Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

I've got a PMP that is called "Sunplus SPCA536" according to the CheckUDisk program on this site. It has a software update option in one of the menus and I'm really interested in modifying the firmware. I know noone has done it yet, but I think it would be great if we did some R&D :)

Anyway, I pulled mine apart and wrote down most of the chip names as well as some other misc stuff:

PCB:
HTX-C500 <----- True "Model name"
2005.09.30
ver: 3.0

LOGIC:
jcatch (tm)
SUNPLUS <----- Yep, definitely a Sunplus media player
SPCA536A-PB111
0532
MOH5430.00

(Most of the following isn't so interesting)

BATTERY:
+ALP505068
-HW531110110

LCD:
388572B001 - XX - 0011431

RAM/ROM?:
SAMSUNG 543
K4S281632F - TC75

S2816 ZLI014DAC

OTHER:
------------------
SAA7113H
------------------
WM
WM9711
3CAHAOC
------------------


I've been looking around for information on this stuff, but I haven't had a lot of success. I can't even find a datasheet for the Sunplus chip, only some webcam variant. For the MPX players, how was the firmware decompiled? I've asked the guy at chizon.com for the firmware tools (Purposely vague, I want whatever I can get) but I haven't received a reply yet. Does anyone have the firmware upload/backup software for this player? I'm fairly sure noone does but a post by "Irish Nerd Guy" HERE suggests that it is available (Too bad he was just a guest...)

So does anyone have any ideas? Here's a pic of my PMP. Does anyone have a similar main menu?

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/8071/pmp2jj2.jpg

yyttu, I shall see what I can find out. Just out of curiosity what size is the screen and what is the video format?

I wasn't expecting such a fast reply, tadad1! Screen size is roughly 6.5cm (2.4 inch) diagonally. It only supports ASF format video using the Sunplus PMP Transcoding utility. Thanks for the help.

yyttu, there is a pretty long forum discussion on sunplus PMP here has a few links to some software that might be handy HERE

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

I actually had a link to that thread above, but being the domestically blind fool that I am, I never went past the first page (I'm so used to seeing page numbers at the bottom, not top)

I can't seem to get to the FTP address mentioned there, and everyone who'se flashed their PMP players seems to have bricked them...

I found this particularly funny:

I'm reading through it now, hopefully the conversations regarding firmware will swing to a positive light. I really want to modify mine.

yyttu, Like you said not a lot of info on them and killing then is pretty final from what I have read.The only apps I can find are ASF transcoders nothing for firmware which is possibly just as well :evil: If I find anything more I will let you know.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Thanks. I've tried that FTP link with no luck (I need a password), and I can't find anything on the directgt website, either... I've made a post on that link you sent me asking for the file - and accidentally double posted - so hopefully I'll get something back from them. If I get the file it might be worth uploading it on this website, since other people would probably want to play with it.

Right now I'm googling around for "ak4" which is supposedly the folder that contained the goodies.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

The above post was me. I can't edit it, so excuse the double post. I get the feeling this AK4 software is designed for this sunplus PMP only (Note the AK4 at the end of the item name)

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

A kind forum member at that website sent me the software that is apparently used for changing the fonts. Tadad1, are you interested in having a look at it and trying to make some sense of it all? From what I can see all it does is take a BMP file (with characters in it) and resizes it and produces a file with the coordinates of the letters, and it also has some flashing feature. Interestingly, the folder included some images of all the icons, as well as the main menu screen that I have (although very slightly different) Here is a screenshot of the program and the other files that came with it:

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/4451/softwarezg3.gif

yyttu, My man I would love to have a look at it, may not be able to make much sense of it though without being able to kill a player or 2 but upload it to www.ezshare.de and I will download it and have a squizz.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Here it is:

Download Here

I have sent an email to sunplus requesting the full suite of tools, and documentation. It's worth a try imo. Please post if you find out anything special with this program. It looks like it's just for fonts to me, but that might not be true. Good luck, and don't go flashing any Mp4s with it yet! Everyone else has killed theirs.

