Retro Duo, FC Twin, FC Trio, Gen-X... what to get?

[aaron7]

Ok. My girlfriend loves NES, SNES, and Sega. Her Sega works intermittently, her NES toaster never works, and she doesn't have a SNES...

I want to get her one of those Yobo or comparable systems to save space, but I'm lost as there are so many.

I liked the FC Trio as it has NES/SNES/Genesis in one package... but I can't find one anywhere nor do I know what controllers it uses.

I know Yobo makes a system that JUST plays NES that uses NES controllers, then the FC Twin (NES/Genesis i think) that uses Genesis controllers, then the other one that is NES/SNES that uses SNES controllers.

So, maybe this could be the end-all be-all thread of these aftermarket systems? All the specs, models, etc? I can't be the only one so confused!

[namzep]

I don't know much about the other clone systems but I've been really happy with my Retro Duo. It's played nearly everything that I've thrown at it. I will say, though, that it takes a little getting used to using an SNES style controller for NES games. My only complaint (and it's the same with all of the clone systems) is that you can't use the PowerPak with any of them. Not much of a problem as I do have a top loading NES that works well (and a toaster that has issues) but something to consider if you're planning on using one.

edit: After looking at Frankie's review, I guess I was wrong on the PowerPak incompatibility. Going to have to try that out this weekend.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I liked the FC Trio as it has NES/SNES/Genesis in one package... but I can't find one anywhere nor do I know what controllers it uses.


You liked it ... as in you've SEEN one?

I've heard rumors about Yobo (or some other HK company) making one of those ... but I've yet to actually see pictures or tech specs on the web anywhere.

Do you have any info?

As far as the others, I'd reccomend the Retro Duo for NES/SNES playing and the Gen X for NES/Genesis playing ... though the Gen X has a more limited compatibility with NES carts.

My Retro Duo thread (lots of good info) http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114088

My Gen X review thread
http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=112080

[aaron7]

No, I haven't seen it, but the local used game store said they have a pending order for some...?

[Leo_A]

Its not due to be released for another week or so, which is why no one has seen one.

[RJ]

Well, I'll say it again. I havent had any exp. w/ the dual systems, but I'm perfectly happy w/ my NES-only Yobo.

[ANONPLOX]

Im a somewhat happy owner of an FC Twin works well minus a few compatibility issues with some NES and SNES games(for famicom just find a slot adapter as for SNES either you buy a Game Genie and take off the back tabs at the slot or modify the plastic cart cradle (whatever you wanan call it) inside the FC TWINs front slot by removing those tabs) works well enough for me minus the tight as hell cart slot for the NES (you know the little slot on the inside for where the gameboard connects with the system) if you try to yank the cart out your either gona bend up or pop out some of the metal tabs in the slot making it either useless till you bend the tabs down or useless for good.

[Timstuff]

Whatever happened to the Generation NEX from Messiah? Are they still in business?

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Whatever happened to the Generation NEX from Messiah? Are they still in business?

I think they're dying a quiet death.

The NEX is an aesthetically pleasing, well constructed US NES clone that has a majority of the same compatibility issues that most HK Famicom/NES clones have ... however the inclusion of built in wireless controller compatibility as well as a separate top cartridge input for Famicom games (and the Famicom Disk System) is fantastic.

It has minor audio issues with the Fami Disk System, but for what it's worth it does the job.

[retro junkie]

I love my NEX.
But it is very hard to locate one any more for purchase.

[PapaStu]

I think they're dying a quiet death.


No think, have. www.playmessiah.com is gone. They are gone.

[kedawa]

I'm interested in something like this too, but my concern is how the buttons are mapped for different systems.
I would assume that NES games would use Y for B and B for A on an SNES style pad, as any other configuration would be completely retarded, but how could any one pad be good for both Genesis and SNES?
Even with 6 face buttons and two shoulder buttons, it would still be awkward.

[josekortez]

No think, have. www.playmessiah.com is gone. They are gone.

Crap. My Gen NEX's power supply or something inside of the NEX has stopped working reliably. Well, I have to jiggle the connection on the power adaptor to get it to work most of the time. Hopefully, I can get them to fix it since I've got a "lifetime" warranty...

[Draven]

The NEX takes alot of flack, but I've enjoyed mine. The pack-in controller is junk, but the wireless are okay (not as quick of a response time or precise as the original but effective). It can use any NES accessory and loads pretty much every time unless you want to play Castlevania 3, Tengen games, or River City Ransom. Unfortunately they're not well-built, for the most part, and it will eventually leave you high and dry (mine has been acting up lately, but I recently acquired a top loader so I haven't messed with it in a while). Too bad they're out of business. I really wanted to get their wireless version of the Advantage joystick.

