Thoughts on the original X-RGB2?

ApolloBoy

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I have the chance to get an original X-RGB2 (albeit a broken one) for cheap and I was just wondering how it stacks up today. I plan on using it for testing RGB mods alongside my PVM and maybe keep it as a backup for my PVMs.
 

mr_b

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I had one. It worked well for my genny, snes, saturn and ps2 stuff with my 42" 720p Samsung plasma. When I upgraded to my 65" Panasonic Viera plasma the max output of 480p was a bit of a letdown and I sold it with the intention of upgrading to a xrgb mini so I could get 1080p. It was great on the original plasma. I guess it all depends on what you are going to be using it for. The XRGB2 does do well for supergun use as it can take the off sync's some pcb's have.
 

wataru330

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The OG is my favorite, for the above mentioned supergun versatility. If you can get it cheep, go for it!
 

ApolloBoy

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So I wound up getting the XRGB-2 after all, and now I'm trying to figure out what could have caused it to become broken before I pick it up later this month. The seller suspects that it may have bad caps, is that a common problem at all on the XRGB-2? I've heard some people report cap-related issues with the XRGB-2plus but I haven't seen much information on the original.
 

Thamiel

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Take a look at the power jack I'd say, the one on mine was a little loose. Would occasionally cut out.
 

Dark Sakul

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I believe the XRGB2, RXGB 2 PLUS and the XRGB 3 are far superior to the Framemeister XRGB MINI

I am enough of a Videophile where I want crisp clear graphics and as little lag as possible.
The Framemeister XRGB MINI has 24 ms of input lag.

The OG XRGB 2, the XRGB 2 PLUS and XRGB 3 are awesome.
If you really want HDMI out put there are reasonable VGA to HDMI adapters that you could chain to a XRGB 2.

I got the XRGB 2 PLUS and I love that device.
 

Yodd

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So I wound up getting the XRGB-2 after all, and now I'm trying to figure out what could have caused it to become broken before I pick it up later this month. The seller suspects that it may have bad caps, is that a common problem at all on the XRGB-2? I've heard some people report cap-related issues with the XRGB-2plus but I haven't seen much information on the original.

One common occurrence is people plugging in euro Scart cables rather than jp21. And since the 5v pin is connected on a different pin...
 

ApolloBoy

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One common occurrence is people plugging in euro Scart cables rather than jp21. And since the 5v pin is connected on a different pin...
I just heard from the seller and he told me that he never used SCART cables, only Japanese RGB. He said that he went to turn it on one day and it wouldn't display anything.
 

wataru330

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Can you elaborate on that a bit? I dumb.


Seibu PCBs, & PGM are @ like 58.3 hz or something jankedy, while most everything else NTSC runs @ 60hz.

Older XRGBs handle this no sweat, and the vid syncs up fine.
 

mr_b

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There are some arcade pcb's have sub 54hz sync rates and the xrgb2+ and later models have problems with them. I know Raiden II is one such board. The xrgb2 has no issues with the sync rates on those boards. In addition to Raiden II, I know some Midway boards like MK2 are also below 54hz. If you take a look here there is a wealth of information on the different upscalers. http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/micomsoft.html
 

Adderall

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XRGB2 OG handles the Xexex pcb correctly.....the XRGB2+ as well as the XRGB3 do not.
2+ doesn't have full progressive scan support (no gamecube or ps2)

Pretty sure superdeadite has a video about this.
 

wataru330

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2+ can do xbox/ps2/'cube via DTerm; but yeah, no progressive.
 

ApolloBoy

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Turned out the issue with the XRGB-2 was indeed cap-related. I recapped the entire unit last night, did the factory reset and it works great! The image quality is drop dead gorgeous too, I'm very tempted to replace my PVM with a nice VGA monitor and the XRGB-2 at some point.
 

Yodd

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The xrgb-2 can't pass through 31khz signals can it?

Because if if could, that would make it a very interesting solution.
 

wataru330

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The xrgb-2 can't pass through 31khz signals can it?

Because if if could, that would make it a very interesting solution.


Never had a vanilla 2.

The 2+ can though. The idear I believe, was to let a pc tower & TV Games share the same monitor.
apysyra9.jpg
 

mikejmoffitt

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I have one I just got recently from another forum member, a vanilla X-RGB2. It has had its capacitors replaced, and has a new power supply, two things that should be done to a second-hand one.

Positives:
-Strict line doubling algorithm means there are no frames of lag from post processing / scaling
-The only intensity of scanlines looks pretty good
-Fairly tolerant of odd sync rates (though your monitor must too be tolerant of odd refresh rates)
-It is smaller than the X-RGB3

Negatives:
-480p only output, so if your TV has a poor scaler you may get some lag. If your TV has a good scaler, then there's nothing really wrong with this.
-Only one intensity of scanlines
-Can't do 30KHz inputs (the VGA passthrough is poor, don't use it)

If your television has a VGA input, and has a decent scaler, this will be a very good device to use. If you have an HD CRT with VGA input (or YPbPr and a transcoder) this will look the best a scaled image can, as the HD CRT will likely be able to run 480p natively, giving you perfectly doubled lines. The same goes for a VGA CRT monitor.
 
