RGB for your NES

The Last Bandit

Board developed to replace the original PPU.

http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=47617

o1s1n

:eek:

-€64. Bit pricey, but still a lot cheaper than robbing a PPU from the Playchoice boards.

Retr0gamer

I'd say it's worth it. The only small problem is that some sunsoft games are created with AV composite in mind and actually have better colour on composite so I think I'll be getting another NES, one modded, one unmodded.

The Last Bandit

I'm not sure I like it. Not faulting the design or anything just the notion of it. You're simulating a fairly major portion of the NES, offering custom palettes etc so is it still a NES or a NES++ .

I'll stick with AV for now, anyway NES sucks compared to the legend that is SMS.

Myrddin

The Last Bandit wrote: »

I'm not sure I like it. Not faulting the design or anything just the notion of it. You're simulating a fairly major portion of the NES, offering custom palettes etc so is it still a NES or a NES++ .

I'll stick with AV for now, anyway NES sucks compared to the legend that is SMS.

100% agree. Nes via AV is fine by me, going down the road of custom palettes etc just sounds like getting away from the original hardware & it'd be easier just to use an emulator.

o1s1n

Yeah, I do get what you guys are saying.

However, my eyes have gotten so used to RGB as the standard that I just can't look at composite at all anymore. I think I'd still rather this mod on a NES than going through AV unmodded.

CiDeRmAn

Or a Retron 5!
I really want one of those, glob help me

80s Synth Pop

great find. thanks for posting this.

the American NES looks absolute garbage on the big screen tv. washed out colours and no way to use the scanline generator. This device will fix those problems for me. Any idea when this is going to be available for sale?

80s Synth Pop

sold out - http://etim.net.au/nesrgb/

ThirdMan

Hi. Can someone direct me to a good quality RGB connection for a PS2? I'ver seen a few online but they're all very badly reviewed. Cheers.

STG.Otaku

Buy a quality component cable for PS2 RGB.

ThirdMan

STG.Otaku wrote: »

Buy a quality component cable for PS2 RGB.

Is this the one.

STG.Otaku

ThirdMan wrote: »

Is this the one.

Nope. That's AV composite.

This is what you should go with:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Playstation-2-Component-Cable-PS2/dp/B001IKCVS0

...assuming you have component inputs on whatever you are connecting the PS2 to.

o1s1n

ThirdMan wrote: »

Is this the one.

That's a PS2 scart cable. I use something similar for my PS1 and PS2, they work fine.

The PS2 can do component out too though, which is a step up from RGB. I think only some games support it though? (SOTC being one of them)

The cable looks like this

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Component-Cable-for-Sony-Playstation-PS2-/261166219346?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item3cceb84052

zilog_jones

YPbPr component video is a more efficient use of bandwidth but there will be no discernible difference in picture quality, especially at SDTV resolutions (assuming you have decent cables for both). The only benefit with YPbPr for the PS2 is that some NTSC games (and very few PAL games) support progressive scan 480p, and four NTSC games support 1080i. There's a list here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_PlayStation_2_games_with_HD_support

The item ThirdMan linked may support RGB but the description doesn't claim it does, though some reviews say it does. I had a cable like this years ago and they are poorly made - the inline RCA output block is just a big lump of glue inside and is a point of failure. I started getting ghosting with it after a while.

Also watch out for cables which don't have metal shielding on the AV Multi connector (PlayStation end) like what STG.Otaku posted (it's all plastic except for the pins) - they are bloody awful in my experience.

o1s1n

If your eyes aren't familiar with what RGB scart should look like, open up the cable once you receive it.

It's fairly straightforward, the scart connector has a twisty thing which you can just unscrew and take a look inside.

The cheapo pretend ones won't have the correct pins wired up. I've opened up a few cables saying they're RGB scart and only the composite wires are connected.

Easy to check against a pinout diagram



I've found ConsoleGoodsUK to provide good cables. I always get them via their ebay store;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/consolegoods_uk/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=

CiDeRmAn

My tv's RGB channel only operates when it's being provided with an appropriate signal.
Thank you Sony.
Also, the fact that the image isn't sh1te is an important indicator that you've bought the correct cable!

zilog_jones

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

My tv's RGB channel only operates when it's being provided with an appropriate signal.

