I got the MODE for the Sega Saturn. As a good number of Saturn games expect you to read their instruction manuals for the plot/context before you start playing, the MODE is great as it's Cover Database includes story summaries for each game as well as game their game covers. The downside is game save management can be awkward as it will always load up the MODE's menu on launch and it requires setting it so that resetting the Console takes you back to the main Menu and then you have to turn off the Console then turn it back on again to get back to the MODE's menu. That isn't as much of an issue with the Saturn so long as you avoid SimCity 2000 or until you start building up a larger number of Save files for RPG, Platformer and Action Adventure type games (invest in Flash Memory). With the Dreamcast, a lot of the memory issues are circumvented by having access to the VMU's so you wouldn't have to back out to the Dreamcast Menu AND the MODE can automatically switch discs when the prompt comes up but where you might find things awkward is if you want to play modern 3rd party indie games / homebrew as you can not add covers and descriptions to any of the Database's. So what I'd suggest is consider if you want game covers/descriptions, consider the MODE, the GDEMU if you don't mind having to use another program to organise your files or have a look into the Fenrir as a sort of in-between option.
I choose ONLY GDemuClones. OG GDEMU The Dev made it and after years of Scarcity China reverse engineered it and he flipped his shit and made a FW that BRICKED the clones AND His OWN older BOARDS without telling ANYONE that he did so. It was never OPENSOURCE so FUCK deunan HARD. MODE is right up there with their BULLSHIT DRM.
I'm still waiting for my MODE to clear customs. Not a fan of ordering products from countries that might not let your item get through customs. It's currently been held up in customs for 8 days and the last update is a customs error. I read other reviews that their MODE was rejected by customs. It's a really crappy experience as a customer. I wish they'd open an Amazon storefront with fulfillment in America for their American customers. I'm 3 days past when it was estimated to arrive and it's only beginning its hellish journey through customs... I'm also learning that Terraonion has harassed the maker of Everdrive, Krikzz, for leaving Ukraine. I don't understand why someone would harass someone for fleeing a war zone but Terraonion's creator has chosen to do that.
Have you ever had issues with the GDemu having games disappear when going to upload more, or getting a red light and no boot? I've run into this issue multiple times on GDemuCardManager v2.0. I'm also using a GDemu 1.15b clone as well.
I have one Dreamcast with a Mode and one with a GDEMU. I pick the GDEMU hands down, and the primary reason is that it is more consistent at playing all files it supports without any issues. I've used the same recommended dumps that even the Mode creators suggest to use and files glitch, video sometimes doesn't play right, and many of these same files that GDEMU has no issues with, sometimes wont even play on the Mode. GDEMU may not have the drag and drop, and may not have the strongest user interface or storage options, but the GDEMU is just better overall at doing what you want the device to do and that is to play the games exactly as if you were using the disc drive.
I actually never had any of those issues with the MODE when I had it for a weekend. I played a BUNCH of games, but then again I didn't have a ton of time with it. Even so, I'm team GDEMU all the way.
The dreamcast is great and so easy to Mod, I did Shell Swap, GDEMU, Dream PSU (powersupply) and I got the Brawler DC Striker Wireless controller. It's great, I am running VGA out to a CRT so I can still play the light gun games. The GDEMU is awesome much quieter and faster than the CD. I really recommend the Dream PSU even if you want to use the CD Drive still. The power supplies have been the most common issue for me. My local game store has a closet with a half dozen broken Dreamcasts, I get two and fix one for them and end up with a free dreamcast for myself.
*Wish I had known & respected my Dreamcast. Got my Dreamcast way back on Christmas 1999 Within 2 years the laser burnt out. Me being a genius decided to pack it up along with the 80+ games & dump it in my parents leaky shed. Years later I find the games that are now worth a fortune to be ruined too. I come back & hate watch videos like this as I didn't take care of my consoles as a kid & I still kick myself thinking how much money the games are worth today.*
I have vivid memories of throwing away the box to Pokemon Gold when I got it brand new. We just didn't know any better back then, it's useless to beat yourself up over it!
When I was shopping around for a Dreamcast with the GDEMU or MODE setup, I decided to go with the GDEMU. I couldn't justify needing a ssd drive, when i felt 256gb was more than enough for me. I was leaning towards the MODE because of all the difficult and conflicting steps I found to add games on the GDEMU. Glad I went with the GDEMU, works awesome! Edit: That card manager program is awesome! It was so easy to use.
It was very cool to have both of them to test out at the same time. And yeah, I agree... 256GB is the sweet spot for Dreamcast games. That Dreamcast Memory Manager thing is pretty awesome. Yeah, it's a hassle to setup for the first time, but after that you won't ever need it again, unless you find one or two more games you wanna add. It's pretty simple to do that.
256gb is probably the right threshold for someone to decide to go with SD card over SSD. I chose a 1tb SSD because the library of games, translation hacks, and homebrew titles I had just barely passed 512gb so a 1tb SSD felt right for me.
@@TheDOSGamer same here..... THE AMOUNT OF PORTS, hacks, translations and emulators is huge. I am at 906 Dreamcast titles and counting since new games keep getting released. I have GDEMU for DC, Terraonion for Saturn.
I went with MODE because the numbered folders on GDEMU were a dealbreaker for me. I like to sort games into folders on these devices (Sonic games, Racing games, Favorites, etc) and being forced into a flat list robs me of some joy.
