Sega Dreamcast Flash Cart! GDEMU Play Games From SD Card - Install And Setup

[@the1ucidone]

"NOTE" Leave Sega licensing and Boot Intro on. If you turn it off you will run into some loading issues from time to time on certain Dreamcast titles and glitches can and will occur.

[@darktetsuya]

I'd heard of this mod! amazed how easy the install appears to be, no soldering or anything like that. definitely looking into checking out this mod for my system!

[@tyisafk]

After going through my third laser, I'm sick of replacing them so I'm gonna go with a GDEMU. Thanks for showing this off!

[@JamesW81]

How do you get hold of a new laser? I have two DCs, and I'd love to try and replace the laser in the one that isn't working

[@justaguy2732]

@@JamesW81 eBay is full of them because everyone is removing them for GDEMU now. No guaranty they won't be tired, but they are not expensive.

[@manuelyagui1920]

Just what i need, my DC laser is dead and i don't want to spend money and time to find a working laser unit, this will solve the problem, great video!

[@junior1388666]

Yea disc drives r annoying. We need that for every disc based old consoles

[@chigimonky]

Lol you will spend more money and more time buying and installing the gdemu. Replacement dreamcast to take out gd drive = $35. GDEMU $65. Time to swap out gd drive = about 20 min. Time to install GDEMU and setup sd card through software = about 2 hours. I love my gdemu but don't buy it thinking you're going to save money and time over just installing a replacement gd drive.

[@GoatZilla]

@@chigimonky I would think you would save time not loading from optical media

[@luxorcephrenSE23]

I cannot recommend Redream on android enough! I'd you have a Shield it's a dream!

[@jawessome]

Luxor Cephren I have a Shield Portable and am using Reicast r7. Not sure if Redream would work well on older Android systems such as lollipop?

[@andresvelez6538]

This is such a awesome alternative since nowadays most Dreamcast games are rare and expensive to get

[@asherael]

I got a faulty Dreamcast, $20 with defective optical drive, with one of these I'm very happy with the investment for access to the entire Dreamcast library (and a bunch of SNES games I found on a GD image online) what a treat

[@Christopher_Hampton]

Where?

[@Mr.Atari2600]

Dreamcast: Digital Edition*

[@lordgarth1]

This is super cool and almost makes me want to dust off my Dreamcast but I can barely spare enough time to play the new games I want to.

[@R1SKbreaker]

I would love to see a video of further mods you can do with a DreamCast.

[@SeriousKeto]

Great video. All the info I need and no filler. Thank you so much!

[@MisterSouji]

One of my favorite channels making a video on my favorite console? Yes please. So two notes. Theres an application that sets up the SD card for you. Also, its recommended that you get a 3d printed holder for this. With the disk drive gone, the fan is now blowing air into the empty slace where it used to be. This can cause the power supply to start to overheat with longer play sessions. Id recommend getting a cheap 3d holder for it off ebay.

[@WickedGamerCollector]

Great video buddy, going to link your video to mine ;) If people want to make there own GDemu Dreamcast system.

[@durrclips746]

A quiet Dreamcast would be truly something to behold in person

[@kapibarra134]

The dreamcast is so cleanly assembled.

[@michaelp.dursee5640]

Have you looked into a power supply mod or a fan mod? Removing the gdrom drive makes the power supply run hot. Also while you're in there you can replace the hard soldered battery with a cheap mount so you can replace it in the future.

[@midianad]

Removing the laser assembly supposedly causes the unit to run hot. It hasn't been confirmed if it is hazardous to leave the voltage regulator for the 12v rail in. But heat is electronic's worst enemy. However nothing uses the 12v after the GDEMU is installed so it is safer to remove. VGA output confirmed still working.

[@midianad]

My scart & VGA works just fine without the voltage regulator for the 12v rail. Ps: And an even easier way would be just pick up a Pico PSU for Dreamcast between $25 and $50.

