Project "Generation Station"

Soldato
Joined
17 Oct 2002
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7,408
Location
Stoke-on-Trent
My mate and I spent several hours on a Saturday night watching lots of old videos on YouTube of retro games.

Modern games just aren't doing it for me at the minute so I decided to source and invest in some retro stuff.

I also have my PC (spec in sig) a PS4 and Xbox-one

The First Three
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Original in mint condition
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Temporary TV
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Then came the Dreamcast
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With of course a copy of Shenmue
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Controllers were a bit knackered so I ordered some new ones
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The Station so far
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Waiting for this to arrive
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The space in the middle on the bottom shelf is reserved for a Gamecube.

I think I've spent around £200 so far and for that I've got:
  • TV
  • SNES
  • PS1
  • PS2
  • PS3
  • XBOX
  • Dreamcast
  • Gamecube

Extra's that I've bought
  • 2x controllers for each console
  • Scart RCA adapters for each console
  • A few software titles.

Maybe List:
  • Mega Drive II
  • N64
  • Wii
  • 360
 
Associate
Joined
26 May 2012
Posts
1,581
Location
Surrey, UK
I'm really wondering... is there no way to convert Scart/composite (red/white/yellow) to HDMI (or even DVI/VGA to plug into a monitor)? I know that there's DIY modded NES out there with HDMI. Would be nicer to be able to play these old games on a bigger screen. So what if the pixels are noticable. These old systems do local multiplayer a lot better (more games that supported it) and bigger screen = more space for each player. Would do wonders for things like Goldeneye, Halo and Mario Kart.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
7,408
Location
Stoke-on-Trent
I'm really wondering... is there no way to convert Scart/composite (red/white/yellow) to HDMI (or even DVI/VGA to plug into a monitor)? I know that there's DIY modded NES out there with HDMI. Would be nicer to be able to play these old games on a bigger screen. So what if the pixels are noticable. These old systems do local multiplayer a lot better (more games that supported it) and bigger screen = more space for each player. Would do wonders for things like Goldeneye, Halo and Mario Kart.

Retro games and consoles look absolutely awful on modern LED/LCD screens.

They should NEVER be played on anything other than a CRT set. :D
 
Soldato
Joined
17 Oct 2002
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18,543
Location
UK
I can see you running out of space quickly :p

Does that CRT offer anything special? I thought Sony Trinitron's were the go-to CRT for retro consoles? People pretty much give them away too.

Also would this not be better in the retro thread?
 
Associate
Joined
20 Nov 2013
Posts
916
It's not just the TV that makes a difference, having the best cable connection makes even more difference. The difference between RF and Composite/SCART and then RGB SCART is massive.

I took these a while back, but you get the idea.


Well that slightly absolves my boss of embarrassment, having spent £100 (yes, one hundred) on a HDMI cable. I know it's still making no difference but I'll be nice and assume he had this in mind when he did the deal. :D:eek:
 
Man of Honour
Joined
20 Dec 2004
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7,016
Location
Tamworth
HDMI is a data cable so as long as it's compliant with the HDMI standard then spending extra money yields no benefit at all.

Look up Linus Tech tips on YouTube. He did a comparison with a HDMI cable that cost a fortune and it made zero difference.

Does the OP realise that he can play PS1 games on the PS2 or PS3?
 
Last edited:
Soldato
OP
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
7,408
Location
Stoke-on-Trent
HDMI is a data cable so as long as it's compliant with the HDMI standard then spending extra money yields no benefit at all.

Look up Linus Tech tips on YouTube. He did a comparison with a HDMI cable that cost a fortune and it made zero difference.

Does the OP realise that he can play PS1 games on the PS2 or PS3?

Yes I do, but it's not the same. Nothing can replicate that PS1 boot up sound :D
 
Associate
Joined
20 Nov 2013
Posts
916
HDMI is a data cable so as long as it's compliant with the HDMI standard then spending extra money yields no benefit at all.

Look up Linus Tech tips on YouTube. He did a comparison with a HDMI cable that cost a fortune and it made zero difference.

I know that and you know that, but this diploma-holding, well-educated, mostly logical-thinking man simply will not let his pride be damaged by acknowledging that this is the case. I know he's researched it because he's given up fighting the case every time he's mocked. Which is often.

Every time I see Linus mentioned I think 'but I don't bloody use Linux'. Without fail, my mind plays this trick and it's so annoying! :D
 
Soldato
Joined
17 Jul 2005
Posts
9,679
There are definitely X to HDMI scalers available for playing the older consoles on modern LCD's but the last time I checked they were quite pricey (for a good one). I haven't looked for quite a while so things may have changed.

I would say though that a Dreamcast hooked up via VGA still looks incredible (relatively speaking) on an LCD. The difference to any other connection method is night and day for it.

I need to take an up to date picture of my "retro corner" as it has changed drastically since I first posted it. I don't have all my consoles hooked up but I have them all on display ready to go if I want to play them (cables / controllers etc in a cupboard off to the side).
 
Man of Honour
Joined
15 Jan 2006
Posts
32,369
Location
Tosche Station
You might want to look in to getting a different region N64, the PAL UK ones have terrible video quality options compared to some Europe and US ones, although you still need to mod them to get proper RGB out. The problem with UK ones is that even with modding it's still impossible (or near as damnit) to get RGB.

:edit: Done a bit more googling and it seems that things may have changed, with some places releasing some quite clever mods. Ignore me, I'm stuck in the past :o :cool:
 
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