Saturn and 32" lcd tv

[Merak]

Hi everyone, this is my first post in this forum!
i'm from Italy, i've had a lot of different consoles through the years...i left the game scenes after the Dreamcast..i just realized games weren't fun anymore..the gameplay wasn't important anymore, everything was about graphics and sparkling features.
Back to 1999 internet wasn't so spread here, so finding games online was pretty hard, and imports were incredibly pricy here ( all of those shops closed a few years ago lol).

i jsut got a new friend!
A console i never owned, a Sega Saturn! i remember i got the playstation instead, back in 1995. Much more common, and more games available, here at least.

So here is my problem, i hooked up the SS on my 32" samsung lcd, HDready, through the scart cable..and..the quality...is veeeeeery poor!
i have no chances to try it on a crt tv...i don't have them anymore...i see the graphics very pixeled, and a game like sega rally, is almost unplayable.
How is that? I mean, i know i'm used to work with 1680x1050 or 1440x900 on my MBP...but...really? no chances to have something better?

thak you very much in advance!

[CRTGAMER]

LCDs tend to have Dot Crawl, just to confirm try on a friends CRT.
Setting the game screen to 4:3 non-stretch might help.
You might have to invest in an upscaler.
Pics of the image?

Click my LCD vs CRT signature link,

[Assman]

Most Saturn games are in 240p, so yeah, the graphics are going to be pixelated using RGB. Whether or not you prefer the image to be that sharp on a LCD is purely down to preference, but there's definitely no better quality signal you're going to get from a Saturn. If you want the flaws to be less clear, you can use composite, which is a huge step down quality-wise and I think looks like ass, but again, that may be your preference.

But yes, do post pics.

[Merak]

Hi!
thank you for the super quick reply!
i hadn't the chance to get any pics so far, i will tomorrow!
I like to mess things up, i'm an electrical engineer and i'm pretty confident with A/V too, but i never had the chance to connect an "old" generation console to an lcd tv!
Sooo...i wasn't sure if it was just me, not used to that low res anymore, or if there was smething wrong in my setup....i remember that the video signal looked pretty good to me when i used to connect my playstation with my old sony crt....so i was like..WTF!?!?

i already setted the tv to 4:3 mode, and Warcraft 2 looked like the first Super Mario Bros!

OH and with the lcd i can't use my virtua life-ender in virtua cop 2!
I will have to look for that old commodore 1084s with tv tuner..lost somewhere in the basement!

Which kind of display do you usually use to play with old machines?

thank you!

[Niode]

Do you definitely have an RGB cable? Some of the cheap knockoffs don't actually have the red green and blue lines hooked up, merely the composite video and audio, and that's it.

You should check that you have a real RGB cable (open it up if you can and check the wires with a pinout diagram).

[Merak]

tomorrow i will give a try, at least for the pic!
about thr rgb cable...i will try to find that out, the guy that sold it to me, used to pay with this cable, actually i don't know if it's an original Sega one, i don't even know if Sega used to sell them actually!

[Assman]

Which kind of display do you usually use to play with old machines?

I honestly prefer the way they look on an LCD through RGB, but I'm apparently in the minority on that. I like things being so sharp and clear that I can point out each individual pixel. Most people here (and retro gamers in general) seem to prefer RGB through a CRT, though.

[CRTGAMER]

I will have to look for that old commodore 1084s with tv tuner..lost somewhere in the basement!

Which kind of display do you usually use to play with old machines?

Slightly CRT dedicated here. That old 1084s should work wonders with a Lightgun.
All is not a loss though, use the LCD with a current Gen with HDMI, you'll be happy.

[Merak]

Which kind of display do you usually use to play with old machines?

I honestly prefer the way they look on an LCD through RGB, but I'm apparently in the minority on that. I like things being so sharp and clear that I can point out each individual pixel. Most people here (and retro gamers in general) seem to prefer RGB through a CRT, though.

yeah, do u have any pic of how it looks on ur lcd screen?
thank you!

[Assman]

I actually don't have an RGB cable for my Saturn yet, only my Genesis, so pics of that setup probably won't do you any good.