Sega Saturn on LCD UPDATE

[MerRocher]

Hi, I have an 22" LCD TV without an S-Video input. When I plug in composite, the signal is garbled to the point where it is unbearable with games like Grandia - which is my favorite Saturn game. As I understand, with S-Video I can fix this problem
to

How can I get S-Video into my HDTV without having to spend over $100? My TV has Component (which doubles as Composite), VGA, and HDMI input.

I've spent the last couple of days trying to do my HW and as I understand it the best option for me is the Hori Upscan Converter 2.



I don't know if you've heard of it, but it outputs VGA and my TV has VGA input. The thing gets its power from USB and my TV has a USB port in the back. A call to Samsung gave me the answer that no the USB port can't supply power, but if I plug my PSP into the port, my PSP says its charging (both the PSP and the Upscan Converter are 5V). What do you think?

P.S. I know this looks pretty bad being my first post, but I promise to contribute to the forum.

Some of you might remember I bought a dinky little S-Video to VGA converter box from online. It's been quite a while, and while it worked for me on the Saturn playing JRPGs and SRPGs, trying out a Gamecube/N64 S-Video cord with games like Banjo Kazooie and Super Mario Sunshine revealed that it actually play things a bit "slower," and the blur can be a bit much on faster paced games. I figured after using it for a while, I might as well update with how well it went.

In any case, in the future I plan to replace it with the SCART to YUV sometime in the future, if I can ever find the money. Maybe someday I'll even procure a TV with S-video input, imagine that.

[retromangia]

Dude, just get this! They make VGA adapter's just for dreamcast!

plug this right into your TV and your good to go.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NAKI-VGA-Box-for-Se ... 439aaaa01e

[Quiet Flight]

They have a S-video cable for Saturn, just ebay it.

[avrame]

God, I love how people respond without actually reading the post:

He doesn't have S-Video on his TV, what are his options?

From what I can tell, you have already looked into a VGA box right? retromangia was on the right track with an old school vga box, but dreamcast cables won't work for Saturn last time I checked.

Anywho, vga boxs on ebay are always hit and miss when it comes to component inputs, but you can really go wrong when trying to get S-Video to VGA, since there isn't too much signal to lose.

Something like this would be a good bet:
http://cgi.ebay.com/AV-TV-S-Video-To-VG ... 2c51c03ced

You can use bing cashback and get 8% off with buy it now

I was in the same problem you were in, and I decided to go all out and purchased this guy:

http://www.thetechlounge.com/articles.php?id=89

It's a everything (minus HDMI) convertor to VGA, and tacks signals up to 1080i. It works beautifully on my TV for Sega Saturn, which I later just opted to use my comp monitor on my desk instead.

[avrame]

Ahh, I've been looking around since I posted, Amazon has quite a good number of VGA boxes up there.

Here is one that I think would work well:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications ... CatId=4641

[MerRocher]

Thank you so much avrame for your thoughtful response! The first product you posted is definitely in my price range, but the list of resolutions supported concerns me:

640*480 / 800*600 / 1024*768 / 1280*1024 / 1440*900 / 1680*1050

It definitely doesn't seem to be made for TV use. As for the 2nd item you posted, it looks great but it's very pricy (over $100) and the Hori Upscan Converter is a lot cheaper (I can get it for $40 total) and from what I've heard, it does the job. But if the Hori Upscan Converter doesn't work, I'll definitely save up for the item you listed.

If I understand things correctly, the S-Video to VGA converter only changes the signal from S-Video to VGA, whereas the Upscan converter (or maybe the item you listed?) specializes in upscaling the signal to a higher resolution? I've heard that the Hori Upscan Converter was specifically designed to play PS2 on an HDTV. If anyone owns or has owned a Hori Upscan Converter, please tell me how (well) it worked. I will post the results of anything I purchase in the future, of course. If anyone else has any insight in the matter, please don't hesitate to post!

Edit: I missed your second post, sorry. The 2nd item you posted definitely seems comparable to the Hori Upscan Converter. I guess what I need to know is what the Sabrent TV Tuner Box does vs. the Hori Upscan Converter. :S

Basically, I'm wondering how the "scaling" works because from what I understand there's a big difference in quality based on how different products scale things (for example, how your TV scales things internally).

[Upsidedown Fuji]

I picked up a set of S-video cables for my saturn from Play-Asia.com . They work briliantly. An upscaler may make your picture look better depending on how well it processes the data, but for the age of the system it's not that bad on my 32 inch Sharp Aquos LCD TV.

I say go with the cheaper purchase and grab an S-video cable from either ebay or play-asia.com . I'm sure you'll be delighted.

If you want someting better that regular S-video can't provide for you after trying the regular S-video cable, save up for an upscaler.

[MerRocher]

Yes, I do plan on getting the S-Video cord, although I haven't decided whether or not to got the brand name S-Video cord or the 3rd party cord (roughly $20 difference).

---

So, I looked at it a bit more. There is conflicting information in the Sabrent TV features list. For example, at the top it says it only outputs VGA, but in the features it says it outputs component. At the same time, it claims to output higher resolutions than the Hori Upscan Converter 2 (it claims). But then again, what is the difference between an "upscaler" and a VGA Box? Is every VGA box built with the intention of (decent) upscaling in mind and how do upscaling functions of different VGA boxes vary?

Both the Sabrent and the Hori are potential options for me right now. I'm torn. If the Sabrent does really support high resolutions, that might be better especially if I don't have to deal with shipping it from Japan. But at the same time, the Hori is the only box that credits itself as an "upscanner," and it's a more convinient hookup.

[elvis]

Hi, I have an 22" LCD TV without an S-Video input.

What's the model of your TV?

Does it have an RGB/SCART input? If so, grab a Saturn SCART cable, and it should solve all your ills.

[MerRocher]

Hi, I have an 22" LCD TV without an S-Video input.

What's the model of your TV?

Does it have an RGB/SCART input? If so, grab a Saturn SCART cable, and it should solve all your ills.

Samsung LN22C350D1D ... Nope, no RGB/SCART. Trust me, if that were the solution I would have already solved it. Right now my best option seems to be the Hori Upscan Converter. Looking more into that other item I was considering, more reviews have led me to believe that it's an unreliable piece of hardware.