8Mbit Flash HuCard FAQ

[gameofyou]

I wanted to make a seperate topic, so that we can help each other out with any issues concerning the low-cost Flash HuCard.  Hopefully, it will be a place to capture common problems, concerning the hardware, PC software, and running certain games.
 
The first source of information is the 3 page instruction sheet (Flash_HuCard_USB_Setup_Instructions_V10.pdf), which is included in the software download package.  The next souce of information is to read through my web page (http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard), especially this page  http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/rom_tips.html.
 
After that, post the questions here, and hopefully either myself or others can answer!

[spenoza]

Well, mine just arrived in the mail today, so I'll be sure to post any questions resulting from my experiments here.

OK, so Vista x64 keeps deciding to go on-line and find the drivers I need for me. This may be why I keep getting a communication timeout message that instructs me to connect the flash card device even though it is properly connected and purportedly recognized.

Any guidance how to circumvent this?

Provided drivers don't like Vista x64. Using the ones from the web site. Played with the COM settings and I can't seem to get anything that works just right.

[ConHuevos]

Just realized this card had its own thread.  I ordered one last night and I had this question:

https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=12046.0

Since you can't (I assume) fit it into an official cart...is there any way to make it more "official" looking rather than plugging in an electronic board with all the circuitry exposed?  It scares me thinking if I forget to ground myself or something and grab this.

[gameofyou]

Well, mine just arrived in the mail today, so I'll be sure to post any questions resulting from my experiments here.

OK, so Vista x64 keeps deciding to go on-line and find the drivers I need for me. This may be why I keep getting a communication timeout message that instructs me to connect the flash card device even though it is properly connected and purportedly recognized.

Any guidance how to circumvent this?

Provided drivers don't like Vista x64. Using the ones from the web site. Played with the COM settings and I can't seem to get anything that works just right.

Does Vista itself recognize the card when you plug it in?  You should get a solid green light, and the PC should assign it a COM value (you can check this in device manager). 
 
Another way to check is by opening the Downloader software and go to File...Configure.  When you do this, does it show any COM ports in the pulldown?

[spenoza]

Yes. Vista recognizes it. It is COM7 and the light is green. I even tried playing with the settings in the Device Manager. Still won't talk, though.

Just got everything set up on my wife's laptop running XP 32-bit and it's largely the same. Drivers install (this time from the download with the software), set up a USB COM port (COM4 on this laptop), and the light on the card is green. But in the downloader, trying to send data, I get the error message that it can't communicate. I'm wondering if I got a dud.

My suspicion is that there's something wrong with the flash chip or the soldering job with the flash chip, because it seems the USB controller stuff is working alright.

[gameofyou]

Yes. Vista recognizes it. It is COM7 and the light is green. I even tried playing with the settings in the Device Manager. Still won't talk, though.

Just got everything set up on my wife's laptop running XP 32-bit and it's largely the same. Drivers install (this time from the download with the software), set up a USB COM port (COM4 on this laptop), and the light on the card is green. But in the downloader, trying to send data, I get the error message that it can't communicate. I'm wondering if I got a dud.

My suspicion is that there's something wrong with the flash chip or the soldering job with the flash chip, because it seems the USB controller stuff is working alright.

I do fully test each card before shipping it.  But, you could be right.  Maybe a cold solder joint, and it got bumped during shipping.  You can send it back to me & I'll ship you a replacement.  I'll let you know what I find.

[thesteve]

if you have it in the system it will timeout as well.
please only connect the USB with it not inserted in the console

[spenoza]

I haven't inserted it into the console, yet. I have no reason to. I can't get any content onto it.

I'm out of computers to test it on, but it has thrown the same error on both a Vista 64-bit desktop and an XP 32-bit laptop.

[gameofyou]

if you have it in the system it will timeout as well.
please only connect the USB with it not inserted in the console

Correct.  You should never do that.  I have stated this in the instructions (in bold), as well.

[OldMan]

I haven't inserted it into the console, yet. I have no reason to.

Unless the power for the chips comes from the pce connector.....
Maybe, just guessing.....