[Coldguy]

Get the FC3 PLus, it has NES, SNES, and Genesis, cant top that.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

www.videogamecentral.com took "castlevania III" off the compatibility in the description for the FC3 (yet it remains on the Google feed for that page/item), which immediately makes me weary of the fact that Yobo hasn't updated their NOAC hardware at all.

I'd be really dissapointed if the FC3 has the same exact NOAC they've been using since the FC Mini. :(

[aaron7]

Get the FC3 PLus, it has NES, SNES, and Genesis, cant top that.

I held one at the store last weekend. That's my choice long as I can find out how to make or purchase a NES to Sega controller adaptor as the FC3 uses the Sega controller connections and she wants to play her NES games with an original controller!

[Imstarryeyed]

We have had the FC3 Plus in the store now for about 2 weeks. We ordered 5 of them and have been testing them out. Here is our quick take on this..

Pros
It can now play Paperboy for the NES where the FC Twin could not.
It can now play Dragon Warrior 1 where only 1 version of the game could be played, now it appears many/all versions work.
It does not suffer from the slight TV graphic problems on Donkey Kong Country or Drakkhen or other games like the Retro Duo did.
The system really looks pretty well made and works on an overall scale pretty well.

There is a O/J switch which we *Think* is for Genesis games since the GN Twin had one? Not sure this is a plus however... but it could not hurt. There are no instructions for this switch?

Cons:

Issues:

It still cannot play Super Mario RPG (non first editions that is)
It still cannot play Castlevania 3 at all.
Battletoads still hangs on the 2nd level like it does on the FC Twin and Retro Duo.

NES

The volume appears to be set lower than normal so you will need to turn up the volume of the TV to hear the NES games. There is also a noticible buzz when playing NES games, but our customers say the buzz is not so distracting while you play. Your Mileage May Vary.

The games looks slightly darker on the FC3 but it is still very well within the realm of reason.

SNES

The Y button and the A buttons are reversed on the included controller so it is very difficult to run and jump at the same time on games like Super Mario World.

The controller is a special controller with a 9 pin Atari like adaptor so you can only use the included controllers with the system, no more real SNES controller compatiblity like on the FCTwin & Retro Duo.

Genesis

The screen is very dark on some TVs but is perfectly fine on others, on TVs that are dark the reds are really to "hot", turning up the contrast and Brightness helps but does not resolve the problem. This is the biggest issue we are having with the system at the store currently.

We tested this on:

Amiga 1084 Monitor (looks great!)
Advent 1080i Picture Tube TV (looks great!) This is also a multisystem TV (it does NTSC and Pal)
Toshiba Component TV (I forgot the model #) (Looks dark on Genesis Games)
Emerson TV/VCR combo unit (Looks dark on Genesis games)
Sony White Industrial TV (From a dentists office) (Looks dark on Genesis Games)

It seems that the two multisystem tv/monitors performed the best, however we are not drawing conclusions that multisystem TVs do not have problems.

Other than the Advent TV we did not have any HD TVs to test on, so we do not know how LCD or Plasma system TVs would work with this system.

Zapper Gun Clone

The included Zapper Clone is very light and appears to be inexpensively made. The gun has a hair trigger and sometimes does not fire when you want it to. Sometimes just wiggling the gun is enough to make it go off. We consider the gun to be an added bonus so this is not quite a big showstopper for us.


Overall

Overall it is not a bad system, if you have one of the TV's that the Genesis looks nice and bright on, then I think it is pretty good system if you understand its weaknesses.

We have tested just about every system on the market and so far we are happiest selling the FC Twin because its strengths on a retail selling side outweigh its weaknesses. If the FC3 darkness can be figured out I will not have any problems selling these in the store because I can ensure the customers TV will work with it.

We tried the Retro Duo and had graphic issues, brightness issues and controller comfort issues so we passed on that system.

[Famidrive-16]

Sad to see the NEX go, despite all the criticism it received I enjoy mine, aside from the whole "tight carts" thing it had going on.

[ooXxXoo]

We have had the FC3 Plus in the store now for about 2 weeks. We ordered 5 of them and have been testing them out. Here is our quick take on this..

Pros
It can now play Paperboy for the NES where the FC Twin could not.
It can now play Dragon Warrior 1 where only 1 version of the game could be played, now it appears many/all versions work.
It does not suffer from the slight TV graphic problems on Donkey Kong Country or Drakkhen or other games like the Retro Duo did.
The system really looks pretty well made and works on an overall scale pretty well.

