SEGA Genesis Model 1 VS Model 2 (Ladder Effect Demo)
There seems to be a lot of talk around the sound differences between the SEGA Genesis model 1 and model 2, so I thought I'd make a video comparing the two. I've picked 10 songs that I think showcase the "ladder effect" pretty well, and I've recorded them on both a model 1 and model 2 SEGA Genesis. I used the VGM player to play back the songs, so any differences you are hearing is from the hardware itself. The model 1 recordings are from the VA6 that I use to record pretty much all of my Genesis soundtracks, and the model 2 is a VA3 I just had kicking around. Both consoles are unmodified and use the same FM chip, the YM2612, but there are some key differences that make the sound a bit different. The ladder effect is a form of distortion that is present in the early version of the YM2612 present in the model 1. The reason for this was that the YM2612 used a cost cutting method of mixing the FM channels that causes them to become distorted in a unique way. Basically, the quieter the sound is played, the more distorted and noisy it becomes. This glitch was fixed in later revisions that were used in the model 2, so it doesn't have this distortion. Overall, I like the distorted sound of the model 1 more, but I do have to give credit to the model 2 for being very clean sounding. I think that if you can't find a good model 1, the model 2 VA3 is a very good alternative (not to mention it has stereo output). The only downside is the heavier filter, which can make some sounds a bit less punchy. Let me know what you think, do you like the model 1 or model 2 more? Timestamps: 00:00 - The Street of Rage (Model 1) 01:42 - The Street of Rage (Model 2) 03:23 - Prison (Model 1) 05:07 - Prison (Model 2) 06:51 - Magic Factory (Model 1) 09:02 - Magic Factory (Model 2) 11:13 - Opening Visual 1 (Model 1) 12:00 - Opening Visual 1 (Model 2) 12:48 - Building the House (Model 1) 14:00 - Building the House (Model 2) 15:13 - Evil Territory (Model 1) 16:13 - Evil Territory (Model 2) 17:15 - Ending Theme (Model 1) 18:59 - Ending Theme (Model 2) 20:43 - Into the Deep Blue Sky (Model 1) 23:31 - Into the Deep Blue Sky (Model 2) 26:22 - Boomin' Bump (Model 1) 27:23 - Boomin' Bump (Model 2) 28:25 - Ghost (Model 1) 29:26 - Ghost (Model 2) 30:27 - Opening Theme - Idar (Model 1) 31:42 - Opening Theme - Idar (Model 2)
There seems to be a lot of talk around the sound differences between the SEGA Genesis model 1 and model 2, so I thought I'd make a video comparing the two. I've picked 10 songs that I think showcase the "ladder effect" pretty well, and I've recorded them on both a model 1 and model 2 SEGA Genesis. I used the VGM player to play back the songs, so any differences you are hearing is from the hardware itself. The model 1 recordings are from the VA6 that I use to record pretty much all of my Genesis soundtracks, and the model 2 is a VA3 I just had kicking around. Both consoles are unmodified and use the same FM chip, the YM2612, but there are some key differences that make the sound a bit different. The ladder effect is a form of distortion that is present in the early version of the YM2612 present in the model 1. The reason for this was that the YM2612 used a cost cutting method of mixing the FM channels that causes them to become distorted in a unique way. Basically, the quieter the sound is played, the more distorted and noisy it becomes. This glitch was fixed in later revisions that were used in the model 2, so it doesn't have this distortion. Overall, I like the distorted sound of the model 1 more, but I do have to give credit to the model 2 for being very clean sounding. I think that if you can't find a good model 1, the model 2 VA3 is a very good alternative (not to mention it has stereo output). The only downside is the heavier filter, which can make some sounds a bit less punchy. Let me know what you think, do you like the model 1 or model 2 more? Timestamps: 00:00 - The Street of Rage (Model 1) 01:42 - The Street of Rage (Model 2) 03:23 - Prison (Model 1) 05:07 - Prison (Model 2) 06:51 - Magic Factory (Model 1) 09:02 - Magic Factory (Model 2) 11:13 - Opening Visual 1 (Model 1) 12:00 - Opening Visual 1 (Model 2) 12:48 - Building the House (Model 1) 14:00 - Building the House (Model 2) 15:13 - Evil Territory (Model 1) 16:13 - Evil Territory (Model 2) 17:15 - Ending Theme (Model 1) 18:59 - Ending Theme (Model 2) 20:43 - Into the Deep Blue Sky (Model 1) 23:31 - Into the Deep Blue Sky (Model 2) 26:22 - Boomin' Bump (Model 1) 27:23 - Boomin' Bump (Model 2) 28:25 - Ghost (Model 1) 29:26 - Ghost (Model 2) 30:27 - Opening Theme - Idar (Model 1) 31:42 - Opening Theme - Idar (Model 2)