OSSC - Open Source Scan Converter (Scaler)

[Fidde_se]

It's out but few have it, for those of you here who do, what's your result/verdict.
Pros & cons.

PCE/TG16 seems to run great.

http://junkerhq.net/xrgb/index.php/OSSC
http://retrogaming.hazard-city.de/ossc.html
https://www.videogameperfection.com/2016/03/04/open-source-scan-converter-a-first-look/

[Digi.k]

Oh I have been looking at that on the same site over the last few months but have no idea how to order it.

[Fidde_se]

You add yourself to the OSSC mailinglist, then you're in line and will get an email when it's ready.

https://www.videogameperfection.com/newsletter/

[SignOfZeta]

That sure is a lot more complex than just buying a CRT or an XRGB. What is the price, or is that complicated too?


Only for shits and giggles I just checked my local Craigslist and there is a very nice condition 27" Sony Trinitron for FREE and a 20" PVM (comp and YC only) for $150 "negotiable". This was just today. Supplies seem to be holding strong. Thanks to deals like this I'm fully stocked.

[Groover]

I wish PVMs where on My Craigslist

[SignOfZeta]

If you live anywhere near anything like a major American city they'll be there. I'm in Michigan, not LA, and still I see one once a month or so. I got an absolutely flawless JVC a while back for $40.

[Fidde_se]

That sure is a lot more complex than just buying a CRT or an XRGB. What is the price, or is that complicated too?

I think the premade is around 200$.
The DIY I got is like 140$.

It's more or less lag free (only add your displays) and in linetriple it's really nice.

[Groover]

I'm not sure how great this is for today but since it is open source the potential in the next few years could be great. I will stick with my XRGB mini for now.

[Joe Redifer]

So apprently this only coverts to 480p. No real upscaling. More like line doubling.

[ToyMachine78]

CRTs are in the CL free lists all the time here. Nice ones... JVCs and Trinitrons with component and svideo inputs 27"+

I got my 27" JVC for $3

[SignOfZeta]

I'm not sure how great this is for today but since it is open source the potential in the next few years could be great. I will stick with my XRGB mini for now.

That's my problem with the idea. A common issue with these a DIY type of things is that they are substandard when released for whatever reason. They seem to have the potential to be fantastic. So at that point you have to keep your eye on progress with the thing and try to pull the trigger only once the product as gotten as good as you hope it is. If you buy too soon you waste your money. If wait too long you might never get one.

Whereas with something from one of the established companies you pretty much know exactly what you are getting from the beginning. No potential future-tense maturation of product needed. It just works. Building aside (I build electronics kits all the time) I feel like if I give this device-family-product line a chance I'm going to be fucking with the thing for as long as I have it, be it software updates, or just wondering when I should ditch it for the next iteration.

These aren't things I'm saying to discredit anyone, it's just how it works out practically for me. The number of products that can *almost* do a good job of running MAME but not quite is huge, for example. That shit turns me off from the whole nano computer thing right now.  For some people that's a fun thing to be frustrated with, like people who customize their phone software over a weekend to relax. It's not so much a set and forget product as it is a new hobby for me irrespective of job it's made to do. This is what some people need but personally I have too many hobbies already. If I start building my own video hardware it's going to have to take time out of something else I'm pretty sure I enjoy more.

Some things should just...work. Since the project is open source I suppose someone could make a fully fleshed out Micomsoft quality product based on the design. An OSX front end for BSD, so to speak.

So apprently this only coverts to 480p. No real upscaling. More like line doubling.

That should be fine. That's all the hard work. If your display can't scale a solid 480p HDMI feed without fucking it up then it's a piece of shit.

[Joe Redifer]

The problem is that the display must then scale the 480p to its native resolution, adding an extra step of lag and likely poorer quality scaling than, say, a Framemeister. Then there's the issue of a lot of TVs assuming 480p is always widescreen and adding additional horizontal scaling to stretch the image.

[Fidde_se]

The most lag comes from the deinterlacing, and some tvs are just plainly bad at it.

In linetriple the output is 720p.
And 4x and 5x seems to be added so it will be more like 1080p.

But this one is definitely not for everyone and not even a Framemeister killer.

For the Lagintolerant.
I think the lag is around 1.5ms and if used with a computer monitor that doesn't have gamemode since its on that all the time it's like 1-4ms added for modern ones.

[Joe Redifer]

The most lag comes from the deinterlacing, and some tvs are just plainly bad at it.

Good thing it doesn't have to deinterlace at all, then. Just duplicate. Of course even if modern TVs can see a 240p signal, it interlaces them first as it assumes it's 480i, then deinterlaces, then scales.

[deubeul]

Got mine 2 days ago.

Only tested with PcE so far and the result is fantastic, way, waaaaay better than  my XRGB-3, no jittering, no sync loss (after a little sync tweaking) . Line triple is so sharp it cut mey eyes. 

