[mrlb]

Here is a video of the behavior.
https://youtu.be/683YZ1Z5bFE

• This reply was modified 3 years, 5 months ago by mrlb.

[mrlb]

So it took me 12 months to get HD Retrovision PS2/PS3 cables!! Damn covid!

I can say that 480p pass-through now works for firmware versions 1.5-1.8.

BUT for firmware versions 1.8 there seems to be a bug where only HIGH-RES 444 MODE (BLUE LED INDICATOR) – you know the 480p line doubling mode that gives you a 960p pixelated picture? It doesn’t give me the normal 480p pass-through. I posted more details here.

2X MULTI (Firmware 1.8) – Stuck on high-res 444 mode (Blue LED indicator)

@harvort @leshingnought I’m guessing you guys never experienced this?

[mrlb]

I agree it seems likely not that many have the 2xPro-M so there’s a smaller volume of people testing and finding any issues. Particularly when there are so many different ways to use it, consoles, cables or operating modes etc.

I suspect a low volume was made and sold.

It would be good if people who have used the 2xPro-M in the same or similar set ups could comment regardless of whether they have had a problem or not. For instance with my post I don’t know if this problem is rare or widespread. It could be people out there are using it regularly as I described with no problem and that would be great to know. Then I could troubleshoot more and maybe find how many setup is different. Or if multiple people have the same problem then it adds more weight to there being some incompatibility with the TINK which hopefully could be improved with firmware. But at the moment it’s difficult to put a perspective on this.

I couldn’t agree with you more. I also have not been able to tell if the issues are isolated to my setup and other people are potentially not having the same issues with the similar setup. I think most people that come to this forum or redit have an issue and are desperate to fix it. People that don’t have issues do visit either of these sites and therefore aren’t able to share their thoughts.
It’s shame there is no official forum hosted from retrotink site. As there is a large community of enthusiasts and supporters. At the very least it would be good if there was an official support forum endorsed but retrotink with instructions on the retrotink site and in the box to make a site like videogameperfection.com the official forum.
Even videogameperfection.com only has one category for all retrotink products which makes it harder for people work out which models people are referring to in the posts.

2) Wii (PAL) with PAL ROMs/discs over component cables
a) get image loss playing 576i/50Hz games. get image loss irrespective of using the TINK in 2x or PassThru modes. the problems occur even after a reset.
similar issues encounted with 480i/60Hz but these are normally correctable through a reset.

How did you go trying older firmware?

[mrlb]

2) I only use the 2x-M with a NTSC PS2 mainly running 480i games and 2 games with a 480p mode using HD Retrovison component cables and through a mClassic.

You have a similar setup (PS2, RT2X-M, mClassic) to me except I have PAL PS2 though I am running NSTC 470i/480p ROM from OPL. I also have HD RetroVision cables in the mail to replace my ebay cables.

3) I’ve been having the same issues with 480p content not displaying a signal at all when hooked straight into my Vizio M-Series. However, when I run the 480p signal through the mClassic I do get a signal but the bottom have of the picture is distorted.

1. Please try downgrading your firmware to less than 1.5 and test if the 480p signal is stable. If it is than you may have the same issue I was having. I was told my issue was due to cheap component cable and that using good quality cables would resolve it. I had a hard time believing this but ordered better quality cables to confirm.
If you maintain 480p stability with firmware less than 1.5 and you have good quality cables than we can definitely say that the firmware is the issue and we can get Mike Chi to look at it.
Let us know both results plugged into Vizio M-series and into mClassic.

I’ve also been having the issue with the image going in and out until it stops send a signal all together sometimes. Usually this can be fixed with restarting the unit from one up to several times. I’ve gotten to where now when I get it to work properly with 480i (I.e. not losing the image) that I just leave the unit powered on.

2. This sounds like a different issue but may also could be firmware related. Try the earlier version, test and let us know.

[mrlb]

@BuckA51 the timing of your reply is uncanny! I actually had an epiphany yesterday. To try PAL ROMs on the console (PAL) and the mClassic was able to upscale to 1080p!

All my ROMs are NTSC but my console is PAL. The flashcard i use is region-free and doesn’t have either with either region ROM.

Do you have any idea’s why this could be a problem?

When I play NSTC ROM’s on the PAL console my Retrotink outputs 480p and my TV can see 480p. The mClassic support 480p. SO it still boggles me.

It’s worth noting I have a PAL PS2 with NTSC (480i/480p) ROMs and the mClassic upscales without issue.

