GBC with 5" PSOne screen ?

[Live_Steam_Mad]

Hi, I am wondering if it is possible to do a GBC with a 5" PSOne screen. I love my GBC but the screen's not backlit and it's too small, I run my games instead on my GBA SP model 101, the screen is fabulous but way too small.

Is it possible? Anyone done this before?

Any hints or tips?

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

I see that Bacteria's excellent BigBoy Advance project has a similar idea just with GBA, but can the same be done with GBC ?

http://forums.benheck.com/viewtopic.php?t=19038

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Rekarp]

I see that Bacteria's excellent BigBoy Advance project has a similar idea just with GBA, but can the same be done with GBC ?

http://forums.benheck.com/viewtopic.php?t=19038

Cheers,

Alistair G.

Gameboy color games can play in the Advance. I see no reason for this project.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

I see that Bacteria's excellent BigBoy Advance project has a similar idea just with GBA, but can the same be done with GBC ?

http://forums.benheck.com/viewtopic.php?t=19038

Cheers,

Alistair G.

Gameboy color games can play in the Advance. I see no reason for this project.

I do. The SCREEN SIZE.

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Rekarp]

No I mean mod a GBC with a 5" screen. Just mod a GBA....

[Live_Steam_Mad]

No I mean mod a GBC with a 5" screen. Just mod a GBA....

Good point.

But then the display on the PSOne screen would be a small square in the middle of the widescreen display of the GBA playing area, which would be a small square taking up 1/2 the PSOne screen surely? So too small...unless I can figure out a way of switching screen stretch on the PSOne screen in GBA or GBC mode!

Hence I'd like to do a pure GBC with PSOne screen mod.

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[budnespid]

Tap the shoulder buttons and the picture size will change from GBC size to GBA size.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

But doing that stretches the 1.1:1 aspect ratio GameBoy Color image to 3:2! I do NOT want any kind of aspect ratio change, I just want to have a nice large GBC image in correct aspect.

GBC screen itself is 1.1:1 and so are the pixels (160 x 144) that GBC uses.

BTW is the PSOne screen 4:3 aspect ratio? If that's true I will have to accept some black borders at the sides...but only a little, and no black bars at the top and bottom... I hope!

GBC screen is 43.5mm (1.71") wide x 39.5mm (1.56") high, 59mm (2.32") diagonal @ 1.1:1 aspect ratio.

GBA screen is 61.5mm (2.42") wide x 41mm (1.61") height, 73mm (2.87") diagonal @ 3 : 2 aspect ratio.

GBA display is 240 x 160 (so the pixels are of course also 3:2 themselves).

Not sure what I would do about pixel mapping, i.e. PSOne screen is apparently 320 x 240 pixels, GBC uses 160 x 144, so if GBC display was stretched to same height as PSOne screen, GBC output would take up (240 * (160/144)) = 266 pixels, leaving a black border of 53 pixels each side, which is ((53 / 320) * 4") = 0.67" (17mm) of black border each side of the PSOne screen, which I could cover with the casing, so leaving my display being ((266.7 / 320) * 4") = 3.3" (85mm) wide x 3" (76mm) high, with a diagonal of SQRT(85^2 + 76^2) = 114mm (4.48, basically 4.5" diagonal, pretty good, and just a little under DOUBLE the original GBC screen size (so FOUR times as much screen area, a screen size increase of 400 per cent, sounds good to me LOL).

Is it possible? How do I connect the GBC display output to the PSOne screen please? Anyone done it?

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

BTW are there any 4:3 screens out there of say 4 to 6 inches diagonal with 320 x 288 (or near to it, or a multiple e.g. 640 x 576) pixels? Then I could acheive a 1:1 mapping of input GBC and screen pixels and would get a really SHARP display.

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

Tap the shoulder buttons and the picture size will change from GBC size to GBA size.

So what I am saying basically in the above in the last couple of posts is that if I do what you say here, on Bacteria's BigBoy Advance, then I would get either a small square in the middle of the PSOne screen (if I don't tap the shoulder button), or if I tap the shoulder button I will have a widescreen GBC display, and I was after a 1.1:1 GBC display picture just like the original, only bigger!

So I need to stretch the GBC output across the PSOne screen so that the height of the GBC display output matches the PSOne screen, and the width takes up 3.3 inches not 4 inches and I would have black bars that I can cover up and that's OK.

I just need to know how do I actually do this? Or if it's even possible?

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

Or does anyone know how to stretch the GBA display across the PSOne screen so that (with the shoulder button pressed or not, whichever suits) the GBC display output (via GBC cart plugged into GBA) is taking up the full height of the PSOne screen, and the width of the GBC display output is correct on the PSOne screen ?

That would do just as well!

