Questions that do not deserve a thread

[Xer Xian]

Thanks Fudoh, orange808. I don't care about HDCP stripping, but subpar output quality is bad news. It's a shame since on paper this would be the king of all digital to analog transconders with DVI pass-through (good for capturing) and RGBHV/RGBS output (good for either a CRT monitor or TV set). :/

[Ikaruga11]

My brother bought a Nintendo 64 for $4 at a flea market.

Everything works fine except every game says that no controller is detected when there is clearly an N64 controller plugged into port 1. How do I fix this? I'm opening up his N64 at the moment. Maybe the contacts are rusted and need cleaning?

[Barba]

Everything works fine except every game says that no controller is detected when there is clearly an N64 controller plugged into port 1. How do I fix this?

The controller or plug itself might be fried, too. Have you checked any of the other ports? (This is obvious, but.. still asking)

[Ikaruga11]

Everything works fine except every game says that no controller is detected when there is clearly an N64 controller plugged into port 1. How do I fix this?

The controller or plug itself might be fried, too. Have you checked any of the other ports? (This is obvious, but.. still asking)

No I haven't. What games allow inputs from Player 2, 3, 4 from the title screen?

I opened up the inside of the N64 and holy shit is there rust everywhere. It looks like there's a bit of rust on the connector pins for the controller ports too. I cleaned all of the dust and grime off, but I'm not sure what to do about the rust. I can't get the metal heatsink off because two screws absolutely will not budge no matter what size screwdrivers I use and now the x indentations has almost become an o from trying to turn it so much.

[Star1]

Can anyone recommend me a wireless ps2 controller?

Also, does anyone have any tips on ps2 controller repair?
I have two controllers, where only the analog, start+select works.

[Ikaruga11]

Does anyone know which motherboard revision Composite and S-Video started getting better on the Nintendo 64? CPU-05? CPU-08?

Also, are there only two tiers of Composite and S-Video output (good and bad), or are there more?

Example:

Bad Composite and S-Video
Good Composite and S-Video

or

Bad Composite and S-Video
Better Composite and S-Video
Best Composite and S-Video

[werk91]

Can anyone recommend me a wireless ps2 controller?...

I have this one and I can't fault it at all. Very nice to use and lighter than the DS2 too. There are some videos of it on YouTube I think. Had it for a year now with moderate use of shmups and fighting games.

[BurlyHeart]

These days I see many X-box one's for sale cheaply and I'm curious - is the 360 backwards compatibility region free? For example, could I download a 360 Japanese game, and play it on the Xbox one?

I'm probably better off buying a PC at some stage, but I'm curious about the above. Thanks.

[nem]

I remember the Sega Surf Wave being gold standard for PS2 wireless pads.

[Xer Xian]

I've been searching for the Sega surf wave for more than a year with no luck - it seems to be rare even in Japan (no currently active or ended listings on Yahoo Auction).

To OP - if you want to stay as close as possible to the shape of the dualshock 2 you may have to consider the Katana wireless controller (it looks like an officially licensed product but actually isn't). Another good one, which can be found quite easily (used at least) is the Logitech cordless action controller. I've got a couple of them and can recommend it - very well built and with a round d-pad that's not half bad for fighting games (much better than the floaty one of the Ascii pad ft2 imho).

When shopping for these controllers be sure that the receiver is included.

[DerryRumba]

Hi hoping someone can help, i recently got one of those Pal asian megadrives the MK1 version, was bought as not working, you should have seen this thing, looks like it has been living in the Sea for the last 20 years. But hey ho i'll have a go at anything, i didn't have much hope but after cleaning the mobo, reflowing voltage regulators and returning the machine to Japanese set up it now works! So i put it all back together and the power switch will not operate properly when the case is back on, it slides but doesn't click, so the only way to turn it on is by having the top part of the case off. The switch operates perfectly with the top part of the case off. When it's all back together, the slider switch just does not engage for turning on, any ideas? I'm thinking a new switch but have no idea where to look for one other than getting another broken megadrive. Thanks in advance.

[HDgaming42]

Quick question:

Do I need active sync conversion for a PVM14L5? I'm using a T-barrel to combine H+V sync out of groovymame (DVI/HD15/BNC breakout), and although my PVM-2530 used to be happy with this scenario, the 14L5 shows distortion on some resolutions and rolling on others.

I see mention of using an Extron RGB Rxi device (201/203), but it didn't seem necessary. Am I mangling the configuration of groovymame, or do I really need to address the sync issue externally?

Before I throw good money after bad, are the 201/203 units still the most compatible / least problematic units? Anyone want to trade for 3 Extron SCS 300s?

[HDgaming42]

These days I see many X-box one's for sale cheaply and I'm curious - is the 360 backwards compatibility region free? For example, could I download a 360 Japanese game, and play it on the Xbox one?

I'm probably better off buying a PC at some stage, but I'm curious about the above. Thanks.

