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Post by The Elite MYT on Mar 1, 2018 12:17:11 GMT
I have a legit minty version of Saga, and I´m tempted to trade it for other Saturn games once I am done with it. Mainly because even though it is fantastic, I probably won´t play it again for years just because it is an RPG. It may be better just to get a backup copy of it instead in the future (since I´ll eventually mod my Saturn to play stuff like Tamoraru, Elevator Action Returns and Super Tempo).... especially since stuff like potential disc rot in the future may force me to get a backup of it anyway.
But.... what is the quality of repros for the Saturn? Are they pretty much 1:1? Is it bad for the Saturn laser to use repros? I´m pretty clueless with Saturn backups to be honest.
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Post by atolm on Mar 2, 2018 0:49:18 GMT
Repros? What Saturn repros? There are no Saturn repros, you can't replicate the security sectors. Any copied Saturn games will forever be teh burnz and require some means of loading them. Doesn't matter how fancy people dress up cases on eBay. When you say "get a back up copy" please don't pay someone for Saga slapped on a CD-R, you can do that yourself.
If you're trying to make accurate backup images of Saturn discs you want to use a format that records disc subcode. So, not BIN/CUE.
Something like discjuggler (.cdi)
or Clone CD (.sub,.img.ccd)
If you think you're going down that road, I'd highly recommend trying to grab a Rhea or Phoebe. No discs to burn, and your CD drive will be tucked away safely. No worrying about laser issues.
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Post by barryburton on Mar 2, 2018 8:02:05 GMT
There are guys on Facebook that will sell you a Pseudo Saturn cart they have flashed, and a bunch of "repros" i.e. cds they have burned themselves. Not worth paying for unless you really can't be bothered to do those tasks yourself.
The risk of damaging the laser is overblown in my view. Yes it might fail eventually. But you can easily buy a new laser unit for around £10 on ebay. I just fitted one and it's easy with an instruction video off YouTube.
A Rhea would be nice but it's genuinely difficult to get one. Unless you want to pay big bucks for one on eBay.
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marc
BACK FROM THE DEAD!!!!!!!!!
Joined: July 2009
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Post by marc on Mar 2, 2018 9:24:31 GMT
There are guys on Facebook that will sell you a Pseudo Saturn cart they have flashed, and a bunch of "repros" i.e. cds they have burned themselves. Not worth paying for unless you really can't be bothered to do those tasks yourself. The risk of damaging the laser is overblown in my view. Yes it might fail eventually. But you can easily buy a new laser unit for around £10 on ebay. I just fitted one and it's easy with an instruction video off YouTube. A Rhea would be nice but it's genuinely difficult to get one. Unless you want to pay big bucks for one on eBay. It's whatever isn't it. I mean you do have people saying just download some ROMS and use an emulator, depends what experience you want. I dont think back ups are a bad idea personally. If you haven't got money for example, just do it.... I'll get a rhea or similar device at some point, I think they are great, but maybe when laser units become unavailable, thats an equally valid idea. I just want to play the games and I like having the games in their original format, which is the best I'd say. |
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Post by The Elite MYT on Mar 2, 2018 9:59:27 GMT
Oh yeah, I want original format but I know things like Tamoraru and EAR are games that I just wont ever get legit unless I win a lot of money!
I just didnt know whether the quality was great or not. I mainly wanted to know as I was thinking about selling Saga.... although I think I may hold onto it. It is fantastic!
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Post by atolm on Mar 2, 2018 10:14:24 GMT
A Rhea would be nice but it's genuinely difficult to get one. Unless you want to pay big bucks for one on eBay. Don't feed the scalpers. You can get one, it just requires a bit of planning. In fact, you guys in Europe have an incredibly less painful time since the creator (based in Poland) is in or within an hour of your time zones. Sales typically seem to go live on a Saturday, mid to late morning (GMT+1) For us stateside, that means being up in the very early hours of the morning. I've got a Rhea and GDEMU, so it can be done. -Keep an eye on the blog at gdemu.wordpress.com -He does batches of Rhea, Phoebe, GDEMU. Seems to alternate between products. -A sale will be announced a couple days prior, something like "Rhea orders will open this Saturday". Exact time is never announced, but like I've said orders I've made seem to open mid to late morning. -Keep a browser window open on the product order page you're trying to buy, refresh it often during that morning window. There's even services you can use that will send you a notification of when a website sees an update, how reliable they are I'm not sure. -When sales go live the order page will change from "closed" to text boxes where you enter your info and paypal email addy. -You'll get an email notification a day or so later saying you're on the list, then a paypal request when your device is ready to ship. A bit of a pain, but after you've made the order once, you're set. A bit of time on a Saturday morning vs the cumulative time of burning CD-R's for every game you want to play, and possible coasters. The slight irritation of purchasing a Rhea or Phoebe and setting up the SD card is way less of a hassle than dealing with Pseudo Saturn IMO. |
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Post by buckoa51 on Mar 2, 2018 10:57:42 GMT
Yeah, the Rhea is a neat little device and far better than messing with burned discs, sure it could be better designed without the whole weird folder structure nonsense but it works. It took me over a year to get one, it's a absurd system he runs really, he could have made and sold a lot more if he'd just work with re-sellers, cutting his nose to spite his face.
