Extron RGB 201 - ringing and horizontal line noise [update]

[Gunstar]

Hey guys,

I've just setup the Extron RGB 201 and I have some issues with the signal, I've tried transcoded Wii and RGB Ps2 on it and the output has the same issues:
Some severe ringing, hard to capture but hopefully you can see it on the side of the '4'


And some horizontal lines that move vertically through the picture, I couldn't capture it but it sort of looks like this exaggerated effect:


Bad bnc cables? Bad Extron?

Edit: Pin 9 on the bnc>vga dsub is missing, would that cause ringing and the horizontal lines?

[BazookaBen]

I have three Extrons, and one of them gave me some interference issues, so I don't use that one anymore. Can't remember what the exact issue was, but you can always grab another since they can go for pretty cheap.

[Gunstar]

Hmm that's disappointing, importing these from the US is starting to rack up! This hobby isn't cheap

Thanks for your input, BazookaBen, much appreciated.

[BazookaBen]

Hmm that's disappointing, importing these from the US is starting to rack up! This hobby isn't cheap

Oh crap, maybe they aren't as ubiquitous in the UK as they are in the US? The most I've paid for one is like $15

[Gunstar]

That's a great price, I paid $68 in total, that's with shipping and import fees! You don't see many being sold in the UK or Europe for that matter.

[BazookaBen]

Maybe you can fix it. I don't mean to give you the wrong idea, I never really bothered trying to tweak/fix the bad Extron because I had a couple others. So there might be a way to deal with this problem.

[Fudoh]

The ringing is usually caused by setting the peak and level controls (the two knobs on the front) too high.

The moving patterns are likely due to failing caps in the psu section of the unit.

[CkRtech]

The moving patterns are likely due to failing caps in the psu section of the unit.

I thought that image looked a lot like a power problem, myself. I don't own the unit and have never seen one, but that resulting output looks like a power issue - be it internal or external.

[Gunstar]

@BazookaBen It seems I won't be able to going by what Fudoh and CkRtech say! I've got a 203 on the way now. Are all your units 201s?

@Fudoh Yeah the ringing reminded me of some pc crt monitors with bad super bright modes, I double checked and the ringing is still there with the peak and level controls set to zero. Ahh the unit also doesn't come on immediately when it's plugged in, failing caps in the psu does sound like the issue! Thanks for the input, much appreciated.

@CkRtech It really does seem to fit the bill, thanks for the help!

[BazookaBen]

@BazookaBen It seems I won't be able to going by what Fudoh and CkRtech say! I've got a 203 on the way now. Are all your units 201s?

No, but my best unit is actually my 201rxi. I forget which model my bad unit is, maybe a 109xi or something? Maybe I should replace the caps in the PSU...

[Gunstar]

Btw if you know how to open the damn thing I'd love to know

The instructions for the 201 on how to open them are slightly different to what I've observed on mine, for example it says remove the 3 screws either side, mine only has 2. I got as far as removing the side and top screws and then noticing a further three under the bnc ports but still I couldn't get the blasted case open.

I remember doing some basic soldering in school but that was on some basic boards, I'm sure it'll be fiddly on these. What was wrong with your 109xi?

[CkRtech]

Gunstar and BazookaBen - If you guys end up recapping these things and there aren't good resources out there for them, you may want to create a cap map and list the components you used in case anyone else in the future wants to do the same.

[BazookaBen]

Btw if you know how to open the damn thing I'd love to know

The instructions for the 201 on how to open them are slightly different to what I've observed on mine, for example it says remove the 3 screws either side, mine only has 2. I got as far as removing the side and top screws and then noticing a further three under the bnc ports but still I couldn't get the blasted case open.

I remember doing some basic soldering in school but that was on some basic boards, I'm sure it'll be fiddly on these. What was wrong with your 109xi?

Make sure you remove the nuts next to the VGA connectors, those also hold the case together

Can't remember what is wrong with the 109xi (not even sure that's the model number), just that it had some interference so I put it in a closet. You can have it if you wanna pay shipping.

[Gunstar]

@CkRtech That's a good idea, if I plan to re-cap I'll be sure to record the components used.
@BazookaBen I thought it might have been the VGA bolts, thanks for confirming that! Wow that's really kind of you but with a 203 on the way I -fingers crossed- should be good.

[Gunstar]

Received the 203 model today, no horizontal shifting lines which is great!

The ringing (via RGsB) is still there which is interesting and I'm pretty sure it's the PS2's fault as I checked that the level setting was off on the Extron.

I put it through the fake ebay scaler and there was also ringing evident through component 480p (YUV). Interestingly enough there's no ringing via 480i using the fake ebay scaler. I've tried this on two PS2 models (70003) so I'm left with either that particular PS2 model having a bad 480p picture or it's the third party component cable I'm using.

There's no ringing with Wii 480p> Mayflash Cable/Transcoder> Extron RGB> PC CRT.

I know PS2's component signal is meant to be noisy so is the ringing expected in both YUV and RGsB outputs?

EDIT: using a rather convoluted chain (ps2 RGsB 480p> Mayflash wii/ps3 vga cable> Hanzo (for some reason this will produce a picture, but with wrong colours> Extron RGB) there's no ringing so it must be the cable.

[BazookaBen]

Yeah, it seems ringing is usually caused by a cable somewhere in the chain. I wonder if it's due to poor shielding or too much length? Maybe something else entirely?

[Gunstar]

I've ordered a component cable with 75ohm resistors and a coupler, hopefully pipping it through that should help. Other than the monster component cable the others didn't look like they have decent shielding. Thanks for your input, BazookaBen.

[Gunstar]

Yeah, it seems ringing is usually caused by a cable somewhere in the chain. I wonder if it's due to poor shielding or too much length? Maybe something else entirely?

A little update on this, you were right, BazookaBen, and like the guys in the question thread mentioned it was the cable. New component cable I bought has no ringing when transcoded and whilst there's faint ringing/ghosting when in RGsB through the extron 203 I believe that might be the fault of the component to VGA adaptor.

As for the 201, I replaced one of the larger caps on the psu as there was a burn mark near there but it still had the horizontal issue as well as turning on instantly, I should probably swap in the 203's psu to check but am scared I'll mess it up as it works fine!