[gameofyou]

Just realized this card had its own thread.  I ordered one last night and I had this question:

https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=12046.0

Since you can't (I assume) fit it into an official cart...is there any way to make it more "official" looking rather than plugging in an electronic board with all the circuitry exposed?  It scares me thinking if I forget to ground myself or something and grab this.

It is good practice to ground youself before handling the card.  But really, it's no more succeptable than when you touch the contacts of a commercial HuCard.  Just handle it by the edges, whenever possible, and you will be fine.

[gameofyou]

I haven't inserted it into the console, yet. I have no reason to.

Unless the power for the chips comes from the pce connector.....
Maybe, just guessing.....

Power to the chips is from the USB connector when programming it.  Power to the chips is from pce connector when playing a game.  You should never plug in both at the same time.

[soop]

Don't cross the streams...

[_Paul]

I've managed to install all the software and transfer a ROM across to it with no issues, but when I insert it into either my white PCE or DUO-RX, all I get is a white screen. I've removed the headers, and tried it on homebrew roms but still no success.

OH wait....more info incoming soon....

OK, some success. I've had to swap the bits for a Japanese rom on a Japanese machine to get it to work.

So far I've tried Cyber Core and Out Run, both being unplayable due to graphics corruption. I'll try some more now.

[_Paul]

Here's my report so far:

I've got working - Circus Lido, Psycho Chaser, Soldier Blade & Tongueman's Logic

Not working - Cyber Core, OutRun (4 roms tried), Parasol Stars, Ninja Warriors (2 roms tried).

All these non-working roms run fine in an emulator - can I assume that there's something bad in the rip that stops it working on a real PCE?
Also, is it likely that th utility to remove the 'SNES' header could be removing something it shouldn't?

Because some are working, I am hoping it's just a ROM thing and the hardware is fine. My main reason for getting this is to test out homebrew games on real hardware anyway.


One thing I can't get working is US games on Japanese Duo, tried swapping and not swapping the bits with no success - only tried Magical Chase and China Warrior so far, white screen both times.

[thesteve]

to run us roms on JP hardware you either need to change the check bit in the rom or ground pin 29 on the 6280

[ConHuevos]

Just got mine in the mail, thanks for the fast shipping!  It works perfectly!

I already had the FTDI drivers from using an arduino so no issues on windows 7.  I know they also work on Vista because that's what I used until about 6 months ago and the FTDI drivers still worked.

Transfer is a bit slow, but I don't mind, thanks!!

Here's my report so far:

I've got working - Circus Lido, Psycho Chaser, Soldier Blade & Tongueman's Logic

Not working - Cyber Core, OutRun (4 roms tried), Parasol Stars, Ninja Warriors (2 roms tried).

All these non-working roms run fine in an emulator - can I assume that there's something bad in the rip that stops it working on a real PCE?
Also, is it likely that th utility to remove the 'SNES' header could be removing something it shouldn't?

Because some are working, I am hoping it's just a ROM thing and the hardware is fine. My main reason for getting this is to test out homebrew games on real hardware anyway.


One thing I can't get working is US games on Japanese Duo, tried swapping and not swapping the bits with no success - only tried Magical Chase and China Warrior so far, white screen both times.

Make sure you're using headerless roms or removing the headers before you try.  Everything I've thrown at it has worked on my US duo.

EDIT:

OK, I just tried Parasol stars and there is a graphical glitch:



I know the rom is good, it's from the No-Intro set, has no headers and this is the USA version.  These artifacts also show up when using the (J) version.  It plays fine but there are artifacts on a lot of of the sprites.  I hope you can test this yourself gameof and find the problem.

Outrun (J) works fine for me.

Ninja Warriors (J) doesn't work for me, its got major graphical corruption.

Cybercore (J) also has major graphical corruption like Ninja Warriors.  Unplayable.

All the roms I use are from the No-Intro set and verified in CLRmamepro using the no-intro dat file.  So they are headerless and known good dumps.  They also work fine in all pce emulators I've tried (Bizhawk, Pce-jin, mednafen, MagicEngine) if that means anything

[gameofyou]

I will try out Parasol Stars, when I get a chance, & see if I get similar results.

