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Offline TenaciousTopic starter

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Help - Amiga video Gurus
« on: June 06, 2008, 03:53:10 PM »
I got a widescreen LCD, it's a Sony with lots of inputs including a VGA input.  It's wonderful!

Anyway, I've always wanted to include an Amiga in my entertainment center.  I have an Amiga 2000 with a Spectrum 28/24 from e-Bay.  I'm using Picasso 96 drivers but I'm not passing the native video modes thru it (no cable).

Yesterday, with great expectation, I hooked it all together and ... the Sony displays "Invalid Format".  So, I brought out a VGA monitor and changed the Picasso preferences to verticle and horizontal frequencies that the LCD prefers.  I then re-connected the Sony and ... no joy.

I've done this multiple times.  I must be missing something fundamental.  Has anyone else been down this road?
 

Offline Ami_GFX

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #1 on: June 06, 2008, 05:13:55 PM »
I've got the EGS 24/28 in my Amiga 2500 triple booting EGS, Cybergrafix and Picasso 96 drivers. The Picasso 96 utility in the Prefs drawer should list your card and have a selection of video modes for it. There is an option to test these modes and I would start by testing them all. In the test mode, if it works, you will get a test pattern on your screen and if it doesn't, you just have to click the mouse button to return to a native amiga mode--or a Picasso 96 mode that works. I am using a 15" Phillips LCD monitor with it. When I installed the Picasso drivers, I got 640x480 and 800x600 modes that work but I still haven't been able to tweak the 1024x768 mode to work. Usually you just have to adjust the clock rate but sometimes you really have to get into adjusting vertical and horizontal blanking intervals to get things to work. I had to do this with my Merlin card on my A4000. Also, which version of Picasso 96 are you using. There are several versions floating around the net. The latest one--I think--is 2.0. The good thing about the EGS spectrum card is that you can use Cybergrafix as well. Cybergrafix works better for some things--like Deluxe Paint works in RTG modes with Cybergrafix. And last but not least are the underrated EGS drivers which can only do a 256 color workbench but the EGS workbench is fast and stable and feels much more like a native Amiga workbench and Ad Pro can render a 24 bit full screen image in a matter of seconds in EGS--I used to pass 24 bit images from my A2500 to my roommates 486 PC and the PC which was in theory faster than a 68030 Amiga, took about a minute to render and display a 24 bit image.

The cable you need to pass Amiga Video to the EGS card is a 23 pin to 9 pin female cable. I think there are some Amiga monitor cables in this configuration. I have a 2320 flicker fixer and had to make a 15 pin vga to 9 pin female cable. 15 pin male to 9 pin male cables are common but 15 to 9 pin female ones just weren't used that much
A2500 owned since 1993 with A2630/DKB 2632, DKB Megachip, GVP EGS Spectrum, A2320 and GVP HC+8 on the inside and a DCTV on the outside. A4000D with CSPPC, Cybervision 64 and a Flicker Magic flicker fixer. A4000T Toaster Flyer & CSMKII. All systems completly retro and classic and mostly used to do geometic art as in my avatar.
 

Offline TenaciousTopic starter

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #2 on: June 06, 2008, 06:32:35 PM »
I'm running version 2 of Picasso96.  

Looking at my TV's manual, it says"..PC input does not support Sync on Green or Composite Sync."  It also does not support interlaced signals.

I wonder what is the standard Sync scheme?  My Dell monitor is not choking.

The EGS 28/24 manual indicates that the graphics card supports several synchronization schemes.  The EGS software seems to include a method to select different types (sync on Green, Tesselated, Blank Black, Composite).  I can find no such toggles in the Picasso software.  Maybe I'll try the ECS software as you indicate.

I also have a Picasso II card available to me.  I wonder if it would be more compatible with this new Sony TV.
 

Offline Ami_GFX

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #3 on: June 06, 2008, 08:45:15 PM »
Amigas can generate separete horizontal and vertical sync or composite sync. I think most RTG cards and most monitors use separete horizontal and vertical sync which is the most common form. I would check for interlaced modes. I just fired up my A2500 and everything 1024x768 and bigger is interlaced in Picasso 96. If your monitor doesn't accept interlaced signals, that just might be the problem. Try a 640x 480 or 800x 600 mode.

