what is the best 3DO to buy?

phatrat1982 · Post by **phatrat1982** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 1:41 am

I am mostly interested in watching movies via VCD and playing a few games that I do remember reading about, like Gex, Street Fighter, and a few others. But I have a few questions because there are so many old CD based consoles I want to make sure I am not getting confused on which one does what. I am fairly certain 3DO plays Video CD discs and that is one feature I am very interested in, but what other formats can it play? Does it handle MP3 or Audio CD at all? What about SACD?

Are there any major differences between the different models as far as video cd and audio cd play back and what are the best outputs they support like S-Video, component etc?

Also what does it require to play movies on the console like do you need a special remote or a video card or extra ram or anything like that?

Do any 3DO consoles support Sega Genesis type controllers cuz I had an old controller once and I thought the hook ups were the same but I didn't have a Sega at the time to try it out on.

So mostly I want to check out the video play back and play a handful of the best games. Also how well do they hold up as far as like the disc drives and are they easy to service and are parts easy to come by?

Calavera · Post by **Calavera** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 1:49 am

Any 3DO console you purchase you will have to buy the Video-CD add-on for the system, and from what I have seen they are not cheap. There are currently two new in the box Video-CD adapters on ebay as of posting this. One for the FZ-1 (199.99) and one for the FZ-10 (169.99) I recently saw the Goldstar VCD module go for around $50 in the box. So if VCD playback is a high priority you might want to go with the Goldstar system to save some money.

The 3DO does play standard audio CDs and even has a visualization to go along with the music. All 3DO systems have RCA and S-video out built into the console so you only need standard cables to hook it up, no special 3DO cables required. S-video is the highest quality output the 3DO supports.The 3DO does not support Sega Genesis controllers. I am glad I knew this before I bought my 3DO or I would have tried it. They do have the same connectors but they are not compatible. The 3DO controller actually has power going through the cable and you can cause damage to the Genesis Controller or the 3DO itself if you try to plug one in.

phatrat1982 · Post by **phatrat1982** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:02 am

OK so then I will see about tracking one down next time I have some money to spend. I have been obsessing over this ever since reading that article all those years ago and for the longest time I was convinced I must have imagined the whole thing. Especially when I search google all that ever comes up is China VCD's and stuff like that. Then on top of that in all my years searching I stumbled upon a Movie CD for PC CD-ROM once and thought maybe that was what I read about but I could have sworn it was called Video CD so I kept looking. Now that I finally have some real solid information, even as vague as it is, at least I now know what I am looking for and it is real.

As for the games go yeah I always wanted a 3DO especially for the fighting game arcade ports and Gex among a few others I will have to try and look into. So does the system support any arcade style or 6 button style controllers or is there just 1 style of controller?

Trev · Post by **Trev** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:18 am

The 3DO has a ton of contollers. There are a number of good 6 button pads, but my favorite is the arcade style joystick!

Austin · Post by **Austin** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:23 am

I don't think there is a Genesis controller adapter, but you can find SNES adapters cheap.

phatrat1982 · Post by **phatrat1982** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:38 am

Then I will look for a good arcade stick and look into those 6 button pads. call me crazy but I hated the SNES pad.

bitrate · Post by **bitrate** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:38 am

Austin wrote:I don't think there is a Genesis controller adapter, but you can find SNES adapters cheap.

There was a Genesis controller adapter made by JPF, the same company that made a couple of SNES adapters for the 3DO. The Genesis adapter is extremely rare though.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 5:07 am

Nice! I had no idea.

phatrat1982 · Post by **phatrat1982** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 5:21 am

thanks for all the replies you guys have been most helpful.