Duo-RX rarity and price

richc · 02/17/2015, 02:03 AM

Sorry if this has been asked before, but how rare is the Duo-RX? Also, is about $500+ shipping the normal rate? Looking at getting one next month and been out of the loop for a few years. Looks like all the ebay sellers are about the same, didn't know if thats the going rate or if they are charging an arm and a leg.

Opethian · 02/17/2015, 10:11 AM

I wouldn't say they are rare but the premium you are going to pay for the RX pad isn't worth it.
Id settle for a DUO-R if you have to have a boxed one.

Nazi NecroPhile · 02/17/2015, 10:16 AM

I'm sure it's the rarest of the three PCE Duo versions, but it's not worth $500. That's ebay BIN pricing for boxed systems, available all day every day; actual sold prices are more in the $300-400 range, with the higher priced ones being boxed, bundled with games, and/or with new lenses and rgb mods.

I suggest you try getting a regular Duo or Duo-R from local guys like Turbokon or Keith. Functionally there's no substantive difference, and you'll get a good deal on a system you know has been fixed up right. You'll miss out on the RX's six button controller, but you're better off with a Avenue 6 anyway.

esteban · 02/17/2015, 10:41 AM

DUO-G.

SignOfZeta · 02/17/2015, 10:52 AM

$500 is a lot.

richc · 02/17/2015, 11:49 AM

That's what I was thinking, I'll keep searching around, but I do want a rx- I decided if I'm gonna come back I'm gonna come back hard. Thanks everyone!

pixeljunkie · 02/17/2015, 01:36 PM

yahoo japan is a better place to look for one

Medic_wheat · 02/17/2015, 01:49 PM

Check out this video on YouTube:

wayback://youtu.be/uWMBQiu6Yj0 - Katt Williams - Kid's Pimpin' Decisions

I am just saying is all

BlueBMW · 02/17/2015, 01:50 PM

Why the RX? Is it the pad? The color scheme? I'm just curious. I've got an RX and Im pretty indifferent to using it or any other system. The OG Duos look better in my opinion, and that headphones jack!

shawnji · 02/17/2015, 02:02 PM

I just recently bought a Duo-R complete for $160 (no box), so I'd suggest going that route. $500 for an RX seems way high to me, even boxed. I'd pay $300-$350 at most and it'd have to be in really great shape.

rcantor77 · 02/17/2015, 06:01 PM

The definitely seems alot... I won't tell you what I paid for my minty boxed RX then.

I too prefer the orignal Duo for looks but for the price you are better off with a Duo-R.

BigusSchmuck · 02/17/2015, 11:47 PM

You know, if the RX had a built in arcade card (like I thought back in the day) it would be almost worth it. But seriously though, stick to a Duo-R. You won't regret it.

rcantor77 · 02/18/2015, 11:09 AM

Yeah, when it came out I always hoped it supported SuperGrafx games (although ArcadeCD games you would think would make more sense)

But no, just a 6-button pad instead...

SignOfZeta · 02/18/2015, 11:16 AM

When it came out there hadn't been a single SGX release for, what, three or four years? Really, even the regular PCE releases were really slowing down. It was just a budget Duo, much like the "model 2" versions of SNES, SMS, or almost every other system ever made.

Dicer · 02/18/2015, 11:51 AM

Quote from: rcantor77 on 02/18/2015, 11:09 AMYeah, when it came out I always hoped it supported SuperGrafx games (although ArcadeCD games you would think would make more sense)

But no, just a 6-button pad instead...

SGX support wouldn't have been cost effective at all, would have been awesome though...

Built in ACD support should have been a no-brainer though.

majors · 02/18/2015, 11:54 AM

Quote from: BlueBMW on 02/17/2015, 01:50 PMThe OG Duos look better in my opinion, and that headphones jack!

What he said. Having a RX and Duo(and briefcase and Shuttle) in my console shelf, I prefer the low profile design of the Duo.

You can lead a horse to water but you can change the mind of a potential RX buyer.

elmer · 02/18/2015, 12:14 PM

Quote from: Dicer on 02/18/2015, 11:51 AMSGX support wouldn't have been cost effective at all, would have been awesome though...

Built in ACD support should have been a no-brainer though.

