nes/snes retro duo! pics, review, hacking info 7/27/10

Includes but not limited to: SNES, Genesis, Sega CD, PlayStation 1, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, Game Gear and I guess the Virtual Boy.

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lovablechevy
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nes/snes retro duo! pics, review, hacking info 7/27/10

Post by lovablechevy » Mon Jan 28, 2008 4:03 pm

THIS POST CONTAINS HANDY HACKING INFO - SCROLL DOWN!

PLEASE EITHER POST YOUR COMPATIBILITY LIST HERE OR PM ME! I WILL ADD IT TO THE GROWING LIST!

updated compatibility list as of 10/20/11

nes (i am using good since i don't have an actual nes to compare)
  • * 1942 - good
    * 1943 - good but sound issues
    * adventures of bayou billy - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * astyanax - good (lanf)
    * baseball - good
    * batman - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * battletoads - loads but freezes in second stage / good (Joel Schmidt) / loads but freezes at end of 2nd stage (nickerous)
    * bayou billy - good (lanf)
    * bible adventures - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * bionic commando - good (lanf)
    * blaster master - good
    * captain skyhawk - good (lanf)
    * castlevania - good
    * castlevania ii: simon's quest - good
    * castlevania iii: dracula's curse - good
    * color caves - does not work (Torokun - suspects it is a cart issue)
    * chiller - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * chip 'n' dale: rescue rangers - good (tomselleck)
    * commando - good
    * contra - good
    * crystalis - good (tomselleck)
    * dig dug 2 - good
    * double dragon - good but sound issues (lanf)
    * double dragon 3 - good but sound issues (lanf)
    * double dribble - good (themadhacker)
    * dr. mario - good but with slight sound unbalance (lanf)
    * dragon spirit - good (lanf)
    * dragon warrior - good
    * dragon warrior ii - good
    * dragon warrior iii - good
    * dragon warrior iv - good
    * duck hunt - no way to test
    * dungeon magic: sword of the elements - good
    * dusty diamond's all star softball - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * fast break - good (lanf)
    * final fantasy - good
    * gauntlet (unlicensed) - good
    * ghosts 'n goblins - good
    * gilligan's island - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * gold medal challange 92 - good (lanf)
    * golgo 13 - good (lanf)
    * gradius - good
    * guardian legend - good - just a note, this did not work on the super 8
    * gyromite - good
    * hydlide - good
    * ironsword: wizards & warriors ii - good
    * journey to silius - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * kabuki quantum fighter - perfect (FakePlasticBall)
    * kid icarus - good
    * kirby's adventure - poor sound (FakePlasticBall)
    * klax - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * kung fu - good
    * legacy of the wizard - good
    * legend of zelda - good
    * legendary wings - good
    * load runner - good (Torokun)
    * magic of scheherazade - good
    * maniac mansion - good
    * mega man - good
    * mega man 2 - good
    * mega man 3 - good
    * mega man 4 - good
    * mega man 5 - good
    * mega man 6 - good
    * metal gear - good
    * metroid - good
    * mickey mouscapade - good (lanf)
    * mike tyson's punch out!!! - perect (weirdalduke)
    * milon's secret castle - good
    * m.u.l.e. - good (Torokun)
    * ninja gaiden - works but sound issues (lanf)
    * ninja gaiden 2 - works but sound issues (lanf)
    * pac-man - good
    * pac-mania - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * paperboy - does not work - controller is not recognized
    * pro wrestling - good (lanf)
    * quattro adventure - all 4 games good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * rad racer - good (lanf)
    * rad racer 2 - good (lanf)
    * rc pro-am - good (lanf)
    * rolling thunder - does not work (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * romance of the three kingdoms - good
    * shinobi (tengen) - good (lanf)
    * spy hunter - good (Franky)
    * star tropics - good
    * star tropics ii: zoda's revenge - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * strider - perfect (FakePlasticBall)
    * sunday funday - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * super c - works but sound issues (lanf)
    * super mario bros - good
    * Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet - good (Franky)
    * super mario bros 2 - good
    * super mario bros 3 - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below) / poor sound (FakePlasticBall) / does not work well (weirdalduke)
    * super mario bros/duck hunt - smb is good no way to test duck hunt
    * tag team wrestling - good (lanf)
    * tecmo cup: soccer game - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * tecmo world wrestling - good (lanf)
    * teenage mutant ninja turtles - good
    * teenage mutant ninja turtles ii: the arcade game - good
    * teenage mutant ninja turtles iii: the manhattan project - good
    * tetris - good
    * tetris 2 - good (lanf)
    * track & field 2 - good (lanf)
    * trojan - good
    * vegavox - good (Torokun)
    * vice: project doom - good (Frankie_Says_Relax from video below)
    * willow - good (lanf)
    * wizards & warriors - good with minor sound issues (lanf)
    * world class track meet - good (lanf)
    * xevious - perfect (FakePlasticBall)
    * yoshi - good
    * zelda ii: the adventure of link - good
famicom with converter
  • * advanced dungeons & dragons: dragons of flame - good
    * baseball - good
    * best play baseball special - good
    * family golf - good
    * family jockey -
    * family mah jong ii: shanghai he no michi - good
    * family stadium baseball '87 - good
    * family stadium baseball '88 - good
    * family tennis - good
    * fighting golf - good
    * fire emblem - good
    * fire emblem gaiden - good
    * golf - good
    * mah jong (nintendo) -
    * mah jong 1 (seta) - good
    * mother - good
    * musashi no bouken - good
    * soccer - good
    * suito homu - good
    * super real baseball '88 - good
    * tennis - good
nes repro carts
  • * advanced dungeons & dragons: dragons of flame - good
    * adventures of musashi - good
    * earthbound zero - good
    * sweet home - good
pal nes
  • * bad dudes vs dragon ninja - good (loopy_101)
    * batman - good (Thorium)
    * Battle of Olympus - good (Franky)
    * Blue Shadow - good (Franky)
    * The Bugs Bunny Blowout - good (Franky)
    * castlevania - good (Thorium)
    * castlevania ii: simon's quest - good (Thorium)
    * Dragon's Lair - good (Franky)
    * Fester's Quest - good (Franky)
    * Journey to Silius - The game works, but the music sound is way off. (Franky)
    * Kabuki Quantum Fighter - good (Franky)
    * Micro Machines - This game should usually require a regular NES game plugged on top of it to work. It works even without that on the Retro Duo. (Franky)
    * Nintendo World Cup - good (Franky)
    * Pro Wrestling - good (Franky)
    * robocop - good (loopy_101)
    * Section Z - The game works, but the top part of the screen doesn't scroll properly. (Franky)
    * Solstice - good (Franky)
    * spot - good (bacteria)
    * Star Wars - good (Franky)
    * Super Mario Bros. - This is pretty hard to play at the higher speed. (Franky)
    * super mario bros./duck hunt - Works fine, although Duck Hunt could do with a zapper and Mario runs a little too fast (loopy_101)
    * super mario bros. 3 - good (Thorium)
    * Sword Master - The game works, but the music sound is way off. (Franky)
    * Top Gun - good (Franky)
    * Wrath of the Black Manta - good (Franky)
    * Wrestlemania Challenge - good (Franky)
    * yoshi's cookie - good (bacteria)
super gameboy
  • pal super gameboy - perfect works instantly (Thorium)

