PCSX ReARMed & Controller Input Woes

RetroArch Android devices
#1

Hello everyone. Registered because I’m seeking assistance with Retroarch which has been giving me a couple of issues now that I can’t seem to solve on my own.

First off, I have not been able to get PCSX ReARMed to work on my Android device at all. Everytime I try to start it, Retroarch completely crashes and sends me back to the “Load/Quit Retroarch” menu. I have no idea why. I believe I was able to get it to run Crash Bash once, but every other time I’ve been met with a crash. I’ve tried it with real BIOS and the HLE BIOS that come with PCSX ReARMed, but it’s a crash every single time, and I have not found a good solution online anywhere.

Secondly, I’m running into an annoying issue with controller inputs. In a dumb attempt to fix PCSX ReARMed I tried completely uninstalling it and reinstalling the latest Nightly build and the build on Google Play (which is the one I’m currently using). While that failed to work, I’m now running into an issue where Retroarch is incredibly picky about my controller. I’m not quite sure how to describe it, but essentially I used a Dualshock 4 controller to play my games.If I wanted to switch games, I’d swipe down on my tablets screen and press the back button to bring up Retroarch’s menu and choose another game, and then use my Dualshock 4 controller to choose the game from there. Since I’ve reinstalled, I’m running into an issue where if I use my touchscreen while running a game (in this case, to swipe down and access the menu), it starts ignoring all of my input from the Dualshock 4 controller. Any ideas why? I swear before the reinstall I could swipe down, hit the back button, and then use my Dualshock controller. Since reinstalling, I can do the first two steps, but then it ignores my Dualshock 4 controller. I found a workaround, but it’s more comfortable for me to use the screen.

Any help would greatly be appreciated!

#2

We’ll need a logcat to know what’s going on with the crashes. Do other cores work? Like NES/SNES/Genesis?

#3

(Most) other cores work flawlessly strangely enough. Since the re-install, I’ve tested the GW core, SNES9X Next, Genesis Plus GX, and Picodrive.

I’m not quite familiar with how to logcat. I’ve tried CatLog, but it requires a root and I’m not sure if there is one for my tablet (Lenovo 2A10-70). What would be the best course of action to get a logcat file here?

When i say “(Most)” other cores, I do mean that most of the major ones work just fine, but there are others that crash. I haven’t been able to get any revision of MAME I’ve tried to work, and Mednafen PSX also crashes after the PlayStation logo, though according to what I’ve found it probably won’t run good on my Android device anyway.

#4

Yeah, mednafen-psx is no good for low-power devices. PCSX-ReARMed is the way to go there. MAME is almost certainly an issue with the ROMsets. Regardless, that’s good news that your installation isn’t completely broken, just an issue with that one core.

I find logging to be easier through a PC connection via adb. You shouldn’t need root just to get a logcat, I don’t think. Maybe try a another program.

#5

Because you mentioned it, I looked into rooting my Android device and…It was surprisingly easy. Rooted it and got a log with CatLog and I believe it’s exactly what you want. Feel free to tell me if this lacks the information you need though and I’ll be more than happy to supply a new file!

https://mega.nz/#!3B8QSSSQ!8tZZHRTVkE9pjgx0_r1p0oixL6WaJkvdE4165qz-yGY

Here’s a download link to the log CatLog generated.

Alternatively, here’s a pastebin link if you prefer that:

http://pastebin.com/UaRierte

Again, I’m new to rooting my tablet and generating logcats, so please let me know if what’s in here doesn’t tell you what’s going on.

#6

Ah, cool. :slight_smile:

It doesn’t look like that got any RetroArch stuff in it, unfortunately. It will put [RetroArch] at the beginning of any lines that are related to it. With your logcat program running, open up RA, make it crash and then go back to the log to see if it gives you anything.

#7

I’ve tried that several times now and it currently does not give me anything. I’ve tried creating a shortcut to LogCat and it tells me it’s recording, and it generates a log file just fine, but I’ve tried searching the text file and couldn’t find “[Retroarch]”.

