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Retro Scaler A1

Thanks for the response. Do you see yourself offering a firmware update in the future that would incorporate this feature?

I ask because for troublesome arcade PBCs, I need to use a DVDO and output in 31khz. I much prefer your scanline option 3 to the SLG3000 or the OSSC. Hoping to ditch the OSSC forever and this is only think holding me back.
 
Thchardcore said:
Thanks for the response. Do you see yourself offering a firmware update in the future that would incorporate this feature?

I ask because for troublesome arcade PBCs, I need to use a DVDO and output in 31khz. I much prefer your scanline option 3 to the SLG3000 or the OSSC. Hoping to ditch the OSSC forever and this is only think holding me back.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure I understand the setup/use-case, is it to take 480p content like Naomi/TypeX etc and add scanlines to it? Do you have an ideal chain?
 
hey @invzim - whilst all my consoles and stuff work great, I have run into a problem with a NBA Jam TE PCB I have.
Firstly I had to invert the sync on the Williams PCB from positive to negative, now I get a picture (albeit at 54khz, not 60khz), the OSSC confirms this.

I cannot get this game to work on my NewNetCity monitor (trisync Toshiba) so I figured I could try the retroscalerA1 and just play it in a higher res. I have tried all the sync options (scart/TTL) as well as bypass=on and off, but I cannot get a stable image. The funny thing is, when I first connect the retroscalerA1 (with no microSD inserted), I get a perfect picture straight away, but it loses sync within a second or two. Any ideas ?

I am using (inverted to negative) CSYNC from the NBA Jam PCB into a DB15 header and into the retroscalerA1, then output goes direct to the monitor via a VGA cable.
 
invzim said:
Thchardcore said:
Thanks for the response. Do you see yourself offering a firmware update in the future that would incorporate this feature?

I ask because for troublesome arcade PBCs, I need to use a DVDO and output in 31khz. I much prefer your scanline option 3 to the SLG3000 or the OSSC. Hoping to ditch the OSSC forever and this is only think holding me back.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure I understand the setup/use-case, is it to take 480p content like Naomi/TypeX etc and add scanlines to it? Do you have an ideal chain?
Click to expand...
Well, it is two use cases - 480p original signal from Dreamcast or similar to add scanlines and 15khz Toaplan V2 upscanned to 31khz through a DVDO VP50Pro to produce stable picture with scanlines.

My chain is as follows:
1. DC>Extron 203>VGA Box>A1>VGA CRT
2. PBC>HAS>Extron 203>DVDO VP50Pro>A1>VGA CRT
 
Have you updated the firmware?

NBA Jam is same hardware as Mortal Kombat 2 - I have not heard anything about that hardware providing positive sync it seems a little odd TBH.
I have MK2 myself and it works great with the A1.

This is what I would suggest:
1 - update the firmware, https://irkenlabs.com/retro-scaler-a1/firmware-update
2 - bypass the sync inverter stuff, make sure sync from PCB goes straight to pin 13 on the DB15 header.
3 - try this without SD inserted
4 - report back :)
 
invzim said:
kazuo said:
Darn, 24 to 31 would've been nice for Model 2 boards. I'm getting one regardless!

Thanks as always for the awesome work!
Click to expand...
Gradius IV is on my grail list, so when I get that one I will probably give it a shot time permitting :)
Click to expand...
Ill trade you a Gradius IV, for one of your Retroscaler that can upscale 15/24 :D
 
Derick2k said:
invzim said:
kazuo said:
Darn, 24 to 31 would've been nice for Model 2 boards. I'm getting one regardless!

Thanks as always for the awesome work!
Click to expand...
Gradius IV is on my grail list, so when I get that one I will probably give it a shot time permitting :)
Click to expand...
Ill trade you a Gradius IV, for one of your Retroscaler that can upscale 15/24 :D
Click to expand...
I wondered this- does the retro scaler upscale 24k? Regardless, I want to purchase one whenever jammafiers come back in stock.
 
radiantsvgun said:
I wondered this- does the retro scaler upscale 24k? Regardless, I want to purchase one whenever jammafiers come back in stock.
Click to expand...
No it does not unfortunately, when it received 24k signal the analog bypass will kick in.
 
@Derick2k has a scaler in transit, ETA tomorrow, and I'm sure he can report back on the practicalities and overall experience. @rtw has also done quite a bit of testing using an LCD monitor.