I didn't know about the sync capabilities of the Spectrum card. Mine came without a manual. If you try the EGS system, you should first install the 6.2 version that came with the Spectrum card(available from http://amiga.resource.cx/ if you don't have it), and then upgrade to version 7. You will get an alternate 24 bit Gui that looks Unix X windowish but beheaves like the Amiga Workbench and comes with a suite of EGS applications and utilities. You can switch between the EGS display and the EGS emulated Amiga workbench with a mouse click. I found this ftp server that still had the EGS 7 upgrade and a lot of other goodies. In fact, the only EGS application I haven't found is the EGS version of ImageFX(1.62). If anyone out there has a copy, I would be interested.

A2500 owned since 1993 with A2630/DKB 2632, DKB Megachip, GVP EGS Spectrum, A2320 and GVP HC+8 on the inside and a DCTV on the outside. A4000D with CSPPC, Cybervision 64 and a Flicker Magic flicker fixer. A4000T Toaster Flyer & CSMKII. All systems completly retro and classic and mostly used to do geometic art as in my avatar.
 

Offline TenaciousTopic starter

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #4 on: June 07, 2008, 01:23:07 AM »
I just lost my post .

I tried 640 x 480 and 800 x 600, both with a corresponding 60 Hz verticle frequency (Sony prefers this).  No dice.

I may try the Picasso II next, less work.

The EGS software looks more tempting all the time, especially sinse it was made for this card.

I looked thru my ImageFX installations, I have 1.51 and 2.6 (I think both are cover disk versions).  Was 1.62 ever on a Cover disk?
 

Offline QuikSanz

Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #5 on: June 07, 2008, 04:36:05 AM »
@ Tenacious,

Your Amiga Video out is not connected to the pass thru. To get any output from a "Workbench" screen will require something connected to the Amiga output and the screenmode selected must be promoted by the monitor.

Chris
 

Offline Ami_GFX

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #6 on: June 07, 2008, 04:37:58 AM »
Quote


I looked thru my ImageFX installations, I have 1.51 and 2.6 (I think both are cover disk versions).  Was 1.62 ever on a Cover disk?


No, it was a special version for EGS that uses the EGS true color display. I've found an update patch for it and I found one copy for sale in the Netherlands but it was from someone who didn't take Paypal and wanted a 100 euro minimum order for sales of his Amiga gear outside the Netherlands. I use 2.6 on my A2500 and 4.5 on my A4000.

I really like EGS. It is quirky and eccentric but it is well coded, stable and fast. It's very good at displaying images. I like Cybergrafix and Picasso 96 equally well and each has it's advantages. Picasso 96 is extremely stable and fast but Cybergrafix has greater software compatibility--you can get Deluxe Paint to work in RTG VGA modes in Cybergrafix.
A2500 owned since 1993 with A2630/DKB 2632, DKB Megachip, GVP EGS Spectrum, A2320 and GVP HC+8 on the inside and a DCTV on the outside. A4000D with CSPPC, Cybervision 64 and a Flicker Magic flicker fixer. A4000T Toaster Flyer & CSMKII. All systems completly retro and classic and mostly used to do geometic art as in my avatar.
 

Offline QuikSanz

Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #7 on: June 07, 2008, 05:29:48 AM »
@ Tenacious,

By the way, what OS?

Chris
 

Offline TenaciousTopic starter

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #8 on: June 07, 2008, 06:00:27 PM »
Hi Chris,

I'm running OS3.9 on that machine, most things are promoted to the current Picasso setting.  That's why I have to swap back to a VGA monitor to change settings and then re-connect to the TV to try.

I made a low profile oak cabinet, populated it with gleaming black components, painted a 2000 black (looks beautiful).  I've just got to get it to work!
 

Offline QuikSanz

Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #9 on: June 07, 2008, 08:16:43 PM »
@Tenacious,

I have a Spectrum I use on my A2000 sometimes, you should see something here. I use Cybergraphics and have had no problem. It must be a checked box missed somewhere in some pref.

Chris
 

Offline TenaciousTopic starter

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Re: Help - Amiga video Gurus
« Reply #10 on: June 18, 2008, 09:07:59 PM »
Just a quick update.  I connected an A3000 with Picasso II (and Picasso96) to the Sony monitor, ..IT WORKED!  Several of the screen resolutions came up.  There was however, a funny flickering in some areas of the screen.

I copied the settings back to the A2000 with the Spectrum, no luck.

My enthusiasm for the project has waned a bit.  The new model PS3s finally came out.  We picked one up Monday and it's nice!  I wrote an AVI file to CD and the PS3 played it.  Wrote another episode to a USB thumb drive and it played from that, too.

I'm impressed!