Hardware HELP - Wii /w Wii2HDMI Adapter on an UHD LG TV shows disorted image

[TobX]

Hey guys,

I really need your help with this. I spent countless hours on researching, but nothing helped Maybe you can find a solution.
This is how the image looks like on my TV (the Wii is btw completely operable):

My Wii is in a perfectly working condition and homebrewed.

I tested the HDMI Cable and the Wii2HDMI Adapter, and both work fine.
On my pc monitor, everything works fine, and the image looks as it should.

A thing I noticed: The error only occurs if the console is set to 480p. If it is set to 480i, everything works fine.
I guess the problem is the LG SmartTV, but I couldn’t find any setting that changed this.

So, I desperately ask you for your help.

Kind regards,
TobX

 

[JuanMena]

Signal incompatibility can cause this type of vertical distortion.
"But it's 480p!"
Yes, unfortunately most modern TV's are no longer compatible with 480p. It all depends in the built-in upscaler.

Things you could try are lowering your TV's internal resolution via settings/configuration.
If that doesn't solve the issue, try Component Cables (5 colors) and if that doesn't work at all, then by all means it's your TV.

I would discard an absolute Wii2HDMI failure until you try other TV or Component cable with this same TV.

 

[worm28]

i have tried three wii to hdmi adapters they all work but one of them came apart when i was pulling it out of my wii i snapped it back together and it still works but they are cheaply made maybe try another one they are only four dollars on ebay if all else fails try component cables. and hope the problem is not your tv.

 

[TobX]

Signal incompatibility can cause this type of vertical distortion.
"But it's 480p!"
Yes, unfortunately most modern TV's are no longer compatible with 480p. It all depends in the built-in upscaler.

Things you could try are lowering your TV's internal resolution via settings/configuration.
If that doesn't solve the issue, try Component Cables (5 colors) and if that doesn't work at all, then by all means it's your TV.

I would discard an absolute Wii2HDMI failure until you try other TV or Component cable with this same TV.

Thank you for your reply.

I think I have to try the solution with the component cable, because I could not find a way to change the resolution of my TV ( it seems like LG does not allow this).

I wanted to add one information: If I start the Wii, the picture is normal for one second and then switches to this glitchy state...

One thing is funny, because when I change the HDMI port when the Wii is running, everything works perfectly. Its so stupid and doesnt make sense at all.

Post automatically merged: Jan 12, 2024

i have tried three wii to hdmi adapters they all work but one of them came apart when i was pulling it out of my wii i snapped it back together and it still works but they are cheaply made maybe try another one they are only four dollars on ebay if all else fails try component cables. and hope the problem is not your tv.

Thank you for your advice.

I have a second adapter and will try it.

 

[morning_glory]

I have a second adapter and will try it.

Hope it's from a different manufacturer.

Also, worth to examine your HDMI cable (& plugs/sockets).

 

[Nix_Lon]

DISCLAIMER: Take all of this with a grain of salt, it's been 3 - 4 years since I've dabbled into this problem.

I have the same issue with my previous Wii RVL-001 (-CPU-01) unit, launch white Wii.

I bought this Wii second-hand in 2020, and I used the notorious Wii2HDMI adapter for the video-out as shown in this video since I never had component cables, only composite cables.

480i displays properly but 480p displays a distorted image with sound.

What's interesting is that the "distorted image" in 480p mode is only present in older TVs. In the video that I uploaded, the Wii unit in question is plugged into a late-2000s LCD TV. For the newer TVs, I tested two (2) and only got a black screen with no sound.

The problem disappears when I heat the console up (or the Wii2HDMI adapter) by leaving the console ON for 6 - 10 minutes, as shown in the video where the display goes back to normal, the same can be said for the newer TVs from my testings.

To check if my Wii is the faulty one or not, I borrowed someone's PAL Wii RVL-101 (Family Edition) unit to test it on the TVs I have access to, and from what I can recall it doesn't have the same "distorted image" issue in EDTV / HDTV (480p).

So I've consulted for advice and help from most Discord servers that know Nintendo "legacy hardware" (or specifically the Wii), even in the BitBuilt forums because of their knowledge of the Wii hardware. I didn't get any concrete solutions to my problem, so I assumed it had something to do with the AVE-RVL's electrolytic SMD capacitors (low-pass filter), which is partially responsive for the Wii's display output, I got this assumption and idea from MattCK's Wii video dabbling into a similar issue, with its resolve being the AVE-RVL's SMD electrolytic capacitors.

