I Just Ordered A Gp32

[DaveC]

Hehe, bp32z.com ran out of 166Mhz ones, so I'll just get the regular (and $20 refund hehe ). From what I read so far you can overlcock it with software right, so I could reach 166mhz anyway?

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You may not reach 166 out of the box, actually I would pretty much guarantee that it wont. Any of the units that did go to 166 were cherry picked out and sold for $20 more.

You can do a resistor mod that should bring it to 166 or higher. Not sure how good you are with a soldering iron but it is possible.

You can get 128 MB SMCs for around $20.00 online. You may want to invest in the Rayovac 15 min rechargeables they charge fast and last pretty long.

 

[Prophet]

Also be sure to get some good rechargeable AA's and a charger. MUCH less expensive in the long run than buying normal AA's. And they'll work on any device or appliance which uses AA's - including the new GPX2.

Check my FLU review in my sig, it contains an example that I got in Radio Shack, and still use it to this day. It's quite nice.

 

[darkman]

I use Duracell rechargeable NiMH 1800 mAh AA batteries in my NLU. This type of battery is designed for digital cameras, so they are tough and longer lasting than regular rechargeable batteries. When you start bumping up that processor speed, you will use more energy from those two AA batteries in the back of that unit.

 

[Alex.]

I already have 4 rechargeable NiMH AA's at a whooping 2200 mAh - I use them for my digital camera, and they last a very long time. That's when I first learned that regular AA's are gonna kill my wallet, when I've got my digital camera

What can I say, it would've been nice to have had a guaranteed 166Mhz, but 133+ is quite nice too. I can't wait for it to arrive, although I'll probably be kept waiting till sometime next week :unsure:

Prophet, very nice description. Yet another great GP32 article!

 

[thegrimreaper]

Has anyone pointed you in the direction of what is now commonly referred to as "The Pencil Trick"

http://www.gp32x.de/board/index.php?showtopic=18555&hl=

I've not tried it myself, but people say it's real easy to get your machine running at 200 Mhz using that.

 

[Alex.]

I'll try and stay away from direct hardware mods for as long as possible - a fried GP32 is not exactly what I'm dreaming of

Btw, so if I get this right software overclock is possible from each program individually, right? With zero risk of frying it up? :huh:

 

[Alpha2]

Any app that you use that will let you over clock should be safe. if the system cant run that fast it'll usually just reset with no harm done.

 

[Magus 86]

correct, alex, but only if the program has the option of changing the clock speed built into it. Most programs run at 133mhz by default, some a little higher if they were made specifically for overclocked GP32s, but if you run one of those, the GP32 will just reset. It will also reset if you try to run the program(one that actually lets you change the speed) at a clockspeed higher than your GP32 can handle.

Also, if you plan on playing SNES at all, you definitely want one that'll run at least 150mhz. That'll run Super Mario World at about 95% speed... not perfect, but much better than what you'll get if you try to play SNES at 133mhz... Just thinking about how slow that must be makes me cringe...

 

[Alex.]

Is the overclock setting permanent, or do I have to adjust it every time I run a program that lets me adjust it? For example, does the SNES emulator allow me to overclock it?

Thanks for all your helpful posts guys!

EDIT: I just found this on search:
"When the GP32 is reset, its clockspeed is set to the default value (40MHz I think), but as soon as you run a game, that game will set it to what ever it likes."

 

[triksR4rabits]

Is the overclock setting permanent, or do I have to adjust it every time I run a program that lets me adjust it? For example, does the SNES emulator allow me to overclock it?

Thanks for all your helpful posts guys!

EDIT: I just found this on search:
"When the GP32 is reset, its clockspeed is set to the default value (40MHz I think), but as soon as you run a game, that game will set it to what ever it likes."

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depends on the program. Many programs (like osnes .3, but NOT .2) save your clocksetting as a config file so you don't have to adjust it eveytime you start up the emu. And i believe the default cpu setting is actually 66 MHz (not entirely sure though). All are guaranteed to go up to at least 133 though

 

[Aaaaaaaa]

when u reset ur gp32. the clock settings also reset. wh u run the program and select your clock settings, then it will become thoise settings

 

[Vimacs]

the startup clock speed is set by the launcher you are running, some use 40mhz, some 66, there are propably also other speeds arround.

 

[Alex.]

Damn, I ordered last Thursaday, and it still hasn't arrived. It's eating me inside Every day's the same, mailman comes at 10:25am, gives me my share of junk mail and oh-so-important bills, and that's that.

 

[rabbits with hats]

Damn, I ordered last Thursaday, and it still hasn't arrived. It's eating me inside Every day's the same, mailman comes at 10:25am, gives me my share of junk mail and oh-so-important bills, and that's that.

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Hold on man. You can do it. :rolleyes:

 

[Tobriand]

It IS too good to be true... you're dreaming. You'll still be dreaming when it arrives, and once you've got it set up (possibly verging on a nightmare, but these days not really)you'll still be dreaming once you start trying things out... it is actually incredible when you first come across it. Eventually it'll become the norm, but it takes a little while

Overclock-wise, it's not like a computer overclock; it's changed by every piece of software as and when it needs to, as opposed to choosing your speed and sticking to it. And the software *really* takes advantage of this. Well designed emus often drop the speeds to 40MHz or less the instant you hit the menu - although they might OC to 133 when you choose to perform an option that would involve SMC writing, for example - and then go back to whatever speed they were at before when you leave the menu. Its actually one of the things that leads me to expect slight issues in a GP32 "interpretter" for the next system using an identical core, but with substantially different rates of speed. So with the GP32 it really is just another variable - which is often not how a lot of people think of it when they first hit the system, simply because it is, perhaps, a little different from PCs.

 

[Alex.]

It arrived yesterday. I'm speechless.

The screen is so crisp and bright, the colours so beautiful, and the games so smooth! I installed LittleJohn, and it runs great. There's so much to experiment with on this device... wow!

The only thing that bugs me is that the last horizontal pixel line (239) is acting weirdly on all programs - sometimes it shows the right colours, and sometimes the pixels are all random. Oh well, at least I diidn't get one of those units with broad gray lines in the middle

 

[daclassicgamingmaster]

It arrived yesterday. I'm speechless.

The screen is so crisp and bright, the colours so beautiful, and the games so smooth! I installed LittleJohn, and it runs great. There's so much to experiment with on this device... wow!

The only thing that bugs me is that the last horizontal pixel line (239) is acting weirdly on all programs - sometimes it shows the right colours, and sometimes the pixels are all random. Oh well, at least I diidn't get one of those units with broad gray lines in the middle

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....but the units with "broad grey lines" are fixable. me thinks your unnit isnt

 

[Alex.]

Meh, it's only one line, and it's the bottom line. It really makes no difference, as eveything else works perfectly, and all buttons are responsive.

 

[deadlychicken22]

did you get a blu+? Try using blu+ versions of the programs and see if that works.

 

[Titcher]

It's just a BLU+ error, the top of line pixels ends up at the bottom.