Hacking USB Loader GX

Extrems · Jun 16, 2019

Except https://github.com/extremscorner/libogc-rice/commit/7795d781ff84e64d19ad45a97bfc1dd259bee634

Nintendont just need its loader fixed.

blackb0x · Jun 16, 2019

@Cyan Like he's just pointed out, he simplified the fix. Also keep in mind that you're looking at libogc-rice instead of libogc.

The patch Extremes submitted for libogc can be simplified to that 1 line.

Extrems said:
Nintendont just need its loader fixed.

Oh, so with my patched version of Nintendont GC games at 480p should already look better? I was under the impression that the GC games would also require patching due to you saying this and this.

Patched Nintendont @ https://gbatemp.net/posts/8606161

Extrems · Jun 16, 2019

GameCube software has no knowledge of the AVE-RVL, so it's initialized by Wii software.

Drunk_caterpillar · Jun 16, 2019

Extrems said:
Except https://github.com/extremscorner/libogc-rice/commit/7795d781ff84e64d19ad45a97bfc1dd259bee634

Nintendont just need its loader fixed.

If I have a WiiDual board installed with 2.4c.2 firmware, do I still need the fix?

Extrems · Jun 16, 2019

Drunk_caterpillar said:
If I have a WiiDual board installed with 2.4c.2 firmware, do I still need the fix?

The fix is irrelevant to you as you aren't using the AVE-RVL, and have a revision with the hardware fix.

Griffballchamp · Jun 17, 2019

@Cyan

Can you tell me what folder in the EmuNAND Channel folder holds the save files?

I think im running out of space on my SD card (less than 200mb) and I may need to move my emuNAND to my HD.

Either way, I would still like a little more understanding of emuNAND folder, nand folder, and how they work.

But first I would like to know where the save files are kept in emuNAND folder.

Thank you

Cyan · Jun 17, 2019

from my wii understanding guide:

in the /title/ folder, you have these folders:
00000001 System files (IOS, system menu, MIOS, BC)
00010000 Wii game disc
00010001 Game Channels (WiiWare, Virtual consoles)
00010002 System channels (Mii, Photo, Vote, Weather, etc.)
00010004 Games using both disc+channels (Mario kart, WiiFit, etc.)
00010005 DLC
00010008 Hidden Channels (EULA, region select)

savegame for Wii game disc are stored mostly in 00010001/<titleID>/
savegame for wii game disc, but having installable channels, are saved in 00010004/<titleID>/
note that the titleID is the hexadecimal version of the ASCII titleID4, use ASCII table to convert or find the folder you want.

pure Channels (wiiware/VC) are sharing both the channel's data and the savegame. usually, the save is located in a "save" subfolder.
00010002/<titleID>/save/ (or maybe it's data? I forgot)

If you miss space, and only play new games, just enable "emuNAND save" to partial, individually for new games.
if you plan to also redirect old games, you'll have to make a backup of your nand first, or you'll lose your progress (the console will look on emuNAND folder instead of NAND and start a new savegame)

if you want, you can "backup" only the savegame of individual games.
game > option > backup save to emuNAND.

Itsuki235 · Jun 19, 2019

Cyan said:
please, report if it works or not for you, and whether you see an improvement with the fix or not inside the loader's interface (because I don't!), thank you

Tried out the r1272 version with a Wii2HDMI adapter on a 4k TV. The option under "Loader" was Off by default. After enabling it and restarting USB Loader GX, I could not see any difference. Might be noticeable in a side-by-side comparison perhaps? Went ahead and turned it off. Games seem to load normally.

Does the 480p fix require component cables?

blackb0x · Jun 19, 2019

Itsuki235 said:
Does the 480p fix require component cables?

Component cables and an older Wii e.g. RVL-001. But even if you've got all of that you probably won't ever notice the difference on a 4K TV.

You can see sample images @ https://github.com/devkitPro/libogc/pull/65

With the setting enabled your Wii is still outputting a better image, so personally I'd leave the setting enabled even if it's hard to tell the difference on a 4K TV.

