so I can stay ahead of the orders.
How long, roughly, do you anticipate it will be before you sell out of your current shipment?
Quote from: guest on 06/12/2012, 07:39 PMHow long, roughly, do you anticipate it will be before you sell out of your current shipment?
I think I will be good through June, with the first 48 units. I'll see what happens, and buy some more materials, if need be.
Quote from: gameofyou on 06/12/2012, 08:51 PMI think I will be good through June, with the first 48 units. I'll see what happens, and buy some more materials, if need be.
Oh good. :) I am hoping to purchase one next week.
Put in my order :) Can't wait!
It's arrived!
I got another 11 boards assembled today. Now I only have 12 more to go and the first 48 will all be assembled! :)
I seriously underestimated how much time this would take, lol.
How dare you! This is unprofessional. I'm cancelling my order, etc. etc. :D
Just kidding. It takes me 3 hours just to solder a DE-9 joystick connector together, so I respect anyone that can put together dozens of SMD boards by themselves. Thanks for designing and making this!
For those thinking about purchasing one, I received mine today and it works perfect. No issues with compatibility so far (except some software issues, but totally not the cards fault). Great product for $45!
Looking forward to reading the reviews.
After I finish building the final 8 units (should be able to do it this weekend), I am going to hold on any further building of boards until everyone is working correctly. I want to make sure that there are no issues, before I build another batch.
It looks like there were a few of the early ones sent out with inadequate solder on some pins. I have greatly improved my solder/clean/test procedure since then, & I don't anticipate any future problems. But I will definately repair any board for free if it has assembly problems.
If you can't get your card working, the best thing to do is email me directly. By knowing a couple things from your PC, and knowing what the indicator light does, I can determine the problem fairly accurately.
hey man.. keen to order.. have been away for a bit, how do i order?
Quote from: mrhaboobi on 06/20/2012, 09:49 PMhey man.. keen to order.. have been away for a bit, how do i order?
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
Would it be possible to create a PCE/TG-16 Hu-card adapter for a similar or lower price?
(Just asking out of curiosity--I still have my old green diving board adapter from back in the day, so I wouldn't need one.)
The hard part of creating an adapter is making the HuCard connector. The rest is trivial. If someone could source or have manufactured new Hucard connectors you could easily make adapters. Although if you did, you shouldn't stop there, you should get a cheap CPLD and a tiny Flash Boot ROM and make a tiny Game Genie like patcher so Japanese systems could play US games with a simple cheat code, and you could use cheat codes if you wanted on any HuCard game. The key is getting new HuCard connectors.
Quote from: arromdee on 06/26/2012, 05:13 PMWould it be possible to create a PCE/TG-16 Hu-card adapter for a similar or lower price?
(Just asking out of curiosity--I still have my old green diving board adapter from back in the day, so I wouldn't need one.)
I agree with MottZilla. The difficult part would be finding (or making) the HuCard connector.
Would it be possible to show a loose connector to a manufacturer and see if it can be copied? I have a loose hucard connector if needed.
You could try to find some company that could do that. I believe such companies do exist. No idea what they would charge you to do it. There are ones that will take existing PCBs and clone them I know.
I have just sold the last card, from this first batch. If you did not get one yet, do not panic. I WILL make another (small) batch soon. It probably won't be for a few weeks, at least, though.
I'll make a post when I have some available again.
Quote from: gameofyou on 07/07/2012, 09:13 AMI have just sold the last card, from this first batch. If you did not get one yet, do not panic. I WILL make another (small) batch soon. It probably won't be for a few weeks, at least, though.
I'll make a post when I have some available again.
Thank you. I will certainly grab one from your second batch.
:pcgs:
Do you accept Paypal??
Quote from: esteban on 07/08/2012, 10:47 AMQuote from: gameofyou on 07/07/2012, 09:13 AMI have just sold the last card, from this first batch. If you did not get one yet, do not panic. I WILL make another (small) batch soon. It probably won't be for a few weeks, at least, though.
I'll make a post when I have some available again.
Thank you. I will certainly grab one from your second batch.
:pcgs:
Ditto.
