+bent_pin Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 I'm looking at the gamedrive and the concerto carts. Trying to figure out which one to buy. How do the two compare from a game compatibility standpoint? I like the integrated RGB out, but does it offer any benefit over the composite mods that I can whip up for a few dollars? Are there any other multicarts to consider? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldschool80skid Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 (edited) Check out this thread. Edited September 2, 2023 by Oldschool80skid 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 Game drive. It works It does pokey It does RGB Couch compliant with the sega joystick thingy (I've previously owned Cuttlecart2 and Concerto) 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Muddyfunster Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 No composite mod will get close to the RGB output of the 7800GD for quality. I have SVIDEO via UAV out on my two 7800's and they look really good (way better than composite), but the RGB out on the 7800GD is noticeably better. 7800GD works with everything pretty much and is quite future proof, Concerto has limitations. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+groundtrooper Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 7 minutes ago, Muddyfunster said: No composite mod will get close to the RGB output of the 7800GD for quality. I have SVIDEO via UAV out on my two 7800's and they look really good (way better than composite), but the RGB out on the 7800GD is noticeably better. 7800GD works with everything pretty much and is quite future proof, Concerto has limitations. And it plays ALL Muddyvision games. I'm still waiting for my bumped order from Stoneage Gamer. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Muddyfunster Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 Just now, groundtrooper said: I'm still waiting for my bumped order from Stoneage Gamer. Hope you get that soon 🕹️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted September 3, 2023 Author Share Posted September 3, 2023 11 minutes ago, Muddyfunster said: No composite mod will get close to the RGB output of the 7800GD for quality. I have SVIDEO via UAV out on my two 7800's and they look really good (way better than composite), but the RGB out on the 7800GD is noticeably better. 7800GD works with everything pretty much and is quite future proof, Concerto has limitations. The only issue it seems to have is not playing arm-assisted 2600 games. I bought an encore that's lacking with some of the better games too. I think I'm sold on the Game Drive, I just need to figure out full 2600 compatibility too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted September 3, 2023 Share Posted September 3, 2023 14 hours ago, bent_pin said: I bought an encore that's lacking with some of the better games too. I think I'm sold on the Game Drive, I just need to figure out full 2600 compatibility too I don’t understand. The Harmony and Harmony Encore are among the best 2600 flash carts out there. What do you have that your Encore won’t play? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted September 3, 2023 Author Share Posted September 3, 2023 24 minutes ago, DrVenkman said: I don’t understand. The Harmony and Harmony Encore are among the best 2600 flash carts out there. What do you have that your Encore won’t play? I agree, but it does not support 3E+ bankswitching. Going to have to get a Pluscart for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Muddyfunster Posted September 3, 2023 Share Posted September 3, 2023 14 hours ago, bent_pin said: The only issue it seems to have is not playing arm-assisted 2600 games. I guess your decision then is which is more important, playing ARM assisted 2600 games on your 7800 or playing all the latest 7800 games on your 7800. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted September 3, 2023 Author Share Posted September 3, 2023 32 minutes ago, Muddyfunster said: I guess your decision then is which is more important, playing ARM assisted 2600 games on your 7800 or playing all the latest 7800 games on your 7800. I've been convinced. I'm going with the gamedrive. Between it, the Encore, and the Pluscart I should have full compatibility. Nice to be able to support multiple developers too. Going to buy your ROMs soon, too. Thank you, Everybody! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinks Posted September 3, 2023 Share Posted September 3, 2023 I am going to wait for whatever Eagle comes up with and it that becomes a thing. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turbo graphics 220 Posted September 7, 2023 Share Posted September 7, 2023 Backbit pro is what I was thinking of getting, it has pokey but not the yamaha that more homebrews are starting to use but the gamedrive is pretty expensive compared to most flashcarts I own. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted January 14 Author Share Posted January 14 I ended up getting a backbit pro so I could use it for my 5200, 7800, and A8 systems. I still plan on getting a gamedrive eventually. