Zapper works but Phaser and Justifier do not

[thetallguy24]

I've got a Panasaonic flat crt, and the Zapper works perfect. However, the Sega Master System Phaser and Genesis Justifier aren't calibrated at all. I've tried several of each and they all fire a couple of inches to the right, making them useless.

 

Would this be a TV issue, especially since I have tried several of both light guns?

[Reaperman]

edit: nevermind, I should read better. (damn you, literacy!)

Edited May 29, 2016 by Reaperman

[7800fan]

Older CRT TVs were entirely analog from RF or composite to screen and had virtually no lag. Later CRT TVs used digital processing somewhere which can add a bit of lag. NES Zapper used large target squares and are timed to the frame (one target per frame, multiple frame for some games) so if the lag is less than 1/30th of a second, it usually will work fine. Other guns used timing down to the scan line for a much more accurate targeting but the latency needs to be close to zero for it to work. If it's off by a few thousands of a second, it may mis-target and place a hit mark a few lines lower than where you aimed. If it's off by more than that, it may even miss completely.

 

It's also why LCD never worked with most light guns, LCD don't use scanlines the same way as CRT, it does entire line at once and not one pixel at a time. NES light guns may still work but that's all.

[thetallguy24]

Is there a way to calibrate the Phaser? I was able to calibrate some Sega CD games in-game.

[7800fan]

Early systems like NES and Sega were never designed for TVs that has lags. So there is no calibrate option to account for signal lag.