How to connect a NES clone to a modern TV

[panikoman]

I bought this NES clone https://www.ebay.es/itm/388782290736 which, if I'm correct, uses RCA cable and carries Composite video.

I have this TV https://postimg.cc/gallery/q2CDpC5/270fd2cc which, if I'm correct, uses RCA cables but carries RGB video, but also has a SCART and HDMI ports.

I also bought this device https://es.aliexpress.com/item/1005006925169297.html.

will I get correct video/audio with said device in said TV? Can I use a VGA/HDMI PC monitor with a RCA-Composite-2-HDMI-adapter ?

[gzip]

You can connect the RCA directly to the Y L and R connectors on the TV. If you're specifically trying to use scart for whatever reason you just need to make sure that the adapter is for the right direction. Usually adapters like that only convert one way, so you'd need to make sure the RCA side is input and not output.

[Pokun]

It seems to say "IN" on the SCART side so I guess it's the wrong adapter. Some SCART-RCA-adapters has a switch for setting which side is input and which is output.

[tokumaru]

Like gzip said, TVs with component input will often take composite video via the Y jack if no separate composite connection is available. The device you have is not a converter, it's just an adapter (i.e. it doesn't do any signal processing, it just reroutes wires), so there's really no advantage in using that over connecting the composite signal directly.

[panikoman]

I uploaded some pics of how the famiclone looks on my modern LG TV using composite video:

https://postimg.cc/gallery/xJF3x62

is this how it's supposed to look? is there any _cheap_ device that corrects this?

[lidnariq]

That is unfortunately just how 50Hz NESes look.

There are some inexpensive modifications that will help with these subtle vertical lines of darker colors, but that's not much comfort.

[tokumaru]

Old consoles really do look like crap when connected to modern TVs. The composite signals generated by them is already very flawed (non-standatd timing, color bleeding, interference, etc.), but the blurriness and the glow of CRT TVs masked a lot of these issues and made the images look more acceptable. But now, when these signals are naively converted to digital and blown up to fill our comparatively huge displays, the results are pretty bad. I have a couple of CRT TVs lying around to satisfy my retro gaming needs, because I absolutely can't stand how these consoles look on modern displays.

For many consoles there are RGB or HDMI mods that result in pretty crispy emulator-like images, but for the NES/Famicom in particular, these mods aren't cheap at all, because the PPU outputs composite signals directly and a lot of trickery is needed in order to obtain a clean video signal from it.

[panikoman]

Am I wrong if I like how my NES clone scales the 4:3 video to 16:9. Everyone I talk with tells me the same: that it's a crime. Am I wrong?

1000002991.jpg

1000002990.jpg

[lidnariq]

Eh, if you like big wide pixels, enjoy your big wide pixels.

Any point against the "pixels are always square" dogma is a good one

[nesrocks]

Your TV is scaling it, not the console. Adjust the settigns on the TV to display 4:3.

[panikoman]

61a96d32e011fafca0fa604af6a24b71f4c18aa8v2_hq.jpg

[tokumaru]

Am I wrong if I like how my NES clone scales the 4:3 video to 16:9.

I personally can't stand having my classic games stretched out like that, but to each their own. As long as we have the option to change it, there's no reason to fight over this.

BTW, if this is an analog clone (as opposed to a "mini" or any other modern emulation-based clone), it's probably your TV doing the scaling and not the console. Most TVs have to option to switch between 4:3 and 16:9 for analog sources.