[@midianad]

@@crashtfa it would be easier for the average person because it's just plug-in play. You don't have to put any thought into it. As for the cost, hell NO! It's not cheaper. I never said it was. The average person doesn't understand what a resistor is much less how to use it. People prefer to purchase something that's a thoughtless quick fix to something they feel is a "problem".

[@A_Man_In_His_Van]

How does reducing the current demand cause it to run hotter? If anything it should run cooler without the demand of the laser and stepper motors. Maybe the cheaper knockoff boards are causing it?

[@midianad]

@@A_Man_In_His_Van Also look at it this way if the voltage regulator gets too hot because the powers not being consumed, it could cause it to fail or provide inconsistent power. And what do you mean by Cheap knock-off boards? I don't understand what you're talkin about.

[@brockrock8898]

Wow, this was the last video I expected from you. Do more flashcarts

[@Noobsaibot21]

+ETA PRIME Just two things to note which would be worth mentioning in the description. Your Dreamcast needs to be VA1 for this board to work. If you have one that is VA2, it won't work. Quickest way to know is to look at the label at the bottom of the DC - there is a circle with 0, 1 or 2 and of course, it's 1 you want. I think the vast majority of Dreamcasts are 1 and only later models have 2. You also can't play burned games with a VA2 model either but even with VA1, you can only burn a CD sized game (or a game with lower quality audio or removed content to fit on a CD (remember, GDRom is bigger than CDRom and there are few (if any) CD drives for PC that can rip them). Thankfully, these GDEmus (and their clones) resolve that. If you ever see a clone for the Rhea (The Saturn equivalent of this), let me know where. I'd love to grab one but the guy who makes them (and the authentic GDEmu) is quite difficult to deal with.

[@DisguisedPigeonLOL]

So glad you are doing a video on this. I've been wondering what the hype with these GDEMU's was all about.

[@theultimateninja]

Man just got this done finally at 4:30AM...

[@Rwithoutbrakes]

Please add more videos about gdemu & Dreamcast: thumbnails, power supply, battery change... Great job as always

[@deetemi-tayo3299]

You're the man! Almost considered spending a few racks on Chinese retro emulators, now that I've seen this will definitely be injecting more life into my beloved Dreamcast!

[@alvinatorjehosephat7777]

Dreamcast is one of my all time favorite consoles. Awesome video man.

[@ionslicer]

You should be able to use GDI also. The only reason to use CDI is cause they can be put on a CD-r. Plus GDI would not have any compressed files or sounds missing.

[@SwoleCalibur]

Yes, but every GDI takes up more then a gb. A lot of dc games don't even use that much and are ripped to cdi without any compression. So if u use cdi for those kind of games, you'll be saving a lot of space. You can check the ripping details in the note that comes with ripped cdi's and seenif anything had to be ripped.

[@ionslicer]

Swole Calibur yeah I have cdi ‘s now and they are great. I was just saying you can use both. The G in GDI stands for gigabyte so it not much more. 300mb to be exact but it does add up.

[@Nickachuuu]

But then what do you do with the Bin Cue files?

[@cheekychunkSR]

@@Nickachuuu just leave them be only the .gdi or .cdi file needs to be named disc

[@AkatsukiBK]

High level video, I can finally play Rival Schools 2 again.

[@haydengittins2836]

If using the GDemu i'd recommend replacing the PSU with a Pico PSU. When you replace the GDrom unit you reduce the power usage of the Dreamcast and don't use one of the power rails... this leads to a LOT of excess heat being produced and the unit can get very hot. This isn't helped by the lack of GDrom unit disrupting the air flow from the fan. I'd especially recommend if using a clone as the quality of those isn't close to a real unit and they are more vulnerable to the heat.

[@VIRACYTV]

I had no idea Chinese knockoffs that actually work exist! I just bought one thanks to you ETA Prime :D

[@raymondraffoul2402]

Still working okay?