Yea exactly the same as me, worse still is if you want to add more games to the GDEMU in the future it’ll not be in proper alphabetical order unless you re-number all the folders again past the game you just added
I had an official Gdemu for several years, but I ended up sidegrading to the MODE. For the most part because of three reasons. I wanted subfolders for one. The Gdemu menu really sucks and it felt its age everytime I used it when comparing it to my Everdrives. Being able to use a standard Everdrive folder structure is such a luxury. Two, I wanted a larger capacity storage option. Bigger SD cards are available now so this isn't a big deal anymore. I plopped a 2tb drive in there and my library hits about 1.8tb. As for the third reason it came down to Atomiswave games. They seem to play better off the MODE. I was getting some minor freezing with the Gdemu. All that said it is very hard to recommend a Terraonion product. Despite the MODE having bugs across all three platforms, unfulfilled features, and a ton of potential to be the best option on the market. MODE and pretty much every product Terraonion have made has been abandoned. They still sell their products, but they do nothing to improve or fix them. They are even breaking their own software/firmware by doing hardware changes on new batches of devices and those people are just screwed. They haven't fixed those hardware issues to this day. They just don't have any drive to be the best at anything over there at Terraonion. They damaged their reputation so many times that they themselves think they will never get their reputation back. So they just don't bother trying.😢
I went with the mode on my Saturn with a 1tb SSD and then did the GDEMU clone on my dreamcast. I have lots of videos of both on my channel if anyone is interested. New subscriber here.
I do use my mode in the 3 different systems. I've redone the ribbons so it's super easy to swap. Yes. My shells just sit on top. They are on individual shelves, and each system has its own dedicated drives
That's pretty awesome, actually. I guess I'm too scatterbrained to wanna mess with all of that. I like having everything setup to use in just a moments notice.
The biggest issue with DC hardware mods is that nobody's fucking making the parts. Same issue with DreamPi, I see so many people like "oh don't bother with CDI files and CD-Rs, just get an ODE" bitch I wOULD IF I COULD [yes I'm aware of the Chinese clones- I want to buy a product I can ensure will work and won't take a month to arrive after purchase] But shit if the MODE is that easy to set up and is actually available to get, I'm gonna go for that instead. Then just... wait, I guess, for DreamPi kits to be available again. That IS some shitty DRM with the sign-up, though, I might hold off and see if they remove that anti-consumer shit. It's funny to me that the Saturn, notoriously hard to crack for 20 years, has a simple, always-works, plug-&-play solution with the PseudoSaturn cart, which you can even make at home just by flashing an Action Replay. Finding working, quality CDIs is such a pain in the ass, man, especially since I'm so used to just burning the ripped BIN from a Saturn game to a CD-R and it works instantly.
You can get a GDEMU on Amazon. Sure, it'll take a few weeks to get to you, but these clones are working just fine. I feel you about the DreamPi. Hopefully with the release of the Pi5, there will be more of these so people can get their consoles online again.
The Teraonion MODE SSD is hard as fuck to find !!! so there is no really big deal here... i buy myself a GDEMU 5.20 on aliexpress with plastik case and SD card + new power supply remplacement + battery remplacement support + Bitfunk HDMI converter (total 125$) this definitively buries the Teraonion Mode ... sorry guys !
I wonder if there's a maniac out there that can add a master controller that could let someone connect that Mode to all three console but can switch and reload the correct console/rom. One would probably have to create a new container to store all three consoles securely. Maybe a mini arcade. (Controller would also need to be adaptive.)
The Gdemu dude didn't open source his design. It was copied against his will. He slowed down batches when that happened and I don't think he has done a wave of orders in a couple years now. He is known for being kinda rude to people and refusing to scale up his production so people used those reasons as an easy justification for buying clones. It's a shame as it really wasn't hard to buy his products if you knew how to set an alarm.
I mean- he opened the market and didn’t keep pace. That’s the basics of capitalism. You want to be on top? Innovate! You want to be on top? Produce more! You want to take your cake home and eat it? Well, welcome competition sliding in when you slid out. Just bought my clone so I’m stoked. Didn’t feel like paying $300 for an original mod. Paid $40 shipped for the gdemu and 3d printed tray.
@@brok3nvideokidhe wanted to sell the product he invented at his own pace and not give up control. Someone stealing his design and software to sell clones really doesn't feel justifiable. He is well known to be rude to people so people just made any ol excuse to do it.
@@TheRealGaraHe has been real helpful with customer support from my personal experience. The only reason he's "rude" is because people keep spamming for new batches in his inbox and there's some bad apples out there that flip his ODEs on eBay for 3-4x price. If I were in his shoes, I would be irritated especially how accessible the pricing of his ODE's are considering he puts in a lot of research/time. Just my two cents.
I went to MODE because of my model was VA0, but if I could I would go with GDEMU. MODE works fine, but the software is a little buggy and seems like abandoned from Terraonion
I'm actually really curious why the dragon drop copy method didn't work. Unless there was an issue during copying the files, I don't see what could possibly be different What file format do you use for your disk images and what program if converting them?
If you want to mass add games to the SD Card, you need to copy them all to the SD Card then name them 02 > *** then run the card manager and it will find them all. You can then pick save and it will build the menu with them all. If you want to use folder names you can create name.txt in each folder with the name you want as the IP bin names aren't always nice to the eye.
I suppose that is a decent workaround, but you'll still have to rename ever single folder, which will also take time. Looks like you'll have to spend a lot of time doing it either way.
@@travisbowmanmusic ”Bulk rename utility” is all you need after to do the number renaming. But it can also all be done via a batch file, which is still 1000% quicker than transferring 328 games 1 at a time.
I thought I replied to this, must have failed. You can use a bat file to do the renaming or “Bulk Rename Utility” to do it in seconds. Then in the card manager you pick sort and it will fix the order. 1000% faster than doing it 1 at a time.
