Joe Stella Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Hi guys, I recently bought an inexpensive S-Video/Composite to VGA converter box, and the FB 2's output is "interlaced".. sorta. Interlaced vertically... Or, that's the best way I know to describe it. I'm pretty sure the answer is going to be, get a different converter, but out of curiosity, does anyone know why this is, and can anyone recommend a different converter that works? The display is fine/solid in composite mode. Thanks! I've attached an example image. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+5-11under Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Is it supposed to be solid blue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Those vertical bands are reminiscent of certain 80's home computers. Flashback indeed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Stella Posted October 12, 2013 Author Share Posted October 12, 2013 Is it supposed to be solid blue? Yes, it is. it is in composite. It's down to either the way teh flashback sends the signal or the way the converter processes it. I should mention, that screenshot is from an LCD monitor, and I get the same result from an HD TV using its VGA input. Composite is completely normal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kskunk Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 I'm not sure if this is what you're really asking, but 'why' it happens is due to the nature of composite video. Composite video mixes the blue color signal (chroma) right on top of the pixel on/off information (luma) that defines the Fuji graphic. Once they are mixed, separating chroma and luma is a difficult task. Your converter is not doing a good job - it's mistaking the blue signal for on/off information. Those vertical bands of alternating on/off dots are the blue color signal's alternating cycles. That's why S-Video exists - to prevent chroma and luma from being mixed in the first place, so that a converter does not have to be good at separating them. A number of Atari mods add S-Video support to avoid these problems. Better converters handle chroma/luma separation properly. A good TV will not allow any of the alternating color cycles to cause pixels to switch on and off. - KS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Stella Posted October 12, 2013 Author Share Posted October 12, 2013 Thanks for that! Learn something new every day. If anyone can recommend a decent converter, I would be very thankful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reverendshoebox Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Hi people. I just got a VGA converter for Christmas and I'm having the exact same problem - lines galore. Any recommendations for a solution (or a better converter) would be awesome and glorious and wonderous and niftykeen. -='Box=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.