Dreamcast Video options

PopetherevXXVIII

PopetherevXXVIII

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Pretty much since I've had my Dreamcast I've been using S-video. Thing is, Every single Dreamcast S-video cable is a pile of hot excrement. They're either S-video/Composite and thus, aren't true S-video, Or they are properly wired/have no component but you have to put the cable in just the right way or the audio is broken. Then there's color bleeding, in my case it's always red... ENOUGH. I need to upgrade. I do not want to crack open my system and add that HDMI board I bought the system with some unspecified region mod I don't want to disrupt.

So my options are what VGA Boxes, The Toro Box, The Akura, or those really really REALLY BAD HDMI cables that use the VGA Signal.

My Upscaler is the mighty Framemiester which as we know does not have a VGA Slot. Getting an OSSC JUST for Dreamcast seems excessive.

Suggest me stuffs. or is my best bet without modding the Akura?

What do I do about the few games I have that don't support VGA or at least say they don't on the case (Virtual On, the Midway racers)
 
Personally for me, the handful of games that don't support VGA aren't a deal breaker. Virtual On and the Midway racers support VGA just fine, with the exception of a specific pressing of Hydro Thunder in the US. Thanks to bootdiscs and patches you can force *almost* all the that count.

As you might have picked up, due to the way the Dreamcast outputs VGA the image is presented slightly disproportionated. You can fix this by using

A) VGA-box with a Framemeister
B) or by using a VGA-box with a Atlona VGA to HDMI scaler (or similar).

The Akura is not able to do this right, but is hassle free way of outputting HDMI with good quality. So if your TV has a VGA-input and you don't care about the slightly disproportionated image, just use a regular VGA-box and don't bother with any of the HDMI solutions. If you want to best image and audio, go for the DCHDMI (not only do you get a digital and properly upscaled image, also the audio is being outputted digitally!) or go for the second best option (the A & B from above).
 
VGA to component was my idea but I've yet to find a reliable adapter. I have Framemiester settings good to go for Dreamcast just need a way to get VGA through.
 
I've found that the Pound HDMI cable for Dreamcast is surprisingly decent considering how cheap it is, plus it's plug and play. If you want the best output, DCHDMI is the way to go, but it's expensive and requires some decent soldering/modding skills to install.
 
Yeah DCHDMI is the ABSOLUTE best native signal from the console. It taps directly into the video out chip and Audio for the best quality possible. It grabs the signal before it gets converted to analog, so it is a true digital solutuion. It is a pretty advanced mod to do, and it can cost around $300 when all is said and done if you buy a premodded console. It is a PRICEY investment, but it is second to none in terms of quality. If you think VGA already looks good, you haven't seen anything yet.
 
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Yeah dchdmi isn't on the table nor are any of those HDMI cables. I got a hyperkin Cable

Nope picture was blurry and had red lines.
 
i use a performance s-video cable on my jvc crt and it looks damn good. bought 2 from ebay as they are like $6 shipped nos. my advice is to wait for the hd retrovision component cables which are almost ready (site says at 90%)
 
Oh I've been hounding HD Retrovision on Twitter.

I use their cables for my Super Famicom and Saturn.
 
Didn't you already make a thread where you discussed exactly the same things? Why did you need to make a new thread?
www.obscuregamers.com

Saturn and Dreamcast love

Now that I have good cables to feed through my Framemiester (HD Retrovision cables enroute) I'm buying up Saturn games again. I don't have a decent cable for my Dreamcast and I have no idea how to feed VGA Into the Framemiester. I found a good VGA Cord but beyond that ?? S-video is just OK it...
www.obscuregamers.com www.obscuregamers.com

Also, you need to use more punctuation. It's hard to understand what you're saying sometimes, because you write in run-on sentences.

In response to your question, I think the best options are the Akura or the Gekko if you want HDMI, or the Kuro if you want VGA. Another option is the Kuro Plus, which outputs either 480i or 480p over SCART – which the Framemeister will accept (as long as you have a SCART adapter for the Framemeister, which is a handy thing to have in general). It sounds like you're dissatisfied with what you tried because the quality isn't good enough. I have a Kuro, and the quality is really good – I'd imagine Beharbros' other products are similarly good. I think what you said about having to insert the cable in a certain way is a common problem, because I've experienced the same problem with multiple cables. I'm not sure what causes it, it's either the cables or the system's connector. Either way, it's not really a big deal, because you just have to make sure the cable is fully inserted when you plug it in.
 
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HEH, and I kicked off the thread with that, My Memory is getting bad. I just turned 38 Yesterday:D
I also asked in the Pressing Sega Questions thread. Grammar is probably because I'm on my phone most of the time and the way I write is starting to change.

With my Framemeister, I both A) Don't have an RGB Switch and B) the RGB Cable I opted to use for my Genesis was JP-21 since that is what the Framemiester natively accepts. So SCART would just be a gigantic inconvenience.

I guess I'm getting an Akura Box.
 
Maybe I just got a dud, but my Akura has a really noisy signal. The $25 Pound cable I have looks pretty much perfect (haven't installed my DCHDMI yet, so can't compare to that, can only compare the two VGA->HDMI cables). Unless you really want scan lines, the Beharbros stuff isn't worth the price IMO. Even if it didn't have the noise issue, the Pound cable is super clear and I can't really imagine how another cable/box of that type could be much better. Definitely not 3 or 4 times the cost better, not to mention the wait for shipping compared to buying the Pound cable on Amazon or wherever.

Even worse, when I contacted them and showed videos of the two cable's output to see if they could help me fix it, they actually had the gall to tell me that the Akura looked better when it had clear image distortion/noise compared to the clean image from the Pound cable. So much for support if you get a bad one...

Really looking forward to installing the DCHDMI though to see the difference of going direct from digital!
 
I received an Akura last week to "upgrade" from my Hanzo box. Initially I wasn't impressed but get it's a more convenient connection. Having said that I remembered the framemeister has 2 HDMI inputs. Hooked it up and after changing some settings around I have never seen the dreamcast look this beautiful.
 
IMG_20191008_123946.jpg

Same company that sells the OSSC on Amazon. A few framemiester adjustment later and my Dreamcast has never looked better.
 
PopetherevXXVIII said:
Same company that sells the OSSC on Amazon. A few framemiester adjustment later and my Dreamcast has never looked better.
Click to expand...
Judging from the box and the image of the product, it looks like it's the same hardware as the Pound HDMI adapter, there are a few companies selling the same white-labled hardware.

I agree, it's quite good, especially for the price. Some people talk down on those adapters and all of the other ones Pound sells, but I have them for Dreamcast, PS2, and Xbox, and to be honest they've all been better than any of the random no-name adapters I've purchased in the past.

I don't actually use any of them regularly except for the Dreamcast one (until the DCHDMI finally gets installed of course), but I like having the option to easily hook up to any modern screen when needed. For normal playing on my living room TV I use component on PS2 and Xbox as it's the highest quality possible until digital to digital mods come out eventually (soonish for PS2, maybe never for Xbox unfortunately) and I'm lucky enough to have component input. But I end up using them often when working on homebrew in my office to easily hook up to one of my extra monitors.

Sure they're not perfect, but they do a very respectable job and they're each under $30. Definitely can't complain, at that price they're fantastic.
 
I'm pretty sure it's a different PCB
Everything I've done with it looks good though having Framemiester options helped a lot but I'll probably pair it with the Mclassic when it goes public.
 
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