Best TV for retro consoles

FixitFelix

Now that im starting to get a few consoles around me im looking to pick up a good tv to play them on.What would you guys suggest? Will be playing everything from mega drive etc to gamecube etc (no modern ones)
Also whats the best bit of kit for connecting mutliple consoles to one input and just switching between them quickly.


Cheers in advance

horgan_p

Sony Trinitron gets my vote , curretnly using one for PSX , SNES and Megadrive.
Lovely lovely picture. Think it cost me €25 on Adverts.

The Last Bandit

Yep, can't go wrong with a Sony Trinitron.

FixitFelix

Cheers ill start having a look around adverts

Atavan-Halen

Definitely the Sony trinitrons. Can pick them up for next to nothing on adverts and the likes.

Andrew76

Sony Trini as the lads say, 21" is a nice size imo. Some RGB scart cables and something like this Bandbridge 5-port scart selector https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bandridge-Performance-Automatic-Selector-Switching-x/dp/B0015YYN2Q (currently out of stock unfortunately).

CiDeRmAn

The 29" Trini I have is great but fup me it's heavy.
Once you've the 21" described above you'll be happy, then buy all rgb cables for the consoles you own, that step would make nearly more of a difference than the major brand CRT you get.
A good quality scart switcher too will help avoid wear and tear, I don't have one myself

Hank Scorpio

Recommend the trinitron too. Picture is superior to other cheap CRTs that are freely available. Got a 28 inch one but it's seen better days. Takes a while to turn on sometimes and has a buzzing noise, think it's arcing. Will have to pick up another one

Steve X2

Hank Scorpio wrote: »

Recommend the trinitron too. Picture is superior to other cheap CRTs that are freely available. Got a 28 inch one but it's seen better days. Takes a while to turn on sometimes and has a buzzing noise, think it's arcing. Will have to pick up another one

CiDeRmAn

I picked up a 14" Trini for about €25 on Adverts, perfect little thing.
You'll do the same or better with a little patience and a willingness to collect.

Hank Scorpio

Hank Scorpio wrote: »

Takes a while to turn on sometimes and has a buzzing noise, think it's arcing. Will have to pick up another one

If your comfortable discharging it i'd try taking the cup off and cleaning it/under it with some Isopropyl alcohol.
Worth a shot anyways.

FixitFelix

Will be scouting around for a trini but if I go for one of these does it mean i have to use PAL consoles only??

Cheers

The Last Bandit

FixitFelix wrote: »

Will be scouting around for a trini but if I go for one of these does it mean i have to use PAL consoles only??

Cheers

No, they should handle NTSC composite as well. Although I assume you'll be going the RGB over SCART route, in which case PAL or NTSC is irrelevant

FixitFelix

The Last Bandit wrote: »

No, they should handle NTSC composite as well. Although I assume you'll be going the RGB over SCART route, in which case PAL or NTSC is irrelevant

Ok cheers :-)

Hellrun

Trinitron probably has the better picture but I like the aesthetics of the B&O MX series and the picture ain't too bad.

o1s1n

Hellrun wrote: »

Trinitron probably has the better picture but I like the aesthetics of the B&O MX series and the picture ain't too bad.

Depends if you want a trinitron aperture grille or a shadow mask CRT. Get a high end version of either and they're both better in their own ways.

It's kind of funny in that most of us probably grew up with shadow mask CRTs but we all seem to want trinitrons these days for the more pronounced scanlines. :pac:

Never really figured out which I prefer tbh. I find shadow masks give more of an 'old' CRT feel which I like with arcade monitors. Although I'm into older type machines so that's why I always tend to end up with in them.

Saying that, you really can't beat a Sony broadcast monitor for home consoles. They're amazing.

So yeah, err, get both

Andrew76

Hellrun wrote: »

Trinitron probably has the better picture but I like the aesthetics of the B&O MX series and the picture ain't too bad.

The B&O's are a gorgeous looking tv no question, a seriously pretty unit. But try finding one for 20 or 30 quid in Ireland (the cost of a good trini).

o1s1n wrote: »

Depends if you want a trinitron aperture grille or a shadow mask CRT. Get a high end version of either and they're both better in their own ways.

