Help with GBA flash cartridge

[pmc]

I'm having trouble getting an FlashAdvance Xtreme 128 to boot a GBA.

I beleive that I have the linker, flash software, and roms all set up and working properly.

The GBA either doesn't see the cart, or it comes up with a garbled Nintendo logo. I've tried shimming the cart board for a tighter fit without success (and I've gotten it very tight).

I tested my final .gba files with GTATA and VisualBoy and they all seem fine. I've read (commercial) carts OK and can verify what's been written to flash. I've erased and formatted the flash and sram multiple times.

What could cause the Nintendo logo to not come up or come up garbled? I'm assuming that it's either corrupt logo data or a bad fit. But GTATA says the data is OK and I really can't fit the cart any better.

I'm going to try some read/write verification (MD5) next.

What to try after that? Could a bad battery do this? I haven't put it on a multimeter yet.

TIA!

-pmc

[pmc]

bump.

I hit a dead-end with this. Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

-pmc

[lcddream]

do you get the nintendo logo fine without any cart in?

[pmc]

No. I get a rainbow colored GAMEBOY logo only and then the machine just hangs there. The red Nintendo logo shows up below the GAMEBOY logo when a commercial cart is inserted.

It is my understanding that this is normal. i.e., the logo is stored on the cart as a compressed image in the .gba file header. It is checksum'd, and if it passes the GBA loads the image, displays it on the screen, and then loads the game. Am I wrong about this?

When the FA card is used, I either get no Nintendo logo, or sometimes I get a garbled logo. Either way, I don't get off the boot-screen. That's why I spent some time verifying that the logo in the .gba file is intact and checksums properly.

I did take the time to rip a commercial cart to an image, write it out to the FA, rip it back, and then test it (positively) with VisualBoy. That leads me to believe that the cart is OK. But it still won't work in the GBA. Still seems like it must be a pressure fit problem, but no matter what I do (shims, cleaning, etc.) I can't improve the situation.

I have not replaced or tested the battery yet.

At this point, trouble-shooting is a matter of principle.

-pmc

[Stobe]

bump.

I hit a dead-end with this. Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

-pmc

Perhaps not the solution you are looking for.... but ...

I'm selling CycloDS carts in the B/S/T forum that a lot of members here are using for their GBA / GBM / GBA SP.  They use mini or micro SD cards, so they hold a lot more, and are easier to load (IMO).

-Stobe

[Hoagie_one]

PMC,

The offer still stands that I'll refund your money if you want to return it.  I never meant for it to be such a hassle for you.

Mike

[pmc]

The offer still stands that I'll refund your money if you want to return it.  I never meant for it to be such a hassle for you.

I know. And I appreciate that. But solving the problem, at this point, is a matter of principle. Give me another week.

-pmc

[custard80]

I have a 256mb pro with a flash linker so ill try to help from my experiences!

Mine is a parrallel connection and it is picky about the port mode. In flash writer 32 software you can change the port type i think to either spp or epp. Try that.

Mine sometimes garbles the boot screen if it's not plugged in right. Try cleaning the connector with an eraser.

Have you tried littlewritter software to flash it. Last time is used it i used this and it worked a treat. Might be worth a try.

Also your linker is it battery or mains powered. Mine always works best off mains power. There are so many different linkers out there. What have you got. Mine is a visoly flash linker.

Hope some of that helps.

[pmc]

This one is parallel too and the linker is powered by AC. I think it's a Visoly too. Littlewriter does indeed work and it works really well as far as I can tell. Certainly my favorite software so far, but at least two others work too.

I set the port to EPP in BIOS. I believe that it's the fastest. I can try other modes, but to be honest I don't expect to see much except slower transfer speeds. Still, I'll try it. Maybe high speed transfer is somehow corrupting the flash image. I use the "verify" feature of the various writer softwares and always pass OK. When in EPP, I can also regulate the speed of transfer with the F2A software (4x, 3x, 2x, or 1x). I've tried 4x and 1x without incident.

I don't have to do any file patching or anything funky do I? I've been trying using Pogoshell which creates a single image file for flashing. Alternately, I've directly flashed a single .gba ROM. Both techniques yield a file that works with a PC emulator, but neither will boot the GBA.

What about "erasing" versus "formatting" the flash. Possible that waffled the flash media somehow?

Mine sometimes garbles the boot screen if it's not plugged in right. Try cleaning the connector with an eraser.

That's why I suspect a contact problem. Particularly given that I initially had the darn thing working a bit (it would freeze here and there). I have cleaned the connectors with both an eraser and rubbing alcohol. Shiny and clean looking! Still, I'll try it again. Is there another way to improve the cartridge fit? I've tried shimming it. It fits very tight, but doesn't improve behavior.

Hope some of that helps.

Gives me some ideas. I very much appreciate it.

-pmc

[Hoagie_one]

have you tried a different GBA or DS just to see if it works?

[pmc]

have you tried a different GBA or DS just to see if it works?

No. I don't have one. I was thinking about popping into a Gamestop and asking, but then I thought they might get irritated with me.

-pmc