Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum

Main => Monitor/Video Forum => Topic started by: guytalbot on March 07, 2014, 08:46:34 pm

Title: Recommendations for connecting a PC to a 32" Sharp CRT.
Post by: guytalbot on March 07, 2014, 08:46:34 pm

Currently working on converting a showcase cab.  Have the CP rewired and the PC set up, now trying to figure out the best way to handle the TV.

It is a 32" Sharp 32SC26B....has composite, component, and s-video inputs.

Currently I have a spare video card.  Geforce GT 440 with 2 DVI and 1 HDMI out.

Anyone want to give suggestions on what the best solution would be?
Buy a converter to go to the composite or S-Video?
Try straight from the DVI to the component?
Spend $40 and buy a 9800GT with S-video out?

Title: Re: Recommendations for connecting a PC to a 32" Sharp CRT.
Post by: guytalbot on March 09, 2014, 12:04:06 pm

Anyone with any suggestions? 

Holding off on ordering anything so I can get some advice, I haven't hooked a PC to component or s-video for like 10 years.

Title: Re: Recommendations for connecting a PC to a 32" Sharp CRT.
Post by: spystyle on March 11, 2014, 02:40:10 pm

I think the order of quality would be :

Component
S-Video
Composite

I used cheap VGA to composite adapters like this :

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sacat=0&_from=R40&LH_BIN=1&_nkw=VGA%20to%20TV%20RCA%20Composite%20Converter%20Adapter&_sop=15&_udlo=13.00&_udhi (http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sacat=0&_from=R40&LH_BIN=1&_nkw=VGA%20to%20TV%20RCA%20Composite%20Converter%20Adapter&_sop=15&_udlo=13.00&_udhi)

... with a free big TV. The resolution is good for games, but not great for text. I had to use large fonts for the game lists, and if I needed to work on windows I had to attach a PC monitor.

While it sounds like a hassle it was not, I'd turn the cabinet around, and hook up a USB mouse and keyboard, then a VGA monitor, all on a folding desk. Then I'd work on the computer. It's only needed once in a while.

What would be ideal is a TV with HDMI, DVI, or VGA input. Or a large VGA monitor.

Good luck :)
Craig from Maine

Title: Re: Recommendations for connecting a PC to a 32" Sharp CRT.
Post by: rCadeGaming on March 13, 2014, 10:53:01 pm

Composite and s-video will give you extremely poor picture quality from a computer.  Component is of course a higher quality signal format, but the problem with the composite or s-video from a computer is further compounded by the fact these various "converters" and "adapters," as well as the "TV-out" ports from video cards, scale everything to 480i or 480p with very poor encoding.  90% of the games in MAME are supposed to run around 240p.

Here are my recommendations for VGA to component transcoders:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,121491.msg1392896.html#msg1392896 (http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,121491.msg1392896.html#msg1392896)

Your GeForce card may work with Soft15kHz (you'll have to check), but you'd get the best results with CRT_Emudriver+GroovyMAME and a compatible card. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Asus-ATI-Radeon-HD-4350-512MB-Video-Card-DVI-HDMI-SILENT-EAH4350-DI-512MD2-/251473094454?ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:3160 (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Asus-ATI-Radeon-HD-4350-512MB-Video-Card-DVI-HDMI-SILENT-EAH4350-DI-512MD2-/251473094454?ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:3160)