Sega Megadrive mini

_Brian · 22-07-2019 10:51am

Is it possible to use an Android tablet as the screen for one of these consoles or any of the other similar retro consoles.

mondeo · 22-07-2019 1:59pm

I want this, I wont pay €80 for it though, I will wait for it to reduce.

Lemming · 22-07-2019 11:06pm

_Brian wrote: »

Is it possible to use an Android tablet as the screen for one of these consoles or any of the other similar retro consoles.

I don't think so as most small android devices, i.e. tablets & phones, can output HDMI or screen-cast to a receiver, but cannot receive HDMI. As far as I understand it, you can get such devices that are intended to do what you are asking, or you can do a DIY bodge job but at that point it begs the question why not just buy a small led tv or monitor given you'll be into a similar price point in all likelihood regards hardware, be it specific or sacrificed and not destroyed in a failed DIY attempt in doing so

super_furry · 23-07-2019 11:25am

Yeah I've actually been looking into tablets with HDMI in for a couple of reasons and I've come to the conclusion that a portable monitor like this is your best bet - https://www.asus.com/ie/Commercial-Monitors/MB168B/

There are a couple of tablets that actually do offer HDMI input but they're cheap and nasty Chinese rubbish and I don't think anyone could recommend them - https://www.flysight.com/index.php?ac=article&at=read&did=18

Doge · 28-07-2019 7:01pm

Something else you can do is take an ipad 3 or 4 screen and plug its ribbon cable into one of these lcd driver boards from china:

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F272635844177

Of course it will need a diy housing or else its going to be a mess of cables.

Doge · 28-07-2019 7:40pm

Heres an even easier option which includes an 8” IPS LCD Display with 4:3 aspect ratio for retro games and also has a composite and vga input which would be handy for testing consoles and old PCs at car boot sales.
All comes to €31 shipped.

http://s.aliexpress.com/6vyq2AVz

Seems to be usb powered too with the included usb to dc plug cable.

Use something like the myVolts Ripcord cables to power voltages higher than 5V along with a decent USB power bank and you have a mobile testing rig (for retro consoles at least that are not directly mains powered). Just bare in mind the ripcord cables are limited to a current output of 1A currently.

http://myvolts.com/page.php?xPage=MV_Ripcord

Doge · 28-07-2019 8:32pm

Just tried powering my Mega Drive 1 and Super Famicom from my USB power bank and my ripcord cable for the first time. Its the 9V centre pin negative version and it powered them flawlessly with no issues during gameplay!

Its a really strange feeling when you power a console from a usb battery bank!

Danick · 28-07-2019 10:18pm

Doge wrote: »

Just tried powering my Mega Drive 1 and Super Famicom from my USB power bank and my ripcord cable for the first time. Its the 9V centre pin negative version and it powered them flawlessly with no issues during gameplay!

Its a really strange feeling when you power a console from a usb battery bank!

Which one did you buy for the mega drive one? Thanks

Doge · 28-07-2019 11:01pm

Danick wrote: »

Which one did you buy for the mega drive one? Thanks

9V Ripcord, centre negative
AA927MS

That's for the Mega Drive 1 just to be clear I think the mega drive 2 uses a different barrel size and has a different polarity also.

Danick · 28-07-2019 11:17pm

Doge wrote: »

9V Ripcord, centre negative
AA927MS

That's for the Mega Drive 1 just to be clear I think the mega drive 2 uses a different barrel size and has a different polarity also.

Thanks so much - I never knew it was possible to power it via usb.

Doge · 28-07-2019 11:46pm

Danick wrote: »

Thanks so much - I never knew it was possible to power it via usb.

You're welcome!

Its been possible since the Irish company MyVolts launched a successful Kickstarter for Ripcord a few years back.

Even before then they had a kind of prototype version of Ripcord specifically used to power the Korg Volca range of synthesisers and drum machines which were low powered, I have one of those also! Since then theyve made a lot of improvements and testing and now Ripcord is a thing!

Theres a a few accessories you can buy for Ripcord also including a pack of different barrel sizes which includes a polarity inverter. And also a "hot tip."

Which is a DC barrel you can plug in to the existing plug and tells you polarity with its bi colour led.

