Component Video, TVs and Light Guns

[Tzvi]

I am in the planning stages of my first mame cabinet and I am currently looking at my video options.  I have read elsewhere the virtues of using a ATI 8500 and the component video dongle over using simple s-video.  Of course doing this and not s-video makes the Act-Labs TV lightguns useless.

My question is a such.  If I were to hook the VGA light gun up to the card and then hook the dongle up to the light gun, would such an option work?

I believe the reason there is a seperate one for tv is because of the gun needing access to the source video (and the VGA version wouldn't normally).   But since the dongle uses the VGA output would the gun work?

Has anybody tried this?  If not does anybody have both a component video setup and a VGA gun they can test my theory with?

Unfortuantly I do not currently possess the 8500 to test it myself with.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

--Tzvi

[Witchboard]

I would be interested in knowing if this worked as well.

[emsilva]

So do I...

  If this setup works, it would open a great range of possibilities for the lightgun users.

[Zathras]

No actually I don't think that would work since the component adapter doesn't connect to the VGA plug but a DVI type plug.

Now one thing i've been thinking of trying is hooking the TV gun with composite adapters in line with the green (main) signal.  Maybe it would be enough for it to sync on (and I've seen PS2 guns that allow connection over component if you hook it through the green).

I would try it now but I'll need a svideo connector to hook up the adapter to the light gun...

[Witchboard]

It depends on what ATI card you have.  Some hook up to the DVI while others connect to the VGA port.

[tom61]

It won't work through a dongle. The dongle only tells the card to output component into VGA, the gun would have no idea what to do with the video going through it, and attempts to make the screen flash would cause weird troubles. Possibily even damage could be cuased.

However, there are converters that take VGA and transcode it to component, I don't see any problems connecting one of these after the VGA lightgun and using it on an HDTV.

One more possibilty, many TVs can switch between component and S-video, if you get a card that can output both S-Video and Componet, you just use the TV gun on the S-Video, and switch to component when you're not using the gun for better quality.

[darklegion]

You could try wiring your standard composite/s-video gun to the green signal,this line also carries sync and your gun may be able to work with it.Or if that doesn't work perhaps the signal green signal cuold be stripped down and then recombined with your gun signal input,I am pretty sure some I.C's cojuld do something like this.That may be more effort than it is worth though,perhaps just using a cable that carries both s-video would be the go.

[Witchboard]

It won't work through a dongle. The dongle only tells the card to output component into VGA, the gun would have no idea what to do with the video going through it, and attempts to make the screen flash would cause weird troubles. Possibily even damage could be cuased.

However, there are converters that take VGA and transcode it to component, I don't see any problems connecting one of these after the VGA lightgun and using it on an HDTV.

One more possibilty, many TVs can switch between component and S-video, if you get a card that can output both S-Video and Componet, you just use the TV gun on the S-Video, and switch to component when you're not using the gun for better quality.

I think they were talking about putting the light guns on the cards VGA port before the dongle.  Basically your second statement.  At least that's what I was thinking, maybe the original poster and I weren't on the same page.

[tom61]

It won't work through a dongle. The dongle only tells the card to output component into VGA, the gun would have no idea what to do with the video going through it, and attempts to make the screen flash would cause weird troubles. Possibily even damage could be cuased.

However, there are converters that take VGA and transcode it to component, I don't see any problems connecting one of these after the VGA lightgun and using it on an HDTV.

One more possibilty, many TVs can switch between component and S-video, if you get a card that can output both S-Video and Componet, you just use the TV gun on the S-Video, and switch to component when you're not using the gun for better quality.

I think they were talking about putting the light guns on the cards VGA port before the dongle.  Basically your second statement.  At least that's what I was thinking, maybe the original poster and I weren't on the same page.

Just keep in mind that a 'dongle' will not work, you need a transcoder.
Dongle=passive mode changer=won't work. Transcoder=active converter=will work.