The PC via the Android SDK method doesn’t work for me either. It doesn’t list my device at all even though I did a clean installation, have it plugged in, have USB Debugging turned on, and have tried USB Storage and Media device (MTP).

Any ideas? I really have no clue why it isn’t working and I can’t find a really nice clear tutorial. My tablet is a Lenovo Tab 2 A10-70 running on Android 4.4.

#8

In linux, where I do my debugging, I have to launch adb logcat with elevated privileges (i.e., sudo), so perhaps you need to run the Android SDK with administrator privileges…?

Also, in RetroArch, make sure you go to settings > logging and make sure logging verbosity is ON and ‘core logging level’ is set to ‘0 (Debug)’

#9

Ah, so that was my issue. Thank you so much!

I didn’t have that turned on, so I went ahead and turned it on and used CatLog again. This time it appears to have worked just fine, as I was able to find some lines relating to Retroarch.

CatLog generated two text files. One which has the juicy crashing info you’re going to need, and another that lists information about my tablet:

Download link to the zip CatLog originally generated (includes both text files): https://mega.nz/#!zUczHRSA!0uJaeJl1EXHPXsVtmtBCzEAvi7UtpHv-t8Um-RlAXJk

Pastebin link to the crash dump: http://pastebin.com/cdqUvNEw

Pastebin link to my system information: http://pastebin.com/7NSPmSLW

#10

Ok, it looks like the core is crashing and bringing RA down with it. I’m not able to see why it’s crashing, though. It says it’s using the HLE BIOS, which isn’t great, but it usually doesn’t lead to outright crashing. Regardless, I think that’s probably the best first place to look.

So, go get scph5501.bin (the US PS1 BIOS) and put that in your system/BIOS directory, which is currently set to /storage/sdcard1/ROMS/Sega 32X/

#11

Alrighty then. Had the BIOS on hand, put them in a folder called Emulator BIOS, and then made that my directory. Even with these BIOS in place it crashes at the exact same point.

MEGA link to crash report: https://mega.nz/#!mctlFCZB!uJdwzkBGalCrOHaxF_sDew7OiF-iDllWZHIJJiwHJtw

Pastebin link to crash report: http://pastebin.com/iTWwxDDB

Edit: I should also add that I’ve tried making sure the other BIOS are there as well even though the ISOs I’m launching are American releases. Even then, it seems to crash anyway.

#12

Ok, that log doesn’t actually have anything related to RA in it but whatever. With those BIOS files in your system dir, does it pick them up? That is, if you load the core but no content and then go to information > core info, does it say it/they is/are detected?

#13

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It says I have those present. Sorry about the logcat not containing any information! When it crashed it probably didn’t save the settings to have logging on.

Edit: Here’s a pastebin link to another crash file that should have information you need: http://pastebin.com/C51phQn8

…And a MEGA link if you prefer that: https://mega.nz/#!qZ9FHbBZ!02kW_LXNkokV0IX7Sq7gLTKHtABRLs5DP0zCUZwOqVc

#14

Ok, yeah, looks like the same crash, indeed. And it’s doing it with all ps1 ROMs you try? If so, I’m not sure what else to look for :confused:

#15

I’m afraid this is happening with all the PS1 ISOs I’ve tried. All of them are ripped straight from my discs in .bin/.cue format, and they all seem to crash. Yesterday I got Crash Bash to boot once, but I seriously have no clue what I did and didn’t tinker with any settings. I’ve also tried downloading the core multiple times and I’ve failed to get anywhere. Trying the nightly build for Android achieved the same result.

I also know that the ISOs I have are perfectly fine, as ePSXe for Android is able to play them fine. However, there’s a minor graphical glitch with the Wumpa counter in Crash Bandicoot 2 and 3 that irks me, hence why I’m trying to set this up. I’ve tried multiple ISOs each with the same result. The game’s I’m trying are the American releases of Crash Bash, Crash Team Racing, Crash Bandicoot 2, and Crash Bandicoot 3.