GT4 in 1080i on an LCD monitor
- Thread starter defbond
- 39 comments
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HEAVYSET says he's played GT4 in 1080i mode on an HDTV, maybe he can pipe in and let you know his setup.
I splurged yesterday and bought a 23" LCD monitor, 1920x1080 native resolution (1080p), 1,000:1 contrast ratio,and HDMI and VGA hookups. It's scheduled to deliver this Friday, can't wait!
With any luck my component cables will finally arrive by then, and I'm going to give the 1080i mode a shot. I will let you know how it works, and see if I can find a good way to capture the differences. If it works I'm going to recommend a converter box like I purchased - so far absolutely no problems displaying interlaced output from my PS2, the images look just like they did on my standard def TV.
On a side note, Sony is now offering a new PS3, 160gb model, bundled with Uncharted 1 for $300 shipped.If the new PS3's were backwards compatible with my PS2 games I would buy one in a heartbeat. But since they're not, and I'd feel guilty about the purchase if I still played my PS2 games on my PS2, I'll wait a bit longer. Getting harder to wait though!
http://dealnews.com/Sony-Play-Station-3-160-GB-Uncharted-Bundle-for-300-free-shipping/324826.html
With the YLOD thing, the fat PS3's scare me a little though. Honestly if I get one I'll probably go for the slim model.
i see that you have now purchased a 1920x1080 LCD. how does the High Resolution Standalone VGA TV Tuner Box LCD PS3 Wii that you bought go with that?
does it work properly in 1920x1080, or does the box force u to use 1920x1200, or not work at all?
i had a 16:10 (22inch, 1680x1050) LCD with component input, but Gran Tusrismo 4 on PS2 needs 16:9, otherwise it's slightly squashed. *annoying*
therefore, i thought i could use my 16:9 (24", 1920x1080) LCD instead (with a spare VGA port), with a component to vga box (perhaps the one you bought) to plug my ps2 in... and for the picture to not to be squashed!
is this what you've experienced (ie. 1920x1080 displays perfectly), and what i can expect from that box if i buy one?
also, you look to have the Geniatech Supera Color LCD TV Box is this correct?
thanks
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- 114
^ That's the one I got.
I will attempt to answer your questions. However I'm definitely not an expert by any means.
When using my computer, the signal from my video card to the monitor isn't affected by the VGA box at all. In fact I don't even have to turn the VGA box on in order for the monitor to work with my computer. You didn't ask about this but I thought it was interesting. Full 1920x1080 resolution.
When I am using my PS2, the VGA box does need turned on. I'm fuzzy on how many resolutions the VGA box supports, but it was a lot. The maximum resolution is 1920x1200, but if I attempt this resolution I get a signal out of range message on my monitor. This makes sense since my monitor supports a max resolution of 1920x1080.
The next resolution down from the VGA box may have been 1680x1050(?). It was something around that, I have the manual at home. This resolution will display on my monitor, and I haven't noticed any distorting of the image. Rather it seems that the image just won't be displayed at full screen, so there are black bars along the top and sides. The bars are only 0.25" or so at most so the image is practically full screen. It would have been preferable if the VGA box I'm using supported 1920x1080 as well but unfortunately it doesn't. If it did I expect I wouldn't see any letter boxing. I have played GT4 and Splinter Cell: Double Agent on the new screen so far.
I still haven't received my component cable in the mail yet, so I am still playing PS2 games with 480i output to the VGA box. So unfortunately I can't comment on improvement of 480p and 1080i modes in GT4.
The nice thing about the VGA box I have is that regardless of output from the PS2, the images will show up on my monitor as if they were being displayed on a standard definition TV. No messing around with switching out cables to an external TV to get through 480i menus to display interlaced PS2 output. The Splinter Cell game I've played doesn't support 480p at all, but it shows up on the monitor perfectly without color distortion, etc.
So ... I'm guessing that if you bought the same VGA box that I did, you wouldn't be able to display a full 1920x1080 image on your monitor, but would have to settle for 1680x1050. Hopefully the image wouldn't be stretched and distorted though, just letter boxed slightly. You may be able to find a VGA box that supports 1920x1080 resolution, but you will want to confirm that interlaced output from your PS2 will still show up on your monitor.
Good luck!
I will attempt to answer your questions. However I'm definitely not an expert by any means.