The unit is small and well built. The generic remote is easier to use than I expected, despite there's no OSD (yet).

I can't compare to the mini, but I think the OSSC adds XRGB-3's lag-free to mini's picture quality and systems compatibility.

And it's only a beginning, the OSSC creator keeps adding fonctionnalities and improvements to the device's firmware.

I really don't regret my purchase. The only downside to me, is the lack of composite support for my PC-FX, but the built-in composite>RGB converter of my old DVD recorder should do the job.

[Joe Redifer]

How did you get it if it's not yet available?

[deubeul]

There was a preorder list. I signed in like six months ago. The first batch of 100 units has been delivered recently, and a second batch is supposedly arriving sooner than expected.

Review here:  https://www.videogameperfection.com/2016/07/08/source-converter-verdict/

Forum here:   https://www.videogameperfection.com/forums/forum/ossc/ 

And (long) general discussion from the beginning of the project here:

http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=52158

[SamIAm]

Zero input lag on a digital signal?

Dammit, I knew I shouldn't have bought a Framemeister when I didn't really even need one.

[Fidde_se]

The true gamer needs both a OSSC and a Framemeister, they complement each other.

[Joe Redifer]

Agreed. I get a lot of this kind of crap. Would like to see a line quadruple and 1080p output. Otherwise your display is still scaling the 720p to its native resolution, inducing lag.

[Johnpv]

They both have their plus and minuses.  The one that works best probably heavily depends on your needs and setup.   Good that there are alternatives.

[Fidde_se]

The long awaited firmware with 4x and 5x linedoubling is here, (linequadrupling/linequintupling)

It's now gone from 720p to 1080p output with higher screen compability too, and presets were available in the firmware before it, it's gone from good to the best =)

Mario in 3x


Mario in 5x


Closeup in 5x, every retropixel is now 5 pixels high, razor sharp IRL, pictures can not do it justice.

[esteban]

Jesus, this is neat.

And I use CRT.

But this is damn fine.

[TR0N]

Really considering a OSSC since there's the rumor the framemister will be discontinue.

[Arkhan Asylum]

Really considering a OSSC since there's the rumor the framemister will be discontinue.

the announced a new thing but it won't be out for a few years?

regardless, discontinued doesn't mean "can't find me one o' dem", lol.

[TR0N]

Really considering a OSSC since there's the rumor the framemister will be discontinue.

the announced a new thing but it won't be out for a few years?

regardless, discontinued doesn't mean "can't find me one o' dem", lol.

That's why i said rumors for a discontinue.I wouldn't be surprised if micomsoft replaces the framemeister with  a newer model they often do.I've watched enough reviews of the OSSC to catch my interest.Though it's getting bad all ready for sellers flipping the framemesiter on the evilbay 

[Johnpv]

Framemeister is being discontinued because one of the ICs on it isn't available any more.  If you want one go to solaris japan, they still have them for the official price.  Micomsoft has said they'll have enough Framemeister stock to last the year.

[TR0N]

Framemeister is being discontinued because one of the ICs on it isn't available any more.  If you want one go to solaris japan, they still have them for the official price.  Micomsoft has said they'll have enough Framemeister stock to last the year.

Yeah i heard solaris japan still has a stock to sell for the framemeister.

[Groover]

They said they have stock for this year and the next for the Framemeister. The OSSC is cool and even already having a Framemeister this still interests me. The OSSC is sort of a moving target and keeps improving. The OSSC can change a lot in a year or two.

[deubeul]

Yeah, I'm very happy with mine. Marqs keeps implementing new features, even though things should slow down a bit since the profiles feature and x4 / x5 modes have been added.

[Digi.k]

Got one for myself now.  Took a few months before it got shipped out.  You have to get a remote control for this too which foolishly I didn't.

As right now I can only access the very basics.  This version is 1.6 and has a sound board with it but you have to use a 3.5 jack.

i.imgur.com/DNtFob8.jpg?1

[schnuth]

Very nice on the OSSC. I'm waiting for mine to make its way to me from across the pond.  Can't wait!

[Digi.k]

Well I can't access all the functions since I don't have a remote control but that's on order atm.

It does allow me to connect pc engine with component connection to elgato game capture HD where as before I couldn't get a signal.

One other thing is that I cannot get a signal with detana twinbee through OSSC although sound audio comes through fine.

just basic captures using OSSC and capture card.

daichikun on plasma tv
i.imgur.com/Is6vKBG.jpg?1

[esteban]

That looks pretty nice, digi.k, but,  then again, I'm not a videophile.

[Digi.k]

So I've played around with the scanlines and although I've made them look darker on my TV.. however when it comes to capturing they look much bigger. Almost as if the screen res has halved.

This is how it looks on my plasma
i.imgur.com/KMN0XVq.jpg