N64 RCA cable converter

[BuckNutty]

Hey Everyone,

This is my first post here. Since graduating college last year I have been buying more games. Since I have some expendable income now I recently purchased a Nintendo 64 since I lived a deprived childhood and never had one haha. But anyway, I have a dilemma that I am hoping someone knows how to solve. Hooked up to my TV I already have a PS3 using the HDMI port and a Wii using the RCA cables. Now the N64 takes RCA cables as well. So what I was hoping was that someone here has run into this problem before and knows of a good converter or a trick to use so I dont have to unplug one system to play the other. I looked around and found these, but then again Im not sure how great they are.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000Y7T5UU/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&qid=1308179150&sr=1-3&condition=new


Any help would be appreciated. Also I tried searching but just found a bunch of unrelated threads. Sorry if I over looked something. Thanks.

[SparTonberry]

It sounds like you just want both the Wii and the N64 to use the composite RCA cable?
Then I think you just need to go get an AV switchbox from almost any electronics store. Just plug the box into the TV and then you plug your consoles in the box.

[BuckNutty]

is it possible to get a converter to plug it into the SVideo or component plugs? or would a converter box be my best bet? Sorry, new to all this.

[Leo_A]

The Nintendo 64 supports s-video. Just get a standard SuperNes/N64/GCN (Not Wii) s-video cable and it will work.

And they make system selectors that let you plug multiple systems into one of your television's inputs with buttons to select which one you want to use. I've never noticed the term AV switchbox used, but I imagine it's the same thing. Here's a picture of one model of such a device.

http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/3954/100635015xe.jpg

Be careful if you use the term switchbox in a store such as a RadioShack. In semi recent memory at least, they still carried tv/game switchboxes under their Archer brand (Might not now due to declining demand and how much the chain has changed in recent years). But they very might still stock such things (Just like this picture, although more modern ones included a coaxial connection as well).

If you were sold one of these to hook up multiple systems, it wouldn't be of any use beyond hooking up something like a Atari 2600 to your television. And even then, there is a better option available for stock systems than one of these. And there may be other electronic items that go by a similar name.

http://www.electronicplus.com/images/products/V335.jpg

[BuckNutty]

Thanks for the advice both of you. I think I am just going to go with the S Video cable for the 64. The system selector seems overkill since I only need to hook two systems up.

[Ed Oscuro]

I didn't see anybody mention it specifically, but the reason you want to go with S-Video over RF is because RF is terrible. S-Video gives you a much cleaner image. Even the three-plug RCA solution (the round red, white, yellow plugs) looks bad, and that's a step up from RF! Instead of hitting the input button on your tv repeatedly, with a selector you can just hit a switch on a box.

I don't recall having seen any televisions that support multiple S-Video inputs - of the few televisions that even have S-Video, most have at most a second group of white and yellow RCA jacks above. This is not another set of S-Video plugs; the S-Video connector is that somewhat round plug with the five bits inside (one flange & four pins), and every device needs its own. When using it, you connect the S-Video plug and then the stereo sound connectors (the red and white plugs - the yellow one is video, but that is replaced by the S-Video's better video signal, so don't bother plugging it in if your cable has it).

In other words, to have multiple devices ready for use on the teevee at the same time, you almost certainly need to have a switcher device unless your television has multiple S-Video plugs. You were correct in thinking that RF would let you connect two things, but it just wouldn't be your best bet (especially for the N64, which needs all the sharpness help it can get).

[BuckNutty]

So is S video going to give me the same or close to similar quality as the RCA cord will. I looked on the back of the TV because I thought too that there was going to be another set of plugs for white and yellow. However, there are not. It does though have a white/red plugs and then the circular plug for the S Video. So Id imagine that if I bought that S video converter I can play through that? Thanks for all the reply Ed!

[Rob2600]

is S video going to give me the same or close to similar quality as the RCA cord

S-Video will give you a little bit better picture quality than RCA cables/composite video.


Id imagine that if I bought that S video converter I can play through that?

Yes, you could buy a composite-to-S-Video adapter, but I recommend you buy an SNES/N64/GameCube S-Video cable instead and skip the adapter entirely:

Amazon - Gamecube/N64 S-AV Cable (http://www.amazon.com/Gamecube-N64-S-AV-Cable/dp/B000NBWRBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1308198270&sr=8-1)

[Ed Oscuro]

Okay, I need to write a shorter post so it's clearer. (Edit: Damn, failed, but it should be understandable now.)

