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PAL Vs NTSC - Which is better?

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palntsc
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  • S
    Stiffler
    last edited by 23 Apr 2020, 22:34

    If I remember correctly PAL runs at 50Hz and NTSC runs at 60Hz but I may be wrong.

    That would account for why the PAL version of the ROM would be running faster than the NTSC version. If the emulator is set to run at 60Hz then the 50Hz PAL ROM would be running 20% faster than it should be, again I could be wrong!

    R 1 Reply Last reply 23 Apr 2020, 23:18 Reply Quote 1
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      Retro @Stiffler
      last edited by 23 Apr 2020, 23:18

      @Stiffler I see. Is there a way to adjust this setting for the NES emulator in RetroPie?

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      B B 2 Replies Last reply 24 Apr 2020, 02:10 Reply Quote 0
      • B
        BuZz administrators @Retro
        last edited by BuZz 24 Apr 2020, 02:10

        @Retro

        https://retropie.org.uk/docs/Nintendo-Entertainment-System/

        If you want to use PAL roms, make sure they contain (E) or (Europe) in the filename, or else they may be run at the wrong speed.

        There may be core options to switch also depending on emulator.

        If your screen refresh is 60hz, use NTSC roms for best experience.

        There's lots of info in the docs. If only people read them :-)

        To help us help you - please make sure you read the sticky topics before posting - https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first

        R 1 Reply Last reply 24 Apr 2020, 20:05 Reply Quote 2
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          barbudreadmon @Retro
          last edited by 24 Apr 2020, 11:17

          @Retro said in PAL Vs NTSC - Which is better?:

          @Stiffler I see. Is there a way to adjust this setting for the NES emulator in RetroPie?

          Usually, the emulator will pick the right refresh rate after detecting game's region. Maybe you are somehow forcing 60Hz in retroarch settings ?

          FBNeo developer - github - forum

          I 1 Reply Last reply 24 Apr 2020, 12:05 Reply Quote 0
          • I
            IanDaemon @barbudreadmon
            last edited by 24 Apr 2020, 12:05

            @barbudreadmon So you're saying that each ROM should be displayed correctly (if they have a mixed set) unless they're forcing things. Cool.

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            B 1 Reply Last reply 24 Apr 2020, 12:32 Reply Quote 0
            • B
              barbudreadmon @IanDaemon
              last edited by 24 Apr 2020, 12:32

              @IanDaemon That's how it works in the emulators i'm contributing to, i can't vouch for other emulators but at the very least i can say FBNeo will render the few pal nes games it supports at 50Hz, except if you forced something in retroarch.

              FBNeo developer - github - forum

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • R
                Retro @BuZz
                last edited by 24 Apr 2020, 20:05

                @BuZz I tried that before coming here - it had no effect.

                If the emulator usually detects region, then it may have simply been an issue with the ROM itself.

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                • D
                  dankcushions Global Moderator @Retro
                  last edited by 25 Apr 2020, 11:12

                  @Retro said in PAL Vs NTSC - Which is better?:

                  I'm just wondering which of these two release regions are better because I had trouble getting what I believe is a European version of Super Marios Bros on NES to work at the correct speed - the music was way too fast.

                  what was the name of the file? the name of the file often instructs the emulator what region it is, so i suspect it is not named correctly, and trying to run a 50hz pal game at 60hz.

                  B R 2 Replies Last reply 25 Apr 2020, 14:30 Reply Quote 1
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                    barbudreadmon @dankcushions
                    last edited by 25 Apr 2020, 14:30

                    @dankcushions said in PAL Vs NTSC - Which is better?:

                    the name of the file often instructs the emulator what region it is

                    Even though i don't know any, there might be emulators doing that on nes where headers aren't 100% reliable, however i think the more reliable nes emulators prefer using a game database with crcs (could still fail with an unknown dump).

                    FBNeo developer - github - forum

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                      Retro @dankcushions
                      last edited by 25 Apr 2020, 22:43

                      @dankcushions It was "Super Mario Bros Game" however like I said before I did experiment with putting different letters in there to replace "Game" however it had no effect.

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                      M D 2 Replies Last reply 26 Apr 2020, 03:17 Reply Quote 0
                      • M
                        mitu Global Moderator @Retro
                        last edited by 26 Apr 2020, 03:17

                        @Retro Some emulators don't rely only on the name, for instance Nestopia uses the file's hash to determine which game it runs. What emulator are you using ?

                        R 1 Reply Last reply 26 Apr 2020, 22:00 Reply Quote 0
                        • R
                          Retro @mitu
                          last edited by 26 Apr 2020, 22:00

                          @mitu lr-quicknes

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                            dankcushions Global Moderator @Retro
                            last edited by 26 Apr 2020, 23:19

                            @Retro said in PAL Vs NTSC - Which is better?:

                            @dankcushions It was "Super Mario Bros Game" however like I said before I did experiment with putting different letters in there to replace "Game" however it had no effect.

                            that sounds like a very suss file name but ok.

                            but in any case, looks like quicknes doesn't support PAL properly: https://github.com/libretro/QuickNES_Core/issues/52

                            i guess my advice would be to not use PAL (there's very rarely a reason to use it over NTSC, which is generally full speed, no borders, and so on). other NES emulators should handle PAL properly, but you're presumably using quicknes because you're on a RPI1.

                            R 1 Reply Last reply 27 Apr 2020, 19:14 Reply Quote 0
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                              Retro @dankcushions
                              last edited by 27 Apr 2020, 19:14

                              @dankcushions Yeah, the ROM I used was one I just had lying around from years ago when I first got into emulators. The emulator I used back then worked with the game fine, so it's probably just an issue with QuickNES as you've referenced. I've decided to use NTSC in the future. Cheers!

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