So I attempted to replace the SMD capacitors on my Wii unit with new ones but due to my impatience, recklessness, and inexperience in soldering, I broke two (2) of the YPbPr SMD electrolytic capacitor copper pads from ripping them off accidentally due to excess heat - basically, the damage is pretty much irreparable unless I would commit deeper via finding alternative soldering points for the YPbPr output but the process would've been much messier and just not worth going forward so I stopped.

Red herring, I overlooked the fact that I was using a Wii2HDMI adapter for the component output (480p) from the start until the end. It was too late, I learned the hard way, the damage is done, and worse is that I didn't get any raw results (which can be very useful for people experiencing this very specific issue) due to the fact I'm using a shitty Wii HDMI adapter in the first place.

If I were in your shoes, I would buy a component cable first (or Electronic Sheperd's Wii HDMI adapter for quality assurance).

 

[JuanMena]

What's interesting is that the "distorted display" in 480p mode is only present in older TVs.

If you mean CRTs, absolutely, Consumer CRTs are not compatible with EDTV/HDMI signals. It might also mean dome capacitors around the Horizontal signal board is blown and sometimes this signal issue can be fixed by replacing the Capacitor. But most Consumer CRTs will not display 480p or greater properly.

For the newer TVs, I tested two (2) and only got a black screen with no sound.

It all depends on the built-in upscaler. My LCD monitor is able to display 480p and beyond, but it's not compatible with 480i. Simply because 480i is an Analogue signal. So if your LCD has an Analog to Digital converter it will didplay it (more or less ok) but again, depends on the upscaler and wheter or not your LCD is compatible.

The problem disappears when I heat up the console (or the Wii2HDMI adapter) by turning on the unit for 6 - 10 minutes, as shown in the video where the display goes back to normal, the same can be said for the newer TVs I've tested.

If you have to "warm up" it might indicate a problem with your console. It has 6 capacitors near the AV input and when those start to fail it'll cause all sorts of Signal issues like bright or dark picture, malformations or no picture at all.

The problem disappears when I heat up the console (or the Wii2HDMI adapter) by turning on the unit for 6 - 10 minutes, as shown in the video where the display goes back to normal, the same can be said for the newer TVs I've tested.

To check if my Wii is the faulty one, I borrowed someone's PAL Wii RVK-001 (Family Edition) unit to test if my unit is the faulty one, and from what I recall it doesn't have the same "distorted display in 480p" issue in EDTV / HDTV (480p).

I've consulted from most Discord servers that know Nintendo "legacy hardware" (or specifically the Wii), even in the BitBuilt forums because of their knowledge of Wii hardware. I didn't get any concrete solutions to my problem, so I assumed it had something to do with the AVE-RVL's SMD capacitors (low-pass filter), which is partially responsive for the Wii's display output, I got this assumption from MattCK video dabbling into a similar issue, with its resolve being the AVE-RVL's SMD capacitors.

So I attempted to replace the SMD capacitors on my Wii unit with new ones but due to my impatience, recklessness, and inexperience in soldering, I broke two (2) of the YPbPr SMD capacitors copper pads by ripping them off accidentally due to excess heat - basically, the damage is pretty much irreparable unless I would commit deeper via finding alternative soldering points for the YPbPr output but the process would've been much messier and harder so I just gave up at that point.

Sorry for repeating, I reply as I think. It's sad to hear that you messed up. But Wiis are cheap nowadays, so just get another one. Alternatively you could solder in a Wii2HDMI directly to your Wii's video signal pins. It's a possibility of you're interested in saving that console.

Red herring, I overlooked the fact that I was using a Wii2HDMI adapter for the component display (480p) from the start until the end. It was too late, I learned the hard way, the damage is done, and worse is that I didn't get any raw results (which can be very useful for people experiencing this very specific issue) due to the fact I'm using a shitty Wii HDMI adapter in the first place.

If I were in your shoes, I would buy a component cable first (or Electronic Sheperd's Wii HDMI adapter for quality assurance).

It really it's a hit or miss case. I've bought 5 WIi2HDMI converters and just one has vertical lines in picture. The other 4 works reliably. I haven't experienced anything bad with my converters. I guess there's a new manufacturer doing something wrong with new adapters based on the amount of recent threads that states the same, that is, malfunctioning WII2HDMI adapters.

