Change your Dreamcast's region

[Lyris]

Now, if only somebody could work out a mod to permanently enable the RGB output for those few imports that disable it, I'd be happy.

This is along different lines, but this time last year I was trying to design a Component output box for the Dreamcast. I don't have the electronic knowledge to put it together myself, but I was trying to combine the DC pin-out with a free design for an RGB SCART to Component converter box that was posted on an Australian site somewhere.

My idea was that the box would tap the R/G/B and H/V sync signals normally used for the VGA box output and convert this to Y/Pb/Pr component. And it'd also have a switch on it for games that refused to play over VGA which would instead tap the R/G/B and Composite Sync output normally used for RGB SCART output.

As I said though I don't have the skills to actually put it together, and since a lot of people now have HDTVs with VGA inputs, it'll probably stay as just an idea.

[randombs]

does the dc output 640x480 over vga? i've heard things like 800x600. if so, would the tellys have a problem displaying that res over component where they're expecting 480, 720 or 1080?

do you still have that info? i'd love to have a look at it

:EDIT:

just found

this

is that the one?

:EDIT2:

or this even? it's an australian site but wants me to hand over £3 to see the rest (which i really don't mind doing)

[sj33]

Dreamcast does 640x480, but I do remember a lot of people over HDTVArcade used to use VGA-to-Component transcoders on their Dreamcasts.

[Lyris]

Billy, thanks for the links! I was originally looking at that SiliconChip.com.au one but the one at http://www.keohi.com/keohihdtv/inter..._johrhees.html is designed from the outset from RGBHV (VGA) to Component instead of RGB SCART to Component. Perhaps if someone manages to combine the two designs we can actually make my box idea.

[Shoju]

Interesting but perhaps somebody here would explain how this (potentially risky) DIY hardware region swapping gives you any real benefit over using a DC-X boot disc?

Doesn't the DC-X allow PAL DCs to run NTSC games (at 60Hz) and may allow you to force some PAL games into 60Hz when that option isn't available from the in-game menus? I've not found a NTSC DC game I wanted to play that didn't work with the DC-X and my unmodded PAL DC.

Is the 15 sec load/remove time using DC-X that much hassle?

According to the review here of Garou Mark Of The Wolves this game along with some KOF games run in 50hz on Pal DC's with DC-X.

I was thinking of getting Garou but that put me off.

[randombs]

Lyris,

personally i'm much more interested in rgb scart-component+l/r audio as i can live without dc's vga and would much rather have something i could use with my saturn.

if it was possible to have both using the same circuit then maybe that'd convince me, but i'd still need to shell out for a dc vga cable.

[Lyris]

Just to make sure I phrased it well enough: The box I was proposing would output VGA-capable games in 480p over Component video and allow you to flip it into 480i mode to instead transcode the RGB SCART output for games that didn't run with VGA mode turned on. Both would go out over one set of Component cables.

[randombs]

i've made a new thread to keep this one about the region thingy HERE

[titanium]

I only have one PAL Dreamcast so I don't want to try the mod on that one, just in case. But I have a few US one that I wouln't mind to try it on. Can anyone confirm that this will work on a US NTSC Dreamcast with the same steps?

I only intent on using the R512 to +12V solder since I will only use it on an NTSC TV.

[Lyris]

There's no reason why it shouldn't, you might as well go ahead and try it. The worst thing that will happen is that it will have no effect.

[titanium]

I successfully modified a US NTSC Dreamcast last night. The model was one of the US launch model (0). The one with a metallic fan with pipes that cools the cpu. I don't have a lot of soldering skills, so I kinda had a hard time to make the +12 solder stick correctly, but i finally managed to do it.

Weird for me to see the blue DC logo on my TV since i'm so used to the orange one.

BTW, anyone got a ready made .nrg or .cdi file of the ''Region Changer v1.5''. A screenshot of it is at the bottom of the following link. The screenshot doesn't look like the nrg file linked in this thread.

http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dc-swat.net.ru&langpair=ru%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&prev=%2Flanguage_tools

The download for the plain files is available in their download section.

[Shinebi]

Here's Linkintones CDI: http://jo.plaz.free.fr/DC/dcrc1.5.cdi.zip
It works fine. (this version was only available in 1stboot.bin+IP.bin)

[titanium]

Heres' Linkintones CDI: http://jo.plaz.free.fr/DC/dcrc1.5.cdi.zip
It works fine. (this version was only available in 1stboot.bin+IP.bin)

Nice, Thanks

[Lyris]

Yeah, that's the 1.5 version, works just the same so I don't think there's any point in burning it again if you've already burned the first version.

[Shinebi]

Eh, did anyone try this on a Jap version?

I have a fully PAL machine with a JAP mainboard. I tried out the mod last Friday. Connected the 12V to the point on R512 that should be connected, then I tried on the other point of R512, then I tried each point again after having desoldered the jumper.
In all cases I could only go from 50 to 60 Hz and vice versa.
No blue logo, no other language etc. When I tried to change the language on the disc, flashed it and afterwards checked in the BIOS menu, it hadn't changed. When I booted the disc, it remembered what language I had selected from the disc. Also, when I changed the language from the BIOS menu, it didn't show up as default when choosing from the disc...


(Also, would it matter if there's a modchip connected, as this is the case?)

Actually, the only thing I wanted to have, was a blue logo, so my DC would show up as PAL, just like the casing and the blue led I installed. Doesn't matter what region it is in.