Fudoh's ode to old display technology

[Heavy Viper]

Jesus, boxed, nice find.

[Tapeworm]

I recently acquired a BVM-14E1U, and have been attempting to calibrate it.

Does the CONTROL PRESET ADJ (Brightness, Contrast, Chroma, Phase) menu override whatever is in the COLOR TEMP ADJ menu, or vice versa? Whenever I go in to adjust Bias/Gain, when I return to CONTROL PRESET ADJ brightness/contrast have both been reset to 1000.

I feel like I'm getting lost in these settings when they should be pretty straightforward (I'm probably going to regret saying that), but I have an i1 Display Pro and colorHRC and am pretty much doing everything step by step. However, when I go to look at my gamma chart. It starts WAY high (2.9 at 10 IRE) and ends way low (1.9 at 100 IRE)--I was under the impression it should be consistent throughout (11 step patterns). Do BVMs have gamma control at all?

[Lord of Pirates]

I recently acquired a BVM-14E1U, and have been attempting to calibrate it.

Does the CONTROL PRESET ADJ (Brightness, Contrast, Chroma, Phase) menu override whatever is in the COLOR TEMP ADJ menu, or vice versa? Whenever I go in to adjust Bias/Gain, when I return to CONTROL PRESET ADJ brightness/contrast have both been reset to 1000.

I feel like I'm getting lost in these settings when they should be pretty straightforward (I'm probably going to regret saying that), but I have an i1 Display Pro and colorHRC and am pretty much doing everything step by step. However, when I go to look at my gamma chart. It starts WAY high (2.9 at 10 IRE) and ends way low (1.9 at 100 IRE)--I was under the impression it should be consistent throughout (11 step patterns). Do BVMs have gamma control at all?

Have you double checked your settings to make sure the meter is set for a refresh display? This probably isn't the problem but I figure it can't hurt to double check all your software settings.

[Tapeworm]

Have you double checked your settings to make sure the meter is set for a refresh display? This probably isn't the problem but I figure it can't hurt to double check all your software settings.

I'll give it a look this evening and give an update! Thanks.

Have others had issues with CONTROL PRESET ADJ and COLOR TEMP ADJ menus getting along? I will set Brightness/Contrast in CONTROL PRESET ADJ (lets say from 1000/1000 to 900/900), and then when I go to adjust COLOR TEMP ADJ, as soon as I click into one of the Temps to start adjusting the knobs (to adjust R/G/B) it is obvious the Brightness/Contrast settings change. And when I go back to CONTROL PRESET ADJ Brightness/Contrast are back to 1000/1000.

[NightSprinter]

Just wanted to report that I finally found an adapter that succesfully lets me use the MAC 15 pins RGB connector on the NEC. It's this one :

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/HD15-VGA-Monitor ... SwFNZWznc-


I can now use this port as an input, or as a passthrough to a capture card! It also increased the number of RGB inputs on the monitor to 4, which is quite handy (contrary to a PVM, both ports of each RGB input can be used as either input or passthrough on the NEC, meaning that as long as you don't switch on 2 consoles plugged into the same input at the same time, you can have 4 consoles plugged into the monitor.)

Are you sure this will work? I looked at the manual for the NEC and the wiring does not match up for something from a Macintosh. I'd think a custom adapter would have to be made. Here's the pinout:

D-SUB 15pin RGB Input Connector (ANALOG ONLY)Signal to be connected (D-SUB 15 pin)
Pin No.1 RED
Pin No. 2 GREEN or Sync Green
3 BLUE
12 No Connection
13 H. or Composite sync
14 V.SYNC
15 No Connection
4 GND
5 GND
6 GND
7 GND
8 GND
11 GND
10 No Connection
9 No Connectin

[FinalBaton]

Are you sure this will work? I looked at the manual for the NEC and the wiring does not match up for something from a Macintosh. I'd think a custom adapter would have to be made.

I can assure you that the adapter does indeed work, because I have it hooked up to the NEC XM37 Plus and plug consoles into it on a daily basis, and they display perfectly fine

The setting I use on the adapter, for my consoles, is referred to on the adapter manual as NTSC - MODE 1 (composite sync(1))

This means that switches 1,2,4 and 5 are ON and the rest are OFF

[Tapeworm]

Have you double checked your settings to make sure the meter is set for a refresh display? This probably isn't the problem but I figure it can't hurt to double check all your software settings.

On Refresh Display.

So say R G B gain were each at 1000... would lowering those values using Luminosity (phase knob which adjusts all 3) increase gamma in the higher white levels?

[NJRoadfan]

The switches on the Mac to VGA adapters don't really matter if they are plugged into a display. They just ground certain pins that tell a Macintosh what type of monitor is connected.

