So.... Some SNESes output YPbPr.....

[Drakon]

Yeah, I gave this cable a check with my multi meter and it appears to be wired correctly (though it's hard to tell because of the way the pins are). I know that S-Video works properly for the PS1/2 connector. I guess I'll have to crack it open and check, because I think something is definitely wrong.

Does it have a pin connected to composite video? Like when I cracked open my bogus cable it had like a resistor connecting the composite video pin to the s-video wire it was absolutely bizarre.

[Ziggy]

When I checked continuity, composite was not connected to S-Video pins. I've heard of that before, some bogus S-Video cables are actually just composite. But I guess if there was a resistor there, I wouldn't be able to tell with a continuity check. I'll have to see if I can crack open the Nintendo connector and check to see if it's wired correctly.

I know that the Playstation multi AV connector is wired correctly, as I can clearly see a difference between composite and S-Video when using it. So maybe they just messed up wiring the Nintendo connector.

[Zing]

I wouldn't be surprised if you see little or no difference. On my Sony TV, on most images, I couldn't tell the difference. The only real difference is slight rainbowing on white lines which are only one pixel wide. For example, the text in Earthbound, or the "x" at the top of the screen on Super Mario World. Otherwise, there is virtually no difference.

[Ziggy]

It depends on the TV a lot, I guess. S-Video versus composite on my LCD, it's no contest. S-Video is clearly better.

I just busted open the connector to this cable and confirmed that it is wired up correctly. There only one weird thing. On the S-Video mini din connector, the Y and C pins are wired correctly, but the ground pins are not connected. The casing to the mini din connector is grounded, so I guess those two pins don't have to be?

Anyways, I took that cable and that SNES upstairs to my LCD and tested it out, the difference between S-Video and composite is clear. Went back downstairs with the same SNES and cables to my CRT. I tested it with a game that would easy to tell the difference. The difference is there, but it's minimal. Which is weird because the difference between composite and S-Video with my PS2, using the same cables and the same TV, is well defined. So that wouldn't mean the TV is just poor. I think Drakon might be dead on about the earlier SNESes outputting blurry video. Although that doesn't explain why it looks so much better on my LCD TV.

Oh well, whatever, it's neither here nor there. My suspicion was either that the cable had botched S-Video or that the particular SNES I did the component mod to had exceptionally rough video from the start. Now that I've ruled that out, I can continue with trying to get the component video to look correct.

[Jamisonia]

Ziggy the difference between the comb filters can make a huge difference on how much you notice. Each TV has a different comb filter. A high quality comb filter will make it hard to tell the difference between composite and s-video. The fact that your LCD is HD also effects it. Problems in original material are amplified during the upscaling process. Meaning composite errors are going to look worse on your HDTV versus your SD CRT. S-video is going to have less errors so it should look even better. Naturally Component should be perfect. Pixel Perfect.

[marvelus10]

I just tried this mod, it works. Picture is so clear on my HD Plasma absolutly beautiful, yes the colours were a little faded but nothing I couldn't fix with the TV settings.
However I had a problem, the image is jumpy. Bounces up and down constantly. Any ideas as to why?

[Ziggy]

^ Could be your TV not liking the input signal. Have you tried it on more than one TV?

It would help to know which revision video encoder you have. Exactly what does it say on the top of the encoder?

Ziggy the difference between the comb filters can make a huge difference on how much you notice.

Yes, but what's weird is that I get a noticeable difference between composite and S-Video on this CRT with other consoles (PS1, PS2, Genesis) but not so noticeable with the SNES.

[marvelus10]

I have the BA6594AF encoder. Unfortunately this is the only TV I have with these inputs.

Could it be in the way I soldered it, I soldered the centre pins accordingly and the outer all three together then to ground on the SNES motherboard. Should I ground back to the BA6594AF or some other leg of the chip and should I lift the legs of the chip?

[Ziggy]

The ground may not matter. I've spoken with "qualified" people that say ground is ground, I've spoken with others that suggest otherwise. I originally grounded my RCA connectors to some really small 3-pin IC by the power switch. After I rewired mine with a slightly heavier gauge wire, I grounded to a mobo ground location. Didn't make a difference at all.

Your encoder also says "S-ENC B" on it, right? If so, then we have the same encoders. Since my video is stable, I'm guessing it's your TV. This is assuming all your connections are good. I guess it's possible that if you have a weak solder joint that's periodically losing connectivity, that could cause the jumping image problem.

Don't lift the pins. These encoders output the component signal only to input it back into the encoder, which then converts it to composite and S-Video. If you lift the pins, you will lose composite and S-Video output on the AV connector as well as RF output. Also, I don't think lifting the pins will effect the component video output in any way.

[marvelus10]

Yes S ENC B. I rewired it 4 times using different gage wire.

Well crap I guess I'm back to the S-Video cable, unless there is a way to alter the signals to the liking of my TV.