#71406 - zzo38computer - Sun Feb 12, 2006 5:33 pm
Is it possible to copy Goomba emulator to the firmware, and file the GB/GBC cards to fit into the slot, and make it work if you select that option from the menu?
#71408 - Darkflame - Sun Feb 12, 2006 5:49 pm
If only.
But no, theres a voltage difference and a few other issues that have to be addressed.
An adapter of some sort is possible..but probably unlikely to be developed.
#71424 - tepples - Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:39 pm
GBC cart bus protocol is similar on the surface to GBA SRAM protocol, but the voltage is different and the control lines are different.
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#71492 - HyperHacker - Mon Feb 13, 2006 4:36 am
Which control lines, specifically, are different? I've often considered such a hack myself, using some sort of passthrough to step up the voltage (and if it's not too complicated, rearrange some of the connections to accomodate the GBC pinout). If the DS could read GBC cartridges, an emulator could take care of the rest, and wouldn't have to emulate memory controllers and different types of cartridges.
Although if the pinout is way different, then that does explain why Nintendo didn't just include a voltage comvertor and an emulator in the firmware. (Or on a DS card, if they can't fit it in 256K and are too cheap to make it bigger.) I'd have figured they worked the same, as GBA used the same slot for GBC games.
#71502 - tepples - Mon Feb 13, 2006 5:04 am
| HyperHacker wrote: |
| Which control lines, specifically, are different? I've often considered such a hack myself, using some sort of passthrough to step up the voltage (and if it's not too complicated, rearrange some of the connections to accomodate the GBC pinout). |
From Reiner Ziegler's GBC page and gba.pdf:
pin 1: +5V
pin 2: clock
pin 3: /WR
pin 4: /RD
pin 5: /CS on GBC; /ROMCS on GBA
pin 6-21: address
pin 22-29: data
pin 30: /RESET on GBC; /SRAMCS on GBA
pin 31: Audio in
pin 32: GND
It would appear that you'd need to route GBA cart pin 30 to GBC cart pin 5 and shift the voltages, but that's about it.
| Quote: |
| If the DS could read GBC cartridges, an emulator could take care of the rest, and wouldn't have to emulate memory controllers and different types of cartridges. |
But then you'd get slowdown while waiting for instructions and data to be read from the cartridge, as the CPU blocks on the cart bus. Better to support the common mappers and read whole 8 KB blocks into RAM in the same way that Goomba Color for GBA Movie Player does. You'd also need to load the ROM into RAM for use with DS wireless link play using the so-called TGB Dual method, as one cart isn't fast enough to support access by two emulated GBCs.
_________________
-- Where is he?
-- Who?
-- You know, the human.
-- I think he moved to Tilwick.