[gameofyou]

One thing I can't get working is US games on Japanese Duo, tried swapping and not swapping the bits with no success - only tried Magical Chase and China Warrior so far, white screen both times.

To run USA games on a JPN system, there is a secondary region check.  See my web page here (http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/rom_tips.html) & try the procedure described.  If I get time, I will test these.

[ConHuevos]

Ok cool, I hope you check the other games I listed that have major corruption as well.

Also, your FAQ page, the link to Windhex doesnt seem to work, or at least Zophar's doesn't have it anymore.  You can find it here though:

http://www.romhacking.net/utilities/291/

[_Paul]

Sounds like you're having the same issues with Parasol Stars and the others I mentioned. I got the no-intro set today so will try these out also.

I looked at the secondary region check when trying to get Magical Chase US to work, but I couldn't understand it. If anyone has a screenie of exactly where in windhex I need to change it, please post.

[ConHuevos]

Sounds like you're having the same issues with Parasol Stars and the others I mentioned. I got the no-intro set today so will try these out also.

I looked at the secondary region check when trying to get Magical Chase US to work, but I couldn't understand it. If anyone has a screenie of exactly where in windhex I need to change it, please post.

Outrun (J) worked perfectly fine btw.  That one may have been a bad rom on your part maybe??

EDIT:

You search the file for the hex sequence "78 54 A9".  If you get multiple addresses with that sequence of bytes, you need the one that has 'NEC' in ascii at offset 0x15 starting from that sequence (that's not fifteen, thats 0x15 in hex).  If you see that 'NEC' there, that's the correct offset for the region.  For Magical chase it's right at the beginning of the rom.  Here is a screen shot of the byte you want to change in magical chase (this has no header) it's at offset 0x17 in the ROM:

snag.gy/UgNEW.jpg

[gameofyou]

Thanks ConHuevos!  I was just about to post the same thing.
 
I know it's kind of a pain to do the conversion of a USA game to a JPN system.  Hopefully, I can work all that stuff into my own software so that we don't need to use WindHex32 in the future.

[_Paul]

Thanks ConHuevos, that worked perfectly.

I still can't see the sequence 78 54 A9 in there...am I just being completely blind?

Also, I notice that for every rom, regardless of Japanese or US, I always have to check the 'Swap Data Bits' to get it to run on my Japanese Duo. The instructions lead you to believe that you only do this when a rom does not match the country you are using it with, which is not correct, unless every Japanese rom I have has been hacked to US region....unlikely.


Anway, just want to say how grateful I am to gameofyou for producing this awesome bit of gear!

[ConHuevos]

The sequences starts at offset 0x0C in the ROM, + 0x15 from that is the 'NEC' string.

[ConHuevos]

Thanks ConHuevos!  I was just about to post the same thing.
 
I know its kind of a pain to do the conversion of a USA game to a JPN system.  Hopefully, I can work all that stuff into my own software so that we don't need to use WindHex32 in the future.

I can help you with that if you'd like to release the source to the software.  It's written in VB I assume since it requires an .OCX?

[spenoza]

Also, I notice that for every rom, regardless of Japanese or US, I always have to check the 'Swap Data Bits' to get it to run on my Japanese Duo. The instructions lead you to believe that you only do this when a rom does not match the country you are using it with, which is not correct, unless every Japanese rom I have has been hacked to US region....unlikely.

I supposed that could depend on the source of your ROM files. The No-Intro set might have been adultered a little bit, not just to remove the header but also to set all the ROMs to the US region.

[ConHuevos]

No-intro set has no altered roms, that's kinda the point of why No-Intro exists, they basically got fed up of all the dumps containing unnecessary headers and data.  Unless you're saying something else modified his roms?   Nothing is modified in the no-intro set and is just the original rom.

[gameofyou]

Also, I notice that for every rom, regardless of Japanese or US, I always have to check the 'Swap Data Bits' to get it to run on my Japanese Duo. The instructions lead you to believe that you only do this when a rom does not match the country you are using it with, which is not correct, unless every Japanese rom I have has been hacked to US region....unlikely.

The instructions are correct.  As unlikely as it seems, your Japanese ROMs have apparently already been converted to US region.  It is the only possible explanation.
 