 

[Nix_Lon]

If you mean CRTs, absolutely, Consumer CRTs are not compatible with EDTV/HDMI signals. It might also mean dome capacitors around the Horizontal signal board is blown and sometimes this signal issue can be fixed by replacing the Capacitor. But most Consumer CRTs will not display 480p or greater properly.

I should've clarified earlier that I meant older LCD TVs, especially the low-end ones (like the one I have in the video).
I had no CRT TVs to test with during that time.

It all depends on the built-in upscaler. My LCD monitor is able to display 480p and beyond, but it's not compatible with 480i. Simply because 480i is an Analogue signal. So if your LCD has an Analog to Digital converter it will didplay it (more or less ok) but again, depends on the upscaler and wheter or not your LCD is compatible.

Pretty much, an example of this is the cheapo PS2 HDMI adapter that I used to have. The adapter is only capable of 480p as any resolution such as 480i / 1080i doesn't work. This is a non-issue with component cables (kek) for my 2012 Samsung Smart TV, except for the newer LCD / LED TV models lacking YPbBr output, and most of their built-in scaler (for HDMI) lack the capability to output 480i and lower.

If you have to "warm up" it might indicate a problem with your console. It has 6 capacitors near the AV input and when those start to fail it'll cause all sorts of Signal issues like bright or dark picture, malformations or no picture at all.

Yeah, which is why I started assuming that the Wii unit's root cause issue is related to its low-pass filter capacitors of the YPbBr output later on. (But I also overlooked whether or not the Wii2HDMI that I was using was defective as well.)

Sorry for repeating, I reply as I think. It's sad to hear that you messed up. But Wiis are cheap nowadays, so just get another one. Alternatively you could solder in a Wii2HDMI directly to your Wii's video signal pins. It's a possibility of you're interested in saving that console.

I didn't mention that I bought another Wii unit (for $10) after I broke the previous Wii in an attempt to repair the "distorted image" issue. It was another RVL-001 (-CPU-01), launch white Wii unit, but the good thing is that there are no signs of defect / hardware failure this time around after its 3-year run of using it so far (yay!).

Ironically, overall this is the second time I bought a defective Wii and attempted to repair it as well, probably bad luck. The 1st one, RVL-001 (-CPU-40), a black Wii unit, initially worked properly, installed and did most of the essentials (e.g Priiloader, and BootMii as IOS), but shortly after 1 week, the console kept on freezing, and sometimes it outright doesn't work at all (System Menu doesn't load) as I can't access Priiloader. So I assumed it was an IOS Brick due to the fact I cannot access Priiloader and Bootmii (as IOS), my Wiimote cannot pair to the Wii unit, and the Wii unit is incapable of entering standby mode (orange LED). I tried replacing the Bluetooth / WiFi modules by literally buying those modules from AliEx but there was no chance of recovery, I tried finding the root cause of the problem but I couldn't, so I accepted defeat and then bought the 2nd one, which is this the one that literally has an "distorted image" when I first plugged and opened it. Good thing I was able to perform a NAND dump on the two (2) defective Wii units before they died out for future purposes. (e.g Dolphin for MKWii online kek)

It really it's a hit or miss case. I've bought 5 WIi2HDMI converters and just one has vertical lines in picture. The other 4 works reliably. I haven't experienced anything bad with my converters. I guess there's a new manufacturer doing something wrong with new adapters based on the amount of recent threads that states the same, that is, malfunctioning WII2HDMI adapters.

Fitting description for Wii2HDMIs, they're hit & miss. I have three (3) total, all of them have the "vertical lines" issue, all of them have the subpar color gamma output, and one entirely doesn't work.

Due to boredom during COVID-19, I tried to use the PS2 HDMI adapter to my PS3 Slim, but it only worked with 480p, and every display resolution didn't work. Since every HDMI adapter is literally a "YPbBr analog-to-digital converter", I theorized that soldering the YPbBr copper pads to the PlayStation A/V output plug would work, so I did that on my Wii2HDMI that I used for my defective Wii (in the video). It was kinda capable of outputting 720p/1080p but it died out shortly after 20-30 seconds after booting the PS3, leading to a black screen w/o audio.