Help identifying AES model?

edd_jedi

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I am looking at buying an AES from somebody who doesn't know which model it is, and I'm also struggling to figure it out after reading online guides. I think the NEO-AEC model number makes it either NTSC (USA) or PAL, rather than NTSC-J (NEO-O.) But I have also read that PRO-POW-E can be both USA and PAL too. So any idea which it is?

Also the serial number is in the 60k range, but is it possible to tell which board revision it would have from the info below?

In case the image below is too hard to read, it says:
MODEL No. NEO-AEC
USE PRO-POW-E AC ADAPTOR ONLY
SERIAL No. 061315

Any help appreciated.


serial.jpg
 

Tarma

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Does it not come with the original power adapter? That will be a sure fire give away as to what region the unit came from as PAL territories use different voltages. If it comes with a US PSU then that will make things more difficult, although most PAL units I've seen end up in the US have just got generic psu's with them, not an original SNK item.

Does it work? A PAL console will letterbox the AES game because it's running at 50hz... unless it's been modded.

The only way you'll find out what board revision is in there is to open it up, although safe to say it will be one of the earlier revisions at a 60k serial range.
 

edd_jedi

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Thanks. I and the seller are in the UK and it appears to have a UK plug in the photos, but I can't tell if it's an OEM adapter or an aftermarket one. Am I right in thinking PAL consoles are pretty rare, even if less desirable due to being 50hz?
 

kernow

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There's not as many but I wouldn't say rare
 

Tarma

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Am I right in thinking PAL consoles are pretty rare, even if less desirable due to being 50hz?
Ok, AES consoles are for playing videogames on. They are not intended for shelf-queens.

I was hoping that this was not a "collector" related question... should have trusted my instincts.

If you're after a PAL AES because you think it is "teh rarez" and a "great investment" more power to you - now go figure out what it is you're buying on your own.

BTW, no one who wants to play the games wants a PAL AES. Not by choice anyway.
 

madmanjock

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Thanks. I and the seller are in the UK and it appears to have a UK plug in the photos, but I can't tell if it's an OEM adapter or an aftermarket one. Am I right in thinking PAL consoles are pretty rare, even if less desirable due to being 50hz?

There’s not many 50hz consoles on ebay and suchlike and they seem to go for a premium because of that. Which personally I think is mad - because 50hz sucks balls.
 

edd_jedi

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Ok, AES consoles are for playing videogames on. They are not intended for shelf-queens.

I was hoping that this was not a "collector" related question... should have trusted my instincts.

If you're after a PAL AES because you think it is "teh rarez" and a "great investment" more power to you - now go figure out what it is you're buying on your own.

BTW, no one who wants to play the games wants a PAL AES. Not by choice anyway.

Nope wrong, I'm looking for one to play on and would prefer NTSC, whether JAP or USA. Hence my original question. That doesn't make it wrong to ask the question if PAL consoles are rare, considering I can't find any sold listings for one on eBay the answer to that seems to be yes.
 

edd_jedi

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There’s not many 50hz consoles on ebay and suchlike and they seem to go for a premium because of that. Which personally I think is mad - because 50hz sucks balls.
Yep I thought that may be the case, as you say they may be technically inferior but like it or not, scarcity = rarity. And I'm not looking for rare, I'm looking for NTSC.
 

edd_jedi

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Here's a USA NTSC console listed on UK eBay with exactly the same serial sticker specs as the one posted above (even similar serial range), hence my confusion

 

Tarma

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Hmmmn... giving you the benefit of the doubt.... sadly there is no known identification process to the serial number process used by SNK. I don't think anyone can even prove if all consoles were labelled consecutively. It's not like a chasis number on a car where the numbers and letters can be used to identify make, model, trim, region unfortunately.

The consoles were probably produced in batches and the numbers just issued - so the start of a PAL batch would just begin at the end of a NTSC batch.

Best thing is to go for a Japanese console - there's no region lock on AES, plus you get the games uncensored. Most of the later games come with an English language option, or you could always mod the console with Razoola's debug bios - not a costly excercise, and you'll get your money back on the cost if you ever decided to part with it.

Bottom line - if the buyer cannot confidently idenify or describe what they're selling, stay away.

There's plenty of AES consoles for sale at any one time, don't rush into something you later regret.
 

Takumaji

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Modding a PAL homecart system to 60Hz and JPN territory setting is simple, check what system version you have. PAL system have a jumper on the pcb labelled PAL1, all you gotta do to get 60Hz is to cut the jumper and that's it. Adding a 50/60Hz switch is not necessary IMO because all games will run on 60Hz and there's nothing to gain from that 50Hz crap.