I was able to build up a small amount of flash HuCards over the weekend, so I have put the checkout basket back on my web page.
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
Quote from: gameofyou on 07/26/2012, 09:59 PMI was able to build up a small amount of flash HuCards over the weekend, so I have put the checkout basket back on my web page.
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
I suggest people get in on this bandwagon, these cards are awesome! Definitely worth the money.
new batch?
any changes?
Quote from: gameofyou on 07/26/2012, 09:59 PMI was able to build up a small amount of flash HuCards over the weekend, so I have put the checkout basket back on my web page.
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
Ordered one!
Thank you.
Quote from: thesteve on 07/27/2012, 10:48 AMnew batch?
any changes?
No changes, I'm just finally getting time to build some more up, lol.
When I use up all of the bare pcbs that I have, I will probably make some minor changes to the pcb, before I order the next batch. That won't be until next year for sure, though.
Might get it later
How many games can it fit??
Quote from: KnightWarrior on 08/13/2012, 12:22 AMMight get it later
How many games can it fit??
Do you read any of the threads you post to?
I just ordered one as well. My Neo Flash Cart kicked the bucket.
just bought one, can't wait to try it out!
At last, a flash card that is available =D>
Just ordered mine. I'll be able to play such classics as Magical Chase and Coryoon on real hardware :D
im pretty ignorant here, but can i download pce games and play on my express?
yes
I just ordered one as well. I can't wait!
I recently got mine. It is good quality product. The only thing I didn't like is that it takes some effort to insert it on the TG16. Other than that it is pretty straight forward. Win 7 x64 detected and installed the proper drivers (you may need to set the COM port to a lower number though), and the Flash software is pretty simple. US Magical Chase just worked like a charm.
I've been unable to get any japanese game to work. I use the rom converter to remove the header, then flash my game checking the "swap bit" option. However I only get a white screen. The japanese games I've tried (with no luck) so far are Detana Twinbee, Coryoon and the japanese version of Splatterhouse.
i have had an issue where the rom converter messed up the rom, so it didnt work on us or JP mode hardware.
then bitflip on the loader software fixed it
I have a question, would it be possible to flash a Supergrafx game onto this card then just stick it into a Supergrafx system?
Quote from: esadajr on 08/20/2012, 12:22 PMI have a question, would it be possible to flash a Supergrafx game onto this card then just stick it into a Supergrafx system?
Yes. There is no difference between regular HuCARDS and Super HuCARDs.
Quote from: esadajr on 08/20/2012, 12:07 PMI've been unable to get any japanese game to work. I use the rom converter to remove the header, then flash my game checking the "swap bit" option. However I only get a white screen. The japanese games I've tried (with no luck) so far are Detana Twinbee, Coryoon and the japanese version of Splatterhouse.
I just tried flashing a PCE game without using the "check to swap data bits" option and it worked.
Quote from: esadajr on 08/20/2012, 12:07 PMI've been unable to get any japanese game to work. I use the rom converter to remove the header, then flash my game checking the "swap bit" option. However I only get a white screen. The japanese games I've tried (with no luck) so far are Detana Twinbee, Coryoon and the japanese version of Splatterhouse.
This has been a source of confusion, but I believe the User Manual is now correct. If your SYSTEM is Japanese, then you need to check the 'flip bits' box (for all games). If your SYSTEM is USA, then you should not check the box (for any games).
I will be interested to see if the Supergrafx games work. I don't know of anyone that's tried it yet.
Quote from: gameofyou on 08/20/2012, 09:02 PMQuote from: esadajr on 08/20/2012, 12:07 PMI've been unable to get any japanese game to work. I use the rom converter to remove the header, then flash my game checking the "swap bit" option. However I only get a white screen. The japanese games I've tried (with no luck) so far are Detana Twinbee, Coryoon and the japanese version of Splatterhouse.
This has been a source of confusion, but I believe the User Manual is now correct. If your SYSTEM is Japanese, then you need to check the 'flip bits' box (for all games). If your SYSTEM is USA, then you should not check the box (for any games).
