need advice on tv for arcade

[trendyscotsman12]

hi am new to building arcade and am using project arcade book to build my first one.now i was going to yous a 20 inch crt monitor but i have came across a old tv that is pretty big and am wonder if the prject arcade made out of mdf would hold it


its sim to this http://www.ashtronic.co.uk/images/product/21220109578_525.jpg
what is the best way to connect it up to pc

thanks

[smalltownguy]

That TV looks pretty recent, which means it most likely has an S-Video input. If it does, you're golden. Get thee a video card with S-video output, and you're all set.

If by luck the TV has a DVI input, even better. Most recent video cards have DVI/HDMI outputs that will work.

I'm assuming of course, that the PC you plan to use has a free AGP, PCI, or PCIe slot (not just confined to onboard video). What have you got?

[trendyscotsman12]

hi

i currently have a nividia gforce fc 5200,Althought am looking to get better one to be able to play tekken 5 on it unless this one will support that.


thanks

[ckong]

If you want to use a CRT TV, please search for one with a RGB scart output. That, combined with soft15khz, will give you an arcade perfect picture. You will need a scart to vga adapter (or cable), but that is easy to make.

I know Scart TV's are not common in the US, but there should be some to find.

[Bobulus]

ckong, I just wikipedia'd scart, and I've honestly never seen that connection type in the US. We went right from S-Video/Coaxial to HDMI and the like. I don't think trendyscotsman12 has any chance of getting a tv like that, short of buying one from Europe.

[ckong]

Too bad that Scart TV's are not available in the US. So, we have the better TV's, but you over there have the nicer arcade cabs, and plenty of them.     

[gamenut]

Hey there,
I had the same issue for a little while. And what i did to fix it was, I went to wal-mart and got one of those "any dvd to tv adapters".
It has inputs for coaxial/av/or s-video and then outputs to regular tv coaxial.
Then the video card i got has an s-video output.
So, s-video to "any dvd adapter" to the tv and done!

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/EVGA-E-GeForce-6200-Video-Card-128-A8-N339-LX/sem/rpsm/oid/153130/catOid/-13043/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do
That's the video card i'm using.
It outputs to a monitor/flat panel tv-via adaptor/ and s-vid.
The TV i'm using i got at wal mart for $125. Durabrand, a/v input in the front, but no s-video.
I picked up one of those $14 "Any dvd player to TV" converters. It will take s-vid and convert to regular TV co-ax.
 I think the picture is ok, just not great.

But i got pretty lucky not knowing what to buy.

Here are a couple pics to show you how it looks.


Here's one of the FE w/snap


And another


A close up of the snap


An in game pic


Here is one of how text looks.

if i get a chance i'll take some small vids of in game play to show you how it looks.




And now some up dates



I did some wire clean up. Not too worried about it since this is my first cab and i have to take it all apart later anyway.


I did some primer paint on the bare wood.


I'm not going to do anything to the main sides untill i get the artwork figured out

[trendyscotsman12]

hey soz been away awhile

thanks for the info gamenut sounds exactly what a need

[Epyx]

In North America you can at least find tvs with component or PC input...both of which are far better than S-Video. Failing that I would rather use an LCD than S-Video...or of course a real arcade monitor

[trendyscotsman12]

yeah a would prefer a real arcade monitor but kinda low on the cash. cheers

[Epyx]

Then my original recommendation stands...component out or RGB (VGA) connector capable tv.

[BurgerKingDiamond]

even s-video will look way better than a LCD monitor.

[Blanka]

Are you in Europe scotsman? (you post a UK link).
If so, don't get a WS philips, but pick up a 4:3 one.
The widescreens CRT's have really bad stretching algorithms, especially the Philips ones.