I actually did a review of Ripcord the day I received my Kickstarter reward and go through the accessories here,.in the most boring voice ever mind you. Need to work on that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sbECZ_HQqk

o1s1n · 28-07-2019 11:49pm

This would be really great paired with a 9 inch PVM running off internal batteries.

Doge · 28-07-2019 11:56pm

o1s1n wrote: »

This would be really great paired with a 9 inch PVM running off internal batteries.

I foresee myself bumping into o1s1n aka the retro gaming hipster on the train someday with a PVM running and batteries and a mega drive running off one of those ripcords, saying to me:
"handhelds with emulation?
BAH!
Sir, I'm a purist!"

o1s1n · 29-07-2019 1:21pm

Doge wrote: »

I foresee myself bumping into o1s1n aka the retro gaming hipster on the train someday with a PVM running and batteries and a mega drive running off one of those ripcords, saying to me:
"handhelds with emulation?
BAH!
Sir, I'm a purist!"

If I'm not mistaken, you have a BVM1454D? Not far off that yourself!

Chris_Heilong · 16-08-2019 3:23pm

I was watching game sack and a few other youtube channels have got their hands on one, A bit disappointed that there is a millisecond delay in sound and some of the frequencies in the sound are a bit harsher than a real Megadrive. So it will be a pass for me, I was really hoping for a cheap HD upscaled Megadrive experience

o1s1n · 16-08-2019 4:10pm

The Megadrive was all over the place with sound, there are a lot of variances based on board type. So it might sound like one of them...

Doge · 16-08-2019 9:49pm

Chris_Heilong wrote: »

I was watching game sack and a few other youtube channels have got their hands on one, A bit disappointed that there is a millisecond delay in sound and some of the frequencies in the sound are a bit harsher than a real Megadrive. So it will be a pass for me, I was really hoping for a cheap HD upscaled Megadrive experience

Cheap and 100% accurate sound / modelling of the crappy amp and mixer in Mega Drives should not belong in the same sentence.

If you want to have that modeled accurately then the Mega SG by Analogue is your man.

Interestingly enough people go as far as modding their consoles with the Crystal Clear Audio Mod to replenish the lost frequencies in their Mega Drives due to the poor amp and mixer circuitry.

Modelling that amp and mixer would take a lot more system resources and up the cost,
and the guys at Sega probably want to make it as hifi sounding as possible.

Inviere · 18-08-2019 3:47pm

Doge wrote: »

Cheap and 100% accurate sound / modelling of the crappy amp and mixer in Mega Drives should not belong in the same sentence.

If you want to have that modeled accurately then the Mega SG by Analogue is your man.

Interestingly enough people go as far as modding their consoles with the Crystal Clear Audio Mod to replenish the lost frequencies in their Mega Drives due to the poor amp and mixer circuitry.

Modelling that amp and mixer would take a lot more system resources and up the cost,
and the guys at Sega probably want to make it as hifi sounding as possible.

It's more the audio delay I've read about that'll kill it for me.

Doge · 19-08-2019 11:16am

Inviere wrote: »

It's more the audio delay I've read about that'll kill it for me.

Thats a shame. I wonder if they could iron it out in a firmware update.

B.A._Baracus · 19-08-2019 11:18am

Whats the deal with these... emulation or a hardware? (i've heard both oddly enough so no clue now)

Jack burton · 19-08-2019 1:33pm

Doge wrote: »

Cheap and 100% accurate sound / modelling of the crappy amp and mixer in Mega Drives should not belong in the same sentence.

If you want to have that modeled accurately then the Mega SG by Analogue is your man.

Interestingly enough people go as far as modding their consoles with the Crystal Clear Audio Mod to replenish the lost frequencies in their Mega Drives due to the poor amp and mixer circuitry.

Modelling that amp and mixer would take a lot more system resources and up the cost,
and the guys at Sega probably want to make it as hifi sounding as possible.

Definitely want to give that crystal clear mod a whirl on one of my megadrives

KeRbDoG · 19-08-2019 7:20pm

Inviere wrote: »

It's more the audio delay I've read about that'll kill it for me.

Is it just me or does the lad in that video have very badly applied make up on?

Inviere · 20-08-2019 9:46am

Doge wrote: »

Thats a shame. I wonder if they could iron it out in a firmware update.

