MadLynx wrote on 2024-06-22, 10:45:

marcushg85 wrote on 2024-06-22, 10:20:

Hi and thanks to all who are contributing to this project. I've been following it for some time and after receiving some 89c52 chips I flashed the modded firmware bin 413 patch 5 and installed them (without a socket) on two 2290 cards I had. Can't make any of both cards to work now! Sbcheck doesn't detect them and diagnose gives some error.. any ideas? Both cards behave just the same.
I'm using them in a k6-3+ 600mhz on mvp3 board

If the chips came from China than you should've double check if they flashed correctly. Chinese sellers OFTEN sell you scrapped ICs and there very likely be several bad blocks that can't be written.

Yes... they were recycled and came from China. Rewrote them a couple of times and also tried to erase them first. They both work and we're verified with no errors

EDIT: Desoldered the chips, verified them and flashed them again and resoldered them... Now both cards work! dsp 4.13 found

but are those exact chips you need?
Noel wasting days on Atmega88p that turned out to be relabeled Atmega88 [When Projects Go REALLY Wrong] Noel's Retro Lab https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rurdOyaBCA

now another question, I only found the 4.13 patched... I also have a ct1740 and a CT2740. the question is... can I upgrade the ct2740 that comes with 4.11 version with 4.13 patched? and... should the ct1740 be modded even it doesn't have the hanging note bug?
I was wondering too if 4.17/4.16 mod can be flashed on a card that came with 4.13 and if there would be any benefits on doing so

If the chips aren't fresh from the factory, mine weren't, then try resoldering the pins on the PLCC. You could also pull the chip back off and check whether it tests okay on the programmer, I assume it's a TL866? I had to take 2 tries to get the PLCC soldered onto my CT2770 (not pictured) because of a short that formed between the legs on the corners and some unsoldered legs.
Not all the pins sat flat on the card, a mix of the DSP chips I'm using not being new, and trying to install the PLCC directly onto pads loaded with some solder. Manually resoldering fixed it though.

From the pictures you've given I personally doubt those are remarked chips, that looks like paint rather than lasering. Also is that an AT89C52-24JC? Remarks would usually uprate to the industrial temp rated 24JI...

Thermalwrong wrote on 2024-06-22, 18:13:

If the chips aren't fresh from the factory, mine weren't, then try resoldering the pins on the PLCC. You could also pull the chip back off and check whether it tests okay on the programmer, I assume it's a TL866? I had to take 2 tries to get the PLCC soldered onto my CT2770 (not pictured) because of a short that formed between the legs on the corners and some unsoldered legs.
Not all the pins sat flat on the card, a mix of the DSP chips I'm using not being new, and trying to install the PLCC directly onto pads loaded with some solder. Manually resoldering fixed it though.

From the pictures you've given I personally doubt those are remarked chips, that looks like paint rather than lasering. Also is that an AT89C52-24JC? Remarks would usually uprate to the industrial temp rated 24JI...

Yes. They're AT89c52-24jc after resoldering them got them to work.
Now I want to try to fix the ct2740 but I'm not sure if the patched 4.13 can be used with that one as it came with 4.11
Now I need to try the dream blaster module with those... Even I use an Orpheus in my main rig I might have an older setup with all original period correct parts

marcushg85 wrote on 2024-06-22, 18:36:

Yes. They're AT89c52-24jc after resoldering them got them to work. Now I want to try to fix the ct2740 but I'm not sure if the […]
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Thermalwrong wrote on 2024-06-22, 18:13:

If the chips aren't fresh from the factory, mine weren't, then try resoldering the pins on the PLCC. You could also pull the chip back off and check whether it tests okay on the programmer, I assume it's a TL866? I had to take 2 tries to get the PLCC soldered onto my CT2770 (not pictured) because of a short that formed between the legs on the corners and some unsoldered legs.
Not all the pins sat flat on the card, a mix of the DSP chips I'm using not being new, and trying to install the PLCC directly onto pads loaded with some solder. Manually resoldering fixed it though.

From the pictures you've given I personally doubt those are remarked chips, that looks like paint rather than lasering. Also is that an AT89C52-24JC? Remarks would usually uprate to the industrial temp rated 24JI...

