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CRT TV vs Modern TV for retro games


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What do you hook your retro consoles into?

 

I haven't had a CRT TV in my house for several years now, so I've been plugging into an HD TV for a while. But I recently bought a huge tube-type from a friend of mine for $20, and it's made a pretty big difference in my opinion. No black bars on the sides, the pixels aren't so sharp, etc.

 

There's something so nice about living in a world where everything is "smart" and then plugging a console without an operating system into a TV without an operating system.

 

What's your opinion? Does the kind of TV really matter to you? Do you prefer HD TVs for retro games?

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Why don't you like the black bars; it's better than stretching the picture.

 

There are some games where the pixels are too big and it doesn't look right. And some games have effects that are lost with modern TVs. But mostly its a different looking picture not necessarily better or worse.

 

The most important thing is that the display lag is not a problem.

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Short answer: depends what you want out of your setup, and what options you have at your disposal.

 

Long answer: this is arguably the most debated topic in retrogaming circles today, and AA is no exception. I imagine youll see a flood of comments telling you the right answer.

Edited by godslabrat
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Why don't you like the black bars; it's better than stretching the picture.

 

It doesn't stretch on a CRT (any more than it does on an HDTV with bars) does it?

 

 

Sentimental claptrap.

 

I'm as Spock as they come but I'm warming up to the idea of celebrating "the good old days" in a few ways, this being one of them lol

Edited by World 5 Fort
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I haven't had a CRT in some time. I did have a Framemeister setup to keep myself "futureproof" for retro gaming on modern displays, but I got tired of dealing with all of that.

 

I'm like...60-70% emulation now. I still have my Gamecube (HDMI modded) and a PS2 (component) hooked up as far as "retro" gaming goes. I got PS3, PS4, and Switch otherwise.

 

I packed up the PS1 for now since PS1 emulation is so easy and quick to do. I feel godslabrat summed it up really well.

 

Short answer: depends what you want out of your setup, and what options you have at your disposal.

Long answer: this is arguably the most debated topic in retrogaming circles today, and AA is no exception. I imagine youll see a flood of comments telling you the right answer.

 

The only thing I'd add is this...

 

Do you want the CHEAPEST (authentic) setup?

CRT is the cheapest one. It's not necessarily easy as finding a good CRT is going to get harder and harder.

 

Do you want the MODERN setup?

This means both investing in an HDTV that works well with older gaming and investing in the OSSC or Framemeister. These are very expensive setups, but they'll keep you going and don't have to worry about the failure of a TV as you can just move your upscaler to a new TV.

 

Do you want a cheap, modern setup and can get over physical items?

Emulation.

 

Completely embracing that last one as you can make it pretty quick and easy and next to no real power needed to do basic things, but I completely understand those who want the real setup or an authentic setup.

Edited by KeeperofLindblum
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Anyone says you need a CRT for an "authentic" experience is blowing smoke up your arse.

 

This is incredibly simple to break down:

 

-Ok, so your CRT is authentic... but what about those HD retrovision component cables? Did you have those back in the day, or were you using composite? Oh, so there weren't component cables for the Genesis then? Ok..

-I see you've got an Everdrive you've got over there, you have one of those too back in 93? No? Hmmmm

-What about those 8bitdo bluetooth controllers and receivers? You have those? No again huh?

-Hey look a PVM for the authentic experience, did you grow up gaming inside a TV studio with custom BNC cables you found on the internet? You didn't? That's odd.. :?

-etc.

 

So basically when you're telling me that I "need" a CRT you're cherry picking what you consider authentic. :thumbsup:

 

That said, I do have a small CRT for occasional light gun use, but otherwise it sits in a corner unplugged. :lol:

 

I'm used to the fast refresh rates of modern displays. 60hz 240P on a CRT is tolerable, but not ideal. 480i on a CRT? No thanks, you may as well break an onion open in my fa e. Same eye watering grimace.

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I won't touch a CRT anymore outside of a/my arcade cabinet. I don't care for them. The softness is nice to a point, but years of playing originally on a sharp PC CRT and then PC LCD->LED screens and using late 90s and since emulators into then HD TVs I don't like stuff that isn't crystal clear and sharp to the pixel. I'm not and never have been in love with scan lines and most definitely loathe RCA cable/RF ghosting/bleed effect.

 

For me it is about doing research using displaylag.com and I will find the best TV for my needs with a rating so low it can not lag up my experience when I play the most picky of titles. That's my ideal setup. If need be if modern TVs kept getting worse I'd find a PC panel instead that could take an HDMI input and go that route because why the hell do I care about or need a TV tuner anymore when you have the modern satellite or streaming services.

 

Whenever the CRT goes on my arcade cabinet I'll be looking into a PC refresh level LCD panel replacement for it. Far nicer screen and a tiny fraction of the weight of that 25" beast with the metal frame in there. It makes the thing weigh down cabinet and all more than a pinball machine.

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I have a CRT in my basement, which is technically my retro gaming room. I just think it looks better. It's not necessarily about being authentic. Retro games were developed on CRT's and look best on CRT's.

