N64 on Samsung HD TV

[clownstyle]

Hi all,

A non Amiga related post for you

I have a Samsung UE46ES6300 which is one of the newer LED TV's, and I have recently acquired a PAL N64 with RF lead.

The picture is BAD.. I knew it would be a problem but I got the console really cheap!

I have heard people say that S-Video is the way to go, but I don't have S-Video input on my TV.

The question is, you can purchase a N64 to S-Video lead to replace the standard RF cable - Which is meant to be 100x better but would throwing in a janky s-video to scart connector work, and would it still be worth going S-Video even if I have it connected to the TV via scart?

EDIT-- From what I read, I would need to confirm that the scart port on my TV is S-Video compatible... I have no idea how to check this as I have looked though the specs and found nothing. Maybe someone with a bit more know how can provide an answer.

[fitzsteve]

A Scart lead or even a set of Composite AV leads will be 100x better than RF.

N64 AV leads sell cheap on eBay, you could try those first before splashing out a lot of money on something else

I use them on my projector and also my LCD TV and I'm more then happy with the results.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AV-Composi...item565a581073

I hook mine up to the side AV ports

[clownstyle]

Thanks for that Steve. If the quality is good enough for you, no doubt it will be good enough for me.

One thing I did notice on your ebay link is: FOR USE WITH JAPANESE FORMAT NINTENDO 64/SNES & GAMECUBE CONSOLES ONLY

Being as I'm using a PAL machine is there some difference?

I found this link earlier

http://www.robwebb1.plus.com/n64/n64.htm

I think he has made the N64 to scart and other cables specifically for PAL or NTSC machines, with the PAL versions having certain resistors to enhance the picture, or so it states.

[rare_j]

The s-video cable is 100x better. You can try an s-video to scart block. My tv also says nothing about s-video in the specifications but it works.
Failing that a s-video to hdmi adapter might be necessary and can be found on ebay.

[lesta_smsc]

Originally Posted by rare_j

The s-video cable is 100x better. You can try an s-video to scart block. My tv also says nothing about s-video in the specifications but it works.
Failing that a s-video to hdmi adapter might be necessary and can be found on ebay.

S-video to hdmi?! Wow... need to purchase one of those!

[clownstyle]

So as it turns out my Samsung does not appear to have S-Video, although I have not tested it via the S-Video to scart connector.
Luckily I have a TV upstairs which specifically states S-Video on the scart port.. So I will be purchasing an S-Video lead from the site I linked, then test it on the Samsung as well just in case!
I think the S-Video to HDMI will knock you back at least £30, so if all fails I'll get one of those at some point.. Still need to get my Amiga to scart cable from Amigakit !

[Sandro]

Originally Posted by clownstyle

So as it turns out my Samsung does not appear to have S-Video, although I have not tested it via the S-Video to scart connector.
Luckily I have a TV upstairs which specifically states S-Video on the scart port.. So I will be purchasing an S-Video lead from the site I linked, then test it on the Samsung as well just in case!
I think the S-Video to HDMI will knock you back at least £30, so if all fails I'll get one of those at some point.. Still need to get my Amiga to scart cable from Amigakit !

get the video composite cable is the easiest solution and the image quality is very good....is equal to SVHS
ie you can modify your cable if you want, the signals are there
check the pic

[clownstyle]

Originally Posted by Sandro

get the video composite cable is the easiest solution and the image quality is very good....is equal to SVHS
ie you can modify your cable if you want, the signals are there
check the pic

I think you're getting S-Video confused with SVHS, which is a common mistake.

So are you saying you could rewire the standard composite cable to perform to the same standard as the S-Video cable?

[rare_j]

An s-video cable for n64 on ebay should be less than a fiver.
Probably not worth soldering your own I would have thought.

Regarding the PAL/NTSC versions of the cable, it seems plausible that there could be a difference. But I have just 1 cable that works the same on my PAL and NTSC/US n64. So I dont really know what that's all about.

Out of intrest, let us know if it works on your samsung tv.

