Generic Emulation Options

[Asura]

Thinking of building the ultimate emulation setup for my living room, given my recent very positive experience with the RG350M.

I had up until now considered getting a Pi, as I've sorted out one of those in the past. However, now I'm seeing these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08BLH58S4/ref=as_li_ss_tl?th=1&linkCode=sl1&tag=liliputing04-21&linkId=9cbe767aa37037555cc421f92f68b3f1&language=en_GB

It's a new barebones small PC by Asus, for £275. A fair amount more than a Pi (which, with a very good case, would probably top out at £120) but I suspect this machine would run Saturn, N64... Practically anything you throw at it.

This is making me think - what do other people here have? What's your all-in-one solution?

[Neon Ignition]

First consideration would be if you have any form of a reasonable PC already, if so you're probably already most of the way there.

I guess it depends on what you want to emulate too. Arcade, PS2, PS3, Xbox etc emulation and it's PC time. Roofing out at PS2 then Android is an option and if your not too fussed about PS2/Saturn then a trusty old WiiU is well worth a consideration to keep costs down.

[Cepp]

Just my gaming PC running Retroarch with the lag reduction option turned on (cant remember the name).

If I was building something from scratch for the living room I'd probably pick up a MiSTer tbh. I rarely if ever emulate anything newer than the PSX though.

[Neon Ignition]

Just found out Citra is starting to run on Switch as well, quite a few affordable options opening up lately

[paulus]

If you are happy with just NES, SNES, PCE, MD, Mega CD, PCE CD, Neo Geo, 486PC, GB, GBC, GBA, Sharp 6800, C64, Spectrum, Amiga, Atari ST plus many different arcade cores then the ultimate setup is a 128MB Mister with an IO Board. This can perfectly emulate these machines (plus many more) via FPGA Technology. The picture via VGA, DVID or HDMI is incredible and the sound Emulation is very accurate. Turn on the fast USB Polling option and plug into a CRT and it feels just like they did in the 80s and 90s.

[exZAKtly]

If you are happy with just NES, SNES, PCE, MD, Mega CD, PCE CD, Neo Geo, 486PC, GB, GBC, GBA, Sharp 6800, C64, Spectrum, Amiga, Atari ST plus many different arcade cores then the ultimate setup is a 128MB Mister with an IO Board. This can perfectly emulate these machines (plus many more) via FPGA Technology. The picture via VGA, DVID or HDMI is incredible and the sound Emulation is very accurate. Turn on the fast USB Polling option and plug into a CRT and it feels just like they did in the 80s and 90s.

Any recommended links / sites to buy this from in the UK / find out more?
[MENTION=5941]Asura[/MENTION] - I do like the ASU’s machine you’ve linked. I take it this won’t be able to emulate GameCube?

[dataDave]

If I was going to be spending any money it would be on a MiSTer box.

[Asura]

Any recommended links / sites to buy this from in the UK / find out more?
@Asura - I do like the ASU’s machine you’ve linked. I take it this won’t be able to emulate GameCube?

It might. I mean Dolphin is a pretty good emulator.

[monel]

What kind of pc do you need for arcade games like Teknoparrot and older titles like Time Crisis 2 and 3? Is it down to the graphics card? I've always managed consoles but pushing mame and others to newer titles is where I fail and give up.

[Asura]

What kind of pc do you need for arcade games like Teknoparrot and older titles like Time Crisis 2 and 3? Is it down to the graphics card? I've always managed consoles but pushing mame and others to newer titles is where I fail and give up.

Yeah; I've never been near 3D arcade games.

A big part of the problem is that most of the ones I'd want to play at home got home ports, which are often as good or better than the originals. The arcade experiences I miss are games like Time Crisis II, AquaJet etc. which don't really work on a controller.

[Baseley09]

Mister is a little bit snake oil imo, no human has ever perceived the difference between FPGA and pc emulation. I'd get a 2nd hand micro pc for £50 - £100 and have access to most emulation at high quality.

[speedlolita]

Only good for stuff before the PlayStation at this point too.

[Gradius]

I have become a big MiSTer fan over the last few months. It’s the perfect device for filling in the gaps of the consoles I don’t own, it was worth the price just to be able to play Neo Geo games pretty much perfectly. I love the fact that it’s an ongoing community project with something new being added fairly regularly. The arcade cores are ace! (although there aren’t many games running on it yet)
The recent Capcom CPS addition is brilliant!



RGB output is the business on my PVM

[exZAKtly]

If I was going to be spending any money it would be on a MiSTer box.

Those require some tinkering though, right?

[speedlolita]

That's the fun part! MiSTer seems neat but I think I'd need at least PS1 support to come around before I bite. Bit priced out for a tinker project with what I earn.