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I have a CPS2 multi kit that has been running fine for about a year but suddenly it will cut or hang audio after a few minutes.

I have tried different A boards and recapped the multi B board but audio still dies after some time.

Any pointers before I try fit the kit to another B board?
 
My HAS reports it as a solid 5v but the sound is powered by the 12v rail isnt it?

Thanks ill get onto testing with another PSU.
 
Ive been testing the unit today with another PSU but the LCD screen is all jumbled letters now... sometimes it loads the screen nice but when browsing games it stuffs up, bottom button isnt working much at all, and I noticed green corrosion on the power pins to the LCD.

This unit has been powered for a total of probably 10 hours, and does not stay plugged in so im not sure whats causing the board to corrode away.

Ill inspect the LCD more thoroughly to find out if the bottom button is making contact or not, there's a chance the micro switch is full of corrosion also.
 
Can you try with a different ribbon cable? That might be the cause.
 
Seems 1 pin wasnt making contact,made a new ribbon cable and the screen is running fine now, can select and no random characters ect.

But back to the first issue again, sound freezes pretty fast in game, doesnt even get to finish the X-Men vs SF intro before the sound stops or hangs.

Tried on my Astro City PSU which has been running an untouched CPS2 all day no issues. Im testing with the same A board.
Has PSU runs the untouched CPS2 fine also.
 
Swapped the supplied G-Pal out for the one in the untouched CPS2, and the sound hasn't cut out since my last post.

Guess there's a reason they are socketed hey? Any chance of getting a replacement? I had a spare but I fit it for another member here who had issues.


EDIT

Spoke too soon, music just froze.
 
When comparing the 2 CPS2 units running, Ive notice the multi B board has some hot custom silicon,
Ive circled the one. (picture stolen from google)

1G5vYD9.jpg
 
Ahhh you've posted here too. I just read you've done all the stuff I suggested on FB lol

Have you tried reseating the multi? This sounds like the issue you get when an EPROM goes bad or has a bent pin. If you've had it for a while it might have worked loose?

If music is cutting out then look at ROM sockets 1 and 2 in particular.
 
Did some more testing, removed the wire from my v4 B board gpal pin 9 to multi, wired direct to cn3 C13. Sound died while I was sleeping.

Did a battery and full romswap from an unopened v7. Nice that we can write keys to save boards like this. The process went smoothly.

The v4 now has stock Vampire Saviour (vsav) chips in it and the DL-2027 is not heating up anymore. It has been running over 12 hours fine.

The v7 has been running for an hour with the multi in it and has not had a single issue yet, boots first try sound hasnt died ect.

BUT....

The DL-2027 in the v7 is now heating up, and im playing the same game on it (vsav)

Why would the multi cause extra load on this chip?
Is it being worked harder or given too high voltage or something?
 
So the v7 with multi cut audio after around 2hrs of gameplay.

Its not loose pins or contacts as everything checks out fine across 2 different b boards when connecting the multi and the games run fine for an hour or so till the audio cuts. Pressing on the multi, shaking the CPS2 and yelling at it seem to have no effect.
Its not an A board as both my A boards are working fine with a normal B board.
Its not a G-pal issue as ive tried a fresh and old g-pal with correct wiring for the v4.
Its not an SD card issue cause i can take that out and the game will still cut audio within an hour or so.
Its not a PSU issue as the v4 is running fine inside my Astro City cab and with my HAS.

Its has to be a fault with the Multi kit itself, Where do I go from here?
Ive near exhausted all my trouble shooting ability over a few months and spent $ on a spare CPS2 that it turns out I didnt need (shouldnt be hard to sell though)
 
Why would the multi cause extra load on this chip?
Is it being worked harder or given too high voltage or something?
It doesnt casue any extra load or makes it work "harder".


Its not a PSU issue as the v4 is running fine inside my Astro City cab and with my HAS.
What voltage level are you getting on the Jamma connector when the kit is running? 5V ? 4.9V?


Its not an A board as both my A boards are working fine with a normal B board.
Haver you tried running the kit without any plastic case, so all boards fit completely on each other?


the games run fine for an hour or so till the audio cuts. Pressing on the multi, shaking the CPS2 and yelling at it seem to have no effect.
What else did you notice when sound stops working? Any chip being too hot? If you turn off and on quickly will the sound still be bad?
 
Thanks for the fast reply.

Do you know why with a Multi kit installed that chip would run hotter?
Because it does it on both my B boards. Maybe mine is faulty, maybe it has gone unnoticed?


I have tried running the kit without case, and painstakingly beeped out every pin on both setups.
All pins are clean and snug. Adapter board is fit correctly.
I have tried with 4.9 to 5.2 and it will stop completely or hang on a note.
Solid 12v from both PSU too.

Gameplay continues fine when the audio drops out, and a reset fixes the audio instantly.

So some data line to a sound chip is going low or something?
The hanging note makes me feel like a chip is crashing due to that.
 
I'd say that something happens with the Z80, so the code for Z80 would be the issue here. What could cause this? Bad chip, bad solder both in multi or A board.

I'm pining master @l_oliveira I'm sure he has a theory on this.
 
I should note that I socketed the v4 and have replaced the z80 with one from a neo-geo, and then put the original back in.

Bad solder on both A+B boards is a long shot considering exactly the same issue is occuring no matter what combination I use.

I havent tried decrypted roms because the keywriting is working fine, but I have tried different SD cards and game compilations ect, always the same result with any game.
Its timing seems random, as it used to do it before SF vs Xmen could do a single attract loop, now it can take an hour or more.


Bad solder on the multi maybe, I have looked over it with eagle eyes and nothing jumps out at me.
I cleaned and reflowed all pins and connectors. If I had an oven Id bake it and see if that helps but I dont.

But a bad joint would show itself when I flex the board whilst its running but if I tap on the multi or push on areas it just wont glitch, and hasnt shown any sign of jailbars or glitched text ect.

What part of the multi would make the Qsound or z80 chip crash? or if the Qsound or z80 cannot crash whats feeding it that could crash? Where should I look for bad solder ect?
 
I've never seen the issues you mention on my multi and I used many different B boards with it. A boards too.

Perhaps your multi unit has a faulty buffer on the Z80 portion? Also the Z80 on the CPS2 is running at 8Mhz, the Neo Geo one is rated for 4Mhz and it runs at that speed. I don't see using a Neo Geo Z80 on a CPS2 going well by any measure lol. (100% overclock on such a slow/old chip)
 
You missed the part where I said I put the original Z80 back in mate.

It doesn't happen on your Multi l_oliveira because yours is not faulty obviously.
I did say how I used this on 2 different A+B boards and had the same results, maybe you missed that..

I explained my issues in great detail and you guys never gave me a decent suggestion how to fix it.

Then I look on Facebook yesterday and see you helped out BEN FONG with his sound issues....

Why did you never suggest this fix to me?

Yeah, some guy on FaceBook had to tell me, not the hardware developer..... And thru all this hassle not once was it suggested I could send this faulty product back.

Im going to buy some Bus chips and replace the ones on the Multi, if it works Ill send you the bill.
 
Last edited:
Well this was a q sound issue that was just having some issues. I’m not sure if this may help your issue out though.
 
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