Sega CD conversions

[Segasonicfan]

Okay, I really want to play my import mega CDs on my new portable CDX.  I don't mind doing the individual conversions of each game through my computer, but I haven't bveen able to figure out how to do that.  I've toiled at it for a while so I thought I'd ask for some help.  I need help with these steps (just about everything, heh):

1. converting the sega cd .bin format of a game to an .iso file...
I used a freeware program called magiciso, but I'm not sure if it did the trick.  

2. opening up the .iso in the command prompt window of scdconv
I'm not so great with command prompt yet, and while I do know a little I'm having a lot of trouble putting in the correct syntax to make scdconv happy.

If someone could walk me through the process i would be very grateful, there's also another program (supposively better) called conv.scd.  I found it over here:
http://www.retrodev.com/convscd.html
If anyone knows how to use these please help me out.
Thanks,

-Segasonicfan

[atom]

You shouldnt have to convert your cd's from bin format, rip them straight to an ISO. I know NERO wants you to rip to a .nra, Alcohol lets you rip to an iso. I dont remember if Majic ISO lets you rip cds. Yes I think convscd works better then the other one, I will help you more when i get home. Long Live SEGA CD!

[Segasonicfan]

hey thank you so much!  I think the format the Sega CDs are originally is .bin...or that's what my computer lists them as.  I think the Magiciso file I created should work okay, but I'm not sure. If you could tell me what program you use, that would be really helpful.  I don't understand the whole iso thing all that well...

I appreciate your help =)  Long live Sega and the Sega/Mega CD!

-Segasonicfan

[atom]

Ok, your .bin can be two different things. Genesis ROM Dumps (the rom file) are often stored in a format with .bin. I dont want you to confuse that with a CD Image. A cd Image is basically the whole cd in one file, and can have several extensions such as ISO BIN RAW NRA and etc. If Majic ISO suscessfully creates an ISO from that BIN then it means your bin was a correct CD image. So here is what you do to convert your import.

Extract the convscd105.zip into C:\scd\
Copy your ISO into C:\scd\ (rename to something easy to type like sonic.iso)
open up start>run and enter in cmd (hit enter)
in the console window type cd\scd
type in convscd (hit enter)
enter in your iso name (with .iso extension)
follow on screen instructions

hey that was my 150th post earlier who wants to share a bubbling bottle of mountain dew with me?

[Segasonicfan]

Hey thanks for all your help.  Thanks to your info I know how ot run the program in command prompt and everything now however, I am having one hellish time making a proper ISO file.  I've tried Ultra ISO, MagicISO, and Alcohol 120%...Alcohol is the only program that will rip the files from CD without giving me an error message (Ultra ISO gives me a dumb error message saying multiple tracks cannot be put on ISO...).  Unfortunately Alcohol will only rip the CD into a weird .mdf format...It won't do ISO.  Did you use another version of Alcohol or do you know another program that would work?  I really want to play my imports....

-Segasonicfan

[atom]

Oh yeah, Its been so long I completely forgot you need to do multiple tracks for the audio,  its so freakin silly they use audio tracks. What game are you trying to do this too?

[Segasonicfan]

I'm trying to do this for my Japanese Silpheed (yeah, I don't have the US one yet and I want to play it), and for my Japanese or european Sonic CD.  I know how to rip the audio from WAV to MP3 (I already did that) so what o I do now?  How do I combien the audio with the ISO?

-Segasonicfan

[atom]

Now what you need to do is make a cue file. Remember when I told you an ISO is an image of a cd? I was wrong, I should have said it is an image of a track. The first track is the data track and the rest is the audio. What you need is a cue file, which is a listing of all the tracks in order. You can make cue files by hand but I recommend using a program designed just for this: http://abandonisomisc.web1000.com/utilitie...er/scm1011b.zip (freeware)

Store the cue file, and all the audio tracks in the same folder, and then you need to open up the cue file in whatever Burner program you use. I use NERO and if i recall Alcohol rediculously does not handle cue files. Best of luck, if you want to chat some time IM me on AIM: its at0m

[Segasonicfan]

Well I followed your advice and made a .cue file and stored the WAV tracks, track 1 (iso file), and the .cue in the same folder.  I opened it all up in nero, but it would only let me burn the .cue file to a Nero format (nrf).  Do I open all the files (including .cue) and make them into an .iso?  I tried that too and it didn't work.  No matter what I do, convscd just says "this doesn't appear to be a sega cd iso"... :-(

gah, I've been working on this for 3 hours now...

