I need it modded since the only TV that displays PAL in my house is a really tiny monitor 1 1/2 GBCs big diagonally, and the answer to why I would want a PAL one? They all can play MIL-CDs, as opposed to a Japanese or American DC which some don't support it. (I personally think it's okay to own the PS2 Crazy Taxi and play a burned CD of the game on the Dreamcast.)
You could but not really cost effective. After shipping to import a PAL version, and both ways (plus labor) to have it modded... Try looking at the manufacture date. Those uncommon systems with MIL-CD issues appeared like October 2000, barely six months before production ended.
just a bios mod needed isn't it? dreamcast can put out 60hz pal, and the same hardware can output NTSC, although im not sure about over composite / s-video, VGA should be fine and RGB scart.
Non-MIL CD Dreamcasts are extremely rare, the chances of you buying one are slim, and can be eliminated just by checking the manufacture date on the underside of the console. Modding a PAL console just to avoid turning an NTSC one over seems like a pointless (and expensive) exercise.
http://www.mmmonkey.co.uk/dreamcast-region-change/ Follow this guide and you can mod your DC to be any region you want it to be also if you'd prefer not soldering the wire you can use electrical tape to hold the ends in place long enough to do the mod (I used this technique to mod my DC from NTSC to PAL so I wouldn't have to worry about the soldering/desoldering process especially since you should remove the wire immediately after the mod so you don't damage your bios or flash chip later on, the only downside to using electrical tape instead of soldering is it takes a bit of time and effort to position everything just right and may take a few tries to get it to work but it's worth it once it's done)
The manufacturing date doesn't really tell the whole story. There are lots of Dreamcasts manufactured after the supposed date that still play MIL-CDs. However, 1. Dreamcasts that don't play MIL-CDs are extremely rare, and you could just resell it even at a loss and buy another one and still deal with less hassle than modding a PAL Dreamcast. The chances of buying 2 of these in a row is nearly impossible 2. The Dreamcasts that don't play MIL-CDs can be modded to play them by switching out the BIOS chip
you can change the region quite easily, the link is above. Actually installing a region free BIOS is far trickier and requires good soldering skills.
Region changing a PAL Dreamcast to JP/60Hz is simplicity itself. A quick jump of that one point to voltage, boot a disc and boom.
