ROMLOAD - ROM image loading tool

Inspired by Sean Young's SCROM, ROMLOAD started as a fairly simple tool to load and execute a ROM in a Konami Sound Cartridge like Snatcher and SD-Snatcher.

It supports Konami Sound Cartridges which are expanded to 128 kB RAM which allows loading ROM images up to 1MegaROM to be loaded, and with an ESE-SCC (which can have up to 512 kB RAM) up to 4MegaROM ROM images can be loaded.

  • full MSX-DOS2 support
  • after load
    • reset MSX
    • start ROM image (also disk-enabled)
  • on-the-fly conversions from
    • Konami without SCC
    • ASCII 8 kB
    • ASCII 16 kB
    • Super Lode Runner
    • Cross Blaim
    • MSX-DOS2 Kernel
  • on-the-fly patching of
    • system language
    • system version
    • manual patching
  • special support for
    • Page 0 ROM images
    • BASIC in ROM
    • disabling ROM images
  • changing of CPU settings
    • changing CPU speed on Ciel MSX2+
    • changing CPU speed on MSX2+
    • changing CPU mode on MSXturboR
  • DAC support (sample playing) for Konami Synthesizer and Hai No Majutsushi
    • Covox/SIMPL
    • Philips Music Module DAC
    • MSXturboR PCM
    • PlaySoniq DAC
  • second Konami cartridge
  • boot ROM image with SCC-I mode
  • ESE-SCC support with up to 512 kB
  • ignore detection of a Sound Cartridge or ESE-SCC in a slot
  • loading a ROM image even though it wouldn't fit
  • second usage format which fits on a WIDTH 80 screen
    (keeps the detected slot visible)

Planned features include:

  • user interface
    • screen width 40
    • disk browser
    • CPU selector
  • support for other cartridges like
    • LPE FlashG
    • MegaFlashROM
    • MegaRAM
    • Zemmix Boxes
  • support to fetch conversion options
  • SRAM support
  • extra on-the-fly conversions like
    • Korean special mappers

Notice

It has come to our attention that a few titles will not fully work with ROMLOAD due to slightly different ways of accessing the mapper hardware. These are considered bugs in ROMLOAD and a future release will have these bugs fixed. This small section will list the titles with these exceptions and will be updated as they are fixed.

Currently known exceptions:

  • Alibaba - an Arabic educational ROM
  • Pac-Mania

ROMLOAD is written by Albert Beevendorp, © 1997/2001-2013 by The New Image

Downloads: 
application/x-lzh iconROMLOAD version 1.99w [2 November 2013, DAC support, configurable hotkey]
Downloads: 
application/x-lzh iconROMLOAD version 1.99v [24 December 2010, Konami autodetect and small tweaks]
Downloads: 
application/x-lzh iconROMLOAD version 1.99u [27 June 2008, ESE-SCC support]
Downloads: 
application/x-lzh iconROMLOAD version 1.99t [4 December 2006, rewritten Sound Cartridge detection and change CPU]
Downloads: 
application/x-lzh iconROMLOAD version 1.99s [19 February 2005, last non-TNI release]

News

2 November 2013 - Released version 1.99w!
This version supports DAC, configurable hotkeys and more. As of version 1.99w, no features will be added. Any feature requests will be considered for ROMLOAD 2 from now on. The last 3 version letters (x, y and z) will be for bugfix releases only.

New in this version:

  • Fixed bug causing a file not found to be (unintended) generation of ROM image too large error
  • Start ROM in SCREEN1 for compatibility
  • Added support for DAC for 2 Konami titles. This is a requirement for Hai No Majutsushi
  • Made the hotkey configurable

24 December 2010 - Released version 1.99v!
This version supports auto detection of Konami without SCC, includes improvements in conversion formats and more.

New in this version:

  • Improved /0 implementation
  • Minor tweak in support for MSX-DOS 2 Kernel in a Sound Cartridge
  • Removed /C for Konami without SCC specification. Konami without SCC detection attempt when no conversion switches were given
  • Fixed bug in command line switches parser, some switches could be lower case only
  • Use low speed mode (Z80, 3.58 MHz) for compatibility, unless forced otherwise
  • Fixed small bug in ASCII8 mapper init
  • Added 50Hz/60Hz init /S[:<Hz>]

27 June 2008 - After almost a year since our request, MSX Resource Center finally stopped violating our copyrights. To celebrate, we are happy to announce you ROMLOAD 1.99u. This version includes the patches that were released for 1.99t and support for ESE-SCC! This makes it more suitable for loading ROM files in ESE MSX System 3.

New in this version:

  • Fixed support to run 16 kB mapped games in the SD-Snatcher Sound Cartridge
  • Added support to run the MSX-DOS 2 Kernel in a Sound Cartridge
  • Added reformatted usage output to make everything fit a WIDTH 80 screen
  • .ROM is now the default extension
  • Fixed subslot number display when detected in an expanded slot
  • Fixed bug causing non-existing Sound-Cartridges to be detected
  • Added support to use ESE-SCC up to 512 kB of RAM in stead of a Sound Cartridge
  • Updated /P to enable patching up to 64 blocks within the limits of the ROM image