-Segasonicfan

[atom]

You may want to IM me because I can't help you anymore here because Im afraid someone will scream "DIRTY PIRATE!"

AIM:
its at0m

[Guest]

yeah I know what you mean.  I've been looking for you on AIM but you haven't showed up as being online yet.  You're on my buddy list though.  Add mine to yours, it's Tuneviperz14
Thanks!

-Segasonicfan

[Segasonicfan]

woops, forgot to log in.  That above post was me, btw =)

[D-Lite]

Wow I haven't been on in a while....   Lots of topics to catch up on.

As far as a solution for doing playing imports on various Sega CD systems, I've opted to start doing MultiBios mods.  I'm not sure how many people (although I know the maximum number) know about/have one of Arakon's MultiBios chips, but it's freakin' great!

Check it here at Arakon's page.

I just installed it successfully in a JVC X'Eye!  No copying and patching multiple discs for me!

[Guest]

how much is the multibos chip/where can I get it?  And will this mod work with a CDX?  Sorry if these questions can be answered from that site...it's not loading for me.  I know Sega continually changed the bios they used in their systems, which makes modifcation success on CDX and 2.0+ bios systems unlikely...

_Segasonicfan

[D-Lite]

how much is the multibos chip/where can I get it?  And will this mod work with a CDX?  Sorry if these questions can be answered from that site...it's not loading for me.  I know Sega continually changed the bios they used in their systems, which makes modifcation success on CDX and 2.0+ bios systems unlikely...

_Segasonicfan

It "probably" can be done on a CDX.

BUT.

Since the chip is a 40 DIP and the CDX uses a 40-pin SMT, you have to run 40 wires to a socket to do it.  You will NEVER fit this inside a CDX.

About the X'Eye, remember that it's a JVC system and uses a proprietary bios.  That said, it worked fine with the MultiBios!  

You can buy them directly from Arakon, whom runs that site.  
arakon_de@yahoo.com

[dj898]

I'm very interested in multi-BIOS mod but there's no way I'm going to temper with my Sega Wondermega.

maybe I should get CDX myself...

cheers

[Segasonicfan]

heh i have about 50 wires already inside my cdx, so it will work.  you just need the right wires.  How much does it cost?

-Segasonicfan

[Segasonicfan]

also, what chip inside the CDX is the bios?  I'd assume it was a Sega chip...there's a 40 pin one near the chroma encoder...is that it?

-Segasonicfan

[D-Lite]

heh i have about 50 wires already inside my cdx, so it will work.  you just need the right wires.  How much does it cost?

-Segasonicfan

No idea what he'd charge you (maybe $30-40 shipped?).

You guaranteed won't have space inside, maybe externally.  The chip and socket is at least 1/2" thick, plus all the lines you'd need to run, plus how difficult it is to get clean, good solder points on the chip.

Nope, don't know which it is inside the CDX.

[Segasonicfan]

damn...if I can't fit it and I don't even know where the Eprom is then I guess there's no point.  My softwate ISO conversions are working pretty well anyway thanks to Atom's help.  However, many of my games still wont convert properly because the success rate of the two programs isn't too high (I'd say 70% for EUR games and less than 20% for JAP games).  Does anyone know of any other Sega CD region conversion programs other than SCDConv (written in 99) and ConvSCD(still being updated)?  I would love to be able to play some great imports on my CDX such as Cyborg 009, BC Racers, etc.  

[Segasonicfan]

oh and one more question...anyone know how to convert .bin SegaCD games to .iso?  I know asked you before Atom....I can't convert some of my games without knowing this

[phreak97]

where can i get one of these multibios chips? that dudes page is down now

[dj898]

ask D-Lite about this multibios mod first.
think he said it wasn't easy thing to do...

[Computolio]

  Wait a sec... Since the region check for Sega CD games is in the actual game program, wouldn't it be possible to patch said code to make it completely region-free? Since Sega CD emulators exist now it might not be impossible to develop specialised patches for all the least cooperative games. I don't have the technical knowledge to attempt this, but I bet it would be a snap for say, some of the better translation patch authors out there.

