Dreamcast: what is the best setup to enjoy perfect video output on an HDMI TV?

[cbm4ever]

What is the best setup for a Dreamcast with HDMI TVs? I have several HDMI TVs (from 22 up to 53 inches), and i’d like to use those with my Dreamcast.
I have both the RetroTINK 2X and the OSSC (fw 0.88 updated today).
Problems:
1- I tried to connect either Composite and S-VIDEO to the RetroTink 2X, and it works, but the result is quite unsatisfactory. Any vertical edge is affected by the usual “running checks” pattern, and the output is not perfect.
2- With the OSSC, i attached the the DC to the OSSC with different cables connected to the SCART port of the OSSC, and i can hear the sound, but there is no video, it is all black. Same with all my TVs. Note that if i connect the DC directly using Composite or S-VIDEO to the TVs, it works.

Now, I am using the RetroTINK with the Commodores machines (using S-VIDEO), and the OSSC with lot of other consoles like PS1, PS2, NeoGeo, and it works just fine with all of them. But not with the DC! I can see the video signal is synced to 15Khz, and the green led stays steady on.

Any hint and guidelines?

I read briefly the forum, and i’d like a simple solution that does not includes using RetroTINK2X+HDMI-VGA+OSSC, which looks like exaggeration and unmaintainable setup.

[BuckoA51]

The best solution is the DCDigital mod.

The second best solution is Dreamcast via SCART into OSSC, but only with a SCART cable that supports 31khz output such as this one – https://retro-access.com/products/dreamcast-15khz-31khz-480i-480p-scart-cable

For your point number 2 above sounds like you’re not connecting with a RGB cable. You must use an RGB cable not a composite/s-video adapter.

[MLConian]

If you want to stay original, you could try running your Dreamcast through VGA on your OSSC. You’d need to adjust the aspect ratio for correct output, but that shouldn’t be a problem for your OSSC. Some games don’t give output on VGA, so beware of that – most do, however, even some where it’s not printed on the box (Shadow Man and Soul Reaver for instance). The list of non-VGA games is quite short, although it does contain some classics. Alternatively, you could equip your Dreamcast with a GDEmu and patch non-VGA games to run through VGA.

As BuckoA51 states, it seems you’ve got a composite to SCART connector (most PAL consoles are shipped with that actually). While that does work on a TV, it doesn’t work on an OSSC as it lacks the hardware to accept composite in any form. You could get a Koryuu and hook that up to your OSSC, that way you can directly link composite and S-Video to your OSSC.

[cbm4ever]

Thanks @BuckoA51 and @MLConian, both answers help. The SCART cable is indeed a Composite only, and I am currently waiting for a DC cable that ends with a VGA connector to use in the OSSC. I guess the cable was really cheap and it should provide great results with the powerful OSSC! Thanks for you help!

[BuckoA51]

Again, it’s better to use a SCART cable with 31khz support with the Dreamcast and OSSC rather than a VGA cable. The OSSCs VGA input lacks some low-pass filtering that really benefits the Dreamcast, plus you can play all games not just the ones that support VGA output.

[cbm4ever]

Thanks @BuckoA51, i’ll take that in mind, for now the SCART cable 31khz is out of stock and also quite pricey.

I received a Dreamcast video cable with two outputs:
– VGA (for video only of course);
– two RCA connectors for stereo sound (and a splitter/joiner from RCAs to jack 3.5mm) to plug onto OSSC;
Using this cable I can attach directly onto the OSSC and get wonderful results!
I used to use Composite in the past, with or without RetroTink, and I was not really happy with the quality.
But now Dreamcast and OSSC is looking gorgeous on my LCD, great!

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