When using my computer, the signal from my video card to the monitor isn't affected by the VGA box at all. In fact I don't even have to turn the VGA box on in order for the monitor to work with my computer. You didn't ask about this but I thought it was interesting. Full 1920x1080 resolution.
When I am using my PS2, the VGA box does need turned on. I'm fuzzy on how many resolutions the VGA box supports, but it was a lot. The maximum resolution is 1920x1200, but if I attempt this resolution I get a signal out of range message on my monitor. This makes sense since my monitor supports a max resolution of 1920x1080.
The next resolution down from the VGA box may have been 1680x1050(?). It was something around that, I have the manual at home. This resolution will display on my monitor, and I haven't noticed any distorting of the image. Rather it seems that the image just won't be displayed at full screen, so there are black bars along the top and sides. The bars are only 0.25" or so at most so the image is practically full screen. It would have been preferable if the VGA box I'm using supported 1920x1080 as well but unfortunately it doesn't. If it did I expect I wouldn't see any letter boxing. I have played GT4 and Splinter Cell: Double Agent on the new screen so far.
I still haven't received my component cable in the mail yet, so I am still playing PS2 games with 480i output to the VGA box. So unfortunately I can't comment on improvement of 480p and 1080i modes in GT4.
The nice thing about the VGA box I have is that regardless of output from the PS2, the images will show up on my monitor as if they were being displayed on a standard definition TV. No messing around with switching out cables to an external TV to get through 480i menus to display interlaced PS2 output. The Splinter Cell game I've played doesn't support 480p at all, but it shows up on the monitor perfectly without color distortion, etc.
So ... I'm guessing that if you bought the same VGA box that I did, you wouldn't be able to display a full 1920x1080 image on your monitor, but would have to settle for 1680x1050. Hopefully the image wouldn't be stretched and distorted though, just letter boxed slightly. You may be able to find a VGA box that supports 1920x1080 resolution, but you will want to confirm that interlaced output from your PS2 will still show up on your monitor.
Good luck!
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hey thanks for the reply. i have also been in correspondence with people at geniatech, and they told me that it would definitely not support 1920x1080. i had a feeling that i'd have to settle for letterboxed 1680x1050 anyway, but that's ok.
i've decided to purchase a match-town high-box HT-1800 (i believe is it's technical name), commonly found on ebay.
i have been assured that this will output 1920x1080. if this is not the case, then i will probably have to opt for an XCM 1080p Mega-Cool VGA Box.
i've decided to purchase a match-town high-box HT-1800 (i believe is it's technical name), commonly found on ebay.
i have been assured that this will output 1920x1080. if this is not the case, then i will probably have to opt for an XCM 1080p Mega-Cool VGA Box.
- 114
Cool. Let us know how it works for you.
I've covered myself in that the monitor I bought has an HDMI input, so if down the road I buy a PS3 I can skip the VGA box altogether and just connect the PS3 straight to the monitor and enjoy 1920x1080.
Also with the PS2 connected, resolution becomes a bit of a non-issue, besides GT4's and Touring Trophies 1080i mode, I don't think there are any other games supporting better than 480p.
I guess I did kind of screw myself if I were to hook up a Blu-ray DVD player via the VGA box, or TV antennae via the VGA box, because 1680x1050 is the best I can do through it.
EDIT:
My component cable arrived in the mail today, woo hoo! I was just home over lunch so I didn't have time to play around with it too much, but I did confirm that 480p and 1080i modes work on my monitor with my VGA box. The 1080i mode is letterboxed, but not so much that I feel like I lose much screen space. I did a lap on the Nurburgring in 1080i mode and there was a significant improvement over the S-video and 480i way I was playing it before. However I don't know how much of the improvement was due to switching to component cables and how much was due to 1080i mode. I will play around with it tonight and try to find a way to quantify the changes.
I've covered myself in that the monitor I bought has an HDMI input, so if down the road I buy a PS3 I can skip the VGA box altogether and just connect the PS3 straight to the monitor and enjoy 1920x1080.
Also with the PS2 connected, resolution becomes a bit of a non-issue, besides GT4's and Touring Trophies 1080i mode, I don't think there are any other games supporting better than 480p.
I guess I did kind of screw myself if I were to hook up a Blu-ray DVD player via the VGA box, or TV antennae via the VGA box, because 1680x1050 is the best I can do through it.
