XRGB-mini Framemeister

[game-tech.us]

Ok, good, thanks for the relpy rgb32e.
Yeah the owner thought it was the din8 that came with it!
I think if I can figure out the sync pin on the din8 i'll have it, may even resort to stripping some insulation to be sure of what the hell is going on here.
Yes the board I use in the nes is just a ncs2553 amp and lm1881 sync stripper layout.

[game-tech.us]

I am %100 certain pin 3 of the din8 (sync), is the yellow wire, but it looks like the yellow wire is not connected to anything on the 21pin, I found what looks like the end of the yellow wire in the potting material and have continuity from it to the place I stripped away from insulation! WTF!?!?!
This just makes me more and more baffled how the rgb restored snes2 worked with this cord, mind you it didn't strike me as having perfect colors so who knows...
Will prolly end up ordering another cord, a proper one from retro_console_accessories on ebay, that is when they decide to start taking orders again. Is it me or are they shutting down the ebay store like every week for like 2-3 weeks, what's up with that!?!?

[game-tech.us]

Ok, got it figured out. The potting material should have been my first big clue!
I thought i'd start cutting away the potting stuff to see what the yellow wire was doing, the part that I though was the end was just the leg of another sync chip! DUH! Potting material... sync stripper built in... I should have known!
First I tried feeding csync straight from pin21 of the rgb ppu and it didnt' work, I wonder why?
Then I unsoldered the yellow wire from the input and over to pin 2, the output, and fed it stripped sync and it fired right up!
I guess i've never had a cord with built in sync stripper, I guess you can't sync strip more than once?
Now I wonder if the snes, which outputs composite video and not csync, will work at all.
Can I assume the xrgb mini does not have an internal sync stripper?

[Fudoh]

Now I wonder if the snes, which outputs composite video and not csync, will work at all.

of course it will. Most systems will run just fine without a sync stripper - doesn't matter if they use composite video for sync or a clean sync signal. On the few systems that require stripping, it's not about stripping per se, it's about reconditioning the sync signal.

[game-tech.us]

Good to know, i'll try it out later and see if we can get away with a din8 adapter cord with the stripper bypassed all the time for both consoles.

[Konsolkongen]

For reference, I've used 3 different NES RGB mod configurations and none of them require any non-default special settings on the XRGB-mini, aside from setting H_POS to 71. Are you using a LM1881 to buffer CSYNC?

Strangeness, I have to set mine to H_POS 68 to completely hide the white vertical bar. I wonder what's different

[Woland]

Hi everyone,
I am beginning with the XRGB Mini, slowly assimilating all the useful information coming from this thread. So far, I am fully satisfied with the majority of my systems, especially with the Japanese AES.

But I have an issue on which you guys might help. I have a Super Famicom and a SNES Mini (USA), which I use via Component on the XRGB. It works fine, but I want to use it with an RGB cable.

So I bought the one from consolegoods (SNES/SFC/GC RGB Scart cable). But the XRGB does not seem to recognize it : all I get is a black screen and the "no input" signal I tested the cable, it works when I put it directly on the TV.

Any clues on this ?

--------------------------------
For the sake of information, it may be useful for some other beginners, so far I am fully satisfied and could maybe help with the following systems :
- Japanese AES
- Euro Sega Multimega
- Euro Super Nintendo (but with crappy 50hz games, so almost never use it...)
- Euro Playstation, reading NTSC-J and NTSC-US games via an Action Replay
- Modified Euro Playstation 2 (Messiah 3 chip) with NTSC-J and NTSC-US games. Euro games are fine but again, the 50hz version of the games are crappy

I still struggle with the Dreamcast, the Gamecube, can not get a proper image.
On the Wii, I get a correct image via YUV and D-Terminal adapter but I am still not very pleased with the result, need more work on it !

[brentsg]

Just an FYI for USA based folks that decide to buy one of these.

The proper US Customs Tariff HS code is:

8521.10.90.00
-Video recording device or reproducing apparatus, whether or not incorporating a video tuner
-Other

This item is free of US Customs duties.

Solaris just called it an "Upscan converter" and UPS decided that it was an electric transformer. As such, I just received a bill from UPS for customs duties+UPS fees for paying these duties for me. Weird, as my Mini arrived like a month ago. I also notified Solaris and told them they should write this code on the customs form.

[ZellSF]

Huh, on my package Solaris said it was 30$ worth of books

Good thing too otherwise it would be 25% of item value in custom duties + 15~ USD processing fee (Norway).

[brentsg]

Video game and related items are duty free in the USA, so most companies can freely write actual descriptions without worry.

Unfortunately UPS has turned customs into a profit center. The last 2 items they handled for me resulted in unnecessary fees because they coded them incorrectly. Once they deem an item to be taxable, they then add on their own charges for their "expert services".

The last thing they screwed up for me was a PCB marked "video game". UPS coded it as Christmas Lights and hit me with $60+ in bullshit fees. I think it's a scam since most of these imports are done by companies and I'm sure their personnel wouldn't go to the trouble to identify and correct their mistake. They'd simply pay the bill.

