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Main => Monitor/Video Forum => Topic started by: wonderalex on February 18, 2011, 11:18:03 am

Title: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: wonderalex on February 18, 2011, 11:18:03 am
Hi there,

I'm currently testing an old 19in TV (Citizen) to be used as the monitor in my new build (Williams Cab). No SVIDEO, but it does have video-in and coax-in (cable).

I've got it working - hooked up to my PC, set to 640X480 (I can go lower) - but the image isn't great - blurry, colours are a bit off, et cetera.

Does anyone have any pointers for getting this to look good or at least better? I've got an GeForce 6200 NVIDIA card with 512MB.

Thanks,

WonderAlex
Title: Re: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: Donkbaca on February 18, 2011, 11:19:29 am
You are always going to have a crappy picture with anything less then s-video because of how the signal is sent to the tv
Title: Re: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: wonderalex on February 18, 2011, 11:39:36 am
Nuffin'futs!

So much for that plan - I've got quite a collection of TVs now - a 20in (kinda broken) and two 19in - well they were free so I guess I can't complain.

Thanks Donkbaca - I'll hunt for a TV with SVIDEO then.

WonderAlex

Title: Re: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: Donkbaca on February 18, 2011, 11:44:12 am
on the flipside, if you remember, the pictures weren't all that crisp on the original machines, if you can live with it, then don't bother.  It'll probably be hard to find a tv that is 19 inches with s-video.  Then you have to worry about power return, and if it remembers teh channel it was on....  I was going to go the tv route, then finally just said f-it and got an lcd.  a 17inch LCD is probably about the same size as a 19inch crt, and you can get one for like 75 bucks and it will be a no-hassle install, plus it will be lighter and easier to deal with...
Title: Re: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: wonderalex on February 18, 2011, 02:02:39 pm
I hear ya - but I've got a beautifully preserved bezel and glass I'd hate not to use - hence the hunt for a 19 in CRT TV or Monitor - which I've noticed isn't easy to find.

There's no question LCDs are a breeze to set up (same can be said for PC CRT Monitors) - but I'm really not keen on the way it displays games - particularly older ones. It's more than the lack of scan lines - they just seem flat to me.

I'm going to set-up up my FE and everything using the TV before I make my final decision - and you're right - who knows I may like it that way - besides I've got a 21in CRT PC Monitor I can always cram into the Williams.

WonderAlex
Title: Re: TV Settings Pointers/Tips/Help?
Post by: boardjunkie on February 18, 2011, 11:45:47 pm
If its a Williams cab, then why not just use the *right* monitor (arcade monitor) and be done with it?
There's no shortage of 19" arcade monitors out there....
A regular TV *will* work, but you'd need to hack it to take RGB inputs. The reason why your present TV image sucks is that composite and S-video are compressed formats, RGB is full bandwidth.

To the poster who said something about the pix not be'n crisp on the original machines, ---That which is odiferous and causeth plants to grow---. You *can't* get any more crisp and pure (on a CRT display) than RGB. And.....its simpler to work with. I have MAME set up on a 30+ yr old arcade monitor and it looks just as the original games did. LCD monitors and std res games don't give good results....at all.