Affordable, widely available, and highly compatible.
For makers who love to build their own consoles with custom enclosures and cooling, single-board computers offer the cleanest EmuELEC experience with excellent driver support.
| System | Performance | Notes | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Perfect | Zero issues. Run on even the oldest supported hardware. | | Sega Genesis / Mega Drive | Perfect | Full speed on all supported devices. | | Arcade (MAME/FBA) | Excellent | Runs most games up to the early 2000s smoothly. | | PlayStation 1 (PSX) | Perfect | Full speed with enhancements. | | Nintendo 64 | Good/Mixed | Requires a modern chip (S905X3/S922X). Some games have glitches. | | PSP | Good | Most games run full speed on modern chips. | | Dreamcast | Good | Playable on modern chips; the internal resolution may need to be lowered on weaker hardware. | | PlayStation 2 | Experimental | Only runs decently on the most powerful Amlogic S922X devices (Odroid N2+). Hit or miss. | | GameCube/Wii | Poor | Generally not recommended on EmuELEC hardware. The ARM architecture struggles here. |
Flawless up to PS1. Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast will experience frequent audio stuttering and frame drops. PSP is limited to lightweight 2D games. emuelec supported platforms best
Which do you want to emulate the most? What is your budget range for the hardware?
: Exceptional frames-per-second (FPS) on high-end 3D retro systems. 💰 Best Budget & Mid-Range EmuELEC Platforms
However, EmuELEC runs on chipsets primarily. Unlike RetroPie (which focuses on Raspberry Pi), EmuELEC targets cheap Android TV boxes. Affordable, widely available, and highly compatible
: Flawless N64, Dreamcast, and upscale PSP emulation. Khadas VIM3
While often referred to as a system for set-top boxes, EmuELEC's support strictly revolves around the processor. The team has provided a clear roadmap of which CPUs receive official support. Before buying any device, checking this is the most crucial step.
(P, M, V, and MP models) These are built specifically around the RK3326. Run on even the oldest supported hardware
Actively Supported / Enthusiast Choice
Android TV boxes are the most cost-effective way to run EmuELEC. They come ready out of the box with a case, power supply, and remote. You simply flash EmuELEC onto a MicroSD card, plug it in, and boot into retro heaven.