Composite / S-Video to HDMI adaptor?

izo

Well-Known Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Messages
47
Trophies
0
XP
254
Country
Hi,

I would like to connect my SNES and other old consoles to my computer screen which sadly only has an HDMI connection. What exactly do I need to make this work?
I have been looking for composite to HDMI adaptors but for some reason I only find HDMI to composite ones. Maybe I'm looking for the wrong thing?
Any help is appreciated. :)
 

izo

Well-Known Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Messages
47
Trophies
0
XP
254
Country
Ok, I got my converter now but am having a weird problem. I have a Japanese SNES as well as N64. The N64 works perfectly but the SNES won't show an image. If there is no signal the converter usually displays "No Signal" but in the case of the SNES the screen just stays black without sound or anything, so at least something seems to be coming through. I tried different games but to no avail. I'm using the same Composite cable for SNES and N64 so this can be ruled out as a factor.
Could there be any problems with signal conversion? Or does the SNES have an issue here because I suspect that both consoles' signals are the same type and if one works but not the other something must be wrong with the console, not the converter. Is that correct?
Any help with what could be the problem here is really appreciated, so I can start looking for a new SNES if it is broken.
 

Foxi4

Endless Trash
Global Moderator
Joined
Sep 13, 2009
Messages
30,818
Trophies
3
Location
Gaming Grotto
XP
29,788
Country
Poland
You originally forgot to mention the tiny itsy-bitsy important bit about your "SNES" actually being a Super Famicom, AKA "Japanese SNES" which uses NTSC-J. This might be a factor, although the difference between NTSC and NTSC-J is minimal (black level/blanking level is slightly lower). Do you have any TV with composite input at all to verify whether the Super Famicom displays any picture at all?
 

izo

Well-Known Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Messages
47
Trophies
0
XP
254
Country
Yeah, sorry, that fact kind of slipped my mind. I think I also found out the issue now, the converter I bought can't read the 240p signal of the SNES. I tested it on my HDTV without the converter and it worked there so the SNES itself is fine. It's just weird because on the Amazon page it said that the converter will work with the SNES and people even wrote in the reviews that they used it with the converter. Yet on other reviews of the converter I read that it can't handle the 240p signal.
Anyway, I ordered a converter now that works with 240p so once it arrives I hope that I can finally play my SNES games. :)
 

Wisenheimer

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
Messages
377
Trophies
0
Age
35
XP
246
Country
United States
Yeah, sorry, that fact kind of slipped my mind. I think I also found out the issue now, the converter I bought can't read the 240p signal of the SNES. I tested it on my HDTV without the converter and it worked there so the SNES itself is fine. It's just weird because on the Amazon page it said that the converter will work with the SNES and people even wrote in the reviews that they used it with the converter. Yet on other reviews of the converter I read that it can't handle the 240p signal.
Anyway, I ordered a converter now that works with 240p so once it arrives I hope that I can finally play my SNES games. :)


I'm kind of curious as to whether Ocarina of Time would work then, since it is rendered in 240p. Maybe the N64 upscaled it as 480i?

I'm not sure about the Japanese version, but I don't think the US version of the SNES used 240p. It usually used some weird resolutions such as 224p (the most common) and lso did some wierd interlaced resolutions.

Maybe that is what it is choking on. If it can play Ocarina of Time, I think it can do 240p.
 

izo

Well-Known Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Messages
47
Trophies
0
XP
254
Country
Well, according to what I found out the N64 isn't 240p but 480 or something like that. I had no problems useing my Japanese N64 with the converter.
I'm in Europe so for me this is a lot more annoying than for you guys from the US. Especially getting an old CRT that natively understands NTSC.
 

Walker D

I have a hat
Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2009
Messages
1,334
Trophies
0
Location
My home
XP
748
Country
Brazil
Yeah, sorry, that fact kind of slipped my mind. I think I also found out the issue now, the converter I bought can't read the 240p signal of the SNES. I tested it on my HDTV without the converter and it worked there so the SNES itself is fine. It's just weird because on the Amazon page it said that the converter will work with the SNES and people even wrote in the reviews that they used it with the converter. Yet on other reviews of the converter I read that it can't handle the 240p signal.
Anyway, I ordered a converter now that works with 240p so once it arrives I hope that I can finally play my SNES games. :)

Well, if you said so, then that may be the problem.
Combining regions can get a bit confusing too (ntsc-j is similar to american ntsc ...but europe generally uses pal, with interlaced images at 50htz, if I'm not wrong..) But if your tv can process the snes signal, then this new tvs may be using progressive signal also.

You said that you already ordered a new converter, but on this video, the guy said that the converter he got can do what you want for snes and n64.

BTW, I don't know why you're having all this work to output Composite Signal though ..it seems to me a waste of money and time. Since you're already not paying cheap for all of this, it would be better to output some quality video signal from the snes/n64.
You should use Component or RGB Signal or Scart for output, in my opinion.

Snes can output Scart and Componet directly as far as I now, only by using a proper cable (for direct RGB it needs a internal hack), but you shoud find out if the Scart cables for Ntsc-j is different from theones of other regions before buying.
You can use the same snes Scart cable on N64, but just after a internal hack on the N64 though...

well ..I guess I just gave more thing for you to search about :P ..not much of a solution.

Good luck
 

izo

Well-Known Member
OP
Newcomer
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Messages
47
Trophies
0
XP
254
Country
Actually the new converter I bought is Scart and not Composite. I have the Nintendo RGB cable from the PAL GameCube and it works without problems with my Japanese SNES and N64. So hopefully with the new converter I will be able to finally get the signal on my computer screen.
I only bought a cheap converter as I'm just getting into all of this. Once I got down how everything works and know for sure what I want I'm prepared to invest more to get a better image quality.
 

