Mike Chi does it again.....

[tthurman]

RetroTINK 5X (maybe 6X even)

 

 

[RIP-Felix]

A bit on the unavailable side ATM...lol! This is a very nice product for the $300 price point. But there will be some competition soon with the OSSC Pro and PixelFX Morph. They will have more options and cost more too. For what you get the RT5x...err, RT6x...is probably the best plug-n-play solution. The other 2 are planning on being plug-n-play too, with more options for power users, but the extra cost for those features may not be worth it for the casual gamer. I think Mike Chi does a great job of putting it where it counts and keeping costs down on features gamers aren't going to miss.

The RT5x is a great scaler for sure. But there's nothing wrong with the RT2x products either. If you want that next step up and like that the RT2x was plug-n-play, then the 5x will be right up your alley. I have an OSSC, but to tell you the truth, I don't use it that much because it take a few extra steps to get it working. I can't just turn on my TV with the remote and start playing like you can with RetroTink products. I think that's its best selling feature.

[Tom Speirs]

Anyone looking for cheap Chinese knockoff, I got one of these and it seemed to work pretty good. I can somewhat vouch that it works.

Mcbazel ODV Composite RCA/S-Video: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

[tthurman]

The RT2X checked all the boxes (just wish I had got a case for it while they were the current model) for me since all I currently have is a NES and VCR to use it with, but it's always nice to see what Mr. Chi is up to.

[ClassicGMR]

I have been using one of these for years. In fact I just bought a second one for the basement because I like it so much. My Genesis, 3DO and N64 all run through it and I like it!

Tendak 3RCA AV CVBS Composite & S-Video R/L Audio to HDMI Converter Adapter Support 720P/1080P with 3RCA S-Video Cable for NES SNES N64 PS2 PS3 HDTV

I have been keeping an eye on the RetroTink stuff though. If I can afford to throw $300 at something it would be one of his projects.

[RIP-Felix]

On 6/6/2021 at 5:57 PM, Tom Speirs said:

Anyone looking for cheap Chinese knockoff, I got one of these and it seemed to work pretty good. I can somewhat vouch that it works.

Mcbazel ODV Composite RCA/S-Video: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

 

40 minutes ago, ClassicGMR said:

I have been using one of these for years. In fact I just bought a second one for the basement because I like it so much. My Genesis, 3DO and N64 all run through it and I like it!

Tendak 3RCA AV CVBS Composite & S-Video R/L Audio to HDMI Converter Adapter Support 720P/1080P with 3RCA S-Video Cable for NES SNES N64 PS2 PS3 HDTV

I have been keeping an eye on the RetroTink stuff though. If I can afford to throw $300 at something it would be one of his projects.

While I haven't tested those myself, I do know that these "type" of cheap boxes add a TON of lag and mishandle 240p as 480I. They're designed for TV/movie signals not video games, despite their marketing, which is clearly trying to capitalize on the retro gaming craze. 1 frame of lag is acceptable, but these cheap boxes tend to add variable lag from 3-5 frames, which makes many games unplayable. It's harder to pull off combos in fighting games, for example. For the longest time I was emulating retro games, with my consoles in the closit collecting dust. One day I hooked up my NES to a CRT and blew on my copy of the Legend of Zelda. I can tell you first hand it was a shock to me how much easier it was killing a Darknut when LINK would actually turn in the direction I was pressing! Try it and you'll see what I'm mean!

Lag creeps up on you over time, making you think these old games are harder than you remember! They are! But it's not the game, it's the lag from your scaler! I can almost guarantee it's the same scalier inside those trash pound cables. This is why run-ahead mode in retroarch is such a god-send! Finally emulation equal to the lag of a CRT! And with a highly accurate emulator like BSNES, there's no compromise anymore! While that's a breakthrough for NES, SNES, & GENESIS (relatively easy systems to emulate), it's not much help with N64, PS1, PS2, GC, OG XBOX, Saturn, and many others. For them, may people still prefer to use OG hardware. If you're going to invest in the OG Hardware and vintage games anyway, then why dilute the experience with a shitty scaler?

