POUND & Hyperkin Sega Genesis/Mega Drive HDMI Cables! - Adam Koralik 

The RAD2x is going to make all of these obsolete

A few misconceptions and things to clarify about Analog RGB. 1: SCART is NOT RGB. It is a video connector/lead. It CAN and very often carried Composite video signal and Mono/Stereo audio. 2: The availability of Analog RGB in the UK and western Europe on consumer grade TV sets in the late 80s early 90s was considerably rare. And typically reservered for very expensive high end sets or Home Computers, such as the Amiga. 3: Most people in the aforementioned regions were playing Mega Drive and other consoles of that time period, in Composite video over SCART or even RF video. Save for the few children that had parents with high end equipment or adult gamers with $$$$. 4: RGB SCART didn't become common or "standard" on affordable TVs until the mid-late 90s.

Even though all consoles before the Dreamcast are called the "240p" consoles, only the Saturn, N64, and PS1 realistically fill 240 lines vertically. The Genesis and SNES are 224 pixels high and the Master System is 192 pixels high (yes, really). The NES technically output 240 lines, but most (though not all) of the time the top and bottom of the images are just visual garbage.

You can use a Pound cable on a Saturn with the HD Retrovision adapter but the Hyperkin won’t work. How To Use a Pound HDMI Adapter For The Sega Genesis For The Sega Saturn ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-IKAT1ep5oeU.html Here’s the “live” version with more games- Using a Pound Genesis Cable on a Sega Saturn - Thanks HD Retrovision! (Live): ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qqk58evPGqU.html

Hey Adam, does it blow your mind how far the RGB and video quality scene has come since the early 2010s? I still remember when the definitive way to play retro consoles was a Scart to component transcoder on both a CRT and LCD. Now, we have the Framemeister, OSSC, Analogue consoles, HDMI mods/plug n’ play solutions, PVM monitors, the list goes on.

That thumbnail really reminds me of ReviewTechUSA 😂😂

Hey adam the RAD2X for the genesis looks good and afordable.

Every time I watch one of one of these showcase videos, I always think the Sonic-themed GameCube controller & the Lego(?) Sonic behind it are some sort of Sonic spidermech.

I honestly believe none of these companies have in-house engineering. All out source to China in some way, hence “same ole” products.

don't care so much about resolutions and stuff, but everytime I watch these I learn something new.

The RetroTink 2X with the RetroTink RGB2COMP transcoder work flawlessly no hiccup no added input lag. The best for the price. Line Doubler is output at 480p. Looks gloriously sharp.

In Case you were wondering Adam, the Sega Genesis/MegaDrive outputs 2 types of 240p signals. 1. *320x224* 2. *256x224* Plus the System can output true 480i via 320x448 like the 2 player split-screen mode of Sonic 2, but it was rarely used, like the 480p mode provided by the PS2. Also HDMI acutally supports resolutions below 480p, like 480i and 240p, it's just that HDTVs are far less likely to support those types of resolution over their HDMI ports verses their coax, composite, S-Video, and Component video ports. *TRY4's* Samsung HDTV from *My Life in Gaming* actually supports *240p* native-ally over HDMI.

Thank you for talking about the widescreen which is one thing reviews don’t talk about. My TV won’t allow me to switch to 4:3 if I use HDMI and I brought Pound first before moving to Hyperkin due to the widescreen issue. While I am a gamer, I don’t play the systems enough to justify the price for a Framemister.

You are the only other person I've seen mention the Master System! I was really happy that the Hyperkin cable worked with the Master System when I also reviewed it.

I got the Hyperkin Genesis cable because it plays 32x with less saturation than the Pound cable. Pound cable makes the pic too bright. Only issue with playing 32x with Hyperkin is it doesn’t Audio with Genesis model 1.

I keep seeing people turn their noses up at solutions that cost less than 400 dollars and it blows my mind. I'm getting perfectly enjoyable results from HDMI adapters on wii, xbox, and ps2, and great results from component, but composite works fine for my TG16/pc engine, genesis (i'll admit I'd like to improve the signal with a triple bypass, but it's FAR from terrible) and SuperFamicom. mine ARE in good shape with good caps, nothing blown out, no bad jailbars, they're fine. I get I might get a better picture for 400 dollars, but... a 400 dollar better solution? I just can't see where it would get the gains.