Your absolute best bet to understanding different types of console video output, especially the quality difference, is this article on NFG Games (http://nfggames.com/atarilabs/meat/2000/1201_videoprimer.shtml) (it includes pictures too!).

Okay, let's consider the back of your television. I can't remember having seen a set like you mention, though I probably have all the time - in any case it makes sense to me. If there is just a S-Video plug, then white and red RCA jacks, you have a television that works perfectly for S-Video with stereo sound, though I'm surprised it doesn't have a yellow cable for a composite video connection. Is it a newer television? Of course, if your television has component video you should try using that for any consoles that support it, instead. (I recall the GameCube originally supported component video, but a late model took it out to save money - same reason televisions don't have every type of connector - while the Wii doesn't). Component video will use RCA sockets too - see the link just below about RCA plugs. They won't be yellow, white, and red.

Side note in case anybody cares: When I go to the thrift store and look at the televisions on sale (a hobby of mine), almost always they have just a single plug with the screw - usually I guess this is for plugging in an RF modulator, as most of these televisions are small and old. Somewhat better models tend to have the round RCA plugs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RCA_connector). There usually is a group of yellow, white, and red plugs. Sometimes there are two pairs, for two different inputs. Even better models of TV - bigger ones usually, but rarer - have the S-Video plug to the left of the yellow plug. I suppose you could have just a S-Video plug, and then only the white and red plugs for stereo with no yellow video plug, but in practice nobody does this because that would mean you could not connect any composite video to your television.

Some models, like the cool Samsung 33-inch television manufactured in 2000 that I've been able to use for some years, have an unusual setup. That one has an S-Video plug on the left, then to the right of that, vertically, the yellow, white, and red plugs. To the right of those are white and red plugs again, labeled "output" for speakers.

Consider the labels: The S-Video connector is for input, and so is the group of yellow, white, and red connectors. To use a video that outputs composite video, like a toploader NES (A/V Famicom from Japan also works), you'd simply connect your yellow, white, and red plugs. To use S-Video, you just don't connect anything to the yellow plug and instead use the S-Video plug. Usually, I think the setup goes left to right, instead of having the RCA plugs vertically - in actual use it doesn't seem to be a problem though.


Here's a rough listing of video quality, best to worst:

Best:
Component video (current TVs and disc players have been using this), possibly HDMI (newer than component video plugs even), DV-I and DisplayPort for computers, and RGB (the actual red-green-blue video information generated inside an old fashioned gaming console or arcade machine). Quality: Every element of the video is sharp with no problems.

Very close: VGA for computers. VGA can have some very slight problems but it's rare; every pixel is usually very sharp with no problems.

Pretty okay: S-Video (or "separate video," I used to see the term "super video" - actually Wikipedia explains this, it's related to S-VHS connections as well). Elements are usually pretty sharp and there isn't much interference from one part of the image to another. There is more bandwidth available for video than in the other common old-fashioned console connectors below, but far less than in the above connectors. Despite the name "separate video," there are not separate signals for red, green, and blue values - instead, the signal is luminance and chroma (brightness and color). Makes sense given the VHS connection.

Composite video over RCA jacks (sometimes called A/V): It works pretty well for some older low-resolution, low-color game consoles like the NES and earlier, but small things can lose their definition. Parts of the signal can interfere with other parts in noticeable ways. Dots appear to crawl around the screen (i.e. in borders of menus and text). Why? Since there's only one single signal for all the video, more information is ditched than in above formats.

RF: Well, this is pretty bad. Not only is all the video smashed into just one signal like composite, but now sound is on there too. If you want to read a bit more about composite and RF (radio frequency) modulation, this article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composite_video) has some good info, but unfortunately no pics of the output.

[allyourblood]

What make/model TV do you have? My mind is blown that you have HDMI, and yet only one composite input! Even weirder is that, as others have mentioned, your TV has a dedicated S-video input with no accompanying composite video connector.

You should definitely purchase an S-video cable for your N64/GC/SNES, but consider buying one for your Wii, or even component if you've got that. The Wii benefits considerably from the leap to component.

[Ed Oscuro]

Thanks for correcting me on the Wii's component and also on his TV - I missed that stuff. I think it's likely a cost-cutting exercise in newer televisions to exclude the yellow composite video plug...will be interested for any further evidence in this direction.