I'd love to try one of Terraonion's products, but there always seems to be a less expensive alternative: Dreamcast - GDEMU clone. Saturn - Fenrir Duo, SAROO. Playstation 1: Xstation, PSIO. Sega SD: Mega Everdrive Pro, PC Engine/TG-16: Turbo Everdrive Pro. I will say the System 3 Pro offering RGB, HDMI and AV outputs makes it the more appealing product for only $60-$65 more.
I have GDEMU with full library including demo discs for nostalgia the only issue with my setup is the games that dont work with vga still cant run hydro thunder is there any new ways to get that running without doing this and that then doing that again and then finally doing that to get it to run it is the reason i dont even bother to turn it on just go to my emu pc and run launchbox instead
Some games have patches to fix that. There are also a few games that will NOT work with an RGB SCART cable in 240p/480i. Street Fighter Alpha 3, Gauntlet Legends, Chu Chu Rocket, Timestalkers, and a few others. It's very frustrating but unfortunately there are no workarounds.
@@travisbowmanmusic yes i have tried every known version and tried patching myself ect in the end time was not worth the effort again too easy to turn on my emu pc with redream plus install reshade with it quality is not even close so so far most of my old consoles are for show :(
Yeah the gdemu is the one for me, considering also if you want a wireless strikerDC and a noctua fan 😂 that's like 400 if I were to get a mode? No thanks, I'm not scrooge mcduck 😂
Having owned both, while I don’t like terraonion as a company, dealing with the file structure on the gdemu is a GIANT pain even with pc software. I’d pay a tiny bit more for a mode. Also storage is now half the price as compared with your quoted app the price difference is even less now.
@@travisbowmanmusic i think the unit failed or shorted somehow. When ever the LED light is ON it will not act like there is a "disc" in the system. If i remove and reinstall the gdemu multiple times fast enough i can actually trick it to start with the LED off and i can get in the gdemu menu. But as soon as i attempt to play a game as soon as it hits a license screen the led pops on and it kicks me to the DC menu. I have cleaned the contacts multiple times in both the DC and the gdemu
It might be a power supply issue. The system might be getting too hot or the aging power supply may be getting weak and needs the caps replaced.
5 หลายเดือนก่อน
14:30 Mostly likely if the device gets cloned, the the serial number can be backlisted across the cloned models. For legit users who are buying a second-hand model i would hope they could rectify this by getting in touch with support if they have proof of purchase.
I should mention that, IIRC, the reason why SSDs won't do much to improve the load times is simply because the systems are too old, and aren't capable of of such transfer speeds themselves. Similarly, for PS2s, it's why the ODE that uses the memory card slot has better loading than methods using a USB drive, since the memory card slot has a faster data transfer speed.
Great choice, I know you'll be very happy with it. Like I said, the setup is a bit of a pain, but ya know... it's kinda fun to personalize that SD card with the games that you know you'll like.
That's a really easy mod! Wish the options available for PS1 were so easy. PSIO is a medium level difficulty mod but has "lower" compatibility (95% of the library works) compared to XStation (100% compatibility) but that requires expert hands to not fuck up your console.
I'm lucky to have a local buddy that's great at fixing my botched mods! I didn't even try with the XStation, just had him do it from the start. Highly recommend that one -- it's truly amazing!
With these drive emulators, and the USB C power supply, and fan replacements, as well as Ram upgrades the DC can be kept going for years to come. My DC already has has its spindle motor replaced back in 2004 ish. With the price of the Mode i can't justify the cost, the GDEmu is going to be my only option for my DC. 13:54 i do not like that.
I would use MODE if I wanted to throw a SATA Hard drive but otherwise, with Flash memory then it's better and faster to use an SD card rather than a SATA SSD
Solider of Fortune loads faster on the GDEMU and GDROM compared to MODE, I guess something about how Solider of Fortune data loads has some kind of issue with MODE because all other games load faster on MODE compared to GDEMU and the GDROM.
GDEmu has corrupted the whole sd card or deleted games so many times when I go to add more games. I'm going to try MODE as the software or hardware available seems to have bugs on the GDemu.
Cool, thanks. What if you buy the original but first version of the original GDEMU creator (2nd hand) would that still better than a chinese clone that has a latest version (but one would never update the firmware forever)? Thank you. God bless us Dreamcast Masterace.
The price premium of the MODE isn't worth it. I have one, and I like it, but I also have experience with the GDEMU and would always recommend the GDEMU. Use the savings for a Pixel FX GEM kit, or DC Digital if you can find one.
Today all variants removing disk drive is bad for me. I got my Dreamshell cd and a cardreader on the back. Software and hardware stands original and I still can play my cd games
Me, I'm the guy that bought 2 modes. Sat and Dreamcast. But I am not going to buy TerraOnion anything anymore. They talked some mad crazy stuff about Krikzz when he was displaced by the invasion in the Ukraine.
Hello, so if I understand correctly, with the gdmu you can play dreamcast games without speed or Ram support, it's just like the original games at 100%?
@@travisbowmanmusic perfect if the gdemu is faithful to the original games, I have a Dreamcast VA1 I'm going to see for a gdemu. Last questions, to have a good gdemu you have to go to which site, I don't want a clone of gdemu and have problems launching the games, I would like everything to work perfectly with good hardware 😅
@@travisbowmanmusic perfect if the gdemu is faithful to the original games, I have a Dreamcast VA1 I'm going to see for a gdemu. Last questions, to have a good gdemu you have to go to which site, I don't want a clone of gdemu and have problems launching the games ? I would like everything to work perfectly with good hardware 😅
I’ve bought a Dreamcast recently that is in a custom shell and unfortunately doesn’t have any of the console stickers underneath. Is there any other way for me to tell what revision my Dreamcast is so that I can tell if gdemu/mode is supported?
