Gateway2000 vivitron 1100

[Hunk_4TH]

I recently came across this monitor for free. http://www.monitorworld.com/Monitors/gateway2000/vivitron1100.html
I was wondering is there is any software similar to Soft-15khz that will allow me to get those most out of this monitor? Which I know won't be much  Any ideas? Thanks!! 

[MonMotha]

Nothing special required.  That monitor won't go below VGA/480p according to those specs.  No CGA or EGA timings as commonly used by arcade games.  It's basically just a big PC monitor.

[Hunk_4TH]

Ah ok thanks for the reply! I just got a little excited when I found out it was a multisync monitor. I couldn't pass it up for free! 

[Ummon]

Why would you use something LIKE soft15?...why not use it? Anyways, s I suspected. You are in luck. That monitor is supposed to be capable of 152hz. Hence, you can do high-refresh native modes. Search under that, and you'll see what I'm talking about. (Probly in the monitor wiki, too.)

....oh, wait, that's a 21" PC monitor. Um, you probly don't want to do that. Which has also been much talked about.

[Hunk_4TH]

Why would you use something LIKE soft15?...why not use it? Anyways, s I suspected. You are in luck. That monitor is supposed to be capable of 152hz. Hence, you can do high-refresh native modes. Search under that, and you'll see what I'm talking about. (Probly in the monitor wiki, too.)

....oh, wait, that's a 21" PC monitor. Um, you probly don't want to do that. Which has also been much talked about.

I got excited for a second lol. I did a search didn't really come up with much. I'll give it another shot. Thanks for the reply!

[Jack Burton]

Why would you use something LIKE soft15?...why not use it? Anyways, s I suspected. You are in luck. That monitor is supposed to be capable of 152hz. Hence, you can do high-refresh native modes. Search under that, and you'll see what I'm talking about. (Probly in the monitor wiki, too.)

....oh, wait, that's a 21" PC monitor. Um, you probly don't want to do that. Which has also been much talked about.

Ummon, is there a reason not to run this monitor at 31.5khz/120hz?   Where has it been much talked about? Other than the fact that the dot pitch of this monitor is finer than arcade monitor I think it would be a fine choice to go in a cab. 

[wp34]

I've got this same monitor.  I've always wondered if there was any value in using the BNC connectors.

[Ummon]

Hm. A local search isn't even bringing up my post above with the phrase 'high-refresh native modes', and I've said it many times before. Seems the hyphen throws the engine off. So, look here:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?action=search2


Check it out, see what you think.

[MonMotha]

I've got this same monitor.  I've always wondered if there was any value in using the BNC connectors.

You might see a minor improvement in quality at extremely high resolution modes if you're comparing it to a high quality VGA/HD15 cable.  You'll also lose the DDC channel, which means no "plug and play" capabilities.  For the most part, just stick to using a quality VGA cable (one that uses mini-coax).  Results will be darn near identical and much easier on you.


The gist of the 120Hz operation that people are talking about is that you display each frame twice.  This results in 30kHz (2x 15kHz) 120FPS video where a group of two frames is just a duplicate.  I assume MAME can do this, based on what people have said.

On progressive 240 line games (like most older arcade games) this will give video that's pretty faithful.  The screen won't flicker as much (but it also won't appear any "smoother" since you're not actually displaying 120 different frames per second).  On monitors with tight dot pitch like PC monitors (rather than TV tubes like used in arcade monitors), scanlines will look wrong.  They usually end up being much more pronounced and bothersome.

On games that run ~480 lines interlaced (some mid to late 90s games intended to run standard res monitors), this double framerate thing ends up doing really strange things unless you deinterlace it first.  Some of these games have a setting to run VGA (480 lines progressive) natively, so that would take care of the problem if it's available.

[Jack Burton]

I have a couple of interesting monitors relevant to this discussion.

