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SNES vs Genesis Sound

S

ScOULaris

Member
Like has already been said, SNES had a wider range of what it could do with its sound capabilities and higher fidelity as well than the Genesis. Overall, the SNES wins this comparison quite easily.

That being said, it's understandable how some people liked the distinctive, twangy-metallic output of the Genesis' audio synthesizer. It was very distinctive.
 
J

jbartee

Member
What a weird thread. This is like "yellow vs. blue" or better yet, "what's the best instrument, trombone or piano?" Like, I dunno, this is a question of aesthetics and how things are used and what instrument / tool is best suited for the job at hand.
 
J

jbartee

Member
ScOULaris said:
Like has already been said, SNES had a wider range of what it could do with its sound capabilities and higher fidelity as well than the Genesis. Overall, the SNES wins this comparison quite easily.

That being said, it's understandable how some people liked the distinctive, twangy-metallic output of the Genesis' audio synthesizer. It was very distinctive.
Click to expand...

Do we judge a guitar negatively because it doesn't posses the range of sound that a basic synthesizer or sampler does? Seems like a super arbitrary metric to me
 
B

BlastProcessed

Neo Member
Sega Genesis wins hands down for me. I can admit that the SNES was capable of producing amazing music, TMNT4 and Super Mario World 2 to this day amaze me.

But I don't know, the Genesis always impresses me with what some musicians were capable of producing with the limited specs they had.

An unreleased Genesis game, Time Trax.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqyEbu8cmMg

Shinobi 3 - Solitary - To this day I get goosebumps with the build up in this song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoDY1XgcoFg

Toejam and Earl Panic on Funkotron - Rocket Rap
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh4i2dQKpPc

Ecco the Dolphin - Island Zone - Very atmospheric
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fWE-rpfNR0

Super Fantasy Zone - Ending/Credits
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1_DpOh-W_g

I shouldn't even have to mention the amazing Shining, Streets of Rage, and Sonic series music.
 
T

teh_J0kerer

Member
I was never able to understand this mentality that SNES had better sound.

It had better sound *quality* certainly on individual sound effects, but the music on genesis was way way better. If I recall this was because the genesis had more sound channels so could have more things going on at the same time in music.

Streets of rage 2, thunderforce 4, shinobi III.. SNES didnt have music anywhere near that. SNES could produce nice, crisp sounding melodies, but they sound very limited compared to the multiple layers of the genesis' best music.
 
C

clemso

Neo Member
Snes was the better console in pretty much every way. Most of the Genesis games sound pretty terrible, unless some composer god worked on them (Sonic, Shinobi).
 
R

RoninChaos

Member
xn0 said:
While the SNES was technically superior in number of sound channels, sample quality, etc. the Genesis sound chip was a synth chip (YM2612) and was better suited to drums and bass. Which is why games that had techno'ish music sometimes sounded better on Genesis where as if the music was orchestral the SNES blew the socks off of the Genesis.
Click to expand...

This is pretty spot on. Streets of rage is a perfect example of how great things could sound on the genesis. Any square soft game is an example of how fantastic the send could sound.

I do think the SNES chip was superior overall.
 
R

Ricky 7

Member
Snes destroys the Megadrive in the sound department. As a matter of fact the Snes destroys the Megadrive in every department.
=3
 
S

Synth

Member
Marceles said:
The SNES and Genesis versions of Street Fighter pretty much sum up how much better SNES's sound was
Click to expand...

That's actually a rather terrible way to measure it. The two don't have compatible production methods, so multiplats will also favour one over the other (often the SNES, as samples are easier). The Genesis synth can do all sorts of things a SNES can't (hence Streets of Rage 2, Thunderforce etc) but in a multiplat they probably won't be used.
 
I

Interceptor

Banned
jbartee said:
What a weird thread. This is like "yellow vs. blue" or better yet, "what's the best instrument, trombone or piano?" Like, I dunno, this is a question of aesthetics and how things are used and what instrument / tool is best suited for the job at hand.
Click to expand...

It´s more like both are guitars. But Genesis only has two strings.
 
G

gryz

Banned
gryz said:
the genesis sound chip is a real synthesizer, the snes sound chip is sample based synthesis.

basically the snes chip sounds better out of the box with no effort but the genesis chip has a higher "skill ceiling".

you are pretty much limited to the sounds that are programmed onto the snes chip without being able to change much, while the genesis sound chip requires you to generate your own custom tones (or use Hitoshi Sakimoto's drivers). this is why many different snes games feature the same sound effects

(note this is re: genesis model 1, mod 2 sounds like crap)
Click to expand...

also want to add that the snes sound chip is basically the same concept as a cheap store bought keyboard with built in sound presets.
 
