Firstly, I am fully aware of the fact that, as the years waned on, Sega opted to use crappier audio boards for their Genesis/Megadrive systems. I own one of these Genesis sysrtems: A Model 1 Genesis without the "High Definition Graphics" label.
One of my questions revolves around the definition of what crappy Genesis audio sounds like. From some I've heard that it's "sloppier sound mixing". Others have said it's lacking in fidelity.
In the case of my Genesis, I get my audio output from the front 3.5mm jack. The audio is in stereo, but it sounds like it's never loud enough. Also, whenever music quiets during a normal moment of gameplay, it doesn't just play at a lower volume--it sounds extremely staticy, too. Finally, whenever I pause a Genesis game, the last note the music was on is sustained for several seconds.
Is the example I just presented an example of crappy Genesis audio? If so, can a mod rectify this?