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retro bit generations using yellow white red cable

Posted: March 24th, 2017, 2:54 am
by radar
I recently bought a used retro bit generations. I plugged it in to a CRT TV using the included composite cable. It has lines that sometimes show up with an rf connection like a signal loss or interference. Never seen this using yellow cable on a video game system before but my Sega genesis 2 looked like this with rf. Haven't tried HDMI on a high def TV yet to see if the lines are still there. Anyone else have one of these game systems and does yours do the same thing? I don't know if it is just low quality or if something is wrong with this particular unit.

Re: retro bit generations using yellow white red cable

Posted: March 24th, 2017, 5:33 am
by scotland
Welcome on your first post, and hope someone with one can help you. I have some general advice, but I don't own one of these.

The cables are analog composite cables, and because of their connector,mare also called RCA cables. Its actually got two video signals in there put together (composite), which is why other cables like component cables will produce better video. In older computers and some VCRs, you could tune the output, but thats not likely an option here.

If you search on Google for help, try using terms like composite, rca, or even 'av'. AV is not a very precise term, but its common shorthand for things like making a composite modification on older systems.

It could also be local interference or a bad connection. If you have another set of those cables lying around, try to swap them out to see if its the cable. Sometimes those cables have an issue by the plug end. You could even plug the red or white into the yellow jacks and see if its the yellow cable - it wont hurt anything. It could even be the soldering inside directly on the video jack.

Does it happen on many games, or just ones like the low res Gameboy games? One knock on the system is the quality of the emulation being used.

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/253811-retro-bit-generations/ is an AtariAge forum thread on this device. I didn't wade in, as their threads can be very long, but thats a source of information too.

Hope someone can help you more - good luck.

Re: retro bit generations using yellow white red cable

Posted: March 27th, 2017, 1:49 am
by radar
the lines are on the screen all the time on menu screen and random at start up and during games. Lines can vary from light to heavy. They typically run about 45 degree angle from left or right. I played a gameboy advance game on it and one time I saw no lines when game actually playing and next time they were noticeable. Doesn't seem to matter from which type of system the game was emulated from. Except for the lines using composite, it is a fun system overall. I already had a handful of these games on cartridge and playing the emulator versions are definitely a step down in picture quality, speed game runs at, controls. Sound is much worse on the emulator version.

Re: retro bit generations using yellow white red cable

Posted: March 28th, 2017, 3:06 am
by radar
Follow up. I tried a different set of composite cables. No difference. I finally plugged it in with an HDMI TV and the lines are gone. The problem using HDMI is that you get graphic glitches that do not happen when using composite. I think this unit is running normal they just used the cheapest low quality parts they could find. Still fun to play but I am glad I didn't buy it new for $60.