SNES4ALL Alpha-3 released !

**Christuserloeser** · March 27th, 2006, 09:38

Yeah, the SNES isn't a Mega Drive or NeoGeo - it only has a 3Mhz 8bit-like CPU where the M68k is a strong, full blown 16bit CPU running at incredible 9/12MHz, accompanied by the powerful good old Z80.

The strong sides of the Super Nintendo is its video hardware and its sound chip. Hell, it even had an analog bass booster o_O

**chui** · March 27th, 2006, 10:27

Original Snes9x code is good for video emulation, uses tile caching. I have profiled SNES4ALL and spends only 33% for video emulation and 66% for CPUs without sound, but maybe my profiling is not very good for now, but i think that CPUs emulation spends the major time.

I will try to draw tile cached with pvr for reducing this 33%, but mode5 and mode7 are difficult to implement with this method.

**Zherae** · March 27th, 2006, 10:57

Just tried it, played a bit of Super Mario World and it already plays better than DSnes but without transparencies very impressive almost fullspeed very much playable. Unfortunately the image still flickers on a TV you think it would be possible to use SNES resolution? Like DSNES does? If not would it be possible to run in low res like the UAE4ALL and DCast emulators? Also tried the new NeoCD4all I think it's pretty much perfect apart from the resolution as well it flickers too. Excellent work overall, and PSX4ALL? There's no stopping you

**chui** · March 27th, 2006, 11:07

I have tried to use the SNES resolution for alpha3, is not ok?

Also i think that NEO4ALL resolution is correct, tell me your video connection: PAL TV, NTSC TV or VGA monitor adapter.

**Zherae** · March 27th, 2006, 11:20

I think the image is stretched right? I only see a small black border on top and bottom, when I had a Super Nintendo you could see full border around the screen, same on DSNES. NEO4ALL has correct ration but is in VGA res (640x480) scaled. I do have a VGA box but I prefer to play 2D games on TV (PAL) when in low resolution video the image doesn't flicker, is sharper and the scanlines smooth the hard edges of the sprites.

**digDug3k** · March 27th, 2006, 11:26

nice work, some games are starting to run very smoothly

Killer Instinct runs surprisingly well, as does Smartball and Lemmings, even with 2 players
anticipating every release

but I do have resolution problems, that is to say, the screen stretches too far horizontally and the first digit on the frames per second indicator is cut off.

**Christuserloeser** · March 27th, 2006, 11:44

Originally Posted by Zherae

I only see a small black border on top and bottom, when I had a Super Nintendo you could see full border around the screen, same on DSNES.

Hm, remember that the PAL Super Nintendo games had borders around the screen because they were -not- modified ( = fixed! ) for PAL.

When they were made, they were meant to work on NTSC which uses a lower resolution than PAL. That is what creates borders in PAL.

Btw: Dreamcast was the very first console were almost all games were fixed for PAL (no borders, 50/60Hz modes in full speed)

With Super Nintendo, games have borders and run slower in PAL. Playing Japanese or American Super Nintendo games on your Dreamcast with SNES4ALL will of course make them run in 60Hz and full screen

**RockinB** · March 27th, 2006, 11:56

Originally Posted by chui

We have changed assembler code for running. The main problem was to get a correct offset.h for SH, also adapt main cpuexec to new structure and know the equivalent of opcodesE1. See source code.

It only speed up a bit, around 10% - 15%. To create this SH assembler code was a lot of work for a poor acceleration, in comparation with time to implement. But this SH assembler code exists and it is possible to use it.

Thanks, I will try to get it running on SEGA Saturn asap, too.

Yes, the slow main CPU speed of the SNES and it's good video emulation are the resons why there is an SNES emu on Saturn, but no Mega Drive emu.

RockinB, I wonder if the Saturn had a 68k & Z80 too ? Wouldn't that mean it could be possible to 'emulate' a MD / SMS easily by using these ?
Otherwise I can't wait to see which wonders FAZE & FAME will do for emulation on a Saturn once converted to SH2...

I think FAZE will most likely be used on Saturn, too. As for FAME it depends on it's size. The pure size of the 68k CPU emulation core of other emulators is so massive, that there's almost no chance to fit it into Saturn's RAM. If FAME is smaller, than maybe it could lead to a proof-of-concept Mega Drive emulator. But due to the fast 68k cpu clock, it won't run fast. Oh yes, the SEGA Saturn's sound block contains a 68k, too (running at 21MHz?). I've been said that memory access is a problem, because it got no mmu(?).

**Christuserloeser** · March 27th, 2006, 13:14

21 MHz should be more than enough! Hope the memory access could be solved... Maybe something worth to investigate... Hm, Sonic Jam contained a collection of MD games iirc - maybe they already used the 68k to emulate a MD instead of reprogramming/porting the games ?

Hehe, guess we're getting a bit OT here

Great to hear that FAZE will be used on Saturn too