XRGB - breakdown request

[Skykid]

The XRGB-3 page here is very long and very old. I was wondering if someone could do a very brief overview of the pros and cons of each unit. I've heard that different units are better than others at certain things.
Currently I have jut got an XRGB2+ and I set my SFC up through S-video and it looks slightly bleh. The colours are too strong, even after adjusting the gamma and the only way to reduce it is to drop the brightness or raise the black, which makes it end up looking dark and colourful.

Thanks for the help.

[Strider77]

if your not using RGB with the XRGB then it's worthless..... trust me, ditch that s video cord and go with a RGB cable.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Yep, what Strider77 says about using an S-Video cable with said console -- best to stick with Euro Scart RGB or Japanese RGB. ^_~

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Skykid]

Thanks for the tips guys - so basically S-video is completely dud. What about running component with a PS2, any good?

Also, PCEF, I heard using Euro scart will break the XRGB, it needs JP RGB scart only - is this correct? If so, how do I tell the difference between Euro and JP without dissecting (as I may have some knocking about at home but I don't know which is which.)

Thanks for the help gents. I bought this mainly for use with: Neo AES, SNES, MD, GC, PS2 - is this the best XRGB for these machines?

Sorry for all the questions, much appreciated in advance!

[DC906270]

the following test/review of the xrgb may help - http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/

yes, you need to connect your consoles to the xrgb thru japanese scart. best thing to do is buy one of these euro scart---> jap converter cables :

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWNX:IT

[Strider77]

component is fine.... I notice no difference.

[Skykid]

the following test/review of the xrgb may help - http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/

yes, you need to connect your consoles to the xrgb thru japanese scart. best thing to do is buy one of these euro scart---> jap converter cables :

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWNX:IT

Brilliant man, that was really helpful. It looks like I made the right choice with the 2+. The scanline options and component are pretty important to me. On top of that I've heard that the XRGB3 has some lag issues (?)

With regard to that very interesting looking Euro scart---> Jap converter, I have a feeling I have one of the those that came with my RGB modded PC Engine. If I count the pins and find 21, does that mean it's all good to plug and play with my euro scarts? (Would be so helpful!)

Finally, one more thing, is component worth using for anything? I imagine RGB is top of the recommended list, so what order would people say different leads give different picture quality. I'm guessing this:

RGB
Component
S-video
Composite

Sound about right?

[brentsg]

You really shouldn't detect much difference between component an RGB.

[Skykid]

You really shouldn't detect much difference between component an RGB.

Ah cool, well I'm going to try connecting up component with my PS2 tonight then. It runs via a scart head adaptor through the XRGB anyway. Interested to see how it looks.

Thanks!

With regard to this question about identifying JP scart:

With regard to that very interesting looking Euro scart---> Jap converter, I have a feeling I have one of the those that came with my RGB modded PC Engine. If I count the pins and find 21, does that mean it's all good to plug and play with my euro scarts? (Would be so helpful!)

Anyone?

EDIT: I plugged up my PAL modded PS2 with NTSC Gradius V and gave it a shot through the component connection (using the supplied conponent ---> RGB scart adaptor). First thing I noticed was that the frame rate was waaay off, especially on the scrolling backdrops. Really lagging, you don't need to pay too much attention to notice. I tried CRTSYNC modes, made sure it was switched to NTSC etc. Not sure what I'm doing wrong - does the XRGB2+ usually have frame rate issues?
So far regular RGB through LCD seems to do a better job.

[Strider77]

I've never had lag with a 2, 2+ or a 3.

I've never used PAL with it though.

[Skykid]

I've never had lag with a 2, 2+ or a 3.

I've never used PAL with it though.

Yeah but it's a modded unit and running an NTSC game at 60hz, shouldn't be a problem regardless - have you ever had frame rate issues with yours Strider?

[Fudoh]

A 480i game like G5 is really not the way to test a XRGB, give it a try with a 240p title...

[brentsg]

I have a 2 and a 2+ but never a framerate issue.

[Skykid]

A 480i game like G5 is really not the way to test a XRGB, give it a try with a 240p title...