Edit: While searching around for more stuff I came across what I think is a Sigmatel Mp4 player firmware updating program, but it seems to be "customised" for an NTO player. Get it HERE if you're interested. The program name is "stupdaterapp". I haven't had a close look at it since I'm not interested in Sigmatel but someone else might find it useful.

Edit again: I have found yet another tool, but I can't download it because the Chinese moron that hosts it feels that only his fellow chinese friends should use it (I think..) The translated page is HERE, but if you want to attempt to register, you can't do it through the translator proxy. Cut out the url and use that, then cut and paste the parts of the register query to babelfish or whatever you wish to use. I get stuck on the last input. They want some sort of number thing, at first I thought it was a referral number so I left it blank, but it wont let me in. It also says something about external, so I think if I try it through a proxy in China it might work, but I'm not up to installing a proxy program at the moment. Anyone else want to give it a shot?

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Well, I found another piece to the puzzle that is Sunplus firmware modification. I got that software off the Chinese site (Strangely I could register off a different computer)

You can download it HERE. I have kept the file structure in the not-so-friendly way that it came in case anyone wants to Google for the file names. The chinese folder name within the RAR file translates to "Most common male version PMP (SCPA-536) promotion tool"

It looks like the firmware that comes with it is for the Sunplus SPCA-536 camera version, rather than my one which doesn't have a camera. However, I would be surprised if it wouldn't upload firmware to my one.

Now I was hoping someone could point me in the right direction for decompiling firmware "BIN" files. I have no experience here but with a starting point from one of you guys and Google, I'd be on my way.

I want to back up the firmware I have on the device now before I go fiddling with it. Does anyone have any pointers here? Where do I start?

Also, please take a look at this new program and tell me anything that comes to mind. Have you made much sense of the other program, tadad1? I've been meaning to ask - how have you made over 1000 posts in just a couple of months? That must be a world record or something...

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

I have got some stuff on repairing a bricked Sunplus PMP as well as updating firmware with that ISP software off that Chinese site. I translated then with Babelfish, then re-wrote them myself (adding in some personal insight too).

Here's the two of them zipped up

Now if I could just work out how to back up my firmware, I could have a carefree life of testing out random firmware files with the knowledge that if I bricked it I could just do the trick in one of those files and put the original back on...

...but I was hoping someone here with some programming skills would help with the backup thing. It seems at s1mp3 they have made up some pretty nice tools for that stuff. Where can I get started here?

I've noticed that this is my 3rd post in a row. Tadad1, are you not so interested now? I would have expected atleast a few people with Sunplus PMPs and some computer skills to be interested in all this. I've sent a bunch of emails out to a bunch of websites asking for tools, firmware files and so on. I've had one reply so far and have begun discussing firmware stuff with them.

I can probably spend a long time on Google searching around for Sunplus stuff, but it comes down to needing someone here with programming skills to do whatever it is they do. I've got a few files to work on as a starting point. I might ask some of the regulars at s1mp3 what they think.

yyttu, So many toys to play with so little time. As you suspected it appears to be a font map generator. Once you build your font or icon map you can compress them into .bin files supposedly for upload to your player or incorporated into the firmware file.

I am not sure how many sunplus PMP owner frequent the site and from some of the requests that have gone unanswered not to many programming savy members either.

How is your player performing as you expected, no disapointments?

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

I'm currently scouring the web, trying to find a solution for you. So far, I have found one site, but it seems to be about a 6 in 1 dealie. Here is the link 6 in 1 review

It talks about needing drivers from your device

Not sure if this will help at all, but it might be a lead on another way of getting a software upgrade for your device....i'll keep on looking :D

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

The player performs ok, however sometimes it will keep mounting and unmounting the SD card over a period of a few seconds, which makes it impossible to view any movies on it. Usually if I just keep accessing the videos it tends to settle down. Also the boot screen goes funny. Sometimes its 3/4 green, and the last quarter is the picture I chose... Also the signal to noise ratio for audio is nothing short of crappy, and sometimes there are fast horizontal "wave" type things that look like a guitar string vibrating across the screen. The TV out has only worked realiably on one television, which happened to be in Singapore. Otherwise there are bands of noise that move slowly down the screen.

