Dolphin, with the official GCN adapter.
Sorry, I should have specified with "original" hardware. I do have a fairly recent computer build that will handle even Wii U emulation, but am looking a an original hardware solution.
After that it probably varies depending on what you are hooking it up to and how much you want to spend. And whether the HDMI mod is an option for you.
Gamecube is better than Wii with either component cables or the HDMI mod, but without those Wii is better due to the availability of component cables (or a good HDMI dongle, but component cables are cheaper). Ideally you are running it to a PVM or through a high quality scaling solution. 480p CRT can also be good but a lot of those have processing you can't disable and input lag comparable to or worse than just plugging it into a modern HDTV. 480i CRT with component input is a more realistic option.
I would be looking at having either of those options connected to an OSSC, so scaling and processing-wise I assume either option works similar from what you're saying. I've read a little on the HDMI mod, and man it is expensive - yeesh!
Not totally sure about Wii U. I think the system just doubles the height and width and outputs that with a thin black border around the sides. I doubt it's better than anything except just plugging a Wii/GCN into an HDTV, which is the worst route you could go.
I can't seem to get any good comparisons either way with the Wii U running NGC. On Youtube there are a few video comparisons, but the compression doesn't help much with differentiating the finer details.
And I'm an American that can't speak for SCART at all and barely know what it is, so no comment on that.
Fair enough! I'm Canadian, and only really learned about SCART over the past year. It's more for retro consoles Pre-PS2/NCG era, but running it on my PS2 with OSSC scaler looks a tad better than Component with most games.
Thanks for your help! The reason I ask is I bought a Wii U specifically for Wii U and Wii games, but am not against buying a Wii or NCG for Gamecube games.
I just want to ensure I'm making the right choice as I totally missed out on Gamecube growing up, and would love to experience the games and all collect them too! I realize for physical media, my two official options are Wii and Gamecube itself. Probably overthinking this, LOL.