Prospective buyer cable questions

[Maka8295]

Hello! I’m very interested in purchasing an OSSC to get the best possible quality out of my PS1,PS2 and SNES games. I have some questions regarding what cables are best for my setup:

PS1/PS2 games played on 90k PS2 -> OSSC -> 4k TV (RGB SCART Sync on luma cables with capacitors for best PS1 and PS2 image)

1chip model 2 Super famicom -> OSSC -> 4k TV (RGB SCART Csync)

Are these the best cables for this set up? I’ve dug through a lot of forums and keep seeing conflicting info…
My current understanding is that Csync is better than sync on luma but PS1 and PS2 don’t support it so the next best thing is sync on luma. Any push in the right direction would be amazing.

The cables im looking to use with the OSSC are these:

PS1/PS2 https://retro-access.com/collections/playstation/products/sony-playstation-rgb-scart-lead-ps1-ps2-grounded-cable-cord-lead?variant=47699655891

SNES https://retro-access.com/collections/super-nintendo/products/super-nintendo-stereo-rgb-scart-lead-snes-csync-full-shield-grounded-cable?variant=47700910099

Finally, for the SNES cable above does anyone know what the difference between the “75 ohm multicore coax” and “coax with PCB” ? I get rather lost in all the jargon on that page so I would really appreciate any help!!!

[nmalinoski]

Since you’re going to use the PlayStation SCART cable solely with a PS2, be sure to order it with NO capacitors. The PS1 hardware was designed to have 220uF caps in the cable, and the PS2 changed that by moving those capacitors inside the console; so PS1 cables require 220uF caps, and PS2 cables require no caps. I’m not sure where people got the idea that 1000uF caps were appropriate, but that doesn’t conform to either console’s electrical spec.

I’m not sure what PCB is being referred to, but it’s possible that it’s a bundle with the cable and an RGB bypass board. If you don’t have a SNES Jr./Mini (which only output RF and composite, I think), then you can just get the cable without the PCB. In any case, if you really want to know, email Retro-Access and ask for clarification (and maybe also ask they put that clarification in the product description).

[Maka8295]

Thanks for the reply! So just to clarify, even though I’m playing PS1 games on a PS2 I don’t need the capacitors? I thought that the PS2 emulates the PS1 rather closely, with some PS2s even having PS1 hardware. I’ve also seen a lot of comparisons and other posts claiming that the 1000uF capacitors are ideal so this is confusing me quite a bit…

[nmalinoski]

All that matters when selecting the cables is which console you’re using; it doesn’t matter that it’s PS2 on PS2 or PS1 on PS2, because the console is a PS2. It wouldn’t make sense for the console to couple or decouple the AV capacitors, necessitating a cable change, depending on which software it was running.

I haven’t seen any sources saying that the 1000uF caps are ideal, only that they don’t match the spec of either console.

[Maka8295]

Thanks for clearing that up! Do you have any insight into whether Csync or Sync on luma is better for my setup with PS2? Some cable websites are telling me that Csync is better for setups with framemeisters or OSSC while others tell me that Csync isn’t compatible on PS2 without mods (is this only for CRT?)

[nmalinoski]

The AV multi-out on the PS2 (and PS1 and PS3) was designed without a pin to output clean composite sync, so you can’t get CSync from that console without a hard mod that replaces composite video or luma with CSync, and any CSync cable is going to have an inline sync stripper to grab CSync from either luma or composite video; that might be what those websites are telling you.

In my opinion, for consoles that don’t natively output CSync, like the PS2, you really don’t need to pay extra for a cable with a sync stripper unless you intend to connect it directly to a video processor, like an Extron RGB interface, that specifically requires CSync. I’m not sure about the Framemeister, but the OSSC accepts all sync types, so a sync-on-luma cable will be perfectly fine (and is what I bought for my PS1 to use with my OSSC).

Also, since the OSSC received automatic input switching functionality, if the OSSC is your primary video processor, there’s no longer a need to have a PS2 CSync cable and an Extron RGB interface to deal with the RGBS->RGsB format change when playing games that support ED and/or HD resolutions.

[Maka8295]

Thanks for the reply! That clears everything up for me, i’ve already ordered my OSSC and now I can confidently order the right cables! Thanks for all your help! 🙂

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