XRGB-3

[brownvim]

Think it's just tweaks to image/video capturing using a PC.

[kel]

Is there a way we can get the new firmware translated to English like we did before for 2.31?

It would be pointless as nothing has changed. Just new hardware/IC model and if your XRGB-3 doesn't have the board revision with the new hardware then the new 2.40 firmware will just work the same as he 2.31 firmware did.

Try it for yourself if you want. Just copy the xrgb3cpu_v2_40.hex from the latest firmware into your old 2.31e update folder and rename it to xrgb3cpu_v2_31.hex, obviously deleting or renaming the original xrgb3cpu_v2_31.hex beforehand or copy the xrgb3cpu_v2_40.hex from the latest firmware into your old 2.31e update folder as is and then edit the .x3b file to use the xrgb3cpu_v2_40.hex instead.

[brownvim]

I will give it a try, didn't know we could do that

[Edward_Tz]

If that's the case kel then I think I ended up installing 2.31 firmware on the newest hardware. I didn't check to see what firmware was on the xrgb originally.
I didn't have a problem. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

[kel]

I will give it a try, didn't know we could do that

Only in this case because the only file that has been updated is the CPU which has nothing to do with language. If they release another update in the future that changes the OSD or command files then it wouldn't be so easy.

If that's the case kel then I think I ended up installing 2.31 firmware on the newest hardware. I didn't check to see what firmware was on the xrgb originally.
I didn't have a problem. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

Check the manufacture date on the bottom of your XRGB-3. If it is before October 6, 2014 then you should be fine. That's when the 2.40 firmware was released so I doubt that they would have sold any new board revisions before releasing the firmware for it.

[Edward_Tz]

July 2014. The PCB rev in the menu says 1.4b. Is that the newest?

[kel]

I'm not sure if it is the newest. Mine is 1.4 if I remember correctly so 1.4b could possibly be the latest or there could be a later rev, I don't know.

If you are unsure and want to be on the safe side then follow the instructions in my post above to install the latest 2.40 firmware whilst retaining the English OSD.

[Edward_Tz]

Installed it and the menu still says 2.31. Guess I'm good with 2.31 then.
Now my next hurdle is this vga to component transcoder.

[Edward_Tz]

I’m still waiting on a scart to jp21 cable so I’ve just been messing with composite for now.

The Audio Authority 9A60A didn’t center the picture on the W700b. I confirmed with Sixfortyfive that his does the same thing. Messing with the pot will get the picture most the way on the screen but not all the way if using 16:9. I generally use 4:3 so it’s not a big issue. It’s so close to being centered perfectly too…

I got an Extron rgb interface (160xi) expecting this was going to happen. With that I can get the picture perfectly centered but it has some weird effects. It seems to be changing it to 640x480p. At least that’s what I’m guessing by the example picture of Sonic in the XRGB wiki. (Picture 3) The image on my TV has the borders like that on most the games I’ve tried. Some have no top border. Maybe one of the dip switch can fix that?

Next week I should have the rest of the cables I need and a slg 3000 to test out. See what happens. Maybe take some pictures.
Learning by trial and error.

[BuckoA51]

Not like there's many 240p games even support widescreen.

[Edward_Tz]

You're right. I'm just putting my findings out there in case someone is looking to do the same thing I'm doing. I know some people only like 16:9. That weird effect with the Extron went away after I flashed the firmware back to 2.31. No idea what was up with that. So the extron > vga to component seems to be a keeper for now.
At least I assume a game like Sonic 2 is suppose to have a blue border all around the image from overscan?

[Laughingman.s9]

I’m still waiting on a scart to jp21 cable so I’ve just been messing with composite for now.

The Audio Authority 9A60A didn’t center the picture on the W700b. I confirmed with Sixfortyfive that his does the same thing. Messing with the pot will get the picture most the way on the screen but not all the way if using 16:9. I generally use 4:3 so it’s not a big issue. It’s so close to being centered perfectly too…

I got an Extron rgb interface (160xi) expecting this was going to happen. With that I can get the picture perfectly centered but it has some weird effects. It seems to be changing it to 640x480p. At least that’s what I’m guessing by the example picture of Sonic in the XRGB wiki. (Picture 3) The image on my TV has the borders like that on most the games I’ve tried. Some have no top border. Maybe one of the dip switch can fix that?