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Post by barryburton on Mar 2, 2018 12:32:05 GMT
A Rhea would be nice but it's genuinely difficult to get one. Unless you want to pay big bucks for one on eBay. Don't feed the scalpers. You can get one, it just requires a bit of planning. In fact, you guys in Europe have an incredibly less painful time since the creator (based in Poland) is in or within an hour of your time zones. Sales typically seem to go live on a Saturday, mid to late morning (GMT+1) For us stateside, that means being up in the very early hours of the morning. I've got a Rhea and GDEMU, so it can be done. -Keep an eye on the blog at gdemu.wordpress.com -He does batches of Rhea, Phoebe, GDEMU. Seems to alternate between products. -A sale will be announced a couple days prior, something like "Rhea orders will open this Saturday". Exact time is never announced, but like I've said orders I've made seem to open mid to late morning. -Keep a browser window open on the product order page you're trying to buy, refresh it often during that morning window. There's even services you can use that will send you a notification of when a website sees an update, how reliable they are I'm not sure. -When sales go live the order page will change from "closed" to text boxes where you enter your info and paypal email addy. -You'll get an email notification a day or so later saying you're on the list, then a paypal request when your device is ready to ship. A bit of a pain, but after you've made the order once, you're set. A bit of time on a Saturday morning vs the cumulative time of burning CD-R's for every game you want to play, and possible coasters. The slight irritation of purchasing a Rhea or Phoebe and setting up the SD card is way less of a hassle than dealing with Pseudo Saturn IMO. Good tips, thank you |
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Post by barryburton on Mar 2, 2018 12:35:28 GMT
Oh yeah, I want original format but I know things like Tamoraru and EAR are games that I just wont ever get legit unless I win a lot of money! I just didnt know whether the quality was great or not. I mainly wanted to know as I was thinking about selling Saga.... although I think I may hold onto it. It is fantastic! For what it's worth, I'd say never sell PDS unless you need the money to eat or no longer have a Saturn. To me it's the definitive game on the system and one of the few Saturn classics that really can't be played anywhere else in one form or another. |
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Post by atolm on Mar 2, 2018 14:16:12 GMT
Yeah, the Rhea is a neat little device and far better than messing with burned discs, sure it could be better designed without the whole weird folder structure nonsense but it works. It took me over a year to get one, it's a absurd system he runs really, he could have made and sold a lot more if he'd just work with re-sellers, cutting his nose to spite his face. I don't speak for the guy, but I can think of a couple possible reasons why the sales are done this way, pain in the butt as they are. Perhaps he values his free time as much or more than potential ODE sales. - Doesn't lock him down. No preorders means he can do batches at his leisure. Want to go on vacation in 2 months, no problem. Want to spend some time working on a device for another system, no problem. - No waiting list means no having to chase people down for payment months later. A preorder system with payment upfront basically ties into the first thing. He'd be under contract of sorts to random people with an understood timeline for delivery. Oh yeah, I want original format but I know things like Tamoraru and EAR are games that I just wont ever get legit unless I win a lot of money! I just didnt know whether the quality was great or not. I mainly wanted to know as I was thinking about selling Saga.... although I think I may hold onto it. It is fantastic! For what it's worth, I'd say never sell PDS unless you need the money to eat or no longer have a Saturn. To me it's the definitive game on the system and one of the few Saturn classics that really can't be played anywhere else in one form or another. I'd never sell PDS either, unless I was in dire straits. Even though technically I don't use the discs anymore to play the game, it's one of my favorites of all time. I see it kind of like having the first edition of a favorite book, even though you read it on a Kindle for convenience. |
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Post by buckoa51 on Mar 2, 2018 18:46:47 GMT
Yeah but if he'd just work with a re-seller then he wouldn't need to worry about such things, and if money is his main motivation he'd probably sell more and make more in the long run anyway.
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Post by barryburton on Mar 2, 2018 19:00:14 GMT
If I was him I'd just sell the rights to the technology to a small electronics manufacturer. Or come to some kind of franchise/ commission arrangement. Surely the joy of inventing and producing his own device has worn off by now.
Maybe I'm wrong.
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Post by atolm on Mar 2, 2018 22:49:42 GMT
Surely the joy of inventing and producing his own device has worn off by now. Maybe I'm wrong. There's pride in creating something and improving upon it. The hardware has seen minor revisions, firmware gets updates. Who knows really, it wouldn't be my place to tell someone else what they should do with their work after pouring who knows how many man hours into it. Especially when they don't owe me anything. Yeah but if he'd just work with a re-seller then he wouldn't need to worry about such things, and if money is his main motivation he'd probably sell more and make more in the long run anyway. Wouldn't that just move the demand one step down the chain, though? Instead of fielding demands from customers directly, he's now fielding demand for stock from a 3rd party with their own customer base to please. He'd be right back to owing people ODE's. |
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Post by zyrobs on Mar 2, 2018 23:02:55 GMT
Yeah but if he'd just work with a re-seller then he wouldn't need to worry about such things, and if money is his main motivation he'd probably sell more and make more in the long run anyway. Then the reseller can copy his design and start making units on his own. |
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Post by buckoa51 on Mar 3, 2018 11:12:16 GMT
I find that somewhat hard to believe. Firstly if its your design it automatically becomes your copyright. Secondly, the reputation of the reseller would be totally trashed if they did this.
People will try to copy the design regardless, in fact there's more incentive to do so if you keep supply so constrained, hence the ongoing efforts to create an open source version of his Dreamcast ODE.
All he'd need to do is order one big shipment from the factory (funded by the reseller) and sit back and let the royalties roll in. He could then focus on new projects and people wouldn't need to wait years and enter the ridiculous lottery he's running now.
Yeah well when all is said and done it's his choice, but it's a bizarre one really and it's the Saturn community that suffers.
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