Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Model 1 VA6 / VA7 sound comparison
The same VA7 Genesis, after a Mega Amp mod:
I bought a Sega CD a little while ago and it came with a VA7 revision Model 1 Sega Genesis. I knew these were the units renowned for crappy sound, and was already the owner of an earlier VA6 revision Genesis. I didn’t even have to make this recording to tell the difference, I realized immediately upon turning the console on. But I made this video, not out of a lack of existing examples on youtube, but because I never looked at those and wanted to upload my experience.
I’ll be using and keeping the VA6 genesis, but I think I’ll replace the amplification circuit (that’s the part causing the horrible clipping / distortion / scratchiness / gain issue), add an S-Video output somewhere on the back, and flip it on eBay to try to counter how much I overpaid for the Sega CD -_-
If anyone wonders, the game I’m playing is Phantasy Star IV, and this is the title screen/intro music.
Here are a couple pictures of the VA6 and VA7 (note that the RCA jacks on the back of the VA6 are something I added for easy RGB output for my TV):
VA6, top view:
VA6, back view (connected to Sega CD):
VA7, top view:
VA7, back view (connected to Sega CD):