Real hardware tester for BoxStudio (N64)

[dreamsailing59-ops]

Hi. I'm elderthesmall. A.K.A the author of BoxStudio, and I wanted to make an announcement about BoxStudio

As you may have noticed. I've been testing ROM hacks made with BoxStudio on ares instead of real Hardware, and the reason is because I cannot afford a real N64 at the moment. Despite my interest in making tools for the N64, I don't even have the real thing.

Which is exactly why I am looking for a person that can help test these ROM hacks on real hardware!

What We Are Looking For

We need someone from the community who is regularly active in retro development or modding ecosystems and wants to act as our bridge to real hardware.

An ideal tester will help us with:

• Flashcart Testing: Deploying compiled ROM hacks built via BoxStudio to real N64 hardware (preferably using a SummerCart64, EverDrive-64 X7, or equivalent hardware that handles accurate save cycles).

• Crash Regression Tracking: When an accuracy bug pops up (like our current issue where collecting a custom-placed Star crashes during the save sequence), helping us capture logs, behavioral anomalies, or hardware error states.

• Expansion Pak Verification: Verifying stability on setups both with and without the original 4MB Expansion Pak enabled, as actor segment scaling can stress physical memory maps differently than emulators.

• Active Feedback Loop: Working closely with the development team as we pull out the prototype boilerplate and build tight, native C++17 architecture.

How to Apply / Help Out

If you have the hardware, regular availability to flash and test test builds, and a passion for keeping the N64 asset pipeline completely accurate to native silicon, please drop a comment below!

Please let us know:

1. Your current hardware testing stack (Console region, Flashcart model, Expansion Pak status).

2. Your general experience or familiarity with the N64 decomp scene (e.g., HackerSM64, zeldaret).

If you wanna reach out to us, join our Discord

Let's make sure BoxStudio builds rock-solid ROMs that run flawlessly on real consoles!

Note: Don't test with a clone console like the Analogue 3D. Make sure you have the Real Thing