Don't know about downloads, but it seems that you can now play out of region discs that are BC on XBOX ONE.

sauce
http://www.neogaf.com/forum//showthread ... 1&page=361

What are all the consoles that support wired/wireless LAN play? The only one I know of is the GameCube. Any more?

PS2 supported system link over firewire. Xbox could do LAN, as could Xbox 360. Actually I think you can use xlink kai with PS2 as well...

[Ikaruga11]

What are all the consoles that support wired/wireless LAN play? The only one I know of is the GameCube. Any more?

[Dochartaigh]

I've been searching for the Sega surf wave for more than a year with no luck - it seems to be rare even in Japan (no currently active or ended listings on Yahoo Auction).

I wanted a PS2 wireless controller that looked near identical to the original PS2 controller - ordered a cheap $15 Donop off Amazon. 90 reviews, 3.5 stars...it's worth a shot for $15. I'll report back if it's any good.

[mrmop520]

I noticed on my pvm-20m4u that on white screens there is a noticeable patch of discolored area - looks just a bit duller maybe a touch grey. Probably 1/3 of the screen looks like that on the right side. Not too noticeable except for white scenes and text bubbles, but was wondering if its an easy fix? Built in degauss did not affect the discoloration.

[Dochartaigh]

I noticed on my pvm-20m4u that on white screens there is a noticeable patch of discolored area - looks just a bit duller maybe a touch grey. Probably 1/3 of the screen looks like that on the right side. Not too noticeable except for white scenes and text bubbles, but was wondering if its an easy fix? Built in degauss did not affect the discoloration.

Does the patch seem to be a rectangle or square of some sort? - I ask because those are the most common types of screen burn-in I've seen, and you usually only notice them on lighter colored scenes (it can be any shape however). It's commonly from a menu or something which was always displayed in that part of the screen (which is akin to why they originally invented screen savers on PC, which mix-up what's displayed on screen so it's always different and doesn't get screen burn-in). If it is screen burn-in there's no way to fix it that I know of.

I wanted a PS2 wireless controller that looked near identical to the original PS2 controller - ordered a cheap $15 Donop off Amazon. 90 reviews, 3.5 stars...it's worth a shot for $15. I'll report back if it's any good.

I received the Donop over the weekend and it seems to be a decent controller. Definitely not up to par with the original PS2 controllers, but better than most Chinese knock-off controllers I've used (which I've tried about 10 brands of cheap SNES USB controllers in the last 6 months - the Donop definitely has a better d-pad than every one of those). Only tried it for a half hour, so your mileage will vary. I also think that it allows the left analog stick to be used in PS1 games (played on a PS2) which usually aren't programmed to use the analog stick (the right analog stick then seems to mimic the Triangle, Circle, Cross, Square buttons depending on which direction you hold it in).

I also quickly tried it on my original PS1, and it did work (for the memory card utility at least), but disabled the memory card on whichever slot it was plugged into for some reason... (tried both controller ports, and 2x memory cards).

[FinalBaton]

For great upscaling/zooming for PSP using a DVDO machine : do I need the VP30 with ABT102 card/VP50? or will an older unit give just as good results(the older ones are cheaper, that's why I'm asking)? This is for use on my big NEC crt, mainly. Oh and also on my HDTV I guess, although I'm trying to avoid lag.

I have the PSP component cable, so I will be feeding the DVDO a 480p component signal

(also, can I safely assume that the DVDO will take YPbPr and output RGB?)


Also, are there other cheap alternatives that perform very well? say, better than the Lenkeng?

[Fudoh]

For upscaling 480p you don't gain anything by using a ABT102 or higher-end DVDO. The iScan HD/+ even has a slightly more forgiving scaling engine.

Don't expect great results though. Upscaled PSP just doesn't look very good using a DVDO. Did you try to just transcode the PSP's image (if you can't use component on the NTSC) and max out the geometry controls of the monitor ? How much is missing ?

[FinalBaton]

For upscaling 480p you don't gain anything by using a ABT102 or higher-end DVDO. The iScan HD/+ even has a slightly more forgiving scaling engine.

Don't expect great results though. Upscaled PSP just doesn't look very good using a DVDO. Did you try to just transcode the PSP's image (if you can't use component on the NTSC) and max out the geometry controls of the monitor ? How much is missing ?

Haven't tried yet! I don't have a transcoder. (what could be a good option here?)
You're right, the picture size should be perfectly decent using the picture size control. Hadn't even thought of that!
I'm not sure I'll actually use that feature though : I currently have both inputs's size just where I want them and I don't want to change them (they're hard to dial back in since there are no numeric values tied to size, only a bar. Plus I really need the 2 inputs since the SFC is way brighter than the other consoles and I need a picture setting tailored for it). But we'll see, maybe I'll dedicate an input to PSP.

But even if I don't, I will still get a converter I think, since the picture size is already pretty decent as-is (the perks of a 35" CRT monitor)


EDIT : is the GARO the best one available under $100?

