Console Guide · NexWave Games
GameCube DOL-001 or DOL-101: which model are you looking for?
Two GameCubes in the same color can show something else on the back. One has two video connections, the other only one. That detail determines which image cable or HDMI solution you can use later. The model codes DOL-001 and DOL-101 help you find the right console.
The main difference lies behind
The DOL-001 has a second connection next to the ANALOG AV OUT: DIGITAL AV OUT. The later DOL-101 misses that digital output. On both models you can play regular GameCube games and use a controller and memory card. So it's not another library of games; the difference is especially important when you have plans for the image connection.
With a clear picture of the back you can see more than with an ad title. If the console has a connection with the inscription DIGITAL AV OUT next to ANALOG AV OUT, you will look at a copy with digital output. Also ask for a picture of the model number on the device itself. A changed box or wrong title occurs with second hand items.
Why is that digital port interesting?
For the DOL-001 there are image solutions that use the digital output, including specific modern HDMI adapters and the original component cable. Which image modes support a game and your region differs; so do not expect each PAL game to produce the same result. Moreover, such adapters are not easily interchangeable with cheap AV-to-HDMI boxes for the analogue port.
You can still connect the DOL-101 via the analogue AV output. This can be easy on a television with composite or SCART input. If your modern TV is HDMI only, you need a suitable analogue converter. Note that a connector that appears to fit physically does not automatically deliver the right image quality or signal.
Which GameCube makes sense to you?
Do you play on an older television or do you want an affordable, complete GameCube set? Then the lack of DIGITAL AV OUT should not be a problem. If you want to use an adapter created specifically for that digital port later, look for DOL-001. Buy a cable or adapter only when you have seen the back of your console.
Check with each used copy that the valve opens properly, the disc is read and the controller ports work. Ask which power supply, AV cable, controller and memory card are included in the price. A nice DOL-001 without suitable cables is less playable than a complete DOL-101. And no matter how attractive a model sounds: a working disc drive remains the basis.
A quick purchase check
Have the back photographed, read DOL-001 or DOL-101 on the sticker and then determine which connection your TV has. This way you avoid ordering an HDMI adapter for the wrong port. The digital output is a useful extra for specific image solutions, no requirement to play GameCube games.