Taito F2 System
Taito's 2D evolution (1988): the same 68000 + Z80 + YM2610 base as the
B System, but a richer sprite engine (zoom, large object
fields). Liquid Kids, Growl, Cameltry, Metal Black, Gun Frontier… Like the B, some
games have the C-Chip.
Identification
| Field |
Value |
| Manufacturer |
Taito |
| Year |
1988 |
| Type |
16-bit 2D (extended sprites) |
| Protection |
C-Chip (TC0030CMD) on some games |
| Settings |
DIP |
Architecture
| Block |
Chip |
Role |
| CPU |
Motorola 68000 |
game logic |
| Sound CPU |
Zilog Z80 |
drives the sound |
| Sound |
Yamaha YM2610 |
FM + ADPCM |
| Video |
TC0xxx customs (extended sprites, tilemaps) |
more sprites/effects than the B System |
The F2 pushes the sprite hardware (large object fields, zoom on some games).
Emulated in MAME (taito/taito_f2.cpp).
The C-Chip (protection)
Like the B System, several F2 games use the C-Chip — dumps and conversion:
→ Taito B / F2 converts (C-Chip).
EPROM repair: 68000 program in 27C010/020/040 → game-by-game EPROM table.
Notable games
Liquid Kids, Growl (Runark), Cameltry, Football Champ, Final Blow, Gun
Frontier, Metal Black (1991), Dead Connection, Don Doko Don, PuLiRuLa, Mega
Blast, Thunder Fox, The Ninja Kids, Yuyu no Quiz…
Common faults
| Symptom |
Likely cause |
Lead |
| Crashes at boot |
C-Chip (protected games) |
Check the C-Chip; see converts |
| Corrupt sprites/planes |
TC0xxx customs / RAM |
RAM test, contacts |
| No/partial sound |
YM2610 / Z80 |
Sound-stage diagnosis |
| Lost settings |
DIP |
Check the DIP bank |
| No image |
Power, 68000, harness |
Base diagnosis |
Modernisation & mods
The common ground for every JAMMA board
Video, power, control panel and upscalers depend on the cabinet rather than the board:
everything is centralised in Modernising a cabinet.
To run the board outside a cabinet (at home, on a display):
supergun.
- Battery 🟢: a save battery is fitted (settings/counters/RTC). ⚠️ On this platform, a dead battery does NOT kill the game — it is a leaking battery that corrodes traces. Check and replace it before it leaks → save batteries.
- Storage 🟡: the game lives in EPROM/mask ROM on the board. Changing or restoring a game means reprogramming the EPROMs (and, for a mask ROM, using a pinout adapter) → EPROM method.
- Media preservation: replacing the original storage, multicarts, ODEs and modern options by family → PCB preservation hub.
- Scan rate 📺: ~15.36 kHz / 60.0 Hz — standard resolution, a classic 15 kHz chassis is fine → tri-sync and upscalers.
(Computed from the MAME sources —
taito/taito_f2.cpp — pixel clock ÷ htotal.)
- FPGA / emulation: see the Emulation & FPGA section below.
Repair (technician)
- C-Chip (TC0030CMD) on some games: an MCU + a per-game EPROM → without the right
C-Chip, a crash (donor / MAME dump). Not a battery (no suicide).
- TC0xxx customs (extended sprites, tilemaps): corrupt = RAM + buffers first, the
custom next (donor).
- Sound: Z80 + YM2610 — diagnose the sound stage.
- Capacitors: recap sound + filtering. EPROM sockets: turned-pin socket.
→ Methods: PCB fault-finding ·
Recap ·
EPROM ·
Traces & vias
Expected clocks — measurement table ✅
Values extracted from the MAME sources for this platform. On a scope or frequency counter, a clock that is missing or off-value points straight at the crystal, the divider or the chip at fault — the fastest starting point on a dead board.
| Component |
Expected clock |
Role |
| M68000 |
12 MHz · 14 MHz |
main CPU |
| YM2203 |
3 MHz |
FM (sound) |
| YM2610 |
8 MHz |
FM+ADPCM (sound) |
| Z80 |
4 MHz · 6 MHz |
sound CPU (usually) |
How to read this table
Several values for one component = several board variants in this family (or several instances of the chip clocked differently). These frequencies are those of the clock signal at the component's input, not of its original crystal — on many boards the clock is divided down from a single master crystal.
