I noticed there are several CGA / EGA / YUV / RGB To VGA Video Converters available online, and some are cheaper than others. For testing purposes wouldn't the one in the link below work fine ? I can use some momentary contact switches I have stored away for the controls and coin inputs, and Ill either use my bench DC power supply or Ill build a small DC power supply for the 12v and 5v. As for audio, do JAMMA boards have onboard amplification or do I need to run the mono output through an amplifier ?
the Gonbes GBS-8200 should work well enough for testing purposes, they can be a pain to get running but it's the cheapest way to convert RGBS to something that a TV or PC monitor can use. there's a newer version (I forget the model number) that does HDMI as well. For arcade collectors these are generally considered garbage quality, but there's nothing wrong with using them for testing.
You can find them for much cheaper than the one on the link. I wouldn't pay more than $25 shipped (
https://www.amazon.com/Paddsun-Conv...ild=1&keywords=gbs-8220&qid=1589734849&sr=8-1). I've even seen them on eBay from china under $10 from time to time. Similarly you should be able to find a JAMMA harness for under $15 (
https://www.amazon.com/RetroArcade-...dchild=1&keywords=jamma&qid=1589734791&sr=8-5)
a few amps of 5V power should be enough to get the PCB to boot, JAMMA boards All have on-board audio amplification, but the nice thing with these CPS2 PCBs is they have the RCA audio output as well, so you wont have to worry about dealing with audio from the JAMMA edge.
just FYI the volume is controlled digitally on these, by way of some push buttons on the edge of the A-Board or through the on-screen test menu.
