More info in the video description.

Your real Mega Drive has a lowpass filter. The default firmware for the Mega Sg has that turned off. So it sounds brighter/less muffled. Similar to how many people install a Mega Amp into a real Genesis. If I encounter a Mega Amp I always enable a lowpass filter and I did the same with the Mega Sg. Not perfect but damn close. John Madden Football needs a 3 button controller. You'll get that same behavior on a real Genesis. Hold MODE when you plug a 6-button controller in or turn on the system. With the Mega Sg you may need to force 3 button mode even if you have a 3 button controller.

The difference you hear in audio is due to the difference in digital and analogue audio output. There is a low pass filter effect on the MegaSG you can turn on to emulate this though.

According to Digital Foundry, enabling the low pass filter with a cutoff of 3600 and a rolloff of 6 should make the sound similar to that of the console. Also adjusting the ladder effect should help. It all depends on the console you want it to sound like.

You have to use 720p for good looking scanlines on Super Nt and Mega Sg.

You do realize that you just made me play Streets of Rage 2, right?! That music is insane! Great review as always.

I was 31 when I got the genesis it is one of my most loved consoles I subscribed to Analogue's news letter I am glad to see this happening finally

The way I see it, the fact that they targeted the YM2612 as the "definitive" audio experience shows that they had their mindeset in the right place - speaking of which, the audio in general sounds a bit brighter to me, but IIRC in MLiG's review, you can actually "tune-in" the sound quality by way of the available Low Pass Filter in the audio settings. It's amazing how much ability to dial in your experience Analogue put into this thing. I must have spent a good half hour just navigating the menus before I even started playing! With regard to Madden, I would go ahead and report the issue you had - they should be able to easily address that in a firmware update. As for the inability to use SMS controllers, I would expect that they have just reproduced the Genesis' ability to use native controllers (whose behavior the 8BitDo's probably emulate). That being said, I would expect that the few games that require a SMS controller to work probably ork with a Genesis controller instead, negating the need for an SMS controller altogether. I saw in another video that by way of the Hyperkin SMS adapter with card slot, F-16 Fighting Falcon works on the Mega Sg - something that NEVER worked on original Genesis hardware... They must have cheated a little on recreating the SMS experience, which is why it probably doesn't work through the EverDrive. Finally, although I appreciate the effort, plugging this thing into a Sega CD looks plain awkward. It would be ridiculously cool if they stepped up and designed a Mega Sg-CD attachment with a complementary design t the Mega Sg - it would also relieve the market pressure on the demand for WORKING Sega CD units. These things aren't going to last forever, you know - so "new" hardware is aleways welcome, and would probably have a reasonable attach rate with Mega Sg units.

Golden Axe 2...…………. It's no Revenge of Death Adder. Nothing is my friend

I like the voiceover work on these videos. Very soothing, almost like ASMR haha

The Everdrive X7 works with the Master System on the Mega SG, but you have to disable the SMS bios option within the Everdrive for it to function correctly with the SG.

The sound of the Yamaha audio chip was very dependent on the DAC in use. Not only did Sega changed the DAC in each MD iteration, the DAC was also different depending on the batch of release within each iteration, the region of release, the manufacturing plant that assembled the Mega Drive, etc. There was no standard DAC vendor, and Sega basically used whatever vendor was available at the time and place. That is why the Mega Drive sounds different across all variants and regions. Emulators, on the other hand, struggle with emulating the actual FM synthesizer chip (also requiring to emulate the entire Z80 processor in tendem), resulting in inaccurate pitch levels in some of the less accurate emulators out there, such as Gens for example. The FPGA solution of the Analogue should be 100% accurate if done correctly, and I assume Analogue paid very careful attention when programming the microcode to fully simulate the Mega Drive hardware to the minute detail.

You are not alone, I also love Road Rush sound track. Specially Road Rush 2.

A very informative and well made review. I loved that you tried hacks, and especially those two amazing SFIICE hacks. Speaking of which, have you ever considered and episode covering some of those amazing rom hacks? You could even make a whole series on the subject.