Yes. They're AT89c52-24jc after resoldering them got them to work.
Now I want to try to fix the ct2740 but I'm not sure if the patched 4.13 can be used with that one as it came with 4.11
Now I need to try the dream blaster module with those... Even I use an Orpheus in my main rig I might have an older setup with all original period correct parts

Yay 😁 Congrats on getting it working.
I had a similar quandary with my CT2770 card which has 4.12 - that's working much better now with the 4.13-patched version. Quickest way to test for me was with a game save at the end of level 2 or 3 in doom, that'd mess up the midi with hanging notes in just a few seconds.

marcushg85 wrote on 2024-06-22, 16:51:

now another question, I only found the 4.13 patched... I also have a ct1740 and a CT2740. the question is... can I upgrade the ct2740 that comes with 4.11 version with 4.13 patched? and... should the ct1740 be modded even it doesn't have the hanging note bug?
I was wondering too if 4.17/4.16 mod can be flashed on a card that came with 4.13 and if there would be any benefits on doing so

Cards that dont have 4.04 or 4.05 or 4.16 (By default) have bugs, either Type1 (Alot of hanging notes) or Type2 (minimal hanging notes).
Theres a list for most cards and which type in the 1st post here: Sound Blaster: From best to worst
Best way to test it is with 'hexen -warp 02' or like said above doom e1m3

All cards that use an external CT1741 chip can use version 4.04 <>4.13.
By default 4.16 can cause issues on at least AWE32 cards (As i use that as my testing card), which are mostly fixed in the 4.16patch1 (custom) version, which is a mix of 4.13 with clean-er code/changes from 4.16.

Thermalwrong wrote on 2024-06-22, 18:13:

If the chips aren't fresh from the factory, mine weren't, then try resoldering the pins on the PLCC. You could also pull the chip back off and check whether it tests okay on the programmer, I assume it's a TL866? I had to take 2 tries to get the PLCC soldered onto my CT2770 (not pictured) because of a short that formed between the legs on the corners and some unsoldered legs.
Not all the pins sat flat on the card, a mix of the DSP chips I'm using not being new, and trying to install the PLCC directly onto pads loaded with some solder. Manually resoldering fixed it though.

From the pictures you've given I personally doubt those are remarked chips, that looks like paint rather than lasering. Also is that an AT89C52-24JC? Remarks would usually uprate to the industrial temp rated 24JI...

Easiest is just to swipe them with acetone, most new markings come right off if they are remarked.
Which isnt a bad thing per se, but you dont know how they been treated in the past so its kinda hit or miss.

Price china vs mouser is pretty similair so i'd just get them from a reputable source.

Hi
At this monent what is the best patched fw to use?
Is any compatibility matrix, for what sb16 or awe32 can be used?

I second this.

Also, OP, can you please add links to the most useful posts ? That would be infinitely helpful 😁

Deksor wrote on 2024-07-07, 17:05:

I second this.

Also, OP, can you please add links to the most useful posts ? That would be infinitely helpful 😁

Yes!

Nice! I just found out about this project. I have a few Sound Blasters that can use this upgrade.
I have a question, does anyone knows if an AT89C52-16JC (16MHz) would do the job? or it has to be 24JC? (24MHz)

DSP chip is fed with a 24 MHz crystal oscillator.

Somehow I missed this thread for the past nine years. Since it is 54 pages long, can someone link whatever the most relevant (and up to date) posts are if someone wants to take a stab at this?

Some questions I hope to find answers to:

• Are there any downsides to upgrading any specific models to any specific DSP version?
• What kind of chips are needed and what is the cheapest reliable way to find them?
• Where are the relevant firmware downloads and are there any cards that this shouldn't be done on?
• Is a standard TL866A suitable for this job?

Thanks everyone. 🙂

Interestingly enough, Bits und Bolts just did a two part video on this. Maybe there is some information in there:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrdImLU-Kx4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfPsxBj-7EE

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-04-12, 06:32:

Some questions I hope to find answers to: […]
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Some questions I hope to find answers to:

• Are there any downsides to upgrading any specific models to any specific DSP version?
• What kind of chips are needed and what is the cheapest reliable way to find them?
• Where are the relevant firmware downloads and are there any cards that this shouldn't be done on?
• Is a standard TL866A suitable for this job?

