Good Clone Consoles

[Anonymous No.4410209]

Are there any clone consoles that don't completely suck? Pic related, it's garbage. It seems like most them them are shitty little emulator machines with a cartridge slot and controller ports.

I do remember hearing of a true hardware clone of the MD in Europe that worked exactly like a MD/Genesis did. Are there any other clones like this out there? Or any that have emulation with acceptable accuracy?

[Anonymous No.4410237]

Why not just use an emulator? GenesisPlusGX has high accuracy, and Exodus (before the author went crazy) is supposedly cycle-accurate.

[Anonymous No.4410248]

>>4410237
Mostly for easy of use when hooking it up to a CRT. I know there's ways to do this with a PC, but it's hacky at best and I don't want to move my PC into my retro game room.

I have a real Genesis, actually, but my Dad bought me one of these At-Games clones for Christmas last year. It got me thinking about clone consoles in general.

[Anonymous No.4410275]

>>4410209
There are quite a few good clones. But you have to really know what you're looking for and even then there's a chance you'll end up with a clone clone. And meme consoles are cheap enough it's not worth even looking unless you collect clones.

[Anonymous No.4410323]

>>4410209
>most them them are shitty little emulator machines
Most of them are shitty little system-on-a-chip machines

[Anonymous No.4410531]

>>4410275
>you'll end up with a clone clone
I've heard about this thing before. Can you please elaborate on that?
A dude in another thread a while back claimed my Micro Genius was a "clone of a clone" because the sound output was garbage, while it should sound just like and original NES.

I have 3 Micro Genius and they all sound bad. Am I supposed to believe they're not original?

Do we have anything to back this up?

[Anonymous No.4410652]

>>4410531
I think it's a misinformation meme. There's 3 kinds of hardware Famiclones.

1. Discrete clones that use discrete PPUs and CPUs and are generally straight-up hardware clones of real Famicoms. Typically indistinguishable from the real deal, or really damn close.

2. NOACs which are 99% of what's on the market now, everything in the Famicom under a gloptop; poor sound, weird compatibility issues, minor variances between NOAC revisions.

3. FPGA Clones, AVS, Analogue NT mini, and a weird one from China; newest on the market, speak for themselves really.

""4""": Emulator trash boxes like the Retron. I don't consider these clones, personally.

[Anonymous No.4410656]

>>4410531
To elaborate, I think a 'clone of a clone' might be a NOAC version of what was once a discrete component Micro Genius or similar. Outer case is the same, but the NOAC versions are inferior.

[Anonymous No.4410721]

>>4410656
I should open up my Micro Genius and check, then. I want to see if it's full hardware or a NOAC. I'll do that tomorrow and report back.

[Anonymous No.4411282]

>>4410531
>elaborate
In some markets clones were/are the most popular systems. Some are made better than others and become known for this. Once that happens producers of lesser quality clones clone the clones to make more money by passing their cheap shit off as less poor shit.

If your micro genius sounds like shit there's something wrong. If you have 3 that sounds like shit I think I know what the problem is. You bought shit without knowing what to look for and ended up with clone clones. Just like I warned OP about.

Open your clones and compare them to pictures of confirmed original clones widely available on the internet. If they don't match that's all the back up you need.

[Anonymous No.4411514]

>>4410237
i've seen the genuine console vs virtual console vs emulation argument a lot and while im not gonna take a stance on it i do have a question

say i wanted an emulator that i could plug into a TV and play on a couch like a traditional console, but to which could add games whenever i choose and preferably play them with little to no input lag
basically a hyperkin/retron system with all its games stored on an onboard memory
does such an emulator/device exist?

and before you ask i've been to a raspberry pi thread and i've seen some comments about it breaking down or something
but then again i dont know whether this kind of thing is a consistent occurrence so i dont really have an accurate image of its reliability

[Anonymous No.4411517]

>>4410652
>Discrete clones that use discrete PPUs and CPUs
Are there any of these that are still easy to find? I've never actually seen one.

[Anonymous No.4411519]

>>4411514
I haven't heard of too many RPis failing. Tons of people use them to do exactly what you're talking about.

>little to no input lag
Good luck with that.

[Anonymous No.4411530]

>>4410209
You're better off with original hardware. However the only clone console I own is the AtGames Sega Genesis Flashback HD, which is great. But my only gripe with that system is the menu navigation. Other than that, I think it was worth the buy. However I highly recommend just using a retro pi.

