Hi guys. Very glad to find this forum and all the discussion of Emudriver etc.
Recently put together a dedicated emulator PC outputting to a Sony BVM. It basically works fine, but I am having a few issues and would really appreciate some answers and advice from some of the experienced users here. The questions pertain to the crt emudriver / emu software as well as the BVM hardware.
My setup is as follows:
Core2 Duo E7600 @3.06GHz - 4GB Ram
Radeon 4300/4500 512MB With CRT Emudriver (thought I installed 2.0 but listed as WDDM v1.1?)
Windows 7 64bit. I am using Win 7 so I can use the latest emulators for online play (fightcade 2 etc)
Monitor 1: Sony BVM-20F1U 15KHz (+BKM Control unit).
Monitor 2: Generic 4:3 LCD running at 800x600 31KHz (I have this as main monitor for web browsing, settings, emulator menu navigation etc)
ISSUES & QUESTIONS:
1.) A couple of my emulators, including Fightcade 2 (FBA) are asking for D3DX9_43.DLL before they will load. I understand this means the Direct X is out of date. Can I update my Direct X without messing up CRT Emudriver?
2.) From the install process of CRT Emudriver, I still have the 'Test Mode Win7 Build 7601' message in the bottom corner of both screens. Can I get rid of this for fear of screen burn on my CRT'?
3.) I am trying to use 1to1 pixel ratios (no strech) with different arcade boards and console emulators, is it possible to save different settings within the Sony BKM control unit so that I dont have to manually adjust each board/system to correctly fit within the bezel each time I switch? If so, how many can I save and do I need to find one of the memory cards for the BKM?
Or will the BKM simply remember the geometry and other setting based on what res I feed into it like I remember some of my PC 31KHz CRTs doing in the past?
4a.) I am trying to run 1to1 pixel ratios but I have gaps in my supported resolutions. Between 336x224 & 512x448 there is only 384x240. Many boards I emulate have vertical res of 250 or more. I would just run the monitor at 512x448 and adjust the geometry, but it simply wont strech that far.
If I am only running CRT Emudriver 1.1, would updating to 2.0 give me more resolutions or would I need to downgrade to XP to get those extra resolutions?
4b.) The main arcade systems I emulate are Capcom's CPS boards which run at 384x224. Now I would just run the monitor at the available 384x240 and have borders top and bottom that I could strech out using the monitor geometry, but for some reason, my bvm HATES 384x240. Running is this mode gives me these ugly greenish screen width horizontal shadows that are cast by on screen sprites. It is very strange since the resolutions above and below it listed above work fine. This is very strange and frustrating since it is the most practical compromise res available atm. Anyone else have a BVM that doesnt like this res? The other CRT I've tested with (a JVC broadcast monitor) doesnt have a problem with this res, but I would really like to keep using the BVM as my main.
5.) If I leave the brightness at its default level, my BVM flickers quite violently on screens with large areas of block white (title/logo screens etc). Just turning down the brightness solves this, but just wondering if this is natural/common? I do remember having to turn off a brightess settting on my Ikagami monitor for the same reason.
Many thanks in advance for any help.