Best way to hookup 6th Generation consoles

[scottw182]

Since I got an HDTV, I've had my current-gen consoles hooked up to it, and my 5th-gen and older consoles hooked up to a CRT. What should I do with my PS2, Xbox, and Gamecube? I'd prefer hooking them up to the HDTV, as long as they won't look bad. Also, are component cables the best way to go for each system?

Additionally, I know they're 1 generation to old for this forum, but it's the same question as the others, so I thought I could squeeze it in. Do any of the 5th-gen consoles look good on HDTVs? Or are they best suited for CRTs?

[old_skoolin_jim]

Basically, if a system supports 480p and higher (which ps2, GCN, and Xbox all do), they'll look better (and make use of the 16:9 ratio).
The gen before? Stick with CRT- they (mostly) weren't made with 16x9 in mind, and certainly not progressive scan.
Also, if you have Dreamcast, hook that puppy up with VGA (if your tv supports it)! It looks soooo good! Not every game supports VGA, however (such as Bangai-O and StellaDC).

[scottw182]

And component cables are the best way to go with those 3, correct?

[FireStar]

yes component would be, but the gamecube ones are a rare collecters item and if your gamecube doesn't have a digital av port you can't use it anyway. S-video for gamecube would work or just play them on Wii as its component cables aren't as rare. The only thing thats gamecube only that can be progressive scan is the GB player. As for PS2, you can easily get component cables for it, just go and get some cheap ones online for a PS3.

[scottw182]

yes component would be, but the gamecube ones are a rare collecters item and if your gamecube doesn't have a digital av port you can't use it anyway. S-video for gamecube would work or just play them on Wii as its component cables aren't as rare. The only thing thats gamecube only that can be progressive scan is the GB player. As for PS2, you can easily get component cables for it, just go and get some cheap ones online for a PS3.

Yeah, I know all about the component cables for the Gamecube, lol. My Gamecube does have the digital av port, not sure if it's worth it to me to buy them though. Seems like I heard that they don't really make that much of a difference, and not many of the games even utilize them anyway, is any of that true?

I've been needing to get S-video cables for my SNES and N64 anyway, where's the best place to get those?

So PS3s and PS2s have the same AV port?

[NayusDante]

Actually, I'm going to make a different arguement here. Unless a game explicitly supports progressive scan, play it on a CRT. HDTVs handle 480i differently, so YMMV. Even the games that DO support progressive scan might look better on an SDTV in 480i.

The only games that I would play on a current LCD are 7th gen and up, because they're designed around that display format. I get lazy and play PS2 games on my PS3, but they tend to look more impressive on a CRT.

If you can find GameCube component cables, a large percentage of games do support progressive scan. It's easiest to just use a Wii if you have one, since the cables are easier to find.


SNES is the only non-current system that I personally enjoy using with my HDTV. SNES over S-Video gives a clear image with hard-edged pixels.

[heybtbm]

There's really no argument, the original Xbox on an HDTV (via component cables) looks fantastic. 1st party Xbox component cables are getting pricey these days. I wouldn't get any other brand though.

The Gamecube via component looks noticeably better than S-video, but as mentioned already, the Wii essentially does it just as good for much less money. If you do the GC cables, remember that quite a few titles require you to hold "B" when you boot up. Otherwise you would never know the game has a 480p option (even the cases sometimes omit "progressive scan" as being available when it's actually there).

The PS2 is still a crap shoot. Component cables should make things look better, but you'll never notice it. The old A/V adage "Garbage in, garbage out" applies here. Still, PS2 component cables are dirt cheap, so you might as well use them as your preferred setup. Remember to hold down the triangle and X buttons to access progressive scan. Like the Gamecube, not all games have it as an visible option.

[duffmanth]

I had my PS2 hooked up to my Sony Bravia for a while via component cables, and I thought it looked like shit. So I just hooked it back up to to my old CRT, and I think it looks better. Systems from the PS2 era and before were designed for CRT TV sets, and I think they look better on those.

[j_factor]

A relatively small number of PS2 games support progressive scan, and the ones that do are generally not too impressive. Component is still the best way to go, though.

I think every Xbox game supports at least 480p (if not every, there are very few exceptions), and some more than that. When I got an HDTV one of the first things I did was play Dragon's Lair 3D, the first 1080i game. And it looks really nice.

Only a tiny number of Dreamcast games do not support progressive scan at all (Bangai-O being the most notable), so keep that thing hooked up with VGA. It's great.

It seems about 2/3rds of Gamecube games support progressive scan. It is nice, but the component cables are still too expensive. I would say the best option would be to keep a Gamecube hooked up to an SDTV and a Wii hooked up to an HDTV and play progressive scan games via the Wii. But that's pretty elaborate.

[Ze_ro]

If you can find GameCube component cables, a large percentage of games do support progressive scan. It's easiest to just use a Wii if you have one, since the cables are easier to find.

Yep. No point in keeping a GameCube hooked up these days (unless you refuse to own a Wii for some reason).

Component is the way to go as long as you have the means. Any way to get component from a Dreamcast without serious hacks?

--Zero

[retroman]

I say stick to a crt...

[NayusDante]

I do keep my GameCube around, but mostly for GB Player. Someday I'll get a component cable for it, and be able to play PSO in progressive scan online. I keep it on my SDTV right now...

I actually like the Wii on SDTV a lot. Widescreen content on a 480p signal really doesn't look very nice, but maybe it's just my LCD. My parents have a nice DLP, and A Boy and His Blob looked frickin amazing on it. I go back and forth between my LCD and CRT, depending on the game.

I feel that I should point out that some PS2 games might look worse in advanced screen modes. Playing FFXII on an SDTV is preferable, I find, to playing in widescreen mode on my LCD. This is because the resolution stays the same, but the pixel aspect ratio changes, making the image look low-res. Of course, other games might look beautiful when configured right, Tekken 5 for instance.

[Vlcice]

Basically, if a system supports 480p and higher (which ps2, GCN, and Xbox all do), they'll look better (and make use of the 16:9 ratio).

Just because a game supports 480p doesn't necessarily guarantee it supports 16:9. There are many games for last-gen systems with 480p support that still only support a 4:3 aspect ratio.

[j_factor]

Component is the way to go as long as you have the means. Any way to get component from a Dreamcast without serious hacks?

You can get a VGA to component converter. But they can cost up to a hundred bucks, and most HDTVs have a VGA input anyway.