Wisenheimer

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
Messages
377
Trophies
0
Age
35
XP
246
Country
United States
Well, according to what I found out the N64 isn't 240p but 480 or something like that. I had no problems useing my Japanese N64 with the converter.
I'm in Europe so for me this is a lot more annoying than for you guys from the US. Especially getting an old CRT that natively understands NTSC.


It depends on the game. Ocarina of Time, for instance, was 240p (which is why it has scanlines). Majora's Mask was 480i because it used the RAM upgrade. Most of the games that were not taking advantage of the RAM upgrade were 240p.

A lot of new televisions don't understand the weird NTSC formats that consoles like the SNES used. For a CRT, it was s no real issue since the timings and such did not have to be converted. They were just vector control schemes for the electron gun.

PAL is a whole different ballgame, especially since SCART supported component instead of composite, which the NTSC N64 did not.
 

Wisenheimer

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
Messages
377
Trophies
0
Age
35
XP
246
Country
United States
Well, if you said so, then that may be the problem.
Combining regions can get a bit confusing too (ntsc-j is similar to american ntsc ...but europe generally uses pal, with interlaced images at 50htz, if I'm not wrong..) But if your tv can process the snes signal, then this new tvs may be using progressive signal also.

You said that you already ordered a new converter, but on this video, the guy said that the converter he got can do what you want for snes and n64.

BTW, I don't know why you're having all this work to output Composite Signal though ..it seems to me a waste of money and time. Since you're already not paying cheap for all of this, it would be better to output some quality video signal from the snes/n64.
You should use Component or RGB Signal or Scart for output, in my opinion.

Snes can output Scart and Componet directly as far as I now, only by using a proper cable (for direct RGB it needs a internal hack), but you shoud find out if the Scart cables for Ntsc-j is different from theones of other regions before buying.
You can use the same snes Scart cable on N64, but just after a internal hack on the N64 though...

well ..I guess I just gave more thing for you to search about :P ..not much of a solution.

Good luck


PAL in theory incorporates both 50Hz and 60Hz, although not all PAL devices fully support both standards.
 

Fishaman P

Speedrunner
Member
Joined
Jan 2, 2010
Messages
3,321
Trophies
1
Location
Wisconsin
Website
twitch.tv
XP
2,171
Country
United States
It depends on the game. Ocarina of Time, for instance, was 240p (which is why it has scanlines). Majora's Mask was 480i because it used the RAM upgrade. Most of the games that were not taking advantage of the RAM upgrade were 240p.
Expansion Pak =/= 480i. Majora's Mask and Pokémon Stadium 2 were 240p, for example. If you want screenshots of my CRT for proof, I can provide them.

Anyway, NTSC-U and NTSC-J are electrically and mechanically compatible; the brightness will just be a tad off.
The monitor likely barfed on the SFC because the SNES/SFC outputs 256x224, whereas even the NES outputs 256x240.
 

Wisenheimer

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2013
Messages
377
Trophies
0
Age
35
XP
246
Country
United States
Expansion Pak =/= 480i. Majora's Mask and Pokémon Stadium 2 were 240p, for example. If you want screenshots of my CRT for proof, I can provide them.

Anyway, NTSC-U and NTSC-J are electrically and mechanically compatible; the brightness will just be a tad off.
The monitor likely barfed on the SFC because the SNES/SFC outputs 256x224, whereas even the NES outputs 256x240.


I did a little research and it looks like the N64 probably did not support resolutions greater than 240p without the expansion pack, but not all games that utilized the expansion pack outputted in 480i. Some used the extra memory to increase things like draw distance and color palettes.
 

Site & Scene News

Popular threads in this forum

General chit-chat
Help Users
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    In modern standards
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    @K3Nv2, then why mine can't?
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    @K3Nv2 What is nps you mentioned?
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Because your pc has a hamster innit
    +3
  • BakerMan @ BakerMan:
    R.I.P. LittleBigPlanet PS3 servers
  • BakerMan @ BakerMan:
    LBP2 still the goat tho
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    That can be played on ps5 iirc
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    I'm surprised any PS3 servers are still up, tbh
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Alot of manufactures do care about older consoles they just want to whine about piracy
    +2
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    @BigOnYa I had 4.89 hfw on super slim that was great, but when I got a new hard disk I forgot where the guide was and could only find a guide for 4.90 and its resources
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    @BigOnYa I think another reason to want to update is if the hfw is at the level of the fw
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    you can sync trophies
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Yea that's what I'm sitting on now- 4.9, and it seems fine, have had no issues at all
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    I don't know if people play online or such
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    My ps3 short circuited during a deep clean still salty about it after downloading 2tbs worth but SteamDeck okay with emulation still just can't run mgs4 worth shit
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Yea forgot bout trophies. They just silly to me. Just like the xbox achievements. Hey, to each they own tho.
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    It keeps players in touch with the game like a check list of things to do after they beat it
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    @BigOnYa they ruined the gaming experience for me to be honest
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    @BigOnYa Im not crazy about getting all of them, i feel like I have something to show for for the time put in
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    @BigOnYa If you want to do rgh or 360 mod
  • S @ salazarcosplay:
    does it matter if you update your 360 or not before trying is it advisable or not
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    Yea I don't pay attention to them really. Or do I try to 100% a game. I just play till story ends/ or I get the girl!
  • K3Nv2 @ K3Nv2:
    Bigonya uses his wiener to mod 360s
    +1
  • Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty:
    Going to the water park, see ya
  • BigOnYa @ BigOnYa:
    You should update the 360 to newest dash before RGHing it yes. But not a big deal if you don't, you can install new dash/avatar updates after.
    BigOnYa @ BigOnYa: You should update the 360 to newest dash before RGHing it yes. But not a big deal if you don't...