One more (somewhat) successful RGB Mod, this time on a 15" Philips Stereo set (14GX1619). Despite being only 15", it's packed with 2 inputs, 1 set of outputs and a pair of 4W speakers, quite powerful for its size. And the best part: a good old curved screen. I have to say: these older sets have outstanding potential. And while I dont usually recommend getting these sets just for RGB modding (just get a set with component inputs and use RGB2COMP), it's well worth the trouble. Just look at these pictures comparing RGB vs Composite.
Megaman X
https://i.imgur.com/XdqGv24.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/943lnLE.jpeg
Yoshi's Island
https://i.imgur.com/jAl9bgj.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/tyyeZlP.jpeg
Super Castlevania IV
https://i.imgur.com/pF2C7RD.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/HkrdNYY.jpeg
Street Fighter II: Turbo - Just look at the health bar
https://i.imgur.com/vMb4B9x.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/ou2s8WX.jpeg
Yea... I'm sorry, composite fetishists, but RGB is the clear winner here. The pictures actually make composite look better than it really is because the dot-crawling, noise, and improper red levels cant be captured easily. Sure, composite on a CRT still beats any modern panel using the same type of signal, but RGB is a huge step-up.
Now let's about the more technical side of things, I'll be brief. It uses a TDA 8374A jungle chip that requires 3V max, 0.9V min for RGB blanking. This set didnt have 3V lines so I just used the 5V line, attached it to unpopulated parts of the board and created a voltage divider using 2 resistors so I could get 2.5V, like so (notice the purple wire soldered to the resistors):
https://i.imgur.com/KEV6kqf.jpeg
Because I detest butchering the case, I decided to use the existing RCA AV outputs as inputs for RGB. Just remove the components, in this case resistors, to isolate the inputs. It also makes it that much easier and less messy to connect the wires and resistors to the RGB path.
https://i.imgur.com/sPgEC7S.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/ZYLP40n.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/ELip1mr.jpeg
It's worth mentioning I used the mux method by adding diodes to the OSD lines, which was easy to do because the OSD RGB path was conveniently populated with jumpers, so I just had to replace them with diodes.
And finally, the switch. It's a 3-way switch wired as: 2.5V on pin 1, wire to the chip on pin 2 (common) and wire from the micom on pin 3.
https://i.imgur.com/sFXbCX9.jpeg
The installation was very simple as well because this TV originally had handles, and the empty space left by its absence enabled me to easily attach the switch into the top.
https://i.imgur.com/cKr7caF.jpeg
Everything works well except for the OSD that is very dim but still visible. This could be due the way the chip handles transparencies/half-tones, however I wont try to fix it because we only fiddle with the settings once.
Overall, despite being a TV set from 1996 it still looks very good. There's no noticeable smearing, the luminance remains strong, the video-processing is top notch and it's a curved screen with near-perfect geometry. The Stereo sound also enhances the gaming experience even further, no need to use external speakers. I'm sure that at the time this was a top of the line set, and now thanks to the RGB mod its fullest potential can be finally realized.
https://i.imgur.com/T3ckQS0.jpeg