You mean the blanking signal on pin 16? Most CRT TVs are like this. I've experienced poor-quality SCART cables that did not have this wired correctly (or at all!) but everything else was wired for RGB. For PlayStations they should have a ~180 Ohm resistor connected from the +5V on the AV Multi out connector to pin 16 on the SCART end.

Anyway this is all a bit OT!

I'm not sure I like the idea of an RGB NES - the rainbowing, shimmering and zig-zag vertical lines are part of the experience for me
And as previously said, some games (especially Sunsoft) actually take advantage of all this extra noise and have dithering that only really works with a real composite output. The NESRGB board does still allow output of the original CVBS signal from PPU though.

ThirdMan

STG.Otaku wrote: »

This is what you should go with...assuming you have component inputs on whatever you are connecting the PS2 to.

My TV doesn't have component inputs. So what I'm looking for is a good quality RGB cable. I honestly can't find a decent one online. They all look dodgy. Do Sony not do their own one?

zilog_jones

Sony did make official cables but they were ridiculously expensive (€40?) so nobody bought them, and if you ever do see them on eBay the prices are now even more ridiculous. The third-party cables are a bit of a gamble allright - I've just bought one recently because my current butchered mess is starting to fall apart. I'll let you know if it's awful or not when it arrives.

ThirdMan

I just picked up a Logic3 one. I'm still taking a gamble, but at least there's a company I can return it to, not 'dave187d' on eBay.

o1s1n

ThirdMan wrote: »

I just picked up a Logic3 one. I'm still taking a gamble, but at least there's a company I can return it to, not 'dave187d' on eBay.

Never understood this logic to be honest.

I've been buying stuff on Ebay for over 10 years now and anything which has ever been broken has been sorted.

I'd say about 90% of the broken stuff has had a replacement sent out for free, no need to return the faulty product either. And it's also been a lost faster than trying to deal with most companies.

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Never understood this logic to be honest.

I've been buying stuff on Ebay for over 10 years now and anything which has ever been broken has been sorted.

I'd say about 90% of the broken stuff has had a replacement sent out for free, no need to return the faulty product either. And it's also been a lost faster than trying to deal with most companies.

Agreed, I don't think consolegoods make or made PS2 RGB scarts at the time when I needed one, so I resorted to ebay. Perfect when it arrived, not the usual AV scart but a properly wired RGB cable. A lot of shops sell on ebay too, so don't rule it out

ThirdMan

o1s1n wrote: »

Never understood this logic to be honest.

I've been buying stuff on Ebay for over 10 years now and anything which has ever been broken has been sorted.

I'd say about 90% of the broken stuff has had a replacement sent out for free, no need to return the faulty product either. And it's also been a lost faster than trying to deal with most companies.

I've been buying online from named companies for over 10 years and I've never had anything delivered broken. I don't want the hassle of returning stuff, so I pay a slight premium, and search a little deeper, in order to avoid it. That's my logic.

o1s1n

ThirdMan wrote: »

I've been buying online from named companies for over 10 years and I've never had anything delivered broken. I don't want the hassle of returning stuff, so I pay a slight premium, and search a little deeper, in order to avoid it. That's my logic.

But I dont pay a premium, anything defective has been replaced for free (on average, maybe one item per two years, if even)

Fair enough if you want to pay extra, I'd rather save that money to buy more things.

Ive purchased about 1000 items from ebay by the way, and probably about 1000 from other sources - ebay it grand, silly not to use it.

Hank Scorpio

yeah ebay is grand, bought over 200 items and never had a single problem

ThirdMan

o1s1n wrote: »

But I dont pay a premium, anything defective has been replaced for free (on average, maybe one item per two years, if even)

Fair enough if you want to pay extra, I'd rather save that money to buy more things.

Ive purchased about 1000 items from ebay by the way, and probably about 1000 from other sources - ebay it grand, silly not to use it.

Yeah, fair enough. Point taken. I'm a stubborn fecker when it comes to this stuff. Thanks for the advice.