FM Sound Unit
From Sega Retro
FM Sound Unit | ||||||||||
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Made for: Sega Mark III | ||||||||||
Manufacturer: Sega | ||||||||||
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The FM Sound Unit (FMサウンドユニット) is an add-on for the Sega Mark III used to enhance the sound output of certain Mark III games. It was sold in Japan from 1987 for ¥6,800.
The FM Sound Unit contains a YM2413 FM chip that acts on top of the built-in SN76489 PSG chip, adding nine extra mono sound channels. When the redesigned Sega Master System hit the Japanese market, the FM Sound Unit was built-in to the console (though it is absent from international releases).
Unfortunately not all Mark III or Sega Master System games made use of this feature. The unit was not built into the Sega Mega Drive or Power Base Converter, so these extra features cannot be activated when playing Master System games on Sega's 16-bit console.
Compatible Games
- After Burner
- Alex Kidd BMX Trial
- Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars
- Alien Syndrome
- Aztec Adventure
- Blade Eagle 3-D
- Bomber Raid
- Captain Silver
- Cyborg Hunter
- Double Dragon
- Fantasy Zone II
- Fantasy Zone: The Maze
- Galactic Protector
- Global Defense
- Golvellius - Valley of Doom
- Great Golf
- Hoshi wo Sagashite...
- Kenseiden
- Lord of The Sword
- Maze Hunter 3D
- Megumi Rescue
- Miracle Warriors - Seal of The Dark Lord
- Nekkyuu Koushien
- OutRun
- Parlour Games
- Penguin Land
- Phantasy Star (Only the Japanese variant is compatible with FM Sound Unit)
- Power Strike
- R-Type
- Shinobi
- Solomon no Kagi - Oujo Rihita no Namida
- Space Harrier 3D
- SpellCaster
- Super Racing
- Tensai Bakabon
- Thunder Blade
- Wonder Boy in Monster Land
- Ys: The Vanished Omens (Only the Japanese variant is compatible with FM Sound Unit)
- Zaxxon 3D
- Zillion II: The Tri Formation
The following games have FM soundtracks but were not released in Japan:
- Altered Beast
- California Games
- Casino Games
- Cloud Master
- Galaxy Force
- Golfamania
- OutRun 3D
- Poseidon Wars 3D
- Rampage
- Rastan
- Rescue Mission
- Scramble Spirits
- Shanghai
- Tennis Ace
- Time Soldiers
- Ultima IV
- Vigilante
- Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap
Out of these, only Wonder Boy III is known to have been released in South Korea. However, the FM audio in Wonder Boy III will only function with a Japanese system equipped with FM audio capabilities; Western consoles modified with FM audio use PSG due to the game's region detection code. This can only be bypassed with a hardware modification or a hack in the game's code.
Great Baseball (1985), Pit Pot and Teddy Boy Blues have control issues when the FM Sound Unit is connected, and Sega included a special notice with the add-on to let owners know of these compatibility issues.
Physical scans
External links
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