I've got a load of U.S snes games which I have never played due to not owning an ntsc snes.
Should I buy an American snes, buy a pal snes that's been modded or mod a pal one myself?
I kind of like the idea of making a project of it and trying to do the mods myself but I haven't done any electronics work or soldering since college (15 years ago) so am unsure whether I would be capable or not.
What do you reckon?
If you can mod it to play all regions then go for it.
I have a megadrive that has a switch on the back to accept pal and ntsc.
My Playstation 1 is chipped to play all regions.
My Playstation 2 is chipped to play all region PS2 and PS1 games.
My XBOX360 is Asian so it plays nearly all games from all regions barring a few Japanese and US games (I cant remember which ones)
If you don't have any console then I'd suggest buying a US NTSC one.
The cartridge sizes are different to the PAL & J-NTSC consoles so you've to enlarge the cartridge slot to make the US carts fits - I've yet to see this done tastefully.
Some PAL consoles are easy to mod for NTSC/60Hz others are a lot more work to do, so you need to be careful which PAL one you end up with.
+1 for the NTSC Snes if your TV accepts NTSC.
I don't know if it's still the case but I bought one from the US a couple of years ago for £40 delivered so it was relatively cheap. I must admit I've not used any of my US carts since buying an Everdrive though.
Quote from: The Last Bandit on 09:10, 28 July 14
Some PAL consoles are easy to mod for NTSC/60Hz others are a lot more work to do, so you need to be careful which PAL one you end up with.
Which PAL console should I look out for to make doing the mods easier?
The mmmonkey guide that explains it says that there is a couple of different board layouts but it sounds like as long as you locate the correct chips, the same procedure should apply.
Just been reading up and it's the 1 chip snes that is a pain to mod. I don't think I'd have any chance of pulling that one off!
Quote from: beaker on 09:24, 28 July 14
+1 for the NTSC Snes if your TV accepts NTSC.
I don't know if it's still the case but I bought one from the US a couple of years ago for £40 delivered so it was relatively cheap. I must admit I've not used any of my US carts since buying an Everdrive though.
The tv I use for my nes/snes is my old portable crt, it's 50hz. Will this be a problem if I hook up an ntsc snes to it.
My other tv is a Samsung smart led, do you think it would work on that?
The old TV won't be able to display NTSC properly, but the new one probably will, you'll have to check the specs to see if it is NTSC compatible.
Bryce.
Yeah, I only get a B&W image out of my PAL Sony portable compared to full colour on the TV. I just cant stand how blocky the SNES is on modern TV's so I am actually going down the Sony PVM route which gives me a great NTSC/PAL image on a CRT display.
Although I guess Ryu did turn 50 the other day so maybe the old codger does deserve to be in Black and White these days :laugh:
I've not had a problem with my 50/60hz modded PAL Megadrive on the portable TV though.
Beaker, I have the same tv as the one in your pictures and that is the one I was planning to use the snes on.
I have read on another site about using an ntsc snes on that model of tv and it will accept ntsc signal through an rgb scart cable only. They're about £8 on eBay.
That's interesting. I tried the scart cable I am using on the GC for sound (I am using digital for the display) but it only seems to give me an s-video signal and nothing on the RGB when I force my plasma to it. I'm guessing it might be for the N64 as that didn't output RGB. I'll see what the GC gives me and then have a look through my box o' wires to see if I've any others. Might be worth me investing in a RGB scart as well.
It needs to be an ntsc cable. Search ntsc rgb scart cable on eBay.
Oh right, I didn't realise there was a different in the pinout between the consoles, or I guess they might need different resisters?
Was this the one you were looking it?
*RGB* Scart cable for NTSC USA SNES and Japanese SUPER FAMICOM Nintendo consoles (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/171381839091)
I'll order it tonight and let you know how it works with the TV if you want as I pretty much have the same setup you are looking to get.
Yep that's the one. Cheers that would be great if you could let us know how it goes.
Not a bother, I am interested in seeing what it looks like on the CRT myself as I'll keep this one as a back up when the PVM arrives at the end of the month.
Cable arrived today.
It's not the most amazing cable in the world compared to stuff from Retro Computer Shack and mine makes a horrible grating sound as I am pushing it into the SNES but glad to say it works and looks absolutely amazing. Sorry my camera round out of battery power and the photo doesn't do it justice.
Excellent, that's good to hear.
Did you import your consoles from the US btw?
Always did love that intro animation. Ryu's never looked better.