About a month before BuB mentioned the SB hanging note bug in one of his latest soundcard repair videos, I read this whole thread. So I had time to research some details that were subsequently missing in his video with the hardware solution of this problem. I'll try to give some answers to your questions.

• DSP versions with hanging note bug (4.11, 4.12, or 4.13) can be exchanged with patched 4.13, custom 4.16 or original (bug-free) 4.16 versions. As far as I know original DSP versions 4.04 and 4.05 are bug-free.
• AT89S52-24JU, AT89S52-24JI, AT89S52-24JC, AT89C52-24JI or AT89C52-24JC chips from ali-baba-and-the-40-thieves, fleabay or whatever electronic components shop you prefer.
• You can find all the needed bug-free firmwares here: https://github.com/S95Sedan/CT1741_DSP/tree/main/firmware
• XGecu T48 works, so probably TL866A will do the job.

P.S. Watching videos < reading 😉

Dusko wrote on 2025-04-12, 05:57:

Nice! I just found out about this project. I have a few Sound Blasters that can use this upgrade.
I have a question, does anyone knows if an AT89C52-16JC (16MHz) would do the job? or it has to be 24JC? (24MHz)

Ideally you'll want 24mhz, that's what the stock chip runs at. I am however testing/waiting for some other chips to see what the impact is for the mpu-401 slowdown.

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-04-12, 06:32:

Somehow I missed this thread for the past nine years. Since it is 54 pages long, can someone link whatever the most relevant (an […]
Show full quote

Somehow I missed this thread for the past nine years. Since it is 54 pages long, can someone link whatever the most relevant (and up to date) posts are if someone wants to take a stab at this?

Some questions I hope to find answers to:

• Are there any downsides to upgrading any specific models to any specific DSP version?
• What kind of chips are needed and what is the cheapest reliable way to find them?
• Where are the relevant firmware downloads and are there any cards that this shouldn't be done on?
• Is a standard TL866A suitable for this job?

Thanks everyone. 🙂

- No, all of the firmware's can be used on any card that allows swapping the chip. 4.04/4.05 are more catered towards the earlier released SB16 cards, 4.11-4.13 has better compatibility for later cards, SB16, SB32 and AWE32.
- Any 8052 8kb chip rated for 24mhz, plcc44 package. Sources depend on where you live, easiest is probably aliexpress though quality may vary. Ebay is an option aswell.
- Post above here should have the link to my GitHub, v417-8k_2130359d_1.0 is the latest, all the fixes are listed on the respective page.
- TL866A-II is what i use here with a cheap plcc44 adapter, most have a supported list of chips.

4.04/4.05 have samplerate bug/adpcm bug, 4.11-4.13 has hanging note bug/adpcm bug, 4.16 wont work/initialize on AWE32 cards.

Condensed info from this thread would really be helpful on the Vogons WIKI and linked to this page https://www.vogonswiki.com/index.php/Hanging_note_bug

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-04-12, 06:32:

[*]Where are the relevant firmware downloads and are there any cards that this shouldn't be done on?

I did the mod on an AWE32 and ended up with a problem where the card would generate spurious NMIs even when AWEUTIL was not loaded at all. I'm not sure if the problem is actually related to the firmware itself, or perhaps an issue with the output drive of the specific 8052 chip I used, but when I reverted back to the original DSP chip the problem went away.

Ozzuneoj wrote on 2025-04-12, 06:32:

Somehow I missed this thread for the past nine years. Since it is 54 pages long, can someone link whatever the most relevant (an […]
Show full quote

Somehow I missed this thread for the past nine years. Since it is 54 pages long, can someone link whatever the most relevant (and up to date) posts are if someone wants to take a stab at this?

Some questions I hope to find answers to:

• Are there any downsides to upgrading any specific models to any specific DSP version?
• What kind of chips are needed and what is the cheapest reliable way to find them?
• Where are the relevant firmware downloads and are there any cards that this shouldn't be done on?
• Is a standard TL866A suitable for this job?

Thanks everyone. 🙂

Welcome to the party. 😁

Thank you all for the info! Really appreciated.
I haven't bought the chips yet, but I can confirm that the TL866 II Plus programmer supports both AT89C52 and AT89S52 (with a PLCC44 adapter).