I've been wanting to get a SLG 3000/SCART for a while now, and since a SLG 3000 setup (from what I heard, what with needing a scaler and VGA adapter for it and what not) was too expensive, I decided on getting a SLG SCART with a cheaper price, despite the inferior quality. But then I decided I really wanted the SLG 3000 with its superior image quality, so I then wondered how cheap the price for a SLG 3000 setup really is when you take into account on whether you need things like the CGA to VGA & the scaler. So I'll state what the TV Setup I'm using is currently like, and ask how much it would cost to include the SLG 3000 in it, as well as what I would need (the cheapest alternatives for the CGAtoVGA and scaler) and if I would need the Scaler or VGAtoCGA at all.
(All items listed below are European/PAL unless stated otherwise)(All Consoles use red/yellow/white video/audio cables in a SCART adapter)
TV: Technika 21.6" LCD TV (Model X21.6/54G-GW-TCDU-UK)
Consoles: Wii, PS1 (Original Model), PS2 (Original Model), GameCube
Planned: NTSC N64 (American Red/Yellow/White cables), RetroGen Adapter
What resolution do these consoles give, what resolutions does my TV accept and will it accept the resolutions of all of the consoles or will I have to use a scaler?
Also, this is a little off-topic, can I use a SCART splitter which also has a multi-SCART adapter plugged into it into the SLG 3000 (as in the SCART slot in the SLG 3000 setup, as the SLG 3000 itself doesn't have SCART input), or does it have the be the console's SCART input directly into the SLG 3000's SCART slot?
If I can use a SLG 3000 for cheap
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AppleQueso
Re: If I can use a SLG 3000 for cheap
I'm not sure about european prices on some of this stuff, so yeah...
CGA to VGA is around $35-40 bucks USD, you can find a ton of them on ebay and that's about the cheapest solution you'll get.
SLG 3000 takes and outputs VGA, so your TV must have a VGA port and you must have a scaler/transcoder before it for any system besides the Dreamcast.
You'll have to modify the CGA to VGA scaler to accept scart, as it doesn't have a scart input out of the box. It does have component inputs though. If you want to spend a bit more, the SLG-in-a-box is basically just an SLG 3000, Sync Strike (which you'd probably need at some point anyway) and CGA to VGA scaler crammed into a box with a Scart input added to it. It's a bit pricer, but it might save you some headaches and is probably the best choice.
You most likely can't just use the red/white/yellow cables into an adapter. The consoles have to be outputting RGB for this setup to work. You'll need fully wired RGB Scart cables.
N64 needs modification to output RGB, and only the earliest NTSC models are capable of being modded in the first place. Retrogen probably won't work, but it's not too hard to find RGB scart cables for the model 1 and model 2 versions of the Mega Drive.
Lastly, you can use a scart switch no problem, but there's an issue with the fact that most of the cheap switches are awful and don't properly separate the signals.
CGA to VGA is around $35-40 bucks USD, you can find a ton of them on ebay and that's about the cheapest solution you'll get.
SLG 3000 takes and outputs VGA, so your TV must have a VGA port and you must have a scaler/transcoder before it for any system besides the Dreamcast.
You'll have to modify the CGA to VGA scaler to accept scart, as it doesn't have a scart input out of the box. It does have component inputs though. If you want to spend a bit more, the SLG-in-a-box is basically just an SLG 3000, Sync Strike (which you'd probably need at some point anyway) and CGA to VGA scaler crammed into a box with a Scart input added to it. It's a bit pricer, but it might save you some headaches and is probably the best choice.
You most likely can't just use the red/white/yellow cables into an adapter. The consoles have to be outputting RGB for this setup to work. You'll need fully wired RGB Scart cables.
N64 needs modification to output RGB, and only the earliest NTSC models are capable of being modded in the first place. Retrogen probably won't work, but it's not too hard to find RGB scart cables for the model 1 and model 2 versions of the Mega Drive.
Lastly, you can use a scart switch no problem, but there's an issue with the fact that most of the cheap switches are awful and don't properly separate the signals.
Re: If I can use a SLG 3000 for cheap
Are these the kind of CGAtoVGA scaler I need?
http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/35071828 ... pla&crdt=0
http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/27115993 ... pla&crdt=0
My TV does have a VGA port (although it has a separate jack for VGA/PC audio, so I wonder if that's going to be an issue...).
How can I modify the CGA2VGA Scaler to accept SCART, and if I do use component can it just be the regular Red/Yellow/White cables I'm currently using?
Are these SCART cables eligible (Sorry for the link clutter)?
http://www.base.com/buy/product/officia ... iscart.htm
http://www.play.com/Games/GameCube/4-/1 ... 21153923:s
https://www.google.co.uk/shopping/produ ... CFAQ8wIwAA
http://www.ebuyer.com/450349-ps2-rgb-sc ... tAod2kEACw
How can you tell apart modifiable NTSC N64s? The thing is, is that I'm hoping to use a Tri-Star 64 with it and pretty much always keep it on there, and I've heard that's modifiable for RGB (it only uses component cables otherwise). Can I just only modify the Tri-Star 64 for RGB? There's also the issue of a NTSC console with a PAL tv...
