Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

PCB problems and fixes
Layer
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Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

Post by Layer »

Hi,

I recently bought Ghouls'n Ghosts US older revision (with PPU soldered on B-board) with Gfx background issue (wrong colors in attract mode, lots of zeros on the background in game...) for a cheap price, thinking it was a dead PPU.

Pic of the board :

Image

Things I did :

1/ I swapped the A-board with another one : A-board is fully working.

2/ I checked if there were cut tracks on the B-board : no cut tracks.

3/ I launched the Test mode to check the colors, they are all OK.

4/ I replaced B-board game pal (DM620) with a gal I did, the issue is still there, the pal is OK.

5/ I dumped and checked all Gfx roms + program roms, they are all OK.

6/ I checked all the TTL (LS245, LS08 and LS04) and all the network resistance on the B-board : all seem OK.

Things to do :

1/ To swap B01 PPU with a B21 one.

2/ To be able to dump SMD HN62404FP Gfx and program roms (4 Gfx roms + 1 program rom).

I did a small vid, let me know if you think it could be another thing that PPU issue or a bad SMD :

Last edited by Layer on March 20th, 2017, 9:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Asayuki
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Asayuki »

It looks to me as if bank switching is not working, rather than the colour palette.
When combined with the issues on the text layer during gameplay, this really looks like a PPU issue to me. Although those Capcom components are notorious for going bad, maybe you might want to try reflowing the PPU first (you know, maybe... some loose joint luck wouldn't hurt).
About those QFP memories, the datasheet is here: http://www.datasheetarchive.com/dlmain/ ... /HN62404FP
...you might be able to wire up an adapter to the DIP version of them, based on a QFP breakout board you can easily find on eBay.
Another thing you might want to look around for are all those original-looking patch wires. Maybe one of them is loose or got loose in the past and somebody might have soldered it back to the wrong pad. You never know...
My 15kHz cabinet Peplos will never power up, with any item, and I am quite proud of that.
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

Thanx for the reply. I was thinking the same thing when I saw the background full of zeros in game for the first time.

Instead of killing a Pang 3, I will buy a DL-0411-10001 QFP (aka CPS-B01) from here : http://www.jotrin.com/product/parts/DL_0411_10001
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Asayuki
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Asayuki »

Nice find!
Keep us posted on the outcome :)
My 15kHz cabinet Peplos will never power up, with any item, and I am quite proud of that.
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

I found another site but I don't know if it is trustable : http://www.iccircuits.com/index.php?rou ... 0411-10001
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

I have received CPS-B-01 QFP. It looks like an original Capcom QFP, no difference, it is stamped Capcom too.

Click on the thumbnails to enlarge :

Image

Image
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nem
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by nem »

That's pretty impressive.
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Asure »

They had this in new old stock? Any signs of desoldering? Curious to see if this is a NOS part or a recycled/reclaimed one, i cannot tell if the pins were bent in transit, or from removal.
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

There is no tin at all as proof of removal. If the pins are a bit bent it may be due to the fact they were socketed, who knows ?
I think it is an old stock as they had only 9 pcs.

They also have CPS-A-01 to repair A-boards in stock, $24 each.
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Asayuki
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Asayuki »

Far east is impressive. They never stop surprising me...
Fingers crossed for you. Happy soldering, and keep us posted!
My 15kHz cabinet Peplos will never power up, with any item, and I am quite proud of that.
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

Today, B-01 PPU has been swapped. The issue is still there, no difference at all, so I can deduce the PPU was OK.

Now, I have to find 5 SMD HN62404FP to test.
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Asayuki
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Asayuki »

You also proved that the chip you bought is legit and working. Again, nice find! Please share the seller. :)

As for the HN62404FP you mentioned, those are programmable memories; 4 for the graphics, 1 for the program. Not only you probably miss the tools to program the new chips you would buy, they also have nothing to do with bank switching.

I would rather suspect the PALs (those with stamping on top) or look around for any TTL latch like LS373, LS174 and similar. ...or a broken trace / misconnected wire somewhere.

EDIT: Never mind the seller, you already did share it.
My 15kHz cabinet Peplos will never power up, with any item, and I am quite proud of that.
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

Asayuki wrote:You also proved that the chip you bought is legit and working. Again, nice find! Please share the seller. :)

As for the HN62404FP you mentioned, those are programmable memories; 4 for the graphics, 1 for the program. Not only you probably miss the tools to program the new chips you would buy, they also have nothing to do with bank switching.

I would rather suspect the PALs (those with stamping on top) or look around for any TTL latch like LS373, LS174 and similar. ...or a broken trace / misconnected wire somewhere.

EDIT: Never mind the seller, you already did share it.
I will try to make the same issue in using junk data in the 4 Gfx roms + program via Mame.

Someone sent to me the 4 Gfx roms QFP + the program one as spare parts from a dead GnG. If they work, I would be lucky to try. But as you said, it seems there is an issue related to bank switching.
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

I finally nearly got the same result with Mame, I replaced a few data in the program rom dm-17.7j (one of the 5 QFP on the B-board) with a lot of "00 00..." with an hex editor. The game started practically in the same way, with some bugs, and I got a lot of "zeros" viewable only in game :

Image
neocps1
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by neocps1 »

Pour moi ca vient du HN62404FP au dessus des 4 eproms de code. C'est lui qui contient les données des niveaux
Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ?

Post by Layer »

Game finally repaired ! I swapped DM-17 program rom QFP (responsible for levels background display) with another one that a friend got for years as spare.
He took it on dead GnG and gave me it, I swapped it, the game now runs just fine.

On the pic below : the faulty QFP in the red circle, on the left.

Image
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

Post by leonardoliveira »

So, it's a case of ROM rot? Grats on your working Ghouls'n Ghosts.
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Layer
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

Post by Layer »

Yes, it is. It was due to heat. Thanx ;)
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

Post by geosnow »

Another saved game. :)
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Asayuki
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Re: Ghouls'n Ghosts US 1st rev. PPU issue ? (SOLVED)

Post by Asayuki »

I'm glad you solved it! Congrats!
As this didn't get caught by a ROM check, it means the contents of this memory are probably not accessible by the cpu.
Which also makes me think on how the map of tiles for each level gets read directly in hardware without cpu intervention. Interesting design.
My 15kHz cabinet Peplos will never power up, with any item, and I am quite proud of that.
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