  • gameboy
    • * donkey kong land - perfect
      * final fantasy adventure - perfect
      * final fantasy legend - perfect
      * final fantasy legend ii - perfect
      * final fantasy legend iii - perfect
      * legend of zelda: link's awakening - perfect
      * pokemon blue, red, yellow - all perfect
      * super mario land - perfect
      * super mario land 2: 6 golden coins - perfect
      * tetris - good (Video Game Central from video below)
      * wheel of fortune - good (themadhacker)
    gameboy color
    • * dragon warrior monsters - perfect
      * pokemon gold, silver - perfect
      * pokemon pinball - perfect
snes
  • * actraiser - good (FakePlasticBall & weirdalduke) / does not work (Torokun)
    * aladdin - perfect
    * axelay - good (lanf)
    * batman returns - good (loopy_101)
    * the blues brothers - good (Franky)
    * breath of fire ii - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * capcom's soccer shoot out - good (lanf)
    * choplifter iii: rescue & survive - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * chrono trigger - perfect
    * donkey kong country - perfect
    * donkey kong country 2: diddy's kong quest - perfect
    * donkey kong country 3: dixie kong's double trouble - perfect
    * drakkhen - good (lanf)
    * earthbound - perfect
    * earthworm jim 2 - perfect
    * f-zero - perfect
    * final fantasy iii - good (deeyay)
    * final fantasy: mystic quest - perfect
    * game genie - good (Video Game Central from video below)
    * illusion of gaia - perfect
    * james bond jr. - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * ka-blooey - good (Franky)
    * killer instinct - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * kirby's dream land 3 - sometimes works (FakePlasticBall)
    * legend of zelda: a link to the past - perfect
    * liberty or death - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * lufia and the fortress of doom - perfect
    * lufia ii: rise of the sinistrals - perfect
    * madden 97 - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * mario paint - good with mouse (Video Game Central from video below)
    * megaman x - good (ShockSlayer)
    * megaman x2 - good (ShockSlayer)
    * nba showdown - good (lanf)
    * nhl '94 - good (Franky)
    * nhl '96 - good (themadhacker)
    * nigel mansel - good (lanf)
    * out of this world - good (Franky)
    * peace keepers, the - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * phalanx - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * pilot wings - good (lanf)
    * pro quarterback - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * rival turf - good (loopy_101)
    * secret of evermore - perfect
    * shadowrun - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * star fox - perfect
    * stargate - good (Franky)
    * street fighter 2 - good (lanf)
    * super bases loaded - perfect
    * super castlevania iv - good (lanf)
    * super mario all-stars - perfect
    * super mario all-stars + world - good (ShockSlayer)
    * super mario kart - pefect (weirdalduke)
    * super mario rpg: legend of the seven stars v 1.0- perfect
    * super mario world - perfect
    * super mario world 2: yoshi's island - perfect
    * super punch out!!! - good (Video Game Central from video below)
    * super r type - good but one sound channel seems to not work (Torokun)
    * super street fighter 2 - good (lanf)
    * super tennis - good (lanf)
    * teenage mutant ninja turtles: tournament fighters - good (Franky)
    * ultima vi: the false prophet - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * where in time is carmen sandiego? - good (FakePlasticBall)
    * wing commander: the secret missions - good (FakePlasticBall)
super famicom
  • * bahamut lagoon - good (Franky)
    * battle dodgeball: tokyu gekitotsu - good (Franky)
    * blackthorne - good (Franky)
    * chrono trigger - good (Franky)
    * der langrisser - good (Franky)
    * dragon ball z: super butōden 3 - good (Video Game Central from video below)
    * dragon quest v - perfect
    * dragon quest vi - perfect
    * elfaria - good (Franky)
