Fire FX converter help

[Menso]

First off, this is my first post on these boards and I wish to apologize in advance for bringing something non-zsnes (btw i'm too stupid to learn the name of the emulator) related. I picked this board however because two full hours on Google came up with nothing I found useful, and because you guys are most knowledgable.

I have a Japanese SNES cartridge of Chrono Trigger, and a European SNES. To bypass the lockout thingy, I bought a used Fire converter.

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii19 ... 1292355054

The back of the Chrono Trigger cartridge says : Super Famicom Cassette, model no. SHVC-006. Other than that, all text is in japanese.

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Let me be honest, I don't really know how everything works other than basic instructions. These are my findings so far :

Chrono Trigger inserted into Snes, without converter.

The screen fades into grey snow at the same speed as a working cartridge would start up. First comes the company name, then ''Nintendo presents...'' etc. It leads me to believe that at least the cartridge is working, just that there's no screen nor sound (because of the lockout). This is important for this thread because the very same thing happens when the converter is inserted. So far, I've tried every possibility with the little black switch on the back of the Snes, and alternating between Chrono and Zelda in the converter slots.

Whatever I do, the screen remains the same as I described above. And that's where my knowledge ended. I live in Holland which means 50 Hertz output and Pal region code. Any other SNES game I own works (predictably) like a champ. But for Chrono Trigger I got a used converter. The advertisement (and even the text on the back of the thing) states that it will work with American and Japanese cartridges. But when I fire it up, it doesn't!

And then comes my question : Did I buy the wrong converter? Is there something I'm missing? Can I actually play the game with this converter?



Any help is greatly appreciated, it's taken two agonising weeks for the game and the converter to arrive in the mail and I still can't play this game. Thank you for your time and again, I apologise if this is a somewhat inappropriate topic for an emulator site.

[paulguy]

The game might have some specific copy/region protection, someone might be able to confirm this as true or false.

Also, playing an RPG in Japanese would not be very fun, unless you know Japanese.

[Menso]

I'm guessing the game itself is in English, just a Japanese region code. Dunno until I can get the game working.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I'm guessing the game itself is in English, just a Japanese region code. Dunno until I can get the game working.

Why would a Japanese CT cart be in english?




Now, I'm unclear on what you're actually saying. You're putting both games in the converter at the same time, right? And when you say "alternating" them, you mean alternating which is in front and which is in back?
What happens when you swap them? Does one configuration gets you Zelda, the other gets you unbootable Chrono? Or does one get you glitched Chrono and the other get you glitched Zelda?

Little black switch on the SNES? You mean the channel select switch? That's got nothing to do with anything. Don't even worry about it.


And I think the booting behavior is inconsistent with mismatched lockout chips.
From what I understand, until the lockouts mate up, the game won't start executing(the lockout effectively holds the reset switch). So you shouldn't get ANYTHING with it in the SNES.
I could be wrong, and hope someone will correct me if I am.





And I thought this was gonna be related to the FireGL line of professional graphics cards. I'm disappointed.

[Menso]

You assumed everything correctly I did alternate the two games between the converter's slots. Neither starts up at all.

Anyway, since I think I've run out of options as to getting the Japanese cartridge to work (never mind the game being in Jap) I think I should just try to find a Pal version of CT. If even a recommended converter (the Fire FX one) can't get it to work then... yeah. Unless I'm missing something.

Thank you for your help.

[paulguy]

Might be cheaper to just grab an NTSC SNES.

[grinvader]

I think I should just try to find a Pal version of CT.

That doesn't exist, dood. Game didn't come here.

There should be a switch on the converter. A two-position switch, typically, sometimes three.
Put the game to be converted (i.e. CT) in the front slot.
Put a PAL game (preferably without SRAM, so use something else than zelda) in the back slot (shit happens, your save dies).

Make sure the carts are plugged down the slots to the bone. You may even have to remove the plastic of the converter for that.
Put the converter's switch on the top position. This is usually the active position, but it may vary, so read the converter's manual to be sure.

Put the snes on a very stable spot. Anything that will make the converter move can cause bad contacts and fuck up everything.
Load the whole thing down the snes, power on and hold reset for a sec before letting go (-slowly-).
If it still fails, try the other position(s) for the switch.
If it still fails, get a refund and buy a better converter.

[Menso]

I read and double-read your post. The converter I have (the one in the picture) has no switch. It's just a plastic.... contraption. Unless I'm totally blind, I am not finding any kind of switch on the exterior. Taking the thing apart would mean I wouldn't be able to put it together again let alone having the tools for it. I'm a poor student living in a dorm. This doesn't mean I can't try ofcourse but I'd like to know what I'm doing before taking action.

I have no manual, it's a used item I bought off an auction website. Hell it even has scars on the exterior betraying a hard life of gaming.

Below is the short list of games that I have, I've no idea which ones are PAL and which ones are not. Do you know which ones are PAL?

Castlevania 4
Killer Instinct
Mortal Kombat 2
Donkey Kong Country (1)
Zelda
Super Metroid
Mario Allstars
Super Mario World
Chrono Trigger

Just for curiosity sake, why does it need a Pal game in the back slot?

Again thank you all for the help, I don't mean to strike down all of your suggestions, just doing my best to rule out what doesn't work so that we may arrive at a working solution.


*Edit : I will try the reset button trick you mentioned next time I'm home. Update coming*

[adventure_of_link]

uhm... if it's PAL, wouldn't it say PAL version (or something) either on the box or cartridge, let alone have the Super Famicom logo, but say SUPER NINTENDO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM underneath it?

The PAL game is needed because it'll allow the game to play in PAL format, by using the PAL cart as a bypass.

Also, I know for sure Super Metroid, Zelda, Super Mario All-Stars, Super Mario World, and Donkey Kong Country 1 were released in the PAL regions, and as grinvader said, CT did NOT have a PAL version, ever.

[Gil_Hamilton]

I read and double-read your post. The converter I have (the one in the picture) has no switch. It's just a plastic.... contraption. Unless I'm totally blind, I am not finding any kind of switch on the exterior. Taking the thing apart would mean I wouldn't be able to put it together again let alone having the tools for it. I'm a poor student living in a dorm. This doesn't mean I can't try ofcourse but I'd like to know what I'm doing before taking action.

You don't have a screwdriver?

Below is the short list of games that I have, I've no idea which ones are PAL and which ones are not. Do you know which ones are PAL?

The ones in round cases that say Super Nintendo.

If it's in a round case and says Super Famicom, it's japanese NTSC. It will fit you console, but not work with it.
IF it's in a square case and says Super Nintendo, it's US NTSC. It will neither fit nor work in your console.

Just for curiosity sake, why does it need a Pal game in the back slot?

Because the PAL game has the correct lockout chip needed to enable your SNES' hardware.
PAL systems won't boot if they're talking to a NTSC lockout chip, and NTSC systems won't boot if they're talking to a PAL lockout chip.