What's the best modern way to dump a SNES beta cartridge?

auptonaupton
in The Brewery
I'm looking to dump a Street Fighter 2 beta cartridge/block for the SNES for preservation purposes. Years ago I would have used the Super Wild Card or Double Pro Fighter, but using floppys or paraell ports to transfer data is obviously archiac and error prone. I also think that this method introduced an invalid file header that many purists find obnoxious.



I can unsocket the eproms and dump each into an individual file, but this approach is more involved. Unsocketing the eproms also imposes risk of damaging the beta cartridge. Also, I'm not sure how I would join each of the individual roms into a single rom file.



Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.



Thank you.


Comments

  • NESHomebrewNESHomebrew
    I believe the retrode would work without having to risk anything.



    http://www.retrode.org
  • GuntzGuntz
    The Super UFO Pro 8 flash cart / copier can dump SNES cartridges.
  • auptonaupton
    Thanks @WhatULive4 and @Guntz for your replies. Both look like good options, although the Super UFO Pro 8 is about half the price. Do either of you know if either option is compatible with carts that use the extra pins on the left and right, similar to a SFX cart ? I'd post a pic of what I'm talking about but it seems that the forum doesn't support that ?



    *UPDATE* It appears that you *CAN* post an image, but only after posting and then editing the post the image options appear. 



    SF2 Beta
  • auptonaupton
    Looking at the cart again, there's only 4 "PRG" eproms, I could use a socket puller and carefully dump them individually. Though I'm not sure if there's any byte swapping that needs to be done and I would have to use a tool to join the data into a single file. I remember Ucon being used to join multi-floppy disks into a single file 20 years ago... ( wow I'm old! ). Anyone know if that tool would work on eprom dumps or is there a better way to do it now ?



    Thanks!
  • removed04092017removed04092017
    Should be straight through each ROM. Still, use a flat head screw driver and remove each side a little tiny bit at a time.



    To figure out the mapping, it'd be best to probe the PCB with a meter to find where the mapping goes per chip enable.
  • marvelus10marvelus10
    For $20 you can get just the programmer from ToToTek to dump your cart. http://www.tototek.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_8_11&products_id=39
  • VGS_MrMark0673VGS_MrMark0673
    Retrode is the most user friendly SNES dumper. Plug it into a USB, plug in the cart, drag the file off the retrode. It's that simple.
  • auptonaupton
    @marvelus10 - Thanks for the suggestion, but it looks like the programmer is missing support for the additional pins.



    @MrMark0673 - I think you may be right, but having trouble confirming that it can dump carts that use the extra pins, similar to a SFX cart. Looking for a US seller too.



    @3GenGames - Thanks, I was all set until you mentioned I need to trace the mapping address... Is that required for joining the individual PRG roms together ?



    Thanks All!
  • BouncekDeLemosBouncekDeLemos
    I would go with the Retrode too. It's small, and easy to use.

    Originally posted by: aupton



    *UPDATE* It appears that you *CAN* post an image, but only after posting and then editing the post the image options appear. 

     

    Instead of using the the quick post form on the very bottom of the screen then editing it, just hit "Reply" or "Quote" from a previous poster and you'll get the options to insert images. Using the form on the very bottom is mainly for quick posting.




  • removed04092017removed04092017
    Yep, basically to figure out in which order they are on the board. The board may also have markings for each one already, though. Just get all 4 files dumped, and then worry about that. Only 16 combinations, won't kill us to make 16 ROM's to figure it out.
  • auptonaupton
    So after dumping the cart, does anyone know what the best way is to compare if this version of the rom had ever been dumped before ? Would MD5/CRC against GoodSnes/NoIntro sets be a viable option, or is there something in the rom header that would be a better option ?



    Thanks!
  • GuntzGuntz
    Download WindHex, CTRL+C (compare files), select a usual SF2 ROM as your 1st file, your dumped SF2 ROM as the 2nd file. That will give you a complete byte compare, no nonsense.
  • dra600ndra600n
    I use a Super Wildcard DX, dumps the rom in a working format, and hasn't had any issues dumping any cart I've tossed at it. I'd be more than happy to dump it for you if you'd like.
  • daillestdaillest
    I had bought a Super UFO for the sole purpose of dumping a SNES proto. The damn piece of crap did not recognize even recognize the cart to play the game let alone dump it. I was pretty perturbed. So I guess you get what you pay for
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