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Hard EverDrivin'! Flash cartridges & ODEs
- Thread starter Mr. Sensible
- Start date
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- Tags
- hardware retro games
Pre orders are live for the HyperFlash 32 Virtual Boy flash cart from RetroOnyx.
$200 plus shipping, but still way cheaper than collecting for Virtual Boy...
$200 plus shipping, but still way cheaper than collecting for Virtual Boy...
A new version of the SSD3 for PC Engine. Now with an HDMI port included (but only does 720p), as well as support for other cores (NES will be available immediately, though I'm not totally sure I see the point: anyone with a PC Engine and like $300 to burn on this almost certainly has an NES solution around). The coolest bit to me is that it will now support SuperGrafx games, with the FPGA doing the supplementary work, which is pretty fantastic. Gotta be honest: kinda considering getting a vanilla PCE on the cheap and getting one of these down the line somewhere.
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
That is definitely something I would have done (at least the original SSDS3) if it had been around before I bought my PC Engine Duo. The cost would have been about the same, but the SSDS3 would have been a lot more reliable than the laser in this particular system when it comes to burned games. But hey, the point was that I finally owned a Duo! I've been playing that stuff on MiSTer a bunch lately, though, and it's a fantastic way to experience that content.
Everdrive 64 x7 is a fantastic product (and better be, considering the cost). I just wish there was a way to reset the system without having to get up! Oh well. It's so nice not to have to mess around with emulator settings on a per game basis, and just be able to play the damn game as soon as I boot it up. I'd not played F-Zero X in years at proper speed! It's wonderful! Also playing Animal Forest on actual hardware is so weird. Shame the item names aren't translated, but it's still very playable (though the text entry thing is godawful).
Mr. Sensible
Pitch and Putt Duffer
The ED64 might be my favorite EverDrive so far because (A) N64 games are still tough to emulate accurately, which gives some added value to owning a flash cart along with real hardware and (B) you can enable software de-blur for most titles to remedy the N64's overly aggressive anti-aliasing and sharpen up the image quite a bit, especially if you've also got your N64 modded to output RGB video.
I'm probably not going to mess around too much with the visuals until I can mod my N64 - it's a blurry mess on my HDTV no matter what I do lol. Still, booting roms just WORKS, which was the main reason I wanted the thing, so when I can eventually get HDMI out, I'll start messing with those features. Can't wait, honestly. I've barely played N64 games in the past fifteen or so years (besides the Zeldas and Mario 64), so it'll be nice to revisit that library again.
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
I only got the EverDrive 64 2.5, which is also a very good product. Just has issues with two games, I think? And I don't particularly care about either, so the cheaper option was the way to go.
Modding the N64 is a good idea. I've also got a RetroTINK 2X (haven't gotten to the new hotness on the 5X yet), and N64 looks quite good on my HDTV on it... well, at least as good as you can expect from that system without mods.
Modding the N64 is a good idea. I've also got a RetroTINK 2X (haven't gotten to the new hotness on the 5X yet), and N64 looks quite good on my HDTV on it... well, at least as good as you can expect from that system without mods.
Yeah, I'm a real fan (my RGB mod includes de-blur), and they're also not that expensive if you don't care about the real-time clock (which I don't, because I hate Animal Crossing).
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
That reminds me, I really need to get my 3DO fixed. It needs the audio caps replaced, although I probably ought to recap the whole thing if I'm in there. Or maybe I should just pass it off to someone else to do it...
Also, got my 21-pin Fenrir in. It's working quite well overall. I've run into some issues with a few dumps - it's apparently very picky about formats and whatnot - but so far I've managed to get everything I've thrown at it to work. I've got a few more dumps I need to replace or reprocess, and that'll be at least everything on the SD card verified as working. Installing it was really easy, too. The only thing that would have been easier would be the Satiator.
Also, got my 21-pin Fenrir in. It's working quite well overall. I've run into some issues with a few dumps - it's apparently very picky about formats and whatnot - but so far I've managed to get everything I've thrown at it to work. I've got a few more dumps I need to replace or reprocess, and that'll be at least everything on the SD card verified as working. Installing it was really easy, too. The only thing that would have been easier would be the Satiator.
ArugulaZ
Fearful asymmetry
Oh, shit. I keep forgetting these machines are twenty, thirty, even forty years old, and need this kind of maintenance. I've got two Game Gears back in MI that are probably melting a hole through the floor with their leaking capacitors. I've dinked around with some of my systems here, but usually those are mods and reshells, not heavy duty repairs.