[@FlintG]

So getting this for my model 1 dreamcast. Looks awesome to being able to have the library on a memory card and no more noise!

[@steveothehulk]

I did this with mine about 2 yrs ago the clone card is as good as the original imo, with absolutely no issues and I’ve been using it for 2 yrs now. I wish they would clone the Saturn board too

[@triggeredpanda2939]

Look up fenrir for the sega saturn

[@alexptjp9569]

The best part about this is that you don't hear the drive anymore, not that it ever bothered me in the first place.

[@super-retro-city]

Let’s see more stuff like this!! Awesome!!

[@cube206]

Thank You for this presentation :) it costs more than I spent on a used dreamcast I recently bought..

[@BarnyardCasanova]

DUDE THANK YOU! I've been on the fence about buying one of the clones for so long, and none of the reviews I found A) did I trust very much. B) did they mention it being a clone or original. This is the review / tutorial I've been waiting for! You're the man ETA.

[@Faz540]

Ah man, the disc drive of my Dreamcast is so incredibly loud. This sounds like a great solution to that! :P

[@tyisafk]

I plan to get this, replace the PSU with that new smaller one and do a noctua fan mod. Maybe a DCHDMI to top it off but I'd rather just continue using an OSSC, but that mod would be nice for travel. My dreamcast is gonna be uncomfortably silent after all this lmao

[@SianaGearz]

It's possible to quieten the stock drive down a bit by lubricating it - it will also likely stave off some fairly rare failure modes. I for sure will miss the optical drive noises when i upgrade to GDEmu. I don't want them to be loud but i love hearing them that they are there.

[@JayZero4]

You 'n me both man, mine sounds like a car crash while playing Phantasy Star

[@tyisafk]

@@JayZero4 I've gotten used to it, and it just sounds authentic to the system. I got my first Dreamcast I think in 2011 and it was overwhelming lol First Dreamcast's disc drive eventually quit working entirely so I got another one about a year or two later and it's still kicking, but I just adjusted the pot recently so it may be time to get a GDEMU and store its original drive as a backup.

[@Faz540]

@@JayZero4 Yep, that's the game I play on the DC the most. It's that loud, I'm can't play it late at night as I'm sure it would annoy the neighbours

[@sladger]

You don't need to rename your game files to 'disc' within their numbered folders when you are using the GDMENU interface. Renaming game files to 'disc' only needs to be done if you are not using the GDMENU interface and using only the button on the device to change games.

[@razorx2024]

i would recommend using the SD CARD MAKER for GDEmu 1.10 by MadSheep rather than doing it manually like this, especially if you are adding a lot of games and it makes loading the menu instant. i have a 512gb sd card in mine with the entire dreamcast collection on there in gdi format and it loads instantly and runs amazing.

[@grecofabulous]

I went the USB-GDROM route for my dreamcast but I have a Phoebe for the Saturn and both are fantastic!

[@AlienSneak]

For the moment, my Dreamcast run very well, but the day the laser will stop working, I will consider this solution, thanks for this video.

[@phunkstar7347]

Nice to see a Dreamcast Mod. I also thougt about the GDEMU but for me but its just to expansive. even with the clones one. Maybe when my laser starts to failing. And everyone who has a Dreamcast and don´t use the 480p VGA output. You have to use it. The quality is amazing.

[@wmx99]

I put a text file in the sub folders with the title of the game so when I put the SD back into the PC to add or remove games, I know what they are. :)

[@Noobsaibot21]

Excellent idea :)

[@brunovilela6072]

You dont need to rename the files...:)

[@wmx99]

Bruno Vilela I never tried with the original but these knock off ones you do

[@brunovilela6072]

I got a knock off,and all my games are with the real name,and i dont have any issue with that...mine is v5.15b...

