XRGB-mini Framemeister

[NightSprinter]

FBX, take care of yourself first and foremost. Work and projects have low prority..

[FBX]

Thanks, guys.

I'm going in on the 8th for an evaluation. I know I'll have to have surgery at least for the gall bladder, and likely for the hernia as well. So things will be quiet from me for a couple months anyway. After that, I'm going to focus on getting an RGB-modded NES. Just like with the Framemeister, it's time I stop putting off investing in it. It's really what got me started on my quest for image quality in the first place.

Cheers!

[NormalFish]

Hey folks. Finally got around to making an account after lurking this thread for ages. Lots of helpful info.

Curious if someone can give me a quick explanation as to why 'Movie' mode might be preferable to 'Natural' mode as I've noticed that 'Movie' mode introduces an unacceptable amount of noise when displaying my PS2 via RGB SCART as seen below:

[BuckoA51]

Wishing you a speedy recovery. My friend took my PS2 for a month when he had is hernia operated on and was right as rain after several weeks rest.

[amaradona]

Same here I wish you a quick recovery!

[NightSprinter]

Glad you are getting the gall bladder taken care of. NEVER wait to do that or follow bogus advice (like them saying it is something else).

[austin532]

Thanks, guys.

I'm going in on the 8th for an evaluation. I know I'll have to have surgery at least for the gall bladder, and likely for the hernia as well. So things will be quiet from me for a couple months anyway.

Cheers!

I've had my gallbladder removed about 4 years ago. I had several gallstones again from shitty eating habbits and the American lifestyle and had to get it removed before it burst. I frequently had pain on my right side and did not know why. I always thought it was bad gas or something but as time went on the pain got worse and I was constantly vomiting. I knew something was wrong so I finally went to the doctor, they gave me an Ultrasound, and sure enough I had gallstones. I was very concerned before the surgery that I would never be the same but it turns out that the gallbladder is a minor organ and that thousands of gallbladder removal surgeries are performed a year without any problems.

The hardest part for me was the recovery. I was in bed most of the time for about a week before I would start to feel better. It still took about a month before the soreness stopped and I felt comfortable again. As of today I feel fine and often forget that I even had it removed. The downside is that you will probably have a small 1" scar near your abdomen where they removed it. A small sacrifice if you ask me.

As for the hernia, I've never had surgery for that but I've known friends that had it and that it takes awhile to recover from as well. Anyways, I hope everything goes well and that you have a speedy recovery.

[austin532]

Hey folks. Finally got around to making an account after lurking this thread for ages. Lots of helpful info.

Curious if someone can give me a quick explanation as to why 'Movie' mode might be preferable to 'Natural' mode as I've noticed that 'Movie' mode introduces an unacceptable amount of noise when displaying my PS2 via RGB SCART as seen below:

Movie mode is the closest to the original source despite the noise filter. Natural mode tends to oversaturate the colors and gives a smudgy look to them IMO. Some people actually due prefer Natural over Movie so it all come down to your preference.

[NormalFish]

Movie mode is the closest to the original source despite the noise filter. Natural mode tends to oversaturate the colors and gives a smudgy look to them IMO. Some people actually due prefer Natural over Movie so it all come down to your preference.

Surprising that movie's closest to source. Via component I prefer it, typically, but via RGB the noise is way too apparent.

[Chocograph]

http://s3.postimg.org/5lhju38o1/IMG_0338.jpg Took a screen of the N64 pal RGB cables I got from retro console accessories. Any idea if this interference is a faulty cable? It moves from the bottom of the picture and up and repeat of course.

[12345]

Natural mode tends to oversaturate the colors and gives a smudgy look to them IMO.

Indeed, Movie is practically identical to Picture, colorwise only of course.

@Chocograph
Are you having the same problem with another cable?
--yes: Your N64 (mod) is likely to be defective. Could also be the power supply though.
--no: Your new cable seems to have an issue.

[CkRtech]

http://s3.postimg.org/5lhju38o1/IMG_0338.jpg Took a screen of the N64 pal RGB cables I got from retro console accessories. Any idea if this interference is a faulty cable? It moves from the bottom of the picture and up and repeat of course.

Most of the issues I have encountered have been something like -
1: Wavy/dancing lines are related to noise/interference in the video signal
2: Lines that appear to move "deliberately" up the screen and then cycle are power-related.

Of course, it can also be a combination of the two. Running unshielded cables across a power cable, etc, can cause visual artifacts.

Are you using a surge protector or going straight to the wall? Are the display, FM, and N64 all plugged into the same outlet/surge protector, etc?

[Chocograph]

http://s3.postimg.org/5lhju38o1/IMG_0338.jpg Took a screen of the N64 pal RGB cables I got from retro console accessories. Any idea if this interference is a faulty cable? It moves from the bottom of the picture and up and repeat of course.

