kgenthe Posted February 21, 2018 Share Posted February 21, 2018 Did you know? There is a Japanese FZ-1 variant 3DO lacking an RF module, but instead has a MODE SELECT switch. Mode A is 480i, mode B is 240p. No mods needed! I figured I'd share this here since this it isn't common knowledge and might incredibly useful for some. If you happen to own one of these 3DO’s and a Framemeister, here are the S-Video settings I used for the above captures: HDMI_Output: 720_60p Image_Mode: Picture Brightness: 25 Gamma: 14 Black: 2 Saturation: 23 Sharpness: 1 A/D Level: 142 Visual_Set Menu H_Scaler: 11 V_Scaler: 6 Zoom_Set Menu Zoom_Size: 100 Zoom_Width: 45 Video_Set Menu Pedestal_Lvl: On Cheers! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krslam Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 Wouldn't 240p just be 480i with half the frames skipped (Or just output as blank)? Less flicker but only half the resolution? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 Interesting info. I'll have to check the back of my Japanese FZ-1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taijigamer Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 Thanks for sharing. Would you be able to open up the 3DO and take pictures of the inside. It would be interesting to see which encoder it uses and how the switch is wired to the board. Thanks for the Frameister settings. 240p is the prefered video mode for retro consoles. It is a sharper image with no flicker. It can then be line doubled to 480p or line tripled to 720p for maximum quality. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UHATEIT Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 Damn, I just checked the back of mine. It only has the channel set 3-4 in place of that A-B so mine isn't a Japenese model then. For those of you using s-video since it wa smentioned above, do you fine s-video to look better than the AV cables on your CRT? I honestly couldn't tell the difference so I left mine with AV cables since I was out of s-video ports 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 For those of you using s-video since it wa smentioned above, do you fine s-video to look better than the AV cables on your CRT? I honestly couldn't tell the difference so I left mine with AV cables since I was out of s-video ports Yes, the s-video is significantly better than composite. Make sure you're not plugging in the composite (yellow) cable alongside your s-video cable. Your TV will prioritize the composite connection over the s-video connection if you do that. You really should notice a difference if you are connecting things up correctly. Also, what model TV do you have? On my Trinitron, the difference is like night and day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UHATEIT Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 Yes, the s-video is significantly better than composite. Make sure you're not plugging in the composite (yellow) cable alongside your s-video cable. Your TV will prioritize the composite connection over the s-video connection if you do that. You really should notice a difference if you are connecting things up correctly. Also, what model TV do you have? On my Trinitron, the difference is like night and day. Mine is a Trinitron XBR which should be a pretty high end CRT. It's a flat CRT. I didn't notice much but maybe I'll give it another shot. I notice a big difference with the Saturn but nothing much at all from the 3DO over the AV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 24, 2018 Share Posted February 24, 2018 Mine is a Trinitron XBR which should be a pretty high end CRT. It's a flat CRT. I didn't notice much but maybe I'll give it another shot. I notice a big difference with the Saturn but nothing much at all from the 3DO over the AV Gotcha, just wanted to make sure you were doing it right. I know I have made that mistake in the past and thought, "Well, S-Video just doesn't look any better" (even though by nature it is a large jump). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 24, 2018 Share Posted February 24, 2018 I just dug out my Japanese FZ-1, and sure enough, it's got the switch on the back. My next question is, in terms of Japanese FZ-1 models specifically, is this actually a variant? I decided to take a look on eBay and of the several I happened to take a look at, all had the switch (and no RF port). There are a few with RF ports that slipped through marked as "import" systems, but are actually USA models (Japanese versions will have some Japanese text on the back and have a 100v marking). I am looking forward to testing this out soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 25, 2018 Share Posted February 25, 2018 So sure enough it works. I've been looking at 480i on this platform for decades so it's interesting seeing the games in 240p. If anything, it plays much nicer with my upscaler and it the picture looks much nicer when the system is run through it. That's a huge plus for when I am streaming. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demkca Posted February 25, 2018 Share Posted February 25, 2018 My next question is, in terms of Japanese FZ-1 models specifically, is this actually a variant? I decided to take a look on eBay and of the several I happened to take a look at, all had the switch (and no RF port). There are a few with RF ports that slipped through marked as "import" systems, but are actually USA models (Japanese versions will have some Japanese text on the back and have a 100v marking). Mine doesn't have the switch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taijigamer Posted February 26, 2018 Share Posted February 26, 2018 That's interesting. From what I've seen the later Japanese FZ-1 have VP536 encoders which can be switched for 480i/ 240p but why have some with a case switch and some without, unless this was a later edition of FZ-1. It would be good to see which encoder the FZ-1 with case switch had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haightc Posted February 26, 2018 Share Posted February 26, 2018 My japanese FZ-1 stopped reading disc well, I should check if it has a switch in the back for 240p. Maybe that would incentivize me to get an ODE for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 26, 2018 Share Posted February 26, 2018 Mine doesn't have the switch Interesting. Good to know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Dangerous Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 (edited) How would 240p look just over S video to a crt TV. I don't have a framemeister and likely never will. Edited February 28, 2018 by travistouchdown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 How would 240p look just over S video to a crt TV. I don't have a framemeister and likely never will. It'll look like any other 240p source over S video to a CRT (PS1, Saturn, Jaguar, etc). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Dangerous Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 So the aspect ratio would be 4:3 still? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UHATEIT Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 I had wondered if the 240p of the Japanese version was worth it to buy it over a US version. My fz-1 is on the fritz due to capacitors I found out so I was thinking of snagging a spare fz-10 if I can and was interested in a Japanese one if the 240p makes a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted February 28, 2018 Share Posted February 28, 2018 So the aspect ratio would be 4:3 still? Yes. Look at the snapshots in the top post--those are 240p. I had wondered if the 240p of the Japanese version was worth it to buy it over a US version. My fz-1 is on the fritz due to capacitors I found out so I was thinking of snagging a spare fz-10 if I can and was interested in a Japanese one if the 240p makes a difference. If you are just playing on a CRT, then 240p vs. 480i is going to be a preference kind of thing. Do you prefer the more consistent/firm look of most PlayStation and Saturn titles (240p), or do you like the pseudo-higher resolution look (albeit jittery) that you get with 480i (3DO, some PS1/Saturn title screens; most PS2 titles)? For people that record or stream however, 240p is really important. It plays nicer with scalers and generally looks a lot more appealing in recordings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UHATEIT Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 Mine doesn't have the switch IMG_0083.png Damn that's crazy you have no switch at all! I just bought a second FZ-1 unit last weekend and it is like my other one, had the 3-4 switch, unfortunately no Mode A-B switch But I did notice the difference in the top cover, it is textured and shiny vs my other one which is dull/flat and a marble color on the top. The lettering on the front is bigger as well. I was hoping that was a Japanese unit for the sake of this switch but no dice, likely just another version of the US model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taijigamer Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 The 3-4 switch relates to channel select on the RF modulator. The 240p switch seems to only be on certain Japanese models. It all depends on video encoder. The early US and Japanese FZ-1 models have the BT9101 encoder which doesn't support 240p (as far as we know). PAL and Canadian FZ-1 have the BT9103 encoder which can be modded for 240p but doesn't come with a switch pre installed. Late Japanese FZ-1 (prior to FZ-10 launch) have the VP536 encoder which also can support 240p. Some have a switch pre built, some don't. Best thing to do is open up your 3DO and see which encoder u have. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haightc Posted March 9, 2018 Share Posted March 9, 2018 So then since my Japanese 3DO has an A/B switch is safe to assume it has the VP536 encoder. I may just hybridize my US and Japan model, as an ODE would be just shy of $300 for the FZ-1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mario64 Posted August 26, 2018 Share Posted August 26, 2018 Hello. Question regarding this variant. I currently have a RGB-modded 3do. I’m wondering though if the ability to lock in 240p would actually be better. What do you all think? 240p > RGB? I do have a Framemeister so s-video is an option. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 Hello. Question regarding this variant. I currently have a RGB-modded 3do. I’m wondering though if the ability to lock in 240p would actually be better. What do you all think? 240p > RGB? I do have a Framemeister so s-video is an option. Thanks 240p + RGB is ideal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mario64 Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 240p + RGB is ideal. Thanks Austin. Thing is, I haven't found one of these 3do variants which is RGB modded Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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