Gamecube VGA Question...

[Grave]

I'm looking for something a little different, but instead of starting a brand new thread for it, I may as well lump it into this one... closely related enough. Has anyone ever used any video-in devices for computers? I know they're out there, and I need to find some kind of solution for playing video games using my laptop as a display. A lot of low-end video capture devices aren't suitable for this, but I really don't know what's good and what isn't, or if this is even a worthwhile venture at all. All I know is that the ancient 13" TV I have at college is a waste of time and space, and running video games through this laptop would be pretty economical...

[Cheebs]

I'm not 100% sure if this monitor is compatable with analog RGB, but it supports both 15khz and 31khz:
http://www.wellsgardner.com/wellsgar...ction&linkid=5
It says "Digital Monitor CGA-VGA". Hopefully Chibi Nappa (he owns a WG monitor) or Matt will see this thread and clarify.

That is the exact monitor I own. It is perfect because it will take both high res and low res. Hook up the GC (DC, Xbox, whatever) with a VGA cable. If the game is progressive scan, the monitor kicks into 33 kHz mode and gives you progressive scan. If the game is low res, the monitor kicks into 15 kHz mode and gives you that.

I personally love the monitor and couldn't imagine playing without it. It gives the best possible picture for any system with RGB output (VGA included) regaurdless of scan rate. Not to say there isn't a mountain of downsides:

Be prepaired to RGB-mod any system that isn't RGB ready (GC, Xbox, or any other "component video" system, Turbo Graphx 16, etc.)

Be prepaired to setup a custom video cabling system, since the main RGB hookup on the monitor looks like it uses a cabling standard from Venus. The VGA hookup is nice and standard tho'.

You have to either deal with a bare picture tube or build a case for the thing.

You have to manually re-calibrate the screen geometry for each new system you plug in.

You can only have 1 system hooked up at a time.

Progressive scan resolution only goes up to 800 x 600, so your PC may be cramped on it.



Oh, and as for the GC VGA cable, I got mine at Goldenshop for $50. I can't think of the web adress, but just google it.
edit: Here it is - http://www.goldenshop.com.hk/AI-trad/gc/vgacable.htm

[Dyne]

anybody know if a Dell E770P is a good monitor for this kind of use?

if not bomberman im VERY interested in your monitor and cables (those are for the GC rght?) whats the size on that?

bump. i can get a killer deal on one of these if it would work good. if not im going to probably buy bombermans setup. so could anybody tell me?

[ssbomberman]

bump. i can get a killer deal on one of these if it would work good. if not im going to probably buy bombermans setup. so could anybody tell me?

Are you looking for RGB or VGA out of this thing, cause I'm pretty sure it can't sync down to RGB signal level, but it would work for VGA of course.

[Cheebs]

Just a bit of clarification: VGA is RGB. Saying something can do VGA but can't do RGB doesn't make any sense.

[Bonestorm]

Just a bit of clarification: VGA is RGB. Saying something can do VGA but can't do RGB doesn't make any sense.

Yes it is RGB- but the RGB being referred to here is at 15 khz, and most VGA monitors don't get down that low.

I'm going to get a WG9200 eventually for a jamma cab, but I also wanted one for consoles. That sucks that you need to change the geometry for each system, but it's a small inconvenience for what the monitor can do.

I've been trying to get a RGB monitor on ebay for a while now, but shipping sucks. While you can get good deals on stuff, it seems more worth it just to get a brand new 19" cga monitor from Wells Gardner in the mid 200s (they're in chicago so no shipping). The Sony PVMs, GVMs, commodore monitors, etc are nice but most of the time you are getting a really old screen.

Cheebs- you said the "main rgb hookup looks like something from venus". Do you have to use that, or can you send 15khz signals through the regular vga input?

[Dyne]

Are you looking for RGB or VGA out of this thing, cause I'm pretty sure it can't sync down to RGB signal level, but it would work for VGA of course.

i would just want to plug a gc/ps2 or xbox into it. does that help?

[Matt]

I'm not 100% sure if this monitor is compatable with analog RGB, but it supports both 15khz and 31khz:
http://www.wellsgardner.com/wellsgar...ction&linkid=5
It says "Digital Monitor CGA-VGA". Hopefully Chibi Nappa (he owns a WG monitor) or Matt will see this thread and clarify.

I wouldn't recommend this monitor for home use, or any arcade monitor for that matter. While it's a good screen, the fact that it has no housing sucks. This might just an inconvenience for most of us, this can be a major hazard if you have children in the house or even pets/unwitting guests/wife/etc.

There are plenty of very good large multisync monitors out there that'll do 15khz and up, and can be had for reasonable prices if you look (less than that WG monitor). Some of the Mitsubishi screens are pretty damn awesome, and will display resolutions equal to what any modern PC will crank out. For the most part they're not that old, and you should be able to get plenty of use out of them.

Keep in mind that "VGA" means 640x480, so it's not ideal for PC use unless you don't mind everything being huge and having very little space to work with. I'm not sure if those above monitors I mentioned can display at higher than 640x480, but it's possible.

The Mitsubishi Megaview 43 support a vertical resolution of something like 1500, IIRC.

i would just want to plug a gc/ps2 or xbox into it. does that help?

Don't buy a monitor then - get a nice HDTV instead. It'll look almost the same with the Gamecube, better with the Xbox, and support neat stuff like widescreen modes, etc. RGB monitors are wonderful for older systems but a little redundant with next-gen stuff.

Just a bit of clarification: VGA is RGB. Saying something can do VGA but can't do RGB doesn't make any sense.

Sure it does. VGA is a very specific type of RGB - 31khz with separate negative sync. Everybody thinks of 15khz when you say "RGB".

[hanzo]

What's a good vga box that does all 3 systems?

[Josh]

Look at post #4 in this thread.