All About the Japanese PC-98: My Epson PC-486GR Experiences (How-To, Beginner's Guide, and Gameplay)
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- Опубліковано 15 гру 2023
- My blog post/information mega-dump: wyatt8740.gitlab.io/site/blog...
Here's partial video documentation of my Epson PC-486GR and some useful things to know for anyone who is interested in using a PC-98 or compatible machine in the west. Also some gameplay! Check the table of contents:
06:18 - Very briefly touching on my NEC PC-KD851 CRT monitor
07:08 - My external SCSI hard drive
07:40 - I begin taking the PC-486GR apart (sorry it's quiet) - you can probably skip this unless you want to hear me talk
11:02 - The top comes off
11:08 - Brief discussion of my PC-9801 Keyboard(s) and compatibility issues
13:27 - A look inside the PC-486GR
13:38 - The Expansion Slots (C-Bus)
14:07 - Description of what card(s) the PC-486GR shipped with (High-Res Board)
15:04 - The CPU Card
16:02 - Unexpected surprises I didn't know I was getting inside when I bought the PC
16:18 - My CPU accelerator board (pt. 1)
17:10 - Special RAM sticks
18:20 - Expansion RAM daugherboards (Buffalo ERB-4000 EMS board)
18:51 - CPU Accelerators ("Geta") (pt. 2)
23:45 - Showing my C-Bus Expansion Cards
32:25 - Powering Japanese computers safely (choosing stepdown transformers)
38:18 - Adapting Floppy Drives (Replacing 3.5" floppy drives with Gotek floppy drive emulators)
42:06 - How to use hard drives with the PC-486GR internally
42:59 - Identifying the connectors on the back
43:38 - Putting it back together
48:00 - Getting and connecting a mouse (Bus mouse) (and mouse adapter info)
50:14 - Digital RGB vs Analogue RGB (don't use digital if avoidable!)
52:59 - Some safety recommendations (cable marking/labelling ideas to avoid plugging in the wrong voltages)
57:15 - Different SCSI connectors (mentioned)
57:51 - One potential compatibility problem with earlier mechanical PC-98 keyboards (my LHA-301 SCSI controller's bios menu)
01:01:02 - Accessing the Epson/NEC main BIOS menu (if applicable)
01:02:00 - Epson PC-486GR BIOS menu - useful options
01:06:08 - "FDD Terminal mode" (Using the PC-486GR as an external floppy drive for another PC)
01:12:09 - Entering the LHA-301 SCSI controller menu (keyboard incompatibilities)
01:15:35 - More info about LHA-301 SCSI controller card BIOS settings
01:17:50 - Booting into DOS from HDD
01:18:30 - Gotek drive configuration/setup (FF.CFG)
01:25:25 - ==== Game demo: Emerald Dragon (Glodia) ====
01:45:20 - ==== Game demo: Bubblegum Crisis ====
01:51:50 - ==== Sound Demo Disk: Ys ====
02:01:24 - Some information about my blog post and further documentation, todo's
02:04:36 - Identifying unusual Japanese SCSI connectors
02:06:36 - Things to look for when choosing a PC-98 to buy
02:08:48 - Intel i486 and variants: Clock multipliers, and how to pick a good CPU for your needs
02:10:27 - Money pit (how much I've spent so far on this thing, including shipping, power supplies, cables, peripherals, etc.)
02:13:00 - ==== Game demo: Touhou Games ====
02:38:20 - Concluding remarks (on this video) - Наука та технологія
Does anyone here like this kind of video? Would you maybe be interested in seeing more of them? - I am fine with shouting into the void, but ideally I want these things to be useful and/or interesting for others. So I'd welcome suggestions or other input.
For more detailed and precise information, be sure to check out the blog post I am making on the PC-486GR: wyatt8740.gitlab.io/site/blog/011_012.html#pc9801-1 (work-in-progress, but already huge). It's a lot more rigorous and goes into a lot more depth than I do here. You can also ask questions for clarification about the blog post here, if I messed something up or was confusing.