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
Oh, geez, yeah, I hear horror stories about non-working Game Gears. I've got one of the Majesco reissues, so it still works fine, but those original models usually need some work by now.
I've got a few other systems that need work, too. My childhood NES has some noise on the composite video line, and I suspect that's capacitor-related as well. I think keeping these machines running really is going to be the biggest challenge. It's the sort of thing that tempts one to get out of the real hardware business... but I have a hard time letting go, haha!
I've got a few other systems that need work, too. My childhood NES has some noise on the composite video line, and I suspect that's capacitor-related as well. I think keeping these machines running really is going to be the biggest challenge. It's the sort of thing that tempts one to get out of the real hardware business... but I have a hard time letting go, haha!
madhair60
Video games
Nintendo 64 is my next "project", by which I mean I need to buy, er, an N64. And a pad. And an Everdrive. And some sort of HDMI solution.
Then I will have done the project. The project is buying things.
Edit: What is the difference between the N64 Everdrive X7 and the X5?
Then I will have done the project. The project is buying things.
Edit: What is the difference between the N64 Everdrive X7 and the X5?
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You have to reset X5 to save games, rather than just saves working normally like they did back on original hardware. There's also no RTC support on X5, but afaik only Animal Crossing/Forest uses it, and that's not even fully translated, so... just the save thing, I think.
I bought a "retrotink x2 mini" for my N64 just a couple weeks ago, and it works really well. Just takes the S-video signal from your N64 and uprezzes it to HD (don't remember the resolution, but it looks much, much better) and has HDMI out. Since we're talking video signals, though, you may want to double check there's not some weirdness with PAL consoles, because there might be, if I remember correctly.
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
It very much depends on how your TV handles the signal - my set only has component and composite, and composite looks like trash on it. The RetroTINK 5X is the Cadillac of the scaler/line doubler community, but the 2X is also a quality piece of kit, and makes composite on my HDTV look much, much better. The big advantage with the 5X is that for games like Resident Evil 2 on N64, the swaps between 480i and 240p are seamless.
John
(he/him)
RetroTINKs and upscalers in general are also multi-purpose tools, so you can have multiple consoles hooked up. The graphical improvements might not be as good as a dedicated HDMI mod like the N64 UltraHDMI, but they have the benefit that they're able to be purchased, and don't require extremely fine soldering skills.
I've got an OSSC, which is just okay. It only supports RGB via SCART, Component, and VGA, so any Composite or S-Video signals are out. That means without an RGB Mod, the N64 wouldn't work on it. I also had issues with getting SNES audio with the OSSC, and had to plug audio directly into my soundbar. In general, it's a hacky tool, much less user friendly than even something like a MiSTer.
I've got an OSSC, which is just okay. It only supports RGB via SCART, Component, and VGA, so any Composite or S-Video signals are out. That means without an RGB Mod, the N64 wouldn't work on it. I also had issues with getting SNES audio with the OSSC, and had to plug audio directly into my soundbar. In general, it's a hacky tool, much less user friendly than even something like a MiSTer.
I can't wait until the price on upscalers comes down by a significant chunk. I wouldn't use one often enough to justify the buy-in at a couple hundred bucks, but I'd pick one up for cheap if it would make my Wii or NES look half-decent on my HDTV.
Still really wish modern TVs had component video, it was so nice when I could hook my Wii up through component on my first flatscreen TV.
Still really wish modern TVs had component video, it was so nice when I could hook my Wii up through component on my first flatscreen TV.
Sarge
hardcore retro gamin'
I wouldn't expect them to come down significantly, but if you want a cheap one for the NES, the 2X Mini @Kazin mentioned is a really good choice, giving you S-Video and composite for $80. A bit more gets you component on a 2X, but that would have less utility with the Wii, since it doesn't support 480p passthrough.
I absolutely hate that most HDTVs now don't even include component hookups. I thought losing S-Video was bad...
I absolutely hate that most HDTVs now don't even include component hookups. I thought losing S-Video was bad...
The 2x is a line-doubler so it goes from 240p to 480p, which makes a lot of difference. The N64 also looks pretty good with S-video.
The 5x is just a joy, though it doesn't like the sync off of a 3DO mod board, I discovered (fortunately, I haven't sold my Framemeister yet). But there is a thread dedicated to this stuff, specifically.