Not really seeing why you think that and extra 2MB of RAM and a custom mapper would have been so much cheaper than 64KB of RAM and a 2nd VDC chip!

But really, as was pointed-out ... it was NEC's chance to get some attention for releasing a cheap hardware-refresh just before the Playstation/Saturn/PC-FX came out.

Cost was absolutely everything with the Duo-RX, and being able to play all the popular existing games ... thus putting in a 6-button controller for the fighting-game crowd.

Dicer · 02/18/2015, 03:29 PM

Quote from: elmer on 02/18/2015, 12:14 PM
Quote from: Dicer on 02/18/2015, 11:51 AMSGX support wouldn't have been cost effective at all, would have been awesome though...

Built in ACD support should have been a no-brainer though.
Not really seeing why you think that and extra 2MB of RAM and a custom mapper would have been so much cheaper than 64KB of RAM and a 2nd VDC chip!

But really, as was pointed-out ... it was NEC's chance to get some attention for releasing a cheap hardware-refresh just before the Playstation/Saturn/PC-FX came out.

Cost was absolutely everything with the Duo-RX, and being able to play all the popular existing games ... thus putting in a 6-button controller for the fighting-game crowd.

Simply based on direction of software at the time, SGX was all but dead...adding that bit of hardware would have been a waste, had the SGX gained more traction then it would have been a decision to make at that time.

I do like the OG duo, but I think I prefer my Duo-R's shape just a bit more, it's more...aero-dynamic

SignOfZeta · 02/18/2015, 04:56 PM

The SGX wasn't all but dead, it was totally %100 dead dead dead. All SGX games were released between 89 and 91. The Duo RX didn't come out until...what, 93, 94?

It's fair to say that the AC was all but dead by then. The PCE itself was all but dead.

Nazi NecroPhile · 02/18/2015, 05:17 PM

Quote from: SignOfZeta on 02/18/2015, 04:56 PMIt's fair to say that the AC was all but dead by then.

Only if you say the Arcade Card was still born and never lived at all. Only three of the dozen AC games came out between the AC's release (March '94) and the RX release (June '94), and a similar ratio is found in release dates of AC enhanced SCD games.

esteban · 02/18/2015, 06:25 PM

Quote from: guest on 02/18/2015, 05:17 PM
Quote from: SignOfZeta on 02/18/2015, 04:56 PMIt's fair to say that the AC was all but dead by then.
Only if you say the Arcade Card was still born and never lived at all. Only three of the dozen AC games came out between the AC's release (March '94) and the RX release (June '94), and a similar ratio is found in release dates of AC enhanced SCD games.

Obviously, still a work in progress, but this might help out the ACD timeline:

https://archives.tg-16.com/Dengeki_PC_Engine_1994_03.htm#complete_list_of_acd_games

shubibiman · 02/19/2015, 02:25 AM

Unfortunately, the price of the Duo-RX has been sky-rocketting of late.

A new RX was sold 70 000 yens on Yahoo Auction a couple of weeks ago.

richc · 02/19/2015, 09:50 AM

Yeah I checked yaj and they are expensive there too. Checking sold ones on eBay are all over the place. Can't believe I missed one last month fully modded for 399.

elmer · 02/19/2015, 10:50 AM

Quote from: shubibiman on 02/19/2015, 02:25 AMUnfortunately, the price of the Duo-RX has been sky-rocketting of late.

A new RX was sold 70 000 yens on Yahoo Auction a couple of weeks ago.

Definitely a sign that retro-gaming is "cool" at the moment. I expect that it will pass in a year or two, just like every fad.

But still ... as horrible as that price is, a $700 new RX is IMHO a better deal than the $1,600 that I saw someone pay for a used MSX Turbo R on eBay last week!

geise · 02/19/2015, 10:19 PM

Quote from: BlueBMW on 02/17/2015, 01:50 PMWhy the RX? Is it the pad? The color scheme? I'm just curious. I've got an RX and Im pretty indifferent to using it or any other system. The OG Duos look better in my opinion, and that headphones jack!

There's no headphone jack on an RX?

pulstar · 02/20/2015, 05:17 AM

On the original Duo's have headphone jacks. It was removed on the Duo-R and Duo-RX.