    * eye of the beholder - good (Franky)
    * far east of eden zero - good (Franky)
    * final fantasy: mystic quest - good (Franky)
    * final fantasy iv - perfect (Joel Schmidt)
    * final fantasy v - perfect (Joel Schmidt)
    * final fantasy vi - perfect (Joel Schmidt)
    * final fight 2 - good (Franky)
    * fire fighting - good (Franky)
    * the firemen - good (Franky)
    * front mission - good (Franky)
    * front mission: gun hazard - good (Franky)
    * gokujou parodius - good (tomselleck)
    * kirby superstar - good but has shadowing on title screen (Joel Schmidt)
    * pop n' twinbee - good (tomselleck)
    * ranma nibunnoichi: hard battle - good (tomselleck)
    * rock n' roll racing - good (Franky)
    * rockman's soccer - good (tomselleck)
    * rockmanx - good (Crockett)
    * romancing saga 3 - good (Franky)
    * ryuuko no ken (art of fighting) - good (Franky)
    * seiken densetsu 2 (secret of mana)- good (Franky)
    * seiken densetsu 3 - good (Joel Schmidt)
    * septentrion - good (Franky)
    * sid meier's civilization - good (Franky)
    * sim city jr. - good (Franky)
    * starfox - good (Franky)
    * street fighter ii - good (Franky)
    * street fighter ii turbo - good (Franky)
    * super donkey kong (donkey kong country) - good (Franky)
    * super gatchapon world sd gundam x - good (Franky)
    * super castles - good (Franky)
    * super metroid - good (Crockett)
    * super street fighter ii - good (Franky)
    * syvalion - good (Franky)
    * tactics ogre: let us cling together - good (Franky)
    * tales of phantasia - good (Franky)
    * wonder project j - good (Franky)
snes repro carts
  • * secret of mana 2 - perfect
pal snes
  • * actraiser - good (deeyay)
    * axelay - good (deeyay)
    * batman forever - good (loopy_101)
    * blazing skies - good (loopy_101)
    * darius twin - good (deeyay)
    * desert strike - good (loopy_101)
    * donkey kong country - does not work (Gatchan)
    * earthworm jim - good (Leolio31)
    * earthworm jim 2 - good (Leolio31)
    * f-zero - good (Crockett)
    * flashback - good (loopy_101)
    * hyper zone - good (Thorium)
    * illusion of time - does not work (deeyay)
    * jurassic park - good (Thorium)
    * Kirby's Fun Pak - does not work (Franky)
    * The Lawnmower Man - good (Franky)
    * The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past - good (Franky)
    * parodius - good (tomselleck)
    * plok - does not work (Thorium)
    * pro action replay mk 2.t - perfect
    * Rise of the Robots - good (Franky)
    * Shaq-Fu - good (Franky)
    * secret of mana - does not work (Leolio31)
    * Starwing - This game has serious graphic issues. See this post for more info.
    * street fighter ii - good (deeyay)
    * super castlevania iv - good (deeyay)
    * Super Game Boy - It took a lot of tries to get this to work. The upper connector might be going bad though.
    * super mario all stars - does not work (Gatchan)
    * super mario all stars + super mario world - doesn't work, shows the wrong region message (loopy_101)
    * super mario kart - good (Video Game Central from video below)
    * super mario world - good (deeyay)
    * super metroid - does not work (deeyay)
    * super probotector: alien rebels - good (deeyay)
    * super r-type - good (deeyay)
    * super smash tv - good (deeyay)
    * super swiv - good (deeyay)
    * super tennis - good (deeyay)
    * terranigma - does not work. this upset me. if my understanding is correct, this game has the strongest form of lock out available. however, it does work when using the pro action replay mk 2.t.
    * top gear - good (deeyay)
    * Virtual Soccer - good (Franky)
    * Wing Commander - good (Franky)
    * yoshi's cookie - good (bacteria)
Franky wrote:If you want more games for your compatibility list, you can check mine here, I update it somewhat regularly: http://rdpal.blogspot.com/2008/07/compa ... -list.html
do you want to be able to play the nes side of the retro duo using nes controllers? see this handy site and thank vomitsaw! basically, it's just as simple as swapping around two wires!

