http://youtu.be/8fE0GR9prQE?t=1123 (18:43) In a nutshell, everything a $170 Everdrive does plus Mega-CD support, for $232. Cons Slight inconveniences: -Nomad requires a mod so that CD sound can be carried through the cartridge pins. -CD 32x games require a future adapter to plug the MegaSD to the external port. Link.
I don't know why someone hasn't made a flash based device to replace the CD drive inside a real Sega CD that's compatible with both the model 1 & 2. The cart is a nice idea but this has the same price point as a real Sega CD actually goes for online.
Considering this is the price of an Everdrive and a Sega CD, if you don't already have those, this is a good buy. But I have them already.
Really cool tech. I hope it works in the Analogue Mega SG as I do plan to get one at some point so playing Mega CD games without the original hardware will be a major plus. EDIT: Forget it, 26:42 of the video confirms it works with the Mega SG. :v:
I saw the RetroRGB review yesterday, this thing looks seriously dope. Finally a cart for Sega games that's on the same tier as the SD2SNES! I already have an Everdrive X5, but I'm told Stone Age Gamer in the US will be doing trade-ins for other Megadrive flash carts once the Mega SD is available on their store. I'm very much tempted to throw in for one of these - it's not exactly cheap to get a working CD unit and maintain it these days, so if I'm spending big bucks I may as well get an FPGA cart instead with less moving parts to worry about.
It's worth noting that the sound is not 100% accurate to an original Mega-CD due to the different filtering. CD audio sounds just a bit muffled while PCM is a bit too crisp. http://youtu.be/iACMZfhx1Ms?t=283 (4:43) Sadly, SMS FM seems to sound way different: http://youtu.be/iACMZfhx1Ms?t=1010 (16:50) PS: I hope the timepoints in YouTube embeds work in the new forums...
TFA (ok, video) link confirmed that FM is an FPGA implementation literally right after they did the comparison. Guy claims it's a difference in audio filtering. I can't say I buy that reasoning since they sound completely different to me, but I trust that it's not emulation.
Could be a lossy problem? The audio may be lower due to the fact that .mp3s run along side the ISOs instead of audio from the CD.