Most of the issues I have encountered have been something like -
1: Wavy/dancing lines are related to noise/interference in the video signal
2: Lines that appear to move "deliberately" up the screen and then cycle are power-related.

Of course, it can also be a combination of the two. Running unshielded cables across a power cable, etc, can cause visual artifacts.

Are you using a surge protector or going straight to the wall? Are the display, FM, and N64 all plugged into the same outlet/surge protector, etc?

Helpful. The power adapter for the N64 is a cheap one from Hong Kong (ebay). They're all connected to the same outlet. I'm going to try it on my CRT this weekend.

[CkRtech]

The power adapter for the N64 is a cheap one from Hong Kong (ebay).

Possible bingo. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.

[FBX]

Hey folks. Finally got around to making an account after lurking this thread for ages. Lots of helpful info.

Curious if someone can give me a quick explanation as to why 'Movie' mode might be preferable to 'Natural' mode as I've noticed that 'Movie' mode introduces an unacceptable amount of noise when displaying my PS2 via RGB SCART as seen below:

I had done several tests with RGB SNES and found there was no noise whatsoever from Movie mode, while Natural mode introduced saturation noise.

If you wouldn't mind, please take a pic of Picture mode as well and compare between the three. Thanks!

[Thomago]

I had done several tests with RGB SNES and found there was no noise whatsoever from Movie mode, while Natural mode introduced saturation noise.

MOVIE mode adds artificial noise. Always. If you don't see any noise (and you have to look closely at high output resolutions!), your TV does unneeded noise filtering.

[FBX]

I had done several tests with RGB SNES and found there was no noise whatsoever from Movie mode, while Natural mode introduced saturation noise.

MOVIE mode adds artificial noise. Always. If you don't see any noise (and you have to look closely at high output resolutions!), your TV does unneeded noise filtering.

Actually my TV doesn't (I've got all noise filters turned off). I'm beginning to think the issue might be with the resolution. Like perhaps the noise is only visible on a 480i RGB signal. This might explain why it doesn't show up on component or 240p RGB. More testing is needed.

[FBX]

Update:

I finally managed to spot the noise, but is was so faint as to require me getting my eyes six inches from the surface of my 55-inch display to just make it out. It's a very faint white noise, which I'm guessing is what the Japanese manual is referring to as "film-like noise effect".

At any rate, in light of this, I guess we'll have to leave up to the user. If you can't really see the noise, it's worth using it instead of Natural for the aforementioned saturation issues.

Edit: Spoke to a friend that did some encoding tests, and he found the film noise was causing issues there. So the safe mode to use is Natural after all. I've already updated the profiles package and rewrote my pages on the findings.

[Chocograph]

The power adapter for the N64 is a cheap one from Hong Kong (ebay).

Possible bingo. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.

Yep, this was the issue. Now...the N64 itself...on the framemeister...RGB...looks like CRAP. There's no way around it, no settings to be made. The N64 looks like shit on LCD. Happy the cables worked though. I'll be using the framemeister primarily for my favorite console, the snes.

[kjoy045]

Hey guys,

reading some mixed reviews here.

quick question;

Is the N64 worth RGB modding (I'm reading that it looks like junk even through the Framemeister with SCART connection)

It's the only console I have left to decide on if I am going to improve. Also for FBX did you notice a big pixel sharpness difference when you went to the 1-chip? I ask because they are hard to come by let alone the 1-chip-03.

Thanks,

[pyrotek85]

Hey guys,

reading some mixed reviews here.

quick question;

Is the N64 worth RGB modding (I'm reading that it looks like junk even through the Framemeister with SCART connection)

It's the only console I have left to decide on if I am going to improve. Also for FBX did you notice a big pixel sharpness difference when you went to the 1-chip? I ask because they are hard to come by let alone the 1-chip-03.

Thanks,

I thought it looked great myself, but I don't know if that's specific to certain models or even the display I'm using. It sure as hell beats using composite, I tried that once just for kicks lol.

[neorichieb1971]

The RGB input on the framemeister, does the adapter for JP21 cables come with the unit?

[Chocograph]

Hey guys,

reading some mixed reviews here.

quick question;

Is the N64 worth RGB modding (I'm reading that it looks like junk even through the Framemeister with SCART connection)

It's the only console I have left to decide on if I am going to improve. Also for FBX did you notice a big pixel sharpness difference when you went to the 1-chip? I ask because they are hard to come by let alone the 1-chip-03.

Thanks,

I own a lot of modded consoles and will NOT accept any less than RGB. I've been gaming on RGB since ca 95 but I'm telling you....S-Video is fine for N64. I can say this without having ever seen S-Video on 64 but you can only improve the image so much. My N64 RGB mod looked exactly like I imagined before I got it. It's much sharper than composhit but also much more pixellated with visible jaggies. And that's great...but it's not worth it if you can do S-Video.