use this "diagram" with the above site if you do not understand.
nes wires / snes wires
brown = brown
yellow = red
orange = orange
red = yellow
white = white
lovablechevy wrote:oh, and for those wondering, this capacitor connected to the power switch IS important.
Image
that is what was not allowing super mario rpg to work. i was nearly at my whits end trying to figure out why it wasn't working. on a whim, i decided to hook that little thing back up that i had heard from many wasn't important. and BOOM! game booted instantly. so, contrary to popular belief, it is a very important thing to have!
taken from here
Life of Brian wrote:Here's a tip if you're connecting just the SNES portion of the Retro Duo. The pinout is mislabeled, so follow what the pictures say:

Image

Image

Also, here's a pinout of the Retro Duo's controllers:

Image
~taken from page 8

here is how to wire a retro duo controller up to the system for quick and easy reference:
Image

here's the pinout for original snes controllers:
this "diagram" shows retroduo controller wires compared to original snes controller wires:
brown = brown
red = red
yellow = orange
blue = yellow
white = white
~reworded from ABCinc from page 19
Life of Brian wrote:More hacking info! Assuming you're using just the SNES portion for a portable, here's how you bypass the power switch after it's been desoldered:

Image

You can now put a switch of your choice between your power supply and the power input of the board.
~taken from page 9
Life of Brian wrote:I have some more information about the Retro Duo. Naturally, I have pictures.

Here is a pinout for a 2nd player port. Just connect these to the matching spots labeled on the Retro Duo:
Image

I noticed that the new revision of the board corrected the error regarding where to put 5v and GND:
Image

Image

Also, the mysterious place where a 7805 could go for a PAL version is now gone:
Image

Here's the old board for comparison:
Image

And here's the date on the old board with the mislabeled section and unused pins.
Image
~taken from page 11
Trstn18 wrote:The pinout is as follows: with the controller ports facing towards you and the cartridge connector facing up, in the back left hand corner of the SNES board there are seven connections.