@@travisbowmanmusic Is there any resource somewhere that shows the comparison? The shell is smoke grey see through so I can kind of see inside slightly. And also is is there any way to tell the difference between v1 and v0 in that case?
@chaosvii4605 check out this Reddit post. You're gonna have to open it up to be sure. It's only 4 screws. www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=www.reddit.com/r/gamecollecting/comments/7s21id/what_are_the_differences_between_each_dreamcast/&ved=2ahUKEwjqrK_voP2FAxUfm4kEHQSWC-oQFnoECBkQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0lTK5A_6ZVMG-8WnXP7lFh
@@travisbowmanmusic Thanks for the info, I didn’t have to get too far to get inside to find out. I believe it’s a v0 as it has the metal cooling fan, and the gdrom doesn’t say 3.3 volt and some quick googling says this is a 5v gdrom and that was what was in the v0’s. I which case I’ve read that putting a gdemu in the v0’s can cause damage?
@chaosvii4605 I've never seen one of those in person, so I can't say. You might try asking the guys in the Dreamcast reddit. They can help you figure it out.
Your comment about updating FW on gdemu isn't completely true. If it is a 5.20 gdemu, then you can update the FW. If it is a 5.15 gdemu then you can NOT update the FW. So the one you own cannot be updated as it will brick your kit. But the 5.20 model you installed in this video CAN be updated and the 5.20 version is also more compatible with games.
Interesting. I've heard the exact opposite regarding the 5.20 one, so I just never looked into it. I wonder what the advantages of the new firmware would be, considering that the 5.20 version is already pretty solid?
Are you looking to buy, or sell? There's actually a great community of modders on Dreamcast related Facebook groups. I'm sure you can find someone to help you there. If you're looking to get one pre-modded, I highly recommend you look into doing it yourself. It's a great first mod for a beginner and it's incredibly easy to do. Just follow a TH-cam tutorial if you're unsure!
Well there's a very strong possibility that you're not doing something correctly. What size is your SD card and how do you have your games formatted and organized?
Looks like these days, you can get a GDEMU from Amazon for around $70-$80 USD, whereas the MODE still costs just over 200 Euros.. Honestly, I'm just gonna get a GDEMU. Even if I can't update the firmware, as far as I understand, compatibility is high enough that once I load my games onto it, I'm solid. Plus, the fact that TerraOnion costs over 200 Euros and requires an account just to get firmware rubs me the wrong way and screams "gate-keeping" to me. I'm sure it's, in part, to reduce the likelihood of malicious actors replicating it, and even being able to track who downloaded the firmware, but I just don't think it's worth inconveniencing your audience when they've already had to pay over 200 Euros for the bloody thing. And no-- I don't consider the multi-functionality of it to be worth the premium, because I would only end up using it for one device, anyway. I'm hoping that one day, someone else will come along and create something better for the Dreamcast that also doesn't cost more than $80.
@@neobluemax swapping out the original power supply for an External 12V 3 Amp Power Supply would most likely decrease the heat build up inside the machine?
@@travisbowmanmusic those modded stuff will preserve retrogaming, as a discdrive lens is not eternal ! even disc is not eternal... you should consider this
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Are you Team MODE, or Team GDEMU? Let us know which ODE you prefer for your Sega Dreamcast!
M.O.D.E for life 😊😊😊😊
I got the MODE for the Sega Saturn.
As a good number of Saturn games expect you to read their instruction manuals for the plot/context before you start playing, the MODE is great as it's Cover Database includes story summaries for each game as well as game their game covers.
The downside is game save management can be awkward as it will always load up the MODE's menu on launch and it requires setting it so that resetting the Console takes you back to the main Menu and then you have to turn off the Console then turn it back on again to get back to the MODE's menu.
That isn't as much of an issue with the Saturn so long as you avoid SimCity 2000 or until you start building up a larger number of Save files for RPG, Platformer and Action Adventure type games (invest in Flash Memory).
With the Dreamcast, a lot of the memory issues are circumvented by having access to the VMU's so you wouldn't have to back out to the Dreamcast Menu AND the MODE can automatically switch discs when the prompt comes up but where you might find things awkward is if you want to play modern 3rd party indie games / homebrew as you can not add covers and descriptions to any of the Database's.
So what I'd suggest is consider if you want game covers/descriptions, consider the MODE, the GDEMU if you don't mind having to use another program to organise your files or have a look into the Fenrir as a sort of in-between option.
I choose ONLY GDemuClones.
OG GDEMU The Dev made it and after years of Scarcity China reverse engineered it and he flipped his shit and made a FW that BRICKED the clones AND His OWN older BOARDS without telling ANYONE that he did so. It was never OPENSOURCE so FUCK deunan HARD.
MODE is right up there with their BULLSHIT DRM.
GDEMU for my DC and SAROO for my SS.
I'm still waiting for my MODE to clear customs. Not a fan of ordering products from countries that might not let your item get through customs. It's currently been held up in customs for 8 days and the last update is a customs error. I read other reviews that their MODE was rejected by customs. It's a really crappy experience as a customer. I wish they'd open an Amazon storefront with fulfillment in America for their American customers. I'm 3 days past when it was estimated to arrive and it's only beginning its hellish journey through customs...
I'm also learning that Terraonion has harassed the maker of Everdrive, Krikzz, for leaving Ukraine. I don't understand why someone would harass someone for fleeing a war zone but Terraonion's creator has chosen to do that.
You have to give props to the GDEmu. The developers of the GDEmu really made it simple to clone thus preserving the console for modern gamers.