[Anonymous No.4411535]

>>4411519
can a wired controller be used with RPis to decrease input lag? or would that just be a useless thing to have?
the wire would be a fair trade for accuracy imo

[Anonymous No.4411545]

>>4411535
It might (or might not) help very slightly, but at the end of the day you're still running the games in emulators running on a full multitasking OS. Lag is inevitable.

[Anonymous No.4411551]

early 90s Famiclones are pretty good, but they aren't easy to find by now, and for the price they might be asking you're better off getting a real Famicom.

[Anonymous No.4411556]

>>4411545
hm
how much lag are we talking about, and would it be affected by available memory? say i saw the nes classic as having too many unnecessary games on it or something and used the RPi to only store a select few games. how much lag would that create?

[Anonymous No.4411614]

>>4411556
We're talking a few frames for a Raspberry Pi. No, it's not affected by available memory, but the actual system architecture and to some extent the emulators themselves. I hear there's been some effort toward bringing the lag down to levels similar to a Windows PC, but that's still a work in progress.

[Anonymous No.4411643]

>>4410248
have you tried modding a wii? it can output 240p over component and has a lot of good emulators

[Anonymous No.4411649]

Every genesis clone i have tried was absolute dog shit.

Famiclones seem to do a better job.

[Anonymous No.4411662]

>>4411517
If they were ever easy for you to find they're not much harder to find now

>>4411551
A couple years ago I bought a CIB 501 for ~$20. The same day I bought a CIB FC + CIB FDS for the same price. It's literally not worth wasting your time on Famiclones unless you're a collector. Or so poor a second hand shit one for $1 is your only option.

[Anonymous No.4411858]

>>4410209
from my research the super retro trio is the best of the cheap clone consoles but that's not saying too much.

Seems like a really mixed bag. If you get one, go for Amazon or a similar retailer that you can replace it very easily from.

[Anonymous No.4411863]

>>4410209 (OP)
from my research the first version of the super retro trio is the best of the cheap clone consoles but they fucked it up with version 2.

The first version's controllers had Genesis plugs while version 2 has SNES plugs.

check out this thread: http://www.sega-16.com/forum/showthread.php?27860-Super-retro-trio-tear-down-Taking-apart-the-SR3/page18

[Anonymous No.4411875]

>>4410237
>before the author went crazy

Elaborate? Sounds like a fun read. Author was Nemesis, right?

[Anonymous No.4411881]

>>4410656
>>4410721
>>4411282
Here's a pic of the inside of my Micro Genius.
Doesn't look like a NOAC to me

[Anonymous No.4411886]

>>4411649
yeah can they not get the original chips anymore?
genesis's are so cheap anyways

[Anonymous No.4412042]

>>4411643
Yeah, I've got one for my CRT setup. In just genuinely curious a about clone consoles. Chinese bootleg stuff fascinates me.

[Anonymous No.4412062]

>>4411530
I assume anyone who says the Genesis Flashback HD is "good", didn't actually own a Genesis in the 90s. I've played one, and it's better than At-Games' pervious attempts, but it still sucks.

Sound is often off-pitch, or missing some sounds. Random slowdowns and speed ups don't help. Sometimes it drops frames. It's not great.

[Anonymous No.4412130]

>>4411517
They're not manufactured in large quantities (if at all) anymore, but you can get vintage ones pretty easily. There's really no reason to however, because they often cost the same or more than a used Famicom. Most Famiclone collectors are south americans or eastern europeans who grew up with them as their 'official' nintendos, so that's where their nostalgia is.

[Anonymous No.4412290]

>>4411881
Original TXC machines didn't have that logo on the chips. And the A/V board is obviously some third rate knock off shit. In fact that could be the source of your sound problems. Swap the CPU (MG-P-501) with an original CPU and see what happens. If there's no improvement the A/V board is guaranteed shit. But let's face it, you can tell it's guaranteed shit just looking at it. If swapping CPUs fixes the sound then it has a shitty clone clone CPU, and almost certainly PPU. The main board looks OK though. Many clone clone board were reasonably well made perfect copies.

