mikro Posted May 24 Share Posted May 24 Btw there is a similar project: https://www.exxosforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=6207 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted May 24 Share Posted May 24 Thanks, I see that is an internal buffer board. While some users would prefer that (escpecially H5 users) I like the idea of the external unit the OP is working on here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
800_Rocks Posted May 25 Share Posted May 25 On 5/12/2023 at 6:51 PM, DarkLord said: As for selectable color and mono modes, the UBE switches also have this. Some have a slide type switch and others, like the Exxos version, require a simple momentary press to change modes. The ability to switch from color to monochrome/high-res needs to be easy to switch... (not dip switches). You switch back in forth so often dips would suck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted May 25 Share Posted May 25 I agree, please no dip switches :). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted May 27 Author Share Posted May 27 On 5/25/2023 at 6:04 AM, TheNameOfTheGame said: I agree, please no dip switches :). No dip switches will be on the unit. It will be a simple 4PDT latching pushbutton switch to go between LOW/MED Color and Monochrome HIGH mode. I will be ordering prototype boards next week. I have the final design down and already worked out in my PCB software. I want to work on the ST multiple Video/mouse and audio switch. So when I order i can order once for combined shipping as it will be cheaper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted May 31 Author Share Posted May 31 Prototype boards have been ordered. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 Good to hear! Look forward to seeing how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted June 5 Author Share Posted June 5 I received the prototype boards in today, damn that was fast. DHL was really on the ball as they were just shipped Friday.. Here are some photos of the final product, the Prototype works perfectly. support for both LOW/MED Color and HIGH Monochrome mode by using the pushbutton switch. Adds buffering to the sync signals to stabilize video and uses a sync separator to help with that as well. I am currently designing a 3D printable case and will provide the files to anyone who buys one of these puppies.. Remember they required a 15khz supported monitor. See photos below... These will run between $35-$40 USD + shipping without a case. you can have yours printed once i finish the design. Should be next day or so. I have 4 of these I can build right now. If anyone want's any then PM me. After that I'll be throwing a pre-order up on my store. Unit: color: Monochrome: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted June 16 Share Posted June 16 Thanks to @Shift838 I have my board here and hooked up. The board is built really well. It has a fairly clean image on my Dell SE2722H when the screen has color on it but unfortunately is not the ultimate RGB to VGA solution I was hoping for. The issue is when Black screens are displayed the vertical lines are still really pronounced. Here is an example. The picture above was taken in a darkened room so the lines are a little enhanced with my phone camera, but they are still noticeable in normal use. I tried adjusting the pixel clock and phase as suggested by the creator, but that didn't seem to have any effect. This adapter is better than the old one I was using but still needs a little bit of work to be the champion. I was hoping the buffered picture would have signal cleaning that would eliminate the lines but alas. Maybe the next revision? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+remowilliams Posted June 17 Share Posted June 17 16 hours ago, TheNameOfTheGame said: The picture above was taken in a darkened room so the lines are a little enhanced with my phone camera, but they are still noticeable in normal use. Is there 'dot crawling' in those lines or are they static? They look a lot like what infests my 520ST and make it fairly unusable outside of an Atari monitor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted June 17 Share Posted June 17 Definitely crawling. If I look closely at the lines, it's similar to the well-known vertical scroll from the Matrix movie except lines instead of symbols. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+remowilliams Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 8 hours ago, TheNameOfTheGame said: Definitely crawling. If I look closely at the lines, it's similar to the well-known vertical scroll from the Matrix movie except lines instead of symbols. That dot crawling vertical striped awfulness is exactly what my 520ST (and another working 520ST motherboard) do. It's really bad on anything other than an ST monitor, and even there you can see it a bit. None of my other STs have anything even approaching this level of unacceptable video noise. Luckily RGBtoHDMI solved it for me and it now has perfect output. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 Well, as I mentioned, the pictures above exaggerate it since my camera makes the image "bloom" quite a bit. It is noticeable in normal usage, but not unusable since it is only bad in totally black screens. And even with that, this adapter is definitely better than the ST2VGAr4 that I got from Centuriantech with regards to the lines. Also am using a backup STE since my main STE is out of service atm for recapping and reworking of a couple other issues so when that gets back up and running maybe the situation will be better with it. I guess the only foolproof solution would be something with a framebuffer. Does the RGB2HDMI use one of those? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+remowilliams Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 9 hours ago, TheNameOfTheGame said: It is noticeable in normal usage, but not unusable since it is only bad in totally black screens. Both of the 520STs have the issue to the same degree, and it's bad outside of the Atari monitor. This is the best I could make it look and it's really distractingly bad. The more contrast that exists in solid blocks of color (and you get that often on these old platforms) the worse it is, Battlezone with it's browns is horrendous looking for example. This picture looks significantly better than it does in real life because of the static nature, and that's supposed to be solid grey... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted June 20 Author Share Posted June 20 less than 24 hours to get orders in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted June 29 Author Share Posted June 29 All parts are in and builds are commencing. I ordered a handful of extras just in case other ST users missed getting in before the deadline. They are up on my store. https://www.shift838.com/store/index.php?rt=product/product&product_id=9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted July 6 Share Posted July 6 (edited) Here is a thread over at atari-forum that discusses the vertical lines issue and how to fix it. https://www.atari-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=34408 Edited July 6 by TheNameOfTheGame 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 I have a handful of these left in the store. Order yours now and use MY5OFF coupon code to receive $5.00 USD off your order. Valid through July 31, 2023. 838-ST2VGA Adapter (shift838.com) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift838 Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 forgot to mention to get the coupon you must have an account and login on the webstore. Don't worry, no spamming will come from me.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNameOfTheGame Posted July 27 Share Posted July 27 Just wondering if drawing power from the 12V line could stress the ST. How much does the board pull from the 12V line? My preference is for the external power version so I'm glad I got that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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