Vision Pro S/VGA and Arcadevga2 HELP!

[nen10dough]

I've been at it all night, and I just can't get this monitor and computer to play nice. 

First off, I'm running on XP, and I've updated the Arcadevga2 drivers and everything displays on my LCD monitor properly.  I've searched and tried everything recommend on the forums, but to no avail; all I can get is an"out of range" screen, then the monitor just shuts down.  Setting up the resolution and refresh rates manually has not worked.  I set up the correct resolutions for both displays (they are connected simultaneously), setting them each to 640X480(32 bit)/ 60 Hz, which is something the Vision Pro should handle.  When I reboot with these settings and disconnect the LCD (this sets the Vision Pro as the primary monitor since the option is grayed out under settings) the out of range message displays and states that it is running at 60HZ/15.7kHz.  This monitor takes 60HZ/31kHZ, so how do I change the horizontal scan so that it displays properly?  Is this a setting on the Arcadevga2?  Or is it something odd with my computer settings? Anyone have this monitor that can help?

I'm sorry if this is hard to follow, I can answer any questions you have, it's just that I'm really at a loss here and desperate to get the monitor working.  Hopefully, it's something really stupid and that's it.

Thanks

[SailorSat]

To run a normal VGA Monitor (31+ kHz) with the AVGA2 you have to connect it with a DVI-VGA Adapter on the (white) DVI port.

The (blue) VGA Port outputs 15kHz Signal designed for Arcade Monitors/TVs.

[nen10dough]

Thanks for the help Sailor, I guess I didn't research these two products as well as I should have before I bought them.   It's clear to me now that each product's advantages are obviously pointless with one another; the ArcadeVGA is made to communicate easier with older Arcade monitors, while the Vision Pro S/VGA (non tri-sync) is made to easier connect to newer computers, their benifits just cancel each other out.  I would've been better off going with a standard graphics card with one or a CGA monitor with the other.

So here's a question, and maybe it's worthy of another thread, but what are people's opinions on 15kHz vs. 31kHz monitors?  Basically, is the difference between the two so pronounced that it would be worth shelling my Vision Pro at a loss to buy a 15kHz monitor for that true arcade experience.  Part of me says not to worry about it, the games look fine on the S/VGA monitor and to just keep it, but I'd really like to hear people's thoughts on the subject.

Either way I'll probably end up selling either the Vision Pro or the ArcadeVGA2, since I really don't need one if I have the other.  I guess I'm leaning more towards downgrading to a CGA monitor.

Thanks again.

[SailorSat]

Hm... That's another "crusade"-Question (like ATI vs. NVidia or Intel vs. AMD).

An 15kHz Monitor is nice with "low resolutions". Great for watching movies, playing games. Bad for reading Text or doing office stuff (image simply is NOT sharp).
An 31kHz Monitor is nice with "high resolutions". Great for reading stuff, high resolutions, playing games that require fine details.

There even are 31kHz Monitors with "low resolution" tubes.
Whatsoever... Try playing Mario World on a real SNES (on a TV) and then play it on a SNES emulation on a normal VGA Monitor. Thats basically the difference.

[ahofle]

The best solution IMO is to get the best of both worlds and buy a multi-sync monitor that handles 15khz, 25khz, AND 31khz.  Betson and Billabs both offer multisyncs.
Consider that well over 90% of arcade games used 15khz CGA monitors.  So if you are after authentic arcade resolutions, there is really no substitute.

[nen10dough]

Yeah I orginally went for a tri-sync Betson, but every person that I talked with the company said all 19" models were out of stock.  I'm building a cocktail cab and 19" is the biggest I can go, and most tri-syncs tend to be of the larger variety.  I've been to all the websites, but actually trying to track down one of these smaller tri-sync monitors was a real pain in the butt, so I blindly got the Vision Pro instead.  Anyone have any leads on another 19" tri-sync monitor?

[ahofle]

Have you looked at the billabs 19" trisync?
http://billabs.com/bl19c91t.htm

[nen10dough]

Yeah that's the one I originally went for, but every sales associate I talked to over there claimed they had none in stock.  It was like pulling teeth getting any information about when they'd be back, they just kept referring me to other standard res monitors.  After a month of back and forth and "I'm making some calls to the warehouse, I'll get back to you next week if I find anything" I just gave up.  Ah well, what can you do...

[ahofle]

That sucks.  I've actually been looking forward to hearing reviews of that model and their 25" multisync.

[nen10dough]

Well it's a new year, so I thought I'd give Billabs one more shot and called them up again this morning.  It was a little difficult talking to the lady that answered (her english wasn't very good), but after a while we made some headway and she claims that they now have the 19" Billabs Auto-sync in stock for $265.  She says that I should expect a shipping quote via email soon, and if it's fair we'll take it from there, so who knows maybe it'll work out this time.  Although I'm not holding my breath.

Thanks guys for all your help.

[Ummon]

Yes, look A LOT before you leap. And sometimes it gets botched anyways. There are some companies, I think Billabs is included, that are coming out with multi-sync LCDs. I don't see the point because you don't get lines. I can't see using an arcade vga with an LCD for exactly the same reason. Eventually, none of this will matter what with the coming developments in monitor technology and in MAME video rendering (no prophecies here just general speculation), but until then you just can't match the right equipment.

[nen10dough]

Well things change, and it looks like I'll be receiving a new billabs 19" trisync in the mail tomorrow.  I couldn't believe it when they said they were shipping out my order the same day I placed it, and the shipping would only be $22 to NYC.  My previous dealings with billabs were nothing short of excruciating, but this time around has been the complete opposite.  I'll report back impressions once I've spent some time with the monitor; I must say I'm pretty excited to try it out.  I'm also selling the Vision Pro on the Buy/Sell/Trade page in case anyone is interested.

[ahofle]

Cool!
PLEASE post a full review of that monitor once you get it all working.

[squirrellydw]

any reviews on this monitor?