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Small yet effective - Updated 1/29/2024


ClassicGMR

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I've been into collecting since 1996 and I started by targeting what I grew up with - 2600, INTV and CV - and what I still had in my possession - NES, Atari 2600, TI 994/a.
What started as a small nostalgia trip turned into a full-blown hobby that is very enjoyable! I lost a few years (2003-2005) due to divorce and more recently for a family illness. I'm no longer actively collecting since I've found that even my "play" money needs to be for the family first at this point in my life so my collections have shrunk and ground down to a near standstill.

 

At the height of my collection - around 2001 - I had an entire gaming apartment set up with roughly 25 systems across 2 rooms(double parlor), a computer network in a 3rd(1st bedroom), a ton of board games(kitchen) and a small room set up with a library(2nd bedroom). I gotta have my books. ;-)  *** I had the gaming apartment above my normal apartment since my mother did not want to rent it to anyone else. She hated being a landlord and dealing with people but she inherited my grandmother's home and didn't want to sell it. I rented the downstairs and paid a little extra plus heat and electric and set up the whole apartment upstairs dedicated to gaming/hanging out/FUN. Since it was an actual apartment it had a full bath and a fully applianced kitchen too so almost every weekend my best friends would just stay over. My ex-wife initially hated the place but that didn't last long once she realized it was, in fact, OUR party place and not just mine. She had her friends over as well and it was amazing for everyone. *sigh* Such a simpler time in my life. Man I miss that place.

 

I also helped plan a couple of the old PhillyClassic conventions under David and Chuck. Had some good times with this hobby and the great people in it!

 

Now I've moved into my own house(finally!) with my wife(also finally!). I have the space for collecting but I have found I like having small collections using multicarts, mods or emulation so I doubt I will ever have another massive physical collection again. One loader solution, one system, real hardware. I also have an X-Arcade Cabinet for all my emulation and party hosting needs. I've had it since 2012 and it still gets used 2-3 times a week by myself and guests of the family. I've taken to using PS Classic consoles and RetroPie for emulation. On top of that these 2600-daptors/Vision-daptors work great when the hardware is in storage or when we go on vacation!

 

Lately I have had a passion for setting up gaming on older hardware. I enjoy finding different ways to make the games work in different setups or environments. I get a decent amount of parts that still work doing upgrades or repairs on PCs that people don't want back. I have quite a few "Frankenstein's monster" systems that run emulation that I have set up. I sell them here and there but it's more a hobby I enjoy. Good thing since there's no real money to be made anyway.

 

These days it's just about playing the games and enjoying life. 😀

 

Owned:

- PS Classic systems x3 (1 basement, 1 bedroom, 1 spare)

- Raspberry Pi 3B+ (with SNESPi cases)

- Raspberry Pi 4 2GB x2 (both portable builds with battery packs!)

 

- HP Omen gaming laptop (newer system for current gaming)

- 2x Gaming PCs - Both are Intel i5-12400f, 3060ti, 32GB RAM, 512GB M.2, 1 TB SSD, XBox One wired controller (One in the basement and one at my desk in the bedroom.)

 

- X-Tension X-Arcade cabinet from recroommasters.com currently running a PC with a 9th Gen i5-9400F, 16GB RAM, RTX 2070 Super, 4 TB storage, tons of gamepad/joystick adapters. It is the centerpiece of the living room being able to play current games, DOSBox games, GoG games and, obviously, emulation. This is a system that gets the first upgrades when I get free parts so it is always evolving.

 

- Retron 77 for Atari 2600

- PlayStation 2 with Free McBoot, 500GB SATA HDD and HDMI adapter (x2 - yes two identical setups. One in the game room and one on my desk in the bedroom.)

- PlayStation 3 stock

- PlayStation 4 stock

- PSP 1000 with 6.61 CFW

- Nintendo Switch stock

- Nintendo 64 with EverDrive 2.5 and HDMI adapter

- Nintendo Gamecube with HDMI adapter, GCLoader, GBA adapter and Krikzz GBA multicart. This system also does NES and SNES so it's a very nice all in one console.

- Nintendo Wii modded with cIOS+WiiFlow and 256GB USB HDD. This one resides in the living room.

- Nintendo DSi with R4

- Xbox modded with CoinOps

- Xbox 360 stock

- Xbox One stock

- Valve Steam Deck
 

Our daughter moved out in 2021 when she got married and we redid the whole house. My wife took our daughter's two rooms and made a crafting area to work and play out of. I took the two basement rooms and finally straightened them out for gaming and my PC repair side business. I organized everything based on theme and now it is not a Patriots/Mario/Optimus haphazard dumping ground. I sectioned it all out while I was down there and it feels much better. It is also amazing to find out just how much stuff I already owned that was just hidden or "put away for now". I forgot I had an Xbox and a lot of the things on the walls were just already HERE... It was like finding treasure!! 🤣

 

The Transformers and dragon collections are finally reset and displayed the way I want. I found a box of LED reactive lighting strips that my wife had bought for me. I wrapped it around the wall/ceiling edge in the gaming room. I adds a nice ambiance and is also used for muted lighting when watching movies with the overhead lights off.

