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Sega Genesis model 1 variations


jeremiahjt

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I have been wondering about when the Sega Genesis variations first appeared.  The Genesis was released on August 14, 1989 with Altered Beast packed in.

990942959_genesis-alteredbeast.thumb.jpg.31f46462a037a7c0e40941ebf52137ca.jpg

 

I believe all systems that came in this box had High Definition Graphics on it and they all came with the controllers with the red lettering.  I am pretty sure there was no box variation with the Altered Beast pack-in.

Next came the first Sonic the Hedgehog pack-in.  I think all of these had the High Definition Graphics badge and the red lettered controllers too.

 

gensis-sonic-red-hdg.jpg.53a275d1c12b58bae367414da25f157b.jpg

Sonic the Hedgehog was released on June 23, 1991.  I assume this variation was released very near that day, but that is just a guess.

 

Next we have basically the same box except for the new Genesis and controller.  The High Definition Graphics badge is gone and the controllers have been change from red lettering to white.

 

genesis-sonic-white.jpg.04f20ff6c2906678e1b61c1ede8350bc.jpg

 

This is the system I first received as a kid.  I have no idea when this was released.  I would guess also in 1991 after the older Genesis models were used up they took a new picture to show the slightly changed system.

 

There is also this slight variation to the last box.

genesis-sonic-white-redsticker.jpg.8aa71278a1224d67968c6b991a9f205b.jpg

 

I am pretty sure this is a US release also, so if it is I would guess it came out after the previous one.

 

Finally we have the Core release.

 

genesis-model1-core.thumb.jpg.43af007d69f0bd33d2ded4fdff920572.jpg

 

I would assume these were sold concurrently with some of the Sonic systems, but that is just a guess.

 

Outside of adding a sticker onto the front of the core system box, I do not know of any other Genesis model 1 packaging.  I have seen online where it says the model 2 was released in 1994, but I find that very hard to believe.  It had to be out in 1993 if not by the end of 1992.  Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was released on November 21, 1992, but I am not sure how quickly it became the pack-in with the model 2 units.

 

So why did I post this? First, does anybody know of the dates when any of these came out?  The Genesis is one of only two systems I had when it was current that I cannot remember getting. The other is my Lynx.  I thought knowing when these retails sets were available might help me figure it out.  Second, I am curious if there were any other model 1 sets I do not know about that were released in the US.  If anybody knows the answers please share.

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The ones with the Sonic pack-in don't all have the "High-Definition Graphics" label on them, at least not the NTSC-J consoles. Which in that case, the text would be "AV Intelligent Terminal". I know, because the Japanese VA6 I bought came with the Sonic pack-in, but lacks the text.

 

Apart from the fact that it has a TMSS screen (though it still works with non-TMSS compatible games), it appears to be identical to a VA5. Which is basically the same console but no TMSS screen and it has the "AV Intelligent Terminal" text. Keep in mind, I'm referring to the Japanese consoles specifically. For all I know, it could be different in the US. But, that's beyond my knowledge.

 

 

In general, they were many, many different motherboard revisions for the Genesis M1:

 

VA0 and VA1 (JPN only)

VA2

VA3

VA4 (JPN and PAL)

VA5 (JPN and PAL)
VA6 (first JPN variant to have TMSS but lacks "AV Intelligent Terminal" text; US version appears to not have TMSS and it has the "High Definition Graphics" text)

VA6.5 and VA6.8 (all of them lack the text, all have TMSS)

VA7 (basically a Model 2 in a Model 1 shell, I'd avoid this one since its audio is worse than all other variants)

 

I believe VA6-VA7 is dated from 1991-1992. But, I could be wrong. I'm 99% certain that the Sonic 1 pack-ins were all VA6 in all regions.

Edited by RetroSonicHero
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