Still never owned a Sega console when they were first party … I did get the Genesis Mini as an excuse to spend my Best Buy $5 "mystery" certificate last month … I was considering a RetroTink 2x, but it looks more like I'm going to pre-order Rad2x for the older consoles I still have

Hey Adam, will you ever make a retrospective on Handheld consoles? I know you don’t like handheld’s but your retrospective videos are my favorite in your channel 👍🏾

On E-Bay in the listing for the Hyperkin HD HDMI Cable Adapter Please DO NOT use it continuously for more than 3 hours, otherwise it may be damaged in red text, so I guess it's Crap.

I bought the Pound cable for my Mega Drive, not expecting too much out of it but hopefully doing a better job than the cheap SCART lead into my plasme tv. No difference at all so sent it back. Going to the extreme I then bought the Mega SG and couldn't be happier with it, cost a lot by the time it got to the UK but worth it

I really don't understand who will pay $400 for a frame whatever it's called. For just a grain salt size of difference. That is absolutely ridiculous I have the pound cable on my Genesis model 3 and there is absolutely no different. I mean to see the difference you literally have to have X-ray vision.

Sad that analog to digital conversions are still so shitty even to this day, but, I'm glad were getting better options both high and low end. The framemeister was probably my best retro gaming purchase I've ever made.

Never seen this many dislikes in the almost decade i've been subbed to you, why people be dislikin'

A lot of people looking for a budget solution don't know if they buy these Pound / Hyperkin or the Chinese Scart to HDMI. It is around the same range of price. Which one is better? Because when you turn on the Scart to HDMI without a video cable the same NO SIGNAL warning appears on screen... I think all of them are the same circuit...

Thanks for showing off options for playing the Genesis with your honest opinions. I don't currently have many games for mine but eventually I'd like to and seeing the various options on an HDTV is useful.

Adam, you should really attempt to cover the HD Retrovision component cables in order to give your viewers coverage of another Genesis video solution.

What's going on with your captures, the shadows are super messed up like funny looking ghosting and when you show the frameister the enemies shadow is completely missing. I never get either of those problems when I capture using the RetroTink hardware.

Thank you for being honest. Its over priced junk. Much better options out there!

I've been using the Hyperkin cable on my Mega Drive for a few months now and I have to say I was quite surprised. I was expecting it to be hot garbage like their PS2 cable was. The only thing I didn't like was what you already pointed out about it, the hard-wired cable. But I use it on my master system also. And although it's a very tight fit, it works pretty good! I have also been using several of the LevelHyke cables and some of those were decent. I did a video of their Super Nintendo cable and it looks pretty good! Lag seemed negligible but I had no way to accurately test what the actual lag was. Maybe you could get the to send you some review cables! Good informative video, Adam. :)

Mr. Koralik is at it again!

This is interesting. I was just browsing SCART to HDMI on ebay, and I found a new product. There's a device that resembles the Pound cable. Same plug for HDMI, same mini-USB input for power, same 720p/1080p switch. Only instead a multi out lead, it has a SCART lead hardwired to the other side. Search "Universal Scart to HDMI Converter Adapter 720P/1080P Audio Output for TV". It looks like an inferior version of your old SCART to HDMI scaler. I think this is what Pound and Hyperkin are using to make their HDMI adapters. Probably snipping off the SCART lead, soldering on a multi-out, and then replacing the outer casing.

Hey Adam ! Maybe rude of me to say this here, but this is a new post and I've been wanting to thank you for a couple of years now for what you did with BttF 4 and 5. Amazing work, I watch them often and do kinda see them as movies ! Posting this here, because I have no idea if you read comments on old video's, but I still wanted to finally let you know how awesome I think those video's are. I'm sure they were a hell of a lot of work to put together in a coherent way !

Does this work with the 32x? I'm guessing so but you never did specifically say it unlike The Sega CDX, The Master System, etc so I just wanted to make sure.

