MiSTer FPGA Forum

Thanks! I'm very new to this and a little time poor and trying to make a purchase decision. I want to buy something that will run all available cores and content, and in the future maybe connect to analogue video although it's not an immediate priority. Would like to also reduce input lag as much as possible and potentially connect both analogue SNES controllers and 8bitdo controllers.

Trying to make an informed decision about that and currently considering the two options available for me here:

https://misteraddons.com/products/miste ... 1311605893

The options are well described from a technical perspective, but I'm not really clear on what the usability implications are between them and also what other potential upgrades I should be considering but don't have the time to thoroughly investigate. I'd love to buy the best, most extendable thing possible so I can have fun with it later. I also live in the developing world right now so while getting stuff to me is easy (have a mail forwarder in US), it's often a very long process. Would like to buy now so in a month or two when I do have time I can enjoy it before the next round of heavy work starts.

There are 3 good EU stores (if your in EU too) for mister stuff.
https://misterfpga.co.uk
https://ultimatemister.com
http://antoniovillena.es (a bit more arcade inspired then the others)

Then controllers!
USB way is the easiest, some can notice lag others not, some have noticed after switching too blisster/SNAC that they are better on some games but did not feel lag before.
You does not necessarily need to "feel" any lag to be worse at some games.

SNAC probably the best if using original controllers for all cores and it is in the official mister cores.
The problem (at least for me) is that you can not use for example a SNES controller for NES core or ANY other core, the mister menu does not work with any SNAC controller either so a usb controller/keyboard must be used for that.
And then the problem of having too change a jumper if using Sega genesis/mega drive controller (to change from 3,3v to 5v) and if jumper is not right for the controller there is a change for the magic smoke to appear=not good (or good if you like burnt electronic smell:) ).

BlisSter cost the most is not in the official cores and probably never will due to not opensource.
The good part is you can use any controller for any core (that has LLAPI), and it has a usb hub included so that can be used for cores without LLAPI.
My choice was the BlisSter since i already have a blissbox with 4 pack off all cables and grown to like using SNES on NES for example.


And then we have LL cool joy that according to little over a year old posts should have been released that year (2019) and after that no more posts so if and when this release is a good question.
But from what i gathered it is opensource so will probably be part of the official cores and it will work like a BlisSter.

grizzly wrote: ↑Fri Aug 14, 2020 8:39 pm And then the problem of having too change a jumper if using Sega genesis/mega drive controller (to change from 3,3v to 5v) and if jumper is not right for the controller there is a change for the magic smoke to appear=not good (or good if you like burnt electronic smell:) ).

Just one correction... The jumper on the SNAC is only for the 7th data line. Originally, that line provided 3.3v, but in later IO boards, there is an option to be a 7th data line. You set the jumper to match your IO board, and leave it, no need to change it around.

Ahh i have missed that.
So thanks for the correction

Basically, you can always add stuff later. Personally I would order the DE10-Nano from Digikey and pickup an SDRAM and USB Hub kit if I were you. The I/O boards are nice-to-haves and you will decide if you need one later. A fully enclosed case is not super necessary at first, just be careful handling it since you already know about EMI having tinkered with stuff.

https://www.digikey.com/en/product-high ... /de10-nano

https://misteraddons.com/products/usb-hub-v2-1

https://misteraddons.com/products/sdram-xsd-2-5-128mb

Just some examples of what I would get if I were in your situation.

You may want to upgrade the power supply later.

https://www.retrorgb.com/mister-power-s ... rning.html

I would start with a simple question: do you want the most flexibility or are you concerned about price? If you are not sure about the price you can start with 32MB of RAM and a DE10 board. It will still run everything except a few bigger games on Neo Geo and GBA.

A powered USB hub is a must. You can use your own though, just get one that can connect to micro USB (or use an adapter).
Otherwise, the USB hub board is a solid choice as it will work with existing cases.

Do you want the option to use VGA or RGB for a CRT monitor?
And/or have independent audio out (analog and digital)?
And/or have physical buttons and status LED?
If yes, then add an I/O board to your setup.

Do you care about computer cores at all? If so, do you care about using tapes to load programs?
In that case you will need an ADC board (otherwise, ignore it).

There is also an RTC clock board, that is only useful if you care about keeping accurate time while not connected to the Internet.
(otherwise MiSTer will sync clock to an internet source on startup if connected).

For controllers a good USB gamepad will do the job. There is plenty of choice here, and you can probably find something locally.
I'd also recommend a keyboard and a mouse for computer cores, you probably already have those.

I would not worry about SNAC or Blisster at this stage. Even if you go for a USB hub and you like the Bliss approach to adapters, you can always get one of their GamerPro adapters to use with MiSTer. That way you will remain compatible with official cores. After you have some experience, if you want to dig deeper, then you can start looking at unofficial cores, but chances are you'll be happy with the official ones.