That hardware definitely looks beautiful and the performance looks great. For now, I'll stick with my Model 1 HDG and S-VIDEO.

I've had mine since Tuesday. Legit masterpiece. Dig into the settings and it gets even better. Love that it distinguishes between Genesis and SMS settings allowing for different setting saves. Looking forward towards the upcoming adapters. Now if these guys could figure out an Analogue Saturn my world would be complete!

Audio sounds a bit tinny on the Mega SG. You can really hear it in the hi hats where they're excessively bright. Probably has something to do with the high quality setting rendering at a higher rate which exaggerates the white noise levels. It throws the whole balance off, which is probably why they included the ladder filter setting, so you can tone it down. I'm a music producer that also masters records so I'm probably more sensitive to the difference than most people. Some people equate "brighter" to "better" but it just sounds a bit trashy to me.

8bitdo needs to make some high quality arcade sticks for the Mega SG.

Joe from Gamesack did a great review on this as well. He talks about how you can adjust the audio to make it sound more like a Model1.

Its the Batman sound track your Outro mystery solved ! Another awesome video keep it up SLX!

My biggest issue with playing retro consoles on newer tv's is the motion blur. I practically never hear anyone complain about this, but to my eyes this is a major problem. In my eyes it is night and day when compared with CRT. Especially faster scrolling games like sonic. What are the best modern sets with regards to motion blur?

720P will give you perfect scanlines. I can’t get them right on 1080p.

I've been waiting for your review of this product, SLX.

Do you think the megasg would be comparable to amazing quality I get running a 20 inch trinitron in RGB? I realize it is a hard comparison, but if color doesn’t pop the same way I am concerned I will never use the megasg. Another fantastic video from the guy I consider the definitive voice of anything Sega on KZfaq. So glad this channel has returned to stay.

Great review and coverage like no other channel does it. We so need the Saturn Hardware done like this...

Now what would really be slick is if Sega themselves released a Saturn Mini. Ah, one can dream!

Firstly i'd like to apologise SegalordX for leaving an awful lot of comments on your videos lately, you're probably getting tired of seeing so many comments from me but it's because i'm on my holidays from work and have more time to watch your videos. This is a really good review and I liked how you picked out your favourite games to try on the system rather than pulling out Sonic 1 for reference like so many others. I've seen hundreds of Mega SG reviews by many youtubers but i'm shocked I missed this one! And it was 3 years ago. My Analogue Mega SG story: I'm happy to say I invested in getting one of these in September 2019 and have been happy with it ever since. I'm still running firmware 4.6 and ignore the later ones why? Well because when I upgraded the firmware to 4.7 and 4.8 aside from some more worthy fixes and additional abilities that were not there in 4.6, one thing disapointed me about the later firmware updates and made me go back. I noticed that Analogue screwed up the Zero delay Zero lag video of the Master System mode, there is a nasty tear also known as a judder in the frame rate on 4.7 and 4.8 that was not there in 4.6, it's like a frame skip that appears every 3 to 7 seconds (depending on whether your system is set to PAL or NTSC) it's really noticeable on Sonic 1 SMS in the second level when you get the shield monitor, let Sonic stand idle and watch every few seconds, there is a tear in the frame rate and I didn't like it so I went back to 4.6 and stayed there ever since. Now I did contact Analogue several times about it but they just ignored it and now they have removed their contact page so the only way to contact them is through Twitter but I don't use Twitter or Facebook. When I mention this issue to other KZfaqrs or owners of a Mega SG they don't ever share the same problem so it could be something that only affects my Mega SG (although I doubt it). I don't have any interest to play Game Gear games or 32X through the unit so a lack of support for the Dacs on 4.6 doesn't bother me, the only sacrifice is that Chuck Rock CD doesn't work on 4.6 and only works on 4.7 and 4.8 but i've sacrificed one game to get a smooth frame rate for Master System games. Aside from that nasty judder in 4.7 and 4.8 this console is a perfect way to explore Sega's history and I do still support it regardless of Analogue's odd communication barriers or lack of.