It's kind of funny in that most of us probably grew up with shadow mask CRTs but we all seem to want trinitrons these days for the more pronounced scanlines. :pac:

Never really figured out which I prefer tbh. I find shadow masks give more of an 'old' CRT feel which I like with arcade monitors. Although I'm into older type machines so that's why I always tend to end up with in them.

Saying that, you really can't beat a Sony broadcast monitor for home consoles. They're amazing.

So yeah, err, get both

Sir, yes sir! :pac:

BVM, B&O and Trini - all great in their own way. That 21" Trini on the right cost me €30 from Adverts. The picture is great of course but it also has really good sound - from those side speakers or the handy headphone jack behind the front flap. Super little tv.
The other two cost 3 to 5 times as much iirc.

Lights on:




Lights off:
(feel that warm glow as your eyeballs get zapped with all the colours)

Myrddin

CRT Heaven dude, very cool.

Atavan-Halen

Andrew76 wrote: »

Lights off:
(feel that warm glow as your eyeballs get zapped with all the colours)

FixitFelix

Andrew76 wrote: »

The B&O's are a gorgeous looking tv no question, a seriously pretty unit. But try finding one for 20 or 30 quid in Ireland (the cost of a good trini).



Sir, yes sir! :pac:

BVM, B&O and Trini - all great in their own way. That 21" Trini on the right cost me €30 from Adverts. The picture is great of course but it also has really good sound - from those side speakers or the handy headphone jack behind the front flap. Super little tv.
The other two cost 3 to 5 times as much iirc.

Lights on:




Lights off:
(feel that warm glow as your eyeballs get zapped with all the colours)

If only id the room for all those

Andrew76

FixitFelix wrote: »

If only id the room for all those

Maybe it's probably a bit overkill but while I have the space, why not. Think I have a couple more years before the kids need this room and I have to downsize.

Myrddin

Andrew76 wrote: »

Maybe it's probably a bit overkill but while I have the space, why not. Think I have a couple more years before the kids need this room and I have to downsize sell most of my stuff to Myrddin

A slight correction

Andrew76

Myrddin wrote: »

A slight correction

Maybe, maybe. :pac:

Lack of space (I hate clutter) is defo one reason I've cut down on retro purchases the last while. That and not having the time to play them and current gen games are pretty damn good these days too!

o1s1n

Andrew76 wrote: »

Maybe it's probably a bit overkill but while I have the space, why not. Think I have a couple more years before the kids need this room and I have to downsize.

I'm ready and waiting for that BVM :pac:

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

I'm ready and waiting for that BVM :pac:

Get the fugg

o1s1n

Myrddin wrote: »

Get the fugg

Battle to the death it is.

Myrddin

o1s1n wrote: »

Battle to the death it is.

Tell ya what, I'll let you buy Andrews BVM if you sell me that broken N64 DD you have

o1s1n

Myrddin wrote: »

Tell ya what, I'll let you buy Andrews BVM if you sell me that broken N64 DD you have

I'd completely forgotten I even had one of those :pac:

Steve X2

For those that really want a BVM or PVM.
https://www.bblist.co.uk/

I've got loads of stuff from the site, lots of PVM and BVM's pop up all the time.

Los Lobos

Just got one of these off a guy that was throwing it out:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-DELUXEPRO-CPD-G520-Display-two-tone/dp/B00006SFXG

Sony Trinitron CPD-G520

It's got 2 x VGA connections, and I think 5 x BNC connections, and 4 x USB ports, he said it cost him STG£700 years ago. Am I right in saying this would only be useful for playing games off a PC setup?

I was hoping to use it for some old gaming

Andrew76

Los Lobos wrote: »

Just got one of these off a guy that was throwing it out:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-DELUXEPRO-CPD-G520-Display-two-tone/dp/B00006SFXG

Sony Trinitron CPD-G520

It's got 2 x VGA connections, and I think 5 x BNC connections, and 4 x USB ports, he said it cost him STG£700 years ago. Am I right in saying this would only be useful for playing games off a PC setup?

I was hoping to use it for some old gaming

Think you might need something like a Sync Strike to connect a SCART console to the VGA monitor. Can't remember if you'd also need the vga scaler he sells.

Bugeyedbetsy

Andrew76 wrote: »

The B&O's are a gorgeous looking tv no question, a seriously pretty unit. But try finding one for 20 or 30 quid in Ireland (the cost of a good trini).