[@FurySanctuary]

This gdemu clone works very well I was able to revive my second dreamcast. Easy, fast loading, with gdemusd allows to patch vga automatically, Top. Unfortunately I had to modify the psu with the 12v mod (remove transistor and resistor) but this results in the loss of rgb, the vmu are under power, the vibrations no longer work and the power supply always overheats. Finally I ordered the dc psu pico (I will receive it in a few days). The dreamcast is my heart console. Next purchase a new vgabox (kuro plus) to replace the rotten retrobit.

[@ChristianCastle]

Oh great! I hope they do something like this for PS1 and PS2 as well.

[@Froggy-ts8yj]

Ps1 already has one using the serial port.

[@localhustle]

Christian G. Castillo they already do for the Ps2

[@SianaGearz]

Just softmod the PS2 and play the PS1 and PS2 games on that from a hard disk or a USB card reader or thumb drive. Optical drive emulation on either system seems completely unnecessary.

[@Deltax5]

DUde. Get a free mcboot memery card. You can make it your self with a modded ps2 or gameshark but it's harder. Order from ebay or something just make sure it's a good seller then make your own with a bigger card like the max memory card. The network sata mod is easy to do just order the parts. Or that star adapter works but the one doing yourself is better and get network support. A terabyte sata drive is cheep these days. 2 terabytes works but needs more work.

[@Shad0wX]

Hard drive and FMCB is so worth it. Pain in the ass when you start but once you figure everything our its great

[@peace1177]

My 2nd Dreamcast in the last year broke this morning. It makes a lot of noise when reading the discs during certain points in the game, I think I would benefit from making this switch. For the past couple of months I've got back online with a DreamPi and been playing Phantasy Star Online ver 2 which has been amazing! Would love to see those covered on your channel.

[@galeofdarkNES]

Would games work off the SD card gdemu and playing online? I’m considering getting the gdemu and setting up a dreampi to play chu chu rocket 🚀

[@peace1177]

@@galeofdarkNES I was struggling to get online with the sd card, but the guy who revamped my DC said he’d take a look at it.... just since that time I moved on to a break from video games and now to Warcraft 3. The GDMU worked great otherwise.

[@GLOCKASAURUSREX]

I shudda went this route first I had bought a new disk reader for mi Dreamcast cuz it wuz dead and I went ahead n burned about 100 games most worked some didn't 😩 and now for some reason now mi dream cast ain't playing 96% of the burns that it wuz playing b4 and something told mi go wit the gdemu but I wu just used to the feel of changing CD's tryna feel that old skool FUK THAT NOW lmao mi GDEMU just got here yesterday as soon as I get home today goin in on that Dreamcast!! TIME FOR Surgery on the Dreamcast

[@jab061]

thanks great explanation just what i needed to work how to set up SD card using a mac

[@juanotero2607]

Nice video why did you have to rename the file folders disc?

[@ProfThiagoMorais]

Excelente tutorial. Assistindo aqui no Brasil.

[@Mr.Atari2600]

I just got mine yesterday. used a 64gb sd card, formatted to FAT32, add the files, add Sonic Adventure, gave it a test. 1st I tried .gdi & apparently .gdi files don't seem to work. So I manage to get .cdi file, tested out & worked perfectly!

[@Huddison]

Will this work for multi disk based games like Shenmue?

[@kumiliarostreamsarchives3079]

Going To try this. I own 2 dreamcasts and both disc lens are worn out. Great alternative

[@johnlennoosullivan7364]

Thanks for the video. Do in-game loading times improve with this mod?

[@MichaelM28]

You're absolutely insane if you the Pound cable has good picture quality

[@matt6093]

have you experienced any overheating from this mod? according to retro RGB because the ODE doesn’t use 12v on the GD-Rom drive, it’s safer to remove it from the power supply. I don't have soldering experience and would prefer to not do it if it doesn't affect the dreamcast

[@FlintG]

This is amazing, I need to get me one of these. For now ill just play them on my pc.

[@EnjoySynthSounds]

A dreamcast mini with blutooth or usb controller options would be a big seller.