 

There are some pics missing. They're not of these rooms - I keep some systems in the bedroom on the desk with my primary laptop and tower - but I may add them later.

 

Love the added LED lighting and the clock w/ Pac-Man LED desk light on top. Very 80's arcade-ish. :)

 

Sidenote to self 1/29/24 - I need to update ALL of these pictures!

 

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Edited by ClassicGMR
1/29/2024 - Updated list
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6 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

Now I've moved into my own house(finally!) with my wife. I have the space for collecting but I have found I like having small, multicart and emulation collections so I doubt I will ever have another massive physical collection again. I've settled into multicarts like the Harmony, LTO Flash and Krikzz Everdrive carts. One cart, one system, real hardware. I also have an X-Arcade Cabinet for all my emulation and party hosting needs. I've had it since 2012 and it still gets used 2-3 times a week by myself and guests of the family. I've taken to using PS Classic consoles and RetroPie for emulation. On top of that these 2600-daptors/Vision-daptors work great when the hardware is in storage or when we go on vacation!

 

These days it's just about playing the games and enjoying life. :)

 

 

Large physical collections are falling out of favor as time goes on. Most everyone is going with aesthetically pleasing setups and downsizing. Whether the downsizing is enabled by Software Emulation only, original hardware + multicarts, FPGA recreation, or some combination of all three - it's simply becoming more and popular.

 

It allows one to access the games and software so much more efficiently and pleasantly than a wall-of-cartridges and 50 different systems all contending for the same display.

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  • 10 months later...

I'm going to have to update this at some point. I made some changes and additions. Almost everything is running loader solutions and almost all are HDMI systems, have Pound/Hyperkin HDMI cables added or are running through an AV->HDMI upscaler. So going down the list:

 

* Atari 2600 is now a Retron 77. I was using the INTV System Changer and a Harmony cart.

* INTV is still there but it's an AV modded system that is still running an LTO FLash.

* The NES is a RetroUSB AVS system with an Everdrive N8.

* The SNES is a Pound SNES Challenger system running a Super Everdrive.

* The 3DO is a modded MNEMO system.

* The Playstation has the PSIO modification.

* The Playstation 2 has a McBoot setup and a SATA interface.

* The N64 has an Everdrive 2.5.

* The Dreamcast is a GDEMU loader system.

* I added a Sega Genesis with an Everdrive.

* I added a Sega Saturn with a TerraOnion MODE system.

* The Nintendo Switch is just a Switch. ;)

* I also have the PS3, PS4(just added), XBox 360 and XBox One systems with a small collection of games for each.

* I have multiple Raspberry Pi and Playstation Classic systems scattered throughout the house.

* My arcade cabinet is still awesome. ?

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  • 1 year later...
On 8/16/2020 at 7:05 PM, ClassicGMR said:

I'm going to have to update this at some point. I made some changes and additions. Almost everything is running loader solutions and almost all are HDMI systems, have Pound/Hyperkin HDMI cables added or are running through an AV->HDMI upscaler. So going down the list:

 

* Atari 2600 is now a Retron 77. I was using the INTV System Changer and a Harmony cart.

* INTV is still there but it's an AV modded system that is still running an LTO FLash.

* The NES is a RetroUSB AVS system with an Everdrive N8.

* The SNES is a Pound SNES Challenger system running a Super Everdrive.

* The 3DO is a modded MNEMO system.

* The Playstation has the PSIO modification.

* The Playstation 2 has a McBoot setup and a SATA interface.

* The N64 has an Everdrive 2.5.

* The Dreamcast is a GDEMU loader system.

* I added a Sega Genesis with an Everdrive.

* I added a Sega Saturn with a TerraOnion MODE system.

* The Nintendo Switch is just a Switch. ;)

* I also have the PS3, PS4(just added), XBox 360 and XBox One systems with a small collection of games for each.

* I have multiple Raspberry Pi and Playstation Classic systems scattered throughout the house.

* My arcade cabinet is still awesome!

Much needed update. I also had to sell off a lot of stuff to pay some medical bills so I scratched off what I no longer own from the quote above. I still can play everything I just have less physical "stuff".

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
On 9/8/2022 at 3:18 AM, Keatah said:

Do you think your collection size has been rightsized for the long haul?

"You can't have everything... where would you put it?" - Steven Wright

 

If I understand what you're asking yes. This is where my collection needs to be - now and going forward. I get to play what I want when I want but I'm not throwing 5 rooms at it to make everything accessible and connected, I don't need an Excel catalog to track it, I don't get mad buying something I forgot I already had, I'm spending less to end up with more. I used to be a hardcore collector - I would scour the flea markets (who remembers when they weren't eBay priced??) and if I didn't have it I bought it. Doesn't matter if I would ever play it... I HAD to have it since I didn't already. Hell... I owned a Sega Master System and had probably 3/4 of the library for it. I HATED that system but I kept buying and upgrading the games if I didn't own them. I can't afford that mentality anymore and, quite frankly, I have nowhere to put it.

