1st post, please HELP re: RF to S-Video converter

[kstegall]

Hi there, hoping someone can help me - I've got an older ColecoVision videogame system that has an RF cable hook-up. I want to know if there's a converter that I can use to plug in the RF cable from the ColecoVision and then use S-Video cables (or even Component/HDMI or just plain AV cables @ the bare minimum) to connect to my HDTV. I'm abit confused because I see lots of converters for hooking up old TV's to newer game consoles but not the other way around (hooking up vintage consoles to newer HDTV's). I'd also rather not go through a VCR if there's another option. Any help here would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

[godslabrat]

Hi there, hoping someone can help me - I've got an older ColecoVision videogame system that has an RF cable hook-up. I want to know if there's a converter that I can use to plug in the RF cable from the ColecoVision and then use S-Video cables (or even Component/HDMI or just plain AV cables @ the bare minimum) to connect to my HDTV. I'm abit confused because I see lots of converters for hooking up old TV's to newer game consoles but not the other way around (hooking up vintage consoles to newer HDTV's). I'd also rather not go through a VCR if there's another option. Any help here would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

Welcome to a world of compromises, jurry-rigged solutions, and general witchcraft. Getting the most out of an old console on an HDTV is complicated at best and painful at worst.

 

To answer your immediate question, do a search on "Where to get a ColecoVision S-Video mod done?" in this forum. That thread will give you some ideas on what you can have done (or do yourself) to get an s-video signal out of your system. I don't know if component video would be an option, and HDMI is completely out of the question.

 

For another option, an rca->RF converter can do wonders if you don't have the time or money to perform surgery on your system. I'm using one on my NES2 in lieu of doing a mod on it, and the results are spectacular. (I opted out of doing the mod because ultimately, I think I'm going to get a toaster and refurb it. The vertical lines piss me off)

 

The reason you see lots of converts to use new consoles on old TVs, and not the other way around, is how these high-end interconnects work. Think of it this way: Component is all the signals seperated into their own cable. S-video combines them a little bit. Composite combines them even more. RF has everything smooshed into one coax cable. (note: dear engineers, yes, I know this is not the best explaination, but please indulge me) It's really easy to combine signals, but it's terrible to try and seperate them again. So, to cram a modern console's signal into an old RF port is easy, and can be done with a $20 adaptor. To take the standard RF signal and get S-video out of it doesn't really work... you need to go into the system and re-wire the output from the point of origin.

 

Tip of the iceberg, I'm afraid.

[Ze_ro]

Are you saying you don't even have a coaxial input on your TV? Because if you do, then you might as well just buy one of these. You won't get any better signal quality from an RF-to-S-Video converter if that's what you're thinking.

 

--Zero

[kstegall]

Thanks all, I really appreciate your help. I don't wanna mod the Colecovision and looks like trying to get an S-Video signal via a converter/adaptor wouldn't do much for resolution anyways. I'll look into the rca->RF converter though. Thanks again!