Famicom Disk System

What You’ll Need

• Famicom
• Fully Write-Modded Famicom Disk System
• FDSLoader PC to RAM Adapter Cable
• PC w/ Parallel Port running DOS
• FDSLoader DOS software
• FDS Game Doctor unit/copier, such as TGD6M/+, GD4M, TGD4+, etc.
• Copy Master FDS disk, either Makko (v1.0 or 1.1) or New Tai Sang Company (NTSC) version

Preparation:

• Download the FDSLoader program. Create a folder for this program to be placed. A good place would be in your C:\ drive in a folder called FDS. The shorter the file path, the quicker it will be to access the program through DOS.

• Place your .fds formatted images in the same folder as the fdsloadr program. Images must have a valid 16-byte header for FDSLoader to open them successfully. You can test the .fds images in an emulator. Right click on each image and select Properties to make sure “Archive” and “Read-only” are unchecked. It’s also a good idea to name the images in 8.3 format so it’s easier to load them with FDSLoader (e.g., mariotwo.fds).

• Ensure your PC’s parallel port is set to EPP and IRQ 7. This setting can be changed in the BIOS, which can be accessed during boot-up in the Setup menu.

Disk Writing Steps

Step 1

Connect the Famicom along with the FDS and Game Doctor unit to your television. Power on the Famicom and insert the Copy Master disk.

Step 2

Connect the FDSLoader cable to the parallel port on your PC. Boot your PC into DOS.

Step 3

Load the image you wish to write in FDSLoader.

Here’s an example of how that would work if your FDS images and FDSLoader program are saved at: C:\FDS. In this example, the .FDS image will be called mariotwo.fds.

At the command prompt, enter: CD C:\FDS and hit the ENTER key.

This will take DOS to the FDS folder on your C:\ drive.

Next, enter: FDSLOADR MARIOTWO.FDS and hit ENTER.

This will load the mariotwo.fds image in FDSloader. Now, the image is ready for the copy program to read it. It should look like this:

Step 4

On the Famicom setup, when the Copy Master disk loads, select the READ ONLY/READ DOCTOR option. Copy Master will display Insert Source Disk. Eject the Copy Master disk to ensure you do not write over it. It’s a good idea to snap off the write protect disk tabs on your copy utility disks. Even if your copy disk ever needs re-written, a small piece of tape over the write protect holes will allow this to be done.

Step 5

Connect the FDSLoader cable to the RAM Adapter.

Step 6

With the arrow beside READ ONLY/READ DOCTOR on the Copy Master screen, press the START button on the Famicom’s controller #1 to begin the “read” process from the FDSLoader program. The status bar in FDSLoader will highlight as the image is read.

Step 7

Once the entire image is read, disconnect the FDSLoader cable from the RAM Adapter.

Step 8

Connect the RAM Adapter cable to the back of the FDS drive.

Step 9

Select COPY ONLY from the Copy Master menu. Copy Master will display Insert Object Disk. The image that the program has ready to write will be shown on the footer. The name will be three digits and will differ from the name of your FDS image. This is normal since the image name comes from the file itself.

Step 10

Insert the destination disk (disk you want to write to). The copy program will write the file to disk and Verify the disk contents. If no errors show, the disk has been successfully written and Copy Master will again show Insert Object Disk. You may copy the same file to disk as many times as you want.

To read a different file from FDSloader or side B of your disk, select READ ONLY/READ DOCTOR from the Copy Master menu and repeat the process.

If your FDS image has more than one disk side, repeat the process for each side. In FDSloader, once the image is loaded, use the number keys to select the disk side. E.g. 1 = Side A, 2 = Side B, 3 = Side C, etc.