Have you ever had issues with the GDemu having games disappear when going to upload more, or getting a red light and no boot? I've run into this issue multiple times on GDemuCardManager v2.0. I'm also using a GDemu 1.15b clone as well.
I have one Dreamcast with a Mode and one with a GDEMU. I pick the GDEMU hands down, and the primary reason is that it is more consistent at playing all files it supports without any issues. I've used the same recommended dumps that even the Mode creators suggest to use and files glitch, video sometimes doesn't play right, and many of these same files that GDEMU has no issues with, sometimes wont even play on the Mode. GDEMU may not have the drag and drop, and may not have the strongest user interface or storage options, but the GDEMU is just better overall at doing what you want the device to do and that is to play the games exactly as if you were using the disc drive.
I actually never had any of those issues with the MODE when I had it for a weekend. I played a BUNCH of games, but then again I didn't have a ton of time with it. Even so, I'm team GDEMU all the way.
The dreamcast is great and so easy to Mod, I did Shell Swap, GDEMU, Dream PSU (powersupply) and I got the Brawler DC Striker Wireless controller. It's great, I am running VGA out to a CRT so I can still play the light gun games. The GDEMU is awesome much quieter and faster than the CD. I really recommend the Dream PSU even if you want to use the CD Drive still. The power supplies have been the most common issue for me. My local game store has a closet with a half dozen broken Dreamcasts, I get two and fix one for them and end up with a free dreamcast for myself.
*Wish I had known & respected my Dreamcast. Got my Dreamcast way back on Christmas 1999 Within 2 years the laser burnt out. Me being a genius decided to pack it up along with the 80+ games & dump it in my parents leaky shed. Years later I find the games that are now worth a fortune to be ruined too. I come back & hate watch videos like this as I didn't take care of my consoles as a kid & I still kick myself thinking how much money the games are worth today.*
I have vivid memories of throwing away the box to Pokemon Gold when I got it brand new. We just didn't know any better back then, it's useless to beat yourself up over it!
When I was shopping around for a Dreamcast with the GDEMU or MODE setup, I decided to go with the GDEMU. I couldn't justify needing a ssd drive, when i felt 256gb was more than enough for me.
I was leaning towards the MODE because of all the difficult and conflicting steps I found to add games on the GDEMU. Glad I went with the GDEMU, works awesome!
Edit: That card manager program is awesome! It was so easy to use.
It was very cool to have both of them to test out at the same time. And yeah, I agree... 256GB is the sweet spot for Dreamcast games. That Dreamcast Memory Manager thing is pretty awesome. Yeah, it's a hassle to setup for the first time, but after that you won't ever need it again, unless you find one or two more games you wanna add. It's pretty simple to do that.
256gb is probably the right threshold for someone to decide to go with SD card over SSD. I chose a 1tb SSD because the library of games, translation hacks, and homebrew titles I had just barely passed 512gb so a 1tb SSD felt right for me.
@@TheDOSGamer same here..... THE AMOUNT OF PORTS, hacks, translations and emulators is huge. I am at 906 Dreamcast titles and counting since new games keep getting released. I have GDEMU for DC, Terraonion for Saturn.
I went with MODE because the numbered folders on GDEMU were a dealbreaker for me. I like to sort games into folders on these devices (Sonic games, Racing games, Favorites, etc) and being forced into a flat list robs me of some joy.
Yea exactly the same as me, worse still is if you want to add more games to the GDEMU in the future it’ll not be in proper alphabetical order unless you re-number all the folders again past the game you just added
By the Way you totaly forget to speak about OPENMENU option with GDemu, with is a better look interface, far ahead for the MODE itself !!
I had an official Gdemu for several years, but I ended up sidegrading to the MODE. For the most part because of three reasons. I wanted subfolders for one. The Gdemu menu really sucks and it felt its age everytime I used it when comparing it to my Everdrives. Being able to use a standard Everdrive folder structure is such a luxury. Two, I wanted a larger capacity storage option. Bigger SD cards are available now so this isn't a big deal anymore. I plopped a 2tb drive in there and my library hits about 1.8tb. As for the third reason it came down to Atomiswave games. They seem to play better off the MODE. I was getting some minor freezing with the Gdemu.
All that said it is very hard to recommend a Terraonion product. Despite the MODE having bugs across all three platforms, unfulfilled features, and a ton of potential to be the best option on the market. MODE and pretty much every product Terraonion have made has been abandoned. They still sell their products, but they do nothing to improve or fix them. They are even breaking their own software/firmware by doing hardware changes on new batches of devices and those people are just screwed. They haven't fixed those hardware issues to this day. They just don't have any drive to be the best at anything over there at Terraonion. They damaged their reputation so many times that they themselves think they will never get their reputation back. So they just don't bother trying.😢
I went with the mode on my Saturn with a 1tb SSD and then did the GDEMU clone on my dreamcast. I have lots of videos of both on my channel if anyone is interested. New subscriber here.
Awesome way to reserve this systems
Great vid! I got my GDEMU clone for about ~57 USD with the 3d printed mounting kit.
Good price!
I do use my mode in the 3 different systems. I've redone the ribbons so it's super easy to swap. Yes. My shells just sit on top. They are on individual shelves, and each system has its own dedicated drives
That's pretty awesome, actually. I guess I'm too scatterbrained to wanna mess with all of that. I like having everything setup to use in just a moments notice.
The biggest issue with DC hardware mods is that nobody's fucking making the parts. Same issue with DreamPi, I see so many people like "oh don't bother with CDI files and CD-Rs, just get an ODE" bitch I wOULD IF I COULD
[yes I'm aware of the Chinese clones- I want to buy a product I can ensure will work and won't take a month to arrive after purchase]
But shit if the MODE is that easy to set up and is actually available to get, I'm gonna go for that instead. Then just... wait, I guess, for DreamPi kits to be available again. That IS some shitty DRM with the sign-up, though, I might hold off and see if they remove that anti-consumer shit.