[Chocograph]

Hey guys,

reading some mixed reviews here.

quick question;

Is the N64 worth RGB modding (I'm reading that it looks like junk even through the Framemeister with SCART connection)

It's the only console I have left to decide on if I am going to improve. Also for FBX did you notice a big pixel sharpness difference when you went to the 1-chip? I ask because they are hard to come by let alone the 1-chip-03.

Thanks,

I own a lot of modded consoles and will NOT accept any less than RGB. I've been gaming on RGB since ca 95 but I'm telling you....S-Video is fine for N64. I can say this without having ever seen S-Video on 64 but you can only improve the image so much. My N64 RGB mod looked exactly like I imagined before I got it. It's much sharper than composhit but also much more pixellated with visible jaggies. And that's great...but it's not worth it if you can do S-Video. It's a french official RGB mod. I almost regret my purchase but I guess they'll be harder and harder to come by. That's just my opinion. I've been digging out and putting away the console a few times these past days when testing my new cable but I can dig it out tomorrow or Saturday and take a few off-screen pics comparing composhit with RGB, both on CRT and framemeister.

[pyrotek85]

I own a lot of modded consoles and will NOT accept any less than RGB. I've been gaming on RGB since ca 95 but I'm telling you....S-Video is fine for N64. I can say this without having ever seen S-Video on 64 but you can only improve the image so much. My N64 RGB mod looked exactly like I imagined before I got it. It's much sharper than composhit but also much more pixellated with visible jaggies. And that's great...but it's not worth it if you can do S-Video.

Yeah S-video is usually tolerable for most people, but the mod isn't terribly complicated either. But you're right, even at it's best it's not like the N64 is really beautiful or anything, the image was just really clear compared to composite. Most everything from that generation tends to age badly IMO.

[NormalFish]

Update:

I finally managed to spot the noise, but is was so faint as to require me getting my eyes six inches from the surface of my 55-inch display to just make it out. It's a very faint white noise, which I'm guessing is what the Japanese manual is referring to as "film-like noise effect".

At any rate, in light of this, I guess we'll have to leave up to the user. If you can't really see the noise, it's worth using it instead of Natural for the aforementioned saturation issues.

Edit: Spoke to a friend that did some encoding tests, and he found the film noise was causing issues there. So the safe mode to use is Natural after all. I've already updated the profiles package and rewrote my pages on the findings.

As I said before, using component on my PS2 (for PSX or PS2 games) I can't see the noise either. Via RGB, however, the noise is disgustingly apparent. Have you gotten that PSX RGB cable, yet? I'm curious if your experience might match mine.

[TheShadowRunner]

The RGB input on the framemeister, does the adapter for JP21 cables come with the unit?

Yes.

[broken harbour]

I own a lot of modded consoles and will NOT accept any less than RGB. I've been gaming on RGB since ca 95 but I'm telling you....S-Video is fine for N64. I can say this without having ever seen S-Video on 64 but you can only improve the image so much. My N64 RGB mod looked exactly like I imagined before I got it. It's much sharper than composhit but also much more pixellated with visible jaggies. And that's great...but it's not worth it if you can do S-Video.

Yeah S-video is usually tolerable for most people, but the mod isn't terribly complicated either. But you're right, even at it's best it's not like the N64 is really beautiful or anything, the image was just really clear compared to composite. Most everything from that generation tends to age badly IMO.

I've used both S-Video and RGB on an N64 on a Framemeister and i can say confidently that RGB is sharper and clearer.

Having said that, look at the source material, the N64 is a blurry mess at the best of times, scanlines help.

[pyrotek85]

I own a lot of modded consoles and will NOT accept any less than RGB. I've been gaming on RGB since ca 95 but I'm telling you....S-Video is fine for N64. I can say this without having ever seen S-Video on 64 but you can only improve the image so much. My N64 RGB mod looked exactly like I imagined before I got it. It's much sharper than composhit but also much more pixellated with visible jaggies. And that's great...but it's not worth it if you can do S-Video.

Yeah S-video is usually tolerable for most people, but the mod isn't terribly complicated either. But you're right, even at it's best it's not like the N64 is really beautiful or anything, the image was just really clear compared to composite. Most everything from that generation tends to age badly IMO.

I've used both S-Video and RGB on an N64 on a Framemeister and i can say confidently that RGB is sharper and clearer.

Having said that, look at the source material, the N64 is a blurry mess at the best of times, scanlines help.

Oh yeah, scan lines are a must for me. Like I said, the signal looks very good for what it is, even though the games themselves aren't that impressive looking due to the tech they were using at the time.

8- and 16-bit systems tend to look the best of course, which I think is what the Mini was designed for.

[CkRtech]

Having said that, look at the source material, the N64 is a blurry mess at the best of times, scanlines help.

Pretty much exactly how I feel. I don't run scanlines with anything...but the N64 is wince-worthy without them (...and possibly still with them).