[Anonymous No.4412309]

>>4412290
Good to know. I don't think I'm gonna mod it, though, anyway.
I have a bunch more famiclones lying around and some of them even look and sound better than this one.
Funny thing is, back in the day I got a couple of these Micro Genius systems thinking they would be the best of the bunch since they're hardware clones but they're not. I didn't know there would be different versions of them.

[Anonymous No.4412330]

I've heard good things about this little shit.

Anyone here used one?

[Anonymous No.4412346]

>>4412330
They look fun, but only run with the custom carts they ship with which limits your game options.

[Anonymous No.4412347]

>>4411881
Yeah that's not a NOAC. Could just be a mediocre hardware clone, but it's definitely discrete.

[Anonymous No.4412365]

>>4411514
Well, your best option is to run a small mini-itx (look it up, too in depth for this right now) and adjust the low latency options in your emulator. Those mini Android or ARM based emu boxes are all shit and are not worth your money.

[Anonymous No.4412402]

>>4412062
>I assume anyone who says the Genesis Flashback HD is "good", didn't actually own a Genesis in the 90s.
Well you assume wrong then because I owned one when I was 9 years old back in 1991. My dad sold my NES so he could get me a new game console. I had a choice between the Sega Genesis & the SNES. I picked the Sega Genesis because it looked cooler. I made the right choice. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have gotten into the Sonic games or buying Sonic comics.

Besides, I already suggested to OP is better off with original hardware or buying a retro pi. I also made criticism of the HD AtGames Sega Genesis. I assume anyone who thinks that giving AtGames a praise for their HD Sega Genesis console, obviously never played one. Other than the menu navigation controls, everything else about the console is fine. The sound, the framerate and everything is good. I didn't experience slowdowns or whatever, but then again I was using a wired controller.

[Anonymous No.4412410]

>>4412365
from what i see the mini-itx is a bit too much for what im going for, costing upwards of 1K
how are the raspberry pi chips shit, exactly?

[Anonymous No.4412416]

>>4412410
>ARM
Low clock speeds meaning less accurate emulation and slowdowns.
>Mini-itx
>1k
what the fuck. You can build a decent emu box that can do PS1 and under for like 200 bucks.

[Anonymous No.4412427]

>>4412416
ive seen the compatibility lists and most of what i want works alright, and as >>4411614 said the slowdown is only a few frames, which i can live with

and apparently i was looking at builds that use the mini itx and not the board exclusively, but i think i'd prefer the RPi if only for its simplicity in setting up, regardless of cost

[Anonymous No.4412430]

>>4410209
>It seems like most them them are shitty little emulator machines with a cartridge slot and controller ports.

Don't create confusion between clones and emulators please, emulators are all software while clones try to be hardware.

[Anonymous No.4412452]

Just use your old gayming pc with emulators and a CRT monitor

[Anonymous No.4412841]

>>4412430
You realize most of the "clone" consoles on the market currently are an SoC that runs an emulator, right?

[Anonymous No.4412872]

>>4412841
You realize that most of the clone consoles on the market currently are a SoC that is absolutely not running an emulator, right?

When will this meme die? SoCs that run software emulators are vastly more expensive than a NOAC or similar, it's simply not the case.

[Anonymous No.4412903]

Anyone tried this clones?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Super-Game-Players-Entertainment-System-For-Super-Nintendo-Region-Unlocked-Clone/263065852563?hash=item3d3ff25a93:g:v2MAAOSw3h1ZV20G

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/80s-Home-Retro-Classic-Game-Console-Family-Famicom-Console-With-500-ENS-Games/253044995057?hash=item3aeaa833f1:m:mpBVNsUCtU0Q1Diqee5KWCQ

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Retro-Games-Family-Console-500-132-Game-Childhood-8-Bit-80s-Computer-game-For-TV/182649647149?hash=item2a86c4702d:m:mtc0TqT69iwsQcZi9Bd4D_Q

[Anonymous No.4412925]

>>4412903
1. Most SNES clones are very compatible and pretty decent overall
2. Good composite video, otherwise not worth it, won't run an everdrive
3. see 2.
4. Buy a real Famicom, it's like the same price

[Anonymous No.4412931]

>>4412925
I have bought 3 famicoms from japan and none of them worked, either the power regulator had fried, or the RF didnt work.

With shipping they are $60 and theres no composite.

I have a AV famicom but I want a original style famicom.