[NightSprinter]

Like I said, just was concerned due to the pinout on the 15-pin d-sub. The pinouts didn't seem to match anything from Apple on the NEC.

[NJRoadfan]

The NEC pinout matches the Macintosh one listed here (which also details the grounds): http://www.codesrc.com/mediawiki/index. ... intosh_VGA

The Apple IIgs DA-15 is similar in regards to the actual RGB signal pins but adds things like audio and composite video.

[NightSprinter]

Strange, maybe I am reading my manual wrong. The pinout I am looking at (the one that looks like a joystick port) has a different pinout for the DA-15. https://www.manualslib.com/manual/10979 ... =17#manual

[Xer Xian]

Sorry if it's been asked already, but is there anything in particular to keep in mind when looking for a (used,old) CRT monitor, preferably not bigger than 19''?
I don't need superb color accuracy, can I live with a shadow mask or one with aperture grille is to be preferred anyway? Also, are there any models out there with an actual D-Sub connector? All the ones I see listed on ebay have an embedded video cable (I have a custom VGA cable for my DC and I'd rather not have to spare the money for a VGA box)

Edit: On second thought, 17'' might probably be the biggest I'd like to go due to size and consumption, unless, as with today's LCDs, smaller goes hand in hand with second-rate technology. Also, how would you guys go about hooking up an OSSC to your CRT monitor? Would a decent DVI-to-VGA transcoder/scaler (say, a Gefen) add significant lag (>1-2ms) even with no interpolation going on? Can a CRT monitor accept awkward line-tripled/quadrupled signals (within its frequency range of course)? Too many questions sorry

[Lord of Pirates]

Sorry if it's been asked already, but is there anything in particular to keep in mind when looking for a (used,old) CRT monitor, preferably not bigger than 19''?
I don't need superb color accuracy, can I live with a shadow mask or one with aperture grille is to be preferred anyway? Also, are there any models out there with an actual D-Sub connector? All the ones I see listed on ebay have an embedded video cable (I have a custom VGA cable for my DC and I'd rather not have to spare the money for a VGA box)

Edit: On second thought, 17'' might probably be the biggest I'd like to go due to size and consumption, unless, as with today's LCDs, smaller goes hand in hand with second-rate technology. Also, how would you guys go about hooking up an OSSC to your CRT monitor? Would a decent DVI-to-VGA transcoder/scaler (say, a Gefen) add significant lag (>1-2ms) even with no interpolation going on? Can a CRT monitor accept awkward line-tripled/quadrupled signals (within its frequency range of course)? Too many questions sorry

The picture/image being clearly visible at half brightness is generally a good rule to go by. Being able to run contrast under 100 is also ideal. Shadowmask is the best for color accuracy last I knew. You should check your local area if you aren't very picky about what monitor you get.

[Xer Xian]

Thanks for the suggestions
I know picking up one locally would be better than paying for shipping and praying it comes in one piece, but there's not much choice around here as of now. I've found a seller on ebay with a batch of new CRT monitors forgotten by mankind (link). Specs don't seem particularly bad, but it's made by a no-name manufacturer (well, I for one have never heard of it), i.e. Gateway. They seem to be based in the US, anyone heard of them / has some experience with them?

[Einzelherz]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

[FinalBaton]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

Wow! That's a sexy little CRT ^_^

Looks like they made them in a bunch of colors. The red one looks especially pretty to me

[Einzelherz]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

Wow! That's a sexy little CRT ^_^

Looks like they made them in a bunch of colors. The red one looks especially pretty to me

I couldn't find any info on them, can you link?

[Guspaz]

My grandparents had one that looked exactly like that when I was a kid, although in silver rather than pink. They had it in the kitchen, but it was slightly too deep for the shelf, so my Opa built a little extension to the shelf for it to rest on.

[FinalBaton]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

Wow! That's a sexy little CRT ^_^

Looks like they made them in a bunch of colors. The red one looks especially pretty to me

I couldn't find any info on them, can you link?

[Einzelherz]

That's pretty sweet! I'd still have the pink though cause it matches my gameboy collection.

[jhonny_d]

I was thinking of getting a shield tv for the flat screen as an emulation box, and then I started to wonder how it will look on a crt

hdmi->vga->some 240p downscaler like the mimo->rgb, will this look horrible or show somethinh decent?

[ApolloBoy]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

Wow! That's a sexy little CRT ^_^

Looks like they made them in a bunch of colors. The red one looks especially pretty to me

I had one of those but with woodgrain. It was actually pretty good for a mid-80s CRT, but without S-video and RGB I can't see myself having one again.

[Einzelherz]

I want to buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 2423519838

I had no idea they sold them in colors!