[kendrick]

As far as I've been able to determine, there's no 'region free' setting for Sega CD games. The region coding isn't a binary on/off thing, it actually has to be set to US or JPN or UK. The hardware isn't set up to accept a region code of 'none' without the multibios installed. Worse yet, it's not just a string in a consistent spot on the disc; the ConvSCD application has to search the ISO image for the region coding and then make an intelligent guess as to how to replace it. My experience has been that it's only successful about 80 percent of the time.

Not to be a killjoy, but Sega CD emulation has gotten good enough that there's not a lot of motivation to hack or backward-engineer the real hardware beyond the point of our current knowledge. It's less expensive and less time-consuming just to play import games on an emulator than modifying the actual hardware. Hell, in some cases it's less expensive to get import hardware than it is to modify the domestically-released hardware.

-KKC, who would pick up a Mega CD unit if he didn't already own six Sega CD-compatible pieces of hardware already...

[phreak97]

i hate emulators.
i will never play a game properly on an emulator.
real consoles only. kthxbye

[kendrick]

Hey Phreak, the hate on the emulators is specifically directed at PC versions, right? The emulators that run on the Dreamcast and Xbox are pretty cool and have the virtue of already outputting directly to a normal TV, and the handheld emulators (for devices like the GP32) are really hard to get wrong. Also, there are the sanctioned first-party emulators (like the one-chip PS1 inside the PS2, or the low-power firmware code in the TurboExpress) that are sitting right at 99 percent as far as fidelity to the original hardware goes.

Anyway, I'm looking into running a Sega CD emulator on an Xbox and using one of the USB Saturn pads for the input device. Best of all possible worlds on that one. :)

-KKC, who really shouldn't be spending money on more redundant game consoles. Anybody need a spare Neo CDZ? :)

[Endymion]

Get a converter. They're a lot less ubiquitous lately for some reason. I love mine. It's called a "CD+ Plus," which I guess makes it . . . a CD Plus Plus? Just be patient and keep scanning ebay, they keep popping up.

Edit--Here's a link to the store that sold mine on ebay, it's been a while and I'm not sure if the item is still in my ebay list so I don't recall the seller's ID on ebay but if you brush up on your Berlitz Spanish you could probably just order it from their page.

Edit Edit--Found his ebay id, it's armyx.

[atom]

i hate emulators.
i will never play a game properly on an emulator.
real consoles only. kthxbye

Don't get all biased because you dont know what your doing or your PC sucks. Their are emulators out there with perfect emulation for some of the best systems out there. You get instant RGB on a decent monitor, and you can interface your favorite controllers. I even have an old AT computer hacked into a console hooked up to my tv. I was able to take all the hundreds of my cartridges and put them in the attic where they belong.
kthnx?

[phreak97]

generally, there is always going to be some problem in emulators.. i had problems with every dreamcast emulator i tried. playing oldskool games on my gba just didnt do it for me. i dont have an xbox. i havnt found any worthwhile emulators on ps2.
but that aside, i am a collector, i somehow get a kick out of running the old consoles as they were meant to run.. i mean, i prefer to look at my atari 2600jr through a static haze (it wont tune quite properly with the cable i have), rather than play it 100% on a pc. i have svideo out on my pc, it's permanently attached to my tv. i have played donkey kong country on my tv with a snes controller plugged into my pc. the picture was actually better than i get from composite video out of my snes. but i would still rather play it on snes any day.
theres something special the originals have that all emulators lack.

btw, i have a p4 2.6GHz with 512MB DDR RAM. im perfectly capable of running emulators on high resolutions at full speed.

atom, if you dont use your carts, would you sell a few?

[atom]

No, cuz I just like holding onto them. Except for the 2 2600 carts I havent thrown away yet. Oh wait, there they go. I just cant stand having all 8 of my consoles hooked up to my tv at once with all the cables and switch boxes and controllers and power supplies and extension cords... talk about EMI problems! And then there are the buckets and buckets of carts I talked about, which oops little cousin mikey just got into them and spilled his juicebox all over.