[Anonymous No.4413265]

>>4412309
That's exactly why there's no point pissing around with clones unless you're a collector and know what to look for.

>>4412330
You heard wrong. And it's not even little shit, it's huge shit. And the build quality is terrible. I've used one. I could literally feel it falling apart in my hands as I played.

[Anonymous No.4413308]

>>4412931
>I want a original style famicom.
but y tho

[Anonymous No.4413384]

>>4411514
flashcarts

[Anonymous̩ No.4413483]

>>4413384
a flashcart in a real console would be the most faithful method
a flashcart is a cartridge with flash memory that you can put one or (usually) more games on, and if it has multiple games there's a really simple menu to go through to pick one before it boots up for real
after that would be a flashcart in a very good clone console, and after that would be your less-good hardware clones and your top-tier emulators, and below that you might as well not buy/download/build whatever it is unless you're like me and got into emulation early enough that you're actually nostalgic for specific emulators along with games and hardware, pic related

[Anonymous No.4413486]

>>4410209
You can get a version 2 model 1 and the model 2 for about $30 or less so there no need for that garbage clone. Get an original console and a few games or an everdrive and load it with roms. Most of the carts are cheap as well.

[Anonymous No.4413526]

>>4413486
The main appeal to these shitty Genesis clones isn't that they can play the old carts, but that they have built in games. The price being comparable to an original console is kind of irrelevant, because with the shitty @games consoles you're also getting about 40 Genesis games built in. A flashcart is the better option, obviously, but there is an appeal to these.

The fucking sound quality kills it, though.

[Anonymous No.4413552]

>>4412931
Daily reminder that "untested" is ebaynese for broken

[Anonymous No.4413607]

>>4411514
Recently got myself a wii for basically free. Easy as shit to hack and load with emulators. Outputs 240p. Best purchase ive made in years. Also plays gc and wii games.

[Anonymous No.4414319]

>>4412872
What you're saying is completely true for the NES clone consoles, but doesn't really apply to anything else.

Pretty much everything At-Games releases is emulation based. The Retron multi-console systems are emulation based. Most of the cheap Mega Drive/Genesis clones on the market are emulation based. Most of the GBA and GBC clones are emulation based.

[Anonymous No.4414328]

>>4413486
If you bothered to actually read the thread, I specified a few times I do own a real genesis (2 actually).

I'm just interested in clone consoles. Can we just talk about clone consoles without autists trying to tell me to buy the real hardware?

[Anonymous No.4414435]

>>4413552
It can be but most often the untested stuff I've bought worked just fine.

Some sellers just want to shift stock quickly and any return is profit to them. Getting bogged down in claims and returns is no joke if you're doing this as a business.

[Anonymous No.4414580]

>>4413552
Japan sellers usually put *junk* in the title if it doesnt work

[Anonymous No.4414808]

>>4414580
Actually, "junk" in Japanese listings usually doesn't mean it doesn't work. It just means "no warranty". Almost all of the "junk" stuff I've bought in Japan works perfectly. If something actually doesn't work, it's usually sold as 訳あり or 難あり.

Of course, you still need to exercise caution, but Japanese sellers are WAY more honest about these things on average than US sellers in my experience.

[Anonymous No.4414982]

>>4412903
Why buy that when I own an actual SNES Jr? Maybe if it had a HDMI port and a microSD card slot, I might consider buying one.

>>4414328
Get an AtGames Sega Genesis Flashback HD console then. It's the best Sega Genesis clone console that resembles the original. The only flaw it has is the menu navigation controls.

[Anonymous No.4414986]

>>4414982
>Get an AtGames Sega Genesis Flashback HD console then. It's the best Sega Genesis clone console that resembles the original. The only flaw it has is the menu navigation controls.
It also sounds absolutely horrible. NEVER fucking buy an AtGames genesis, they're all dogshit. This might be a video of the 2015 version but the HD consoles sounds exactly the same.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gYLL9GlsSI

[Anonymous No.4415000]

>>4414986
>2015
>The HD consoles sound exactly the same
You obviously never played on one. The sound quality is much better.

[Anonymous No.4415005]

>>4415000
Prove it. I've seen multiple reviews of it and they're all the exact same dogshit sound quality the previous models had.

[Anonymous No.4415107]

>>4415005
This video proves it...
https://youtu.be/qqonOoqAiMU