What’s the easiest/cheapest way to hook my DC up to a computer monitor? I have access to an LCD and a regular CRT monitor, if it makes a difference.
Nice, how much? And how well does it work, and do you have to hook it up through your computer to use it?
I’d like to be able to hook my console up to the monitor directly, if that’s possible.
Ya the DC can hook up to your monitor through the vga input. Also not every DC game can be displayed in vga so you should search for a list to see what can. There are usually quite a few DC vga boxes/cables on ebay so you should check there probably. I dunno if getting a vga box is better or vice versa, but you will need a spare vga cable to use the vga box.
The hardware to output VGA is actually in the DC itself, so any VGA box will work as well as any other. Just look for the cheapest one you can find unless there are specific features you need. Or you can whip out the soldering iron and make you’re own.
http://devcast.dcemulation.com/mods/internalvga/vga.php
Hm I’m not looking to solder anything, so I guess a VGA box is the way to go.
So I can buy a VGA box, connect my red/yellow/white cords to it, and then connect my monitor to the box and I should be good to go?
Cool, thanks for the info. I found a list, and it looks like I’m fine.
How is the resolution for anyone who has tried this before? The native resolution on my LCD is 1280x1024, so I’m guessing it’ll look really crappy if I play it on here. Unless the vga box windows the display for you?
I’m pretty much a big noob when it comes to this stuff, so I’m sure these questions have really obvious answers -_-;
EDIT: Has anyone tried this before?
Also, I did a quick websearch and found some people complaining about how 2d games look when using a VGA adapter. Is it even worth it to look for one of these if I’m just looking to play some mvc2?
The DC VGA box plugs directly into the back of the DC, and you connect your VGA cable to the box.
Output is always 640x480 @60Hz. Whether its windowed or stretched depends on your monitor.
Of course its worth it. It is extremely clear and crisp. On MvC2, the backgrounds will look gorgeous because they’re rendered at 640x480; the sprites are still the same sprites through, and people may bitch because the quality of the sprites aren’t as good as the quality of the background. It’s not the VGA boxes fault; it shows exactly what a tv would show if you had a better TV.
Grab Guity Gear X for DC, and try it with the VGA box and you’ll see what I mean. Its not the Dreamcast’s fault Capcom used 16 bit sprites.
Visual quality will be the same no matter which DC VGA box you get. However, if you’re going to buy from that site, pay the extra $5 and get:
I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather have the option of using RCA cables for my sound, instead of only a headphone jack.
its gonna lag, depending on brand and how fast the response time. i have a sammy 19" wide screen with 4ms, playing marvel theres a very slight lag but very playable. i still do BUT i prefer no lag. Find any monitor that has 2-4ms.
http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/cellngames/EBAY-DC-VGABOX.jpg
got one of these, pretty cheap.