Possibly. 11 frames of audio delay though, it's the kind of thing that once you notice it it'll break the experience (for me anyway). Think I'll pass on this one.

B.A._Baracus · 20-08-2019 5:11pm

Inviere wrote: »

Possibly. 11 frames of audio delay though, it's the kind of thing that once you notice it it'll break the experience (for me anyway). Think I'll pass on this one.

Here's the thing... This is most likely gonna get hacked and a lot of people will buy this for that reason. So if it is an issue i'm sure someone smart will come along and make a fix for it while you dump every sega mega drive rom in existence on it :pac:

Inviere · 21-08-2019 9:18am

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

Here's the thing... This is most likely gonna get hacked and a lot of people will buy this for that reason. So if it is an issue i'm sure someone smart will come along and make a fix for it while you dump every sega mega drive rom in existence on it :pac:

100% it will be hacked. But I've enough gubbins here that will run Sonic the Hedgehog, I don't need another one

Jack burton · 21-08-2019 10:58am

I still don't understand how companies let stuff like that audio delay happen. I'd have thought something like that would be a major issue

Retr0gamer · 21-08-2019 11:01am

Surprised this is a thing as M2 are usually really great at replicating Megadrive audio, even giving a choice of high definition and later model Megadrive audio in their 3DS ports.

quaalude · 22-09-2019 7:39pm

Doge wrote: »

You're welcome!

Its been possible since the Irish company MyVolts launched a successful Kickstarter for Ripcord a few years back.

Even before then they had a kind of prototype version of Ripcord specifically used to power the Korg Volca range of synthesisers and drum machines which were low powered, I have one of those also! Since then theyve made a lot of improvements and testing and now Ripcord is a thing!

Theres a a few accessories you can buy for Ripcord also including a pack of different barrel sizes which includes a polarity inverter. And also a "hot tip."

Which is a DC barrel you can plug in to the existing plug and tells you polarity with its bi colour led.

I actually did a review of Ripcord the day I received my Kickstarter reward and go through the accessories here,.in the most boring voice ever mind you. Need to work on that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sbECZ_HQqk

Cheers Doge!
I’m a long time Boardsie who works for myVolts so if anyone has any questions about Ripcord, and what else it can power, hit me up.
I just happened across this thread as I’m also a retro gaming fan - the original Megadrive is one of the greatest consoles of all time, IMO.

Chris_Heilong · 27-09-2019 8:04pm

Jack burton wrote: »

I still don't understand how companies let stuff like that audio delay happen. I'd have thought something like that would be a major issue

The issue is all these mini consoles come on very weak hardware, a rasberrypi 3 would blow them out of the water and all of them have sound delay, the Nes mini SNES mini and the Megadrive mini.

fmul9798 · 28-09-2019 10:53am

Cancelled my order once I heard about the audio delay. I wonder of it might be fixed with an update, or is it pretty much "that's it, take it or leave it"

horgan_p · 28-09-2019 1:39pm

fmul9798 wrote: »

Cancelled my order once I heard about the audio delay. I wonder of it might be fixed with an update, or is it pretty much "that's it, take it or leave it"

The only updates will be from the hacking community

Inviere · 29-09-2019 5:42am

fmul9798 wrote: »

Cancelled my order once I heard about the audio delay. I wonder of it might be fixed with an update, or is it pretty much "that's it, take it or leave it"

Same. Such a shame as it otherwise seems like a cracking little 'console'.

Dr Bob · 30-09-2019 9:36am

Yeah the audio might'nt have put me off , but theres too many good games missing from the lineup for me ( I know licencing doesnt work that way but I was hoping being M2 it'd have their port of Gauntlet/Gauntlet IV , also Slapfight MD is on the japanese version but not the ROW one .. doh!)

B.A._Baracus · 30-09-2019 9:39am

How bad is the audio delay? minor or something really noticable?

Retr0gamer · 30-09-2019 10:18am

100 ms lag I think according to Digital foundry

Chris_Heilong · 30-09-2019 10:36am

So there has been some progress on the hacking end of things. They discovered the aritecture is prtty much the same as the SNES mini but with the CPU under-clocked to 1 ghz.

Chris_Heilong · 30-09-2019 8:25pm

This guy also did tests on the sound and lag, 4 frames of audio delay and 3-7 frames emulation delay which this guy found to be the same as a Raspberry-pi.