It's funny to me that the Saturn, notoriously hard to crack for 20 years, has a simple, always-works, plug-&-play solution with the PseudoSaturn cart, which you can even make at home just by flashing an Action Replay. Finding working, quality CDIs is such a pain in the ass, man, especially since I'm so used to just burning the ripped BIN from a Saturn game to a CD-R and it works instantly.
You can get a GDEMU on Amazon. Sure, it'll take a few weeks to get to you, but these clones are working just fine.
I feel you about the DreamPi. Hopefully with the release of the Pi5, there will be more of these so people can get their consoles online again.
@@travisbowmanmusic I bought a chinese GD EMU clone in 2019 and it still works so take it for what it's worth.
The Teraonion MODE SSD is hard as fuck to find !!! so there is no really big deal here... i buy myself a GDEMU 5.20 on aliexpress with plastik case and SD card + new power supply remplacement + battery remplacement support + Bitfunk HDMI converter (total 125$) this definitively buries the Teraonion Mode ... sorry guys !
I wonder if there's a maniac out there that can add a master controller that could let someone connect that Mode to all three console but can switch and reload the correct console/rom. One would probably have to create a new container to store all three consoles securely. Maybe a mini arcade. (Controller would also need to be adaptive.)
I thought about that too...
The Gdemu dude didn't open source his design. It was copied against his will. He slowed down batches when that happened and I don't think he has done a wave of orders in a couple years now. He is known for being kinda rude to people and refusing to scale up his production so people used those reasons as an easy justification for buying clones. It's a shame as it really wasn't hard to buy his products if you knew how to set an alarm.
I mean- he opened the market and didn’t keep pace. That’s the basics of capitalism. You want to be on top? Innovate! You want to be on top? Produce more! You want to take your cake home and eat it? Well, welcome competition sliding in when you slid out.
Just bought my clone so I’m stoked. Didn’t feel like paying $300 for an original mod. Paid $40 shipped for the gdemu and 3d printed tray.
@@brok3nvideokidhe wanted to sell the product he invented at his own pace and not give up control. Someone stealing his design and software to sell clones really doesn't feel justifiable. He is well known to be rude to people so people just made any ol excuse to do it.
@@TheRealGaraHe has been real helpful with customer support from my personal experience.
The only reason he's "rude" is because people keep spamming for new batches in his inbox and there's some bad apples out there that flip his ODEs on eBay for 3-4x price.
If I were in his shoes, I would be irritated especially how accessible the pricing of his ODE's are considering he puts in a lot of research/time. Just my two cents.
Surely we all see the irony of him being butthurt about people taking his intellectual property?
Yeah, I was going to say it was never open sourced that's why the Saturn one he created hasn't been cloned yet.
I went to MODE because of my model was VA0, but if I could I would go with GDEMU. MODE works fine, but the software is a little buggy and seems like abandoned from Terraonion
I'm actually really curious why the dragon drop copy method didn't work. Unless there was an issue during copying the files, I don't see what could possibly be different
What file format do you use for your disk images and what program if converting them?
The GDEMU likes the games to be in a specific folder configuration, that's what that program is for.
@@travisbowmanmusic what format are the images you use? CDI, GDI, CCD, etc.
@@shattered-reflection8045 I'm using GDI files
🐉🫳
18:19 seems to have gone back down in price. I checked and they're all ~$35 on aliexpress just for the gdemu itself
If you want to mass add games to the SD Card, you need to copy them all to the SD Card then name them 02 > *** then run the card manager and it will find them all. You can then pick save and it will build the menu with them all. If you want to use folder names you can create name.txt in each folder with the name you want as the IP bin names aren't always nice to the eye.
I suppose that is a decent workaround, but you'll still have to rename ever single folder, which will also take time. Looks like you'll have to spend a lot of time doing it either way.
@@travisbowmanmusic ”Bulk rename utility” is all you need after to do the number renaming.
But it can also all be done via a batch file, which is still 1000% quicker than transferring 328 games 1 at a time.
I thought I replied to this, must have failed.
You can use a bat file to do the renaming or “Bulk Rename Utility” to do it in seconds. Then in the card manager you pick sort and it will fix the order.
1000% faster than doing it 1 at a time.
I'd love to try one of Terraonion's products, but there always seems to be a less expensive alternative: Dreamcast - GDEMU clone. Saturn - Fenrir Duo, SAROO. Playstation 1: Xstation, PSIO. Sega SD: Mega Everdrive Pro, PC Engine/TG-16: Turbo Everdrive Pro. I will say the System 3 Pro offering RGB, HDMI and AV outputs makes it the more appealing product for only $60-$65 more.
This pretty much hits the nail on the head. I'm really not happy with their customer service. I'll be making a video detailing more about this soon.
I have GDEMU with full library including demo discs for nostalgia the only issue with my setup is the games that dont work with vga still cant run hydro thunder is there any new ways to get that running without doing this and that then doing that again and then finally doing that to get it to run it is the reason i dont even bother to turn it on just go to my emu pc and run launchbox instead
Some games have patches to fix that. There are also a few games that will NOT work with an RGB SCART cable in 240p/480i. Street Fighter Alpha 3, Gauntlet Legends, Chu Chu Rocket, Timestalkers, and a few others. It's very frustrating but unfortunately there are no workarounds.