I will be interested to see if the Supergrafx games work. I don't know of anyone that's tried it yet.
I've had no issues playing pc engine games on my turbografx-16. This flash card works great; thanks. By the way, when pulling it out of my tg-16, do you recommend grabbing a hold of the cart a certain way to minimize the risk of damage to the cart?
Mine arrived in the mail today. Thanks for the lightning fast turnaround. Was it supposed to include a Driver CD? The instructions I think imply that, but I was able to find the drivers and software on your website. I was able to get a US rom working on my US duo, but not a PCE rom. It might have been the rom though. I'm going to tinker with it some more this evening. Thanks again!
Quote from: guest on 08/21/2012, 04:21 PMI was able to get a US rom working on my US duo, but not a PCE rom. It might have been the rom though. I'm going to tinker with it some more this evening.
It may be that you used the "swap bits" option. That's not required on an american system, regardless of game region. And of course don't forget to remove those headers.
Quote from: guest on 08/21/2012, 04:21 PMWas it supposed to include a Driver CD?
No, unless you specifically ask for it. That's what the author told me on an email. Smart move to protect the environment.
Quote from: guest on 08/21/2012, 04:21 PMThanks for the lightning fast turnaround.
I agree, fast shipping and great communication.
It is great to see great quality products like these being made in the US and at great price.
Thanks GOY !
Thanks for the feedback. I'm glad that most of you are up & running successfully with the cards.
Paisa49, I usually pull the card out by grabbing the USB connector from the top & bottom.
Update: I've been able to successfully play anything I've thrown at it, region free. Has anyone tried running the System 1.0 card on this? I wonder if I can make it past the first level of Altered Beast... I'll test that out later tonight. :)
UPDATE: Successfully beat level one of Altered Beast using the System 1.0 rom on this card! :dance:
Quote from: gameofyou on 08/21/2012, 09:46 PMPaisa49, I usually pull the card out by grabbing the USB connector from the top & bottom.
Great, thanks again.
Dang low cost flash card!!! Now this is something i need!!!!
Quote from: Bloody Wolf on 09/06/2012, 01:05 AMDang low cost flash card!!! Now this is something i need!!!!
Darn straight! Buy a couple. :)
I know most people thought this would never happen, lol, but I have finally updated the Downloader software. I have caught up with hardware assembly, so I decided to add the ROM Conversion functionality into my software. It is basically the same functionality as ConHuevos' stand-alone application. But now it is integrated into the Downloader software. This is nice because only a single application needs to be run now, to do everything. Also, for newcomers, only one software install is required now.
You can download the software from the main page:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
And there is a brief overview of it on the Rom Tips page:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/rom_tips.html
Thanks.
Quote from: gameofyou on 09/22/2012, 01:58 PMI know most people thought this would never happen, lol, but I have finally updated the Downloader software. I have caught up with hardware assembly, so I decided to add the ROM Conversion functionality into my software. It is basically the same functionality as ConHuevos' stand-alone application. But now it is integrated into the Downloader software. This is nice because only a single application needs to be run now, to do everything. Also, for newcomers, only one software install is required now.
You can download the software from the main page:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
And there is a brief overview of it on the Rom Tips page:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/rom_tips.html
Yay!
We never lost faith, comrade :pcgs:.
I'm having issues with mine not erasing the flash when writing a new rom again. In fact, it was never really fixed after you sent it back. Any ideas what to do? =/
Glad to see an update of the software! This card has been great, run everything I've thrown at it! :)
People need to get on more hucard translations (myself included :P), this is a great way to play them.
Quote from: ConHuevos on 10/19/2012, 07:52 AMI'm having issues with mine not erasing the flash when writing a new rom again. In fact, it was never really fixed after you sent it back. Any ideas what to do? =/
I can replace it with a new one, if you want to send it back to me.
Sure, please pm your info. I received it back from you and it worked for about 2 days then it went back to not erasing. I felt like playing neutopia today and tried to use it and it was not erasing again =/.
mine has been flawless since my jumper repair
You mentioned D5 or something like that, I don't see anything labeled D5 steve.