Itsuki235 · Jun 19, 2019

The Wii is RVL-001. The 4k TV heavily processes the image prior to display so that makes sense that there would not be any noticeable difference at that resolution. I won't bother trying component cables then since the 480p fix is such a minor difference.

If there is no difference, I would rather leave it off just in case there are compatibility issues with a game. I don't really want to test 1000+ games manually.

Cyan · Jun 19, 2019

aren't all Wii "RVL-001" ?
I thought the number was a code for the product (console 1, wiimote 3, nunchuk 4, classic 5 (all classic, even pro is 5), Mplus 25, wimmote+ 36, etc.) not the build revision. maybe I was wrong all along

I also don't see any difference with any games on my 4k component. that's why it's off and there's an option instead of forcing it by default. some games don't like it (Prince of persia for example).

Also, you don't need to restart the loader after changing a value in the settings, it's used right away, except for the "loader's IOS" option which is not reloaded automatically. all others don't require a reboot.
the 480p fix option only affect the games, not the loader itself. the menu name (loader's settings) is confusing, the loader's interface options are actually in the GUI menu. loader's settings are for things loaded by the loader (what you launch launch).

ca032769 · Jun 19, 2019

Cyan said:
aren't all Wii "RVL-001" ?
I thought the number was a code for the product (console 1, wiimote 3, nunchuk 4, classic 5 (all classic, even pro is 5), Mplus 25, wimmote+ 36, etc.) not the build revision. maybe I was wrong all along

I also don't see any difference with any games on my 4k component. that's why it's off and there's an option instead of forcing it by default. some games don't like it (Prince of persia for example).

Also, you don't need to restart the loader after changing a value in the settings, it's used right away, except for the "loader's IOS" option which is not reloaded automatically. all others don't require a reboot.
the 480p fix option only affect the games, not the loader itself. the menu name (loader's settings) is confusing, the loader's interface options are actually in the GUI menu. loader's settings are for things loaded by the loader (what you launch launch).

-001 Wii's have the GameCube ports with memory card slots (the side covers that flip open)

-101 Wii's are the family editions that removed the GameCube ports & memory card slots (no more side covers)

-201 Wii's are the Red Mini Wii's that removed the GameCube ports, memory card slots, SD card slot, Wi-Fi & are currently un-moddable.

Well unless @DeadlyFoez is successful in his endeavors, in that case the Mini Wii's might get an exploit.

blackb0x · Jun 19, 2019

Cyan said:
aren't all Wii "RVL-001" ?
I thought the number was a code for the product (console 1, wiimote 3, nunchuk 4, classic 5 (all classic, even pro is 5), Mplus 25, wimmote+ 36, etc.) not the build revision. maybe I was wrong all along

I actually meant RVL-CPU-01. I'd got up early to grab a snack and then ended up browsing before going to sleep again

Here's info on the 8 board revisions.

https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/shanks-wii-super-thread.66/
https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?p=1235894#p1235894

Original (RVL-001) black, red and light blue Wii's with the board revision RVL-CPU-60 or RVL-CPU-40 are the best. They use less power, put out less heat and output a sharper image.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but AFAIK this fix should improve the image output for RVL-CPU-01, RVL-CPU-20 and RVL-CPU-30 revisions.

Griffballchamp · Jun 19, 2019

I have one of the rare Black Wii's that have GC controller ports and plays GC discs.

I wonder if its a 001 or a 101 ?? I should look.

ca032769 · Jun 19, 2019

Griffballchamp said:
I have one of the rare Black Wii's that have GC controller ports and plays GC discs.

I wonder if its a 001 or a 101 ?? I should look.

If it has the ports it's 001. To find out which motherboard you are using you'll need to pull the battery out of the compartment (removing the little screw along the side end will allow you to remove the battery) and see what # is on the motherboard.

The six black Wii's I have with GameCube ports model 001 all have the 40 motherboard.