@@travisbowmanmusic yes i have tried every known version and tried patching myself ect in the end time was not worth the effort again too easy to turn on my emu pc with redream plus install reshade with it quality is not even close so so far most of my old consoles are for show :(
Gdemu yeah the firmware is locked but the games get patched for compatibility
Yeah the gdemu is the one for me, considering also if you want a wireless strikerDC and a noctua fan 😂 that's like 400 if I were to get a mode? No thanks, I'm not scrooge mcduck 😂
Terraonion has always been the "premium" kind of guys. For the most part, that's true. Thanks for subscribing my friend!
Having owned both, while I don’t like terraonion as a company, dealing with the file structure on the gdemu is a GIANT pain even with pc software. I’d pay a tiny bit more for a mode. Also storage is now half the price as compared with your quoted app the price difference is even less now.
It is at first... it takes about 30 minutes to set everything up with constant clicking.
Heck im having problems with my gdemu, really kind of irritating me right now
I know I'm late, but what issues are you having?
@@travisbowmanmusic i think the unit failed or shorted somehow. When ever the LED light is ON it will not act like there is a "disc" in the system.
If i remove and reinstall the gdemu multiple times fast enough i can actually trick it to start with the LED off and i can get in the gdemu menu.
But as soon as i attempt to play a game as soon as it hits a license screen the led pops on and it kicks me to the DC menu.
I have cleaned the contacts multiple times in both the DC and the gdemu
It might be a power supply issue. The system might be getting too hot or the aging power supply may be getting weak and needs the caps replaced.
14:30 Mostly likely if the device gets cloned, the the serial number can be backlisted across the cloned models. For legit users who are buying a second-hand model i would hope they could rectify this by getting in touch with support if they have proof of purchase.
Hey Travis for the GDEMU can you save your games with the VMU
Yes, the Dreamcast functions exactly as it did before. The only thing you are changing is how the games are read.
I should mention that, IIRC, the reason why SSDs won't do much to improve the load times is simply because the systems are too old, and aren't capable of of such transfer speeds themselves.
Similarly, for PS2s, it's why the ODE that uses the memory card slot has better loading than methods using a USB drive, since the memory card slot has a faster data transfer speed.
The Dreamcast's loading times are much much faster on SSD/Flash than on CD Rom
@@SP95 I'm going off what the video said so I dunno.
Do you have any issues with the power supplies running hot after replacing the disk drive with ode?
I haven't yet, no. It's probably a good idea to replace the power supply capacitors.
Watched the video and ordered GDEMU 5.20 for 60€ from aliexpress, with white cover. Older versions are cheaper, starting from 40€.
Great choice, I know you'll be very happy with it. Like I said, the setup is a bit of a pain, but ya know... it's kinda fun to personalize that SD card with the games that you know you'll like.
I heard recent versions of the GDEMU can be firmware upgraded
That's true, but with these Chinese clones, it's a bad idea. There are several cases of people bricking these units when trying to update them.
@@travisbowmanmusic No I mean the newer clones can be updated... it happened right after I bought my GDEMU
That's a really easy mod!
Wish the options available for PS1 were so easy. PSIO is a medium level difficulty mod but has "lower" compatibility (95% of the library works) compared to XStation (100% compatibility) but that requires expert hands to not fuck up your console.
I'm lucky to have a local buddy that's great at fixing my botched mods! I didn't even try with the XStation, just had him do it from the start. Highly recommend that one -- it's truly amazing!
With these drive emulators, and the USB C power supply, and fan replacements, as well as Ram upgrades the DC can be kept going for years to come.
My DC already has has its spindle motor replaced back in 2004 ish.
With the price of the Mode i can't justify the cost, the GDEmu is going to be my only option for my DC.
13:54 i do not like that.
I would use MODE if I wanted to throw a SATA Hard drive but otherwise, with Flash memory then it's better and faster to use an SD card rather than a SATA SSD
What are the games being played in the video ? anyone knows?
Solider of Fortune loads faster on the GDEMU and GDROM compared to MODE, I guess something about how Solider of Fortune data loads has some kind of issue with MODE because all other games load faster on MODE compared to GDEMU and the GDROM.
Interesting, I didn't get the chance to test that one out with the MODE when I had it.
GDEmu has corrupted the whole sd card or deleted games so many times when I go to add more games. I'm going to try MODE as the software or hardware available seems to have bugs on the GDemu.
I've never had any issues like that with the GDEMU.... hope you get it worked out!
Cool, thanks. What if you buy the original but first version of the original GDEMU creator (2nd hand) would that still better than a chinese clone that has a latest version (but one would never update the firmware forever)?
Thank you. God bless us Dreamcast Masterace.
Honestly I can't see too many reasons to NEED to update the firmware.
I love the legend of dragoon music
The price premium of the MODE isn't worth it. I have one, and I like it, but I also have experience with the GDEMU and would always recommend the GDEMU. Use the savings for a Pixel FX GEM kit, or DC Digital if you can find one.
^ this right here
The tv it's old you use hdmi? And what analys?
Today all variants removing disk drive is bad for me. I got my Dreamshell cd and a cardreader on the back. Software and hardware stands original and I still can play my cd games
I've got a launch model with the GDEMU, and a sports edition that's completely stock. The best of both worlds!
I don't really like TerraOnion as a company, but they by far make better ODEs and FlashCarts.
Krikzz is still king IMHO.
@@travisbowmanmusic AGREED THERE! Krikzz is the GOAT
Me, I'm the guy that bought 2 modes. Sat and Dreamcast. But I am not going to buy TerraOnion anything anymore. They talked some mad crazy stuff about Krikzz when he was displaced by the invasion in the Ukraine.
Yeah... it's all bad stuff from them. I'm currently having issues with their NeoSD flash cart... with zero support from Terraonion.