Wow, this looks fantastic - I just ordered one for myself.
I have a question about the addressability of the flash memory from within a program...
Years ago, I had used Jerry DaSilva's TurboROM board in conjunction with AMD 29F040B DIP flash memory.
At the time, I had written a flash version of the "Ten no Koe" bank card, to copy the backup memory contents into the flash memory itself for longer-term archiving.
It worked fine, on a TurboGrafx-16, but it didn't work so well on the TurboDuo - I concluded that it was because of the power available from the cartridge bus being sufficient to read the flash, but insufficient to write into it. (Those boards didn't do download, thus the only power draw was the flash chip itself, which must have required a lot of juice.)
Since your version uses a TSOP chip (probably a more recent shrink), and there was a comment about lower current drain, I was curious as to whether this approach may work for your board.
So, I have a couple of questions:
1) Do you inhibit /WR from the PC Engine bus to the flash memory ? (ie. this would prevent it from being writable while in-circuit)
2) Roughly what vintage are the flash chips - 0.5um ? 0.35um ? (Not sure if they made this easy to determine). 5V-native chips are probably pretty old... also wondering the rated rewrite cycles ? I believe they were insanely huge numbers back then.
3) Is it possible to read from the flash memory via the USB ? If so, does your software already do this ?
D5 is a data line as stated on the flash chip datasheet
Quote from: dshadoff on 10/21/2012, 12:52 PMWow, this looks fantastic - I just ordered one for myself.
I have a question about the addressability of the flash memory from within a program...
Years ago, I had used Jerry DaSilva's TurboROM board in conjunction with AMD 29F040B DIP flash memory.
At the time, I had written a flash version of the "Ten no Koe" bank card, to copy the backup memory contents into the flash memory itself for longer-term archiving.
It worked fine, on a TurboGrafx-16, but it didn't work so well on the TurboDuo - I concluded that it was because of the power available from the cartridge bus being sufficient to read the flash, but insufficient to write into it. (Those boards didn't do download, thus the only power draw was the flash chip itself, which must have required a lot of juice.)
Since your version uses a TSOP chip (probably a more recent shrink), and there was a comment about lower current drain, I was curious as to whether this approach may work for your board.
So, I have a couple of questions:
1) Do you inhibit /WR from the PC Engine bus to the flash memory ? (ie. this would prevent it from being writable while in-circuit)
2) Roughly what vintage are the flash chips - 0.5um ? 0.35um ? (Not sure if they made this easy to determine). 5V-native chips are probably pretty old... also wondering the rated rewrite cycles ? I believe they were insanely huge numbers back then.
3) Is it possible to read from the flash memory via the USB ? If so, does your software already do this ?
This information is in the first page of posts, but I'll repost it here:
I am using a MX29F800C flash chip (cheap & available at Digikey). You can see the datasheet here:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/MX29F800C.pdf
And here is the circuit schematic for the HuCard/Flash interface:
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/temp/HuCard_Schematic_V01.pdf
The connection between the edge connector and flash chip for the /WR is present (as you can see in the interface schematic). The datasheet will tell you everything you want to know about the flash chip that is used. I did not add any capability into the software to read data out over usb.
Received my replacement, works great! Thank you very much for your great service!
Hmm, I think I know what I am getting myself on the first. This is frickin' cool man. Hopefully you still have some available by then.
Quote from: ConHuevos on 10/26/2012, 01:24 PMReceived my replacement, works great! Thank you very much for your great service!
Good to hear! Also, I have received your non-working card, & will take a look at it when I get a chance. Since I had already reflowed the solder, my guess is that it is a problem with the pcb itself.
Quote from: T2KFreeker on 10/26/2012, 06:53 PMHmm, I think I know what I am getting myself on the first. This is frickin' cool man. Hopefully you still have some available by then.
My plan is to keep these in stock for a very long time. The orders have slowed down enough, that I should be able to keep up with assembling them for the foreseeable future.
Quote from: gameofyou on 10/27/2012, 05:40 PMQuote from: T2KFreeker on 10/26/2012, 06:53 PMHmm, I think I know what I am getting myself on the first. This is frickin' cool man. Hopefully you still have some available by then.
