Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

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aoiddr
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Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

Post by aoiddr » Wed Jul 07, 2021 6:19 pm

I'm using firmware 3.X.1 on a Raspberry Pi 3B and having a graphic issue when trying to play GRADIUS II and VULCAN VENTURE in AdvMame (mame-106).

I've tried to play Gradius II in mame-172, but the sound and gameplay stutters. mame-106's audio is okay, but the graphics look like the attached image.

Any ideas?
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dee2eR
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Re: Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

Post by dee2eR » Sat Jul 10, 2021 2:33 am

Is the stuttering in 172 constant or does it only happen in certain situations? It seems to run fine for me, I just compared it to current MAME on my i5 and couldn't see any real difference to Pi3B+ and 172. I only played each breifly so if it's a particular cicumstance it happens in I may just have not encountered it... in the attract mode on each it seems like both Pi and i5 ran the same.

I know on KLOV I mentioned the 5v levels and yours didn't sound bad but it may be worth trying just a little more. You reported having 5.08 to 5.1 with the game running, I just checked on my test bench and read 5.09 at the JAMMA edge with the game running (5.18 on the power supplies display), if it is a power issue you won't be far off... not sure it will help as your reported numbers sound fine.

As for running it in AdvMAME, you could try adding it to the advThree array in /boot/launchers/advmame.sh (use a good text editor if you edit it from Windows, not the built in ones, Notepad++ is good and free if you need to find a good text editor). Running in the newer version of AdvMAME may make a difference to that rendering issue.

aoiddr
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Re: Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

Post by aoiddr » Sun Jul 11, 2021 3:50 am

dee2eR wrote:
Sat Jul 10, 2021 2:33 am
Is the stuttering in 172 constant or does it only happen in certain situations? It seems to run fine for me, I just compared it to current MAME on my i5 and couldn't see any real difference to Pi3B+ and 172. I only played each breifly so if it's a particular cicumstance it happens in I may just have not encountered it... in the attract mode on each it seems like both Pi and i5 ran the same.

I know on KLOV I mentioned the 5v levels and yours didn't sound bad but it may be worth trying just a little more. You reported having 5.08 to 5.1 with the game running, I just checked on my test bench and read 5.09 at the JAMMA edge with the game running (5.18 on the power supplies display), if it is a power issue you won't be far off... not sure it will help as your reported numbers sound fine.

As for running it in AdvMAME, you could try adding it to the advThree array in /boot/launchers/advmame.sh (use a good text editor if you edit it from Windows, not the built in ones, Notepad++ is good and free if you need to find a good text editor). Running in the newer version of AdvMAME may make a difference to that rendering issue.
I tested increasing my voltage on my Sega Astro City's power supply so that the PiJamma was getting 5.10/5.12/5.15/5.20. Most games were fine with 5.08, but some saw an improvement with 5.10/5.12 like the Taito F3 games Bubble Bobble 2 and Bubble Bobble Memories (both running under mame-106) in that the music and game would play at actual speed most of the time. R-Type (running in mame-172) would also play without stuttering with more voltage. Good call on this as it definitely helped clear up about 80% of my issues.

With regards to Gradius2/Vulcan Venture (and Gradius 3), I don't really know how I managed to get mame-172 to work properly with them, but after all the other moving around of roms and voltage tweaking, they look to be running at full speed now (sans maybe a few random hiccups). AdvMame still gives the scrambled graphic issue with Gradius2, though, even with putting the game into the config file.


Btw, just to try it, I installed a spare Pi heatsink I had on my Pi3B and some thermal paste and tried to overclock...that largely a negative effect for me. I had to use 5.20 and got more stuttering than ever on problem games. So I reversed this.




Fyi, two specific games that I continue to have issues with of some kind that don't seem to be linked to voltage.

fantjour.zip (paired with konamigx.zip in the same folder) =
this gives severe lag in both mame-106 and mame-172...but gokuparo.zip (it's JP original version) plays totally fine! Not sure what is causing that one. I've tried both split roms and merged roms for fantjour.zip.

gametngk.zip =
this game gives me mame-106 and mame-172 a pink screen. mame-203 will load it, but it lags unplayably.

dee2eR
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Re: Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

Post by dee2eR » Sun Jul 11, 2021 4:13 am

I'll check out those games too.

Overclocking going poorly can be another sign of power delivery issues, generally an OC should improve performance - although there is an aspect of luck to OCing as it comes down to the manufacturing variances of your processor (often refered to as the silicon lottery). It's possible you got unlucky and your particular Pi doesn't OC well, you may have better luck with it if you try a smaller overclock.

Has your cabs wiring been modified at all? I ask because it sounds like you may have inadequate power wiring running from the power supply to JAMMA edge, but SEGA (and any other vintage) cabs would have had great quality wiring with plenty of power wires too. Usually it's only modern (cheap, crappy aluminium wire) JAMMA looms with only 1 wire for 5v and GND that would be an issue with a Pi4 (Pi3s usually work OK with the power supply up a bit even on those cheap modern looms).

Alternately, has your power supply ever been serviced or replaced? If it's all original it maybe out of spec after 20ish years in the cab, hard to say for certain.

I wouldn't go over 5.2v at the JAMMA edge, it shouldn't be necesary. From what you've said 5.1 - 5.12 seems to be about right for that cab. Taito F3 is about the limit of what a Pi3 can do (and would be a little better OC'd) so if they're performing pretty well you may be fine for voltage/current at this point. I foget which Taito F3 Bubble Bobble game it was but one runs pretty good but has slowdown in bonus stages on Pi3... very playable though Taito F3 is definately better on a Pi4 using later MAME versions.

EDIT: for reference I don't need to turn up my power supply when OCing, current use goes way up (almost, but not quite, doubles on a Pi4 depending on the situation) but the voltage setting I use normally is fine.

henrryyy
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Re: Gradius II graphic issue with AdvMame (mame-106) - 3.X.1

Post by henrryyy » Mon Oct 09, 2023 6:43 am

dee2eR wrote:
Sat Jul 10, 2021 2:33 am
Is the stuttering in 172 constant or does it only happen in certain situations? It seems to run fine for me, I just compared it to current MAME on my i5 and couldn't see any real difference to Pi3B+ and 172. I only played each breifly so if it's a particular cicumstance it happens in I may just have not encountered it... in the attract mode on each it seems like both Pi and i5 ran the same.

I know on KLOV I mentioned the 5v levels and yours didn't sound bad but it may be worth trying just a little more. You reported having 5.08 to 5.1 with the game running, I just checked on my test bench and read 5.09 at the JAMMA edge with the game running (5.18 on the power supplies display), if it is a power issue you won't be far off... not sure it will help as your reported numbers sound fine.

As for running it in AdvMAME, you could try adding it to the advThree array in /boot/launchers/advmame.sh (use a good text editor if you edit it from Windows, not the built in ones, Notepad++ is good and free if you need to find a good text editor). Running in the newer version of AdvMAME may make a difference to that rendering issue.
Thank you for your analysis and suggestions. It's interesting that you didn't experience stuttering with MAME 172 on your systems. The reported power levels seem fine, but I appreciate the suggestion to try a little more. Adding it to the advThree array in AdvMAME or trying the newer version may help with the rendering issue. Your insights are valuable, and I'll explore these options further.

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