 

I have LCD's and a plasma in other areas of the house and have tried retro gaming on them; just doesn't look as good.

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4843Xv9.jpg

 

I'm not that fancy and my classic consoles mostly have composite out at best.. so into a CRT they go where they look just as good as I had it in the late 80's/90's That said, if I have a console like the Analogue Mini NT... while it's cool it has analog out for it.. I ended up saying wtf and of course put it onto a hi-def. If I want light gun games I just use the original console. Just use what you like and what you have. :)

Edited by NE146
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Up until recently, I had been outputting RGB via SCART from most of my retro consoles and then using a converter to hook them up to my LCD via HDMI. I now have a 27" Trinitron set up, and it makes a huge difference for me not so much due to picture quality but due to lag. It wasn't until I played on the CRT that I realized just how much lag was being introduced by using the LCD.

 

If I'm recording footage, I'll probably continue to use the LCD, because that's how I'm currently set up. Otherwise, I'll be using the Trinitron.

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Uh.. a CRT is about the only place 480i is bearable, heh.

 

ack, no way. That flicker is a headache, like staring at a fluorescent light bulb that's on its way out. When the DC hit with it's VGA box, it was like a curse had been lifted. I don't know if I said "oh, thank you Sega!" at the time. I like to think I did. :D

 

Any 480i games I play get routed through the xrgb mini's natural mode.

Edited by keepdreamin
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What do you hook your retro consoles into?

 

I haven't had a CRT TV in my house for several years now, so I've been plugging into an HD TV for a while. But I recently bought a huge tube-type from a friend of mine for $20, and it's made a pretty big difference in my opinion. No black bars on the sides, the pixels aren't so sharp, etc.

 

There's something so nice about living in a world where everything is "smart" and then plugging a console without an operating system into a TV without an operating system.

 

What's your opinion? Does the kind of TV really matter to you? Do you prefer HD TVs for retro games?

I've retired my CRTs so, modern

 

I do agree the older stuff does look better on CRT, because it was designed to look good on one.

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Anyone says you need a CRT for an "authentic" experience is blowing smoke up your arse.

 

This is incredibly simple to break down:

 

-Ok, so your CRT is authentic... but what about those HD retrovision component cables? Did you have those back in the day, or were you using composite? Oh, so there weren't component cables for the Genesis then? Ok..

-I see you've got an Everdrive you've got over there, you have one of those too back in 93? No? Hmmmm

-What about those 8bitdo bluetooth controllers and receivers? You have those? No again huh?

-Hey look a PVM for the authentic experience, did you grow up gaming inside a TV studio with custom BNC cables you found on the internet? You didn't? That's odd.. :?

-etc.

 

So basically when you're telling me that I "need" a CRT you're cherry picking what you consider authentic. :thumbsup:

 

That said, I do have a small CRT for occasional light gun use, but otherwise it sits in a corner unplugged. :lol:

 

I'm used to the fast refresh rates of modern displays. 60hz 240P on a CRT is tolerable, but not ideal. 480i on a CRT? No thanks, you may as well break an onion open in my fa e. Same eye watering grimace.

 

I think "authentic" is a nearly-useless word in this context; it makes it sound like it's the best or only way to play. I've found that I definitely prefer playing older games on a CRT, but if you like playing them on a modern TV there's nothing wrong with that.

 

Though I will say that I don't use any of the other things you just listed lmao. I put my old carts/discs in my original console and plug them in either via composite or rca. If I ever get to the point where I'm trying to make my retro games look as HD as possible on a CRT TV, I've defeated the purpose I started with and I'll just go back to modern probably.

Edited by World 5 Fort
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I think "authentic" is a nearly-useless word in this context; it makes it sound like it's the best or only way to play.

I can't agree with this enough. It's why this whole discussion drives me crazy. There are two different concepts at play here: "this is the way things were back then" and "this is the best way to do this". The two might mean the same thing to some people, but by no means is that necessary. We make a lot of assumptions about how important it is to use a specific type of display, and that's okay as long as we recognize that we are engaging in assumptions. The temptation is strong to assume that the answer that's right for you, personally, will satisfy everyone, if they only shut up and listen to you.

 

I'm guilty of this. And I know I've changed my stance on several "authenticity" issues since I started in this hobby. I've really started to understand how different people have different goals when it comes to enjoying their games, and different goals require different solutions.

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I'm guilty of this. And I know I've changed my stance on several "authenticity" issues since I started in this hobby. I've really started to understand how different people have different goals when it comes to enjoying their games, and different goals require different solutions.

If 'authenticity' means keeping and maintaining a bunch of ancient hardware, then count me out. I don't have the time or space for that.

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As someone else mentioned, besides picture quality, the biggest issue is lag. You might be able to minimize it depending on what devices you use to play retro games on a modern TV, but a CRT has zero lag. This is why I haven't upgraded to a flat screen for my gaming.

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If 'authenticity' means keeping and maintaining a bunch of ancient hardware, then count me out. I don't have the time or space for that.

 

How much time do you imagine it takes? Space is certainly a legit issue in the realm of CRT discussions (as are hernias!) but time to maintain? I dust my systems once in a while. That's about it.

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