Analogue Duo, New PC Engine Duo FPGA From Analogue

[parodius]

I’m using the specific firmware. You’re right, I can still plug the USB dongles at the back, I will try next.

[Austin]

I’m using the specific firmware. You’re right, I can still plug the USB dongles at the back, I will try next.

Yeah, give that a shot (though you'll probably have to re-flash back to the regular 8bitdo firmware). I've talked to a few people now and the consensus between us is that the internal wireless connectivity that's built in to the console might be flaky.

[NightWolve]

So what exactly is the point of these products when the vaunted FPGA isn't even accurate..?

The point of an Analogue device these days is that two to three years after launch it will have been updated to a pretty polished state. At launch they are usually serviceable at best. Perfectly fine for a casual user who just wants to play their PC Engine games on the flat panel, but as always far short of demanding tastes who will notice every small detail.

I got mine knowing that it would take a few years of firmware upgrades to reach a sufficient level of polish to be a fit alternative to the OG PC Engines I own, but I don't really mind that.

I see, so it's gonna take years... I put it in storage until the next firmware update or jailbreak, am pretty bitter about the state that it's in TBH. I'm not gonna say I wouldn't buy it knowing what I know now, but I do hope I never have to deal with Analogue again...

FUN: My bank CC got locked fighting with their Hong Kong/CHYNA payment processor; had to come back the next day, speak to a bank manager to unlock it so I could regain ATM access! The first PayGo Visa I picked up was a ripoff, lost $330 in total there to an additional 3.51% fee/tax for global/non-US charges... The MC Quicksilver CC I ordered arrived the same day, I could've avoided that extra cost if I had known, but I had already cash-loaded that Visa, wanted to get it over with and FOMO played a role... So all that trouble and it arrives a buggy mess!

The question of "Was it worth it?" is REALLY conflicting to answer... I almost lean on saying NO! But I hope with a jailbreak it'll eventually serve as the best solution for modern 4K TVs and that I don't have to bother with my genuine NEC hardware again unless it comes to rare testing/debugging or something (e.g. sometimes you catch localization bugs not present in emulators).

[kamiboy]

I wouldn't hold my breath regarding the jailbreak. I am not 100% on the timeframe for Analogue consoles receiving jailbreaks after initial launch, but I seem to vaguely remember it happened on day one. I think perhaps their policy has changed regarding looking the other way and letting the developer of their cores release an "unofficial" jailbreak for their system. It might very well be that Analogue consoles will no longer receive jailbreaks going forward, starting with the Duo and carrying onto their announced 64.

[BazookaBen]

EDIT: Ok I just got a email and said they've been swamped and I wasn't refunded because of a "technical issue". They said I should see the money in next few days

I seriously think they were just hoping I forgot

Original post

Damn, been 5 weeks and the money from my preorder cancellation is still not in my balance.

Are they just hoping I forget? I sent them a follow up email a few days ago.

I preordered last May, so way outside the chargeback window. I still might see what can be done through my CC provider.

[Koa Zo]

EDIT: Ok I just got a email and said they've been swamped and I wasn't refunded because of a "technical issue". They said I should see the money in next few days

I seriously think they were just hoping I forgot

Original post

Damn, been 5 weeks and the money from my preorder cancellation is still not in my balance.

Are they just hoping I forget? I sent them a follow up email a few days ago.

I preordered last May, so way outside the chargeback window. I still might see what can be done through my CC provider.

They still never replied to any of my emails after they said "refund in 2 weeks"... that was what, months ago?
My credit card provider has a policy of 90 day claim limit. I was well past that, however they still returned the money to my account. In my claim I provided the email where Analogue said my order was canceled and I would get the refund within 2 weeks. It was pretty cut n dry, thankfully my credit card company did the right thing.

[ldeveraux]

They still never replied to any of my emails after they said "refund in 2 weeks"... that was what, months ago?
My credit card provider has a policy of 90 day claim limit. I was well past that, however they still returned the money to my account. In my claim I provided the email where Analogue said my order was canceled and I would get the refund within 2 weeks. It was pretty cut n dry, thankfully my credit card company did the right thing.

Sucks that your card company had to do the right thing because Analogue wouldn't.

