ChanServ changed the topic of ##yamahasynths to: Channel dedicated to questions and discussion of Yamaha FM Synthesizer internals and corresponding REing. Discussion of synthesis methods similar to the Yamaha line of chips, Sound Blasters + clones, PCM chips like RF5C68, and CD theory of operation are also on-topic. Channel logs: https://freenode.irclog.whitequark.org/~h~yamahasynths
<andlabs>
[17:01:07] <l_oliveira>can you play VGMs on it?
<cr1901_modern>
Jeri Ellsworth and Sam Zeloof can both make their own chips
<cr1901_modern>
although only the latter does
<cr1901_modern>
AIUI
<andlabs>
yeah
<cr1901_modern>
There's also someone in Japan who fabbed their own blinky IC for a contest to turn a lightbulb on and off
<cr1901_modern>
but I don't remember who they are
<andlabs>
because capitalism
<andlabs>
it's time to end this shit
<andlabs>
raid the clone makers and steal the schematics
<cr1901_modern>
The SuperFX schematics don't exist anymore
<andlabs>
the only other excuse I can come up with is corporate espionage
<cr1901_modern>
I asked Carl Graham about them privately
<cr1901_modern>
they were lost in a flood
<andlabs>
no, I mean the clone schematics
<cr1901_modern>
Oh, well... there's your fun fact for the day :)
<andlabs>
the only other excuse as to how chips were cloned back then that I can reasonably come up with is espionage
<andlabs>
that the clone chips were either made by the fabs that made the real ones
<andlabs>
or by some other fab that made a backroom deal
<cr1901_modern>
Regardless of how they were cloned, they would've been clone in a way that wouldn't make the original manufacturers happy
<andlabs>
because the fabs aren't owned by the companies that design the chips
<andlabs>
lol this is east asia
<andlabs>
the wild wild west of piracy
<andlabs>
we wouldn't have a dendy if that was the case
<andlabs>
anyway now I'm depressed, and I said I was going to head home 20 minutes ago
<andlabs>
bbl
<l_oliveira>
Super FX was developed on a FPGA
<l_oliveira>
you think they no longer have the original design? Of course they do
<andlabs>
that's only if the Super FX chip itself is a FPGA
<andlabs>
if the chip that was mass-produced is a PLA, ULA, or ASIC then that's not the case
<andlabs>
oh yeah also
<cr1901_modern>
If one of the SuperFX designers told me the design was lost in a flood, and _another_ person who worked at Argonaut at the same time confirmed to me there was a flood...
<andlabs>
the OPP "DRM" is meh in the end
<cr1901_modern>
I'm inclined to believe them
<l_oliveira>
I had not seen the flood line, I just saw on the scroll >.>
<andlabs>
you'll need to ask someone who has a Super FX game to open their cart and confirm that the chip in the actual carts are FPGA
<andlabs>
also I highly doubt the FPGAs of 1994 had enough gates for something like the Super FX
<l_oliveira>
andlabs, it can be developed in any form
<andlabs>
the original FPGA from 1984 had only 64 gates
<l_oliveira>
once it is "solid" they move it into a permanent design which likely will be made into a ASIC
<andlabs>
I was talking to l_oliveira
<cr1901_modern>
andlabs: No, it had 64 LUTs
<andlabs>
responding to
<cr1901_modern>
it's really not a good idea to compare LUTs to gates
<andlabs>
[21:20:25] <l_oliveira>Super FX was developed on a FPGA
<andlabs>
[21:20:41] <l_oliveira>you think they no longer have the original design? Of course they do
<andlabs>
whatever it is I don't know
<cr1901_modern>
Right and I was giving you a tweet telling you that SuperFX was split between 2 FPGAs :P
<andlabs>
oh
<andlabs>
heh
<andlabs>
I thought that was just a link to the flood thing
<l_oliveira>
FPGA is like ASIC EPROM lol
<andlabs>
anyway I need to head home now
<l_oliveira>
or ASIC EEPROM (better wording actually)
<andlabs>
when I reconnect I need suggestions for a genesis cart dumper
<andlabs>
that's a bit more pertinent
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<l_oliveira>
what is that arduino with a really big AVR controller? 2580?
<l_oliveira>
the one arcade hacker used to reprogram these FD modules from Hitachi that SEGA loved to use as protection back in the late 80s and early 90s
* cr1901_modern
shrugs
<l_oliveira>
that arduino could be made into a Mega Drive cart dumper easily
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<andlabs>
oh also the problem with manufacturing chips yourself is that it is actually very dangerous
<andlabs>
you are dealing with some actual hardcore acids
<andlabs>
Sam Zeloof actually posts youtube videos with all the insturctions and I hope you are interested in dealing with things even more potent than sulfuric acid
<cr1901_modern>
I live on the second floor. How am I getting a f***ing electron microscope up there in the first place?
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<KitsuWhooa>
<andlabs> when I reconnect I need suggestions for a genesis cart dumper <-- if you have a sega cd you can use that to dump carts
<KitsuWhooa>
you can also take the mask rom out and plop it to a programmer
<andlabs>
the Genesis has a SN76489 so we don't miss much
<ValleyBell>
The SN76489 would've been soooo much better if they had at least 11-bit frequencies.
<andlabs>
(the SN76489 has independent noise channel and the AY-3-8910 has a more dense frequency range but otherwise they're the same)
<andlabs>
ValleyBell: oh wow that sounds very different
<andlabs>
I find it odd that no one used SSG-EG *except* a company that didn't grow up with other OPN family chips
<andlabs>
also you may need ot investigate Feena yourself; I only assume it uses multifrequency mode from looking at hoot's piano visualizer and how ch3 has four notes playing
<ValleyBell>
ahh, okay
<ValleyBell>
Hoot always shows ch3 as 4 separate lines for OPN, I think.
<andlabs>
yes, but they are playing four separate notes
<ValleyBell>
even if the game doesn't have multi-frequency mode enabled
<andlabs>
the piano chords after the intro
<andlabs>
actually I have vgm2txt output here already
<andlabs>
well I appear to be completely wrong, maybe
<ValleyBell>
According to Hoot it enabled multi-frequency mode (register 27h = 37Ah) and writes to the multi-freq registers.