Commodore S-Video output

Vnman

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Hi,

I bought one of these cheapo in order to hook all my 8 bit retro computers (those that do not have RGB output) to a VGA monitor.

results

  • PAL C64C via composite, picture look like s****.
  • PAL 800 XL via composite, same as C64C. Might try the s-video mod on this to see if I get a clear picture.
  • NTSC 128, I have to try and see if the pic is the same as above.
  • PAL C64C via s-video, picture is a little better but still has a lot of rainbow horizontal lines.
  • NTSC 128 connected via s-video, picture is OK but too bright and has colour bleeding.

Guess that this converter does not support PAL even though they advertise as such.

Question -

How do I reduce the brightness that the C128 output, I tried all the settings on the converter and no help there.
 
A link or at least the name of the Cheapo device might help?

Bryce.
 
Which cable do you use to connect the C64 with the converter? The cable needs to have resistors in it or it could produce the problems you notice.

Also, the C64 does not output a proper PAL signal. Firstly, it is progressive not interlaced, but also the clock frequencies are not exact so not all devices can accept its signals. With CRTs this was not usually an issue, but can be for LCD screens and modern converters which may be designed to follow the PAL specification 100% as you would get from a camcorder or VHS/DVD player.
 
I bought one of those a few years back to test. The results aren't great, but what do you expect for the price.
First of, composite generally gives a pretty poor picture, no amount of conversion is going to make it look beter. The device doesn't enhance the picture, it just changes the format. S-video will give you better results, but unfortunately the S-video from most retro computers isn't quite to the specifications, so some of these converts won't even sync to the picture, so you end up with a picture that flickers every two or three seconds.
One of the better converters I've tested is the V2V: http://www.pollin.de/shop/dt/OTA4OD...deo_zu_VGA_Konverter_Box_PREMIUMBLUE_V2V.html However, I use an RGB to S-Video converter to stabilise the picture and correct the sync and then feed it through this. The rainbow / lines you are getting will depend on the scaling, so choosing a lower resolution output might improve this.
You could also try the GBS-8200 which will take RGB directly, but the newer versions have a lot of noise on PAL signals.

Bryce.
 
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I too bought one of those.

Yes, description was misleading that it would work with composite, and s-video.

It did not work with any of my older 8 bit consoles (Commodore, Sega, or Nintendo).

I would get unclear picture, black and white, or green bar displayed.

I was able to get it to work with extra equipment I had. I used a spare VCR. I ran composite signal into VCR then to converter out to VGA. I know it extra but worked fairly well.
 
I too bought one of those.

Yes, description was misleading that it would work with composite, and s-video.

It did not work with any of my older 8 bit consoles (Commodore, Sega, or Nintendo).

I would get unclear picture, black and white, or green bar displayed.

I was able to get it to work with extra equipment I had. I used a spare VCR. I ran composite signal into VCR then to converter out to VGA. I know it extra but worked fairly well.


But that's not completely the fault of the converter. It's the computer that's producing a signal way off the standard. Old analogue equipment is much happier with signals that are off spec, but if you are sampling the signal with an FPGA as these devices do, the signal has to be pretty close to perfect.

Bryce.
 
Yep I've had a couple of these things, they are no use whatsoever for the C64. It worked ok for my Amigas but the picture wasn't great. The GBS board was better but doesn't accept composite or S-Video as far as I can tell.
 
Correct Bryce.

I'm not blaming the converter either.

I'm saying the advertisement was misleading when I purchased mine.

It lead you to believe it would work with any composite or s-video input.
 
The cable is self made with 300 Ohm resistor on the Chroma Line.

I am in the process of modifying my C128 to have straight S-video connector on the case such that I can connect a "normal" S-video cable instead of DIN to s-video. That way I can experiment with the resistor to see which one work best.

Do I need to put resistor on the Luma line to reduce the brightness? Google and found a few threads that talked about reducing brightness on the N64. Does it apply here?

Actually I have a GBS8220 and a SCART switch and I fed my Atari ST/STe, ZX Spectrum into and the picture on those are perfect.
 
So, I guess I want to know how the guys on those YouTube videos connect to a VGA monitor or a modern'ish LCD TV? I thought that buying one of those ebay cables that have an 8 pin DIN connection on one end with an S_Video connection on the other, followed by connecting to one of those video converters does the trick. I am in the process now of doing just that. The cable I bought has the 300 ohm resistor installed. So which video converter (if any), does what I see on Youtube? I suppose I can look around for a tv that accepts S-video. These older Commodore monitors are getting rather unreliable now...
 
Some monitors and TVs have direct s-video inputs and in my experience they usually produce a decent picture with the C64. I use a Dell 2001FP monitor for my C64 and it produces a quite nice picture using its S-video input. My Dell 2408WFP monitor also has an s-video input, but it resamples everything to 60 Hz before it is displayed, so motion is not smooth any longer.
 
I suppose I can look around for a tv that accepts S-video.
TV or monitor. I have DELL 3008WFP on my desk at work and DELL 2408WFP at home and both carry S-Video connector (although I've not used it myself). Sadly newer models drop more and more connectors. Both DELL U3014 and DELL U2414H only support digital connectors: DisplayPort, HDMI, MHL, not even VGA was spared!

P.S. I'm not 100% sure if DELL 3008WFP supports NTSC/PAL resolutions on S-Video port, but I just couldn't imagine why would they add it to the package otherwise. I mean: what else would you expect on S-Video or Composite video input? Especially when these ports are billed in marketing manuals as ports for "DVD Players/DVR/VCR"?
 
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