Archived original schematics ✅
Manufacturer schematics for games in this family, archived locally. They give the clock tree, the address decoding and the breakdown of the video/sound/power stages — enough to trace a missing signal back to its source.
Scope
A schematic applies to the game and revision named: within a family the general breakdown carries over, but component references and custom chip pinouts do not transpose. Source: the Arcade Game Manuals collection (Internet Archive), manufacturer documents kept for preservation.
DIP settings ✅
26 games on this platform, settings extracted from the MAME sources (INPUT_PORTS_START blocks). The Position column gives the switch's physical reference on the board (SW2:!3,!4 = bank SW2, levers 3 and 4) — which is what lets you set it up without the paper manual. Games are sorted by MAME set name.
DIP settings — MAME set cameltry
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Start remain time |
SW2:3,4 |
35 · 40 · 50 · 60 |
| Continue play time |
SW2:5,6 |
+20 · +25 · +30 · +40 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set deadconx
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Number of Enemies 1/2 Player |
SW2:1,2 |
25/45 · 30/50 · 40/60 · 50/70 |
| Life Meter |
SW2:4,5 |
5 · 8 · 10 · 12 |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set deadconxj
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Coin A |
SW1:1,2 |
3C 1C · 2C 1C · 1C 1C · 1C 2C |
| Coin B |
SW1:3,4 |
3C 1C · 2C 1C · 1C 1C · 1C 2C |
| Demo Sounds |
SW1:5 |
Off · On |
| Service Mode |
SW1:6 |
Off · On |
| Flip Screen |
SW1:7 |
Off · On |
DIP settings — MAME set dinorex
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Damage |
SW2:3,4 |
Small · Normal · Big · Biggest |
| Timer Speed |
SW2:5 |
Normal · Fast |
| Match Type |
SW2:6 |
Best of 3 · Single |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set dondokod
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Bonus Life |
SW2:3,4 |
10k and 100k · 10k and 150k · 10k and 250k · 10k and 350k |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
DIP settings — MAME set driftout
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Control |
SW2:3,4 |
Joystick · Paddle · Joystick · Steering wheel |
DIP settings — MAME set finalb
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Alternate Controls |
SW1:1 |
Off · On |
DIP settings — MAME set footchmp
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Game Over Type |
SW1:1 |
Both Teams' Games Over · Losing Team's Game is Over |
| Game Time |
SW2:3,4 |
1.5 Minutes · 2 Minutes · 2.5 Minutes · 3 Minutes |
| Cabinet |
SW2:5,6 |
2 Players · 4 Players / 4 Coin Slots · 4 Players / 2 cabinets combined · 4 Players / 2 Coin Slots |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Game Version |
SW2:8 |
Normal · European |
DIP settings — MAME set growl
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Cabinet Type |
SW2:5,6 |
2 Players · 4 Players / 4 Coin Slots · 4 Players / 2 cabinets combined · 4 Players / 2 Coin Slots |
| Final Boss Continue |
SW2:7 |
No · Yes |
DIP settings — MAME set gunfront
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Bonus Life |
SW2:3,4 |
10k and every 80k · 20k and every 80k · 30k and every 80k · 60k and every 80k |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
1 · 2 · 3 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set htheroj
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Game Over Type |
SW1:1 |
Both Teams' Games Over · Losing Team's Game is Over |
| Flip Screen |
SW1:2 |
Off · On |
| Demo Sounds |
SW1:4 |
Off · On |
| Coin A |
SW1:6,5 |
3C 1C · 2C 1C · 1C 1C · 1C 2C |
| Coin B |
SW1:8,7 |
3C 1C · 2C 1C · 1C 1C · 1C 2C |
| Difficulty |
SW2:2,1 |
Easy · Medium · Hard · Hardest |
| Game Time |
SW2:4,3 |
1.5 Minutes · 2 Minutes · 2.5 Minutes · 3 Minutes |
| Cabinet |
SW2:6,5 |
2 Players · 4 Players / 4 Coin Slots · 4 Players / 2 cabinets combined · 4 Players / 2 Coin Slots |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
DIP settings — MAME set koshien
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Timer |
SW2:3 |
Off · On |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set liquidk
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Bonus Life |
SW2:3,4 |
