NAOMI with Actel FPGA ?

[MetalliC]

does anyone have NAOMI mobo like on the photo ?

notice - it uses Actel FPGA instead of more common Altera FLEX

 

[Miku]

Thats the newer Naomi without multiboard stacking capability and some extra parts removed.

It's from the most recent games.

Theyre not any different from the old boards; besides missing CDR support.

It's made from 'VA2' parts and manufactured in the same factory as atomiswave boards.

 

[Miku]

Those blue jumpers switch the serial port from RS422 to RS232 just like in the Naomi 2.

I would call this Naomi 1.5 because of that.

 

[Darksoft]

Thats the newer Naomi without multiboard stacking capability and some extra parts removed.

It's from the most recent games.

Theyre not any different from the old boards; besides missing CDR support.

It's made from 'VA2' parts and manufactured in the same factory as atomiswave boards.

That sounds very interesting. Great Info. Can you please elaborate a bit more. Which was your source if you can tell us more about it, please.

 

[Miku]

The Manic Panic Ghosts or Radirgy Noa; is what you would want to seek; this is one of two of the games that runs on the Naomi 1.5 board that I'm aware of...

Any Manufactured dedicated kit game requiring G or H bios that came out AFTER The GD-ROM was discontinued.

 

[AMS]

Correct I also have manic panic here amd uses the new board

and it does also need the latest bios to run on older v1 boards

 

[MetalliC]

Theyre not any different from the old boards; besides missing CDR support.

CDR support ?

 

[Darksoft]

I think @Miku means GDROM support.

 

[MetalliC]

@Miku as of BIOS - years ago we noticed in latest revisions detection of SH4 revision, other/newer type. so I suspect used CPU might be not SH7091

also boards with Actel have no SN# eeprom (IC69), while Altera-based newer revision with RS232 and jumpers still have it.

 

[MetalliC]

ok, was in mood and made NAOMI1 games list, which normally require motherboard with RS232 = "newer board with jumpers":

Dragon Treasure series
Kick'4'Cash
Manic Panic Ghosts / Pokasuka Ghost
Mushiking series
Shootout Pool Prize / Medal
Star Horse series (at least client unit)
Touch de Zunou
World Cup Championship Football series
NAOMI1-based Hopper control unit for Shootout Pool Prize or ClubKart Prize games

 

[AMS]

@MetalliC damn bro you really know you DC/Naomi stuff see your name pop-up on all the forums Keep up the work

 

[MetalliC]

damn bro you really know you DC/Naomi stuff see your name pop-up on all the forums Keep up the work

welp, I'm the person behind making these games playable in Demul emulator, where playable means analyze each game how it works, which IO boards uses, which external devices require, reverse engineer and emulate that, etc etc. so yep, I know how "works inside" almost any of NAOMI 1/2 games.
but, it was ~>5yrs ago, and the work is done, so I might start forgetting something, lets write it here at least

btw, friendly reminder about proto carts

 

[AMS]

@MetalliC haha yeah I’m now busy digging into Naomi/DC development and I’ve seen your name pop up everywhere . Verry cool

yeah will try to get it all out next week and dump some stuff

 

[Darksoft]

@AMS please check those carts and yes.... @MetalliC is the master of Naomi. I dont know anyone who knows the systems better.

 

[Miku]

I think @Miku means GDROM support.

no; I mean the actel is patched to remove the ability to use CD-Recordable Media; mil-CD support; as the FPGA in a Naomi is emulating the disc drive ATA device.

The chain is: Dreamcast vestigial Core + Extra Memory > Altera G1Bus Device > DES decrypt chip (known as the -COM/JPN chip) > Brown UVprom (1st_read.bin) + Mask ROM bank (track 3 up to 168mb)

On a Netdimm setup it goes DC Vestigial Core + Extra Memory > Altera G1Bus Device > SH4 device + RAM > Altera G1Bus Device (plus PCI networking card) > Yamaha expansion board > GD-ROM laser.

But you probably already knew that.

 

[MetalliC]

I mean the actel is patched to remove the ability to use CD-Recordable Media; mil-CD support;

lolwat ?

as the FPGA in a Naomi is emulating the disc drive ATA device.

it doesn't.
FPGA in NAOMI works as ATA bus device, but extended - supports up to 64 registers. it is NOT emulate any kind of "drive".

The chain is: Dreamcast vestigial Core + Extra Memory > Altera G1Bus Device > DES decrypt chip (known as the -COM/JPN chip) > Brown UVprom (1st_read.bin) + Mask ROM bank (track 3 up to 168mb)

is this cartridge chain ? if yes - there is no any DES encryption.

also, as you probably do not know - newer type carts (and iirc DIMM too) disable FPGA and works directly with G1/ATA bus.

 

[Miku]

And a Netdimm Zero Key; essentially means 'encryption turned off'

But it doesn't work the same way on 1.5 Naomis

Old Bios are also susceptible to getting in to deep ram from the disc drive bus

 

[mathieulh]

I think @Miku means GDROM support.

no; I mean the actel is patched to remove the ability to use CD-Recordable Media; mil-CD support; as the FPGA in a Naomi is emulating the disc drive ATA device.
The chain is: Dreamcast vestigial Core + Extra Memory > Altera G1Bus Device > DES decrypt chip (known as the -COM/JPN chip) > Brown UVprom (1st_read.bin) + Mask ROM bank (track 3 up to 168mb)

On a Netdimm setup it goes DC Vestigial Core + Extra Memory > Altera G1Bus Device > SH4 device + RAM > Altera G1Bus Device (plus PCI networking card) > Yamaha expansion board > GD-ROM laser.

But you probably already knew that.

This is nonesense there is no such thing as "mil-CD support" on a naomi, all the GD-ROM loading routines are handled internally on the DIMM board, not on the NAOMI board.

The only way to get cd-r support (which by the way, does not follow the mil-cd specifications at all), is to patch the media check on the DIMM board firmware (I released a 4.03 version of the DIMM firmware to that effect),
then as far as the DIMM is concerned, your CD-R media is then a proper, legit GD-ROM.

There is also a (legit) way to load GD-R (for development purposes) using a SEGA System Disc 2, but I digress.

 

[MetalliC]

@Miku please stop it, I laugh my ass off

But it doesn't work the same way on 1.5 Naomis

what is 1.5 Naomis ?

for whose who not aware of - common NAOMI revision internally versioned as 2.4
rev 1.6 was about equivalent of Katana SET4, very early "beta" hardware from 1998, not released to the market.

 

[Miku]

@Miku please stop it, I laugh my ass off

But it doesn't work the same way on 1.5 Naomis

what is 1.5 Naomis ?
for whose who not aware of - common NAOMI revision internally versioned as 2.4
rev 1.6 was about equivalent of Katana SET4, very early "beta" hardware from 1998, not released to the market.

If you want to know anything else its written under this lovely bridge in St. Petersburg, but you have to buy the deed.