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 (edited) On 9/7/2023 at 2:06 PM, turbo graphics 220 said: Backbit pro is what I was thinking of getting, it has pokey but not the yamaha that more homebrews are starting to use but the gamedrive is pretty expensive compared to most flashcarts I own. Gamedrive VS backbit is like apples and firetrucks. They are both red but that is about all. Gamedrive all the way. (for 7800 specific use) Edited January 15 by Shawn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 22 hours ago, Shawn said: Gamedrive VS backbit is like apples and firetrucks. They are both red but that is about all. Gamedrive all the way. (for 7800 specific use) Just curious, have you actually got a BBPro with the 7800 adapter for use? I mean, you aren't wrong about them being different products, but at least in my testing of most things, the BBpro has worked better than the Concerto I picked up at the end of 2022. And while I know we are talking about the 7800 side of it more specifically, the fact it has all the other adapters has been a really nice feature for me because I can quickly and easily swap out the adapter for whatever system I need and use the BBpro in the lab as an all in one cart pretty much. Keystone Koppers is working with the BBPro and while I don't have the game digitally I would expect that Danger Zone is working well. ARTI and EXO not currently but I'm hopeful that @evietron will look into those games more and perhaps others in the future to get them working as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 On 1/16/2024 at 1:49 PM, -^CrossBow^- said: Just curious, have you actually got a BBPro with the 7800 adapter for use? I mean, you aren't wrong about them being different products, but at least in my testing of most things, the BBpro has worked better than the Concerto I picked up at the end of 2022. And while I know we are talking about the 7800 side of it more specifically, the fact it has all the other adapters has been a really nice feature for me because I can quickly and easily swap out the adapter for whatever system I need and use the BBpro in the lab as an all in one cart pretty much. Keystone Koppers is working with the BBPro and while I don't have the game digitally I would expect that Danger Zone is working well. ARTI and EXO not currently but I'm hopeful that @evietron will look into those games more and perhaps others in the future to get them working as well. I didn't mention the concerto at all, don't know why you mentioned it? I had one early on and sold it some time later cause of it's issues and I had since got a dragonfly. And no, I would not buy a Backbit for 7800 use as that would be a waste of money cause there are much better options. I already have a dragonfly which is WAY better and If I did buy another 7800 multi it would be the Gamedrive cause it's the best one going. You can love your backbit for whatever reasons you have but it's no dragonfly and it can't hold a candle to the gamedrive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eightbit Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 (edited) As an owner of the BackBit Pro (a few of them now actually) I have to say that it is one of the best flash cart sort of devices for a lot of systems....including the 7800. The BackBit (for those not aware) is a cartridge that uses adapters to allow it to work with a slew of consoles. The adapter in particular for the 7800 has POKEY sound integrated as well. While I think the Gamedrive is a great device, it is not for me personally as (I believe, I can be corrected if I am wrong) that it is simulating the 7800 in FPGA and only using the 7800 console as a "carcass" for I/O (joysticks, power). I could be wrong about that but I can't see how video out of the cartridge itself can be achieved while using the internal 7800 hardware. Is it functioning like the Amiga Vampire? I dunno. You tell me....but it seems that way. Not saying that is a "bad" thing. It's just not "my" thing. The BackBit Pro works as you would expect. Put roms on a MicroSD and plug it in. And it works great.....very very great. And Evie provides stellar support for this and all of her other devices, I can attest to that. In short, you really can't go wrong with this device and the fact that it works on so many consoles (I use one in a SMS, 7800 and a Colecovision so far) it just makes sense to own one period: https://store.backbit.io/product/backbit-pro/ And, I should mention again, it works REALLY really good with the 7800 Edited February 1 by eightbit 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marauder666 Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 @eightbit The Gamedrive has just enough of an FPGA recreation in the cartridge to be able to generate the RGB image, its not the whole console. If you use composite/s-video or RF from the 7800 itself then everything is on the original hardware. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Muddyfunster Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 2 hours ago, marauder666 said: @eightbit The Gamedrive has just enough of an FPGA recreation in the cartridge to be able to generate the RGB image, its not the whole console. If you use composite/s-video or RF from the 7800 itself then everything is on the original hardware. Exactly. I have a UAV modded NTSC 7800 (Thanks @marauder666 & @juansolo). I have a 7800GD plugged in and have RGB out via the GD and S Video via the UAV - at the same time. The GD is not emulating the 7800. My understanding of the Backbit is that it's a really nice product but on the 7800 (can't comment on other platforms that it supports) is that it has some issues with some modern ROMs and does not support Bankset roms for example. If I was making a recommendation based on cards that are available right now, I would only recommend the 7800GD as it's the best all round solution and the best feature set. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trebor Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 8 hours ago, eightbit said: In short, you really can't go wrong with this device... Unless you actually want to play the full version of 1942 with YM sound, Pac-Man Collection 40th Anniversary with YM sound, Attack of the PETSCII Robots, A.R.T.I. and E.X.O. without issues. Several, at the very least, top notch homebrews for the console will not play correctly, if at all. Would love to see the backbit-pro issues resolved, but currently there is a significant number of titles that flat out do not work with the device. Hopefully improvements will come to its 7800 support. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eightbit Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 (edited) 2 hours ago, Trebor said: Unless you actually want to play the full version of 1942 with YM sound, Pac-Man Collection 40th Anniversary with YM sound, Attack of the PETSCII Robots, A.R.T.I. and E.X.O. without issues. Several, at the very least, top notch homebrews for the console will not play correctly, if at all. Would love to see the backbit-pro issues resolved, but currently there is a significant number of titles that flat out do not work with the device. Hopefully improvements will come to its 7800 support. When I have time I'll send Evie a message and ask if those limitations can be overcome with a firmware update. In my experience she has been able to fix nearly everything that I found on other consoles. On the SMS for example there were some specific challenges since I am using a Japanese SMS with integrated FM. She resolved all of my issues in record time and now I have 100% compatibility. I'd admit I don't play too many homebrew games. I was mostly happy to have the complete retail library of 7800 games perfectly working. And, of the homebrew games I did play (bouncing around your pack) I didn't experience many issues. But, I can certainly see why a Gamedrive would be recommended based on what you are saying about modern homebrew compatibility. I guess it's really all about what you want and what you are going to use it for. The BackBit is great because it gives you 100% 7800 original retail game compatibility and quite a bit of homebrew compatibility plus the ability to use the same cart across a few dozen game consoles. I hope it gets improvements over time as well...and with the track record of the developer I have no doubt that it will. But if you want to play those aforementioned games, then yeah, Gamedrive. I'll be picking one up soon as well as I like to support the developers of these fine creations. I have to say I LOVE his Mega 7800 Edited February 1 by eightbit 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gambler172 Posted February 25 Share Posted February 25 Well, as 7800 User and collector, I support every 7800 project, also the Backbit. Best of this cart is, that you can use it with afapters for several Video game sytems.And it gets regulary updates, so it gets more compatible in time.It is compatible with most 7800 games. And best of all.... Evies service is really great. Emails are answered very fast and the backbit is worth to give it a try. And to be honest. All 7800 multicarts have their special features. greetings Walter 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted February 25 Share Posted February 25 4 hours ago, gambler172 said: Well, as 7800 User and collector, I support every 7800 project, also the Backbit. Best of this cart is, that you can use it with afapters for several Video game sytems.And it gets regulary updates, so it gets more compatible in time.It is compatible with most 7800 games. And best of all.... Evies service is really great. Emails are answered very fast and the backbit is worth to give it a try. And to be honest. All 7800 multicarts have their special features. greetings Walter If you could only have one, which do you pick? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted February 25 Share Posted February 25 3 hours ago, Shawn said: If you could only have one, which do you pick? For background: I have both a Concerto and a 7800GD. The GD is a recent acquisition, received as a present. Given today's selections: if 7800 software compatibility is the ultimate goal, go with the GD. The reason I say this is that the GD can run newer 7800 homebrews which the Concerto can't. However, the Concerto can run 2600 ARM games, which the GD currently isn't capable of. If the CEM add-on for the Concerto is released, the specs of the two will be a lot closer. If / when that will happen isn't known or guaranteed, though. One thing worth mentioning is that a Harmony Encore plus GD will give support for both newer 2600 titles and newer 7800 titles, so if you already have a Harmony Encore kicking around you get the best of both worlds. Granted, it means changing carts out if you want to switch between 2600 and 7800 games for certain titles, but that's not something that strikes me as a huge deal. FWIW, I haven't named the BackBit Pro here. That's not because I see it as somehow inferior to the alternatives (quite the opposite, in fact, and my personal belief is that @evietron has one hell of a great design with it), but feel that it's more of a really handy diagnostic tool that has multicart functionality than an outright multicart. By no means is that meant to knock it; it's just that it's more of a device that, while it can be used as a multicart, seems a bit geared towards people who need it for troubleshooting multiple platforms. For people who just want to play the games, the 7800GD + Harmony Encore cover all the bases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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