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max 330 mega

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i own an xrgb2. i use it with a samsung plasma that has VGA in, and use the xrgb2 for anything i cant plug directly in via vga. i use it mostly for the saturn, and it is friggin awesome. picture quality is incredible, i specifically tracked down a vanilla 2 because the newer the model the more finicky since then. imo, this is the best.
 

purple

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i'm still enjoying experimenting with my xrgb 2 plus. i recently was trying to fix shaky sync signal and after reading this;

"Fixing the XRGB's shaky sync signal: your best option is the add an Extron RGB interface with sync processing. Those interfaces are very cheap (starting at $25) and usually come with a VGA input and a set of BNC outputs. Some feature a horizontal shift functions or multiple inputs (or outputs), but technically they are all the same. How good the results will eventually be, depdends on your display. Using a second video processor to convert the VGA signal to 1080p HDMI is another good idea, but more expensive of course. "

i mailed fudoh and he suggested to use lenkeng brand vga to hdmi scaler. I didn't know how bad the picture will be, upscaled image really looks bad to my eyes also it does't fix shaky sync at all.

so now i ordered extron rgb 203 and proper bnc cables, i wonder if it will fix sync problem, by the way i was thinking about upscaling the image and read somewhere that xrgb with gefen dvi scaler works fine. has anyone experienced something like this? xrgb to extron to gefen dvi? or maybe xrgb to extron to dvdo?

as i know extron devices does't put any lag but i'm not sure.
 

SGGG2

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I chain my XRGB-3 to a Optoma HD3000 and the picture quality is gorgeous. The chain at the moment is XRGB-3 VGA > XSelect-D4 component > Optoma HD3000 HDMI to DVI. Until recently I used a Gefen VGA to DVI Scaler Plus. Both devices fix the shaky sync sometimes displayed with the 3. The Gefen was great, but isn't 100% percent compatible with the 3, there's the occasional screen tearing which requires you to power cycle the unit. Not a major issue, but surely something you'd rather not happen and a big turn off to some gamers. The Optoma's noticeably sharper than the Gefen but I hesitate to call it better looking, at least when it comes to scaling line doubled 240p games.

The Gefen's a fantastic addition to any setup, especially since it can often be found on ebay for $100 or less. If your input and output resolutions match the Gefen does an amazing job transcoding VGA to DVI without any scaling, and it's hands down the best scaler I've seen for Dreamcast.

With another scaler you get additional options such as overscan, zoom, H and V Scaling, masking, etc. You're adding lag of course, but the XRGB units are 1 frame in line-doubling mode so it shouldn't be an issue for most games. Extron VGA interfaces don't add lag. XRGB + DVDO Edge is the fastest combo. BuckoA51 uses XRGB-3 + DVDO Edge combo as his main set-up.

http://www.videogameperfection.com/2011/10/26/dvdo-edge-faq/
http://www.videogameperfection.com/2011/10/28/gefen-faq/
http://www.videogameperfection.com/2011/10/27/extron-rgb-faq/

There are a number of reasons why connecting the XRGB-2 or XRGB-3 to another video processor can actually make a lot of sense. The most obvious reason is certainly that your TV set is missing a VGA input. Processors like the DVDO iScan VP50Pro, the DVDO Edge or the Gefen VGA to DVI Scaler Plus will gladly accept the the XRGB's VGA output and transform it something your display can work work. The 50Pro or the Gefen will upscale your image up to 1200p via HDMI, while the Edge is limited to 1080p. Second and most obvious reason would be the total processing lag. The DVDOs add 6~7ms of delay to your processing chain. With a XRGB-2 or XRGB-3 your total processor delay will stay under 9ms this way (compared to the Framemeister's 24ms). The Gefen is a tiny bit slower than the DVDO processors. Another reason would be the added PAL compatibility. The DVDOs will accept 576p50 from the XRGB units and output 1080p50 via HDMI - perfectly framelocked and with smooth scrolling. Processors like the Edge also add additional tweaking posibilites like overscan control, underscan masking or extended aspect ratio controls. Picture quality is great with a XRGB connected to a DVDO - extremely close to the Framemeister's praised 720p output. With PAL sources the Framemeister is limited to 576p50 output (if you want solid scanlines), so an upscaled XRGB-3's output will look considerably better.

http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/
 
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purple

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i think xrgb3 in b1 mode over vga should be same with xrgb2 plus, i wonder if they share same faith, is it as shaky as xrgb2 plus and by using gefen scaler you can fix it? seeing photos or even video proof would be very helpful, since i already ordered extron rgb unit i now started to feel its pretty useless.
 
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