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mrchrisster / MiSTer_SAM

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How to get CRT mode video to work via composite/svideo #241

Closed tallendorf closed 1 week ago

tallendorf commented 3 weeks ago

This was an open issue before in #227, but the resolution seemed to be "use a CRT monitor with component inputs". Is there any setup that allows SAMVideo in CRT mode to work over composite and svideo? Analog boards don't support vga_scaler=1 and that is apparently the only way SAMVideo can work in "CRT mode"? Since most consumer CRTs do not have component inputs, that's a big limitation.
Is there possibly some way to use Groovy Mister as the renderer for the video player? That would also have the side benefit of allowing the menu to stay in a mode that can be simultaneously be displayed by the HDMI output. That's another issue I'm for a solution (after SAM is interrupted, return the menu to format that can be displayed over HDMI. The only way so far I know would be a hotkey to toggle an alternate Mister.ini but that seems rather clunky for the setup I'd like to have with analog and HDMI simultaneous output and having the mneu "just work" on HDMI when SAM is disengaged with user input.

mrchrisster commented 3 weeks ago

Hey tallendorf, I use SAMvideo on CRT through analog board. I connect through RGB to a PVM so this was my test setup for Samvideo. I used to have my Mister connected via Svideo using Villenas adapter so I assume that should work well with SAMvideo as well. You do need vga_scaler to enable the framebuffer on analog out and unfortunately I have no idea if that would work with other ways of getting composite like Mike's cores. I also have not played around with GroovyMister so wouldn't be much help there. The SAMvideo mode is more of a hack than a great solution tbh. I hope we get a DVD core at some point that allows mpeg2 playback, that would be a much better solution.

tallendorf commented 3 weeks ago

The Villenas adapter is an active vga->composite/svideo adapter. I'm using a Misteraddons Analog I/O pro which has that circuitry built-in (they discontinued their own active vga adapter because of that). It allows simultaneous output of hdmi and composite/svideo/etc And it works fine on every core on MiSTer except it won't work with vga_scaler=1. That's means SAMvideo in CRT mode won't work. You just get the luma on the composite and HDMI goes blank (and the menu won't work at all afterward over HDMI).
Have you actually had SAMvideo work with the Villenas adapter? I thought SAMVideo should work as well (because all the MiSTer cores do now), but it doesn't and that's what #227 seemed to imply as well. As for GroovyMiSTer, I believe people have made other video players like VLC "cast" to it, so it would seem doable assuming there's enough power available to send decoded video packets from the local video player to a socket. Is the source for mplayer available?

mrchrisster commented 3 weeks ago

Thanks for explaining what the Analog I/O pro does. It looks like it's using Mike's YC core which would explain why it doesn't work. It would be great if you want to look into a VLC or mplayer cast solution. Please chat with wizzo on discord, he's the one that compiled mplayer.

mrchrisster commented 1 week ago

Confirmed with wizzo that Mike doesn't have plans to add yc output to the menu core so nothing we can do for now