Next week I should have the rest of the cables I need and a slg 3000 to test out. See what happens. Maybe take some pictures.
Learning by trial and error.

I just ordered an audio authority 9a60 from a seller in Canada for my Sony w8, your post scares me lol

I chain my xrgb 3 and have zero trouble centering my image or full resolution, I'm trying to go the transcoder route to free up some ports on my tv and reciever as I was informed I'd likely get equal or a better image this way, I'll report back with my findings once I get set up

Anything I should know to help me set mine up when it arrives to avoid any potential headaches?

[Edward_Tz]

Anything I should know to help me set mine up when it arrives to avoid any potential headaches?

It's just not centered out of the box. Sixfortyfive's was blinking out of the box but I could only get mine to do that if I cranked the pot all the way counter clockwise. With the pot all the way clockwise it's very close to centered. On mine the outer most right of the picture would be cutoff. In Mario 64 for example, it cuts off just at the right side of the little camera guy at the bottom right or just after the numbers up top.

If it's a problem, there's the Extron RGB interfaces. I'm using a 160xi. Gets the picture perfectly centered. Still not sure what was wrong initially but as I said after flashing back to 2.31(on the xrgb) it hasn't happened again. Seems to be a pretty high quality piece of kit. No idea how well it handles high resolution signals though. I'll try that out after my cables get in.

*edit
The Mario 64 is when it's in 16:9 stretched. 4:3 it's fine.

[Xyga]

In my case using the AA I could always manage to center 4:3 or 16:9 on my Sony W650A, sometimes maybe not perfectly but at least I've never experienced something like part of the picture missing (except maybe a couple H lines on the top don't remember when it happened).

Anyway who cares if it's not perfectly centered ? Once I wanted to make sure my 4:3 image was right in the middle so I had to use a ruler to measure the pillar-borders, otherwise just by eye I couldn't tell. So really it doesn't matter except in case of OCD.

Regarding underscan borders, well, with a Sony it's not really an issue as those feature pretty useful overscan control.
(AFAIK a Sony W or a DVDO are the only available solutions to defeat those annoying borders)

SLG3000 with the AA just works, but once I was trying it on a PS2 480i game (through XRGB3 in B1) and I've noticed you can lose the signal if you try to get too dark lines.

[Sixfortyfive]

Anything I should know to help me set mine up when it arrives to avoid any potential headaches?

It's just not centered out of the box. Sixfortyfive's was blinking out of the box but I could only get mine to do that if I cranked the pot all the way counter clockwise. With the pot all the way clockwise it's very close to centered. On mine the outer most right of the picture would be cutoff. In Mario 64 for example, it cuts off just at the right side of the little camera guy at the bottom right or just after the numbers up top.

If it's a problem, there's the Extron RGB interfaces. I'm using a 160xi. Gets the picture perfectly centered. Still not sure what was wrong initially but as I said after flashing back to 2.31(on the xrgb) it hasn't happened again. Seems to be a pretty high quality piece of kit. No idea how well it handles high resolution signals though. I'll try that out after my cables get in.

*edit
The Mario 64 is when it's in 16:9 stretched. 4:3 it's fine.

Definitely let us know if hi-res / B0 mode plays nicely with your TV in that setup.

[Edward_Tz]

I haven't messed with the overscan options yet. I just wanted to make sure things were working so I've been using composite. And ya OCD can be a killer.

Does B0 not work for you Sixfortyfive? I was going down the resolution list. Only two seem to work. 640x480 and 1920x1080. 640x480 worked no problem but with 1920x1080 I get the picture, however, there's a line on the bottom of the TV that is flashing like crazy. Not sure if the overscan options would hide it. It's extremely distracting.
With 1680x1050 the image was very distorted and you couldn't make anything out. The rest gave a blank screen.

Keep in mind I'm just messing with composite atm. I can't really make any calls on the quality of the picture, just if the TV is getting a picture. I mainly care about B1 mode but I'll tryout B0 when I get my scart to jp21 cable too for you.