...and you're welcome!

[gameofyou]

I will try out Parasol Stars, when I get a chance, & see if I get similar results.

I have tried Parasol Stars, & I get the same result (graphic glitches).  I'm not sure of the reason.  But if any commercial games have extra circuitry (logic, decoders, ram, ...) other than ROM memory, then the Flash HuCard will not be able to play them.  As long as the commercial game contained only ROM chips (up to 8Mbit), they should work on the Flash HuCard.  But there are bound to be some games that won't work because of these reasons.  Hopefully it will turn out to be a very small percentage.
 
If anyone has any further insights, let us know.

[spenoza]

I guess this is where we implore someone to try out Parasol Stars on one of the older generation flash cards to see what happens there.

[ConHuevos]

I will try out Parasol Stars, when I get a chance, & see if I get similar results.

I have tried Parasol Stars, & I get the same result (graphic glitches).  I'm not sure of the reason.  But if any commercial games have extra circuitry (logic, decoders, ram, ...) other than ROM memory, then the Flash HuCard will not be able to play them.  As long as the commercial game contained only ROM chips (up to 8Mbit), they should work on the Flash HuCard.  But there are bound to be some games that won't work because of these reasons.  Hopefully it will turn out to be a very small percentage.
 
If anyone has any further insights, let us know.

Overall, I'm pleased with the compatiblity, it's the only US game I've encountered with any problem.  The other games mentioned, Ninja warrior and Cybercore are far worse at the glitches!  You literally only get opaque boxes on the screen.

[Aladar]

I think the problem is the /WR signal.
Years ago I discovered that the HuC6280 generates spurious writings during the START and RESET sequences.
More info tomorrow, I'm going to sleep.

[ConHuevos]

I (mostly Vec) has indentified the problem, he's the author who wrote the TG16/Duo emulation core for Bizhawk!

All the roms that are 384KB in size require special loading code for some reason.They need to be laid out as a 640KB rom file.  So you need to mirror the rom data.

You basically insert the first 256KB of the rom at the beginning... and then start over, the last 128KB are not where you would normally expect them to be.  

So it would be:

[1-256KB][1-384KB]  = 640KB rom file.

Here is the C# code he provided that he does in his emulation core, and can easily be added to your software gameof:

Code Select Expand

if (rom.Length == 0x60000)
                        {
                                // 384k roms require special loading code. Why ;_;
                                // In memory, 384k roms look like [1st 256k][Then full 384k]
                                RomData = new byte[0xA0000];
                                var origRom = rom;
                                for (int i = 0; i < 0x40000; i++)
                                        RomData[i] = origRom[i];
                                for (int i = 0; i < 0x60000; i++)
                                        RomData[i + 0x40000] = origRom[i];
                                RomLength = RomData.Length;
                        }


So as you can imagine, the system is looking for rom data to load that isn't present which is why the artifacts occur.

Just tried this and neutopia booted up fine!

Parasol stars also works without artifacts now!

Cyber core works with this.

And....So does ninja warrior.

Thankfully this is not a hardware issue!

[gameofyou]

That is an awesome bit of detective work, ConHuevos !!
 
Maybe this is also something that can be added to the PC software:  To automatically format the 384K games correctly, before initiating the download.

[ConHuevos]

Yes, it's a very simple fix.

[cabbage]

Yes, the problem with 3Mb games is also present on the Neo Flash carts. There have been some tools posted on the neo flash forums that can mirror them and output a new ROM that will work.

I just tried that with Parasol Stars and got both US and JP version working on a neo flash in a duo-r. First I stripped headers from both, then for the US version I ran it through ucon64 with --pce -nint -f (to fix region for my unmodded duo-r), and finally mirrored them both with neopcepad.exe. The resulting files were 6Mb each and seemed to work just fine, while the originals were heavily glitched.

[gameofyou]

I can help you with that if you'd like to release the source to the software.  It's written in VB I assume since it requires an .OCX?

It is written in an older version of VB (VB6), which is just the tool I happen to have.  I don't have any problem sharing the source code with people.  It's probably not something I will post online (it was written quite quickly), but I can provide it to anyone interested, just shoot  me an email.
 
