Just picked up a PVM. What do I need to get things going?

[goatlll]

Greetings all. It's been a long while since I posted but I had a few questions. I was at a state sale and they had a pair of Sony 2950q monitors. Knowing nothing other than people rave over them, I picked up one of them (plus they were only 5 bucks apiece). I am not sure what I need to get things going. I am getting some conflicting information. Some people are mentioning scart cables and something about sync issues? And I am also hearing about bnc convertors. It's a lot of info to take in. The only systems I really want to get going with this are my SNES, Dreamcast, Saturn, and PS2. Maybe Gamecube. I play a lot of IIDX and would love to see how it runs on this thing.

Any help would be most appreciated.

[Anapan]

Congrats!
It looks from the back like you shouldn't have any problem getting most any SD signal displaying, including any standard 15khz console signals (including most any arcade modes or a DVD signal. Didn't check if your PVM has an underscan switch for 16x9, but I assume it does).
On the far right of your inputs (line 3) you have one with RGB and External Sync, and combined with Y/PB/PR (component). That should ensure that given the correct cables, every SD signal should come through perfectly.
First you should get a handfull each of "RCA to BNC" Male and Female adapters. They're very cheap and just twist on to the ends of the inputs your monitor receives. This will ensure that all your standard hookups will be able to communicate with your monitors.
Next you should get a Euro-"SCART to BNC" cable and a "dual-female SCART" block. This will make it so that any Euro-SCART console cable you get will plug into this connector and make your monitors show every console at it's best.
After that, the only thing left I can think of ATM is a cable that does PC VGA "DB15 to BNC" - this has individually grounded R, G, B, Black, and Grey wires to match the inputs of your monitor. Your screen accepts both horizontal and vertical sync, so the cables are standard, unlike those of us who have only composite sync input and need a few resistors and a transistor to get our computer talking to the monitor. After that, using "CRT Emudriver" can make your PC output the proper signal so you can get every emulator sending the exact same image the original hardware would at the same refresh rate. Very cool to see every emulated game looking better than any standard hookup would allow.
I'm jelly, I still use an Amiga 1084.

Edit:
Oh, getting Dreamcast VGA to display? That should be easier than most people deal with, but because of what your input3 can do, it may actually be more complicated.
There are a whole lot of conversations on that other forum about the intricacies and caveats of each solution when dealing with lesser devices than the one you have. What it comes down to is seeing if the ideal adapter will actually communicate with your monitor properly using it's enhanced inputs.
I suggest you contact the wizard directly:
http://www.beharbros.com/hanzo

[CRTGAMER]

First you should get a handful each of "RCA to BNC" Male and Female adapters. They're very cheap and just twist on to the ends of the inputs your monitor receives. This will ensure that all your standard hookups will be able to communicate with your monitors.

First off, I own 3 PVMs as well as a couple Commodore 1701 1902A monitors. Love them, but prefer gaming on larger flat tube CRTs which have additional digital enhancement controls and if an HD CRT TV (Sony WEGA) resolution all the way up to 1080i. PVMs are beautiful, but most still have curved glass. A great smaller screen for "Lan" two player games.

Concur with Anapan, load up on the BNC adapters, RCA female inputs are the ones to get for all your regular RCA cables from game consoles and video players. SVideo even better for separation of the Chroma and Luma signals for consoles that support that. Component hookups the best though the PVM likely may not support 480p, just 480i. The Scart if the connection is on your PVM is a bit of an obscurity for U.S. game consoles though a few can support it.



Google capture to help identify the Composite BNC, SVideo and BNC Component connections.

[Anapan]

Oho!
The flat screens can keep a rectangle, but it's at the expense of the edge detail.
True image perfection is in crisp-but-curved-edges. Your brain can construct a better image than the magnetic controls can simulate.
You can only tweak the geometry so much, the right and left will never be truly square. As you force the geometry controls to their extremes you lose the true image. Watch as the screen scrolls and you realize that true geometry perfection is futile.
Was the 400 pounds of leaded glass a good investment?
I'd like to think so!

[bmoc]

I've owned two 2950q's so I can definitely give you some tips.

1. Get at least one phono to BNC adapter. It will be useful for testing purposes or if you have a console that only does composite like an unmodded NES.

2. Get either this or a Sync Strike + a DB15 to BNC cable if you want to start doing RGB. You absolutely need a sync cleaner of some sort with this monitor. RGB won't work otherwise.

Speaking of sync, plug the sync into the HD/COMP input only. Do not plug anything into the VD input. This is important if you use a Sync Strike + a DB15 to BNC cable. The BNC end of the cable will have 5 BNC connectors. Intuitively, you would want to connect the all. However, if you connect one to the VD input, the video on the monitor will cut out after about 20 minutes. I don't know why this happens but if you simply leave the VD input disconnected, it works fine.

3. Start buying EuroSCART cables for your consoles. Normally Retro Console Accessories on ebay is the way to go. Sometimes she takes breaks from selling for a few weeks so be patient or you will have to import them from overseas.

Retro Gaming Cables is also good but they are UK bases so it takes a while to get cables from them if you live in the US.

RetroRGB.com is a good resource for finding out which consoles will do RGB natively and which ones will have to be modded.

4. If you did not get the remote control for this monitor, keep an eye on eBay for a Sony RM-854 remote control. This remote is needed if you want to enter the service menu. To enter the service menu, you have to put the monitor in standby mode by pressing the power button on the remote. Then you press the following buttons in this order Display, 5, Volume+, Power. The monitor will turn back on in the service menu.

[Anapan]

VD input is bad? Guess I was talking out my ass - never saw it before. The best composite sync combining device is the Arcadeforge UMSA, tho I've built my own for a few dollars, it's not quite as good, but I'd be happy to link the schematics.
Fully agreed on the sync cleaner and everything else mentioned above.
Apologies for the misinformation.

[bmoc]

No worries. Like I said, it doesn't make any sense why that happens. The video dropping out drove me nuts until I discovered the VD cable was causing it. Most, if not all consoles don't use vertical sync so I am baffled why hooking up that cable causes a problem.

[goatlll]

Very helpful info.

Thanks a ton. I did get the remote with it. At first I could not figure out how to get the battery cover off, but it is working well. I am going to start ordering the stuff you mentioned, and I might pick the other monitor up as well.

[goatlll]

VD input is bad? Guess I was talking out my ass - never saw it before. The best composite sync combining device is the Arcadeforge UMSA, tho I've built my own for a few dollars, it's not quite as good, but I'd be happy to link the schematics.
Fully agreed on the sync cleaner and everything else mentioned above.
Apologies for the misinformation.

Hey man it's all good. I am first happy to get some solid info from everyone that chimed in, and second I am stoked to get this thing running. Early Christmas time for me. Thanks again for taking the time out to help.

[samsonlonghair]

Hey Goat, you seem like a cool character. Stick around the forums for a little while. Keep posting; don't just lurk. It would be nice to have another contributing member. I like your positive attitude.