Still watching but so far Im enjoying, yes!
It helps quite a bit especially with people like me who are not very familiar with the PC-98!
Thank you!
Yes please in the name of Dog.
Oh by the way, I also have a UA-cam channel, where I play with my old Japanese computers
www.youtube.com/@carlosbragatto/videos
@@alvaromendes1099 Let me know if you have questions or comments! I'd love to try to answer them. Are you watching the whole thing? :p
pretty sick, now bro can play those naughty games
Those are certainly a part of the system's library. But not my primary reasons for getting this. FM music and pixel art drawing were huge parts of it. And being able to help someone I like to set up her own system even though she lives far away.
25:11 OPN2 AKA YM2612
1:25:44 Many PC-98 programs have code to block epson clone users like what you have.
I looked at the blog post and I really think some people worry way too much about somewhat newer models with built-in Windows accelerators, Pentium 1s, etc. I remember a specific point in the blog you mentioning certain A-mate models with built-in Windows accelerators being "post-apocalyptic for DOS games" and to me that's way over dramatic. I'm pretty sure that those added chips from Trident, Cirrus Logic, etc. don't handle the 640x400 16 color stuff at all and just kick in when software that supports them is run (such as Windows of course and some other DOS software can use them as well).
To me it gives the impression that like any model from late 1994 onward will just not run any DOS games at all and it's just not true whatsoever. I've known several people with Pentium 1/Windows accelerator equipped models and they've run almost everything from the 90s at least absolutely fine. Nobody should be so scared of them. The only issue is some of these models not having built-in FM and needing to buy a card and certain games running too fast, but that's nothing unique as older IBM DOS games can be the same way. Wish something like Setmul existed to disable cache and make it the speed of a 386, I'm sure it's possible.
Keep in mind too PC-98 DOS games were still being made years after Windows accelerators already came into the picture, so it would make literally no sense to make a game like Night Slave in 1996 and not have it run on the latest models around at the time.
As far as Windows on PC-98 goes, personally while I'd never buy a PC-98 just for that, it's fun to mess around with and doesn't hurt to try. And the thing is, there's a fair bit of Japanese Windows games that require Japanese Windows to work and while yes you can do that on an IBM PC, to me it's more interesting and fitting on a PC-98
Btw, as far as the SB16 goes, it has a socket to add a YM2203 chip to make it a 26 compatible card, and they're much cheaper than an actual 26K or especially 86 so it's a decent budget option.
It will not run early DOS games well. Anything that was made for a V30 CPU has a chance of being way too fast unless it's capping its blitting based on the passage of time rather than CPU cycles.
Post apocalyptic is exaggerating, though. Yes.
For Touhou, a newer model is actually *better.*
But even in Japan people talk about the later models as having lost their "98-ness," and I tend to agree, especially for systems without C-Bus slots (like Valuestar V200). Might as well get an IBM at that point, when an earlier system will run ancient games at closer to the right speed. Bubblegum Crisis for instance.
Interesting about the SB16, did not know that.
My friend got a Cereb C200 for Touhou and it has both OPL and OPN built-in (although it's a "CanBe" since it uses something like YMF288 instead of a 2608).
My Epson had a built in 2203 but I highly, highly recommend getting 86 sound if you can stomach the price.
The window accelerator problem is for games that use 200 line video modes. Ranma for instance. And for monochrome modes.
They aren't awful options, but a 486 or older machine will more reliably be able to play DOS games, and won't have as much built-in hardware you can't disable eating up IRQ's.
@@wyatt8740 I mean yes, I'm sure some really old 8 color-era games from the 80s would be problematic on them but to be honest even the beloved Ce2/Cs2 (I have a Cs2 btw) struggles with some of them too (such as Ys and Return of Ishtar having graphical corruption) so it's nothing unique.
But really imo, for the majority of 90s games they are just fine. You can find various videos proving this with people happily playing games on models like the V13, Pentium PC-98 laptops, etc. Oh, and Flame Zapper is another game that really does benefit from a faster machine, on a 486 the 60fps mode is unplayable.