My plan is to keep these in stock for a very long time. The orders have slowed down enough, that I should be able to keep up with assembling them for the foreseeable future.
Watch those orders pick up in December, I know I'll be getting one around then. ASAP really.
Ordered one. Thank you so much for doing this.
So how are these things holding up
I got one early on and when it first arrived I used it a bunch. But after a little while the wow factor wore off and I really don't use it very often anymore. I've never had any problems with it, though. It is a very slight bit thicker than a standard HuCard and maybe I don't use it as often as I might if that didn't worry me just a little bit about wearing out the connector inside my consoles. Overall, I'm very happy with it and feel it was money well spent.
It does only hold one game at a time, so when a game goes on, it tends to stay on for awhile. It's not meant for ripping through the entire library in an afternoon.
Quote from: guest on 01/15/2013, 11:17 PMI got one early on and when it first arrived I used it a bunch. But after a little while the wow factor wore off and I really don't use it very often anymore. I've never had any problems with it, though. It is a very slight bit thicker than a standard HuCard and maybe I don't use it as often as I might if that didn't worry me just a little bit about wearing out the connector inside my consoles. Overall, I'm very happy with it and feel it was money well spent.
It does only hold one game at a time, so when a game goes on, it tends to stay on for awhile. It's not meant for ripping through the entire library in an afternoon.
Thanks for the input, I picked one up just to try other games out, I came to the conclusion that I almost got every game I wanted as a kid and I wanted to try other games so I won't miss out, I figured the price was better then the other one that was made with the sd card, I see no point in the other one since in reality you only play one game at a time.
another note
this card does not suffer from the compatibility issues the neo does
Are these cards still in stock? If not, what's the turnaround time if ordered?
Seriously thinking about picking one of these up
http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/
I was on the website last night, but I dont remember it stating if he had any pre-made and ready to ship.
Oh well, doesn't really matter anyway. I'm ordering one regardless
Oh I understand. I just ordered mine a couple months back and it was #74 if that helps at all.
Terry
I haven't used it in a while. It fits better on my TG16 than on my DuoR. I love this card, it gets the job done, it works under Win 7 x64. The price is unbeatable.
Yeah, I just got one of these cards and it works great. The software for it is great and very easy to use. I can also verify that it works without any problems on a region modded system that uses a region chip. Oh, and this was very helpful http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/rom_tips.html
I just recieved mine the other day. Very easy to set up and download a game. Works great, and can't beat the price!
I'd like to add that this product fits into a standard HuCard sleeve (the mini-USB drive just fits), and it's able to fit into a case with manual no problems or bulging/space issues.
Good to hear!
I am going to take a short break from building these, but in a month or so, I will build another batch and re-open orders.
Quote from: tpivette on 02/12/2013, 03:31 PMI just recieved mine the other day. Very easy to set up and download a game. Works great, and can't beat the price!
I'd like to add that this product fits into a standard HuCard sleeve (the mini-USB drive just fits), and it's able to fit into a case with manual no problems or bulging/space issues.
This is a shameless bump, to say that I have finally had time to make another batch of cards. :o
Not sure if this has been asked before, but can this card send commands to the CD Drive, instructing it to play back Redbook Audio, during gameplay, assuming all of the Game Data is in the Card, not the CD.
Hi, I'm having an issue. If I try to load a different game, the software won't erase the flash card, it will just skip to the loading phase, you can see the progress, the card led is flashing, and the software will say everything went fine. However in reality is not doing anything.
It is stuck with Magical Chase (J). The MC curse maybe.
Quote from: esadajr on 05/07/2013, 11:05 PMHi, I'm having an issue. If I try to load a different game, the software won't erase the flash card, it will just skip to the loading phase, you can see the progress, the card led is flashing, and the software will say everything went fine. However in reality is not doing anything.
It is stuck with Magical Chase (J). The MC curse maybe.
This can happen if a solder connection has opened on any of the micro controller or flash memory pins (or there is a short across two pins). Usually, it just takes re-flowing the solder on all the IC pins. I can do this for you.
