[Splatterhouse] [Regression] Image shows a lot of distortion in HDMI

[vanfanel]

Hi there,

With current core MiSTer version (just updated via update_all) HDMI image for Splatterhouse is full of distortion (colored horizontal lines) and comes on and off constantly.

Older versions worked fine.

splatter.mp4

[jotego]

We have not modified anything related to this at least since September 2024. Could this be related to changes in the mister firmware itself? Can you check if the problem is there?

[Toryalai1]

I cannot recreate this issue. Tried with the latest mister main build and latest core

[jotego]

@Toryalai1 thanks for testing it.
@vanfanel this could also be related to problems in your dc supply or thermal dissipation fan.
@jtmiki could you test it too on one of the HDMI screens?

[vanfanel]

@Toryalai1 thanks for testing it. @vanfanel this could also be related to problems in your dc supply or thermal dissipation fan. @jtmiki could you test it too on one of the HDMI screens?

No. My setup is fine with regards to temperature. Way more demanding cores run here without problems.

Could It be related to dual RAM somehow?
My current setup is digital-only and dual RAM.

[jotego]

It could be related to the dual RAM, but JT cores do not exercise it so I would expect it not to produce noise. The image suggests timing problems. As the core is passing the timing checks inside a given temperature and supply voltage window, I would expect the issue to come from a violation of that window. If you are confident about temperature, I would suggest using a different supply or removing possible switches or splitters that you may have on your supply cable.

I have seen many instances of odd problems on the MiSTer that were caused by an supply voltage not stable enough or too low.

[vanfanel]

It could be related to the dual RAM, but JT cores do not exercise it so I would expect it not to produce noise. The image suggests timing problems. As the core is passing the timing checks inside a given temperature and supply voltage window, I would expect the issue to come from a violation of that window. If you are confident about temperature, I would suggest using a different supply or removing possible switches or splitters that you may have on your supply cable.

I have seen many instances of odd problems on the MiSTer that were caused by an supply voltage not stable enough or too low.

The problem only happens with vsync_adjust=2. With vsync_adjust=1 there's no such problem.
All other JT framework based cores seem fine: only this one seems to have problem with vsync_adjust=2, and only starting to be like this recently.

For the setup stability theory: even the Saturn and Jaguar cores run perfectly here, and the Saturn one has done so for hours and hours.
As for the power supply, I use a Pi5 official power supply, which is know to be stable and good.
There's nothing strange with other cores either (this is not crappy 4C RAM, and the power supply is reliable too).

My theory is that maybe you did some change to the video timings recently? Can you test vsync_adjust=2 on your side?

[Toryalai1]

I'm running with vsync_adjust=2 and no issues. Single SDRAM and official de10nano

[vanfanel]

I'm running with vsync_adjust=2 and no issues. Single SDRAM and official de10nano

Then it could be my display. Huh, this wasn't happening before, but well, someone else will come reporting the same sooner or later since vsync_adjust=2 is a pretty common option.

[Toryalai1]

Try to nuke your _Arcade folder, delete .cfg file related to splatterhouse and rerun update_all

[jtmiki]

I have tested it one of the HDMI screens and it worked well, there was no problem.
I used the compile all of 21/2/2025, Commit: f54092a.