Thanks for having a look around Uncle_Chop_Chop. That 6 in 1 device sure is odd looking! I'll have a google around for it and hopefully some more info.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

i've found quite a few chinese manufacturers that sell PMP's based on the sunplus spca536 chipset....I'll see if I can find one that offers software/firmware downloads

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Thanks. I've already emailed a few but I haven't received any replies except for one, although (s)he didn't know of the model I was interested in.

I have the sunplus 536 (with the camera) it looks about the same. It came with a little cd full of buggy software, most of them refused to install. For flashing or updating the firmware (i assume) there came this tool. I'm pretty interested in playing with mine too but I had no idea how to use this program. I can email it to you if you want, but I think it's a little flawed. (pressing ver. check fails. as does all the other 5 buttons that come with it.)

But since some of the other software on that cd could be found on the net try looking for ISP_V5.2.exe (the name of the program, which comes with a few .bin files in the folder)

the folder on the cd was called (assumedlyt the date of the firmware):
isp_v5[1].2_200441229

keep me posted.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Yeah I've got that one. For it to recognise your device you have to go into setup>storage>Software update. When you next connect it to your PC (before turning it off) it will switch to a blue screen with your version number and it'll be recognised by that program. Don't go flashing it though, it'll probably make it useless!

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Hello there. I am new here. I just download the cutimage software. But i have no idea on how to use. Question

1. DOes it use the usb cable as provided?
2. How to change the total display of the device? say i want to create my own content and display.

Any advice???
PLEASE.....

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

By the way, the model that i am using is SPCA536 (no camera)
my device doesn't have the setup screen as mentioned. My setup screen only display
1. Time
2. Speaker
3. Language
4. AutoLCD off
5. TV_Out
6. Default
7. Auto Power Off
8. Format Storage

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Hello. Don't try to use the software on your device unless you absolutely know how it works and what you're doing (Judging from your question you don't). The reason for this is that if you make a mistake, you will have one bricked MP4 player. I tried to understand the software for a while for the same reason as you - to change the average looking display images, but eventually I just gave up. It isn't worth risking the life of my MP4 player.

Sorry 'bout the bad new, but I would forget about changing the graphics unless you know someone who knows how to use the software (Pretty sure noone does here) :P

If you do decide to test out the software (which I strongly reccomend against doing, as everyone else who has eventually bricked their MP4 players) please post up how you went with it.

Re: Sunplus SPCA536: I've got one, interested in fiddling.
 

Thank you for your reply. Well, its seem that the software is not recommended at all. However, I shall try to locate some other software. Whatever the result is, I shall review them later in this board.
Thank you again for your responce.
Cheers.

I can't download link above. Link is die
Can you upload again?
Thank you!

I got a KM-200 media player (Sunplus SPCA536) with built -in 512 MB of memory and a expansion slot of SD card. Interestingly, I could not find any specification about how much memory it supports 1G, 2G ??.
http://www4.dealtime.com/xPF-Digital-Media-KM200-512MB
Well, I bought a 4 G Transcend X150 SD card to see if it could handle it. Wow, it immediately regconized and formated the card to automatically. I kept adding video and mp3 files to maximum capacity. No problem. Play them, no problem...Hence my player does support 4G !!!

I once tried it but that has been a while. Now mine is somehow broken - a flashing accident (iirc there is a thread in this forum that might help you in case you have a similar problem). Actually the bootloader seems to be still alive. I found out some interesting things though:

* the processor core seems to be MIPS compatible (R3000?) with some opcode extensions. Here is a disassmbly of the bootrom code: http://mitglied.lycos.de/luluba/spca...ormal-rom.html
* There is a dll for usb communication "usb_cam.dll" and I found a matching header file on the net somewhere. This dll basically implements the "usb vendor commands" that can also be found in some ini file that ships with a driver for this device.

Via these commands it should be possible to write software to upload & download data and code to and from the device. I didnt got this to work, but I dont have much knowledge concerning usb programming and stuff, so maybe someone will find out how this has to be done and comes up with firmware tool and maybe its possible to get linux or some other suitable os running on this machine with a little bit of reverseengineering.

regards