[evil_ash_xero]

Did anyone figure out if this scratched discs? I heard about it on Twitter, but hadn't followed up on it.

[neorichieb1971]

Did anyone figure out if this scratched discs? I heard about it on Twitter, but hadn't followed up on it.

I've always thought front loaders can scratch discs, depends on how you handle it going in and out ooh err.

Once the disc is inside the machine it rests on the centre pivot it doesn't touch anything.

[bobrocks95]

Could be like the 360 and not have anything to stop tipping it from causing scratches?

[Guspaz]

It's not a multi-orientation or vertical device like the 360, so there shouldn't be any reason to tip it while it's operating.

[NightWolve]

I wouldn't hold my breath regarding the jailbreak. I am not 100% on the timeframe for Analogue consoles receiving jailbreaks after initial launch, but I seem to vaguely remember it happened on day one. I think perhaps their policy has changed regarding looking the other way and letting the developer of their cores release an "unofficial" jailbreak for their system. It might very well be that Analogue consoles will no longer receive jailbreaks going forward, starting with the Duo and carrying onto their announced 64.

I shared the pessimism, but!!!! Can it be ??

The Analogue Jailbreak firmware v.9 has been released! Users reporting that it does indeed work!! TOTAL SHOCK!! I can't wait to try it when I get a chance, in the middle of too many other things right now but good to see finally. I'm still completely soured with the company though, I doubt that'll change even with this.

https://github.com/analoguejb/Analogue-Duo-JB
https://twitter.com/user/status/1760972512211468672

[Deubeul]

No mention of a fix for the data loading bug, no mention of save states support.. But the rom and iso support is welcome.

[Austin]

JB definitely works. It’s nice having HuCard support (especially for us with older Everdrives), and the CD ISO functionality works great.

[kamiboy]

I stand corrected, this is excellent, now I just need analogue DAC support and this device will reach its full potential as part of my setup.

[neorichieb1971]

Is it the goal of all retro gamers to have a singular device that plays everything on a jailbroken console from an SD card?

I own a Analogue Duo and various other consoles that can be jail broken, but I've never ever done it, unless you count hacking an OG Xbox. A guy at my workplace hacks consoles and I only see him play something for 2 mins to show it works then it puts it back where he got it from. I sense there is this trend of reaching the pinnacle of having everything, then playing nothing.

[spmbx]

N=1
If you for some reason are unable to enjoy a game whose bytes are loaded from an sdcard instead of a hucard then by all means buy hucards, the fact you can choose to load a jb firmware or not should be good news for everyone.

[neorichieb1971]

N=1
If you for some reason are unable to enjoy a game whose bytes are loaded from an sdcard instead of a hucard then by all means buy hucards, the fact you can choose to load a jb firmware or not should be good news for everyone.

Do folk sell all their games when they reach this goal?

[Lord of Pirates]

Is it the goal of all retro gamers to have a singular device that plays everything on a jailbroken console from an SD card?

I own a Analogue Duo and various other consoles that can be jail broken, but I've never ever done it, unless you count hacking an OG Xbox. A guy at my workplace hacks consoles and I only see him play something for 2 mins to show it works then it puts it back where he got it from. I sense there is this trend of reaching the pinnacle of having everything, then playing nothing.

That's a problem a lot of people have. It doesn't take away from the utility of the option for people who play games. I've got a bunch of hacked systems and played through plenty of games on them. I've typically only played PS2 games via HDD since I got an HDD installed, for example, unless I'm forced to play via disc due to a compatibility problem.

Do folk sell all their games when they reach this goal?

It would be sensible to do so. I've thought about it but keeping originals kicking around is simpler for me.

[kamiboy]

I completely understand the sentiment of not actually playing anything, when one has unlocked the ability to play anything. It is a thing, to be sure, that having access to only a small handful of games will greatly increase chances of actually playing through one or all, in contrast to having access to hundreds, which mostly encourages apathetic brief browsing of this and that, with a commitment to actual serious play not being forthcoming.