The four black Wii's I have without the ports model 101 are split, 2ea K01 & 2ea K02 motherboards

Griffballchamp · Jun 19, 2019

ca032769 said:
If it has the ports it's 001. To find out which motherboard you are using you'll need to pull the battery out of the compartment (removing the little screw along the side end will allow you to remove the battery) and see what # is on the motherboard.

The six black Wii's I have with GameCube ports model 001 all have the 40 motherboard.

The four black Wii's I have without the ports model 101 are split, 2ea K01 & 2ea K02 motherboards

Yep, its a 001. I'll trust that it is 40 motherboard since your 4 for 4 on yours.

I got this at a yard sale for $15 in the box. Perfect condition. The lady said her son played it a couple times and boxed it back up.

ChibiMofo · Jun 20, 2019

blackb0x said:
...Original (RVL-001) black, red and light blue Wii's with the board revision RVL-CPU-60 or RVL-CPU-40 are the best. They use less power, put out less heat and output a sharper image.

They do use less power and generate less heat. They do not output a sharper image. Not now that we have the 480p fix. Now original Wiis and the later Wiis output the same. AFAIK all white Wiis have GC ports too.

blackb0x · Jun 20, 2019

1MiinMofo said:
They do not output a sharper image. Not now that we have the 480p fix. Now original Wiis and the later Wiis output the same. AFAIK all white Wiis have GC ports too.

What I wrote is still correct though because they're superior models by default that don't require patches. Plus I wrote it the way I did so that people could easily identify if they're likely to see a difference or not.

I guess I can simplify it further.

If your Wii is black, red or light blue then you don't require patches to improve it's video output quality
If your Wii is white with the revision code RVL-CPU-40 or RVL-CPU-60 then you don't require patches to improve it's video output quality
If your Wii is white with the revision code RVL-CPU-01, RVL-CPU-20 or RVL-CPU-30 then their will be an improvement with 480p patches applied

You might not see the difference, especially if you're using a 4K TV or something like a HDMI converter.

ca032769 · Jun 20, 2019

1MiinMofo said:
They do use less power and generate less heat. They do not output a sharper image. Not now that we have the 480p fix. Now original Wiis and the later Wiis output the same. AFAIK all white Wiis have GC ports too.

Actually the White Wiis come in both flavors. I have multiples of each type, the available units are:

-White RVL-001 with GameCube ports
-Black RVL-001 with GameCube ports
-Red RVL-001 with GameCube ports

-White RVK-101 NO GameCube Ports
-Black RVK-101 NO GameCube Ports
-Blue RVK-101 NO GameCube Ports

-Red Mini RVO-201 NO GameCube Ports

Drunk_caterpillar · Jun 21, 2019

Cyan said:
I never made a fork of it.
I can test one of the 240p video mode, but I don't know if/when I'll do it.
I can give direction instead if someone want to recompile one ?

it's in patches/gamepatches.cpp
there's a list of all possible video mode, I can give the one you need, then in the game settings you can add an option (along with force 480p, force 480i, etc. add a "force 240p" and set it to the name of the videomode found in gamepatches file)
not sure it was easy to understand.

I'll be honest; I'm super useless when it comes to compiling things (wouldn't even know where to start) but I can totally live without 240p if it's too time intensive to implement.

I do have another question though @Cyan:

Do most/all Wii games have some kind of blur applied to them in 480p?

I just had a WiiDual installed so I've been going through my library and I noticed a really strange thing with Resident Evil 0 for the Wii. The Resident Evil 0 Wii port doesn't support 480p out of the box, so I forced it in to that mode with USBLoaderGX, and when I pulled up the Home Menu in-game I couldn't help but notice how much crisper the entire interface looked. Specifically, the battery life indicator had so much more definition and contrast than I'm used to seeing. Sure enough, when I compared it to the 480p compatible Resident Evil 1 Wii port, the RE0 interface was so noticeable sharper! I started going through my whole library and noticed the same thing; every game running natively in 480p was noticeably softer than Resident Evil 0.

Is there a way to patch out this blurriness? Am I just seeing things?

[Edit] Also, @Extrems, do you have thoughts on this?

Hacking USB Loader GX

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