Retrotink 2x pro and PS2, Flicker/interlacing

[Thasios]

Hi.

So i have used the retrotink 2x pro. I hook up my PS2(pal) via component and i get flickering, much like the interlacing i get from plugging it directly into the TV. It looks kind of the same if i use passtrough, and also if i use component. Am i missing something, or cant i use my PAL ps2 with the 2x pro?

EDIT: described my setup wrongly the first time

[nmalinoski]

If you get a flicker that looks like a vertical shimmering, that’s because it’s an interlaced signal. This is, unfortunately, the norm for PS2 software.

The RT2X/Pro/SCART are all [relatively] simple line-doublers, so they can’t perform good deinterlacing–the most they can do is duplicate lines (or insert black lines when scanlines are turned on? I don’t have hands-on experience with these devices) to fill in the missing fields every frame in order to bring the video output from 480i/576i up to 480p/576p.

When you put these devices in passthrough mode, it leaves it up to a downstream processor or the display to perform deinterlacing. If that happens to be your display, and your display is in game mode, it wouldn’t surprise me if your display is just doing something similar to the RT2X Pro. In my case, my Samsung LCD looks like it’s filling in black instead of trying to do a bob deinterlace. If you want a good deinterlace, you’ll need to disable game mode on your display and take the tradeoff of added input lag.

[Thasios]

Hi, thanks for your answer 🙂

Ok, so i am a bit confused. I thought deinterlacing and line doubling was essentially the same thing, filling in the alternating odd/even lines. so what is the difference from the 576i signal that i get from my PS2 and other 576i signal i get from other consoles where i do not see this flickering?

And just to confirm, so there is no way i can use the retrotink 2x pro to get rid of the flickering, i can might as well plug it right into the TV? i feel it’s weird i have seen several videos about how PS2 looks using the retrotink 2x without anyone mentioning the flickering.

Is there any other device i can use so that i have not have to set the tv from game mode? OSSC perhaps?

Sorry for alot of questions.

[Thasios]

If i rephrase my question: Is there any way for me to get rid of the flickering, have no input latency, and still be use the Game-mode on my TV? Any device/cables etc?

Thanks in advance

[BuckoA51]

Ok, so i am a bit confused. I thought deinterlacing and line doubling was essentially the same thing, filling in the alternating odd/even lines. so what is the difference from the 576i signal that i get from my PS2 and other 576i signal i get from other consoles where i do not see this flickering?

Which other consoles do you have that output 576i?

There are several ways you can do deinterlacing, typically they involve buffering one or more frames and using that information to construct the best possible picture.

“Bob” deinterlacing that the OSSC and RetroTINK do takes the lines of each interlaced field (consisting of only even or odd lines) and doubles them, filling the entire frame. This causes the bobbing or shimmering effect (though it’s honestly not unlike the effect an old CRT TV had).

And just to confirm, so there is no way i can use the retrotink 2x pro to get rid of the flickering

You can set RetroTINK to pass through mode for interlace sources, that will make your TV handle the deinterlacing.

If i rephrase my question: Is there any way for me to get rid of the flickering, have no input latency, and still be use the Game-mode on my TV? Any device/cables etc?

No, that’s flat out impossible. With interlace you can have zero lag or a nice picture, you can’t have both.

[Thasios]

Hi

Thanks for the answer 🙂

I thought my pal og Xbox did output in 576i but i was wrong on that one. Still no flicker from that one, or my wii when it is set to 480i. So my point stands i guess, because i don’t think it is the difference between 480i and 576i that makes the flickering… right?

“You can set RetroTINK to pass through mode for interlace sources, that will make your TV handle the deinterlacing.”

it seems then as the retrotink and my TV handles deinterlacing the same then because i see no difference when using passthrough.

So to summerize, only way for me to get rid of the flickering is to have my TV handle it, e.g. using standard display setting instead of game setting, and thereby introducing some input latency?

[BuckoA51]

I’m not aware of any modern TVs that use bob deinterlacing even in game mode. Can you check what type of signal your TV thinks its getting? Usually there’s a way to display what kind of signal it is, either by accessing a menu option or when you first turn to the channel a little popup will tell you.

[Thasios]

Hi,

Not sure exactly what i should be looking for. The information i get is the connection type, HDMI, and the resolution, i.e. 576p.

[BuckoA51]

If the resolution on your TV is showing 576p then it would appear the RetroTINK is not set to pass-through mode.

[Thasios]

Ah sorry i missunderstood the question, when it is in passthrough the signal is 576i

[Thasios]

So weirdest thing now, just got the Retrotink 2x Multiformat. Tested game mode on the TV, Both passthrough and line2x i get the flicker. Then when i switch to “standard”-mode on the tv, i get the flicker on line2x, but NOT on passthrough. Why is line2x making the image worse with flickering in line2x than passthrough?

[BuckoA51]

Because your TV is doing the deinterlacing when you set it to pass through. Your TV will perform more sophisticated deinterlacing than the RetroTINK can, but it will add several frames of lag in the process, especially when not in game mode.

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