Wow! That's a sexy little CRT ^_^

Looks like they made them in a bunch of colors. The red one looks especially pretty to me

I had one of those but with woodgrain. It was actually pretty good for a mid-80s CRT, but without S-video and RGB I can't see myself having one again.

If I were to get one I'd spend a LOT of time trying to figure out how to feed it a better signal.

[miramanee]

Hello

I am from Germany and i bought a BVM 20F1E and would know what power plug do i need?

[svensonson]

a regular kettle lead (Kaltgeräte Kabel) will do the job

[ApolloBoy]

If I were to get one I'd spend a LOT of time trying to figure out how to feed it a better signal.

Sadly I never found a service manual for it, although I'm pretty sure there's got to be some way of adding extra inputs to a TV like that. I love having a PVM, but to have a CRT with the functionality of a PVM and the aesthetics of an early 80s TV would be a dream come true.

[Gnomenthusiast]

Hello All,

Tonight I'm going to pick up a PVM-20M4E, I've got a couple of questions :

- Do I need the 75 Ohm terminators for the output terminals for the RGB and other connections?
-What console / resolution does it stop being sensible to use this for ? As in, I plan to use NES/SNES/MegaDrive/PS1/N64, I assume PS2/Dreamcast + up there are better options?
- The screen comes with the optional SDI module, is that actually useful for anything console wise? I see that there are HDMI-SDI adapters, but I assume if the max resolution is 480i, then that's not super useful?

Thanks in advance,

[Shoryukev]

Hello All,

Tonight I'm going to pick up a PVM-20M4E, I've got a couple of questions :

- Do I need the 75 Ohm terminators for the output terminals for the RGB and other connections?
-What console / resolution does it stop being sensible to use this for ? As in, I plan to use NES/SNES/MegaDrive/PS1/N64, I assume PS2/Dreamcast + up there are better options?
- The screen comes with the optional SDI module, is that actually useful for anything console wise? I see that there are HDMI-SDI adapters, but I assume if the max resolution is 480i, then that's not super useful?

Thanks in advance,

Looking at pictures on google, the output plugs on the back of the PVM have the little resistor symbol on them which means they are automatically terminated. You should be good to go out of the box.

The console generation you choose to use with it is up to you. I use my PS2 with my PVM and other CRTs all the time, 480i looks good on a CRT if you are sitting far enough away that you don't see the flicker super prominently. Once you start getting into games where you can use 480p I have trouble choosing between 480i on a CRT vs 480p on an LCD....but either option is still pretty good. When it all boils down a lot of this stuff is just your own personal taste.

I don't know much about SDI so I'll let someone else comment there. Hopefully my reply helps at least a little.

[Gnomenthusiast]

Hello All,

Tonight I'm going to pick up a PVM-20M4E, I've got a couple of questions :

- Do I need the 75 Ohm terminators for the output terminals for the RGB and other connections?
-What console / resolution does it stop being sensible to use this for ? As in, I plan to use NES/SNES/MegaDrive/PS1/N64, I assume PS2/Dreamcast + up there are better options?
- The screen comes with the optional SDI module, is that actually useful for anything console wise? I see that there are HDMI-SDI adapters, but I assume if the max resolution is 480i, then that's not super useful?

Thanks in advance,

Looking at pictures on google, the output plugs on the back of the PVM have the little resistor symbol on them which means they are automatically terminated. You should be good to go out of the box.

The console generation you choose to use with it is up to you. I use my PS2 with my PVM and other CRTs all the time, 480i looks good on a CRT if you are sitting far enough away that you don't see the flicker super prominently. Once you start getting into games where you can use 480p I have trouble choosing between 480i on a CRT vs 480p on an LCD....but either option is still pretty good. When it all boils down a lot of this stuff is just your own personal taste.

I don't know much about SDI so I'll let someone else comment there. Hopefully my reply helps at least a little.

Cool, The owner (video professional) said that the monitor will automatically sync and that the sync input isn't really required, I assume connecting it is still a good idea (I understand there is a switch to use the external sync, or not).

I'm planning on having the Scart output from gscartsw to OSSC then Projector (works and is awesome), and the VGA->BNC output from the gscartsw connected to the PVM. The idea is that if others are going to watch a movie on the projector, it's still possible to play games at the same time using the PVM.

Thanks for the help.

[Einzelherz]

It won't automatically sync, you have to feed it a sync line. With a Sync-on-green RGB signal or a component signal, this is already being fed in and you'd enable internal sync. With a standard RGB signal you will need to send a sync line to the external sync port and enable external sync.

SDI is all but useless so don't worry much about it. I even disconnected my SDI card because it has a noisy fan.