LCD, weird de-interlacing issue

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Stormwatch
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LCD, weird de-interlacing issue

Post by Stormwatch »

Remember Strider, and those cool spotlights in the first level? As the MD couldn't do transparencies, the workaround was to make the light beams flicker.

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But, playing on sis' Samsung LCD (Gamecube + Genesis Plus + composite video), things are quite different:

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Appearently, the TV tries to de-interlace the image, turning "60i" into "30p", and the result is this crap: the solid but flickering lights are turned into a non-flickering beam of alternated lines. It's awful, and I don't think there's a way to turn it off. Have you noticed this kind of issue before? Are all new TVs like that, or is it just Samsung that sucks? I need a new TV, and if this is the way they handle old content, maybe I should look for a new CRT.
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Fudoh
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Re: LCD, weird de-interlacing issue

Post by Fudoh »

Your display can't tell 240p from 480i and applies deinterlacing. That's very common on most TVs. This is what I usually call "drop shadow" test, because many shoot'em ups use this 30Hz flicker to simulate semi-transparency on drop shadows (e.g. on ESPGaluda on the PS2).

If you want proper 240p (= working drop shadows) on a LCD you might want to use an external upscaler which can handle this. Check http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/ for solutions. If you want to test displays for their capabilities, you can use Artemio's 240p test suite for MD, MCD or DC, see here: http://junkerhq.net/xrgb/index.php/240p_test_suite
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Stormwatch
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Re: LCD, weird de-interlacing issue

Post by Stormwatch »

Thanks for the explanation. Your upscaler guide looks very thorough, but now I'm looking into the easier solution: getting a new CRT. :P
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