[mrlb]

When I set the PS2 to output 720P and this is passed-through RT2XM the mClassic is able to upscale correctly. The PC Monitor also shows 1280 x 720 as the resolution and not V= XkHz

The issue HAS to be something to do with the video output signal from RT2XM in 480p when passing through and 240 2xline doubling. But 480i de-interlace to 480p is fine. SO what’s the difference? I wish I could look at the source code and try and fix it myself.

[mrlb]

Thanks @havort I will try some better cables soon and test 480p pass-through.

But I tested 720p with the cheap cables and pass-through worked fine. I noted from the release notes “the 720p support relies on overclocking the system.” not sure if that has any relevance to the success with the cheap cables.

[mrlb]

SO I thought I would test we a PC Monitor instead of the HDTV. As the HDTV doesn’t so the input resolution other than 480p/1080p etc.

The results were interesting and non-conclusive. I noticed that the PC Monitor showed “720 x 480p @ 60hZ” for N64 but for PS2 showed H=31.5kHz V=60Hz when connected to RT2XM. Interesting when I used a cheap component-to-hdmi adapter for PS2 that the resolution showed “720 x 480p @ 60hZ”. For the record the mClassic upscales with this cheap converter.

[mrlb]

Furthermore PS2 set in 480p mode with RT2XM pass-through the mClassic also doesn’t upscale.
BUT the PS2 set in 480i mode with RT2XM pass-through the mClassic does upscale to 1080p.

[mrlb]

I have tested all firmwares with cheap cable and it loses signal on every versions. I think v1.4 was working best but still was unplayable(480p). 480i is working on every cable and firmware version.

That’s interesting! And definitely different outcome. 480p passthrough works flawlessly between 1.1-1.4. But I get horrible interference so have been meaning to get better cables (The official Ps3 component and HD retrovision cables can be difficult and $$$ to sort!)

How do you find those component cables with the ps2? I’ve seen them before, they are like the expensive cheap cables. I notice they look thicker – You would hope they were better shielded but difficult to know without cutting in half. Do you get much interference?

[mrlb]

480i isn’t an issue for me. But I’ll test 720p on all firmware versions.
What component cable you using? Official or HD retrovision.

Would you be willing to flash firmware v1.4 and test the tink-m with cheap cables and confirm it works without drop outs?

[mrlb]

Yep they relatively cheap component cables. However they have ben flawless connecting direct to TV, component-to-hdmi adapter, and RTX2m versions less then 1.5.

BUT I will grab a better pair of component cables and try that too!

[mrlb]

I’ll go first 😉

1) I’m from Australia
2) N64 (PAL) with NTSC ROMs svideo. PS2 (PAL) with NTSC ROMs component cables
3) Issues
a) 480p pass-through doesn’t work (v1.5-1.8)
b) mClassic won’t upscale 480p pass-through or 240p upscaled. 480i (PS2) de-interlaced is OK (v1.1-1.8 NB: 480p pass-through can only be tested up to v1.4)
c) PAL 576i – On PS2 I have noticed PAL content vibrates. It’s like a flicker but the content is always on screen but it moves very fast. Very noticeable with text.

[mrlb]

Appreciate the suggestions/information @pkatsa.
I have a older 4k TV. The console works really well directly connected to the TV via the component cables with 480p. 480i de-interlacing on the TV direct isn’t great (washed out and combing artifacts) hence why I bite the bullet and purchased the 2x-M. As you mentioned the 2X doesn’t alter the game timings. So this the issue is related to something else within the 2X-M. The issue is definitely firmware related as 480p pass-through worked for the first 4 firmware revisions and then stopped working after that. I wish there was a way to gather debug or output dump from the microUSB connector.

[mrlb]

I’m lucky I have two units to test with side by side with different firmware. Hopefully the developer see this post and find it useful for troubleshooting/fixing.

When I compare the firmwares closely there are subtle differences. I have noted the behavior of troubled firmwares:

1.5c
Signal: Constant “No signal” on TV.

1.6 to 1.7
Signal: TV Displays “No Signal” however this is not constant. The message seems to flash in and out to a blank black screen. Almost like its getting fragments of a signal however no signal information is record on the TV. Purple LED on 2x-M. (If i press ‘Input’ button the LED changes to Blue but the signal behavior is the same.)

Sound: No sound.
Picture: No picture.

1.8
Signal: TV Displays 480p@60Hz on screen with a black screen. Blue LED (I think this is a bug/glitch) on 2x-M (If i press ‘Input’ button the LED stays Blue and doesn’t go purple)
Sound: Randomly every 5 seconds or so sound will chop in for a split second enough to hear one sound.
Picture: Rarely, over the course of 10 minutes, a picture has flashed up again for a split second. Maybe twice in 10 minutes?

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