[RGB32E]

Why did you select UPS shipping?

[brentsg]

Why did you select UPS shipping?

It was within a couple of dollars the EMS price and a good bit faster. It was one of those shipments that would arrive for a weekend with one shipping method, but not the ither.

Both of my disaster packages were shipped like 2 days apart, so I hadn't learned my lesson yet.

Oddly enough I chose Fedex for one earlier today b/c it was $10 cheaper than EMS. I'll likely end up pissed off again.

[mobyone]

Hello,

I'm new on this forum (even if I'm an old shmups lover) since I just got a XRGB Mini (second hand but as new).
I read this forum for days, found people having same issues as me but since my system are now working, I share.

So I have :
- PC Engine Shuttle, RGB modded : Working great with sync stripper with the adapter
- Super Nintendo PAL with RGB cable from adapter_man : Working with adapter without sync stripper (japanese one but modified for european scarts)

My only complain is the picture quality of the nintendo but I have to do some tests between composite/RGB cables on TV/XRGB.
Perhaps it's coming from the chipset of my snes : SNSP-CPU-02

Paul.

[Chacranajxy]

Quick question about the Framemeister:

Would hooking a Gamecube up to it via component result in a better picture if I scale it to 720p or 1080p, or would I be better off just keeping the Cube hooked up to my TV? I dunno how capable the Framemeister is with 480p signals... all I'm aware of is the chroma shift bug with the PS2 (and even then, I don't know if they fixed that yet.)

[RGB32E]

I think SNES rules somewhat apply to the GCN. My NA launch model has wide JBs, whereas my platinum is virtually free of them. Aside from RGBHV modding a cable, I've found that the mini does a good job (component cable to D-term adapter).

I don't see any reason to use 720p output though.

[zaneiken]

I finally picked up a Framemeister recently but am having a little trouble with Dreamcast audio. I've hooked up the DC to HDMI 1 via a VGA+analog audio>HDMI transcoder and get no sound output from the XRGB-Mini, despite setting HDMI 1 audio to HDMI. The audio works fine when I hook up the transcoder directly to the TV.
Are there any other settings I'm missing? The audio level is greyed out and fixed at 32.

[BuckoA51]

You're better off feeding the Dreamcast into the RGB in than trying to convert it to HDMI.

[zaneiken]

I want 480p output from the Dreamcast though.

[BuckoA51]

You can have 480p output, you just need a sync combiner of some kind. Please see the Wiki for how to connect it up properly. http://junkerhq.net/xrgb/index.php/Dreamcast

[darcagn]

Regarding Dreamcast, beharius (the gentleman who manufactures the Hanzo Dreamcast VGA box) contacted me a few days ago as he saw my posts with my DC VGA box with sync combiner. We discussed a few things regarding the DC and XRGB-mini and he is currently testing a version of the Hanzo which will use the 74HCT86 chip to combine sync and provide 31KHZ RGBS/SCART output. This will be a perfect 480p solution for Dreamcast and XRGB-mini owners. Stay tuned!

[BuckoA51]

Nice, a 20% cooler Hanzo

[lunch_box]

Regarding Dreamcast, beharius (the gentleman who manufactures the Hanzo Dreamcast VGA box) contacted me a few days ago as he saw my posts with my DC VGA box with sync combiner. We discussed a few things regarding the DC and XRGB-mini and he is currently testing a version of the Hanzo which will use the 74HCT86 chip to combine sync and provide 31KHZ RGBS/SCART output. This will be a perfect 480p solution for Dreamcast and XRGB-mini owners. Stay tuned!

That's great, I will be all over one of them

[zaneiken]

Nice! Saves me from butchering a VGA box.

[EmperorZelos]

Hello, I have an issue with my framemeister where it occasionally puts in red areas at specific locations on the pictures and occassionally seems to reset itself, what could cause such?
I'd add with "reset" I mean the device remains on but the signal seems to be interupted and then conitnues on to the TV where the TV for a moment gets no signal.

could it be a sync problem that causes it?

[rmwing]

So apparently the Mini doesn't work well with PAL60..... I got my SMS1 modded and whenever it is 60hz everything is mostly black & white with red/blue/green vertical lines. is there anything that can be done or did I waste my money getting these mods?.....

[Fudoh]

Do you mean actual PAL60, as in composite or s-video or do you mean RGB with PAL60 composite as a sync signal. The the latter case a sync stripper will likely solve your problems. For real PAL60, I doubt that the Mini can handle this. Nobody should deal with that.

[rmwing]

Do you mean actual PAL60, as in composite or s-video or do you mean RGB with PAL60 composite as a sync signal. The the latter case a sync stripper will likely solve your problems. For real PAL60, I doubt that the Mini can handle this. Nobody should deal with that.

I'm running it through composite at the moment but I have got Scart RGB cables on the way if that is what you mean?

[Fudoh]

Then wait for the Scart cables to arrive and give it another try.

[EmperorZelos]

In my case it works fine occasionally but other times it seems to be going nuts.

[Fudoh]

doesn't sound like it. Does it happen in general or just with specific sources ? Did you re-flash the unit ? Exchange the PSU ?