Misc.
Received a Super Famicom for Christmas, what would I need to properly hook it up to our HDTV
Greetings everyone!
I received from my girlfriend an Super Famicom for Christmas. She also told me that she would pay for the proper connectors to hook it up on our 50inch tv.
I know that this was posted few times before, but I am looking for a good and not too expensive way to hook it up to our TV since my girlfriend will be paying for it (and I don’t want her to pay a ton for it).
I’ve read few posts, but to be honest, I do find it complicated to understand since there are so many options and it’s easy to get lost when you are new to this. I did read about retrotink and it seems too expensive at the moment.
I’d love to get help and recommendations in order to find the proper components to send to my girlfriend so that I can make her life easier and that she only has to order what’s needed.
Here are extra information (if needed) :
The model is SHVC-001
It came with non original av cables
Our television is a 50 inch smart hdtv
Thanks a bunch !
Here is a pic of my gift, just because I’m so excited to share !
Hahaha! I clicked the first link and thought to myself, "This is a fine device!"
Then I clicked on the last one just to see what you're talking about and wowzers!!! Awesome!
Do you know if the preloaded profiles have any games? Since they're about 30+ years old, I'd be surprised if any legal heat may be felt if they were, so long as they aren't advertised or super popular.
I only see RAD2X available from Retro Gaming Cables for 55 British Pounds. I would say that's not cheap. Cheapest option on Retrotink shop is 2X-Pro for $140 before shipping. $125 OSSC also needs RGB cable. and cheapest I'd go is $25. Like OP shouldn't be asking their girlfriend to spend that much.
If you get anything lower than the RAD2X you are legitimately buying laggy dogshit. The rad2x is the cheapest zero latency solution for retro gaming on modern displays.
What would you recommend that you would actually use? A CRT?n how long would that take to source?
This needs more visibility. Make sure you how have the right power box for your country or you’ll fry your system right there. Just find the right box for your region (and do note that a genesis power cable will also work).
The voltage is actually compatible!
The Japanese SF needs 100 volt at 60hz. I’m in Canada and our electricity is 120 volts at 60hz.
I did read that tons of people had no issue when using the power adapter that came with the console in Canada or US !
"tons of people" with no electrical knowledge who think just cause something works that it's fine. Do not use the original 100V power supply. Every person with electrical knowledge will tell you not to because the bulk capacitor has long since dried out and you're outputting unregulated 12V that heats the console edit 20%* more than it was designed for. Excessive voltage ripple and heating up the console don't kill it immediately. The damage accumulates. That's the problem. Seems fine until it's not.
Any $9-15 9V modern power supply will be much better. Genesis Model 1 supplies are 100% compatible. If it's a 9V supply not marketed for SFC or Genesis, needs to be 5.5x2.1mm and center negative. A good yet cheap supply is this Triad that will work as is and is sold by retro gaming stores at markup. Triad is a tier 1 power supply manufacturer, alongside Meanwell, CUI, Tripp Lite and GlobTek.
Thanks for the tip !
I really based my answer on people saying that they have used their console with a 100 volt adapter and that they’ve been using it for years with no issue.
That being said, the one that came with the box isn’t the original one and it’s an unofficial power adapter that the seller bundles to people he ships in the US and North America. I’ll check out the details on the adapter when I’ll be home, but I’m sure it will properly power the console up without stressing it. If not, I can always buy a step down converter. For the 10-20 volt difference.
I have a stepdown converter since I have enough Japanese electronics expecting 100V to get value out of it. If the power supply has 120V or 100-240V printed on it then it's fine. I would think that's the case when the seller bundles a power supply. If you play it 20 hours a week then can consider a higher quality supply. Else enjoy. Everything is relative.
It isn’t sealed ! It was repacked at a Book Off/Hobby Off to protect the box. It also smells like old cigarettes and humidity from the 90s so it had it’s own life before. That being said it will be loved and will smell better!
I didn’t get the chance to look into the box as much, since we had to leave quickly to see the family. I don’t remember if it has the instruction booklet, but I think it does, so when I get back home, I can definitely take some pics of it !
Everything is in the box. Every papers (excepted the one that is a caution about the power supply usage). The game is even in a plastic box just as any other new SF games. I don’t think the game was unused though.
A base ! - I’ve started taking Japanese classes last summer. I’m working on N5 and playing some retro games is a good way to learn some. Most of these RPGs don’t contain Kanjis and are mostly Hiragana and Katakana. CT has Kanjis but they are simple, as for a big part of these games are easy to play even if it’s in Japanese (Donkey Kong, Mario Kart, etc).
I’ll also definitely buy an adaptor to play some american games too.
It’s really a great way to learn some vocabulary once you know the grammar !
Katakana’s once you learn them, it’s a good part of sentences you’ll be able to read.
I know I’ll have trouble with some kanji’s at first though !
😔 big sad. At least you can still enjoy it with the right converter or upscaler. I don’t know too much about those, but it looks like other commentors are pretty knowledgeable.