The 200 line problem sounds more like GDC not set to 2.5mhz to me, which I think all 9821s allow you to change. I remember trying the Screamer (200 line game) and it looking messed up until I realized it was set to 5mhz. Also if you run a 256 color game like Puyo Puyo 2 then run a 16 color one afterwards they can glitch out, but just reset the machine and it fixes it.
Really the problem I have with saying some of the later models "loosing their 98-ness and became more PC-like" is that it implies the later ones can run Commander Keen now or something, and that never happened even all the way to the end. Also, just because some (like the all-in-one Cu13) lack C-Bus slots, doesn't make them totally worthless either imo. They still play Kamikuishiki Village and that's all that really matters.
If I recall btw, NEC released a DOS utility to adjust IRQs on models that have both C-Bus and PCI slots.
@@thepirategamerboy12 The GDC speed has absolutely nothing to do with that actually. That might be a timing bug for your specific game though. There's something you can run in BASIC to cause the problem under either speed. radioc.web.fc2.com/column/pc98bas/pc98disphw_en.htm
90s stuff is fine, but you can play *almost everything* on a Ce2/Ap2/Epson with 86 card/whatever, and the pentiums miss out on about a full decade of software.
Oh yeah and policenauts won't have PCM on a pentium system with canbe sound. And stuff like the Valuestars often don't have any kind of OPN at all, just OPL3. And yes, there is a PCI config utility that mostly works but won't let you disable things like a built in modem.
They lost their 98-ness because they ran the same exact *windows 9x* software everyone else ran. WinQuake, etc.. And they used OPL sound like sound blaster cards, which was inferior to OPNA (objectively; OPL is a subset of the capabilities of OPNA). And analogue gameport joysticks instead of MSX style ones.
Nothing wrong with having a pentium, it just is much less interesting and unique to me. And to me Ys is an argument for getting something from the 80's with a V30 and a mechanical keyboard if you're thinking of buying a second machine. BTW the 486GR also has this problem with Ys. I suspect it's a 486 thing. There's much less DOS stuff that really wants a pentium or higher, and for Win9X i have an IBM compatible with Japanese Windows on it.
@@thepirategamerboy12 Pardon my intrusion into the conversation, I believe I have some insight of value to share.
For whatever reason I have come into possession of a Cereb along with multiple Ce2 and Cs2 machines. I'm in a rather unique position to adjudicate for myself, and have observed there are significant differences with how (whether because of the Trident card present in the Cereb or not, I can't say with confidence) the Cereb handles games versus the Ce2 and Cs2 - and not just differences attributable to CPU clock speed or RAM.
In fact, I have a Viper MULTi CPU accelerator board/"upgrade board" for the Ce2 which raises the CPU speed to as high as 100 MHz and can also be used in the Cs2 with some light modification for improved results (Ce2 has 25 MHz as default, Cs2 33 MHz). I actually have slightly less RAM present in the Cereb than for my Ce2/Cs2 (they are highly interchangeable). My Cereb has roughly ~30 MB (can be expanded) while I have a 32 MB stick compatible with my Ce2/Cs2.
So, interestingly, I have "leveled the field" relatively speaking in terms of RAM and CPU clock speed between the Cereb and Ce2/Cs2. The main difference then would appear to be the architecture - the Ce2/Cs2 lack any window accelerator like the Trident present in my Cereb.
Interestingly, the Cereb does a better job of handling the very old game of Ancient Ys Vanished/ "Ys 1", while my Ce2/Cs2 cannot run it properly without immediately running into issues - perhaps a case can be made for the Cereb here although I suspect the better solution is to pursue a later PC-9801 rather than an early PC-9821 as the Ce2/Cs2 are. But I digress.
Whether using actual floppy diskettes of the original games, or floppies written with the game files, or a Gotek to simulate a FDD (or using actual original CD-ROM discs or burned discs - the Ce2/Cs2 come with a CD-ROM drive) the games run far smoother and stabler with less hitching, stutters, and some visual effects are present which are otherwise absent when run on the Cereb (or displayed incorrectly).