Sir, yes sir! :pac:

BVM, B&O and Trini - all great in their own way. That 21" Trini on the right cost me €30 from Adverts. The picture is great of course but it also has really good sound - from those side speakers or the handy headphone jack behind the front flap. Super little tv.
The other two cost 3 to 5 times as much iirc.

Beautiful and interesting set up! What's the equipment on the shelves underneath the bvm?

Andrew76

Bugeyedbetsy wrote: »

Beautiful and interesting set up! What's the equipment on the shelves underneath the bvm?

Cheers. Top left is a supergun (it's sitting on two pieces of foam as the speaker grill is located on the underside for some reason), beside it to the right is a modified Dreamcast arcade stick and on the bottom is the Aliens pcb (the pink jamma loom goes into the back of the supergun).

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Sorry to hijack this thread but it seemed kind of related to my very quick question and instead of starting a new thread I thought I'd ask in here....

Clearing out the attic I found a Sega Megadrive 2 and a Commodore 64 (possibly 2). Both seem to be working so far as power goes but I can't get either to connect to my TV. Perhaps a stupid question but are modern TV's compatible with these old machines? I'm 99% sure the Megadrive AV cable is just busted (and I saw another thread mention a RGB cable) but I'm not sure about the C64 ones? Is it most likely the cables are at fault?

o1s1n

With an RGB cable a Megadrive will work with anything that has a scart input.

Fairly sure a C64 doesn't so RGB out though, so you're probably going to be stuck with the RF cable. You'd be able to tune it in though if your tv has a tuner.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

o1s1n wrote: »

With an RGB cable a Megadrive will work with anything that has a scart input.

Fairly sure a C64 doesn't so RGB out though, so you're probably going to be stuck with the RF cable. You'd be able to tune it in though if your tv has a tuner.

When I connect the C64 cable there's definitely something happening on screen but it's not the blue screen it should be. Maybe I just need to tune it, as you say. Thanks for the help.

magentis

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

When I connect the C64 cable there's definitely something happening on screen but it's not the blue screen it should be. Maybe I just need to tune it, as you say. Thanks for the help.

Is it the sega rf box lead with the megadrive 2?They are notorious for going bad,you can get an rgb scart cable for them on ebay and the likes handy enough.

The commodore 64 has a composite output on its video socket you could try this for testing,the pinout can be found online.

Your tv should be able to pick up the c64 on rf though,the majority of new tvs still have an rf tuner.What kind of tv is it?Usually you can start a scan by selecting analog tuning.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

magentis wrote: »

Is it the sega rf box lead with the megadrive 2?They are notorious for going bad,you can get an rgb scart cable for them on ebay and the likes handy enough.

The commodore 64 has a composite output on its video socket you could try this for testing,the pinout can be found online.

Your tv should be able to pick up the c64 on rf though,the majority of new tvs still have an rf tuner.What kind of tv is it?Usually you can start a scan by selecting analog tuning.

I'm not sure what the cable is with the Megadrive but I seem to remember it wasn't working before going in the attic many moons ago. I ordered an rgb scart earlier so hopefully that will work.

I didn't think about tuning in the C64, so used to just plugging things into the TV these days and them appearing My TV is a Samsung somethingorother. I'm not overly fussed about the C64, I'll try tuning it but if I can't get it to work I'll probably just get rid.

Thanks for your help.

magentis

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I'm not sure what the cable is with the Megadrive but I seem to remember it wasn't working before going in the attic many moons ago. I ordered an rgb scart earlier so hopefully that will work.

I didn't think about tuning in the C64, so used to just plugging things into the TV these days and them appearing My TV is a Samsung somethingorother. I'm not overly fussed about the C64, I'll try tuning it but if I can't get it to work I'll probably just get rid.

Thanks for your help.

Fingers crossed on the megadrive,if you have the power led and a game in and it wont tune in on rf that rf box cable is likely to be the culprit,I have had 3 broken ones and a new scart lead solved the issue.Your cartridge slot might just need a clean too.

