I know, I know, it's generally known that retro consoles of anything before the Dreamcast look utter crud on HDTV and that the best answer is to get a CRT for those and enjoy modern consoles on HDTV. However living in a small flat, with a beloved wife who isn't terribly fond of video games at the best of times and considers anything not a book to be clutter, I can't justify or explain away a second TV that would a) not fit anywhere, b) not accomodate my XBox 360 or my component-wired consoles, or c) spare my ears a chewing. So the only option is to stick with HDTV, and that means one with a decent scaler, preferably built in (I tried an admittedly cheap scaler with my present HDTV and the results were disastrous), any recommendations? If none, then an external scaler I presume is the answer - any recommendations there? I've been wondering lately that surely someone somewhere must appreciate a lucrative niche market in HDTVs that make 240p look awesome would find many ready customers!
in b4 framemeister. There was the (uk-only i think) sony tv with a built in ps2, i wonder what kind of quality has that got?
You could go on the hunt for those 4:3 LCDs. They should be better for your games considering they are scaled at 480p.
Unfortunately if you can't rock out a big CRT, a Framemeister is your best bet. I haven't researched it a whole lot, but I don't think there is a 3rd option.
There are other, cheaper scalers that you can buy (including ones that take 240p RGB), but they probably won't be as good as a Framemeister. You can also get a scanline generator to use with other scalers besides the Framemeister. A CRT is the best option, of course.
I've been seeing 4:3 LCD monitors popping up at resale shops recently, might not be too hard to find.
You'd be better off just getting a small CRT than a 4:3 LCD. A 13", for example, doesn't take up much space. Although, an LCD with a native resolution of 640x480 would probably be good for Dreamcast.
The framemeister is indeed the best scaler out there, but there are other options as you can see here: http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/
If clutter is a problem, you're not going to want a bunch of older consoles around. It sounds like what you need is an emulation setup. It works well to HDTVs too. If you are going to collect older consoles, it's going to take up alot of room. The consoles themselves, the wires going everywhere, the games.
Slim HDCRTs exist but they are uncommon. LG and Samsung were making them into the mid-2000s. Samsung Slimfit: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-WS32Z409TQX-Widescreen-Ready-Slimfit/dp/B000FMRXPI#cm_cr_dpwidget Advantage: All resolutions run natively. SD content arguably looks better on an HD CRT. Though uncommon these TVs are usually picked up for very cheap Disadvantage: TV will most likely be 8+ years old and 480p/1080i only (no 720p/1080p). Oddly enough, LG Africa still makes thin CRTs: http://www.lg.com/africa_en/tvs/lg-21SA1RG-crt-tv
It was my understanding that most HD CRTs have a fixed resolution, and SD content has to be upscaled.
A 4:3 LCD would be great I think, but good luck on finding one that's not only a computer monitor. Also, a lightly used one. If you would pick up a smaller tube, stay away from anything called "slim". You'll see the geometry going wrong with vertical black bars, for example. Nothing happens in horizontal projection, though. Also, there are "stains" (we use the same word for "clothes stains", I don't know about a specific english word). Pink stains on one side. Green stains in the other. It's just a bad product. All of them. Maybe someone could explain that, but it doesn't look unlikely that a beam have a fixed resolution? I mean, why design that way at all? Except if that's really needed...
I'm not sure if all HD CRTs upscale SD content - but I know at least some of them do, because I've seen them. I'm not sure why that's the case. My guess is that it was cheaper to produce them that way, though I can't say why that would be the case either. I think some HD PVMs and BVMs can display both SD and HD content natively. There are many CRT computer monitors that have variable sync/resolution, though most of the newer ones are VGA or higher.
I know, but the consoles is what I like to collect, and I don't see them as clutter The wife tolerates me collecting consoles especially as I can justify older ones as being massively cheaper than buying a PS4/XBOne/WiiU, but as the present TV works fine for DVDs, XBMC and iPlayer, she won't be persuaded by a TV just for consoles that would be rammed in somewhere!
It might be a stupid suggestion but have you looked into getting a second TV that would fit in a closet? Or one of those old portable CRT's (I don't know if they accept anything other than RF though).
Good old high quality plasma TVs tend to have better scalers/rendition than newer LCDs for SD content. I got an old Samsung 720p (1280x768) plasma and while it heats a small room, the scaler is very potable compared to most newer tvs. Ofc it's no framemeister, but it's not ugly neither.
No space for a closet-TV, I'm afraid! A portable TV is a possibility, but it's not exactly conducive to multiplayer gaming, as I tend to have large gaming sessions at my place with lots of spectators! I think people suggesting a Framemeister have got the right idea. I'll work on saving money for one of those.
Framemeister is worth saving up for, it's a gem and it's small as well so it won't take much additional room. Check the sales section of the forum, Yakumo has been selling these for a while. You won't get any better price and service anywhere else.
I personally don't know what all the fuss is about, maybe my tv has a good upscaler. I have a 42" 3D LED display made by teac, supports nearly every video format known to man, composite up scaling is pretty decent for a cheapo $1100 tv... TBH I can't see any downfalls when using a nice LCD display over CRT, tune your settings right (colour ect) and it should look nice.. Most people have their display settings either at default or use a factory preset which both look like crap (too bright usually) You could look into decent home theater receivers, which have built in upscallers (kill two birds with one stone). some higher end Pioneer models do.. Hell the cheapo Sony Bluray HT systems IIRC have upscalers for composhite..