Quote from: gameofyou on 05/08/2013, 08:12 PMQuote from: esadajr on 05/07/2013, 11:05 PMHi, I'm having an issue. If I try to load a different game, the software won't erase the flash card, it will just skip to the loading phase, you can see the progress, the card led is flashing, and the software will say everything went fine. However in reality is not doing anything.
It is stuck with Magical Chase (J). The MC curse maybe.
This can happen if a solder connection has opened on any of the micro controller or flash memory pins (or there is a short across two pins). Usually, it just takes re-flowing the solder on all the IC pins. I can do this for you.
This guy rocks. I have one of the cards. Just got it for my Birthday. Had some issues and he walked me through every step of the way. Nice indeed.
Hello,
i want to understand , why it's difficult to get a 16mbit ?
It's possible to get same 32 mbit ?
Quote from: pckid on 10/02/2013, 01:51 PMHello,
i want to understand , why it's difficult to get a 16mbit ?
It's possible to get same 32 mbit ?
The HuCard format only has enough address lines to support 8 mibit. In order to have more data, like Street Fighter II, you have to have memory mapper hardware on the card.
Might make the jump and try one of these out in the coming week if they're still available!!
While I can see the draw to having a flashcard that holds every game imaginable, I really like this one. I have a pretty sizeable library as it is and it's honestly not often that I drop a commercial game I don't own on my Low Cost Flash Hucard. Usually it's a homebrew (played a lot of Contra recently) or a US version of a PCE game I have to get past a part I'm stuck in. I've fiddled with Magical Chase and a few other games I'd like to have, but it's just not the same as having the actual Hu.
So that's my .02 thus far. :)
This flash card is awesome. I use it for the few translated to english pc engine games that are out there.
Quote from: guest on 01/30/2014, 10:35 PMI've fiddled with Magical Chase and a few other games I'd like to have, but it's just not the same as having the actual Hu.
I agree with that, call it getting the "authentic experience" or whatever and my guess is a lot of folks around here are like that. My game library isn't anywhere near as extensive as I would like (whenever I see pics that are posted here and there, of someone's ridiculous collection, I get both exhilarated and depressed at the same time.) Anyway, I am fortunate to have most games in original format which I personally enjoy the most and that I play regularly.
That said, a good flash card like this and for that price is awesome. This kind of thing always gets me thinking that: If quality, easy-to-use flash cards like these could be fabricated on a larger scale and made more widely available, and the word got out to more "layman" TG-16/PCE gamers about their low cost and availability, there could be some money to be made there. Really what surprises me though is that with all the ways available to access the NEC game libraries, and to play them, why the market for U.S. hucards is remains so high.
Wanting to own and use the original physical media to play the games, probably a prevalent idea in this forum, me included, in the bigger picture imo it has to be just a niche.
Wikipedia tells me that 2.5M Turbografx-16 consoles were originally sold in the U.S. Not sure what this includes, or if it accurate. Does anyone have a reliable number of total U.S. TG-16's and U.S. Duo's that were sold?
I am just going to say a total of 2M for now. So even as unsuccessful as the consoles were in the U.S., that is still 2M people out there in 'merica who owned one of these. I wonder if a portion of these folks, by now maybe getting a little nostalgic and also reached a point where they have decent exependable incomes, not hardcore people but TG-16/Duo players nonetheless, got into the market.
Leaving the legal component of this aside, and I know there is a question of legality involved here. But just for argument's sake: if you went to those folks in large numbers and made them understand in unequivocal and simple terms: "Here is a device that, using simple software, you can load on to it any TG-16 game you want, and play it on the original console, and this device only costs around $30.00. Furthermore, you can in fact acquire bascially the entire NEC U.S. catalog of games, for free, from a variety of online sources" would that attract enough interest to decrease demand on the actual Hucards and normalize the prices for the original games somewhat?
There will always be the collector, for example, people who get pissed if there is a dent in the box of the game they bought, because it doesn't look as good sitting in their glass case. But maybe they would go away in larger numbers if the games didn't appear to them to be such a good "investment." That would be good news to me, because I get my value out of playing the games, rather than resale values or what not.
