jfk
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Post by jfk on Oct 18, 2017 12:53:13 GMT
Hello to you all and thanks for having me on these forums. I have recently ordered myself a NTSC-J Saturn and I'm currently waiting for it to arrive, so in the meantime I'm trying to get everything else together that I might need and could do with some advice. I have been a retro gaming collector for most of my adult life (primarily Nintendo) and this will be my first venture into the world of the Saturn. I had originally planned to get one not long after the original UK launch (having sold my SNES and Megadrive to fund the purchase - something I regret to this day), but I was young and stupidly distracted by the Playstation and ended up going down that route instead. Anyway, now it's time to rectify that mistake and explore a system that I've never really touched before. I have been a long time fan of SFII and, having recently modded my SNES mini to play SFA2 and Super SFII, it has made me realise how many of the other games in the franchise I've missed out on and, more importantly, the ability to play proper ports of the original arcade games. So I now have a healthy list of games I want to get a hold of, mostly the Capcom fighters, but also some others that I'd like to give a go. I already have SFZ 1 and 2 on their way to me (although I may need to clear some other things out of my collection before getting the 3rd one...) and I have a step down converter coming too, after reading some threads on here and getting ideas on which one might be best. The last thing I need is something to connect the Saturn to my TV, I've found this cable after doing some research, but it seems they are out of stock and, after messaging them, they don't have a date for when they may have some more on sale. So I'm looking for alternatives, or even a temporary solution, until they restock. Thanks in advance.
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Post by davyk on Oct 18, 2017 15:51:27 GMT
This info assumes you don't want to modify your console:- 1. First of all , make sure you power it properly. It will require a step down power converter as it runs on 110v and our UK 240v supply will fry it. You can get them easily online but I got mine from Maplins. They aren't expensive items. At a guess £20 should get you one (though it's been a while since I bought mine). 2. Cable. RGB SCART is optimal. There are suppliers online. Check out Rob Webb but there are plenty of other UK suppliers such as retrogamingcables.co.uk 3. Using a modern TV? You will probably be alright. If using a CRT (which is optimal) it might be a lottery if it will work with an NTSC source. You can test your CRT by plugging in a Freeview box or some other AV source and setting the output to NTSC to see if it works. The most common problem is a black and white image. 4. You will probably need a battery for the clock and backup memory. Dead easy to get and cheap - a CR2032- common as muck. Will last you a year or two. Easy to install too - facing the back of the console there's a port on the left into which the battery fits. 5. Optional - you can change the language settings of the console to English - helps navigating the Saturn's own built in menu system easier. 6. The cartridge port and what it does. The system memory powered by the CR2032 gets you started but you will need more space for game saves once you start buying more games. The Saturn has a cartridge port on top. An official backup cartridge will have more storage than you will ever need. Some people say they are glitchy but I've had no problems. The Saturn cart port itself can be temperamental and any cartridge may need some gentle jiggling to ensure the Saturn recognises it but once it's in and working you should be fine. An alternative to the official backup cartridge is an Action Replay 5 in 1 cartridge (called the 4 in 1 as well). This is a pretty useful device as it : ** Defeats the region lock so you can play US and PAL games on your JP console. ** Works as a 4MB RAM expansion feature that is required for playing the Capcom versus Fighter games such as Xmen vs Streetfighter. SFZ 3 needs this too. (SF1 and 2 don't need it). It can also act as a 1MB RAM expansion cartridge that some games need but there aren't many of these (and that's why some people call the cart a "5 in 1" instead of a "4 in 1" as the 1MB RAM expansion could be considered an extra function). ** It has backup storage to copy your game saves too - though unfortunately Saturn games cannot save directly to it like the official backup cartridge - instead you have to save to the system memory (powered by the CR2032) and then use the AR cartridge's menu to copy between the cartridge memory and the Saturn memory. Easy to do but just not as slick. However the AR's other features more than make up for this. It's firmware can also be updated to play burned discs but I have no experience of that. ** The cart also acts as a cheat device but I've never used this feature. It's a very useful cartridge but I rarely use mine any more since I got a JP console and have bought mostly JP games. You can just get a dedicated 4MB RAM expansion cart - quite often the Capcom versus games that use it will come with a cartridge - so look out for that when looking to buy such a game online. The carts themselves aren't that expensive. (SFZ3 isn't cheap though!) Using a dedicated 4MB RAM cartridge means you can't play PAL or NTSC 4MB RAM games on your JP console but - there aren't any! All those games are JP releases. 7. Look at our recent favourite games poll for an idea of what to get games-wise. Welcome to the forum.
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sych
"Living for the fantasy" -NIGHTS INTO DREAMS- The Classic Saturn Gem!!!
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Post by sych on Oct 18, 2017 16:47:59 GMT
Davyk has said it all. Welcome to the forums, I look forward to reading your future posts.
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jfk
Newbie
Joined: October 2017
Posts: 9
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Post by jfk on Oct 18, 2017 17:01:41 GMT
This info assumes you don't want to modify your console:- I don't plan to, I like to keep my collection as original as possible. 2. Cable. RGB SCART is optimal. There are suppliers online. Check out Rob Webb but there are plenty of other UK suppliers such as retrogamingcables.co.uk retrogamingcables.co.uk is what I'd linked to above, so they are not an option for the immediate future. I shall check out Rob Webb though, is that a forum user or an online store? 4. You will probably need a battery for the clock and backup memory. I hadn't actually considered that, so I will get one ordered in preparation. Excellent shout. 6. An alternative to the official backup cartridge is an Action Replay 5 in 1 cartridge (called the 4 in 1 as well). Already got my eyes on one of these, PlayAsia seems to be the cheapest I've found, unless there are more local options? Welcome to the forum. Thank you, and thank you for such a great welcoming post.
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Post by davyk on Oct 18, 2017 18:20:24 GMT
Not modding eh? Good for you. I'm of the same opinion. Though I do have a modded MD & SNES for region and 50/60Hz and a modded J-N64 for RGB SCART but the rest of my import gaming is achieved via non intrusive means. Robb Webb runs a website. There's a loose affiliation with this site as Mick (runs this site) had a link to his site. His site runs low tech but it's fine. I've used him and am a happy customer. Here's the link - he appears to have what you need in stock. www.consolegoods.co.uk
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jfk
Newbie
Joined: October 2017
Posts: 9
Location:
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Post by jfk on Oct 18, 2017 18:43:10 GMT
Excellent, thank you for the link.
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