OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Hi;
I am looking to purchasing an affordable switch and have my eyes set on two of Otaku new switches the "10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch (with housing)" and "6 Port RGB Scart Switch (low profile)"
I am a bit hesitant to dive in and purchase these for two main reasons;
https://otaku-games.com/6-port-rgb-scar ... ofile.html
https://otaku-games.com/10-port-rgb-sca ... using.html
1) Last year I purchased "Otaku's 6 Port RGB Scart/RCA/Component Switch with built-in RGB to Component converter" And was not satisfied with the transcoder quality from SCART RGB to component. The colors were all washed out. I later purchased a SCART RGB to Comp from LinuxBot3000 and have been really happy with it so far.
https://otaku-games.com/6-port-rgb-scar ... using.html
2) Bob from RetroRGB reviewed one of the newer otaku switches the 6in3out Amplified Auto SCART Switch and has given a clear warning
"WARNING: Using this switch with consoles that output higher voltage sync, or SCART cables with sync strippers built in may cause damage to any scaler, monitor or other SCART device you plug it into!!!"
https://www.retrorgb.com/otaku-6in3out- ... eview.html
If someone could please assist me, or if they have experience with these two new products i will greatly appreciate it.
I am looking to purchasing an affordable switch and have my eyes set on two of Otaku new switches the "10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch (with housing)" and "6 Port RGB Scart Switch (low profile)"
I am a bit hesitant to dive in and purchase these for two main reasons;
https://otaku-games.com/6-port-rgb-scar ... ofile.html
https://otaku-games.com/10-port-rgb-sca ... using.html
1) Last year I purchased "Otaku's 6 Port RGB Scart/RCA/Component Switch with built-in RGB to Component converter" And was not satisfied with the transcoder quality from SCART RGB to component. The colors were all washed out. I later purchased a SCART RGB to Comp from LinuxBot3000 and have been really happy with it so far.
https://otaku-games.com/6-port-rgb-scar ... using.html
2) Bob from RetroRGB reviewed one of the newer otaku switches the 6in3out Amplified Auto SCART Switch and has given a clear warning
"WARNING: Using this switch with consoles that output higher voltage sync, or SCART cables with sync strippers built in may cause damage to any scaler, monitor or other SCART device you plug it into!!!"
https://www.retrorgb.com/otaku-6in3out- ... eview.html
If someone could please assist me, or if they have experience with these two new products i will greatly appreciate it.
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
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kitty666cats
- Posts: 1274
- Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2019 2:03 am
- Location: Massachusetts, USA
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Have you seen the SCART cables Otaku sells? They’re literally those cheap Chinese ones you can find everywhere for under $10 USD… but with a clip-on ferrite core after the console connector end xDGuspaz wrote:They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
Marked up to probably $20 or something
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Thanks some good points there, I guess we will never know until someone puts them on a scope.Guspaz wrote:They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Yeah I saw those, I was generally happy to see a cheaper shielded alternatives from Otaku. The problem is they never reply to emails and there products seems a little dodgy of late. The reason i created this post was because i purchased there 6 port switch with the built in RGB 2 Comp transcoder and had terrible results. Best to stay away i guess.kitty666cats wrote:Have you seen the SCART cables Otaku sells? They’re literally those cheap Chinese ones you can find everywhere for under $10 USD… but with a clip-on ferrite core after the console connector end xDGuspaz wrote:They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
Marked up to probably $20 or something
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Only the manual Otaku switches without any amplification circuit (or other powered nonsense) are worth anyone's time, IMO.
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NormalFish
- Posts: 282
- Joined: Tue May 26, 2015 3:35 pm
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Fairly sure the switches they're selling are designed by local folks in the HK retro games scene, which they then distribute. Unsurprisingly, if you're manufacturing something on the cheap in china, expect it to be resold on aliexpress. These seem to be a replacement for the design you mentioned Bob tested, so it probably warrants new testing.Guspaz wrote:They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
To OP: I went through the hassle of trying to find a SCART switch that had the featureset I wanted without breaking the bank and eventually just moved my entire set up to component. You could use BNC or DSUB as well, but SCART hardware is hilariously overpriced given you can buy a suite of adapters or a fair number of HDRV cables *and* an extron switch for cheaper the scart switches people typically recommend. I'd save yourself the headache and swap off SCART sooner rather than later.
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
The AliExpress store has a larger variety of switches by the same designer/manufacturer than what Otaku sells, so it's not just somebody cloning their stuff.
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
Looks of good points you mentioned the problem is I have already invested in a bunch of cables from RGC and those component cables from HD Retrovision are quite expensive.NormalFish wrote:Fairly sure the switches they're selling are designed by local folks in the HK retro games scene, which they then distribute. Unsurprisingly, if you're manufacturing something on the cheap in china, expect it to be resold on aliexpress. These seem to be a replacement for the design you mentioned Bob tested, so it probably warrants new testing.Guspaz wrote:They're reselling cheap AliExpress switches that they didn't make (unless they're also the ones making the cheap AliExpress switches), and considering Bob's experience with one of their switches risking frying your devices, it seems best to just avoid them entirely and buy competently designed switches instead.
To OP: I went through the hassle of trying to find a SCART switch that had the featureset I wanted without breaking the bank and eventually just moved my entire set up to component. You could use BNC or DSUB as well, but SCART hardware is hilariously overpriced given you can buy a suite of adapters or a fair number of HDRV cables *and* an extron switch for cheaper the scart switches people typically recommend. I'd save yourself the headache and swap off SCART sooner rather than later.
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NormalFish
- Posts: 282
- Joined: Tue May 26, 2015 3:35 pm
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
I was in the same boat, but when people are asking 200$+ for a switch, and you can get an extron switch for 50$, a smaller set up (<6 consoles) can easily be cheaper than a scart switch by itself. If you're happy with the passive Otaku switches that's one thing, but using SCART to BNC adapters (I believe Voultar recently updated his design for extron crosspoint units) is pretty cheap and the extron switches are great.Jtap2000 wrote:Looks of good points you mentioned the problem is I have already invested in a bunch of cables from RGC and those component cables from HD Retrovision are quite expensive.
Re: OTAKU NEW 10 Port RGB Scart Auto Switch - Any Good?
I've tested the 6in3out and the 6in1out, as Bob said, the first one with amplified 3 outputs leaks voltage on the output because of their amplification method.
The 6in1out is a passive automatic switch, works pretty well for the price, did some oscilloscope testing, didn't notice anything wrong, but it loses some brightness when daisy chained depending on which consoles are on the first switch. the 10in1out should probably avoid the daisy chaining with same results as the 6in1out. But it should be tested.
The RCA output is a great option for the pvm, it's more reliable than scart (less leakage from what I tested)
I think it's a good enough product for a simple setup without dual output (you can achieve it with a pvm bnc output though)
The 6in1out is a passive automatic switch, works pretty well for the price, did some oscilloscope testing, didn't notice anything wrong, but it loses some brightness when daisy chained depending on which consoles are on the first switch. the 10in1out should probably avoid the daisy chaining with same results as the 6in1out. But it should be tested.
The RCA output is a great option for the pvm, it's more reliable than scart (less leakage from what I tested)
I think it's a good enough product for a simple setup without dual output (you can achieve it with a pvm bnc output though)