XP, ATI Tv-OUT, and TV Help Please

[Ray Gaida]

I just started tinkering around with my 27" TV and S-Video out with the ATI Radeon 7500.

I have the best picture when I use the 47Khz Interlaced refresh rate in the monitor setting. The problem is that in XP I cannot get a screen size below 800x600, so I have a "virtual desktop" and I must use the mouse to "scroll" to different parts of the screen.

Is there a way to try 640x480 on XP? I think that size will help out with the virtual desktop problem.

What are some good screen size/refresh rates that others have tried with good results?

Is this interlaced mode the best for a TV? The normal refresh rates look blurry and flickery(if that is a word).

Thanks,
Ray Gaida
rtgaida@yahoo.com

[ranrom24]

Use one of the the following procedures to set your monitor to 640 x 480 resolution.

If you joined a Workgroup:

Option A
1. Windows XP starts in Tutorial mode. You will need to turn off your system without properly shuting down.
2. Turn your system off; then turn it on.
3. After the initial boot screen, you will see a blank screen with a white cursor in the upper left-hand corner. When you see this screen, Click F8 then select "Enable VGA Mode." CLICK HERE TO DISMISS THE DIALOG BALLOON.

Option B
1. In the Windows XP operating environment, right click on the desktop to bring up the Desktop Menu.
2. Under the Menu, choose Properties.
3. In the Display Properties dialog box, choose Settings > Advanced > Adapter.
4. Under the Adapter tab, click the List All Modes button. You will see a menu


If you joined a Domain
Option A
1. Shut your system down.
2. After the initial boot screen, you will see a blank screen with a white cursor in the upper left-hand corner. When you see this screen, Click F8 then select "Enable VGA Mode."

Option B
1. In the Windows XP operating environment, right click on the desktop to bring up the Desktop Menu.
2. Under the Menu, choose Properties.
3. In the Display Properties dialog box, choose Settings > Advanced > Adapter.
4. Under the Adapter tab, click the List All Modes button. You will see a menu
5. Choose 640 x 480, High Color (16 bit), Default Refresh (as highlighted in Figure 4), and click OK.
6. Click Apply, then click OK until you exit the Display Properties dialog box.

[random24]

:-/Sorry, I didn't read this before I cut and pasted. I see now that this is completely useless.

[Rick Osborn]

I use a 27" TV (RCA), XP Pro and have used 2 different ATI cards (Rage & All in Wonder).  I have had no problems at all using 800x600 resolution and do not have to scroll or use a virtual desktop.

Not sure what you can check, but double check all your TV settings when in display properties.  

I know this didn't help much, but wanted to let you know I have almost the exact setup and everything worked fine right from the start.  

The only settings I adjusted to get the best pic possible were : font size, icon size, s-video sharpness and various background colors.

Rick

I just started tinkering around with my 27" TV and S-Video out with the ATI Radeon 7500.

I have the best picture when I use the 47Khz Interlaced refresh rate in the monitor setting. The problem is that in XP I cannot get a screen size below 800x600, so I have a "virtual desktop" and I must use the mouse to "scroll" to different parts of the screen.

Is there a way to try 640x480 on XP? I think that size will help out with the virtual desktop problem.

What are some good screen size/refresh rates that others have tried with good results?

Is this interlaced mode the best for a TV? The normal refresh rates look blurry and flickery(if that is a word).

Thanks,
Ray Gaida
rtgaida@yahoo.com

[arcadeking25]

sorry about the bad news :-/ but there is no other way to get xp to 680x480..unless you reinstall you os...
thats what i did with my problem...hope this help...if you dont have windows xp then i might send it to you if i get something in return..a game maybe...contact me..

arcadeking25@yahoo.com

[CubbieRay]

Actually 800x600 looked good (just a little flicker), but this 47kHz Interlaced video refresh rate looked awesome. The only problem was that 800x600 would not completely on the screen. This meant I have to "scroll" the desktop.

Since it is a new box with very little settings, I am going to try Windows 98 and see if I like the results with 640x480.

Does anyone know if I will have problems with Windows98 (not SE)? Or sould I get the SE version? Does using the LITE version really make a difference? I am running on an Althon XP 1800 machine.

Also, does any tekkie know why the 47kHz INTERLACED mode looks the best on a TV, and why it make the desktop extend past the TV size?

I will let everyone know my results.

Ray

[Howard_Casto]

don't go back to 98... it's a setup issue not your os!!


first off i have used every single ati card out there and they all work fine at 800X600 tv-out (im actually using a 7500 right now)  virtual desktop scrolling occurs when your computer monitor (not tv) is set above 800*600 for composite or 1024*768 with svid.....  it is REQUIRED that your base monitor be at a compatable res because you cannot set them at different resolutions independantly.......

also be aware that mame will "break" the resolution settings if it's not configured properly.... turn autosize off and set it to 800*600 and make sure hardware stretching and keepaspect ratio are both turned on and you'll be all set  

secondly there is a very simple way to get 640*480 in windows.....

open up display properties.... go to the advanced options... in the adapter tab, their should be a button that says "list all modes"  click on it and you can select the older 640*480 res's although it might warn you about using them

actually there's an even easier way... download my frontend



it'll let you force resolution settings and it's been designed to work with ati cards.  It even has a "ati switcher" feature that'll let you create two ati profiles and let the emulator switch to your "arcade" profile when running and back to your "desktop" profile upon exiting the fe....

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/dragon/

hope that helps