Using HDMI to VGA adapters on modern consoles

Video Games
14

Here is my years-long journey to 1:1 native VGA output on Wii (and others) on an LCD.

The result is a better image than I’d ever expected: it’s been a revelation. The image challenges my PVM for fidelity.

For an LCD to look its best requires the resolution of the output image to match the native resolution of the display. If it’s a little off it looks bad, if it’s a lot off then it looks shit. This is our real challenge! We’re trying to get the image into 640x480 with as little scaling and processing as possible.

Why Target VGA?

640x480 resolution is a good fit for a wide range of consoles: from those that output 240p, through those that maxed out at 480p, to newer consoles quite capable of higher resolutions that still have an option to output at “low” 480p.

VGA on TV?

As a reminder we are using VGA on TVs for a number of reasons:

  • well supported “standard” connection
  • no image processing!
  • no overscan!
  • we can control positioning/size precisely

Basically we’re using the TV as if it were a computer monitor.

Connections

Dreamcast, Original Xbox, Xbox 360

  • use a VGA cable (official or third-party)

PS3

  • use a VGA cable (third-party)
  • or use a HDMI to VGA adapter

Other Consoles with HDMI and 480p option

  • use a HDMI to VGA adapter

Other Consoles without HDMI

  • use cables and adapters to work around it

Requirements

  1. 640x480p capable display
    • needs VGA (or DVI?) input
    • LCD TVs are mostly 20"
    • Small LCDs ~5" (Raspberry Pi)
    • prefer: IPS type
  2. Console to HDMI adapter
    • quality varies
    • prefer: one that specifies 480p output
  3. HDMI to VGA adapter
    • quality varies
    • prefer: one that has no black crush

Cons

  • lag ~25ms (~1.5 frames)
  • limited sound output options
  • black border

Future Experimentation

  • widescreen @ 800x480p
    • plasma?
    • raspberry pi screen?

Wii

There’s a hardware VGA mod for Wii, but it requires very fine soldering skills and a specific CFW software setup. It’s the only internal way to get VGA output, if you can handle the soldering and software.

That said, we’re going to get VGA using a much different approach. A bit of a hack/workaround.

Connections

  • Wii > HDMI > VGA > Display

the following software setup trick is the key discovery in all of this!

Software

  1. Set the Wii to 480p and 4:3
  2. Launch the Not64 emulator to its menu
  3. Auto Adjust the VGA input of your TV

That’s it! Quit and enjoy native 640x480 output on your Wii.

Theory

  • although the Wii outputs 480p it’s a little more complicated than that
  • the maximum internal resolution of the Wii is 704x480 (true EDTV) and the active area a game chooses to use can be anything up to that size (example: the Wii System Menu uses only the centre 686x456 pixels)
  • the reason we use Not64 is that it has been confirmed to use the full 704x480 area
  • therefore: after setup, in most games, you’ll notice varying degrees of black border on the top/bottom or left/right of the image, sometimes both, that’s normal and to be expected
  • Auto Adjust sets the correct vertical and horizontal size and position for the image

Adjusting to anything other than a full area is something you can get away with on a CRT (in fact it’s mostly automatic), but on an LCD this will result in an uneven, scaled image that is not pixel-aligned.

Exceptions that require their own Auto Adjust
240p Test Suite: Auto Adjust to get the correct results (you can force 480p by editing the settings file)
Emulation: Auto Adjust per-game for emulated titles, eg. Metal Slug Anthology, or RetroArch.

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