Shipping is luckily business-as-usual, FedEx have their own planes and the fed-ex guys just picked up this weekends orders like he always does.
 
invzim said:
@Derick2k has a scaler in transit, ETA tomorrow, and I'm sure he can report back on the practicalities and overall experience. @rtw has also done quite a bit of testing using an LCD monitor.

Shipping is luckily business-as-usual, FedEx have their own planes and the fed-ex guys just picked up this weekends orders like he always does.
Click to expand...
Man, cant wait, I really hope it beats out the ossc for use in the vewlix.

Any tips or things to look out for?

Currently using this chain of devices: Jammafier ->TriSync Helper ->OSSC ->VP50Pro

Is it ok to do Jammafier ->Retro A1->VP50Pro or would the TriSync helper still be needed for use with an LCD display?
 
Derick2k said:
invzim said:
@Derick2k has a scaler in transit, ETA tomorrow, and I'm sure he can report back on the practicalities and overall experience. @rtw has also done quite a bit of testing using an LCD monitor.

Shipping is luckily business-as-usual, FedEx have their own planes and the fed-ex guys just picked up this weekends orders like he always does.
Click to expand...
Man, cant wait, I really hope it beats out the ossc for use in the vewlix.
Any tips or things to look out for?

Currently using this chain of devices: Jammafier ->TriSync Helper ->OSSC ->VP50Pro

Is it ok to do Jammafier ->Retro A1->VP50Pro or would the TriSync helper still be needed for use with an LCD display?
Click to expand...
It's made to be plug & play for the most part, how the LCD monitor handles the VGA signal is the complicating factor, specifically if the source has low refresh and many lines like the Mortal Kombat games.

You will need an SD card to save scanline settings, and a micro-usb & VGA cable between the A1 and the Jammafier. If you don't use scanlines, you don't need the SD card.

First I would do:

Jammafier -> VGA & USB cable to A1 -> LCD in cab via VGA port.
 
Ok hooked things up as you suggested and:

IMG_4428.jpg


This pcb would not sync with anything I would throw at it to taito lcd.

Finally, your scaler did the job, now i need to figure out why the monitor is saying that the source is 1080i, shouldnt it recognize it as 480P? Most likely some crap the lcds upscaler is doing.

So far, yeah, very positive results. I dont know what your scaler is doing to the sync, but it has gotten this funky pcb with a 54hz crazy to be stable. All other methods/devices would fall out of sync randomly.

Thats all I will test for tonight, gots more stuff to go through. the scanlines are a nice touch and jesus this so simple, nothing to do/setup, the thing just worked.

Brother you need to scale things up with this device and step it up to 1080p <3
 

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Nice! Added Street Fighter: The Movie to https://irkenlabs.com/retro-scaler-a1/tested-sources

The output is not really 480p. First, the number of lines will be 2x of whatever comes in, refresh-rate output is the same as the input and just to make it look good, the horizontal resolution is way higher than 640 - so it boils down to how smart/dumb the LCD is.
 
Well, then its something to do sync related, the ossc would fall in/out of lock randomly with this pcb, even adjusting it with the VP50Pro didnt work, unless there was something I missed.
 
The 'secret sync sauce' of the A1 is two-fold, it has a dedicated sync cleaning thingie and it pipes several versions of the sync direcly to the FPGA, and the FPGA and CPU will then do an analysis of it.

So both the FPGA and the CPU will know what the sync input is like in a very detailed way, and can employ 'counter-measures' to keep the ADC happy instead of leaving all that to the video ADC. To be fair, the sync processing inside most/all video ADC's are not made with arcade PCB's in mind, and the OSSC was not (initially at least) designed to do arcade stuff.

scaler block.png
 
I think the lcd is doing its thing and stretching the image. I have to check the lcd menu to see if there is option to turn that off, but I doubt it.

The cherry would be to get it to display game image in 4:3 aspect ratio.

Tomorrow i will try more boards.
 
Derick2k said:
I think the lcd is doing its thing and stretching the image. I have to check the lcd menu to see if there is option to turn that off, but I doubt it.
Click to expand...
I know the original monitor in my Vewlix F has the option to maintain the original aspect ratio. I'm running a System 256 in mine right now connected directly to the LCD in 480p 4:3. IIRC did have to change some settings to get it to not stretch.
 
Damn that sucks :(

it certainly makes me happier about my decision to buy an F
 
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