If the tactile feel of inserting a cartrige or disc is your hit of nostalgia every once in a few years, and the gameplay experience isn't the point, then sure get the cheap box that isn't really going to ruin the five minutes of nostalgia your were looking for. Your just going to put it away after the nostalgia wears off and go back to your HTPC to emulate the games. So your money would be better invested into a graphics card. That's perfectly fine too!

If the gameplay on OG hardware is important to you, then I wouldn't recommend anything cheaper than the RT2x mini...

That's going to give you the simplest solution without ruining every experience (zero lag). The only thing is that it doesn't handle well are 240p to 480i transitions. It'll drop signal for a second or 2, which in some games can leave you vulnerable to attack (like Dino crisis, Chrono Cross, Resident Evil 2 N64 port, etc). The only reason those trash boxes don't is because they treat the signal as 480I all the time, so there is no transition. But because it's deinterlasing the signal all the time, it's got that terrible frame buffer adding varible lag!

There are more expensive RT options, but for the bump in price, I don't think the upgrade to the RT2x Pro (which has SCART or Component inputs) is worth the upgrade. S-video is good enough! And at 480p you're not gaining much with component or Scart over it. But it's definitely a huge boost up with the RT5x. It adds automatic phase sampling, 1440p upscaling (6x integer scaling of 240p), and triple buffer adaptive deinterlacing.  Basically it means the sharpest possible image that only adds one frame of lag, locked (not variable), and it won't drop signal like the previous versions! All plug-n-play. That's what makes it worth $300 IMO. But I'm a hardware enthusiest with 15+ console hooked up to my entertainment center and I enjoy collecting games I can emulate for free. That's what I enjoy spending my excess cash on. If you don't, feel free to buy whatever you think is worth your spare cash!

[Tom Speirs]

Actually the one I pointed out seems to be actually pretty good and is a Chinese clone. I know what your talking about though with the other cheap ones.

[tthurman]

Some of Mike's products have be blatantly ripped off.   These guys denied it, but the proof is out there.

https://www.retrotink.com/post/retrotink-2x-cloned

 

I've got a bit earlier entry into the RetroTink2X  ( around $100) than the one Felix posted, but I can vouch for the quality of the product.

 

[RIP-Felix]

On 6/10/2021 at 6:04 PM, Tom Speirs said:

Actually the one I pointed out seems to be actually pretty good and is a Chinese clone. I know what your talking about though with the other cheap ones.

I doubt they can get the BOM that low. There's an easy way to test it. You could put in a game that has 240p in game and 480i in the menu (like chrono cross) and see if the it drops sync on the transition. Just pause and unpause rapidly. If it doesn't drop sync, then it's the same as all those other scalers and not a clone.

That's not to say it's bad though. If the lag isn't a variable 3-5 frames then it could be acceptable. The real test would be a time-sleuth and measure the lag. If if doesn't drop sync on 240p/480i, that's a nice "feature," even if it results from the mishandling of 240p. The deinterlacing is going to be bad and scaling soft, but for the price that's not a deal breaker. So long as that lag is acceptably low.

[Tom Speirs]

I have not put it through its paces. I was primarily looking for an all round easy analog to digital converter that was not fixed at 60hz output as I had got rid of my dvr and scaler as I needed the space (which I regret now, although realistically this stuff is not needed in 2021). I would have been happy to buy the real thing if it was even remotely available here.

[RIP-Felix]

Me too! I didn't pay close enough attention to the tweets and whatnot. Besides, I'm kind over the whole "wait for a restock update and fight to the death with BOT for a pre-order" thing.

That's why I don't have and X-Box SX or PS5. Or RetroTINK 5x. Or N64 Digital. Or PS1 Digital. Or...

I'm burried in other projects and I guess I'm hoping the stock will raise to the point I will be able to buy them later. That may work out for the X-Box or PS5, but with niche stuff I need to be more on the ball. There will only be so many preorders for the PS1 digital before it isn't made anymore. It's just these kids today like to use discord and twatter for updates and my OLD ass thinks they should place product updates on the friggn website where the damn thing is sold! I'm a dinosaur I guess!

[Draco1962]

To be honest, it pains me to see more troubleshooting requests on Discord or Facebook than product forums. 

[tthurman]

https://www.retrorgb.com/retrotink-5x-experimental-firmware-v257.html