The Cereb has a more modern FDD and a more modern CD-ROM drive (my variant specifically is the Cereb C200/C). I've tested the Cereb with what it originally came with, as well as a Gotek to simulate the FDD - and run original games, games written to diskette or disc, and games with a flashdrive and the Gotek. I've tinkered with the BIOS as much as I can, trying varying options (the Cereb BIOS is markedly limited compared to the Ce2/Cs2 BIOS, although not altogether inferior by any means - just less options for compatibility). I've used NEC DOS 5.00A-H, NEC DOS 6.2, and JP Windows 3.1 installs on original HDDs with the Ce2/Cs2, as well as installs of NEC DOS 5.00A-H and NEC DOS 6.2 on Compact Flash cards with the Ce2/Cs2. I've also used these same Compact Flash cards with the Cereb, as well as the original HDD it came with which has JP Windows 98 SE.
In short, I've tested quite a bit.
Perhaps the Cereb itself, or my particular Cereb, is an outlier (conversely, perhaps my Ce2s + Cs2s, or the particular models I have are outliers). But I'm far more inclined to believe that, as the unique architecture of the NEC PC-98s (and to a lesser extent Epson PC-98s - let's not forget these marvelous machines) was increasingly comprised of more components sourced and built-around Windows in general - their ability to present the most accurate and compelling vision of the games originally conceptualized for them over their lifetime was markedly compromised.
I hope my insight is of some value - have a pleasant day/night!!
@@l_arachel The Cs2 actually *does* have a Windows accelerator in it, a Cirrus Logic of some kind which I didn't even realize myself until I tried Win95 on it and it detected it upon installing. It's capable of up to 1024x768 and is the other difference between the Ce2 besides a faster CPU. Btw, I've been into PC-98 stuff for about 5 and a half years now.
The Cereb is kind of an odd model in general, it kinda seems like the PC-98 equivalent of something like the Gateway Destination.
The 200 line thing confuses me because I've seen games like Star Wars, Night Slave of course since it's literally a 1996 release, Marble Madness and a number of others run just fine. Idk if this is different or what, Star Wars does the thing where it inserts black lines in between. As far as monochrome mode goes, I have no idea about that at all.
As far as I can gather, the later models basically just put the base PEGC hardware into an ASIC and the Windows accelerators have nothing to do with handling that at all, it's kind of like the Voodoo 1/2 in that it takes over the video when needed. There were C-Bus Windows accelerator cards for older 9801s that literally worked just like the Voodoo 1/2 with the whole pass-through cable situation and everything.
With Policenauts, I think there is a version of the PCM driver that does work with CanBe PCM though sadly lip flaps don't work. If the machine has C-Bus slots though, you can fix this with a card (though imo not really worth the price).
One more thing about loosing the 98-ness... the FM Towns line also very late on got Pentium CPUs and could run versions of Windows up to 95 as well, so why wouldn't you say the same thing about those? And I just think it's cool that my Cs2 can play games like Bomber Quest and Flame Zapper, but Windows games like You Don't Know Jack and Lode Runner the Legend Returns also run well on it. It gives me even more to do on the machine.
I don't really have anything else to say, I'm not trying to be mean or anything like that but I do defend these models based on what I've seen from UA-cam videos and people I've known with them. I have a Pentium MMX 233 PC and even though most of the parts in it are from around 1998, that thing can play stuff as new as Rayman 2 from 1999 and also Prince of Persia from 1990. That's close to a decade difference. Some even older games will work though many especially early 80s games have issues, but you get what I mean and I feel the PC-98 line evolved in basically the same way. Just like the IBM PCs, not one PC-98 will play every single game ever made for it. The only game I personally know for a fact has problems on these newer 9821s is Quarth, that's literally one game and perhaps there's more but I like to focus more on what it does run (which the list is still huge) rather than what it doesn't. It kind of reminds me of how some say to avoid NTSC Amigas (another thing I disagree with), but perhaps more overblown than that.