Getting Super Wild Card to work on and Super Famicom

I have here a Super Wild Card SMS-3201 (the first model, not the DX or DX2 model). It was orignally sold in Europe, and it works fine on my European Super Nintendo.

I also have a Super Famicom imported from Japan. The Super Famicom outputs no signal when I turn it on with the Super Wild Card inserted. Probably the region lockout chip in the Super Famicom doing its work. I have one Super Famicom game, Star Fox. When I insert that into the top of the Super Wild Card I still get no signal from the Super Famicom.

I opened up the Super Wild Card. The board is identical to the picture attached below, except mine has a ST10198P instead of the ST10198S on the bottom right. On my Super Wild Card, the jumpers on the top left of the picture were set on 1, 3, and 5. I tried setting them to 2, 4 and 6, because the manual says:

One Original Super Famicom cartridge. (anyone games) Remark: in NTSC system. We have auto start function. In europe please adjust min jumper from position 1,3,5 to 2,4,6 use cartridge start.​

I wasn't sure what auto start means, but I was hoping this jumper combination would enable the Super Wild Card to use the cartridge inserted in the top to enable it to work on a Super Famicom. But still no signal from the Super Famicom.

What are my options for getting the Super Famicom to work with the Super Wild Card?

I'm really hoping for the magic jumper combination for the Super Wild Card. But it seems the ST10198P chip in the Super Wild Card can be replaced. What should I replace it with? Would the D411 from a Japanese Act Raiser cartridge work (I've seen a cartridge for sale online for €6)

I've seen reports that clipping one connector of the region lockout chip in the Super Famicom would bypass all region checks, but I'd rather not mod the Super Famicom, as I don't want to break it.



PS. I also have a Pro Fighter X Turbo 3-in-1 which is in exactly the same situation, except this device has a CIVIC 74LS13, and it doesn't have any jumpers.

 

Ok, to run a wild card, pro Fighter or any copier on a Super Famicom you need to use a Euro Mega Drive PSU. The power output is right and the actual power connecter will fit in to a Super Famicom but not a SNES. I used Mega Drive 1 power units all the time to run my SFC back in the late 80s and early 90s.

By the way, I find it funny when reports claim that Star Fox 2 was found in 2002. I had 3 different roms of that in 1992 or 3 or there abouts. Same with the so called "Shitty Batman" rom

Just thought. Wasn't there a PAL and NTSC variations of copiers? Can't remember but I always used NTSC systems.

 

That's what you would expect - the CIC in the copier is a PAL one, and won't work with an NTSC console - plugging in the cart doesn't do anything because the CIC control signals are wired to the built-in chip and not the cartridge connector.

You had the right idea, but the wrong jumpers - the ones they are talking about are the ones marked "J6" just above the CIC chip - and on the board in that photo they have been permanently strapped into the "CIC" position using soldered in wire links.[/quote]

Either replace the PAL CIC in the copier with an NTSC one (yes, you can use a real CIC out of a cartridge) or desolder the wire links and replace them with a pin header and jumpers, so you can move them to 1,3,5 to use the CIC in the cartridge.

 

I was thinking along those lines, but not really sure. Thanks TriMesh, for confirming this. I have ordered some Super Famicom cartridges, and will use my (non-existent) de-soldering skills to try and pry off the chips.

Weird though that they (Front Far East) would build their boards this way and then not add the jumpers...

 

Actually, it's typical Taiwan (and HK) design at the time - they would put stuff on the PCB because it didn't really cost anything to add it to the layout, then if they decided they didn't need it they would just not install the parts. If you look at that photo, you can also see a missing resistor network and a biasing resistor across the xtal that have spaces on the PCB, but were not installed.

There are also some parts missing at the top of the board, but they are different. You can see they don't have any solder in the holes, so they must have masked off that section of the board before soldering it - which you would normally only do if these were optional parts that might be installed on some boards and not others.

 

@TriMesh I just desoldered a Nintendo D411 from a Japanese cart and placed it in the Super Wild Card, and it works just like you said it would. Also works in a Pro Fighter X Turbo...

Thanks again!