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Which Mega Everdrive should I buy?

Discussion in 'General Sega Discussion' started by qwertysonic, Oct 26, 2021.

  1. qwertysonic

    qwertysonic

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    I've finally decided I to get an Everdrive and I've seen threads comparing the Mega Everdrive to the Everdrive MD, but I haven't heard much discussion on which Mega Everdrive X series to get. There's the X3, X5, X7 and pro for incrementally more money. Looking at the comparisons on the Krikzz. The X7 has savestates and a USB port. I think that might be the only thing I care about other than just having a cheap flashcart to play some Genesis hacks. Also this is a Christmas gift idea for family so I don't want to ask for something too expensive if I don't need it. Do any of you think it's worth it to pony up $150-$200 for a newer version or are the older/cheaper versions just fine for what I want?

    https://krikzz.com/store/home/33-mega-everdrive-x7.html
     
  2. Overlord

    Overlord

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    I personally have an X5 - I didn't believe the marginal features the X7 offered were worth the price increase.
     
  3. Spanner

    Spanner

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    I was able to pick up an EverDrive X7 for £90 on eBay last year, at that time it was a really good price for it.
     
  4. ArmonteSalvato

    ArmonteSalvato

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    If you want to play Genesis hacks specifically, it's a toss up between X5 and X7 I would say. I got the X7, which is on sale if you get it from here (though I only got the cartridge, the box was not included, but I didn't mind). X5 is also on sale. X3 and Pro are not as of this post.

    The price for the PRO version is obscene, and most of its features concern other game systems - it adds SMS save states, support for Mega CD and "meh" support for 32X (apparently you still need to get the 32X unit separately). I don't know exactly how many relevant hacks there are for those 3 systems, since I've been out of the loop lately. There's also a NES core, but I couldn't find a list of compatible games.

    I'm satisfied with the X7, although I have not used all of its features so far (I intend to develop my own games at some point). Consider that, while the X7 supports savestates, it's just a single slot per game. Some people use multiple savestates to explore alternate ending routes, though I can't think of any Genesis hacks that do this.
     
  5. qwertysonic

    qwertysonic

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    Ok thanks for the info. What does the X5 have that the X3 doesn't?
     
  6. Jason

    Jason

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    The X5 also supports 32X ROMs. All versions need the original hardware to play them.

    If I recall correctly, the X3 does not support SMS pausing, due to the lack of physical button. The X7 supports bank switching, so some of the larger games and hacks work on there.
     
  7. Tiberious

    Tiberious

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    I'd say if nothing else, make sure whichever one you get can run Sonic Delta with saves. After that, it's just a matter of choice and price.
     
  8. Overlord

    Overlord

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    Fortunately someone looked into that =P
     
  9. ArmonteSalvato

    ArmonteSalvato

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    This is a very nice wrap-up, and 11:20 actually reminded me of an important detail of the X3 - apparently you have to soft reset the console first otherwise it will not save your progress. Kind of a dealbreaker for me to be honest, and I'm glad I didn't get that model =P
     
  10. Chibisteven

    Chibisteven

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    I'm an owner of a Mega EverDrive X5 and I'm very happy with it. The X3 looks more attractive based on price but it wasn't attractive when other things were considered that are practical if you have the base console and both add-ons. The X5 is what I go with if I didn't want to break the bank but want a fully functional cart that works well enough for 99.9% of use cases on real hardware. Master System compatibility with the X5 is good enough for me as I wouldn't really use a Genesis to run those games outside of the novelty of being able to do so.