GC: component or vga? Best quality pls.

Hey! I wasn't sure where to post this, but I have a few questions to ask you guys:

1- I have a component cable but I want to convert it to vga signal. Will it loose image quality by doing so?

2- I can do it either by: a) modding it (which I'm not doing since I don't have the knowledge) or b) buying some "box" (which one?), right?

2.1- Which way is the best choice to get the most out of my GC's image quality?

P.S. Maybe I should explain why I want to do this. I am currently using a 32'' hdtv with component ports, but as you may guess, image looks huge and too stretched, so I got an older model lcd (LW20M21C C) which only has vga port, scart, etc, however it has a nice 20'' 4:3 screen I believe. At least I like how the older systems display on it, rather than on the hdtvs.

Off-Topic Edit: Same question goes for the ps2. I use scart cable, should I get a component one and hypothetically mod it to vga in order to get the best image quality on this lcd screen?

Thanks in advance.

 

Well for PS2 I would probably go component over scart. I own both (and actually use scart at the moment myself), but component will allow progressive scan on some games.

 

The component cable isn't very useful to PAL only GC setups. Most PAL games disabled progressive mode, despite hardware ability.
So you'll have to play hacked or NTSC versions to benefit much from component over scart.

Besides either a JPN or US/JPN switch console is necessary to display proper text in some Japanese games. (not really an image quality issue, but broken dialog sure looks worse)

 

Still doesnt answer my question on the better gc image quality. I havent mentioned before but Im using an NTSC gc, and I only own one game lol, so no big deal with that. I still want to get the most out of it and I think I need to buy some box to convert component to vga. So the question is, which one should I go for, bearing in mind I dont want to lose image quality?

What about this one?http://www.ebay.com/itm/1080P-YPbPr...es_Adapters&hash=item3a734f0536#ht_5177wt_780

 

Yes, you will lose some image quality, but it depends on what type of scaler you use. The scalers built into modern TVs tend to be crap, so a separate scaler might actually look better.

A GC cannot be modded to output VGA. What you need is a converter box - a scaler, basically. There are a lot of them available, and they vary a lot in terms of price and quality. A decent, cheap one is the HD Box Pro - goes for around 50 USD. You could theoretically try to cram one of these inside a GC, if you consider that a "mod", but I don't see why you'd want to do that.

It depends on how much money you want to spend. The best solutions can cost in the thousands. As I said before, you can get a low end scaler for around $50.

If you don't like the image being stretched, you could simply change the aspect ratio on your TV to 4:3.

 

Yes it can. VGA is the same signal as RGB, and the GC outputs RGB. I had a GC VGA cable for years. Just sold it on Yahoo Japan for about 1000 yen a few months. Had to pay $50 for it.

You will likely not be able to tell the difference between official Component cables, or a homebrew VGA cable assuming you make it right.

 

Er, what? How does that work? The GC doesn't output VGA. The NTSC model doesn't even output RGB.

 

GC doesn't output component in a usable state for that matter. The cable itself contains an entire digital-to-analog encoder chip.
That port is named digital AV and likewise provides it, yet Nintendo never released any such cable. Leaving the audio portion unused as well.

Yeah either GC hardware you lose something nice. NTSC has no RGB. PAL has no Japan region setting.

 

A GC component cable can be modded to be VGA.

When using progressive mode, you get 31khz. If not, its at 15khz and most monitors wont like it.

Combined with a qoob to force progressive - it should work fairly well.

 

Doesn't the GC output 720x480, rather than 640x480 (which is standard for VGA)? I was under the impression that most monitors won't accept 720x480 over VGA.

 

I guess Ill order the hdboxpro. Just hope the source doesnt output any blackborders that cant be fixed with the box..

 

I think you've got it down well. From what I know, I'd almost always recommend an NTSC gc to the enthusiast.

 

I've had problems with black borders with the Wii while playing GC games. It seems to be a problem with certain TVs. The HD Box Pro can't fix that problem, unfortunately. I think some TVs will allow you to manually resize the image, though.

Anyway, the HD Box Pro is pretty good for the price. The advantage of using that over using a VGA-modded cable is that the HD Box Pro will scale the image, whereas if you use VGA you're still stuck with your TV's built-in scaler.

 

Update:
The HD Box Pro has just arrived and I have bad news! :grief:
No image is displayed = black screen of death. However the sound is fine. After a few seconds on the TVs VGA source, the black screen actually dissapears as the tv goes into some "stand-by" mode where the screen shuts down and its led flashes.
I tried selecting progressive mode on GC by pressing the B button but I still don't get the image to display.
I don't know what else I can do, I mean... it's a shame I just threw 50$ at the window? By the way, the "menu" or any other buttons of the Boxes controller, besides the power button, won't even work, or at least don't display a damn thing. And yes, I bought it from the official source website.

 

That sucks, I've never had anything like that happen to mine. I seem to remember that you sometimes have to press a button for the box to start up and an image to appear, but it sounds like you've tried that to no avail. Sounds like either the thing is DOA or it's outputting a signal your TV doesn't like. I've heard that certain TVs are a bit picky about VGA signals. One way to see if that's the problem is to try it on any other TVs or monitors you have with VGA input. Are the lights coming on?

 

some monitors have the option of either RGB input through the VGA or the YPbPr through a simple cable like this:

check your monitors settings before you spend alot on that box. this is what the screen looks like on my monitor

 

Why not just buy a Wii, a decent HDMI box and use that? It gives a much nicer picture then Component. Also soft modding means you can play any region GC game without having to use freeloader.

 

I've tried with 3 different screens. It worked on my PC screen lol, so the HD box is definitely working, which is a good thing. Although the others don't support the signal sadly.


ptz3233:
Thanks for the input dude, however I have already bought the box and my screens don't have those options.

Jamtex:
I'm not really interested on the Wii or modding the gc atm. I only own 1 GC game, which is PSO+ and even if I got a Wii I still couldn't play it online, so it's no use for me. And yes, I just bought the GC to play this game and PSO ep3 which I hope to get it someday. :wink-new:

Here's some pictures:



Later today or tomorrow I'll upload some shots on my HDtv to see how it fits with maximum resolution.

 

NTSC doesn't have RGB?. Don't know what to tell you. Tons of NTSC-J consoles capable of outputting RGB. PC-Engine, Megadrive, Saturn, DC, etc. My VGA cable was a simple cable as well, which connected to the component jack on the old GC models. Kinda wish I had it now, but I rarely play it... if ever.

Cable for sale on YJ --- no bidders, obviously, due to the price. He actually hacked a D-sub cable. Mine was totally homebrew, made by RGB genius Matt at shmups (who has long since given up on games).
http://page6.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/f117984711

Actual console mode
http://page2.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/b137205525

 

He said GC - as in the gamecube, not all NTSC consoles. The multiAV on the GC doesnt have RGB out on NTSC consoles - PAL ones do.. You have to go via the digital port on NTSC units (which is expensive in comparison to a cheap RGB MultiAV lead).