It works with nomad.... I have hyperkin but with my gen mod 1 .32x and scd set up ...it does not have any way to do stereo sound

These things are all great, but I think we finally need a great solution for systems that don't support RGB. I can only think of the retroTINK right now

I used my Master System converter with the pound cable & it looked good too.

Thanks for another great video Adam! I own the Pound cable, but recently got the Analogue Mega Sg. I do think these are good for the price and are perfect for the casual gamer.

I like the tv size option by hyperkin, I will go with that one, just because of that.

I have the hyperkin cable and was disappointed that it loses sync with my modded pal megadrive when switched to 60hz. This is despite the fact that I have a dual frequency osscilator in there to improve the timings! I even swapped out the dfo for a ntsc osscilator for a bit to check it wasn't faulty - same result.

thank you!

Master System compatibility was the one information I needed, thank you! Here in Germany it was my first gaming console, and even in the german Amazon there is no any information about Master System compatibility, what in my case doubles the value because this year I added a Mega Drive 1 and 2 and a Master System 2 to my collection. Mega Drive and Master System are both still easy to find for cheap money here, only the games are stupidity expensive, so Everdrive is my only option.

the no signal screen can also be found on the HD video converter aka the budget scart to HDMI box that you can buy on amazon.

What about the shadow under the power ranger? It looked artifact-y.

Can you make a video on your game collection?

I buy hiperkin, and in last time, when start after 10,20 min playing, start to heat and lost sound, and when cool down a couple minute sound is back

I wonder if the LEVELHIKE HDMI Cable for Sega Genesis Model 1 / 2 / 3, Sega CD, Sega CDX, Sega 32X, Sega Nomad, Original Sega Master System Console is the same as the Hyperlink without the hard wired HDMI cable or the POUND Cable with a added aspect ratio switch? It seems to have the high contrast issue with bright colors but low brightness levels for darker colors.

Dont normally give poor feedback but the service and knowledge at Video games new york is abysmal - they had no knowledge of what japanese games were lol

The PC Engine Core Grafx also uses the same pinout as the Master System and Genesis model 1 AV cable and power supplies interchange

How are these cables used with a Majesco Genesis model 3? I can't get the Hyperkin version to output any picture at all. Everything is working fine. Anyone can chime in. 👍

Also, which cable has a better model 1 adapter? I saw other videos where the adapter for the model 1 didn't fit right and could potentially damage the pin connector on the back of the unit.

I really enjoyed your console generation stuff. You should try to figure out how to go back to that. I'm not hating I just think you excell more at that than the technical/product review stuff

So in other words... buy a retrotink

cool video tech talk adam

Question. My scart cables for model 1 use the headphone jack to get stereo sound, as apparently the back port doesnt have stereo. These don't seem to have this, so are they all mono?

Another great, honest, informative review Adam! Just got a new 4K tv for my living room and it literally only has HDMI inputs. It doesnt even have composite so im definately in the market for HDMI solutions for my retro consoles. Is there anything cheaper than the Framemister that comes close in quality?

The reason they don't list Master System is probably because the levels are different and incorrect for their cable. It's why HD Retrovision has a different adapter for Master System and Gen1/MD1. I'm also surprised you didn't mention that they got the adapter wrong. They use a C-shaped DIN-8 (270°) arrangement when it should be a U-shaped DIN-8 (262°). This causes a bad fit due to two pins flaring out a bit. The cable can push back out, especially if you wiggle/move the console.

What do you prefer, the PSP or the PSVITA? :)

I’m nee to my mega drive, for the snes there was an easy plug and play hdmi option but the mega drive no one seems convinced by the picture. Would the pound converter with a gaming specific hdmi lead be the best ‘cheap’ option? The stretched image using my scart cable isn’t ideal

How well does the Hyperkin cable work withGames like Street Fighter 2, NHL ‘94 or Tecmo Super Bowl as they use a special 256x244 rendering that makes the screen shimmer and show horizontal lines on the Hyperkin Megaretron HD

How well do these HDMI cables work on an authentic 1998 majesco model 3 system?

