4:3 Aspect monitors vs. TV

[UncleMame]

I apologize in advance for the Noob question.  I looked through posts, but didn't quite see the response I was looking for.  I just finished my MAME Cab, and was working with a TV which was going though a converter box(Ultimate 2000 AX).  The screen seem to bleed a bunch and the resolution is not as crisp as I was hoping.  I read in one of the FAQs that TV was closest to an arcade monitor without the expense, but the resolution and crispness seems really poor.  Is there something I am doing wrong, or is it better to try a VGA monitor instead.  It is just tough to find a 4:3 aspect monitor with a respectable size these days.....

Any Advice ?

Thanks in advance.

[elkameleon]

A VGA monitor is the quick and dirty way to get things done, but if you want that arcade quality from a tv, you will more than likely need to either use component video or do some hacking to get it to accept RGB video... People with more knowledge on the subject will be along shortly to point you in the right direction based on your skill and budget.

[Donkbaca]

That's kind of what the old arcade's looked like, they were fairly low resolution CRT screens. If you want crisp, sharp edges, you are going to need a monitor

[UncleMame]

I'm with you on that Donk, but in this case it looks like Shadow(on PacMan) took a head shot (a lot more bleeding/poor resolution than I would expect) 

BTW, although I am a Noob here, I have lurked for a while before taking the plunge and building the cabinet - I have always appreciated how helpful you guys are !

[lilshawn]

the problem is the converter box.

whenever you convert a signal (an analog signal) to some other format, you lose information.

you need to find a way to pipe your video directly to the monitor... either by feeding it into an acceptably high quality input (VGA or component video (even s-video is not bad)), or by tapping RGB directly from the videocard into the video amplifier, which isn't easy to do.

composite input is about the crappiest input you can use next to RF input. s-video is only slightly better, but better than composite none the less.