Hardware I want to try and give Nintendo 64 a fair chance at gaming.

shadowflare7799 · 2026-08-25T00:32:59+0100

Hanafuda said:
Honestly I'd have to answer "yes" to that. I've never had sashimi, or sushi, outside Japan that compares. Doesn't have to be the most expensive restaurant, but sushi prepared by a Filipino who went to sushi school in Sacramento and makes sloppy sauce-covered rolls for your local grocery store simply isn't even the same food.

Agreed, what he wrote didn't make sense. Retro gaming consoles aren't all that expensive to buy and then theres always emulation. Depending upon where you live though the economy might be bad. Where I live things are tight and expensive but I think a lot of people hate working these days. They want something for nothing. I used to work up in Jessup Pennsylvania not far from scranton (scranton is famous for the office show) at a warehouse named chewy. They sell pet dog food and supplies and I was getting $20 an hour pulling in around $2500-$3000 monthly. I feel bad though for the people that don't get opportunities to work at decent paying jobs. In some countries work is hard to find with decent wages.

Hanafuda · 2026-08-25T01:30:41+0100

Marc_LFD said:
Wowzers, if I'm serious about N64 gaming I'll have to buy an A3D console.

That looks so smooth, love it.

My qualifications for this opinion:
1) I own an A3D and a couple 8bitdo controllers for it
2) I own a Summercart64, and an old ED64 2.5
3) I own 2 real N64's with the expansion pak installed, 4 OEM controllers with good sticks, and also a translucent purple version of that Retro-Bit Tribute64 you just bought. (good controller, but stick action is waaaaay too light, no resistance compared to OEM)

And my advice, for now, is stick with a real N64 console. Find an OEM controller with a tight stick if possible. Get the Summercart and load it up. And either some cheap HDMI converter, or if you have a TV that accepts S-video get a third-party Nintendo style 'multi-out' cable that includes S-video. (cheap on Amazon) Don't mod the console for RGB or HDMI or anything like that, It's not worth it anymore.

If you come to love it, THEN get an A3D. It's awesome. But it isn't the real thing. It could be argued (correctly IMHO) that it's actually BETTER than the real thing, but it will never be the real thing.

emmanu888 · 2026-08-25T02:54:38+0100

Hanafuda said:
My qualifications for this opinion:
1) I own an A3D and a couple 8bitdo controllers for it
2) I own a Summercart64, and an old ED64 2.5
3) I own 2 real N64's with the expansion pak installed, 4 OEM controllers with good sticks, and also a translucent purple version of that Retro-Bit Tribute64 you just bought. (good controller, but stick action is waaaaay too light, no resistance compared to OEM)

And my advice, for now, is stick with a real N64 console. Find an OEM controller with a tight stick if possible. Get the Summercart and load it up. And either some cheap HDMI converter, or if you have a TV that accepts S-video get a third-party Nintendo style 'multi-out' cable that includes S-video. (cheap on Amazon) Don't mod the console for RGB or HDMI or anything like that, It's not worth it anymore.

If you come to love it, THEN get an A3D. It's awesome. But it isn't the real thing. It could be argued (correctly IMHO) that it's actually BETTER than the real thing, but it will never be the real thing.

Honestly I'd say get a GBS-C Pro for S-Video. Unless you have a CRT with a S-Video input, the GBS-C Pro is more than worth the money when it comes to composite, S-Video and component inputs on modern displays.

Kwyjor · 2026-08-25T03:30:32+0100

shadowflare7799 said:
Retro gaming consoles aren't all that expensive to buy

The Analog3D is $270!

and then theres always emulation.

Yes, that is a sensible option before acquiring another expensive plastic box that will collect dust.

Jayro · 2026-08-25T04:38:40+0100

Marc_LFD said:
Wowzers, if I'm serious about N64 gaming I'll have to buy an A3D console.

That looks so smooth, love it.

I have the black A3D, and it's a real treat.

shadowflare7799 · 2026-08-25T04:47:45+0100

Kwyjor said:
The Analog3D is $270!

Yes, that is a sensible option before acquiring another expensive plastic box that will collect dust.

Fair enough for $270 thats an investment into a nice budget gaming pc. Things ain't cheap man but theres this thing called work. =) It took me a good 3 months to afford all the parts to build a $2500 gaming pc intel core i9, nvidia rtx 4070 ti, 64gb a ram (this was before all the data centers with AI had RAM in high demand jacking up the prices), windows 11 home. PC hardware is getting more expensive these days and if you want a very good build to max out settings its going to cost quite a bit. Same with the xbox series s and x, if you want to spend more money to enhance your experience then you buy a xbox series x. I know that we were talking about the n64, but you get the jist. Anyway my point is realistic expectations if you want something your going to pay for it. Would I pay $270 for a Analog3D? Probably not even though I can afford it but then it doesn't help that I'm not a big fan of the n64. It has some great games going for it, don't get me wrong. Loved goldeneye and ocarina of time. Other than those two I just didnt care for the library.

KiiWii · 2026-08-25T14:11:03+0100

Hanafuda said:
And my advice, for now, is stick with a real N64 console. Find an OEM controller with a tight stick if possible. Get the Summercart and load it up. And either some cheap HDMI converter..

Good advice for the controller and summercart.

Cheap HDMI adaptor will look like absolute shit though.

emigre · 2026-08-25T14:51:20+0100

Christ, almighty. Just emulate the library to see if you actually like the bloody games the with your N64 PC controller of choice.

If you like, than go buy the system (or modern alternative) and games. That should save you some money and faff.

Hanafuda · 2026-08-25T14:58:55+0100

KiiWii said:
Good advice for the controller and summercart.

Cheap HDMI adaptor will look like absolute shit though.

Maybe so. I was just trying to save OP from spending hundreds on a scaler, if he doesn't really need a scaler. I was playing N64 over s-video for years using a framemeister, and it looked pretty good but not amazing. I'm glad now that I never modded my N64s with hdmi or rgb boards, because the A3D does look amazing. If OP thinks he might buy the A3D (or M64) later, then he should keep the expense of getting an original console to display to a minimum.

lightwo · 2026-08-25T15:48:19+0100

Since it's been mentioned already:

Hanafuda said:
Find an OEM controller with a tight stick if possible.

Could also get one with a ruined stick and replace it with another that lasts longer to begin with. I found that people recommend 8BitDo's TMR stick.

And of course, can't forget about clone controllers, or Nintendo's own N64-shaped Switch controller (on the expensive end and not magnetic).

Marc_LFD · 2026-08-25T17:23:39+0100

emigre said:
Christ, almighty. Just emulate the library to see if you actually like the bloody games the with your N64 PC controller of choice.

If you like, than go buy the system (or modern alternative) and games. That should save you some money and faff.

Emulating it on a PC is definitely the cheapest option, but it doesn't feel very authentic.

emigre · 2026-08-25T17:29:16+0100

Marc_LFD said:
Emulating it on a PC is definitely the cheapest option, but it doesn't feel very authentic.

Authenticity is overrated. Just some high quality shaders. If you feel real crazy, improve the framerate as this gen of games kinda ran like trash. You will get 90% of the experience at a fraction of the price.

Hardware I want to try and give Nintendo 64 a fair chance at gaming.

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