[@TooFurious4]

That's it?! Just plug and play, no soldering?

[@KomradeMikhail]

Replace the CMOS battery while you are in there... Unless you prefer to enter the date every single time you boot up ? They are not the normal CR2032 BIOS battery... but still only a buck or two on amazon.

[@greekgod2332]

Did this mod. Clean the PSU pins of you run into issues. It's not the GDEMU. Easy fix works great!

[@DustyOrchid057]

Might have to do this with one of my two dreamcast, especially since the GDEMU board is 55 dollars on amazon

[@diegoweb900]

Oh god, this is a dream setup. Unfortunately it's too expensive to import one unit to my country :(

[@KING_KONK]

Hey merry Christmas thanks for all of the great videos this year. Do u know if there is a max size sd card that works

[@TagNameMaca]

Hey great Vid. Definitely saved this one. Any thought on the extra power problem that the DC will have because the cd drive was removed? Overheating? Thanks!!

[@RahimMasters]

Hi ETA first of all, great video,.thanks for the info. Any slowdowns or cons to doing it this way? I ask because I've tried doing this with GameCube using my action replay with as launcher and have a lot of slowdowns, glitches crashes etc. Do you have a GameCube solution also? Thanks

[@steveothehulk]

I also use an sd card extended lead it makes swapping out the sd card so much easier

[@braddl9442]

If you can get the GDI files you should.

[@jaxfan]

You're the MacGyver of electronics.

[@jaxfan]

@Brad Viviviyal I meant the know how of stuff

[@bootyliquor8966]

@Brad Viviviyal You must be so fun at parties

[@noneed4me2n7]

I just ordered one off amazon prime, it was about 100 a little higher than eBay but if there’s an issue easy return. I’m just waiting on the file transfers then I’ll test it out. Used all the instructions got my fingers crossed. Sadly it seems a majority of sources I found have bin cue vs cdi/iso files. Looking at conversions for them and still trying out other sources. Got about 45 cdi files to play with most of what I want. Thanks for the play by play. One thing I noticed was the instructions stated that it has to be a model one or zero as model 2s psu will supposedly fry the GDEMU. Might want to addendum that, or not. Luckily of the three Dreamcast I had lying around 2 were model ones.

[@noneed4me2n7]

Ok it works but I had to switch from the pound cable to standard vga as I just wasn’t getting a picture. All images worked except crazy taxi 1 going to try again later. Might see if the pound cable needs extra power to that plug? Otherwise it works great. I checked and the cable works fine on my other cd based Dreamcast not sure what gives, menu says its set to VGA.

[@noneed4me2n7]

Ok last comment, adding power via an apple usb iPhone power adapter made the pound cable work fine. It works unpowered with a regular cd version guess the GDEMU power draw causes issues or whatever.

[@HavocKOF]

Excellent video!! I’ve been looking to resuscitate my DC for years now and have access to my games (one of them being mvc2) 3 quick questions: 1) using mvc2 for example, would this mod have access to the saved data in your memory card? Bc I have stored so much progress in there. 2) do you have a link that would show how to burn/copy your own disc game into your cpu? 3) where would I be able to access a large DC games library online to download? Any help is much appreciated, you def have my like and follow my guy!!

[@darkrebellion6331]

4:17 Zero one driver

[@MrJaz8088]

I still have a Brand New in Box never used Dreamcast somewhere, got it for $99 when a electronic shop closed down about 8 years ago Might be time to find it, Cheers ETA

[@courtz1ace]

Was very sceptical about getting a clone, plus i've brought from GDEMU/Denuan before so i would rather support him directly... HOWEVER, I always seem to miss the windows for GDEMU pre-orders so i guess my only option is to pick up a clone ODE instead. Thank you for the demo ETA PRIME!

[@SomeOrangeCat]

This'll save a lot of Dreamcasts from the junk bin.