Have you tried using the RAD 2X HDMI cables? They correctly interpret 240p and 288p and linedouble them to 480p and 576p, and of course you can further boost that to 1080p using the mClassic or even the HDMI input on that old SCART to HDMI that you used to use.

I personally think the pound looks amazing, just tedious because you always gotta adjust the brightness

In regards to the scaler chip, I doubt they're identical underneath. More than likely, they used an off-the-shelf Chinese chip to scale things, or they used a reference-designed cable from an unknown Chinese factory, and made a few adjustments of their own before having them shipped out with their name on it. Or both have different scalers and just produce the same results.

Hey my man great video! I have all 3 systems connected, the sega model 2, 32X and Sega CD, will the POUND cable support all three?? Let me know thanks!

Would anyone know if either of these HDMI upscaler cables fixes frame judder also known as tearing? I was using a PAL 625-line / 50 field (25 frame) per second SEGA Mega Drive console through composite video. Before I got my Analogue Mega SG for HD I used to plug my PAL Mega Drive into my Sony Smart HD TV via composite and about every 7 seconds there would be a judder in the frame rate, it's really noticable in games where you're going fast like Sonic The Hedgehog or Back To The Future III where you're Doc Brown on a horse going left to right. I'm very sceptical when it comes to playing old analog video game consoles on modern HD equipment that wasn't built for HD in mind, I always experience judders and game lag.

Hi Adam, this is great video! I bought Hyperkin and all is good except for one thing; each time I touch the cable where it connects to my AV (Genesis Model 2) port, I get black screen, or no audio, or colors get screwed, if I dont touch it, it works just fine. So I wonder if this is due to the Hyperkin cable pins or if it has to do with my AV port which is super clean and no dust. Did you experience anything like it if you touch your cable?

Where do you buy a Framemeister for 400 bucks ? On Amazon the XRGB Framemeister mini is 950 bucks.

Thanks for this video pal. Rules them out for me. Hard to find the ultimate cost effective solution isnt it! A lotta the cables and parts are also hard to get or import without high charges. Hmmm.

I would think that having a choice for the aspect ratio is the right way to do it, just select 4:3 and if you want choose 16:9 you can choose that if you don't mind the distorted image or are the average non nerd game player and don't notice the image distortion but the fact that thee pound cable has a detachable HDMI Cable makes it better.

You didn't tell us if it works with the 32X!

An HDMI output from an old console is a flawed concept from the get go. At the very least you should introduce a good scanline filter somewhere in the chain for 5th gen or earlier. These consoles are not meant to be played with crisp pixels. RGB (modded if necessary) into a good scaler is pretty much the best option for everything before the 360. VGA for the Dreamcast if you never plan on playing the incompatible games (I find connecting a different cable to play Bangai-O a pain in the ass personally)

Using the USB ports on the Switch dock isn’t an issue for external devices. They typically pull 5V 1amp but the console has to be docked for it to work. On the console spectrum Switch is the least ideal to feed power from for sure. The power issues with Switch largely stem from people using improper power supplies to work with 3rd party docks. Honestly any adaptor like that I’d power from a separate USB phone charger or a USB port on a TV (if it can support).

In my opition, these cables are ok for what they do. I have a few and I don't mind them as much

Is the hyperkin a good option for the casual gamer that just wants to connect my sega mega drive to my modern TV that does not have yellow/white (composite) ports?

Don't Use the adapter for the Genesis model 1 that comes with the hyperkin cable. its the wrong shape and can ruin your genesis. The hyperkin adapter shape for the genesis model 1 is shaped like a circle where the actual shape is more like a "U"

I take it there wasn't an extra cable connection for the headphone jack to get stereo sound from a model 1 genesis through the HDMI

Most people can't afford to pay $400 just to play their Genesis.

The weird part is that in real life I rather take a sketch over an actual photo. In gaming however I do it the other way.

My Genesis is on, but it still says no signal. Any idea why?