[SGGG2]

The XRGB is designed to be used with computer monitors, it's not surprising that B0 (and B1 as well) has poor compatibility with TV's. An XRGB3/Gefen combo running in B1 with scanlines disabled looks just like B0 at 1080p, upon close inspection it's not *quite* as sharp and the image is slightly noisier. A light scanline setting (above 219) achieves a look that's inbetween the two modes.

[Xyga]

The XRGB is designed to be used with computer monitors, it's not surprising that B0 (and B1 as well) has poor compatibility with TV's.

Why would that be so ? The pre-Mini XRGB's were designed with CRT monitors in mind, and 3 was the first to introduce more or less flat panel-friendly features, but when it comes to flat panels monitors and TV's are basically the same thing, both working with the same timings.
Some TV's have slightly off input requirements (or rather they're picky) but you cannot make a generality out of that, nor blame the XRGB's design in particular.

[SGGG2]

IIRC, the 3 uses PC timings and they aren't 100% the same as broadcast standards, some TV's have no problems resolving the signal while others...

[Xyga]

Most TV's have pc timings included in the specs I believe, the issues could be (I think) that it depend if it's a TV with a 'VGA' input but with bastard timings, and if it's digital-in only also feature bastard timings for its 'pc mode'.
Dunno.

[Edward_Tz]

Got my cable finally. Hard to get non blurry pictures. Still waiting on a slg 3000 to add.
So far the combo of xrgb3 > Extron 160xi > 9A60A seems to be perfect. Gets the picture centered perfectly. 1080p in B0 seems a bit sketchy but works from the little I've tested.

Only thing I've noticed so far is the scanlines not working with Sonic 2 player.

Messing around with the overscan options.

[brownvim]

Looks nice, I really want to get hold of a 9A60A.

Doesn't sonic 2 player run at 480i, scanlines don't look very good when it's interlaced for me.

[Edward_Tz]

I did not know that. Main reason I wanted the slg3000 was so the scanlines wouldn't drop out. So hopefully that'll correct that problem.

Audio Authority doesn't make the 9A60A anymore but some sellers still have them new. They seem to be pretty well built, hopefully this set up will last awhile or at least until the xrgb 4/5 comes out.

[SGGG2]

Yeah, Sonic 2 two-player runs in 480i. Turn scanlines off on the XRGB and run it through the SLG.

[Laughingman.s9]

Just got my audio authority 9a60 and right out if the box im having issues.

I get an image but it's unstable. It blinks repeatedly in 1 second intervals and the image is off center possibly stretched.

Any ideas what could be the issue? I Tried it with the xrgb 3 in b1 and b0, messed with polarity and every other setting.

Also plugged the dreamcast straight into it and got the problem, any thoughts?

[Edward_Tz]

You need to turn the pot in the 9A60 clockwise.

Also is it normal for the xrgb 3 menus to have a very slight flicker? I noticed when I had my face up to the TV today. It's something I can't see when sitting back.

[Laughingman.s9]

You need to turn the pot in the 9A60 clockwise.

Also is it normal for the xrgb 3 menus to have a very slight flicker? I noticed when I had my face up to the TV today. It's something I can't see when sitting back.

Where exactly is the pot? I opened it up but didn't mess with it yet as it wasn't immediatley obvious to me what could and couldn't be manipulated.

In b1 mode there is a slight flicker on sub 480p sources, I actually kinda like it. Reminds me of my old Sony trinitron. I think it may be intentional to simulate the classic crt look

[Xyga]

There should be only one, quite visible. use a flat screwdriver or whatever that fits to turn it.

Counterclockwise works best usually.

[Laughingman.s9]

There should be only one, quite visible. use a flat screwdriver or whatever that fits to turn it.

Counterclockwise works best usually.

Can I turn it while it's active to dial it in exactly where I need? Or do I need to turn it off then turn it little by little?

Also you're saying counter clockwise and the guy before you is saying clockwise lol, which is it?

[Edward_Tz]

It has stops in it so you can't over turn it. Just gently turn it either way. I had my xrgb on when I adjusted it. Mine is the 9A60A and I had to turn it clockwise