This is a great video for me to review now that I finally picked up a Mega SG a few weeks ago. Hopefully they add 32x support. I recently picked one up just in case they do add it. Also picked up a Mega SD. It's hard to go back to emulation once experiencing FPGA.

I’m 42 yo. Subbed to you about a year ago. Was a huge gamer about 20 years ago then I just fell off. Job. Wife. Kids. Life. But Watching your videos has made me remember way I loved gaming so much in the first place. I locked a major part of myself away for a very long time and your videos have helped me to set it free. You have a genuine organic perspective on all gaming. It’s real. It’s soulful. It’s liberating. Gaming has been a part of my life since 1987 and I’m proud of that and appreciative. Great content buddy. Thank you for sharing. BTW, My wife would beat my ass if I bought a mega Sg, so I’ll just have to stick with the genesis collection 🤣 great stuff buddy, thanks again.

Apparently, you can load SMS games from the Everdrive if you remove the SMS BIOS from the system folder

Finally, a quality Genesis clone! I really NEED one! Great review

I'm not in the market for such a device, as Emulation does me just fine, but it is really great to see this option out there. The original consoles aren't gonna last forever after all. This really looks like a home run, for the price.

I think sometimes the slight variance in audio is because of the higher quality sampling. At least it's a theory anyways. Despite the subtle differences, the Mega SG is freaking AWESOME

Thanks for the video I enjoy seeing all the games I missed with the Genesis. Maybe was just the Philadelphia area but growing up none of the kids or people I had known with a Genasis had not actually been gamers. Dare I say reminded me of the Wii in the sense that everyone had the sonic games maybe some sports games and then either Mortal Combat or Aladdin. Had just only seemed that Genasis owners had been the casual markit in that either purchased the Genasis for a specific game but never actually a library of games to experience. That said had been at a Macys store after just setting up a Genasis display and ended up walking a mile to the store any day I could just for Altered Beast. Wanted it so bad but somehow when the day came my Moms returned with a Turbo Graphic 16 stating the person at the store recommended as a much better console so pretty much was the only kid that seemed like in the entire country. Anyhow untill KZfaq had never known of any Genisi games worth playing and based on price looks like they had actually been around or would be uncommon and at a higher price point than they are. Eventually brother and I being the not so into sports or racing or rail shooting arcade ports decided later to pick up a SNES so am pretty much just recently being made aware that the Genasis actually had some good quality games outside the games and genres mentioned. In fact I had just always went with the assumption that Genasis owners only cared for a few sports games but thought to be to cool for Nintendo. Again just my experience as a 14 year old kid from Philly who eventually took a gaming hiatus from say the ages of 17 through 21. That said evan in my deepest points of hiatus would occasionally pick up one of my little brothers games like Starfox and then after not playing a single game for 6 months would sit down and play a game everyday for the next few weeks. Sorry now Im just starting to blindly rant so in the immortal words of Sean Price, P!

@Sega Lord X have you reviewed the MegaRetroN HD gaming console for sega genesis/mega drive? Thank you for this video

Funny aspect ratio, the aspect suppose to be a a bit wider, but i used 16:10 instead. you can easily identify proper ratio with circle object such as sonic.

The reason there's an option to switch left and right audio channels is because in some models of Sega genesis, and saturn sega messes up with the production of the av cables with the colour of the actual cables Depending on how you set up your system and which cable you plugged into which port makes it so some people will inevitably remember the sounds and ost of games differently than others! Thus the option is there to accommodate to the people how got different audio thanks to sega

i wana buy one, im scared to get it and run into an issue. does it work with elgato hd 60 pro ? can you test sonic 1 and open labyrinth zone is there the gaps in the water? i noticed with ossc's the water has gaps and flickers weird.

Great review! Thanks for sharing your experiences with the console.

I never knew about that kick move in Shinobi III, looks like it would of saved me a lot of hassle trying to finish that game

All the people complaining about the audio on the Mega SG need to keep in mind he left the audio settings to default. By adjusting ladder effect, psg channel levels, low pass filter, and the FM synth options you can have the SG sound much more accurate. Also after a firmware update you can run Master System games from a Mega Everdrive.

I don't understand in this day and age why they can't get music emulation for the mega drive quite right

I remember that Gargoyles had some compatibility problems on the Genesis 3 due to it using a bug in that was fixed in that revision. Does it work on the SG?

YES! I've been waiting to hear your thoughts about the Mega SG! Great video as usual! Love your style of reviewing! Glad you enjoyed the system, despite some issues! I have no doubt Analogue will continue to improve in future firmware updates! Still, I think this is one of the best Genesis clones ever made! Got mine last week and I love it! Totally worth the money IMO! Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Rock on!

Hey, so you tested the MegaDrive Batman on this and it works? I have a very clean copy of that cart, and for some reason it’s the only game that I can’t get working on my Mega Sg.

21:35 Gotta love the epic showdown between Treey and Canme!

Does anyone know where I can get a cartridge version of the color and sound hacked version of Street Fighter II.

I've been using the Mega Everdrive X3 to play Master System games on the Mega SG. The pause button maps to the Genesis start button. Most games seem to play OK, but I don't see any MS-specific options in the SG menus.

I heard the sound difference after the first cadences. It sounds very good, though, but I like the original analogue sound of my modded MD1 better. I think there has never been an emulator that could replicate it more perfectly like the Mega Sg. Awesome video as always! I really like your narrative style and your elaborate usage of words. It makes your videos worth watching. :-)

There it is! Wonderful! Looking forward to watching this.

There are advance sound settings that fix this

This is personally my fvaorite console ive ever owned. I play it constantly ever since release

You probably know this by now but the John Madden Football select team screen is fixed by forcing the 3 button mode layout.

now i finally know where your end-video theme music comes from

The audio quality is great... I got the SOR 1&2 OST vinyls by Datadisc. It's similar to the Analogue Mega SG quality. I hope the guy who reversed engineered the MD will github the DSP for the SG.

Japanese megadrive sounded A LOT better than the Mega Sg in the Bare Knuckle II samples in my opinion. Warmer sounds and better poliphonic balance in the original version! Btw, really great channel, congratulations!!!

Did they ever mention anything about possible 32x upgrade in the future ?

Just my opinion: The Sega Genesis had the better graphics, while the Super Nintendo had the better sound / soundtracks. But both are great systems.

Here's the million-dollar question: with the Audio improvements that MD SG gives, will you update Batman's bgm for your videos? In this respect I am interested in MD SG, the truth is that yes; even though I already have a PSC Hack playing with retroarch 32x, MD, and SCD if it is a guilty pleasure to have this console and I am in love with the design of the new gamepads ... but I am waiting to see what SEGA shows us with MDmini, but I find it difficult to offer what MD SG offers.

You are not the only one with a soft spot for the Road Rash OST :)

While Kevtris is very good at what he does, I fully expected him to get the ym2612 "perfect."

Great review SLX. Looking forward to getting my hands on one of these.

What do you recommend for playing rom hacks?

Where does a guy get one of these? I preordered the Genesis Mini today that comes out in September!

I admittedly believed that Analogue wouldn't develop a Genesis/MD machine, thinking that they were Ninty f boys over there...super glad to see that I was wrong and that they created a console that the system deserves. Awesome, definitely looking to get one in these upcoming weeks.

I love contra hard corps. But it's just hella hard though. Was wondering how the game genie cheat codes work?

Did mega sg firmwares 3.8, 4.0, and 4.1 ever get released? I just likecto have backups of all the firmwares just incase. I did the same thing for the super nt.

21:32 - Ah, Treey versus Canme...truly the most iconic of match-ups. XD

I can launch Master System games just fine from a Mega Everdrive X5. SG-1000 games too. The only thing I can't launch is Game Gear, and I bet once a firmware update comes out to support the cart adapter for it, that'll work too.

There's no doubt that I'm a dyed in the wool Nintendo kid, but I am over the moon with joy that SEGA's 16 bit console is finally getting some love on the high quality clone console space. I know I'll be picking one of these up myself soon.

The differences in sound are due to the low pass filter. If you adjust those settings you will get the same sound as your japanese megadrive :)

Gamesack would be stoked that you talked about Truxton.

"Those sh*tty multi-cards" had me laughing.

Is there a compatibility list or anything out for it? as is, Without updates and any of that junk. I'm keen to get one if runs 99% of stuff out of the box. Not keen if I'm sitting around waiting for firmware updates just for basic functionality. Of the reviews I've watched this which include Sega Lord X, Pat and Ian, Metal Jesus etc, nobody has mentioned this yet?? It's the #1 thing I want to know before buying.

Thank you for this review I appreciate it. Now the question is: Do I purchase the Analogue Mega SG or wait until the Mega Drive Mini is released?

Was hoping you would review this. Great stuff as always.

I'm surprised you didn't mention the massive amounts of audio settings available. You can make the Mega SG sound like any revision Genesis/Mega Drive ever made.

Anyone know when is the GG adapter going to be released?

Mine arrived the other day! Hyped to play my Sega CD games!

I wish these older console companies would come out with something like Atari's VCS, and just as the Atari VCS had all past games on it, they should do the same. One important aspect that seems to be needed is google stadia working with these companies to create a os so that stadia games can be played on all the consoles seamlessly and play across platform online.

Ultracore doesn't work properly on my system. Once I get to level 2, the game wont let me duck and shoot or jump and shoot. Anyone else have these kind of issues?

It's between the Mega SG and the official Mega Drive Mini. Just buy both! 👽

Can you play master system games on the analogue nt?

I've spent an hour or so playing Ultracore/Hardcore, and I must admit, I really like it. It's a shame it didn't come out back in the day.

I think the analogue/CD audio volume is off by default because it can introduce noise into the mix if a Sega CD isn't connected and therefore the input is left floating. Probably a bit of a gotcha / panic moment when you plug one in and get no audio though!

Have you tried using the original 32X add on to the system?

Why did you remove SFX from the real megadrive comparisons? How can we make a complete comparison of sound in that case?

Does anybody know if ever drives work perfectly so far on this? Also, do you think I should get this or wait for the official Sega Genesis Mini?

When you were talking about John Madden messing up on you. It’s an easy fix, hold the mode button down while you power on the console. For some reason the 6 button controller doesn’t work well with that game but a 3 button works just fine. Keep up the great work!

ignored all the other reviews, I was waiting for yours Sir

SOLD. I have to have one now!! Lol ....no seriously I need that in ma life. Great Vid man✌

Good review!

Aaaah Damn! Sound effect punches etc were my NUMBER ONE issue and all other glitches with emulation! And there is still this problem..? 😭😭

Great video man as always.Well done.Maybe I will get one Sg if I have the money.

To get Mega Sg sounded more like a Model 1 do the following. Turn PSG Square and Noise channel volumes to 35. Ladder Effect +4 High Quality Mode Enabled Advanced Filter Settings LPF Cutoff +3400 LPF Roll off +6 Its not perfect but will come much closer than default.

You're not alone in loving the original Road Rash soundtrack, SLX 😎 It's awesome! 🤘

Hey SegaLordX, I was able to get Sega Master System games to play off an EverDrive cart via a clunky work around. 1st, load the SMS game. Once you get to the blank or black screen, load up UltraCore. After UltraCore starts, select Run Cartridge. The Master System game will play! Not ideal, but it works

Dumb Question: Can I use a Mega Drive loaded with Sega Genesis CD Rom files and use is on the Mega SG without having to buy a Sega CD system for the Mega Sg? Also what/where is the best mega drive to use? thx

Thanks for the review, I was on the fence about this but I think you pushed me over to get one! Suggested reference games for your next video: Shadow Dancer Eswat Valis 3 Magical Turbo Flying Hat Adventure Growl Ghouls N Ghosts Darius II Mercs El-Viento Thunderforce III/IV Gaiares Musha Aleste Alisia Dragoon Lords of Thunder Gynoug Sol-Feace Cheers.

Turn YM2612 high quality mode off. That’s what’s making the music/sound brighter than your Japanese Megadrive. Also scanlines look best in 720p. In 1080p, you must choose either 4x or 5x vertical scaling, otherwise they don’t line up properly.