Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

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Original_Name
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Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by Original_Name »

I have a really nice Dell VGA monitor, but it doesn't have inputs for composite cables. I bought a couple of cheap VGA to composite converters, but was met with really ugly, blurry pictures. I'd like to be able to play my Saturn/PlayStation games with a picture that's at least on par with what I'd see out of a regular television set on my monitor without having to pay an arm and a leg. The biggest thing I've learned is that I'm looking for an upscaler rather than simply a converter.

The description for this product sounds very promising, but I can't find any reviews. Is this what I'm looking for?:

EDIT:

http://www.ambery.com/vitoxgacoscs.html
Last edited by Original_Name on Sat Aug 21, 2010 12:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
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CRTGAMER
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by CRTGAMER »

Not sure of the results on that one. But at least get S-Video cables to separate the chroma-luma signals.

PS1 S-Video cable, three dollars at Gamestop
http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Product ... t_id=15287

The good scalers cost more then the TV. Maybe a S-Video input CRT?
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by Original_Name »

Ah, well my link was misleading -- S-Video alone isn't an option for me either, really. I know that the Saturn has S-Video out and apparently the PlayStation 2 has the ability to output S-Video, but I was planning on using it for other retro systems (Genesis, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64) as well which as far as I know do not support S-Video outside of modding. I meant to link to this:

http://www.ambery.com/vitoxgacoscs.html

I get what you're saying though about investing into a CRT monitor as opposed to an upscaler. Thank you for your quick response, I'll keep trying to weigh my options.
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by wootcube »

I'm looking for a solution for this as well - my monitor has VGA and HDMI inputs, so I can run my PS3 on it and it looks fine, however I've been trying to find a way to use older consoles as well. Pretty much every solution I've found online results in really crappy video quality or weird stretching...
AppleQueso

Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by AppleQueso »

Original_Name wrote:Ah, well my link was misleading -- S-Video alone isn't an option for me either, really. I know that the Saturn has S-Video out and apparently the PlayStation 2 has the ability to output S-Video, but I was planning on using it for other retro systems (Genesis, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64) as well which as far as I know do not support S-Video outside of modding. I meant to link to this:

http://www.ambery.com/vitoxgacoscs.html

I get what you're saying though about investing into a CRT monitor as opposed to an upscaler. Thank you for your quick response, I'll keep trying to weigh my options.
SNES and N64 support s-video fine out of the box. I've heard rumors of a genesis s-video cable existing, but I've never seen one myself.
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by CRTGAMER »

Original_Name wrote:Ah, well my link was misleading -- S-Video alone isn't an option for me either, really. I know that the Saturn has S-Video out and apparently the PlayStation 2 has the ability to output S-Video, but I was planning on using it for other retro systems (Genesis, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64) as well which as far as I know do not support S-Video outside of modding. I meant to link to this:

http://www.ambery.com/vitoxgacoscs.html

I get what you're saying though about investing into a CRT monitor as opposed to an upscaler. Thank you for your quick response, I'll keep trying to weigh my options.
The S-Video connections for SNES, N64 and Saturn will be a big improvement on a CRT TV. I read somewhere that there is RGB support on Saturns also. Any Saturn owners can enlighten on this?

You could also go with Component cables for the PS2. God of War looks beautiful at 480p on a Component input CRT. Gran Turismo and Tourist Trophy can go up to 1080i.
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by Original_Name »

Wow, I didn't know that about the SNES and N64. Anyway, I know that I've never heard of native S-video out on a Genesis, and have seen way too many pricey S-video modifications than would seem necessary if the Genesis could do that anyway. Anyway, you guys have to understand that if I can avoid getting a whole new monitor, I likely will... I don't know if I've ever seen a CRT monitor with native s-video and/or composite output, at least not for a price comparable to the $50 I'd be spending on this.

I can be really picky if an image looks sub-par, but if I'm able to see all of the details that need to be seen without extra stretching and blurring, I'm very much okay with it. I'd love to find a great CRT monitor with S-video or composite output and all the gadgets needed to hook my retro consoles up to it for a good price, but I just don't know if that's a viable option. I think the optimal thing for me space and cost-wise is to find a way to decently connect my consoles to this VGA monitor. None of the other converters I bought professed abilities such as Motion Adaptive De-Interlacing, which sounds like it's exactly what I'm looking for. Do any videophiles know if that will actually make a Sega Genesis (etc.) not look like utter crap on an LCD VGA monitor or not? I know it's not optimum, but would it look as good as if I'd hooked it up to a regular, nice-quality tube television via stock AV cables?
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by AppleQueso »

If your tube tv has a decent decomb filter it should look alright.
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Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by crux »

I don't know of any affordable options. Essentially what you want is an XRGB2+, which will likely run you around $250. You need a quality upscaler, essentially, since a VGA monitor is incapable of displaying interlaced video. This means you need to scale the image to 480p. A quality scaler costs money.

Genesis and Saturn are capable of RGB, but unless you're in Europe with a SCART capable RGB television, it requires an RGB monitor that can accept 15khz signals, which only 80's monitors (Amiga monitors, mostly) can handle.
Last edited by crux on Sat Aug 21, 2010 10:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
AppleQueso

Re: Good solution for displaying Composite image on VGA monitor?

Post by AppleQueso »

crux wrote: Genesis and Saturn are capable of RGB, but unless you're in Europe with a SCART capable RGB television, it requires an RGB monitor that can accept 15khz signals, which only 80's monitors (Amiga monitors, mostly) can handle.
Wouldn't arcade monitors be suitable as well?
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