30k and 100k · 30k and 150k · 50k and 250k · 50k and 350k |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set megab
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Bonus Life |
SW2:3,4 |
100k only · 150k only · 200k only · None |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
1 · 2 · 3 · 4 |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:7 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set metalb
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Bonus Life |
SW2:3,4 |
80k and every 160k · 70k and every 150k · 100k and every 200k · 50k and every 120k |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
1 · 2 · 3 · 4 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set ninjak
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Cabinet Type |
SW2:3,4 |
2 players · TROG (4 players / 2 coin slots) · MTX2 (4 players / 2 cabinets combined) · TMNT (4 players / 4 coin slots) |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Game Type |
SW2:8 |
1 Player only · Multiplayer |
DIP settings — MAME set pulirula
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Magic |
SW2:3,4 |
3 · 4 · 5 |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set qcrayon
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Default Time |
SW2:3,4 |
6 seconds · 7 seconds · 8 seconds · 10 seconds |
DIP settings — MAME set qcrayon2
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Flip Screen |
SW1:2 |
Off · On |
| Demo Sounds |
SW1:4 |
Off · On |
| Game Control |
SW2:8 |
Joystick · 4 Buttons |
DIP settings — MAME set qtorimon
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Flip Screen |
SW1:2 |
Off · On |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
1 · 3 · 2 · 4 |
| Show Correct Answer |
SW2:7 |
No · Yes |
DIP settings — MAME set quizhq
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Time |
SW2:3,4 |
5 seconds · 10 seconds · 15 seconds · 20 seconds |
| Stock |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set qzquest
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Countdown Timer |
SW2:3,4 |
Very Slow · Slow · Medium · Fast |
DIP settings — MAME set ssi
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Shields |
SW2:3,4 |
None · 1 · 2 · 3 |
| Lives |
SW2:5 |
2 · 3 |
| 2 Players Mode |
SW2:6,7 |
Simultaneous · Alternate, Single · Alternate, Dual · Not Allowed |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:8 |
Off · On |
DIP settings — MAME set thundfox
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Timer |
SW2:3 |
Off · On |
| Lives |
SW2:5,6 |
2 · 3 · 4 · 5 |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
| Upright Controls |
SW2:8 |
Single · Dual |
DIP settings — MAME set yesnoj
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Print Results |
SW1:1 |
No · Yes |
| Demo Sounds |
SW1:2 |
Off · On |
| Printer |
SW1:3 |
Off · On |
| 2 Players Game |
SW1:4 |
1 Credit · 2 Credits |
DIP settings — MAME set yuyugogo
| Setting |
Position |
Options (default in bold) |
| Allow Continue |
SW2:7 |
Off · On |
Check against your own board
These settings apply to the game and revision described by MAME. One title may have several DIP sets depending on region or revision, and some systems use soft-dips (settings in memory, via the test menu) rather than physical switches. In case of a discrepancy, the board's silkscreen and the test menu are authoritative.
See also: DIP reference · game manuals
Emulation & FPGA
- Emulation: MAME (
taito/taito_f2.cpp) — C-Chip emulated.
- FPGA / MiSTer: no confirmed dedicated core → MAME.
Lineage
Contemporary with the B System; precedes the F3
(1992, cartridge). YM2610 sound base shared with the Z System.
Photos / assets
(To add: F2 board, C-Chip, sprite customs.)
Sources & attribution
Review & corrections
How this space is used
Spotted a wrong value, an outdated procedure, a chip reference that does not match your
board? Say so here, with what you observed (model, board revision, serial
number, measurement). Every report is cross-checked against a source
before anything changes — an unverifiable correction is published as
“reported by …, not cross-checked” rather than silently applied.
Reading is open to everyone; posting requires signing in with Discord.
Reports from the wiki's declared reviewers are handled first; anyone else's are read
too, but go through a human before anything is changed.