J

jbartee

Member
Interceptor said:
It´s more like both are guitars. But Genesis only has two strings.
Click to expand...

lol. This is exactly what I mean. FM synthesis and wavetables are in completely different worlds to my ears. To others they might be barely distinguishable. And a two-string guitar is sometimes exactly what's needed.
 
N

notBald

Member
gryz said:
also want to add that the snes sound chip is basically the same concept as a cheap store bought keyboard with built in sound presets.
Click to expand...

The snes chip do not have built in sound presets. It has 64KB of RAM for sound samples, which are uploaded from cartridge.

Cheap store bought keyboards today probably have vastly superior chips. Still, the snes chip was nice for its time. Compare DKC GBA with SNES. Notice the lack of reverberation on the GBA, that was done by the snes sound chip.
 
R

Rich!

Member
Synth said:
Meanwhile the SNES had no amp, and you could only strum one string at a time.
Click to expand...

Nope. I was able to manipulate the 8 channels to have chords whilst writing music for Link to the Past hacks. I even did a pretty faithful replica of Gerudo Desert back in the day on the SNES SPC700.

Also, this is the track that shows the true strength of the SNES sound. Mega Drive would never, ever have been able to pull this off. Ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ODKKILZiYY
 
F

FreedomFighter

Member
S

Synth

Member
richisawesome said:
Nope. I was able to manipulate the 8 channels to have chords whilst writing music for Link to the Past hacks. I even did a pretty faithful replica of Gerudo Desert back in the day on the SNES SPC700.

Also, this is the track that shows the true strength of the SNES sound. Mega Drive would never, ever have been able to pull this off. Ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ODKKILZiYY
Click to expand...

Did.. did you just reply seriously to that?...

I was replying to a post saying the Genesis would only have two strings.. we're obviously not being very accurate with this metaphor lol.

And you're right the Genesis couldn't have done that track sounding like that, just as the SNES can't do many Genesis tracks. We could trade tracks all day tbh. :)
 
H

HolyBaikal

Banned
The SNES is iconic for me of everything I love about video game music.

I recognize the sound library immediately and it's always a fond thing to hear(presumably if someone hasn't done something horrible with it).

From games like Super Mario World to Chrono Trigger, there's something that really resonates with me about the Super Nintendo's sound. It's probably one of the things it did best in terms of a purely hardware perspective.
 
R

Rich!

Member
Synth said:
Did.. did you just reply seriously to that?...

I was replying to a post saying the Genesis would only have two strings.. we're obviously not being very accurate with this metaphor lol.

And you're right the Genesis couldn't have done that track sounding like that, just as the SNES can't do many Genesis tracks. We could trade tracks all day tbh. :)
Click to expand...

Yeah, the SNES would never have been able to pull off Burning Force, Sonic 1-3K or Thunder Force 2 and 3, which are all incredible soundtracks.

And yes, I've grown to love Sonic 3 now, as opposed to what my original reaction was.
 
M

MightyHedgehog

Member
Man, this topic is quarterly now...haha. The eternal struggle. Sixteen-bit Sega is my champion in this war and can never quite be done justice unless hearing that sound being generated on an actual early model unit with nice headphones plugged right into that hole of stereo-synth love. SNES has its undeniable highpoints, but nothing on that hardware ever energized or infected me like great use of the Genny did.
 
C

Corleth the Fey

Member
richisawesome said:
Nope. I was able to manipulate the 8 channels to have chords whilst writing music for Link to the Past hacks. I even did a pretty faithful replica of Gerudo Desert back in the day on the SNES SPC700.

Also, this is the track that shows the true strength of the SNES sound. Mega Drive would never, ever have been able to pull this off. Ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ODKKILZiYY
Click to expand...
A great choice. Probably the most impressive SNES tune in my book. Great game too.

Here's some more SNES love from me. This track blows my mind and another classic game. I could listen to this for hours.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yy_Vzz12xY

Better give the emotionally charged ending music some cred as well. The whole sound track has that unique early SNES sound. Beautiful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Fw5cV05av0
 
J

jsip

Banned
In terms of fidelity of the available sound channels the SNES wins, hands down. A broader range of available waveforms and far higher bitrate for those waveforms made for some excellent music on the SNES. Still, some peeps prefer the "sound" of the Genesis. Its like a 303 or 808. While its not amazing as a standalone, it has that "sound" many house artists and pop artists love.