EDIT:
My component cable arrived in the mail today, woo hoo! I was just home over lunch so I didn't have time to play around with it too much, but I did confirm that 480p and 1080i modes work on my monitor with my VGA box. The 1080i mode is letterboxed, but not so much that I feel like I lose much screen space. I did a lap on the Nurburgring in 1080i mode and there was a significant improvement over the S-video and 480i way I was playing it before. However I don't know how much of the improvement was due to switching to component cables and how much was due to 1080i mode. I will play around with it tonight and try to find a way to quantify the changes.
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- 114
Well after further testing last night 
, I've come to a few conclusions:
1. Component cables vs. S-video, composite cables makes a big difference in image quality. Colors are better defined and seem brighter, and images look sharper with less blocky-ness. I attributed blocky-ness to just the resolution but for some reason it's lessened with the component cables.
2. Whether or not GT4 is in standard mode or 480p mode makes no difference in terms of image quality. On some level, this makes sense to me. My monitor is only displaying a progressive image, so the VGA box must be converting the output from the PS2 to progressive if it's getting an interlaced signal. And in terms of resolution, 480p and 480i are the same. I guess the good thing about this is any PS2 game I play will be 480p.
3. 1080i mode from GT4 does make a difference in image quality, though it seems more subtle than the jump from S-video to component cables was in terms of overall improvement. I may try to capture comparison screenshots, to rule out that part of the improvement is a placebo effect lol.
I've only ran the Nurburgring and did Mission #23 (slipstream mission on the high speed oval track), but the edges of these tracks seemed much crisper. Also, something about the view straight ahead makes me feel more immersed in 1080 mode vs. 480 mode. Car models also seemed improved in detail and sharpness. However there are still jaggies in the peripheral and in upcoming barriers, etc., so this is definitely not on the same level as GT5P or anything. But it was an improvement, and will be worth the extra menu time to set it up each boot. 👍
, I've come to a few conclusions:1. Component cables vs. S-video, composite cables makes a big difference in image quality. Colors are better defined and seem brighter, and images look sharper with less blocky-ness. I attributed blocky-ness to just the resolution but for some reason it's lessened with the component cables.
2. Whether or not GT4 is in standard mode or 480p mode makes no difference in terms of image quality. On some level, this makes sense to me. My monitor is only displaying a progressive image, so the VGA box must be converting the output from the PS2 to progressive if it's getting an interlaced signal. And in terms of resolution, 480p and 480i are the same. I guess the good thing about this is any PS2 game I play will be 480p.
3. 1080i mode from GT4 does make a difference in image quality
, though it seems more subtle than the jump from S-video to component cables was in terms of overall improvement. I may try to capture comparison screenshots, to rule out that part of the improvement is a placebo effect lol. I've only ran the Nurburgring and did Mission #23 (slipstream mission on the high speed oval track), but the edges of these tracks seemed much crisper. Also, something about the view straight ahead makes me feel more immersed in 1080 mode vs. 480 mode. Car models also seemed improved in detail and sharpness. However there are still jaggies in the peripheral and in upcoming barriers, etc., so this is definitely not on the same level as GT5P or anything. But it was an improvement, and will be worth the extra menu time to set it up each boot. 👍
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ItsHim
Premium
- 1,414
- Bavaria/Germany
I've got a Multi Console Cable thingy (Wii, PS3, XBox360) with Component output and guess what - works flawlessly with the PS2, too, and came for 14 EURs from the local Gamestop (own branding).
480p won't turn GT4 all of a sudden into a HD next gen game, but the cables are of decent quality and the image is more pleasant to the eyes because it's progressive scan (on a flatscreen TV).
But I wouldn't invest any money besides a few bucks for a new cable.
480p won't turn GT4 all of a sudden into a HD next gen game, but the cables are of decent quality and the image is more pleasant to the eyes because it's progressive scan (on a flatscreen TV).
But I wouldn't invest any money besides a few bucks for a new cable.
Ideal setup for GT4 is not a HDTV, but a bigscreen CRT with component, or RGB lead. As soon as you connect PS2 to a LCD TV via component cables all the bad resolution comes so evident you will be thinking PS2 hasn't got far from PS1. It does look bad. THe textures look pixelated, about everything looks very low res, but clean and sharp, much like a 400x300 resolution on a PC monitor. Now I understand why games like GTA and MGS on PS2 don't support 480p, that would be a visual mess for the eye.