*pin one is labeled as ground, but when I traced it it registered as +5 volts (and my setup works with that configuration.)*

okay, so figuring out some faulty labeling on the motherboard...

Back left corner connections:

1=+5volts
2=Ground
3=Left audio
4=Chroma
5=Luma
6=Right audio
7=Composite Video

I payed no attention to the 10 connections on the top right side of the board as that has to do with the NES pins, and I removed that permanently, but my friend has confirmed that is labeled correctly.

For the Front 12 Pinouts I can only give you the color coded controller matchup, but as you only connect controllers to this port that should be just fine.

The wire colors in the Retro Duo controller are yellow, red, blue, white, and brown.

1= not used
2= not used
3= Player 1&2 Yellow
4= Player 1 Red
5= Player 1 Blue
6= Player 1&2 White
7= Player 2 Blue
8= Player 1&2 Yellow
9= Player 2 Red
10= Player 1&2 Brown
11= not used
12= not used
*note* there is a capacitor in the center of the controller board. Remove this capacitor and solder it between connections 10 & 6 (that is if you are intending to remove this board)

This setup works perfectly for me (aside from the audio)

hope this helps! : )
~taken from this thread
gamemasterful wrote:Everyone seems to have problems with the sound of the NES side of the Retroduo. I think I found a fix for this.

http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthr ... ?p=1566335" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also I found another hack to add a 50/60 Hz switch to the SNES side, and 5 replies down, a commentor suggests how to fix the video of the SNES side.

http://www.gatchan.net/index.php?archiv ... erendipity" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;[lang_selected]=en

Not sure if these have been discovered before but I'd thought I'd share.
~taken from page 18
Ace_1 wrote:There's actually more to the sound fix than just that capacitor. I found out, while looking at my FC Twin's NES sound circuit, that there's not only a capacitor missing on the RetroDuo's NES sound circuit, but there's also a RESISTOR missing from the circuit, and if it's not present, the sound will be okay, but very rough.

The resistor in question is 2.2Kohms. It need to be soldered on a transistor on the RetroDuo's NES board(I don't remember which one it was, and I don't have my RetroDuo with me to check)

EDIT: The 2.2Kohm resistor goes between the top pin and the bottom-left pin of transistor Q8 on the NES board. Apply that resistor and the 0.1uF capacitor(electrolytic or ceramic, it doesn't matter), and you will get the best NES audio possible out of the RetroDuo.
~taken from page 18
Ace_1 wrote:Tried the video fix for the Super NES side with a 470uF capacitor. The static is STILL visible, but it's almost cleared up completely(it's very faint, now; before the video fix, the static was clearly visible on EVERY game I played). A word of note: if you're using the standard RetroDuo video amp for the NES side when performing the Super NES Composite video fix, the Super NES Composite will be darker than it should, but you can do this to improve the Super NES video and make the NES video a little more saturated so that the colors come out better:

-Cut the part of the NOAC ribbon cable that carries the NES video
-Cut the part of the shared ribbon cable that carries all video signals(Composite, Chroma/Luminance)
-Solder 2 75ohm resistors in series(or a single 150ohm resistor) from the NOAC Composite output on the NOAC board to the Composite plug

This will darken the NES Composite a little bit and make the colors a little more saturated so that the video matches that of a Front-Loader NES a little more, and, in turn, will brighten the Super NES Composite. With this, however, you will lose NES S-Video
~taken from page 18

scroll down to see pictures and read a review.

back to original post

hey guys! i haven't noticed this system mentioned anywhere here. it looks to be much better than the fc twin. it can play super mario rpg and games with the fx chip perfectly. it also claims to play castlevania iii perfectly. anyway, here are some links!

http://store.gameasylum.us/reduo8bit16b1.html

unboxing video

review & setup

user video review part 1

user video review part 2

nes compatibility testing video part 1

nes compatibility testing video part 2

nes & snes compatibility testing videos: part 1, part 2, & part 3

Digital Press forums Retro Duo information

3d realms retro duo information

enjoy! :D
Last edited by lovablechevy on Thu Oct 20, 2011 1:32 pm, edited 40 times in total.