But, sheer capability goes to the SNES.
 
R

revolverjgw

Member
It wasn't really the SNES chip's fault, but heavy/intense music tended to sound really pansified compared to Shinobi 3/Vapor Trail/Thunder Force etc. They always tended to use muffled samples and weak bass and beats. But nothing on the Genesis can touch Super Metroid's dark ambient soundtrack or the rich textures of Square RPGs.
 
R

Rich!

Member
revolverjgw said:
It wasn't really the SNES chip's fault, but heavy/intense music tended to sound really pansified compared to Shinobi 3/Vapor Trail/Thunder Force etc. They always tended to use muffled samples and weak bass and beats.
Click to expand...

Well, there's a good reason for that. The yamaha chip in the Mega Drive is a true analog synth. The SPC700 is a sampler. In terms of actual output, the MD gives out a pure unfiltered synth which is generated there and then, just as if I was using a Moog synth. It's glorious.

But obviously, that comes at the expense of not being able to pull off tracks like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRR47I88RJ8
 
S

SonyToo!™

Member
FreedomFighter said:
EDIT: This is more indicative of the soundtrack sounded on each - and it ain't good for the Genesis.
Click to expand...

I actually much prefer the Mega Drive version, the rhythm of the SNES version sounds crap like a badly made Tracker sequenced tune.

I do agree the SNES version of SF2 is closer to the arcade original though.

richisawesome said:
Well, there's a good reason for that. The yamaha chip in the Mega Drive is a true analog synth. The SPC700 is a sampler. In terms of actual output, the MD gives out a pure unfiltered synth which is generated there and then, just as if I was using a Moog synth. It's glorious.
Click to expand...

I agree it's apples and oranges (MD is still king though). I think a better topic of discussion would be between consoles/ home computers which have a FM synth in it.
 
R

Rich!

Member
Tom Nook Sawyer said:
If you want to get technical, SNES's hi-res mode was 512X224. Granted, it was rarely used, but as far as I know, it was higher than Genesis could pull off.
Click to expand...

Sonic 2 proves otherwise. It's split screen is literally the single player resolution doubled.

Sure, it doesn't display it in that resolution - because that'd be ridiculous (it squashes it when it sends it to the output), It's still rendering at a far higher resolution than the SNES though. I might be missing a technical detail here, but as far as I know what I'm saying is correct.
 
P

Phediuk

Member
Every time this thread is posted it's the same thing. SNES fans who have little experience with the Genesis spew out the same nonsense about how the Genesis sounded like robot farts, Genesis fans post tunes that thoroughly and completely debunk that notion, the posts are ignored, and the tired narrative of the "objectively inferior god-awful Genesis FM" continues.

Why don't we ever see games like Mega Turrican, Adventures of Batman & Robin, Puggsy, Vapor Trail, anything by Sunsoft, anything by Technosoft, anything by Hitoshi Sakimoto, etc.? It's always the same "here's Chrono Trigger, and now here's Doom for the 32X! What a piece of shit!"

How many more threads like this do we need? I think everyone agrees that there are many great games with great soundtracks on the SNES, and its legacy has endured far more strongly and retained a much larger fanbase as a retro console than the Genesis. It's not even a rivalry anymore. It's like Sega's just brought up so come-lately SNES players can take a big historical-revisionist dump on them.

Sorry if I'm sounding a bit aggressive here, but I'm sick of the Nintendo triumphalism that runs through all of these SNES vs. Genesis topics.
 
D

Damaniel

Banned
richisawesome said:
Nope. I was able to manipulate the 8 channels to have chords whilst writing music for Link to the Past hacks. I even did a pretty faithful replica of Gerudo Desert back in the day on the SNES SPC700.

Also, this is the track that shows the true strength of the SNES sound. Mega Drive would never, ever have been able to pull this off. Ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ODKKILZiYY
Click to expand...

That's not really fair. Tim Follin was a god when it came to doing so much musically with so little hardware, and probably could have made the Genesis hardware shine too. But yeah, that's probably a little out of the reach of Genesis hardware regardless.
 
N

notBald

Member
TrevHead said:
I do agree the SNES version of SF2 is closer to the arcade original though.
Click to expand...
Did the arcade SSF2 have a better sound chip? The original had a FM chip, so I'd expect the MD to sound closer.

SF2 is perhaps the only arcade port that sounds better on the home console.
 
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