Id buy one if the become available again
I am wanting one of these now
Sent from my Lumia 520 on Scabb Island using Tapatalk
Quote from: Paddyfitz18 on 01/31/2014, 11:40 AM... would that attract enough interest to decrease demand on the actual Hucards and normalize the prices for the original games somewhat?
Nope. Flash carts (and CDRs) have been available for years (the price cut is meaningless compared to the cost of games), yet game prices are higher than ever.
^ yeah, I suppose that is true.
Not to take this tangent too far off topic, but I think a lot of us feel like we're "cheating" by using a flashcard or cdr to play a commercial game. I've developed a lot of low budget dvds for clients over the years and I hate hearing when they are pirated. So that was never my intention when I got this. Though I do think there's some merit to the "try before you buy" saying. I've picked up a number of pce games because I loved trying it out on the flashcard. However I have an Ys IV cdr sitting in my cd wallet practically unplayed because I don't own Ys IV yet. The same went for Rondo. I've had a cdr of it for ages, but never dug into it until I bought the real thing.
Also, I love looking through the manuals. Even if they are pce and I don't understand everything, I appreciate all the effort that was put into them. That's one of the things I miss about music and PC games being so readily available as a digital download - no kickass manuals. :(
Hey all,
I know it has been a very long time. I only have a few bare PCBs left from my original order. I have come to the conclusion that I will no longer have the time to build these. So my plan is to, very soon, post the schematics, BOM, Gerbers, ...ect, on my web page.
So, basically, anyone who has the time and skills can build these cards up, as many as they want.
I will still provide the microcontroller (which will be pre-programmed). This way I can still make a couple bucks to reimburse my prototyping and design time. I think that is a fair solution, and hopefully everyone will be satisfied with that solution.
It will probably be a couple months before this happens, and I'll post here when I have my web page updated.
Honestly, I didn't think there would be much demand, once the Everdrive was released. But I still get many requests for this card, so I figured it is time to pass the torch.
I eventually found the Windows 7 netbook (Shortest lived fad in computing history, netbooks? Maybe.) and made an attempt to flash something new onto my card. However it doesn't work, for some reason. The card no longer has Logic on it but I can't seem to get anything to flash now. The card was working perfectly until I tried to change the game.
Quote from: SignOfZeta on 08/14/2016, 07:17 PMI eventually found the Windows 7 netbook (Shortest lived fad in computing history, netbooks? Maybe.) and made an attempt to flash something new onto my card. However it doesn't work, for some reason. The card no longer has Logic on it but I can't seem to get anything to flash now. The card was working perfectly until I tried to change the game.
Seems to be a common occurrence with these unfortunately. I got two back in the day and both had the same issue, after a few write cycles they wouldn't erase. Gameofyou stood behind his product in both occasions. Since I gave them away I don't know how the repairs held.
It is a great idea though and I hope someone picks up this project in the future.
Quote from: SignOfZeta on 08/14/2016, 07:17 PMI eventually found the Windows 7 netbook (Shortest lived fad in computing history, netbooks? Maybe.) and made an attempt to flash something new onto my card. However it doesn't work, for some reason. The card no longer has Logic on it but I can't seem to get anything to flash now. The card was working perfectly until I tried to change the game.
Yeah, I have seen this happen on a few cards. I have never been able to determine if the bare pcb's are to blame or the soldering process. Usually the cause is that a connection has opened up (either a pcb via, or a cold solder joint). This prevents the erase cycle from happening, as it should. You will know this if the led begins flashing right away after clicking download. Normally, there will be a few seconds where the flash is erased, before the led starts flashing.
Reflowing the solder to the microcontroller and the flash chips might fix it. You could maybe even do this in a toaster oven, if you can't solder small pins. You can also try putting light pressure against the microcontroller and flash chips, with your fingers, while the download is happening. Sometimes this works.
I'll look real close at it. I can solder almost anything.
I really only need it to write once more. After that it can happily retire from flashing and just be...Magical Chase or something. I'm not much of a "channel flipper" with games so just having it be one massively unaffordable game is fine with me. Maybe Bomberman User Battle.