There is a O/J switch which we *Think* is for Genesis games since the GN Twin had one? Not sure this is a plus however... but it could not hurt. There are no instructions for this switch?

Cons:

Issues:

It still cannot play Super Mario RPG (non first editions that is)
It still cannot play Castlevania 3 at all.
Battletoads still hangs on the 2nd level like it does on the FC Twin and Retro Duo.

NES

The volume appears to be set lower than normal so you will need to turn up the volume of the TV to hear the NES games. There is also a noticible buzz when playing NES games, but our customers say the buzz is not so distracting while you play. Your Mileage May Vary.

The games looks slightly darker on the FC3 but it is still very well within the realm of reason.

SNES

The Y button and the A buttons are reversed on the included controller so it is very difficult to run and jump at the same time on games like Super Mario World.

The controller is a special controller with a 9 pin Atari like adaptor so you can only use the included controllers with the system, no more real SNES controller compatiblity like on the FCTwin & Retro Duo.

Genesis

The screen is very dark on some TVs but is perfectly fine on others, on TVs that are dark the reds are really to "hot", turning up the contrast and Brightness helps but does not resolve the problem. This is the biggest issue we are having with the system at the store currently.

We tested this on:

Amiga 1084 Monitor (looks great!)
Advent 1080i Picture Tube TV (looks great!) This is also a multisystem TV (it does NTSC and Pal)
Toshiba Component TV (I forgot the model #) (Looks dark on Genesis Games)
Emerson TV/VCR combo unit (Looks dark on Genesis games)
Sony White Industrial TV (From a dentists office) (Looks dark on Genesis Games)

It seems that the two multisystem tv/monitors performed the best, however we are not drawing conclusions that multisystem TVs do not have problems.

Other than the Advent TV we did not have any HD TVs to test on, so we do not know how LCD or Plasma system TVs would work with this system.

Zapper Gun Clone

The included Zapper Clone is very light and appears to be inexpensively made. The gun has a hair trigger and sometimes does not fire when you want it to. Sometimes just wiggling the gun is enough to make it go off. We consider the gun to be an added bonus so this is not quite a big showstopper for us.


Overall

Overall it is not a bad system, if you have one of the TV's that the Genesis looks nice and bright on, then I think it is pretty good system if you understand its weaknesses.

We have tested just about every system on the market and so far we are happiest selling the FC Twin because its strengths on a retail selling side outweigh its weaknesses. If the FC3 darkness can be figured out I will not have any problems selling these in the store because I can ensure the customers TV will work with it.

We tried the Retro Duo and had graphic issues, brightness issues and controller comfort issues so we passed on that system.

Do you have any pics or video of the FC3 in action?.....l can't hardly wait to get myself one, to take it apart and look for some motherboard issues..,.

[Imstarryeyed]

I dont have any pix of it in action yet, because this time we didnt take any, I have a Kodak Digital Camera and dont mind taking any if you want but my pix always seem to be subpar and I dont really have a place to upload them.

If you have any questions please feel free to let me know and I will try to answer them for you.

[ooXxXoo]

I dont have any pix of it in action yet, because this time we didnt take any, I have a Kodak Digital Camera and dont mind taking any if you want but my pix always seem to be subpar and I dont really have a place to upload them.

If you have any questions please feel free to let me know and I will try to answer them for you.

Thanks...There is no need for...Just found a youtube video of it...I'm pretty sure that the Genesis "dark screen" issue is because of all of each individual video output amps are not properly separated, therefore it gives extra resistance making the video to look hot dark/strong.....What a shame!

[josekortez]

Crap. My Gen NEX's power supply or something inside of the NEX has stopped working reliably. Well, I have to jiggle the connection on the power adaptor to get it to work most of the time. Hopefully, I can get them to fix it since I've got a "lifetime" warranty...

Sorry to quote myself, but I figured out a solution to get the power to stay on while I play my Gen NEX. I had to use two pieces of Scotch tape to keep the cord wrapped around the system and force the connection to stay up inside the power slot on the back of it, but it stayed on long enough for me to play Tetris, Kung Fu Heroes, Eliminator Boat Duel and Jeopardy without turning off by mistake.

So much for the clone system that touted itself as the solution to those "faulty" NES systems of old...

[kedawa]

that really sucks about he controllers. that alone is reason enough to pass on the FC3

[swlovinist]

The controllers are a deal breaker for me as well. I have been happy with the FC twin, looks like I will be sticking with it.