In my case, however, while I do own physical copies of hundreds of games, they are all, due to a crippling lack of space, packed away in boxes in very hard to reach places. I mostly do not even know where a prospective game might be hiding. As such paradoxically, having access to the same game via SD cards greatly increases my chances of actually playing anything. I am currently undertaking the rather expensive and time consuming project of enabling SD card gaming on all my fifth and sixth optical media based consoles, having previously secured similar solutions for all my 8/16 bit systems. Plus, I got a hold of a MisterCADE for the old arcade machine too while I was at it.

Of course, outside of not having to find my physical copies, one big side benefit of these solutions is that I circumvent the annoyances of having a mixed region collection. Not to mention the ability to play fan translations of classics that never got localisation, for an example Policenauts, which I finally got to experience.

I suppose it is all just a question of psychology, if one is the kind of person that is affected by option paralysis then it is for sure better to abstain from SD card route and just focus on a small collection of games one actually wants to play. Of course, most collectors have large collections, which really is only slightly better than having access to all games at any one time via SD cards. On a side note, I calculated a long time ago that given the size of my collection, and the maximum rate by which I was actually playing them, I would never get to finish every one in this life time. So, in that sense, the SD card only serves to make the situation slightly more absurd. We must not forget that collecting is for many a hoarding hobby wholly separate from the desire to actually play the games. I suspect people are inclined to continue collecting long after their desire to play has all but abated, but that is another matter entirely.

All in all, my case can be summed by the fact that while I have had a large collection of CD-ROM2 and Hucards for over a decade, I have mostly only been playing hucard games because I invested in a TURBO EVERDRIVE a long while back, enabling me to play my collection without having to dig through boxes to find specific games. Meanwhile my CD-ROM2 based games haven't gotten much of any attention. Now, with the Jailbroken Duo and the recent purchase of the TURBO EVERDRIVE PRO with CD-ROM2 play capability I can finally show the PC ENGINE CD games some love as well.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

I completely understand the sentiment of not actually playing anything, when one has unlocked the ability to play anything. It is a thing, to be sure, that having access to only a small handful of games will greatly increase chances of actually playing through one or all, in contrast to having access to hundreds, which mostly encourages apathetic brief browsing of this and that, with a commitment to actual serious play not being forthcoming.

In my case, however, while I do own physical copies of hundreds of games, they are all, due to a crippling lack of space, packed away in boxes in very hard to reach places. I mostly do not even know where a prospective game might be hiding. As such paradoxically, having access to the same game via SD cards greatly increases my chances of actually playing anything. I am currently undertaking the rather expensive and time consuming project of enabling SD card gaming on all my fifth and sixth optical media based consoles, having previously secured similar solutions for all my 8/16 bit systems. Plus, I got a hold of a MisterCADE for the old arcade machine too while I was at it.

Of course, outside of not having to find my physical copies, one big side benefit of these solutions is that I circumvent the annoyances of having a mixed region collection. Not to mention the ability to play fan translations of classics that never got localisation, for an example Policenauts, which I finally got to experience.

I suppose it is all just a question of psychology, if one is the kind of person that is affected by option paralysis then it is for sure better to abstain from SD card route and just focus on a small collection of games one actually wants to play. Of course, most collectors have large collections, which really is only slightly better than having access to all games at any one time via SD cards. On a side note, I calculated a long time ago that given the size of my collection, and the maximum rate by which I was actually playing them, I would never get to finish every one in this life time. So, in that sense, the SD card only serves to make the situation slightly more absurd. We must not forget that collecting is for many a hoarding hobby wholly separate from the desire to actually play the games. I suspect people are inclined to continue collecting long after their desire to play has all but abated, but that is another matter entirely.

All in all, my case can be summed by the fact that while I have had a large collection of CD-ROM2 and Hucards for over a decade, I have mostly only been playing hucard games because I invested in a TURBO EVERDRIVE a long while back, enabling me to play my collection without having to dig through boxes to find specific games. Meanwhile my CD-ROM2 based games haven't gotten much of any attention. Now, with the Jailbroken Duo and the recent purchase of the TURBO EVERDRIVE PRO with CD-ROM2 play capability I can finally show the PC ENGINE CD games some love as well.

