Composite vs. RGB vs. S-Video vs. Component vs. HDMI vs. RF vs. VGA

[Zapf]

You could just label your switcher...

[Oldskool]

oldskool, let us if you plug your genny to your lcd and how it looks

Sure I'll let ya know. If the picture isn't garbage like on my PS2 playing PS1 games with component video I'll take some screenshots.

If you look up phonedork on Youtube, he's got some videos of his Genesis running component video on his LCD TV and it looks stunning, well as stunning as the low resolution Youtube allows anyways.

Part 1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOhntr-4xx0

Part 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZakQhQbjbRU

Be sure to watch it in 480p.

[Oldskool]

I like it better daisy-chaining seven systems via RF modulators more than I do buying a video switcher and having to figure out which system is on which number. Our current setup is impossible to navigate without the TV, receiver, and VCR (Yes, I still have one. VHS tapes make me nostalgic) remotes.

Channel 3 FTW.

The problem I've noticed with daisy chaining RF connections though is that the further out the connection the worse the quality. It's like the signal is degraded each time it goes through an RF box.

[Gavica]

what game is that with the shooting humanoid bird?

[izarate]

I haven't seen the video but I guess it's Alien Soldier

[Gavica]

never seen it before, looks really cool, was it released in the us?

[Zing]

Sure I'll let ya know. If the picture isn't garbage like on my PS2 playing PS1 games with component video I'll take some screenshots.

I see comments like this all the time but it is confusing to me since my PS1 games on my 50" rear projection looked awesome on my PS2 via component. It looked the same as s-video or component on my WEGA CRT, minus the convergence and geometry errors. Maybe it just looks like garbage on 1080p LCDs due to scaling or something. My TV is a 720p rear projection LCD.

[Oldskool]

never seen it before, looks really cool, was it released in the us?

Yup, that's Alien Soldier and no it was not released in the US. Which is a shame cause it's one kick ass game.

He's running his off a NeoMyth ROM cartridge.

You can play the import on your US console but it's a $100+ dollar game, and it's region locked so you have to have a region switch or a game genie.

[Oldskool]

I see comments like this all the time but it is confusing to me since my PS1 games on my 50" rear projection looked awesome on my PS2 via component. It looked the same as s-video or component on my WEGA CRT, minus the convergence and geometry errors. Maybe it just looks like garbage on 1080p LCDs due to scaling or something. My TV is a 720p rear projection LCD.

I think you misunderstand me. On my 50" projection TV it's fine, on the LCD screen it scrambles the image or something. I think the rear projection and CRT TV's can handle the resolution properly, but on some LCD TV's it can't handle the low res progressive scan image.

I don't mean it's like a playable game with graphical artifacts on the LCD. What I mean is that the game will load, and some screens will show perfect, but other screens/movie sequences, etc will look all scrambled and messed up, but the audio will work fine.

[Leo_A]

Yup, that's Alien Soldier and no it was not released in the US. Which is a shame cause it's one kick ass game.

He's running his off a NeoMyth ROM cartridge.

You can play the import on your US console but it's a $100+ dollar game, and it's region locked so you have to have a region switch or a game genie.

It's worth noting that it's available on the Virtual Console in North America.

[Ponyponypony]

The problem I've noticed with daisy chaining RF connections though is that the further out the connection the worse the quality. It's like the signal is degraded each time it goes through an RF box.

It generally does. It's one of the things they taught me in the Army. The easiest way to minimize it is to make sure the connectors are clean and the other systems in front of it are unplugged (most electronics carry a 5v stand-by charge).

[Oldskool]

OK everyone the verdict is in. My 42" Polaroid 1080p LCD TV doesn't like low res component video. I finally got around to hooking up my X'Eye w/component to the LCD TV to see if it would show a good picture and it does not. Just lots of pretty colors.

So if you want to run any classic consoles (including a PS2 playing PS1 games) via component, it's not gonna work on a 42" Polaroid LCD.

Works just fine on my 50" projection TV in the game room, and I'm sure it would work just fine on a Wega TV or another similar CRT, or other LCD/Plasma HD TVs that would support low res component. Note: This TV seems to play Wii Virtual Console games just fine, so I don't think that's a good way to test to see if your TV is compatible or not. I recommend trying a PS2 with component cables, and playing some PS1 games to find out.

X'Eye is hooked up via a Genesis 2 RGB/SCART cable to an RGB/SCART to Component converter.

Not sure with another converter if it would work better but I don't think so. It's the TV. When I turn it on it says it's 480i when I know better than that. Not to mention that playing PS1 games on the PS2 via component cables is all messed up as well (not quite the same though).

At first I had just a black screen. Then I tried the switch on the SCART/RGB cable (does anyone know what that does), and got this:

[Greg2600]

Did you try plugging the console into a separate outlet from the TV?

[Oldskool]

Did you try plugging the console into a separate outlet from the TV?

What do you mean? Like the component 2 hookup instead of component 1? Or are you talking about the AC Adapter?

[Gavica]

Ok so question, if I test my PS2 with component playing PS1 games on my LCD and it works fine, then I should have no problems playing the old consoles on component as well? or not necesarilly?

[Zing]

If your PS1 games play fine via component on your PS2, then that means that your TV supports 240p via component, which is what most (all?) pre-PS2 systems output.

There are a handful of PS1 games that output at 480i, which was interesting for me to discover. Tekken 3 is the one I personally came across.

[Zapf]

At first I had just a black screen. Then I tried the switch on the SCART/RGB cable (does anyone know what that does), and got this:

if its the pcenginesales cable, that switch is for stereo / dual mono or something like that.

[Ed Oscuro]

I haven't personally run all these options but I'll just share my understanding of the relative strengths of the video types:

Composite vs. RGB vs. S-Video vs. Component vs. HDMI vs. RF vs. VGA

Composite (assuming three-plug stereo RCA or RF) - easy and cheap video capture but poorer quality
RGB - good video capture options but expensive, cables required, mods often also; some confusion due to various scan rates (15KHz for classic arcade and some consoles / computers i.e. X68000 / FM Towns; 24KHz for "medium resolution" such as the Sega System 24 (Crack Down, Scramble Spirits); 31KHz also (VGA runs at this scan rate).
S-Video - good balance between ease of capture, good audio sync options (afaik), and good quality; good support among legacy consumer systems
Component - good picture, ease of video capture, more expensive
HDMI - good picture quality, some reasonable video capture options. Downside: many sources (i.e. the PS3) disallow capture via HDCP.
VGA - actually a form of analog video more or less similar to RGB. Good picture quality up to a certain rate, still one of the most cost-effective ways to get high resolutions due to ubiquitous hardware. Cons - no audio information sync, video (or even stills) capture is expensive. Similarly look at DVI, which seems to already be at the end of its short life.

[Gavica]

If your PS1 games play fine via component on your PS2, then that means that your TV supports 240p via component, which is what most (all?) pre-PS2 systems output.

There are a handful of PS1 games that output at 480i, which was interesting for me to discover. Tekken 3 is the one I personally came across.

cool, just tested ps1 games on ps2 with component and worked great on my lcd

[Oldskool]

That's good. Did you test several? Because on mine a few actually do work, but the majority doesn't.

What kind of TV do you have. I wonder if it's one that's OK with low res component. I wish I had another way to test this thing. Man I wish it would have worked on the LCD, it would have been beautiful.