Shapey Fiend · 02-10-2019 11:10pm

Whatever way I've set up my Pi 2 the input lag is horrendous. My sons always trying to get me to play Mario on it and I simply can't. It may be my television causing it I'm not sure.

I thought the Retroarch peeps were talking about runahead latency now that's better than the original hardware. Whatever that is I want it.

Chris_Heilong · 02-10-2019 11:55pm

Shapey Fiend wrote: »

Whatever way I've set up my Pi 2 the input lag is horrendous. My sons always trying to get me to play Mario on it and I simply can't. It may be my television causing it I'm not sure.

I thought the Retroarch peeps were talking about runahead latency now that's better than the original hardware. Whatever that is I want it.

I would say it is your TV, make sure to set it to game mode as that will turn off all the filters, The lag on the Pi is really not bad at all but when I brought it to my mothers house during christmas their TV added so much lag it was unplayable for me.

Inviere · 03-10-2019 11:37am

Shapey Fiend wrote: »

Whatever way I've set up my Pi 2 the input lag is horrendous. My sons always trying to get me to play Mario on it and I simply can't. It may be my television causing it I'm not sure.

I thought the Retroarch peeps were talking about runahead latency now that's better than the original hardware. Whatever that is I want it.

Set your TV onto Game Mode (turns off all post-processing etc), this will help reduce lag. You'll need a Pi 4 to use runahead, it's very cpu intensive. I'm the same with emulation on a Pi, the lag/latency always bothered me.

B.A._Baracus · 04-10-2019 10:02am

Didn't get a text from Smyths. Boo.

Inviere · 04-10-2019 12:31pm

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

Didn't get a text from Smyths. Boo.

There's a bit of a lag apparently.....

/runs

super_furry · 04-10-2019 3:15pm

Picked up what appeared to be the only one in Gamestop Dun Laoghaire. Surprised they weren't looking for more than €75 TBH as Argos are asking €100.

Chris_Heilong · 04-10-2019 5:26pm

I was going to get one and for €75 it sounds like a good deal but I thought the restrictive nature of the system would annoy me so I got an Nvida Shield instead which is meant to a good emulation device.

Inviere · 04-10-2019 5:33pm

Chris_Heilong wrote: »

I was going to get one and for €75 it sounds like a good deal but I thought the restrictive nature of the system would annoy me so I got an Nvida Shield instead which is meant to a good emulation device.

A very good call. The Shield blows away any of the 'Mini' devices, and is really in the 'Rolls Royce' league of 'under the tv' emulation boxes. The only way you'll top it is to move to PC, but unless you want to run higher end stuff like GameCube, Wii, PS2, etc etc, the Shield will have you well covered. You'll be able to configure Retroarch's Run-Ahead feature, and use the nice shaders all at the same time etc, it really is a great little emulation box.

If you want any help setting it all up, give me a shout and I'll advise where I can

FutureTeashock · 04-10-2019 5:35pm

All these games can be played for free online, so why would I fork out 75 precious euros for this?

CiDeRmAn · 04-10-2019 6:00pm

FutureTeashock wrote: »

All these games can be played for free online, so why would I fork out 75 precious euros for this?

Because if you are playing them for free you are not paying the owner of these games for the right to do so, which is theft.
I mean, by all means use emulation and online stuff if you like, but don't think that it is ultimately right.

If these mini consoles don't mean anything to you, buy the original console and start a collection of your own.

FutureTeashock · 04-10-2019 6:04pm

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Because if you are playing them for free you are not paying the owner of these games for the right to do so, which is theft.
I mean, by all means use emulation and online stuff if you like, but don't think that it is ultimately right.

If these mini consoles don't mean anything to you, buy the original console and start a collection of your own.

This is the most holier than thou post I've ever seen.

I already have most of the games but doubt the console still works at this stage.

I'll keep stealing "stealing" by playing them online, thank you very much.

DaveyDave · 04-10-2019 6:05pm

If you have the games then just buy a working console for €40, no need to spend €75 on a mini emulator.

Inviere · 04-10-2019 6:07pm

FutureTeashock wrote: »

All these games can be played for free online, so why would I fork out 75 precious euros for this?

As in through a web browser?

*shudder

Sega Megadrive mini

Comments