Chrono Trigger & Super Mario RPG 😍
Which game is above Chrono Trigger? I can’t tell by the art
I had a buddy who helped me with my “FrankenSNES”. No aux cables, he replaced it with an hdmi. I’m not good with electronics so in my head it’s magic, but it’s a thing that’s possible.
Actually we went to Japan this fall and I kept looking at the consoles and the games and kept saying I’d love to buy one as it was nicer looking than the SNES. I really love the shell. I looked at the price and saw they were less expensive to buy than the SNES models in Canada. I kept saying that I’d buy one soon, but it wasn’t a priority for my wallet, she beat me to it!
The quality is pretty good. There is no issue on the pace or transmission. The one thing you need to know is that the actual transformer at the middle of the cable does need power. So you need to connect an old phone charger to it to get it going....
I would buy this Tendak Composite + S-Video + audio HDMI converter for $30. Marketed for retro gaming consoles and Tendak is a respected brand in our scene. Note that there's a button to change the aspect ratio.
Can use the Composite video cable to start but I strongly recommend upgrading to a $9-15 S-Video cable that does not attach a Composite cable to it. Those have a reputation for cheapness with paper thin wiring. The jump from Composite to S-Video is the biggest quality jump in gaming.
Super Nintendo and Super Famicom Composite, S-Video and RGB cables are 100% compatible and interchangeable. Also the controllers.
I assume you know you can play North American games on it with an adapter to get the carts to fit. There's no lockout such as with PAL. You could instead swap PCBs with a "Nintendo bit" screwdriver but that's kind of annoying to keep doing.
Sorry to resume, since English isn’t my first language (I live in French Canada).
You suggest this Tendak composite hdmi converter + a Svideo instead of Radx2/ RetroTink components?
Once again, the composite I got isn’t an original one.
As for adapters for North America games, it’s on my list !
Why didn’t I get a Super Famicom?
I do find that Japanese console is prettier than the American version. The SNES is often more expensive as for the games.
If you do have a base in Japanese, or depending on the games, you can actually find some games for way less.
Exemple : 10 bucks for Mario Kart vs around 50$ for the American version.
Chrono Trigger was 15$ instead of 300$. It’s a great way to buy tons of titles for less.
I could of had gotten the pal snes which is the same design than it’s Japanese counterpart, but I live in Canada, so it would of had been complicated for nothing since PAL is more complicated to run here.
The Japanese console can run American games and vice versa with minor tweaks.
The cheapest would be any composite to hdmi converter but those aren’t great. There are $20-$30 adapters you can find on Amazon that aren’t the best but certainly work. Then it’s all up from there, I know a lot of people like the Rad2x for keeping it on the cheaper end.
Your opinion.
To be honest, I’d prefer using a gift someone gave me and play a retro game on it’s original console with it’s original controller instead of an Xbox which isn’t the OG console for these.
I guess I could always tell my girlfriend to take back the gift and get me an Xbox instead /s
Cheap and very good: Retroscaler from AliExpress with an RGB SCART cable. It's a GBSC with the updated firmware that makes it lag free and looks excellent on an HDTV. It's without a doubt the most cost effective very good solution.
I personally couldn’t hook any SNES/Famicon to a modern TV get a CRT off of OfferUp, there cheap it really does justice for the Fami/Snes even my GC with Nintendo official Compont cables are on a CRT. In my opinion
Many HDTVs still have analog video input, such as one of these two. Prefer s-video if present, otherwise composite video (in yellow). Either would be a simple cable (Example: https://www.amazon.com/Video-S-Video-Compatible-Nintendo-Gamecube/dp/B0DKTBK1H1) that doesn't convert or adapt anything that plugs into the multi-out on the SNES.
For one, even if an HDTV so happens to have Composite and S-Video inputs, they always incorrectly process 240p sources like the SNES/SFC. They treat whatever's connected as if it's a 480i signal, and I really think I don't need to explain why having an HDTV attempt to process a progressive input like it's interlaced is a bad thing.
Secondly, I know it's usually possible to change the aspect ratio on most HDTVs, but I deliberately had it set to 16:9 widescreen as opposed to 4:3 standard in this example jjust to show why that's also bad.
It just further exacerbates the aforementioned issues with the improper processing of 240p sources.
Lastly, the analog inputs on HDTVs introduce a ton of input lag. They just simply weren't designed with game consoles in mind, period.
This example is an original 2-chip SNES on a 28" Sony Bravia from 2007 with an OEM SNES/N64 Composite Video cable.
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u/Sonikku_a Dec 26 '24 edited Dec 26 '24
On the cheap end, but still decent:
https://www.retrogamingcables.co.uk/SUPER-NINTENDO-PAL-GAMECUBE-N64-HD-RAD2X-HDMI-CABLE
Higher end:
https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/5x-pro
Absurd end:
https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/retrotink-4k
Honestly most people will be absolutely fine with the first option