MSX-AUDIO cartridges

[Manuel]

The switch only switches off the firmware. So by inserting a 'real' (fully emulated) MSX-AUDIO cartridge (probably only the Panasonic FS-CA1) it is present in the machine and it should be found by the game.

The poke is just for faking the presence of the FS-CA1's BIOS; not needed for a real FS-CA1

[bifimsx]

Any game however, should be able to find it. So, when starting a C-BIOS based machine with the MSX-AUDIO inserted (skipping firmware) and a game that uses it, it should just work. Can you confirm this?

The problem is to simulate the presence of the Panasonic MSX-AUDIO cartridge in slot 1.

We know that on a real machine, we can do that by inserting a Toshiba or Philips MSX-AUDIO and typing this in MSX-BASIC :

POKE -54,35:POKE&HF346,1:_SYSTEM

But this trick works only with Compile diskmagazines and disk games, not with the 3 mentioned rom games, because this command includes a reboot that configures the MSX memory in the MSX-DOS mode

What do you mean? Adding that POKE in C-BIOS?

GreeTz, BiFi

[mars2000you]

BiFi, maybe this poke could be implemented in C-BIOS and become active if an user adds a MSX-AUDIO chip to a C-BIOS machine.

[Manuel]

But as I said: it's not needed

Options:
1) use the Panasonic FS-CA1 with its original ROM with the switch on OFF
2) we could create a C-AUDIO, that implements the functions of the FS-CA1 ROM, including the 5 bytes that are necessary for the proper detection
3) use Vampier's solution: openmsx poke 0xffca 0x23

So, which one do you prefer?

(Edit...)

[Vampier]

openmsx
[f10]
poke 0xffca 0x23 [enter]
[f10]

lets keep c-bios pure without things that aren't in a real MSX bios

[mars2000you]

That's a manual solution for openMSX

Other emulators will prefer an automatic patching when a MSX-AUDIO chip is added on a C-BIOS machine

But, indeed, it's better to not include directly the poke in C-BIOS

[mars2000you]

Options:
1) use the Panasonic FS-CA1 with its original ROM with the switch on OFF

For the moment, this option is not possible with C-BIOS, as C-BIOS doesn't find the cartridge when the switch is in OFF position

So, the 'poke' solution should be a temporary solution. It should no more be useful later, when C-BIOS would have complete support for this cartridge (what implies disk and BASIC support).

[Manuel]

Options:
1) use the Panasonic FS-CA1 with its original ROM with the switch on OFF

For the moment, this option is not possible with C-BIOS, as C-BIOS doen't find the cartridge when the switch is in OFF position

That's not a problem, it doesn't need to find it. C-BIOS doesn't have to do anything with it. Please try this!

[mars2000you]

I have already made the tests with the 3 games ... only PSG sounds, not MSX-AUDIO !

On non C-BIOS machines, I get MSX-AUDIO sounds ...

[Manuel]

I have already made the tests with the 3 games ... only PSG sounds, not MSX-AUDIO !

On non C-BIOS machines, I get MSX-AUDIO sounds ...

Well, the normal BIOS doesn't do anything with the AUDIO either, so maybe you got the FS-CA1 in the wrong slot?

Hmm, I just checked with both C-BIOS MSX2 and an NMS 8250 and the FS-CA1 in slot 1 and the 3 ROMs you mentioned in slot 2 and I just get PSG music....

(Btw, I used this trick: put the game in slot 2 and the FS-CA1 gets in slot 1....(There's no way to specify in what slot an extension should go in openMSX (yet)))

[mars2000you]

Try Xevious : this game must be absolutely in slot 2 to get MSX-AUDIO (the other concerned games can go in slot 1 or 2, but on a real machine, it's generally impossible to insert the big PANASONIC rom in slot 2)

On a C-BIOS machine : only PSG

On a non C-BIOS machine : MSX-AUDIO

(Just checked in openMSX : same results than in blueMSX)

[Manuel]

Well, I can't get it to work even with real machines. What exactly did you do? (What machine, options, etc.)

[mars2000you]

I've used my boosted MSX2 machine for openMSX, inserted the Panasonic rom in slot 1 and the game rom in slot 2

Just a correction : openMSX seem to have problems with the game Labyrinth, no way to hear MSX-AUDIO, ....

..... edit : in blueMSX, it works, but only with some dumps of the Panasonic rom (maybe, the other dumps are bad)

second edit : it seems also the case in openMSX for Labyrinth, if works with some dumps of the MSX-AUDIO Panasonic rom ....

[Manuel]

You inserted the ROM only? Not the device? That's not very realistic... (You can't separate them in a real MSX....)

Anyway, I'll try that then. Nope, still nothing. I did this:

$ openmsx -machine Philips_NMS_8250 -ext audio -cartb /tmp/Xevious\ -\ Fardraut\ Saga\ \(1989\)\ \(Namcot\)\ \(J\).rom -carta ~/.openMSX/share/extensions/Panasonic_FS-CA1/roms/fs-ca1.rom -romtype MSX-AUDIO

But when I replace the 8250 with Boosted MSX2, it does work:

$ openmsx -cartb /tmp/Xevious\ -\ Fardraut\ Saga\ \(1989\)\ \(Namcot\)\ \(J\).rom -carta ~/.openMSX/share/extensions/Panasonic_FS-CA1/roms/fs-ca1.rom -romtype MSX-AUDIO
info: Using default machine: Boosted_MSX2_EN

So, it's probably not something missing in C-BIOS, but something in Boosted MSX2 that causes it to work...

Ah, I just found out! It doesn't use the MSX-AUDIO, but the MSX-MUSIC from the Boosted config! So, I think you are also hearing the MSX-MUSIC and not the MSX-AUDIO. (Yes, even with C-BIOS MSX2+ which has MSX-MUSIC, you can hear it

[mars2000you]

To avoid confusion, I've used now the MSX2 Only PSG machine.

Effectively, if I don't add the device, I get nothing (as sound).

So, I've added the msxaudio extension and inserted the 2 roms (MSX-AUDIO in slot 1, the game in slot 2).

It works ... and it's MSX-AUDIO !