Really? Hmm, ok, I'll give something else a shot thanks.

I have a 2 and a 2+ but never a framerate issue.

I'd be really interested if someone with a 2+ could pop Gradius V in for two minutes and just watch the background at the beginning of the game. The controller response time seemed fine, it was just the background that was losing frames.

Thanks all

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Thanks for the tips guys - so basically S-video is completely dud. What about running component with a PS2, any good?

Also, PCEF, I heard using Euro scart will break the XRGB, it needs JP RGB scart only - is this correct? If so, how do I tell the difference between Euro and JP without dissecting (as I may have some knocking about at home but I don't know which is which.)

Thanks for the help gents. I bought this mainly for use with: Neo AES, SNES, MD, GC, PS2 - is this the best XRGB for these machines?

Sorry for all the questions, much appreciated in advance!

The XRGB-2 can be modded to accept PAL/Euro Scart, so there is no need to get an adapter for Euro Scart to Japanese RGB. The link can be found here: http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=30 and another related XRGB-2 mod job conversion to Euro Scart listed here: http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=2118

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[brentsg]

I'd be really interested if someone with a 2+ could pop Gradius V in for two minutes and just watch the background at the beginning of the game. The controller response time seemed fine, it was just the background that was losing frames.

Thanks all

I don't mind doing it but I'll have to dig everything out of storage... and I'm about to go out of town for a week. I am not sure it'll get to the top of the priority list until after I return. I -think- I have a J-SCART cable for the PS2... It would be the same cable as the PS1 right?

[Strider77]

I played G5 with my XRGB2+ and had no issues. Is it dramatic... the effect you are seeing? What do you have the 2+ hooked up to?

[Shelcoof]

I didn't want to make another thread regarding the XRGB so I'm gonna ask the questions here hopefully some one can provide some info on the matter.

- If a game supports both 480i and 480p, would 480i games look better through the XRGB-2 plus or 480p straight to the HDTV? Which would output a better picture?

- What is the average lag time for the XRGB-2 and 3 to process 240i/p and 480i? (for this question I'm hoping to get an actual number such as number of frames or miliseconds. I know for other Video converters lag is about 2-3frames. I'm hoping to hear that the XRGB-2 is at a minimum of at least 1 frame)

I hope some one can answer this.

Thanks
Jimmy

[Fudoh]

The XRGB2+ (and the XRGB3 in B1 mode) does - technically - NOT deinterlace 480i material. What it does it output the alternating fields, so a CRT-like effect is to be seen on the target display. This is the sole reason why the XRGB2+ is so fast when it comes to converting 15khz to 31khz. This said, 480p directly from a game is twice the datarate (60 fields vs. 60 frames) and is to be prefered in every scenario.

The XRGB2+/3(B1) has a delay time of UNDER 6ms (4ms would be a quarter of a frame).

[Shelcoof]

Hey Fudoh

Sweet thanks for the numbers.

I remember your article stating that the XRGB does not actually deinterlace. What I wasn't sure about was if method produced a more pleasing pictures for viewers. I know sometimes on paper something look better than the other but in reality it's actually worse.

Seeing that we are on the subject already, I just have one more question that came to mind. Would the same apply if you had a game that output only 480i? Would it look better through the XRGB or straight to the HDTV/Mointor?

Just remember my understanding of signals and all this stuff isn't so great, so I ask questions that I'm unsure of

Anyways thanks again
Jimmy

[Fudoh]

What I wasn't sure about was if method produced a more pleasing pictures for viewers.

this usually depends on the type of game. With lots of static screens (like an RPG) a real deinterlacer is surely to be prefered since you get double the vertical resolution, but at the same time on fast moving games even a real deinterlacer has to tune to down to half-res, so you use a XRGB right away as the image is usually clearer than on a full deinterlacer.

Seeing that we are on the subject already, I just have one more question that came to mind. Would the same apply if you had a game that output only 480i? Would it look better through the XRGB or straight to the HDTV/Mointor?

depends on your taste and your display.

I handle it as stated above. Fast 480i games through the XRGB and slow ones through another machine.