[theclaw]

S-video is the best a normal N64 will do. Above that requires an RGB mod. And for most USA TVs, also an encoder to component. Even then many sets (HD LCDs in particular) may not accept low-resolution over component.

[BuckNutty]

I'm thinking I will just leave the Wii in the RGB cables for now. I really don't play it to often and would rather drop $8 then $35ish for the Wii component cables. I don't play the Wii all that often, and I really only bought it to play certain Nintendo games (Mario, DK, Zelda). I'll probably be playing the N64 more now, so I think I'm going to go with cables that Rob posted.

But since people were asking I went and took a picture of the cable set up behind my TV. The first has all the cable inputs and the second is underneath where the HDMI and it even has an antenna jack down there. It is a 32 in Olevia I bought in July 2007. I'm fairly certain my roommate bought a 37 or 42 in model of this same TV about 9 months later it his has basically double the inputs.

Again, thanks for all the input. I think for now the best choice is the N64 S Video. Later on I will probably get the component Wii cable.

edit: also I'm not sure how to post the pics directly in the thread, but the album is set to private, so I'm hoping you can just click and see that one picture.


http://s196.photobucket.com/albums/aa305/OSUBucks42/?action=view&current=100_0758.jpg

http://s196.photobucket.com/albums/aa305/OSUBucks42/?action=view&current=100_0759.jpg

[Drixxel]

While there may not be tons of them, on the upside you do have a good variety of inputs on your TV, BuckNutty. The single composite (red/white/yellow) & s-video input is a bit restrictive for classic gaming but not too serious, the AV/system selector solution mentioned previously would solve that for pretty cheap (hinging on the fanciness of the model in question) should you find yourself with a bevy of consoles needing attention. I found a basic, but reliable, 5-input composite/s-video selector at a Blockbuster for $10 awhile back.

[Ed Oscuro]

That television is able to do just about everything. Better than the television I described and better than all the thrift TVs I've seen. Maybe it doesn't have the newest bells-and-whistles HDMI or DV-I but that's really no problem - certainly not for consoles listed here.

That television supports VGA (good for Dreamcast), component video, S-Video, and composite (the yellow plug which is to the left of the S-video jack on this television).

If anything I think that televisions that have multiple composite inputs are going to be rare and it's not especially necessary anyway - a switcher will take care of that problem, though I personally prefer to plug in everything when setting it up (though this leads to wear and tear, especially on the television's connectors and can lead to connection problems).

A bit of unsolicited advice: I've said before that having multiple consoles all hooked up at once can be a bad idea, especially if you're able to easily access the back of your television. On the power side, having a bunch of consoles on an active power strip at the same time is going to draw a lot of phantom power and wear out the power supplies - not to mention it puts them at risk of damage from line problems and lightning. My solution is to simply turn off and unplug the power strip when it's not in use. There shouldn't be a problem leaving the video cables connected to a switcher box.

[allyourblood]

Thanks for posting pics. Your TV certainly has a lot of different inputs, but not having multiples of the same type can sometimes be a pain.

While the Wii looks great in component, by all means, if you don't play it much, don't worry about it now. When you're ready, skip the Nintendo-branded cables and go with a generic. I bought one from DealExtreme for under $6 shipped, and it looks every bit as good the real deal (which I also own). So money isn't a big concern there. As for the S-video cable, yeah, definitely go for it. The N64 looks great over S-video, and the SNES looks almost better!

[BuckNutty]

That television is able to do just about everything. Better than the television I described and better than all the thrift TVs I've seen. Maybe it doesn't have the newest bells-and-whistles HDMI or DV-I but that's really no problem - certainly not for consoles listed here.


I bought it from Target so it definitely isnt the greatest, but it is better then a thrift one. It actually does have the HDMI cable hook up. I have that in the second picture, the wire is going down to my PS3. Its pretty awesome to know that I'll be able to hook a variety of game systems up to it. I have only bought the Wii and N64 since being back, but I am itching to play more systems haha.

[Ed Oscuro]

I have that in the second picture, the wire is going down to my PS3.
I see it now. Like I said, not completely up to date on this stuff :) Looks like the same design as the HDMI-out on my camera...which I never get to use.

[BuckNutty]

I see it now. Like I said, not completely up to date on this stuff :) Looks like the same design as the HDMI-out on my camera...which I never get to use.

Hahaha. Probably not hooking up to many nes or snes' to HDMI ports!