Second one I did. I bought the first one from the UK with Super Metroid, Mario Kart, SFII, Shadow Run, Star Fox, Yoshi's Island, Contra III, Donkey Kong Country, Axelay, Legend of Zelda, Super Ghouls and Ghosts and an adapter to let me play PAL games for £50. Ahhh, them were the days when you could pick up stuff on the cheap.... Only problem was the Snes while not yellowed was broken on arrival so I got £40 back which covered the second one (which was very yellowed) from the US. Swapped over the case, gutted the yellowed one, painted it in Famicom colours and turned it into a HTPC which I mostly use for GOG games :laugh:
Wow, so you ended up with all those games and the adapter for a tenner. :o
And a case for my PC :laugh:
Not all good news though, they're all unboxed and none have instructions
We'll I've just ordered my console from the US. Can you recommend a power supply/step down converter to get?
I've read that an old megadrive power supply works but others say that a step down converter is better.
I got some third party unit (as there's no Nintendo markings on the PSU) that seems to do the job. For the other foreign consoles like FM Towns Marty and PC Engine Duo I use a step down converter TC bought for me and it works great. Personally I actually prefer the step down converter these days. I can't comment on the Megadrive PSU as I've never tried it.
Ok cheers beaker.
Well my snes arrived from America today. I set it all up to make sure it was working which it was. Went out for a couple of hours, came back, tried turning it on and for some strange reason it wont work at all now. :(
Nightmare, are you using a third party PSU and is everything plugged into a surge protector?
I had something similar with my 6128 Plus PSU which I was also using for the HxC. One minute I was playing Mountain Panic on my BBC Micro, went to change the game and the HxC was dead. Fortunately no damage was done but I made the mistake of trying the PSU that was on the fritz on my 6128+ :laugh: Now I just use first party PSU's where possible or good quality third party ones but never leave them unattended.
If it turns out it's the SNES and you want to fix it I still have the innards of my old one you're welcome to. I think it has a timing issue or something but bits of it might be usable. I know it used to power up but the games wouldn't load properly or would be glitchy as hell. Might be worth talking to Bryce (who's in Germany), or TheCortfiot (who's in Wales) as they're techie wizards.
I can take a look at it if you don't solve it yourself, it may just be something simple. I have a 110V supply here too, so I can test the unit no problem.
Bryce.
Yeah I'm using a third party psu that came with all the ntsc games, not with a surge protector though.
To be honest I shouldn't have used it as I wasn't sure that it was in working order. It looks pretty old as well.
Thanks for the offer on parts beaker but in all honesty I wouldn't know where to begin. I've actually opened it up and tested the continuity on the fuse and switch and they're ok but past that I haven't got a clue what to look at.
Thanks bryce, I might take you up on that offer. I've just ordered a step down converter off eBay so fingers crossed that works, if not I'll let you know.
Here's a picture of the psu
Have you a multimeter to check what the PSU is actually supplying at the moment?
Bryce.
I have but I don't seem to be able to get a proper reading off it.
Hopefully its just the PSU that's bitten the dust :)
Quote from: Robo on 22:42, 13 August 14
I have but I don't seem to be able to get a proper reading off it.
Then maybe you just have an ex-PSU?
Bryce.
Yeah fingers crossed it's just the psu. It just seems weird that it worked initially but when I came back to it a couple of hours later it didn't. I didn't leave it on, I literally just tried a few games, turned it off and then it was dead when I came back.
Hopefully if the psu is dodgy it hasn't fried the snes.
Transformers, much like light bulbs, tend to fail in the first second you turn them on, rather than while they are running constantly. This has a lot to do with the fact that a much higher current runs through it in the first milli-seconds, than during normal use.
Bryce.
So, what you're saying is, if I hadn't tried to wire mine into the mains when I was 6 years old it would still be OK today? The legs wouldn't have failed on it. :laugh:
Ireland... Even the robots are legless :D
Bryce.
Good news, it was the psu that was faulty. The step down converter turned up today and the console works fine with it which is a relief.
One problem though, the step down converter makes a loud buzzing sound. It's loud enough that I don't want to play the console while using it.
It's the same one that you have beaker, is that buzzing normal? I find that if I push the top of the casing hard, the buzzing stops but as soon I stop pressing it, it buzzes again.
Great news on the SNES.
I honestly can't hear my step down converter, but whether that's because my hearing isn't as sensitive to that pitch, or whether it's something that improves the more you use the device I don't honestly know. I know mine gets a little warm because of the nature of the nature of what's it has to do. Perhaps Bryce can enlighten us? :)
I think mine must be faulty then, it's ridiculously loud. Do you know any websites that sell suitable psu's?
Is the converter plugged into an extension that has other devices plugged in too? If so, move it to a different socket and the buzzing may go.
Bryce.
No, I've tried it in several different sockets now and its the same in each one.