I have a question for you sir. I actually got the Hyperkin version and it looks spectacular on my LCD TV with the Genesis. I am assuming it is upscaling it because it looks crazy good. Do you know if the N64 version of this cable would be able to do the same thing? Or does it have to do with the Genesis being able to output RGB naturally whereas the N64 doesn't? I'm just trying to not blow $ on an N64 cable and find out it doesn't do anything to help upscale like this Genesis one does.

Why all the dislikes?

Good Video, but seadly you dont Open the Scalers, so we see the Chip Set

there is a problem with those cables specially with a model 1 is thye dont give you an option to allow you to use stereo sound

Have you considered a video comparing the multiple Saturn HDMI offerings?

Man, you received a ton of thumbs down for this video. What happened? You just compared new AV cables for the MegaDrive.

Adam, also I'm thinking about the Sinclair Spectrum 128k. It has the same pin out as the Master System model one and Megadrive model one. Theoretically speaking it should work as I have used the same scart cable for both of my systems.

11:19 That's the exact same "No Signal" message that the cheap SCART to HDMI box gives when there's no input running.

No footage of master system... no footage of 32x... And not all xeye are compatible. Only those with a multi a/v port (model 2 genesis) are supported. There is an initial first batch that did not have that port (I know as i own one).

I still prefer to play my genesis on my crt tv just looks better even with composite.

Do either of these work on the Original Sega Master System?

So,for someone who doesn't want to spend on a frammeister, wich of the teo is better??

You wouldn't happen to know if the PlayStation 2 was stripped of its component capabilities just like the original Xbox was here in Europe, and if not did Sony make official cables?

this cable improves the audio too?

Lol Framemeister looked identical to the others, just less bright.

So do these work with the 32x?

I see the point for all of these aftermarket cables existing. The retro gaming scene has exploded in popularity - and price - so everybody wants a piece of the action. But I’ve learned something from you Adam watching all of these videos through the years & I think we oftentimes lose sight of this. These consoles all are from a very different era & tv/display technology was radically different. The more time & expense we put into trying to get some amazing picture out of these consoles on a modern flatscreen the more we expose “hidden imperfections” the developers never intended for us to see. The inherent weakness of these consoles when compared to today’s hardware helps to hide those ugly draw in lines or sprite bugaboos. The good old standby of fog in so many games from bygone eras hid lots of imperfections. Modern flatscreens shine a spotlight on almost every weakness in a retro games code or presentation. For the average gamer who wants to know what these classic games are all about I always recommend buying a retro game collection disc that uses emulation to clean up lots of problems. And as a bonus these work in modern consoles & usually feature some enhancements that can add a little flair to these old games. The Sega Genesis Collection was a fantastic buy with awesome games in my opinion. Another option is to get in on the classic mini console craze. All of them have been hacked at this point so you can go onto eBay & literally buy one with hundreds of games pre-installed. It’s when the average player starts down the rabbit hole of buying multiple cables & connectors to get a “super mega awesome dope” picture from a console that was never intended to do some things that disappointment & reality come crashing together. Sometimes the simple solution, no matter how ugly to us, makes the most sense for a gamer wanting to relive a few games from their childhood. All that said a RetroTINK running thru an mCable is my chosen method of playing original hardware. Everything I need to hook up to my flatscreen works just fine with those. My kids think it looks hideous. And then they try to make it through the punishing difficulty of Contra, Mega Man, or Gunstar Heroes & realize how good they have it with modern games.

I have the Pound Cable. I plug the usb cable directly into my tv and it works perfectly.

nice, im thinking on picking one up. i wonder does it work with the Sega Saturn, bc doesn't it have the same connection of the Sega model 2

Avoid using the pound cable if you have an insignia tv/dvd combo. It's not compatible. I got one last week and discovered a horrible jittery wavy picture with my brand new model 3 system (like an old worn VHS tape). Also, it wouldn't automatically adjust from 4:3 to 16:9. I got the same results using a model 1 RGC component cable (HD retrovision equivelant) with my model 1 (which I sold last month).

I got a hyperkin last year. I knew they were cheaper then others, and there some bad reviews. I risked it anyway, it lasted about 2 weeks before it started losing color and sound. I threw it out. I wouldn't risk it. Spend it on something else