Original Xbox RGB scart cable or better recommendation?

[KentaZX]

So I was wondering if anyone knows a good way to play the original Xbox. if its with SCART cable and the OSSC through RGB, what were the settings and cable you guys would use? if its not, then what would be a good suggestion?

[Galdelico]

Hi,
I own a PAL XBOX – unmodded, so I play original games at their stock settings (no forced 480p, for example). I used to connect my console to the OSSC through its original Microsoft RGB Scart cable, and honestly… It was decent at best. I got subtle – yet noticeable, at a close inspection – ‘wavy’ diagonal interference and also a hint of colour bleed, especially on reds. Now, I know the Scart RGB out on PAL XBOX systems is pretty pants to begin with, but that cable wasn’t doing it any favours.
To cut it short, I bought a C-Sync RGB cable from Retrogamingcables, and it improved things significantly. Gone is the interference and the bleed is almost unnoticeable, especially with scanlines enabled. It’s still not pristine, mind you, but I guess you can’t squeeze much more IQ than that, from an untouched XBOX, via Scart RGB. If you’re up to softmodding, though, I believe you can get 480p for (almost) everything and maybe use a component cable for overall better results.

Edit – Nevermind, I just read in another thread that you own an NTSC XBOX. Wait for more educated recommendations, maybe, but I guess going with component is still your best bet.

[nmalinoski]

Regardless of the region of the console, without modding, RGBS output is limited to 480i/576i/PAL60, and the only way to get 480p or better is through YPbPr, component cables, and an NTSC video region.

If you want to use RGB instead, there should be a BIOS mod that will force RGsB output, regardless of resolution, but I expect you still need an NTSC video region, and you need a board revision that isn’t 1.6, and you need something, like an OSSC, that can understand RGsB, and you’ll probably need to use component cables.

There should also be a modification you can do to get RGBHV output, but I believe that routes separate sync onto data pins on the AV output that weren’t meant for separate sync, so you’ll need a matching custom cable to go with it, which is not an approach I’m a fan of. Personally, I’d either go YPbPr (Which I do now) or hold out for an HDMI mod.

[KentaZX]

Well I have a NTSC Xbox though, not PAL so that should be NTSC video region itself, but if I decide to go for component video, what cable would you suggest? because I could just plug that in straight to my 4KTV. Not sure if i can do HDMI mod though because I don’t know if the modder I usually talk to does that.

[nmalinoski]

You have a few choices for getting YPbPr component out of the Xbox. I think the top recommendation right now is the XOSVP (Xbox Open-Source Video Project), which is an open-source alternative for the official HD AV Pack breakout box. They come in either preassembled or in kit form, though, unfortunately, they both appear to be sold out. A potential downside is that this kit only offers S/PDIF audio via TOSLINK; so, if you can’t accommodate that and need analogue stereo audio, you’ll need to either add a TOSLINK to RCA converter to your budget or pick a different solution.

The next-best option, I think, is the official HD AV Pack. These mainly came in the form of a breakout box with separate RCA-to-RCA component cables, and offered YPbPr component output, as well as TOSLINK for digital audio and stereo RCA for analogue audio; but there also was, at one point, a version of the HD AV Pack that was an all-in-one cable that had a TOSLINK output molded into the AV connector. I think some people found these breakout boxes to be prone to visual noise, and the cables were not of good quality; but I have one, with the original cables, and, if those claims are true, the issues are not pronounced enough for me to notice. I don’t expect the latter, all-in-one-cable version to suffer from those issues. These solutions are growing in rarity, so expect to pay at least $65 for one in good condition.

Finally, the budget option would be to pick up a cheap, third-party component cable. I had successfully used one for years without issue, before moving to an HD AV Pack because I wanted digital audio. I might have just stumbled upon a decent cable (bought from a used-game store years ago). If you go this route, stay away from anything Tomee-branded; they’re known for making thin, noisy cables.

[Dextrose]

What I did for my Xbox was to splice together a decent component cable from a Xbox composite cable and a 360 component cable. It’s much cheaper than getting a good quality Xbox component cable and it only requires a little bit of soldering skill. It’s worked well for me so far.

[TrantaLocked]

Regardless of the region of the console, without modding, RGBS output is limited to 480i/576i/PAL60, and the only way to get 480p or better is through YPbPr, component cables, and an NTSC video region.

If you want to use RGB instead, there should be a BIOS mod that will force RGsB output, regardless of resolution, but I expect you still need an NTSC video region, and you need a board revision that isn’t 1.6, and you need something, like an OSSC, that can understand RGsB, and you’ll probably need to use component cables.
.

So 480p RGBS or RGsB is completely impossible on a 1.6? I thought it was still possible to mod the 1.6, but even if you mod you can’t get 480p RGB?

[nmalinoski]

I’m not sure that it’s impossible, but I’m not certain that there’s currently a working method for it. Last I checked, there was no way to flash an RGsB/RGBHV BIOS to a 1.6; and, while there’s supposedly a way to get a softmodded system to output RGsB (nkpatcher11?), it sounds like it doesn’t work properly with the Xcalibur chip on the 1.6 boards (green tint; not sure if that means that the colors are just a little bit off or if that means it’s all green, like when YPbPr gets interpreted as RGB).

[Jarrah White]

I’ve used the Retro Gaming Cables Xbox cable for years, I think it looks better than the official component cables.

EDIT: Just read that you use an NTSC console. Considering that you thus have the options of 480p, 720p and 1080i on certain games, the official Xbox component cables might be a better option for you.

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