Dreamcast emulators are good, except of course the dreamcast is too slow because homebrew developers only know how to use a software mode. Nobody really knows how to use that video chip! GoodSNES ran a few games full speed and others like DK Country at about 70 75 percent. NES emu I tried (no clue what it even was) worked perfectly for me.

But I do have to admit, sometimes I still have to pull out the SNES and play Zelda in it in its original form. I have been making plans for a while now for a NES SNES hybrid, I just need a new dremel to cut the case. That would definitley make it into my entertainment center.

[Endymion]

Say there, all this talk about Dreamcast emulators, is there a Dreamcast SegaCD emulator? Every time I look I find very little good info on Dreamcast emulation. One site has lots of stuff but most everything is at least a couple of years old, with all of the "unfinished, no sound, etc." plastered everywhere, and when I google for other stuff I only find boards where people beg to be handheld on how to copy games and fill my screen with more popups than a hardcore porn site.

Is there a worthwhile SegaCD Dreamcast emulator?

[phreak97]

i assume youre joking about your complete lack of care for games.. i will give money for anything oldskool.

[ducktapevoodoo]

the verry best emulators on dreamcast are snes nes sms imo , the genesis one isnt complete yet .
no sega cd emulators it would be impossible to run on teh dreamcast with the amount of ram that has to be worked with
dcemulation.com has a fairly complete set of all the emulators on dreamcast

btw dreamsnes is almost 100% it runs everything great except yoshis island
i recomend i little oc job tho if ur gonna be runnin the snes emulator

[atom]

no sega cd emulators it would be impossible to run on teh dreamcast with the amount of ram that has to be worked with

while i thought you were nuts i checked it out and the sega cd has roughly 16mb worth of memory addresses to work with. dreamcast has 16mb of main ram so you are correct, not enough to work with for emulating the cd addon.

[ducktapevoodoo]

i am a dreamcast homebrew maniac,
somehow my projects always suck tho

[NFG]

16MB in the sega CD?  That seems a bit inaccurate.  A quick check shows the RAM of the SegaCD is only 6Mbit plus some additional small chunks of RAM - a total of less than 8Mbit, or 1 MByte.

[atom]

No, not ram. Memory addresses. every single thing that the cpu has access to has a memory location. pixels on the screen, video ram, main ram, the cd, the boot rom, the controller ports, the cartridge pins, the rom locations, the sound chips, the video chips. you then have to take in account the both sides of the console has some of these chips. each one of these memory addresses have to take up a byte in memory in an emulation enviroment. a sega genesis cpu has access to memory addresses from 0 to ffffff which is 16777215 addresses. and memory management is the easy part to emulation!

man i really gotta get a new keyboard. left shift acts as tab, right shift acts as . thats why my last couple posts lately have been in all lowcaps

[Guest_butane bob]

btw dreamsnes is almost 100% it runs everything great

Not sure what's so "great" about snes games running at about 15fps even in 8bit mode (no transpareny effects) and no sound..... It may be a great home coding achievement but it's way too slow and completely impractical for the actual gamer.

For emus on DC stick to nes, master system and gbx - they all run at 60fps with full sound.

[Aidan]

each one of these memory addresses have to take up a byte in memory in an emulation enviroment. a sega genesis cpu has access to memory addresses from 0 to ffffff which is 16777215 addresses. and memory management is the easy part to emulation!

No, you don't need to emulate every single addressable byte of memory space.

Take the Genesis on it's own. Looking at the memory map of the genesis, and you'll see there's a huge hole in it, consisting of 0x5FFFFE bytes between 0x400000 and 0x9FFFFF that can be easily emulated (Some is designed for the 32X, some just returns the next instruction). The memory mapped IO also has holes and mirrors. For example, VDP access is between 0xC00000 and 0xDFFFFF, but the VDP only actually has 31bytes of addressable space. Those two on their own have just reduced the memory space by half.  The 64K RAM also has aliases, appearing between 0xE00000 and 0xFFFFFF, which makes that 64K of RAM appear to take up a 2MB chunk of memory.

Between those, we've just taken that 16Mbyte that the 68000 can address, and turned it into just 6Mb that needs to be emulated, if that.

Granted, that doesn't take into account the SegaCD part, but I haven't got as detailed information on it I'm not going to look at it!