 

It also helps that the communities have come up with ways to:

 - eliminate the massive, wall-covering collections by giving us loader carts, HDD accessing firmware and SD cards

 - emulation is, for most gamers, near enough to perfect to not see a difference

 - USB adapters allow us to use original controllers for the systems in our emulation

 - - this is especially wonderful for Intellivision controllers - emulating the INTV controller sucks AND I get to use the overlays!

 - HDMI adapters and modern remakes of old consoles mean our current televisions can connect us to our childhood memories

Edited by ClassicGMR
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8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

If I understand what you're asking yes. This is where my collection needs to be - now and going forward. I get to play what I want when I want but I'm not throwing 5 rooms at it to make everything accessible and connected, I don't need an Excel catalog to track it, I don't get mad buying something I forgot I already had, I'm spending less to end up with more.

Sounds like you're on the right track. Been there and done that. Even threw three 2-car garages at the "problem" to no satisfaction.

 

I still on occasion make the mistake of buying a manual (Apple II) that I don't already have. It's a cheap mistake so no damage done. I can just recycle it or give it to the library. I suppose that Excel spreadsheet would help and actually be practical since it'd only be a couple of pages at best. I've been focusing on manuals anyways.. since I've got pretty much all the hardware I'll ever want and need, and Asimov and Internet Archive are there for the software.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

I used to be a hardcore collector - I would scour the flea markets (who remembers when they weren't eBay priced??) and if I didn't have it I bought it. Doesn't matter if I would ever play it... I HAD to have it since I didn't already.

I was on the cusp of being a hardcore collector. And trying to be that hardcore collector was a huge setback for me. It's not just the money required, but the time, the space, the interest, so many more factors than just funding.

 

I was upset that the chase to be a full-blown collector diluted what I already had into oblivion. Kinda wished my original 2600 stuff wasn't a part of those messy times. But it got swept away. With only Apple II and most PC stuff surviving. Kinda go back and forth on the 2600 because Stella is a very good feature-complete emulator.

 

It seems like my enjoyment of A2 is increasing as I downsize it to the essentials and sentimental stuff - with the sentimental material being a default keeper.

 

So far I've managed to eliminate the gotta-get-it-all mentality from Apple II stuff when it comes to hardware & peripherals. Software remains open-ended and easily manageable because it's all done on-line via mirrors. Very easy to get the latest images from on-line sources. And they tend to self organize. And if they don't self-organize, the search function in Windows wrestles control over the mess! I add to it seemingly every week, with no list of stuff to get, what's out there is out there!

 

In fact my whole modus operandi is to not get into bidding wars or overpay on buy-it-now. Just picking a few things up that happen to come my way is good enough. No thrifting or garage sales. Nothing where I have to go out of my way.

 

Collecting is so much more fun if you proceed at a slow pace and have no agenda - maybe at most a short list of wanted items that you kinda keep an eye out for.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

Hell... I owned a Sega Master System and had probably 3/4 of the library for it. I HATED that system but I kept buying and upgrading the games if I didn't own them. I can't afford that mentality anymore and, quite frankly, I have nowhere to put it.

At one time I was going to (foolishly) rebuild my collection (pile of hoarder stuff), but thankfully that didn't go anywhere because of funding and time required. SMS was the first system in the attempt. I didn't actually hate the system or anything. But it was too different from the early consoles like the 2600/Intellivision/Colecovision to seriously get into. Didn't quite have the style of games I liked.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

It also helps that the communities have come up with ways to:

 - eliminate the massive, wall-covering collections by giving us loader carts, HDD accessing firmware and SD cards

That is huge! And so many people have said the same thing. I don't think it's the community thinking about eliminating massive wall-covering collections. It's more about getting the games for free.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

 - emulation is, for most gamers, near enough to perfect to not see a difference

True enough. I could argue it's better in some ways. But I'll save it for another day.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

 - USB adapters allow us to use original controllers for the systems in our emulation

 - - this is especially wonderful for Intellivision controllers - emulating the INTV controller sucks AND I get to use the overlays!

Yes.

 

8 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

 - HDMI adapters and modern remakes of old consoles mean our current televisions can connect us to our childhood memories

I can see that. I'm not a fan of mini-consoles or remakes or adapters. I lean toward staying entirely in the digital domain. Letting emulators synthesize the game output straight to a modern display device. Provided there is provision for NTSC/RF noise and the fuzzies. I totally hate the harsh sharp look emulators are capable of.

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Despite having said all that, don't get me wrong, this stuff is cool. And we all have different trigger points for when there is "too much" of it. Too much just utterly and completely kills the intrigue of the hobby. Applies to all hobbies, except the hobby of hoarding. Then you never have too much stuff!

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  • 9 months later...
19 hours ago, ClassicGMR said:

That is actually just one of their brochures. I could grab you one if you want when I go back to NH in August and mail it to you. 😊

Thanks! That’s very generous of you and totally unnecessary. I’m sure I have at least one around here somewhere. I just thought it was cool you had one framed and hanging on your wall.

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