📰 New article from RetroRGB
SAROO Firmware 0.9 Addresses Race Condition Bug
https://retrorgb.com/saroo-firmware-0-9-addresses-race-condition-bug.html
SAROO Firmware 0.9 Tackles Long-Standing Race Condition Bug
The Saturn homebrew scene got a promising update this week: SAROO firmware 0.9 is out, and it might finally squash a pesky race condition bug that’s haunted users since day one.
A race condition—where data arrives out of sequence due to timing mismatches in concurrent processes—was traced back to HIRQ settings being modified simultaneously on the FPGA side. This flaw could cause audio glitches, crashes, and load failures, especially during disc emulation. The issue came to light in December when community member TrekkiesUnite118 created a stress test that exposed intermittent data load failures.
Now, early tests with firmware 0.9 look promising: SHIRO! user NoName141203 ran the same test for 38 minutes with zero failures, suggesting the bug may be resolved.
If confirmed across more titles, games like Baroque, Last Bronx, and Virtual On—which previously had compatibility hiccups—could run smoother than ever. The firmware also brings CD playback scrubbing (fast-forward/rewind), improved 1P2P controller support, and requires a matching FPGA update (v06) on the Saturn itself.
The SAROO remains an open-source, DIY-friendly cartridge that mimics the Saturn’s CD drive—and now, with added RAM and save support—it’s closer than ever to a full-featured backup solution.