[alexh]

For some strange reason Samsung dropped S-Video inputs from their sets. I can't find any literature about menu options to manually select or autodetect with a SCART adapter dongle.

Composite is your only practical option on the big TV it seems.

Getting a French Secam N64 and modding it for RGB would be expensive overkill.

[Sandro]

Originally Posted by clownstyle

I think you're getting S-Video confused with SVHS, which is a common mistake.

So are you saying you could rewire the standard composite cable to perform to the same standard as the S-Video cable?

s-video and svhs is the same thing
and yes you can modify ur cable and make your own, but as I said before, the quality is similar,the N64 was done to look great in composite video

[john1979]

Originally Posted by Sandro

s-video and svhs is the same thing
and yes you can modify ur cable and make your own, but as I said before, the quality is similar,the N64 was done to look great in composite video

Composite has limits that no console can get round. It is only capable of so much.

S-Video is a world apart from composite when it comes to N64 (or any other console). I have seen the difference for myself.

For some strange reason Samsung dropped S-Video inputs from their sets.

A lot of the LCD manufacurers have dropped S-Video, favouring RGB as one of the few SD inputs left. Probably cost cutting measures. These tellies are designed with digital input in mind, it makes financial sense to drop support for the old inputs slowly, as much as it irks us retro gamers.

edit: Why not try an S-Video to HDMI converter from somewhere like Amazon? Expensive but might get the job done.

[alexh]

The hardware inside Samsung TV's must be capable of S-Video to be able to support composite. It is only the TV software doesn't support it.

There would be no hardware cost savings to removing S-Video support if you're keeping analog RGB & composite inputs on SCART. All the ADC's to sample the signals and colour space conversion electronics etc. all must be present.

One less thing to test I guess. I suppose testing is expensive. Kinda lame if you ask me though.

[Hewitson]

Originally Posted by Sandro

s-video and svhs is the same thing

It is not. S-Video is a connector standard, SVHS is a recording standard.

Originally Posted by Sandro

and yes you can modify ur cable and make your own, but as I said before, the quality is similar,the N64 was done to look great in composite video

The quality is not similar at all. The S-Video picture quality is far superior to composite.

Of course, getting a proper NTSC N64 and modding it for RGB would be the best option. PAL consoles suck.

[Sandro]

Originally Posted by Hewitson

It is not. S-Video is a connector standard, SVHS is a recording standard.


The quality is not similar at all. The S-Video picture quality is far superior to composite.

Of course, getting a proper NTSC N64 and modding it for RGB would be the best option. PAL consoles suck.

in the case of Amiga 1200 or a megadrive yes S-video is lot better than composite video
but not in the case of a N64....I tried it don't works very well,incorrect colors in some games, excess of brightness and other minor bugs
back to composite video

[john1979]

Originally Posted by Sandro

in the case of Amiga 1200 or a megadrive yes S-video is lot better than composite video
but not in the case of a N64....I tried it don't works very well,incorrect colors in some games, excess of brightness and other minor bugs
back to composite video

Poor S-Video cable. Fixable it seems
http://www.avforums.com/forums/ninte...ght-image.html

[rare_j]

Yeah thats not right. S-video is absolutely a lot better picture than composite.
Seen it for myself. The edges of everything crawl on composite. Seriously, you can tell the difference from eight feet away.

[clownstyle]

I have a composite cable which was given to me by a friend, and the picture looks way too bright. I did read something about using a resistor between the composite video and the ground.. Anyone heard of this method? Should be a cheap fix.

I'd still like an S-Video lead, so might just snag one when I get paid.

[Sandro]

Originally Posted by john1979

Poor S-Video cable. Fixable it seems
http://www.avforums.com/forums/ninte...ght-image.html

thanks for the link....
but the cable I used was blinded and good
seems there was a problem with resistors I will try to make a new cable again

Hi,

I'am having a similar problem with my n64 and samsung tv, did you find a solution in the end? I'm currently wondering if its worth buying a modded s video cable and a s video to scart adapter.

Thanks, matt