I also wonder if I could just hook up the RetroGen through the component slot on the CGAtoVGA.
And the SCART splitter I'm using is something like this:
http://www.best-b2b.com/userimg/545/591 ... es-696.jpg
http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/35071828 ... pla&crdt=0
http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/27115993 ... pla&crdt=0
My TV does have a VGA port (although it has a separate jack for VGA/PC audio, so I wonder if that's going to be an issue...).
How can I modify the CGA2VGA Scaler to accept SCART, and if I do use component can it just be the regular Red/Yellow/White cables I'm currently using?
Are these SCART cables eligible (Sorry for the link clutter)?
http://www.base.com/buy/product/officia ... iscart.htm
http://www.play.com/Games/GameCube/4-/1 ... 21153923:s
https://www.google.co.uk/shopping/produ ... CFAQ8wIwAA
http://www.ebuyer.com/450349-ps2-rgb-sc ... tAod2kEACw
How can you tell apart modifiable NTSC N64s? The thing is, is that I'm hoping to use a Tri-Star 64 with it and pretty much always keep it on there, and I've heard that's modifiable for RGB (it only uses component cables otherwise). Can I just only modify the Tri-Star 64 for RGB? There's also the issue of a NTSC console with a PAL tv...
I also wonder if I could just hook up the RetroGen through the component slot on the CGAtoVGA.
And the SCART splitter I'm using is something like this:
http://www.best-b2b.com/userimg/545/591 ... es-696.jpg
N64/NES/FC/SNES/SFC/GB (SGB)/GBC (Black)(SGB)/FDS/Satellaview/Genesis/Mega Drive/Master System & maybe N64DD/GBC/GBA.
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AppleQueso
Re: If I can use a SLG 3000 for cheap
That's the correct scaler board, yes. It's cheap, but it works.
The red/yellow/white cables are not component. Those are actually composite cables, the video is only carried on the yellow cable, the other two cables are for audio. Component cables are Red/Green/Blue and typically carry a YPbPr signal, usually along with two more Red/White cables for audio, so 5 wires in total. You won't be able to use the composite cables you already have with this setup.
Modding the CGA scaler to add a SCART input requires sodiering wires to the R, G, B, Sync and GND pins on the SCART connector to pins on the board.
I think the easiest way to tell what N64 models are moddable are by the serial number on the bottom. IIRC, if the number begins with "NS1", you should be good, but don't quote me on that.
If it's an HDTV, I don't think PAL/NTSC signals will be an issue.
You should probably read up a bit on different video signal types (Composite, S-Video, Component, RGB) before diving too much further in. This can turn into a bit of a rabbit hole really fast. You'll probably also want to know a bit more about different sync signal types, as some inputs can be really finnicky when it comes to the sync signal.
Lastly, I've got a scart switch like that one. It doesn't work very well. You'd think something as mechanically simple as a switch would be easy to get right, but so many of the scart switches out there I've seen get it so, so wrong.
I'm honestly not much of an expert or anything though, I'm mostly just regurgitating stuff I've picked up while researching this sort of thing for my own purposes. It might be worth asking the guys in the hardware section on the Shmups.System11 forum. They know an awful lot about this sort of thing.
The red/yellow/white cables are not component. Those are actually composite cables, the video is only carried on the yellow cable, the other two cables are for audio. Component cables are Red/Green/Blue and typically carry a YPbPr signal, usually along with two more Red/White cables for audio, so 5 wires in total. You won't be able to use the composite cables you already have with this setup.
Modding the CGA scaler to add a SCART input requires sodiering wires to the R, G, B, Sync and GND pins on the SCART connector to pins on the board.
I think the easiest way to tell what N64 models are moddable are by the serial number on the bottom. IIRC, if the number begins with "NS1", you should be good, but don't quote me on that.
If it's an HDTV, I don't think PAL/NTSC signals will be an issue.
You should probably read up a bit on different video signal types (Composite, S-Video, Component, RGB) before diving too much further in. This can turn into a bit of a rabbit hole really fast. You'll probably also want to know a bit more about different sync signal types, as some inputs can be really finnicky when it comes to the sync signal.
Lastly, I've got a scart switch like that one. It doesn't work very well. You'd think something as mechanically simple as a switch would be easy to get right, but so many of the scart switches out there I've seen get it so, so wrong.
I'm honestly not much of an expert or anything though, I'm mostly just regurgitating stuff I've picked up while researching this sort of thing for my own purposes. It might be worth asking the guys in the hardware section on the Shmups.System11 forum. They know an awful lot about this sort of thing.