When Krikzz finally released the Turbo Everdrive Pro, that slick gaming flashcart was "the final piece to complete the the jigsaw puzzle" with the Turbo Everdrives. The ability to play all PCE/TG-16 game roms + CD-Rom2, Super CD-Rom2 & Arcade CD-Rom2 titles sealed the deal -- imagine if the TE or TE-Pro existed back in the PCE/TG-16's heyday (surely NEC and Hudson Soft would've "flipped big time" seeing a PCE flashcart play CD-Rom games without the need for a real CD-Rom add-on interface to do so). It's an awesome time to be a PCE/TG-16 gamer in the 21st century thanks to high-tech wizardry nowadays.

What's cool about playing any PCE CD iso with a TE-Pro is, if said OG PCE CD game had built-in support for the PCE Duo's back-up ram (BRAM) functionality, then the very same CD game will automatically save your high scores, high score initials, game saves, etc. without any input from the end user via nvram. How cool is that? Power it back on & reboot to the same exact CD game and all your high scores and high score initials reappear/still remain intact/saved for posterity. Krikzz has truly thought of everything in regards with the TE-Pro indeed. Color me impressed.

Has Krikzz released a proper firmware update to address some PCE games' sound issues when using a TE-Pro setup? This is one of the pressing issues with it right now.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[kamiboy]

The Turbo EverDrive Pro certainly is a cool piece of kit. The fact that CD-ROM emulation is possible by using only a flash cartridge and no additional hardware is quite neat. I haven't looked into the technical details on how this is even possible, both for the PC Engine, SEGA CD and Saturn, but I imagine there is prolly some parallels in how the CD-drive reading functionality is technically handled in all cases.

What are these sound issues you mention? Is it just some games having problems, or more of a system wide issue? In case of the former, I suppose they will all be fixed in time, I imagine most games work fine, and as long as I don't bad luck into those handful of titles during my normal play time I will remain blissfully ignorant of the faults.

That being said, nothing puts a damper on the mood than firing up a game with the intent to play, only to be met with glitches. I recently decided to take the Saturn Fenrir for a spin by playing Panzer Dragoon Zwei, only to be met with scratchy audio and choppy FMV's.

But I suppose it comes with the territory when one ventures into third party solution land.

[SavagePencil]

It’s system-wide (or, at least “potentially affects all CD-based games, but not HuCards”). Krikzz has already acknowledged that he will be looking into it.

[Strider77]

A friend got one of these and I got a chance to play around with it over the weekend. I'm considering getting one but I've had one concern from the start. I'm worried about that slot based disc drive scratching discs. I generally don't have this concern with all my modern consoles but this is third party and PCE CD stuff is not cheap these days.

I'm curious to hear from folks who've had one for awhile now... has it been fine and not added any marks or scratches to your discs? Also, I'm not interested in hearing about loading ISOs with the jailbreak or burning CDRs (I already know these are options). I just want to hear some feedback on how the drives are treating owner's discs now that some time has passed with these out in the wild.

[Ricdeau]

A friend got one of these and I got a chance to play around with it over the weekend. I'm considering getting one but I've had one concern from the start. I'm worried about that slot based disc drive scratching discs. I generally don't have this concern with all my modern consoles but this is third party and PCE CD stuff is not cheap these days.

I'm curious to hear from folks who've had one for awhile now... has it been fine and not added any marks or scratches to your discs? Also, I'm not interested in hearing about loading ISOs with the jailbreak or burning CDRs (I already know these are options). I just want to hear some feedback on how the drives are treating owner's discs now that some time has passed with these out in the wild.

I haven't used the CD drive in mine too much yet, but the mechanism is pretty stiff. When you eject it's kind of hard to get enough disc to use just the outer and inner edges. No issues with it causing any damage just wish the mechanism would push the disk out a little farther. I have not tried the jailbreak or CDRs yet, only official games. I plan to just jailbreak and not use my discs if possible.

[Austin]

I have used the drive extensively and haven’t had any discs scratched.

[BazookaBen]

I don't have the Duo but I've read it has pretty basic off-the-shelf DVD drive you'd find in a laptop or something like that. Like you can look up the model number and find it used in other devices.

So as long as they didn't go with the cheapest Aliexpress option out there I'd personally be pretty confident in it.