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Post by Life of Brian » Mon Jan 28, 2008 5:32 pm

I haven't seen that before - thanks for the heads up! I always like having options :D I wonder if it has basically the same internals as the FC Twin?
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Post by 17daysolderthannes » Mon Jan 28, 2008 10:25 pm

probably one in the same as the play n trade model. Kinda makes me mad they come out with Castlevania III compatible systems the second I buy an FC Twin. Oh well, I'm not a huge Castlevania III fan anyway. Oh, and S-Video is useless for Super Nintendo.

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Post by lovablechevy » Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:21 am

i ordered one before i even posted the links about it. as soon as i get it, i'll take pics of all of it, including the guts and post them.

i bought mine through ebay, and the seller states:
"Unlike the FC Twin, the Retro Duo uses actual NES/SNES hardware" and that it is a "fully licensed design."

guess we'll see as soon as i get my hands on it! :twisted:

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Post by Life of Brian » Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:28 am

I can't wait to see! If you're up to it, perhaps you could measure it as well so we can compare the dimensions to the FC Twin? Also, if you have a multimeter handy, can I ask you a favor and measure how much current it draws? I can instruct you how to do it if you need me to. It's easy and takes like five seconds to do.
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Post by lovablechevy » Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:31 am

sure i'll measure it! :D

i don't have a mulitmeter, but if they aren't too much, i can get one. i'll be happy to do whatever to get anyone the info they need! 8)

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Post by Life of Brian » Tue Jan 29, 2008 11:15 am

lovablechevy wrote:sure i'll measure it! :D

i don't have a mulitmeter, but if they aren't too much, i can get one. i'll be happy to do whatever to get anyone the info they need! 8)
You can find cheap ones for as little as a few dollars, but it would probably be in your best interest (if you plan on continuing with tinkering with electronics) to get a decent one for around $15 - $20. That way you'll be able to double-check your connections (make sure ground isn't touching positive!), see what voltage your batteries are providing, test resistors for their values, and also see what kind of current your electronics are pulling so you can estimate battery life. It's very handy to have and essential for this kind of stuff.
dragonhead wrote:sweet. ive spent a third of my life on benheck!
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Kyo
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Post by Kyo » Tue Jan 29, 2008 12:08 pm

I hope they ever bring one to germany...

17daysolderthannes
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Post by 17daysolderthannes » Tue Jan 29, 2008 3:05 pm

Kyo wrote:I hope they ever bring one to germany...
well, if they will ship internationally, you could get one off of eBay because supposedly its compatible with all regions.

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Post by 17daysolderthannes » Tue Jan 29, 2008 3:20 pm

lovablechevy wrote: i bought mine through ebay, and the seller states:
"Unlike the FC Twin, the Retro Duo uses actual NES/SNES hardware" and that it is a "fully licensed design."
crap, I guarantee you, for several reasons:

1) Nintendo would have to be stupid to support real NES/SNES hardware when the Virtual Console is a huge selling point for the Wii as well as the only way to make money off of these old games besides compilation discs. Nintendo makes absolutely nothing off of used games. Also, do you see Nintendo logos anywhere? no. The Genesis 3 was licensed hardware made by ?Majesco? and had Sega logos all over it.

2) To make a true, 100% original chipset, it would cost several hundred dollars because it would have to be manufactured the same way the originals were and they can't sell it at a loss the way Nintendo did because they can't make money back on game licensing. Therefore, I will bet any takers $10 that its an NOAC and a simplified SNES chipset (possibly SNES-OAC, who knows) just wired properly to allow for Castlevania III function (according to Nesdev, the current NOACs don't connect certain pins to the cartridge slot which keeps the MMC5 mapper from working). Many of the "incompatible" titles of the FC Twin have been reported to work, including Batter Up, Mario RPG, and TMNT III (which I have tested personally). Only Paperboy and Castlevania III have been confirmed by me to not work on the FC Twin or regular FC.

3) Come on, its an eBay seller, they don't even know what they're looking at when it comes to electronics (99.99999% of the time). Hell, even videogamecentral.com said the "O" on the O/J switch of the Gen X stood for "Original" when it obviously stood for "Overseas" because its a Japanese MD2FC with American cart slots. But of course, sellers like that prefer to lie and make it sound like they know what they're talking about rather than admitting they only heard about it a week before they started selling it and don't have a clue how any of it works.