Hello, so if I understand correctly, with the gdmu you can play dreamcast games without speed or Ram support, it's just like the original games at 100%?
Yes
@@travisbowmanmusic perfect if the gdemu is faithful to the original games, I have a Dreamcast VA1 I'm going to see for a gdemu.
Last questions, to have a good gdemu you have to go to which site, I don't want a clone of gdemu and have problems launching the games, I would like everything to work perfectly with good hardware 😅
@@travisbowmanmusic perfect if the gdemu is faithful to the original games, I have a Dreamcast VA1 I'm going to see for a gdemu. Last questions, to have a good gdemu you have to go to which site, I don't want a clone of gdemu and have problems launching the games ? I would like everything to work perfectly with good hardware 😅
I’ve bought a Dreamcast recently that is in a custom shell and unfortunately doesn’t have any of the console stickers underneath. Is there any other way for me to tell what revision my Dreamcast is so that I can tell if gdemu/mode is supported?
Revision 2's have a different disc drive configuration than 1's do. Revision 2's disc drives have more "stuff" on it, for lack of a better term.
@@travisbowmanmusic Is there any resource somewhere that shows the comparison? The shell is smoke grey see through so I can kind of see inside slightly. And also is is there any way to tell the difference between v1 and v0 in that case?
@chaosvii4605 check out this Reddit post. You're gonna have to open it up to be sure. It's only 4 screws.
www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=www.reddit.com/r/gamecollecting/comments/7s21id/what_are_the_differences_between_each_dreamcast/&ved=2ahUKEwjqrK_voP2FAxUfm4kEHQSWC-oQFnoECBkQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0lTK5A_6ZVMG-8WnXP7lFh
@@travisbowmanmusic Thanks for the info, I didn’t have to get too far to get inside to find out. I believe it’s a v0 as it has the metal cooling fan, and the gdrom doesn’t say 3.3 volt and some quick googling says this is a 5v gdrom and that was what was in the v0’s. I which case I’ve read that putting a gdemu in the v0’s can cause damage?
@chaosvii4605 I've never seen one of those in person, so I can't say. You might try asking the guys in the Dreamcast reddit. They can help you figure it out.
Your comment about updating FW on gdemu isn't completely true. If it is a 5.20 gdemu, then you can update the FW. If it is a 5.15 gdemu then you can NOT update the FW. So the one you own cannot be updated as it will brick your kit. But the 5.20 model you installed in this video CAN be updated and the 5.20 version is also more compatible with games.
Interesting. I've heard the exact opposite regarding the 5.20 one, so I just never looked into it. I wonder what the advantages of the new firmware would be, considering that the 5.20 version is already pretty solid?
Where would you recommend to sell modded systems online besides eBay? Thank you
Are you looking to buy, or sell?
There's actually a great community of modders on Dreamcast related Facebook groups. I'm sure you can find someone to help you there. If you're looking to get one pre-modded, I highly recommend you look into doing it yourself. It's a great first mod for a beginner and it's incredibly easy to do. Just follow a TH-cam tutorial if you're unsure!
@@travisbowmanmusic thank you for the reply. I believe I was clear I specifically said I'm looking to sell. Not trusting Facebook for the time being.
You might try Mercari. I sold several GDEMU Dreamcasts this year locally. Personally I wouldn't want to deal with shipping them.
@@travisbowmanmusic thank you that actually helps a lot
I found that the GDEMU only allows 146 games and takes forever to load
Well there's a very strong possibility that you're not doing something correctly. What size is your SD card and how do you have your games formatted and organized?
Looks like these days, you can get a GDEMU from Amazon for around $70-$80 USD, whereas the MODE still costs just over 200 Euros..
Honestly, I'm just gonna get a GDEMU. Even if I can't update the firmware, as far as I understand, compatibility is high enough that once I load my games onto it, I'm solid. Plus, the fact that TerraOnion costs over 200 Euros and requires an account just to get firmware rubs me the wrong way and screams "gate-keeping" to me. I'm sure it's, in part, to reduce the likelihood of malicious actors replicating it, and even being able to track who downloaded the firmware, but I just don't think it's worth inconveniencing your audience when they've already had to pay over 200 Euros for the bloody thing. And no-- I don't consider the multi-functionality of it to be worth the premium, because I would only end up using it for one device, anyway. I'm hoping that one day, someone else will come along and create something better for the Dreamcast that also doesn't cost more than $80.
There will always be new stuff for the Dreamcast! It's a great system. I'm glad you went with the GDEMU!
Are there heating issues with the GDEMU?
Yup if you leave the voltage regulator in the PSU for the gdrom. It’s still installed on both Dreamcasts in this video. They are gonna get really hot
@@neobluemax good to know, thank you!
@@neobluemax swapping out the original power supply for an External 12V 3 Amp Power Supply would most likely decrease the heat build up inside the machine?
Disassembling and reassembling MULTIPLE Dreamcast consoles 😮💨🙄😫🥴😵😵💫
It's 4 screws per console, plus 3 for the GD-ROM drive. Literally one of the easiest consoles to take apart.
neither! Dreamcast in only real with discs.....
I understand your reasoning for that... but eventually all Dreamcast disc drives will go out. It's nice to have these two alternatives.
@@travisbowmanmusic those modded stuff will preserve retrogaming, as a discdrive lens is not eternal ! even disc is not eternal... you should consider this
Even just to get rid of the noise that the disc drive makes 🙉
@@robert5235The Fan make so much noise you can forget the disc drive :)
I don't even care about dreamcast, but the option between a SD card and a proper sata SSD is no contest
yeah but one can be bought for $35 (+shipping +sd card price) and the other for over $200 (+shipping internationally +ssd price)