50Hz to 60Hz mod:
neogeo60.png


Check out this thread for the region JPN/US-EU mod:


It's also a simple mod. Here, a switch is useful, most Neo games aren't text-heavy but sometimes it's nice to be able to read what's on the screen. However, you may want to stick to JPN mode to get red blood (it's white in other regions).
 

edd_jedi

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Thanks, I added a region switch to my NGCD which was a similar simple process, looks like it would be easy on the AES too (I agree PAL setting is useless, but I would like to be able to switch between NTSC and NTSC-J for language reasons.)
The seller doesn't know which region it is but says games play in English, so it's got to be USA or PAL. The reason I'm persevering with this one is it's reasonably priced and in very good cosmetic condition, most of the used JAP ones on eBay look like Edward Scissorhands owned them.
Anyway thanks for the help, may have more questions if I go for it, will try asking the seller more questions. I didn't realise it was impossible to tell from the sticker alone, good to know.
 

Takumaji

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Thanks, I added a region switch to my NGCD which was a similar simple process, looks like it would be easy on the AES too (I agree PAL setting is useless, but I would like to be able to switch between NTSC and NTSC-J for language reasons.)
The seller doesn't know which region it is but says games play in English, so it's got to be USA or PAL. The reason I'm persevering with this one is it's reasonably priced and in very good cosmetic condition, most of the used JAP ones on eBay look like Edward Scissorhands owned them.
Anyway thanks for the help, may have more questions if I go for it, will try asking the seller more questions. I didn't realise it was impossible to tell from the sticker alone, good to know.
If you are going for NTSC with 60Hz instead of PAL-60, make sure you have a TV or monitor which supports NTSC. Most PAL Euro/UK TV sets or monitors can run at 60Hz but not a lot of them accept NTSC, the picture would be black and white in this case.
 

edd_jedi

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Yes thanks good advice, I've already got several other NTSC consoles which work on this TV.
 

edd_jedi

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No one puts a region switch on am AES. Just install a Unibios.
I know UniBios can change region, but can it change 50/60hz if installed in a PAL console? I thought that was a hardware thing rather than software.
 

kernow

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If you are going for NTSC with 60Hz instead of PAL-60, make sure you have a TV or monitor which supports NTSC. Most PAL Euro/UK TV sets or monitors can run at 60Hz but not a lot of them accept NTSC, the picture would be black and white in this case.
This can of course be avoided by boycotting crts in the last 15yrs
 

Takumaji

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This can of course be avoided by boycotting crts last 15yrs
Heh, yeah, all my LCDs are multinorm, same goes for my good old Philips CM8833 RGB monitor but it's broken. The 14" Sony Trinitron and Commodore 1084S I normally use for older consoles are great for PAL-60 but don't support NTSC. Too bad, because I prefer CRT picture quality over LCD.

But hey, one day my old CRTs will be dead and I'm not going to bother with buying used ones, prices for used multisync/multinorm CRT RGB monitors have gone crazy in recent years. Back in 2008 to 2010, you could buy a Commodore RGB monitor for 50 bucks here, now the ones in better condition go for 300+. Completely bonkers.
 

thegreathopper

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Could be PAL and already modded to 60Hz, I modded a few in the 90’s as did the import shops in London, TCR etc. it certainly used to be that people wanted the JPN version and more expensive due to no censorship on games
 

edd_jedi

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OK I got a couple more photos out of the seller, apparently this is the screen that displays after you turn the console on. Is this UniBios, and if so which version?

IMG_2175.jpeg

And also here is a photo of the power supply. It seems to be switchable and set to 240v, but does that necessarily mean it is a EUR console?

IMG_2176.jpeg
 

Heinz

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If that's a Unibios it is old as fuck, weird and cool.

Get him to take a photo of cartridge slot (flaps open) on an angle, to the right side. You should be able to see the revision on the PCB. If anything the seller should be able to say by looking anyway.
 

GohanX

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That's the old Neostore debug bios, it predates the Unibios. The system was probably modded in the early 2000's. You need to make sure you have a second controller around for accessing the bios.
 

edd_jedi

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Thanks, after a bit of research it seems to be the "Jeff Kurtz" BIOS, not sure if that is accurate. Would have preferred UniBios but if it does region switching then that's the main thing I would want.

The seller says he can't get any good photos through the cart slot, but can see the board revision is 3-5, and also has confirmed it's a PAL console as he said there's a resistor linking the PAL pads on the board - I read that making the console 60hz was simply a case of cutting this?
 
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