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Based on the package markings, it looks like the CPU was actually lifted from a GBA SP PCB. This makes sense, of course, and neatly side-steps a bunch of potent
by mikepurvis 5y ago
Based on the package markings, it looks like the CPU was actually lifted from a GBA SP PCB. This makes sense, of course, and neatly side-steps a bunch of potential issues around firmware, bringup, etc.
I know the author says "the CPU is taken from a GBA SP" in the text, but that could also have meant taken from the design as opposed to the specific physical part having been taken.
- neverendingsigh 5y agoAs you said, it would be more trouble than it's worth to use, say, an FPGA in place of an original AGB-CPU part. Additionally, our part of the community has an appreciation for the original hardware and components; it's more about being able to rescue parts from damaged PCBs and/or push those original components beyond what Nintendo settled on.
- mikepurvis 5y agoDefinitely! Obviously it does increase the complexity of the project for others, knowing that you need a donor system from which to desolder key components. But it's great to end up with a product that's the real system running real cartridges and not a Linux computer running emulation. That said, it's cool that projects like MiSTer exist, and I could imagine that that might be a nice middle-ground for some people— being closer to the real hardware than purely software emulation, but also something that can also be built from scratch with new, off-the-shelf components.