GBI ULL - 240p upscaler cheap option [PAL consoles only]

[paulness15]

Hi,

Just a heads up to help others. I had a spare PAL Gamecube console and I live in the USA and I wanted to enjoy the GBI homebrew app in ULL mode on my HDTV without spending hundreds on an XRGB so I looked for options.

First I bought a composite to HDMI adapter (big mistake I know). It sucks even more than connecting my other Gamecube (NTSC) directly to the TV. So it went in the trash and I gave up and decided to just use my NTSC Gamecube for Gameboy Interface instead.

However over time I wanted to speedrun and use the ULL and LL versions. The LL and ULL versions via composite on my TV were so terrible. The reason for this, with composite the LCD TV has to demodulate the color and this process cannot be done right with abnormal refresh rates, causing major fuzziness and other video issues.


Next.....

I knew that RGB SCART does not have to process NTSC or PAL / demodulate colors. Red green and blue are sent down separate wires. I knew that it HAD to remove the fuzziness somehow! I had a PAL Gamecube so why not give it a try.

I went ahead and bought these two for my PAL console (see attachment). Now I have absolutely good quality 240p GBI ULL goodness coming from my PAL Gamecube on my American NTSC 720p Samsung LCD HDTV via HDMI.


In summary if any of the following apply to you buy these products
If you have a PAL console and a US HDTV without a SCART connection
If hooking up your Gamecube to your TV looks terrible and/or your TV does not interpret 240p properly (you can check using the 240p test suite on Gamecube, drop shadow test is a good test)
If you want to play PAL and NTSC games on the same modded console
If your TV has zooming modes for HDMI (you need them for full screen on GBI ULL/LL)
If your TV has a game mode and a screen fit mode (you need it to minimize lag)
If you are unhappy with composite/RF and your TV doesn't have S-VIDEO
If you have other consoles like Sega Saturn/Sega Genesis/SNES/RGB modded N64 the upscaler would be perfect for these
If you are using a computer monitor with HDMI connection and want to use a Gamecube on it

Do not buy these products if you are happy with composite / s-video and your TV handles 240p just fine.

Notes on 240p / video quality
I tested the 240p test suite, it correctly handles the drop shadow 240p test and all other tests I tried, amazing!
ULL version has no fuzziness or color bleeding VS composite which is terrible due to the differences in refresh rate
Use a great SCART cable not a cheap one!

Notes on lag (a major concern for many)
Lag from the upscaler is 90ms (total including the general lag from my 720p LCD TV in game mode / screen fit)
My TV is just 720p so I set the adapter to 720p, which I assume is less lag than the 1080p mode

[turnerl]

Thanks for your post. Would you recommend these two products for general gc games, like resident evil 4?

Cheers

[Xaranar]

Two words: GC Video.

[paulness15]

Thanks for your post. Would you recommend these two products for general gc games, like resident evil 4?

Cheers

I would recommend these products for regular GC games, only if you are not happy your current setup. If it looks OK with RF / composite / s video then just stick with that.

I personally play my regular GC games using my Wii with Component cables in 480p.

[paulness15]

Two words: GC Video.

Yeah I am sure that would be amazing too, I plan on buying a CRT and using SCART when I move out of the city someday though. For now this upscaler does the job for a small NYC apartment.

[turnerl]

Thanks for your post. Would you recommend these two products for general gc games, like resident evil 4?

Cheers

I would recommend these products for regular GC games, only if you are not happy your current setup. If it looks OK with RF / composite / s video then just stick with that.

I personally play my regular GC games using my Wii with Component cables in 480p.

Thanks paulness15, I currently use component video with my cube. I also use component with my Wii. The picture quality between cube an Wii is chalk and cheese no comparison the Cube looks sooo much better (I don't know why?) especially when forcing 520p through Swiss.

[paulness15]

Thanks for your post. Would you recommend these two products for general gc games, like resident evil 4?

Cheers

I would recommend these products for regular GC games, only if you are not happy your current setup. If it looks OK with RF / composite / s video then just stick with that.

I personally play my regular GC games using my Wii with Component cables in 480p.

Thanks paulness15, I currently use component video with my cube. I also use component with my Wii. The picture quality between cube an Wii is chalk and cheese no comparison the Cube looks sooo much better (I don't know why?) especially when forcing 520p through Swiss.

I wish I bought the component cables when they were cheap

Broadband adapters too I could have gotten a bunch for a dollar each at one stage!

[paulness15]

UPDATE
---
"I think" this scaler outputs RGB full and it cannot be changed to RGB limited over HDMI.

If you aren't seeing any pure blacks or pure whites then, you'll need to set your TV to PC mode to get full colours. Before buying this, make sure your TV supports PC mode and RGB full colors (there are tests for this)
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=777857


Its a good scaler once you have everything calibrated properly.

[XC-3730C]

I am curious. If I get a PAL Gamecube, and a good SCART RGB cable, I can get proper 240p when connecting it to my Sony PVM-2530 (I have a SCART adapter cable for it)?

I really only want to use my Gamecube for the Gameboy Player. Yes, there is the overpriced component video cable, and I can't get a GCVideo from anyone as of now, but maybe this will be a good alternative.

[paulness15]

I am curious. If I get a PAL Gamecube, and a good SCART RGB cable, I can get proper 240p when connecting it to my Sony PVM-2530 (I have a SCART adapter cable for it)?

I really only want to use my Gamecube for the Gameboy Player. Yes, there is the overpriced component video cable, and I can't get a GCVideo from anyone as of now, but maybe this will be a good alternative.

Sony PVM-2530 works best with RGB SCART, therefore the region free PAL GC route is the cheapest and best option for you by far.

GCVideo or Component cables are good options for LCD/LED TV's.

[megalomaniac]

PAL RGB scart does not allow progressive mode (480p)
just something to keep in mind if for any reason you decide to start playing GC titles you will be limited to 480i

[XC-3730C]

Not a problem, because the Gamecube (If I can get one outside of ebay) will be strictly for Gamecube Player.