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

Just found another option where Bacteria suggested getting a GBC converter cart for the SNES and then portablizing the SNES using a PSOne screen. Again however the part I don't understand is getting the correct 1.1:1 aspect ratio on the PSOne screen when in GBC mode. If someone could please tell me how I acheive that?

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

OK I just figured something out. When I use the GBC converter cart in the SNES, the SNES output should automatically give me a GBC "shaped" screen when it connects to a TV, so all I have to do is portable-ize a SNES and use the GBC converter cart and the PSOne screen and I should have a working GBC portable only with a much larger screen, plus I get a portable SNES to boot!

The "GBC output" won't take up the whole screen I assume, and will leave black bars on left and right but that's fine with me.

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Live_Steam_Mad]

Found some important info' in an FAQ about the Super GameBoy (GB / GBC adapter for SNES) ;-

"The Super Game Boy displays the game play area using your television. It does not fill the entire screen -- instead,
perhaps half of the total area (a square located in the center of the screen) displays the game play area -- the remainder (the outside border) is optionally filled with artwork, either designed by yourself using the Super Game Boy's limited art tools, via built-in Super Game Boy templates, or from borders stored in a game pak's memory."

One of these built in "artwork" options is "Black border (no border) icon -- a black border area, giving the appearance of no border."

I would be tempted to build a SNES portable with SGB just for the purpose of solely playing GBC titles on the large PSOne LCD screen and permanently cover the borders with black plastic so I didn't have to toggle the black border on every boot up of the unit.

More info' ;- "Game control is via the SNES controller plugged into port #1, with the directional pad offering movement (identical to the Game Boy/Game Boy Pocket/Game Boy Color), and button B and A copying it's portable counterpart - customizable via ;-

CONTROLLER SET-UP EDITOR
------------------------
The Super Game Boy offers limited controller defining options,
"limited" being the key word here.

At the bottom of the screen, from left to right:

Controller Set-Up Editor icon -- click here to exit the
Controller Set-Up Editor.

Type A -- will set the controller to the "Type A" configuration,
which is the default set-up as labeled on your SNES controller.

Type B -- will set the controller to the "Type B" configuration,
which sets the following from Type A: X=X, A=A, B=B, Y=B.

A button assignment diagram is in the lower right corner of the
screen."

Now some very important info... what if you have to cheat to get past a section? ;-

"WILL MY GAME BOY GAME GENIE WORK WITH MY SUPER GAME BOY?
*************************************************************

Yes, but only with an adapter or some physical reworking of the
Game Genie itself. The adapter, called (oddly enough) "The Super
Game Boy to Game Genie Adapter", is available from MicroSystems
Development for a reasonable $12.95 (plus $3-$6 shipping). For
more information, call 1-408-296-4000.

The adapter is simply an extension, as the Game Genie's "skirt"
won't allow the enhancer to fit in the Super Game Boy's game
port. Physically removing the skirt fixes the problem."

So I could just remove the "skirt" from the Game Genie for SNES that I have and cheat my way past a section, or simply use a real SNES and my Game Genie to cheat my way past a tricky part of the game.

There is a secret option built into the SGB ;- "SLOW MOTION -- A SNES Game Genie is required for this trick.
Insert the Game Boy pak into your Super Game Boy. Insert the Super Game Boy into the Game Genie. Insert the combo into the SNES. The Game Boy game will play in slow motion, with no sound."

There is also a 2.4 per cent speed up (music changes pitch?), which I would have to live with.

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH

I just found the killer info ;- "Game Boy Color games that REQUIRE the GBC are most likely not
compatible with the Super Game Boy (as the GBC offers an increased
color pallete, processor enhancements, etc.)."

and "Game Boy Color games are compatible with the Super Game Boy,
but only in regular (Game Boy/Game Boy Pocket) mode or Super
Game Boy enhanced mode. The Super Game Boy cannot emulate
any Game Boy Color enhancements."

and "The Super Game Boy was compatible with the original monochrome Game Boy cartridges and black Game Boy Color cartridges, although it would display the latter in their monochrome compatibility mode."

I also read that the version 2 of the Super GameBoy also does NOT allow me to use GBC exclusive games (such as Zelda DX I think).

Well this SUCKS...

Unless I can get a TV or RGB ouput from an original GBC somehow, or somehow get the GBA in GBC mode to fill the PSOne's screen, this project won't be possible.

Help!

Cheers,

Alistair G.

[Bush]

Holy shi**. Thats a lot of words. My suggestion, is to use a GBA. They are cheap. The super gameboy also puts the game in a letter box, so a GBA would be ideal. The thing is, when you stretch the screen on a GBA, it is going from 4:3 to 16:9. But the Psone screen is 4:3. This means you will have a very thin box lengthwise, giving a smushed picture. If you then stretch it, it should fit the screen, giving a 4:3 ratio. If you don't understand what I'm saying I can make some mockups.