In fact, I would like to get the software eventually ported to MAC and Linux, also.  So if anyone has the skills/tools to take that on, let me know 
 
I would actually appreciate the help.  I am getting overwhelmed, just trying to keep up with assembly.

[Aladar]

I think the problem is the /WR signal.
Years ago I discovered that the HuC6280 generates spurious writings during the START and RESET sequences.
More info tomorrow, I'm going to sleep.

Oops, I was wrong... but still can be a problem.

Any news on the reset button?

[ConHuevos]

See this post:

https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=12045.msg233222#msg233222

[gameofyou]

Also, I notice that for every rom, regardless of Japanese or US, I always have to check the 'Swap Data Bits' to get it to run on my Japanese Duo. The instructions lead you to believe that you only do this when a rom does not match the country you are using it with, which is not correct, unless every Japanese rom I have has been hacked to US region....unlikely.

The instructions are correct.  As unlikely as it seems, your Japanese ROMs have apparently already been converted to US region.  It is the only possible explanation.
 
...and you're welcome!

I am rethinking this now, & you may be right.  You might have to swap bits, only if you're playing on a JPN system.  I don't have a USA system to try it on, but if this turns out to be the case, then I will change the instructions.  Thanks!

[_Paul]

Works brilliantly. Tested Parasol Stars and plays with no glitches so far.

It would be awesome if the flashcard software could be updated to combine this and the header removal features.

[gameofyou]

Works brilliantly. Tested Parasol Stars and plays with no glitches so far.

It would be awesome if the flashcard software could be updated to combine this and the header removal features.

That is definately the plan.  Along with the Secondary protection feature (changing the 0xF0 to 0x80).
 
ConHuevos has volunteered to help me out with these PC updates, while I complete the hardware builds.  I think we should still allow all these new functions to be deselected, though.  Since the initial purpose for this card was for homebrew, I don't want the software to automatically jack up someone's 384K homebrew, without them knowing it.

[ConHuevos]

Ya, I'll work on it a bit tonight, I'll need some more information from you about the serial port data and how the card expects the upload gameof, if you've got a skype that would be a great way to discuss, just PM me, e-mail me, or post it here.   In the mean time, I'll start writing up removing the header, fixing 384KB roms, and the bit swap.

[NightWolve]

Hm, I wonder if Krizz knows about this 384KB issue and took it into account with his upcoming HuFlashCard. I'm gonna link him this thread to be on the safe side - it's now or never. So basically, emulators have always known to do this, to double the first 256KB of data then append the remaining 128KB of data to force a 640KB size ?? I guess the simplest way would be to ask Krikzz if he tested his card with Neutopia, Parosol Stars, Cyber Core, etc. and if not, to quickly grab a ROM that's 384/385 KB in size and try it!

[gameofyou]

Ya, I'll work on it a bit tonight, I'll need some more information from you about the serial port data and how the card expects the upload gameof, if you've got a skype that would be a great way to discuss, just PM me, e-mail me, or post it here.   In the mean time, I'll start writing up removing the header, fixing 384KB roms, and the bit swap.

It's a pretty simple program.  We can probably handle any Q/A thru email.  If it helps (for the serial data), I have done a writeup of its operation here:  http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/Flash_HuCard_PC_Protocol_V10.pdf

[ConHuevos]

I got most of the items done, just need to do the COMM transfer bit:

snag.gy/hG89B.jpg

Everything is functional except the transfer button.  I'll play around with that tomorrow if I get some time!

[roflmao]

This community is unbelievable!  I'm hoping a check I'm expecting will arrive tomorrow so I can order one of these tomorrow.  Very cool stuff!

[ccovell]

That is an awesome bit of detective work, ConHuevos !!
 
Maybe this is also something that can be added to the PC software:  To automatically format the 384K games correctly, before initiating the download.

Uhm... guess you forgot about this issue in the other thread 2 months ago: 

Did 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.

;-)


I just got the flash card today and though the COM port seems to be mapping fine (COM4), the software again times out...  (on my Win XP SP2 machine.)  Time to try with a Windows 7 machine...

[burn_654]

Just got this in, going to try it tonight! Exciting stuff!