The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls
Main => Consoles => Topic started by: pbj on July 18, 2019, 11:31:43 pm
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So I’ve currently got a top loader with composite mod, Retro Duo, and Retron 2 lined up, I thought it would be fun to take some comparison photos. Same Tv, same cables, same input, same lighting.
Here’s the newest arrival, the Retron 2. This system has some weird quirks - you have to use an NES controller for NES games, and SNES controller for SNES games. It has both a system toggle switch and a separate power switch. SNES also has an eject lever. It feels much sturdier than the Retro Duo. I think the switch setup will last much longer. Pack in controllers (1 snes, 1 nes) feel like garbage. Didn’t test them. Cartridge slots aren’t shaped to fit snugly around the carts, which is disappointing. Need to be careful when putting games in it.
Retron 2
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378149)
Here’s the Retro Duo. When I bought it, it was the “good” clone system. It only supports SNES controllers, but they also work with NES games. Power switch also toggles what system you’re playing. As I’ve documented elsewhere, the PCB support is inadequate and you have to use a lot of force to get snes cartridges in and out. Never saw the pack in controllers for this, they were tossed long ago. I’ve currently got metal glued and clamped to what’s left of the power switch slider to see if I can repair it. It’s also worth mentioning that my console doesn’t have the screeching sound problem and has a PCB revision that’s quite a bit different from what you see on the sound mod pages.
Retro Duo
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378150)
And here’s my top loader that I modded to composite. I did the simpler mod where you cut a resistor off the board and add a transistor. It leaves you with faint jail bars but it’s more easily reversed. You can see them on the K in hawk.
NES top loader with composite mod
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378151)
All three work fine with every bootleg cart I throw at them. All images look fine in isolation. Retro Duo looks better than Retron 2, but the Retron 2 is probably a better choice if you want to use NES controllers and apparently it’s zapper compatible. Top loader looks better than other ones but has to be modded.
If anyone has a suggestion for a good repro NES controller I’d be happy to hear it.
:cheers:
2020 Update - don't buy a Retron 2 from Hyperkin. The cartridge slots are too shallow and using it has been a nightmare.
I just bought a Retro Bit Retro Trio. This has nes snes and genesis and supports composite or hdmi. You can use snes controllers for all 3 systems, or flip a switch and use original controllers for each. So that means you can use snes controller on genesis, but not genesis on snes.
This thing boots every crummy cartridge I've thrown in it, so it's a winner so far.
Retro Trio - composite
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=381157)
Retro Trio - hdmi
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=381158http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=381158)
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Bonus SNES photos, I don’t have an original to compare them against.
Retron 2
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378152)
Retro Duo
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378153)
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Awesome thread. :cheers:
Been interested in a comparison like this. I never gamed on a retron but I see them everywhere on the usual secondhand places for sale.
Kinda disappointing looking for the top loader. To my eyes the Retron 2 looks the best (third image?), but the jailies would bother the hell out of me on the top loader.
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I've been wondering about those cheaper hd enabled nes clones. All the usual youtube suspects say they are crap, but a lot of those guys are accuracy nerds so it's hard to tell even with comparison videos.
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Added some labels to the first post to make it a little more clear which image belongs to which system.
The jail bars suck but they’re not too bad from a few feet away and you also get a reliable NES which kinda trumps all other concerns anyway. I’ll probably break down at some point and cut the leg on the chip to see if that cleans them up. That also kills RF functionality though and just seems wrong to me.
:dunno
Guess we could get really comprehensive and put in some Pi and Famiclone in a controller pics. Those Famiclones looked bad to me long before I cared about such things...
:cheers:
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My Power Joy is apparently dead, so no NOAC photos. Maybe that'll be another pointless project soon....
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Original Xbox via composite on the same TV. Using whatever emulator is in CoinOps. This may actually be the worst yet.
(http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=159740.0;attach=378197)
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Retron 2 definitely looks the best of the clones from here :)
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Might want to go check in with one of your optometrist friends, Dr. Nick.
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Yeah it's got some bad de-interlacing jaggies.
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And the color palette is completely different......
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Well that's always subjective. Well all had different tvs back in the day and since they were analog the color temperatures varied a great deal. It's a little on the pink side but not THAT horrible.
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Same TV, same input, same lighting, same camera.
Maybe it's my colorblindness in effect here, but it looks very different to me. I'm one of those guys that camouflage doesn't usually work on, though.
:cheers:
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I didn't mean your setup was any different from shot to shot, I meant back in the 80's/90's we all had tvs and because they were the old style things could look very different from setup to setup. Memory is a funny thing. To me anyway the first shot has the red saturation turned up too much, the second is about right and the third is a little undersaturated overall.
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First one, dude’s helmet and the Milton Bradley text looks hot pink / silver to me.
:dunno
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Yeah it's on the pink side when it should be on the orange side.
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I'm just going to sit in the corner and rub salt into my eyes until my vision problems are cured. Personally I blame my current TV for making the images look better then they should be. I like Pink :)
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They all look fine in isolation. The top loader is probably the most crisp.
:cheers:
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Updated first post with pictures of Retro Bit Retro Trio. It's $80 but supports hmdi.
Do not buy the hyperkin retron 2. That's been a nightmare of "none of my games work" phone calls. The cartridge slots are too shallow.
Retro Trio has an excellent picture and works with every cart I've put in it.
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Updated first post with pictures of Retro Bit Retro Trio. It's $80 but supports hmdi.
Do not buy the hyperkin retron 2. That's been a nightmare of "none of my games work" phone calls. The cartridge slots are too shallow.
Retro Trio has an excellent picture and works with every cart I've put in it.
Thanks for the review. I've looked at the hyperkin's before but have been afraid to pull the trigger. Have you tried original controllers with the Trio?
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Yep, snes and nes controllers work fine. Do not have any genesis stuff laying around. Could not get zapper to register hits on my CRT.
Other ding on it is super Famicom cartridges have to really be shoved on there. I'd shave the slot a little bit because it put a scratch on my everdrive. Wouldn't take much.
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Yep, snes and nes controllers work fine. Do not have any genesis stuff laying around. Could not get zapper to register hits on my CRT.
Other ding on it is super Famicom cartridges have to really be shoved on there. I'd shave the slot a little bit because it put a scratch on my everdrive. Wouldn't take much.
Cool. I've been looking for an HDMI solution because I own all the NES/SNES cartridges I want to play and a couple of them are not emulated correctly. This might be the ticket. :cheers:
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After a couple weeks of pedaling on my little bike and playing games on the Retro Trio, it was time to take it to its new home. We hooked it up to my uncle’s HDTV and it honestly looked great. We took a stack of cartridges he had set aside as problematic on the Retron 2 and all booted perfectly. I’m going to let him pound on it a couple of months and see if I get any phone calls. Provided that it survives, I’m likely buying one for myself. All those Genesis games got me nostalgic.
:cheers: