What Is The Best NES Console/Hardware Platform?

[Takumaji]

I have a standard grey front-loading NES that sometimes has problems reading carts, reseating them usually helps but it has gotten slightly worse over time so I might have to inspect it one day and repair/replace some parts.

There are many different NES models, front loader, top loader, Japanese, Western-style, with builtin floppy drive, etc. What are the pros and cons of them and what's your favourite in terms of durability and convenience?

 

[city41]

Toaster NES's have their cart port go almost universally. The up and down motion bends them. A modern replacement is readily available. Once I replaced mine I also found you don't need to push the cart down, just leave it in the up position and it works fine, so no strain on that bend.

 

[Hattori Hanzo]

Don't replace the original pin connector. The only good replacement is a Blinking Light Win from Arcadeworks.

Boil the original one for 15-20 minutes and clean it with isopropanol. It worked fine with my 2 PAL NES after some additional bending with a needle.

 

[madmanjock]

Am I allowed to say the Analogue Nt mini? For plug and play in 2023 it has to be the right choice.

 

[pixeljunkie]

Am I allowed to say the Analogue Nt mini? For plug and play in 2023 it has to be the right choice.

Better yet this:

AVS - retroUSB

Package contents: AVS console Full color box Full color manual 6' HDMI cable USB A to USB mini B cable 5v USB power adapter - USA wall plug only* *Console is powered via 5v USB. Worldwide compatibility with nearly any existing powered USB port / USB power adapter! .collapsible {...

www.retrousb.com

Since it's something you can actually buy

 

[madmanjock]

Better yet this:

AVS - retroUSB

Package contents: AVS console Full color box Full color manual 6' HDMI cable USB A to USB mini B cable 5v USB power adapter - USA wall plug only* *Console is powered via 5v USB. Worldwide compatibility with nearly any existing powered USB port / USB power adapter! .collapsible {...

www.retrousb.com

Since it's something you can actually buy

I’ve just found this online and was about to post it, looks good and yeah fuck egay prices for a NT mini.

 

[Johnny16Bit]

Mmmh... Isn't the AVS soft emulation? Same concept as the hyperkin?

 

[GohanX]

Better yet this:

AVS - retroUSB

Package contents: AVS console Full color box Full color manual 6' HDMI cable USB A to USB mini B cable 5v USB power adapter - USA wall plug only* *Console is powered via 5v USB. Worldwide compatibility with nearly any existing powered USB port / USB power adapter! .collapsible {...

www.retrousb.com

Since it's something you can actually buy

Good call. I use that more than the real hardware these days.

 

[Takumaji]

Yeah, please list all hardware options, old and new.

 

[city41]

Mmmh... Isn't the AVS soft emulation? Same concept as the hyperkin?

Retrorgb claims it is fpga based, as do many other places.

 

[madmanjock]

Neo Alec either really wants to bone me, pixeljunkie and GohanX… or he thinks software emulation is sinful.

 

[famicommander]

I have an RGB modded NTSC frontloader with Blinking Light Win. Bought it from Nerdtendo several years back after my childhood NES died, put in the BLW myself. No complaints.

 

[Neo Alec]

Neo Alec either really wants to bone me, pixeljunkie and GohanX… or he thinks software emulation is sinful.

I think Tak's asking about original hardware. You guys get a dude's big eggplant shlong crammed up your buttholes (I guess) for those replies. Maybe we could just get a thumbs down icon?

Don't replace the original pin connector. The only good replacement is a Blinking Light Win from Arcadeworks.

The Blinking Light Win is frigging fantastic. It makes the frontloading port as reliable as an original toploading Famicom. Has anyone come up with a credible alternative, since they don't seem to be produced anymore?

Blinking Light Win - Replacement NES 72 Pin Connector

The best 72 pin connector replacement for the original Nintendo Entertainment System on the market. The Blinking Light Win began as a successful kickstarter campaign to fix the inherent reliability problems of the toaster design of the NES. The dreaded blinking red light is now a thing of the...

www.arcadeworks.net

@Takumaji Quite like the Neo Geo, any model NES or Famicom can be great with the right mods. If you want a frontloader, an RGB-modded one with Blinking Light Win is amazing. I made this one for my brother, and I didn't want to give it back:

But I have an AV Famicom. This is probably your answer right here. I have one with NESRGB installed. Also, if you care about expansion audio, they usually do need a quick mod to bring the levels to where they should be.

 

[GutsDozer]

You can get a blinking light win from Omega. Its built like a tank and made my Original Toaster new again. I mainly use my RGB modded Top Loader (NES-101) to play everything these days. If you have a toaster already just get a BLW. If you are in the market to get a newer console grab a Top Loader.

 

[Hattori Hanzo]

Has anyone come up with a credible alternative, since they don't seem to be produced anymore?

You can make your own with a 3d printer:

NES Straight Slot Adapter by Kroshar

This is an adapter for the PAL NES (Toaster) game cartridge slot. Light version are two sepperat legs it will save some time and material. In the Heavy version the legs are combined to one big part.

www.thingiverse.com

Kind of doubt they will restock the original BLW.

 

[GohanX]

I think Tak's asking about original hardware. You guys get a dude's big eggplant shlong crammed up your buttholes (I guess) for those replies. Maybe we could just get a thumbs down icon?

I have/have had just about everything. NES toaster, top loader, japanese consoles, FDS, modded and unmodded. In Tak's case, presuming he's wanting to play his original NES cartridges, which are probably PAL and knowing Tak he's not one to mod his consoles, the AVS is the best recommendation outside of getting his old one repaired. My favorite real hardware is an RGB modded AV Famicom but that would be useless to Tak as I'm sure he's not interested in starting over with Famicom games or dicking with PAL mods and adapters.

 

[roker]

Toaster NES's have their cart port go almost universally. The up and down motion bends them. A modern replacement is readily available. Once I replaced mine I also found you don't need to push the cart down, just leave it in the up position and it works fine, so no strain on that bend.

Don't replace the original pin connector. The only good replacement is a Blinking Light Win from Arcadeworks.

Boil the original one for 15-20 minutes and clean it with isopropanol. It worked fine with my 2 PAL NES after some additional bending with a needle.

I took out the FTW/BLW/etc. thing. I hated the death grip of the cartridge slot and I liked the spring push down mechanism. If you just replace the old cartridge slot, it will work perfectly. Just replace it with a new one. You have to make sure your carts are clean but I mean that's with any setup. The replacement part is cheap online.

 

[Takumaji]

The toaster I have is a US/CAN model, I'm using it on an old Dell 4:3 lcd monitor since none of my CRTs support NTSC via composite (only via RGB). Picture quality is quite good. I'm glad that I have a NTSC/60Hz model since a 50/60Hz mod isn't as straight-forward on a NES than on most other consoles. All my carts are US, as is the everdrive-style SD cart I have.

The Blinking Light Win mod looks promising, let's see if I can find one, seems to be sold out everywhere. I have no access to a 3D printer so that's not an option.

I've also seen some AV Famicoms on German ebay, they start at around 160-ish without mods and around 300-ish with NESRGB. I think that would be a good solution but a quite pricey one.

Oh, and the AVS seems to be a great little box, really intrigued, gonna check it out. And yes, I would prefer a FPGA-based solution, emulation is okay but then, why should I buy a piece of hardware if I could have the same for free on a PC? If I shell out, I want something substantial, not an emu in a box.

Of course a repair would be the simplest solution I guess. Gonna check out where I can get the parts from.

 

[100proof]

Yeah, I've used modded top-loaders (AV Famis) almost exclusively since the mid-00s. Never understood the point of using Christophe's overpriced crap or any of the other knock-offs. If I wanted to use a non-Nintendo solution, I'd just assemble a cheap Pi setup. Fancy aluminum cases just seems like shelf queen bullshit.

 

[prof]

I'm fortunate to have an original NES toaster with an issue-free pin connector, but I'll echo that the replacement pin connectors on the market are varying degrees of hot garbage. I used to deal in NES pretty heavily in the 00s, and I repaired a number of them. Deep cleaning them with iso alcohol is the best bet, and boiling them often works as well. If the pins are bent, however, that can be an issue. It can be a tedious process to get them right. But 9 times out of 10, the pin connector just needs a thorough cleaning, and that almost always does the trick. Make sure to clean the games themselves as well. The old q-tip dipped in iso alcohol never fails.

As for modern 3rd party nes consoles, the Analogue machine is the standard, but they're not available save for ebay scalpers currently. The Retro USB AVS is a fine alternative. It only does 720p, but in my experience it's a reliable machine that works. And the sound and picture quality are great, unlike many of the other stuff on the market. So if you're looking for an HDMI alternative, the AVS is a great choice.

 

[city41]

I took out the FTW/BLW/etc. thing. I hated the death grip of the cartridge slot

Me too, changing games was annoying. I got a BLW nes from someone on this forum. It always felt like a very overengineered solution to the problem.

 

[prof]

I just remembered the NES lockout chip. It has a special name, I'm sure you can google it. But that is a copyright protection chip or something like that which is what causes the blinking light. You can remove it altogether by desoldering it, but that isn't necessary. All you have to do is cut a wire or a trace, I forget which. I'm sure there are youtube videos about it nowadays. In the 00s, this was one of those things that was discussed on the old now-defunct nintendo forums.

Disabling the lockout chip will not magically make your games work, but it does remove a step in the startup process and can improve things a bit. The resetting of power is eliminated, no more blinking power light. If a game isn't read, you'll just get a solid screen now.


Edit: found a tutorial

Make a Region Free NES / Lock-Out Chip Mods

The Art of Restorations, Modifications & Preservation. Specializing in Retro Gaming, Vintage Computers & Circuit Bending.

www.retrofixes.com

 

[Hattori Hanzo]

The replacement part is cheap online.

Imported an US NES some years ago. Tested & working but it didn't work. The seller sadly already replaced the original pin connector. Broke when I tried to bend the pins. Bought another one for 15 €, I could have bought for 1/3rd directly from China. Same shit, didn't work correctly. Bought another one and ordered a BLW. The 3 pin connectors were trash and only sometimes worked. Deep cleaning was always the first thing I did with "new" consoles and games.
My US NES works fine with the BLW, didn't want to return it to the US anyway.

Later bought 2 PAL NES consoles and the seller never opened them. Repairing them was much easier and faster since they still had the original pin connectors.

I won't recommend the cheap after market solution when you still can use the original connector. Sure boiling them sounds strange but it works. Just use an old pot you don't use to actually cook.

 

[roker]

I won't recommend the cheap after market solution when you still can use the original connector. Sure boiling them sounds strange but it works. Just use an old pot you don't use to actually cook.

Yeah, I hesitated to post a link because of the varying quality. I got one of those ebay/ali/amazon cheap replacements and it works great, 2 years and running.

I told Tak to hit up a retro shop and see if the in house repair guy can sell you what he uses. A friend of mine did that locally and he also hasn't had any problems since. I just can't stand the BLW deathgrip.

 

[terry.330]

A modern replacement is readily available. Once I replaced mine I also found you don't need to push the cart down, just leave it in the up position and it works fine, so no strain on that bend.

Same. I replaced the connector in mine about 10 years ago and haven't had any issues.