[@maicoalvim]

what model of this screen are you using with dreamcast?! thanks man, nice video

[@thomasmcdougall8059]

Holly shiz 😳 somthing needs to be done with the sega saturn also that would be class

[@asherael]

I'd heard something about putting resistors on the power supply to make up for removing the power-draw of the optical drive?

[@marcomm7543]

Question. So u must create a numbered folder for each game? So potentially folder 100 etc etc ? Don’t need a zero in front ?

[@IRWPD]

All ways wanted one of theses. But they costs so much. Happy to hear there are cheap versions out there.

[@LFiers]

Love your videos man! This little thing rocks. Is there any way to put them in alphabet order though?

[@SilencedNo1]

Looks great, I'll definitely get one once my disc drive fails... I got a couple of questions though: 1. Do the games need to have autoboot or other modifications to run or will unripped .gdi images also work? 2. Can the firmware of the gdemu be upgraded or the bootmenu image be exchanged? 3. How does disc swapping work (for multidisc titles)?

[@SilencedNo1]

Thanks for the clarification 🙂

[@linuxstreamer8910]

i love that the dreamcast is a arcade machine it is sort of a sega naomi

[@loktron90]

Wow the insides look ancient techwise

[@phgodts]

There is a 3D printed cover with a SD extender for easier access for 15 bucks in the ebay too

[@steves3116]

What version gdemu did you install? Looks like there is a newer clone version out with the newest firmware v5.20.3

[@jefferson2483]

Muito bom seu tutorial, obrigado amigo.

[@alxnmx]

Sorprendente! Gracias por compartir;

[@HerecomestheCalavera]

Does it improve load times at all? Shenmue would be a good game to test out for load times.

[@DuduAkiva]

Love your videos :) This one needs additional info though: For your PSU to survive long-term you definitely need to disable the 12V rail. Also, the inside bracket is also important as the missing GDROM drive affects cooling efficiency. Maybe a bit more research was needed for this one. Keep them coming though :)

[@LFiers]

How do you disable the 12v rail?

[@jejefrantic2842]

That's perfection 😍are Jet set radio work fine on this without issues? 👀

[@TechWithSean]

3:28 if you have a Mac you can do this in 5 seconds in disk utility. I could’ve saved myself a heap of time

[@ravenwolf3039]

I have seen some videos where the power invertor was taken out to keep the system from overheating since it no longer needs 12 volt to the optical drive. Is their a reason you did not do this ?

[@jermainepalk1832]

Is there a big difference between the one ETA used and the more expensive model? Does anyone know?

[@alejandrovaldezr6671]

really awesome, thanks!

[@zell71]

Which version of the mod have you got? Seems like there are lots of different brands. Which ones was this?

[@1191SPEED]

the folder must necessarily be named with numbers or even at will?

[@rotallyPumpered]

Does this work for multi-disc games like Shenmue, or do you just have to save at the end of each disc and boot the following one from GDEMU?

[@midianad]

Yes. It has a button to swap disc by the sd card.

[@shredbraahh8606]

Holy shit, this is amazing.

[@iwanttocomplain]

Instructions: unscrew disc drive, plug in sd drive. Nice! Would Dreamshell work with this?

[@TitusDafox]

Subcribed. Want to know if u have tried Shenmue, Shenmue 2 on this and if so how does it run. Still my fav game 👍🏾

[@JKTravelsShow]

Wow, I could only imagine how much lighter the Dreamcast console is with the optical disc components removed. With the extra space inside, you could maybe put in a Raspberry Pi, haha.

[@JDM2119]

Do you need a specific type of Dreamcast or will any be compatible? I saw another video and they mentioned there needed to be a “1” on the back of the console?

[@SegaSky]

$400? I just ordered a genuine one from the source for like $160.

[@HotlineKM1]

Depends on availability. People love to scalp and upcharge the authentic GDEMU and it seemed like it took the guy forever to make new batches which I understand its like one guy making these. You're def lucky. Me and others have had to settle on clones which you can't update.