One dude's card, you could just press down on the flash chip and it would erase/flash.
Mine seems to be holding up fine over here. It was a very handy device for Atlantean development.
Much better than that shitheap NeoFlash garbage
Oh yeah, I have a broken one of those.
Quote from: SignOfZeta on 08/16/2016, 04:05 AMOh yeah, I have a broken one of those.
Everyone has a broken one of those
they're total garbage and that USB connector that comes with it is the dumbest idea of all time.
Quote from: guest on 08/16/2016, 07:54 PMQuote from: SignOfZeta on 08/16/2016, 04:05 AMOh yeah, I have a broken one of those.
Everyone has a broken one of those
they're total garbage and that USB connector that comes with it is the dumbest idea of all time.
The NeoFlash card that I could never get to work....it might not have been 100% due to my incompetence?
My NeoFlash took some work to get running, but it's been rock solid since; and as an added bonus, it doesn't get hit by the power switch like my TED does.
Quote from: guest on 08/17/2016, 09:47 AMMy NeoFlash took some work to get running, but it's been rock solid since; and as an added bonus, it doesn't get hit by the power switch like my TED does.
Then there *is* hope for me.
I still need to get the stupid card reader/writer (and a card) for TED.
And if I am doing that, I may as well attempt to get all my flash cards operational (Neo, gameofyou)...
Sad.
I am stoopid.
I need a new sd card for my TED, as I recently destroyed mine trying to whittle it down enough for the power switch to slide by.
If you've ever wondered how much extra plastic is in one of those things, the answer is "not fricking much". :mrgreen:
Quote from: guest on 08/17/2016, 12:37 PMI need a new sd card for my TED, as I recently destroyed mine trying to whittle it down enough for the power switch to slide by.
If you've ever wondered how much extra plastic is in one of those things, the answer is "not fricking much". :mrgreen:
Hahahhahahajja.
...and you are the one who is supposed to have *finesse* when it comes to these sorts of projects.
Hah thanks for the suggestion necro, and more so the warning - sorry for your loss. Maybe it would be worth applying that same technique to the power switch? It's just to prevent the chip from sliding out while power is on right? Like the slot on gameboy games that allowed the power button to slightly overlap it?
Seems like 3D printed power switches would be a low cost and rudimentary production?
Edit: I suppose it could also have been for copy protection, my point is the plastic part of the switch that sits over the sd card would not be needed for the games to run right?
Fortunately, the entire PCE HuCard collection fits on a 2GB card, no problem, so it'll be a cheap replacement.
Yarr, it's no big deal. The time wasted trying to shave it down was probably worth more than the card.
I did look at trimming off the horizontal portion of the L shaped power switch, but disassembling the system looked like too much effort if the card trimming would've worked.
Quote from: gameofyou on 08/15/2016, 07:59 PMQuote from: SignOfZeta on 08/14/2016, 07:17 PMI eventually found the Windows 7 netbook (Shortest lived fad in computing history, netbooks? Maybe.) and made an attempt to flash something new onto my card. However it doesn't work, for some reason. The card no longer has Logic on it but I can't seem to get anything to flash now. The card was working perfectly until I tried to change the game.
Yeah, I have seen this happen on a few cards. I have never been able to determine if the bare pcb's are to blame or the soldering process. Usually the cause is that a connection has opened up (either a pcb via, or a cold solder joint). This prevents the erase cycle from happening, as it should. You will know this if the led begins flashing right away after clicking download. Normally, there will be a few seconds where the flash is erased, before the led starts flashing.
Reflowing the solder to the microcontroller and the flash chips might fix it. You could maybe even do this in a toaster oven, if you can't solder small pins. You can also try putting light pressure against the microcontroller and flash chips, with your fingers, while the download is happening. Sometimes this works.
I figured out why windows 7 was giving me issues. Turns out all I had to do was change my comport number using the device manager. Com was set to com11 prior so the software couldn't find it. I simply changed the com port to com2 and now it shows up right away in the software.