In spite of all the seller bashing, I hope it turns out to be a good system so I have an alternative if my FC Twin craps out or if I desire another 2 in 1 for some reason. Hopefully they'll tack on a Genesis slot too and make it a complete 3 in 1 with a Genesis 6 button-style controller with additional shoulder buttons for the SNES games.

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lovablechevy
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Post by lovablechevy » Fri Feb 08, 2008 8:28 am

ok, so it took a lot longer to get here than i was expecting. it's waiting for me at ups. so, i'll get it tonight and have pics and a review for you all on monday! :D hopefully this thing works as well as it claims to! i have several games to test out on it, including several gameboy games to make sure there aren't glitches in some of them using the super gameboy. here is the numbers list i have to try out:

6 famicom (if my converter gets here)
17 nes
11 gb
4 gbc
18 snes
2 pal snes
2 super famicom

my collection is mostly rpgs since that is my favorite. anyway, i'll post all the info on monday as soon as i can! have a great weekend everyone!

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SZF2001
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Post by SZF2001 » Sun Feb 10, 2008 12:55 am

UGH. Man. I'd like to have Svideo but I've already had a FC Twin for almost a year now (still working great btw lol)...

I still haven't had a chance to really play into Mario RPG though. I need to find a friend with a cart or, gulp, pay a ridiculous amount of money and get my own. I mean, it'd be nice to have my own but damn it's ridiculous...

And all my other "non compatible" games work (the ones according to Wikipedia) like BatterUp! and other FX chip games... I just clean my carts with rubbing alcohol and they come out fine and better than blowing on them...
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grahf
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Post by grahf » Sun Feb 10, 2008 3:30 am

SZF2001, you can add s-video to an FC Twin. You just need 2 caps and 2 resistors, and a svideo plug.

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Post by SZF2001 » Sun Feb 10, 2008 9:46 pm

I will try that.
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lovablechevy
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Post by lovablechevy » Mon Feb 11, 2008 5:39 pm

finally i've gotten my retro duo. so, is this thing as good as it claims to be? let's find out!

i immediately looked at the packaging. it's actually nice packaging. a pretty box with a nice see through window.

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box front

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box flap

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box back

i open it up and this is what is inside:

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the controllers and console are very firmly in place. this impressed me. it took me a little force and bending of the plastic holder to get them out. the controllers are a little lighter than the original snes controllers. and they feel kind of clicky. the console is of a moderate weight. obviously, it is lighter than the snes. it's quite a bit smaller. i really like the look of it.

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fyi, i am a girl and i don't have that big of hands. this console is pretty small!

i open it up to look at the inside. of course, i don't really know what i'm looking at, but here are the pics.

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top side

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bottom side

the board, in it's entirety is 5 1/4" w 5" tall on short side and 5 3/4" on longer side. the smaller nes board is 5 1/4" by 1 3/4". the snes part is 3 1/2" (short side), 5 1/4" wide, 4 1/4" (long side), and the bottom is 3 3/4" with a 1/2" going further down to the final 1 1/2". hopefully that makes sense.

now, i will admit that i do not know much about electronics or the noac and such. but, i don't see where this is a noac for the nes part. unless it's the very small glop top on the bottom of the nes board.

interestingly, this is only two boards as compared to the 3 for the fc twin. so, it is not exactly the same!

i have not had time to get a multi-meter. but when i do, i will measure its draw. the ac adapter is only 5v. if that means anything.

so i reassembled it and immediately started to test out all my games for it. the snes games i played a few mins on the retro duo and then a few mins on the snes to compare. unfortunately, i do not own an nes. i was using the rare super 8 converter to play nes games through my snes. and it didn't have that great of compatibility. anyway, here is the list of games and what i found:

***moved to top of page for easy access***

i haven't gotten my converter yet for famicom games.

i love everything about the system except the controllers. they are just too stiff and clicky feeling. but i really wanted the controllers to match the console. luckily, i had two mostly dead snes controllers. so, i just simply swapped the pads. now i have the responsiveness of the original controller. woo hoo!

the only comment i have left to make is that to me, the sound for the nes side sounded a little weird. not weird in the sense of how it does through my super 8 (very tinish). it's hard to describe. it was almost as if it was coming through so loud that it was distorted even though i barely had the volume up. *shrugs* overall, i think this is an excellent buy, and would probably make for a great portable.
Last edited by lovablechevy on Sun Mar 02, 2008 10:40 pm, edited 6 times in total.

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