[mrmop520]

I noticed on my pvm-20m4u that on white screens there is a noticeable patch of discolored area - looks just a bit duller maybe a touch grey. Probably 1/3 of the screen looks like that on the right side. Not too noticeable except for white scenes and text bubbles, but was wondering if its an easy fix? Built in degauss did not affect the discoloration.

Does the patch seem to be a rectangle or square of some sort? - I ask because those are the most common types of screen burn-in I've seen, and you usually only notice them on lighter colored scenes (it can be any shape however). It's commonly from a menu or something which was always displayed in that part of the screen (which is akin to why they originally invented screen savers on PC, which mix-up what's displayed on screen so it's always different and doesn't get screen burn-in). If it is screen burn-in there's no way to fix it that I know of.

It's not really a definite shape, more of the upper right region. The discoloration is exaggerated in the pic, in person its not as noticeable, and I think after its been on for a bit its not as bad, but still noticeable.

[Dochartaigh]

Don't know how to help you with the above man - hopefully someone chimes in with some help.



For a question of my own: I know composite sucks but I want to actually run my systems on an older TV via composite to show people the difference between RGBs hookups, and composite. Problem is everything is run through my Extron Crosspoint which outputs RGBs through BNC connections – how can I convert that RGBs signal to composite? Found these SCART to Composite dongles online (although I would need another $40 SCART to BNC adapter cable - those can be run the opposite way I normally run them from the input side, right)? Amazon link:

https://www.amazon.com/Female-Adapter-C ... +composite

Not looking to spend a lot as, well, it's friggin composite! it's supposed to look crappy lol. If I could go directly from RGBs BNC to Composite somehow that would save me from buying that $40 cable...

[FinalBaton]

Dochartaigh : you could just pass composite through your Extron crosspoint ^_^
Have 1 output dedicated to composite (1 rca cable from the Extron to your monitor), and then have one input dedicated also to composite and plug one console composite cable in there. All you'll have to do now is to switch the cable that's plugged in the console - either the composite one, or the RGB one

[FinalBaton]

Bump for Fudoh :

What are the best component-to-RGB transcoders?

[Dochartaigh]

Dochartaigh : you could just pass composite through your Extron crosspoint ^_^
Have 1 output dedicated to composite (1 rca cable from the Extron to your monitor), and then have one input dedicated also to composite and plug one console composite cable in there. All you'll have to do is switch the cable on the console's end

I know I can, and actually have a second NES setup via Composite through the Crosspoint right now (the primary Nintendo is a modded RGBNES), but ideally I want to have a PVM on the left with RGBs cables, and a consumer TV on the right hooked up via Composite to show how drastic the difference is. I then want to be able to send the signal from ANY of my ~6 systems (all are RGB SCART) to both TV's at the same time - so I would need something on the output side going to the consumer TV which takes that RGBs signal and converts it to Composite.

[orange808]

...I know composite sucks but I want to actually run my systems on an older TV via composite to show people the difference between RGBs hookups, and composite...so I would need something on the output side going to the consumer TV which takes that RGBs signal and converts it to Composite.

It seems to me, you will really just be showing people the quality of your encoder, because the composite signal will not be natively created by the console(s). The actual outputs from the consoles wouldn't be the same.

[FinalBaton]

It seems to me, you will really just be showing people the quality of your encoder, because the composite signal will not be natively created by the console(s). The actual outputs from the consoles wouldn't be the same.

Ah! that's a vey good point

[Dochartaigh]

It seems to me, you will really just be showing people the quality of your encoder, because the composite signal will not be natively created by the console(s). The actual outputs from the consoles wouldn't be the same.

That's why I'm asking you masters of hardware which one I should get to convert the signal (somewhat decently) from RGB to Composite!

Plus, the entire point is to show, in a relatively truthful way, how much quality is/was lost with the crappy composite cables most of the USA used for around two decades (and at least I've forgone using RF which is what 90% of us used for the NES and other systems back in the day since our TV's didn't even have composite inputs...think the cable that even came with PS1/PS2/N64/Xbox/etc. was always composite as well - I never even knew what S-Video was until probably 2000

Looking at the absolutely MASSIVE difference between my two NES - one Composite, one RGB (the same for my SNES and Genesis) I honestly don't think the difference between the highest quality encoder/converter, and the lowest quality one is honestly going to make that much of a difference - but I would still like a recommendation for a decent one you all suggest.

[Ikaruga11]

I'm going to keep all of my handhelds solely inside my room. They will not be leaving my room ever, and I will take extreme care of them.

Do you think I still need a screen protector and protector case for them? Systems in question are a GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance, GameBoy Advance SP, DS Lite, DSi XL, Vita and a New 3DS.

The reason why I'm hesitant about applying screen protectors is because they will obviously degrade the image quality. Even tempered glass is not perfect, and I definitely don't want to use tempered glass on dual screen systems since touchscreen functions do not work with them on and having the tempered glass on the top screen only throws off the image consistency from a naked/plastic screen protected bottom screen.

[Einzelherz]

Vacuum chamber bank vault. It's the only way.