Strange wave noise patterns on RetroTink-2X

[HE1NZ]

I have one of the old RetroTinks, ordered sometimes in 2019 here. It produces a weird looking noise. Sort like as if water is flowing down a flat surface. Looks like waves to me. Not sure if I can photograph it properly. It’s relatively unnoticeable if I plug component, but more noticeable if I insert S-Video. Especially in some darker scenes it can be really distracting. I have several consoles using high quality S-Video cables including the original S-Video for PS1, so the cables isn’t an issue.

For a while I assumed it’s normal for RetroTink and tried to ignore it. After all it converts analog signals, there’s bound to be some noise. But recently a friend of mine bought RetroTink Mini to use for PS1. He doesn’t have similar patterns. His image is very clear. I wonder if my RetroTink must be faulty? Anybody have the same issue? Is there a fix that don’t involve picking up a new model?

[BuckoA51]

This kind of noise is usually something to do with your mains, either a bad psu on the Tink itself or on the same power strip as your consoles. Retro consoles are often designed to work with cleaner (but less efficient) linear PSUs whereas these days almost everything new ships with a switched-mode power supply.

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[HE1NZ]

I have one of the old RetroTinks, ordered sometimes in 2019 here. It produces a weird looking noise. Sort like as if water is flowing down a flat surface. Looks like waves to me. Not sure if I can photograph it properly. It’s relatively unnoticeable if I plug component, but more noticeable if I insert S-Video. Especially in some darker scenes it can be really distracting. I have several consoles using high quality S-Video cables including the original S-Video for PS1, so the cables isn’t an issue.

For a while I assumed it’s normal for RetroTink and tried to ignore it. After all it converts analog signals, there’s bound to be some noise. But recently a friend of mine bought RetroTink Mini to use for PS1. He doesn’t have similar patterns. His image is very clear. I wonder if my RetroTink must be faulty? Anybody have the same issue? Is there a fix that don’t involve picking up a new model?

[BuckoA51]

This kind of noise is usually something to do with your mains, either a bad psu on the Tink itself or on the same power strip as your consoles. Retro consoles are often designed to work with cleaner (but less efficient) linear PSUs whereas these days almost everything new ships with a switched-mode power supply.

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