Should I buy a PAL television?

[+RangerG]

I can get a nice 13" Sony television with A/V (mono) that is PAL for $20 from someone that has used it in their camper. Would this be worth it for me for any of the following:

 

1) eventually I would like to collect the PAL games that were not released in the U.S. and I will most likely get PAL versions of the rarer Atari carts instead of the very expensive NTSC ones

 

2) I would like to eventually get the PAL Odyssey2 carts that were not released in the U.S.

 

 

I'm still confused (even after reading earlier threads) about playing PAL games. Some NTSC televisions play PAL games fine? Can you play PAL games with a NTSC system and a PAL television? Can I buy this television and a PAL Flashback 2.0, mod it with a cart port, and be in PAL gaming bliss .

[jetset]

I'm still confused (even after reading earlier threads) about playing PAL games. Some NTSC televisions play PAL games fine? Can you play PAL games with a NTSC system and a PAL television? Can I buy this television and a PAL Flashback 2.0, mod it with a cart port, and be in PAL gaming bliss .

859396[/snapback]

 

All you need is an older US (ntsc) television that has the old time "v-hold" (vertical) adjustment. Theyre easily found at yard sales, flea markets, etc...(I got a 19" for $5 bucks from a church rummage sale!)

Anyways, PAL carts on NTSC TV's tend to suffer from "screen roll". Basicially PAL games roll up and down, and the vertical hold is all you need to fix that problem. I have over 400 2600 games, about 40 are PAL and all play fine on my TV.

[Bill Brasky]

Hell yeah! For $20 why not. Besides PAL 2600 games there's other cool consoles and computers that are PAL only and were never released in North America.

[Mayhem]

Also overlook the fact on NTSC TVs, PAL 2600 games will most likely have wrong colours as well... but usually the screen is rolling so much you don't get to notice that part

 

I'd say grab it!

[jetset]

Also overlook the fact on NTSC TVs, PAL 2600 games will most likely have wrong colours as well... but usually the screen is rolling so much you don't get to notice that part

 

I'd say grab it!

859473[/snapback]

 

Is that true? None of the ones I have seem to play with the wrong colors? Of course, about half are PAL-only releases, so I wouldnt know, but some that I have look identical to thier NTSC counterparts...

[Clock]

Shame its not a newer pal TV or it would most likely be multi-standard - perfect for a international games collector (... oooh that sounds kind of cool)

[Mayhem]

Is that true?  None of the ones I have seem to play with the wrong colors?  Of course, about half are PAL-only releases, so I wouldnt know, but some that I have look identical to thier NTSC counterparts...

 

It'll really depend on how they are coded. But a lot of the NTSC ROMs I have played through CC2 come out wrong coloured on my PAL TV. But that's through RF. If I had my 7800 connected composite, then they might come out correct.

 

After all, the game determines the colours for the 2600, not the machine (unlike just about every other console).

[GrizzLee]

I can get a nice 13" Sony television with A/V (mono) that is PAL for $20 from someone that has used it in their camper. Would this be worth it for me for any of the following:

 

1) eventually I would like to collect the PAL games that were not released in the U.S. and I will most likely get PAL versions of the rarer Atari carts instead of the very expensive NTSC ones

 

2) I would like to eventually get the PAL Odyssey2 carts that were not released in the U.S.

 

 

I'm still confused (even after reading earlier threads) about playing PAL games. Some NTSC televisions play PAL games fine? Can you play PAL games with a NTSC system and a PAL television? Can I buy this television and a PAL Flashback 2.0, mod it with a cart port, and be in PAL gaming bliss .

859396[/snapback]

 

 

This sounds like the exact Sony PAL TV I got a at thrift for $10. It was new. To test it, they cut off the European cord and plugged the wires drectly into the wall They sold it as is, becuase they said it didn't work. It also has a SCART connector. I use it on PAL systems, mostly for the Odyssey 3 unit from Europe.

 

-Lee

[Seob]

When u are able to get hold on a powerconverter, i would say yes.

U may need a powerconverter because most pal televisions work on a voltage of 220V while us systems use 110V.

[JB]

When u are able to get hold on a powerconverter, i would say yes.

U may need a powerconverter because most pal televisions work on a voltage of 220V while us systems use 110V.

859817[/snapback]

And 50Hz power instead of 60.

[Drazic]

This is weird cause i always heve trouble if something is NTSC

[Mayhem]

You can get step up transformers from a number of places. I know LikSang do one (for transforming 110V into 220V).

Edited May 23, 2005 by MayhemUK

[Bruce Tomlin]

A small PAL TV that's that cheap sounds like a good idea, especially if it has A/V inputs.

 

I found a 19" PAL TV years ago at a thrift which only has RF input, but at least it works on 110/60 power. I found it along with a PAL VHS recorder that had a sticker on it in Arabic, so maybe someone brought it back from being in Saudi or something. Of course it had that Euro-RF plug which was never used in the USA other than with some variations of the Odyssey^2, and I was able to replace it with an RCA plug. But no SCART, no A/V. It's easier to just use a video digitizer to view PAL.

 

I actually did get some use out of the VHS recorder, though. Someone had a PAL tape for me to convert, and I did it by using a PowerMac 7100 as a scan converter. It had a crappy 16-bit passthrough mode which deleted a scan line in the middle of the screen, but the result was watchable.

 

Now if only I could find something to play that "Sonyland" PAL Beta tape I found at some thrift in Houston years ago.

[Atarinvader]

If you're using an NTSC 2600 machine to play PAL games it will still output NTSC, only at 50hz with a skewed colour pallet. The answer is to have a PAL machine for use with PAL carts, and a monitor that is dual-standard.