The c64 if working is probably worth in and around the same as the megadrive so don't go chucking them,stick them on adverts or something,if its the old "breadbin" type with brown keys its worth a good bit more than the wedge shaped c64.The power supplies are the biggest issue here,if its the "sewing machine pedal" shaped power supply,check the fuse behind the circular black fuse holder at the back.These old power supplies can loose their 5 volt line(often shorting with the 9v ac line) and cause problems.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

magentis wrote: »

The c64 if working is probably worth in and around the same as the megadrive so don't go chucking them,stick them on adverts or something,if its the old "breadbin" type with brown keys its worth a good bit more than the wedge shaped c64.The power supplies are the biggest issue here,if its the "sewing machine pedal" shaped power supply,check the fuse behind the circular black fuse holder at the back.These old power supplies can loose their 5 volt line(often shorting with the 9v ac line) and cause problems.

It's this kind of keyboard...


The power seems to be working fine on it. I appear to have some parts for 2 set ups but one tape deck doesn't work and I haven't found the second keyboard although I'm sure it's up there. There's a bag of games with it too so I'm sure someone would give me a few quid for it if I can't get it working.

imitation

Can I make a reccomendation despite the age of the thread ? I have an old commedore 1084s, its defintely not common now I bet due to its age, but its been a great screen for me and its very sharp and most importantly it supports the rgb cable the amigas have for a nice picture.

magentis

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

It's this kind of keyboard...


The power seems to be working fine on it. I appear to have some parts for 2 set ups but one tape deck doesn't work and I haven't found the second keyboard although I'm sure it's up there. There's a bag of games with it too so I'm sure someone would give me a few quid for it if I can't get it working.

Its odd you cant get either this or the megadrive to display.Can you try another tv?The fact that you have power to the datassette is very positive.That 64 is in very nice condition.Having the box is great too.
On my samsung tv its; menu》channel》antenna》air and then down to Auto Tuning to start a scan if that helps.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

magentis wrote: »

Its odd you cant get either this or the megadrive to display.Can you try another tv?The fact that you have power to the datassette is very positive.That 64 is in very nice condition.Having the box is great too.
On my samsung tv its; menu》channel》antenna》air and then down to Auto Tuning to start a scan if that helps.

That's just a picture I grabbed off the Internet to illustrate the kind I have Mine is not nearly as clean and there's no box either.

The only other TV in the house is basically the same one only bigger. I didn't get a chance to try tuning it today but I'll give it a shot tomorrow.

eddhorse

Yeah you have to tune it, only did this recently.

eddhorse

Yeah you have to tune it, only did this recently.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Tried the manual tuning on the C64 this morning and got it working in about 2 minutes.

Thanks for all your help.

Doge

Alternatively you can buy a composite cable for the c64, and even an S-Video cable if you desire for better picture quality. No need to tune it in then.

Retro Computer Shack on ebay used sell them, but looks like theyre on leave til January now?

http://stores.ebay.ie/Retro-Computer-Shack

Shame as they do really high quality custom cables.

Doge

Looks like amiga kit are selling c64 av cables for under a fiver which is great value!

http://www.ebay.ie/sch/i.html?_odkw=c64+composite&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xc64+av.TRS0&_nkw=c64+av&_sacat=0

They even have a Scart cable but its not RGB, just the composite signal passing through I reckon.

Bob Z

is there adifference in tvs?

CiDeRmAn

Bob Z wrote: »

is there adifference in tvs?

There definitely is.
In a general sense you have flat panels and CRT displays, retro systems almost always were built, and games developed, with the CRT in mind and look their best on such a display.
But, amongst those, the quality can vary greatly, with some not supporting RGB signals, others not displaying an NTSC picture, the quality of the tube itself can give good sharp images or a blurrier one.

With the flat panel types you've so many differences, the big ones being the type, LCD, Plasma, the type of lighting used, the contrast ratio. But one of the big issues is latency, meaning that a TV can have a delay as the image is processed between the input and display, resulting in significant delay between a button press and the action appearing on screen, may be only fractions of a second but it buggers up your game. This can happen on even the fanciest of displays, the more filters and options around making that picture look good is often what introduces latency and some tvs have a "game mode" switching that crap off and reducing the latency to a minimum, reviews for each set will determine if it's to an acceptable level or not.
The other issue around flat panels for older games is you don't have scan lines, meaning the graphics do not look as the developer intended, scanlines giving a bit of a resolution upgrade to whatever is displayed. You can buy hardware to drop in scanlines to your games, but these are expensive, though very effective.