First is my GDM 5410

See it's specs here and a picture here: http://www.accurateit.com/details.asp?iid=35

The MultiScan Total Flat Screen FD Trinitron GDM-5410 SUN X7136A is ideal for the home or the office requiring exceptional image performance, without sacrificing value or reliability. The totally flat, high-resolution FD Trinitron CRT allow the GDM-5410 to perform at a level that will set a new benchmark for your expectations of clarity and color. The GDM-5410 screen features a high-contrast black coating. This coating coupled with the display's flat screen, also helps cut glare and washout caused by ambient light.
-Dot Pitch .24 mm
-Viewable Size: 19.8"
-HSCAN: 30-121Khz
-VSCAN: 48-160Hz
-Resolution: 1880x1400 85Hz,2048x1536 max
-Platforms: Mac and PC
-Signal Input: 1st VGA; 2nd DB13W3
-Power Supply: 100-260VAC
-Dimensions w x h x d: 19.72 in x 19.60 in x 19.60 in
-Weight 71.65 lbs

I have run 240 line games on it in 31/120 modes on it a few times.  It does not look good.  As Monmothma said, the scanlines are way too pronounced.  The combination of stripe pitch and 24mm scanlines makes it look like you are playing MS Paint through a screen door most of the time.

However, I also have this monitor:

Mitsubishi Diamondscan 20m

.31 dot pitch
Max Resolution:           800 x 600
Sync Type:          Composite, Seperate
H Freq/ V Freq:          15-38 Khz / 45-90 Hz

and games on it look absolutely fantastic.  Yes, the scanlines are still pretty apparent on any game past around 90 or so, but no more than a good quality new arcade monitor has now.  And they don't bother me.  I'll take the trade for the amazing color and contrast quality. 

I'll try to have some pics up of each in action in a bit. 

Hunks Vivitron is supposed to have a stripe pitch of .28 mm, so I bet it will be a very nice monitor for a cab once he gets it working correctly. 

[Hunk_4TH]

I have a couple of interesting monitors relevant to this discussion.

First is my GDM 5410

See it's specs here and a picture here: http://www.accurateit.com/details.asp?iid=35

The MultiScan Total Flat Screen FD Trinitron GDM-5410 SUN X7136A is ideal for the home or the office requiring exceptional image performance, without sacrificing value or reliability. The totally flat, high-resolution FD Trinitron CRT allow the GDM-5410 to perform at a level that will set a new benchmark for your expectations of clarity and color. The GDM-5410 screen features a high-contrast black coating. This coating coupled with the display's flat screen, also helps cut glare and washout caused by ambient light.
-Dot Pitch .24 mm
-Viewable Size: 19.8"
-HSCAN: 30-121Khz
-VSCAN: 48-160Hz
-Resolution: 1880x1400 85Hz,2048x1536 max
-Platforms: Mac and PC
-Signal Input: 1st VGA; 2nd DB13W3
-Power Supply: 100-260VAC
-Dimensions w x h x d: 19.72 in x 19.60 in x 19.60 in
-Weight 71.65 lbs

I have run 240 line games on it in 31/120 modes on it a few times.  It does not look good.  As Monmothma said, the scanlines are way too pronounced.  The combination of stripe pitch and 24mm scanlines makes it look like you are playing MS Paint through a screen door most of the time.

However, I also have this monitor:

Mitsubishi Diamondscan 20m

.31 dot pitch
Max Resolution:           800 x 600
Sync Type:          Composite, Seperate
H Freq/ V Freq:          15-38 Khz / 45-90 Hz

and games on it look absolutely fantastic.  Yes, the scanlines are still pretty apparent on any game past around 90 or so, but no more than a good quality new arcade monitor has now.  And they don't bother me.  I'll take the trade for the amazing color and contrast quality. 

I'll try to have some pics up of each in action in a bit. 

Hunks Vivitron is supposed to have a stripe pitch of .28 mm, so I bet it will be a very nice monitor for a cab once he gets it working correctly. 

That last monitor you listed sounds very nice! is stripe pitch of .28 good? I'm still wondering how I can get the most out of this monitor. Though I am impressed with the quality in MAME even without scanline effects  Oh btw did you get my pm reply Jack?