Customer Reviews

VGA S-Video Adapter [RETROBIT]

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In the hierarchy of Dreamcast hookups, this is the king of the hill. Basically, the worst picture available is with an RFU adaptor, the next step up is the standard composite video cables supplied with the Dreamcast, much better than that would be an S-video cable (which you can use with this box as well), and a step up from even the incredible looking S-Video cable is this VGA box. This box will let you hook up your Dreamcast to a computer monitor _or_ if your HDTV has a "PC In" or VGA port, to your high def TV. And I've got mine hooked up that way to a 44" TV. When I first hooked it up, I must confess, it didn't completely blow me away. But when I compared to what I'd been using by going back a step (S-Video, which looks really great as is), there was no comparison, VGA is much more crisp and strong. Really, when you've got this hooked up, Dreamcast games look better than PS2 and Xbox games, only second to truly high-def Xbox 360 and PS3 games.

A couple of notes:
Don't overpay - this box goes for between $20 and $30 if you watch and wait; don't lose your mind and pay $70.
Also, keep in mind - the box alone does _not_ come with a PC VGA cable, which you'll need. Nor does it come with audio out cords, and what I needed was a splitter from the headphone out jack on the box to go into composite RCA red/white cables, to hook into my stereo tv. You could also get a set of PC speakers and a headphone-type out for the sound. You can find these either on Amazon or at your local electronics shop on the cheap.

After 3 weeks of using this I have to say that I am amazed with the graphics of the Dreamcast even more. The composite connections looked terrible/washed out & grainy on my new 1080p HDTV. I connected this & was blown away that the Dreamcast straight out of the box supports 480p. The difference is night & day with it & I wish I had bought this much sooner. I have over 30 Dreamcast titles & have not had a problem with 480p not being supported. The Dreamcast was so far ahead of it's time & is the standard of what consoles are today. My Soldier of Fortune game looks phenomenal on an HD connection. If you're a Dreamcast fan you NEED to get one of these to play either on your HDTV or pc monitor. Well worth the money!!!

I'm a diehard Sega fan and absolutely love the Dreamcast. It was a trail blazing machine that was truly ahead of its time and you don't have to weigh the technical specifications to prove the point. Just plug the Dreamcast into a handy VGA box and behold the spectacular, jaw dropping truth with your very own eyes. After all, seeing is believing! Watch new life being breathed into the graphics. Your favorite titles are painted anew on a fresh piece of canvas, becoming a new work of art that I found absolutely beautiful. The picture is significantly sharper and cleaned up considerably, especially on VGA and S-Video. My television, no longer seemed to be coated by a fine layer of dust. Practically every game that I've played shined brilliantly. In game text is crystal clear, making reading a lot easier than in the past. The colors are more vibrant and incredibly rich, practically leaping out of the television and constantly drew my attention away from the game.

It adds unimaginable depth and polish to almost every title in my Sega Dreamcast library of classic video games. I can positively guarantee to that it would put a smile on aalmost any faithful Dreamcast gamers face. It is well worth the price of admission. Just don't pay to much. This particular VGA box is a little different than other models that I'd encountered before. It's made out of a light, see through clear plastic. Thankfully its decently constructed and won't fall easily apart or break, unless you drop it from a sufficent height on a hard surface. I was surprised too, as the company who produces them, Innovations isn't exactly know for producing high qaulity products. It isn't as solid as I would of preferred, but it's features more than make up for it.

It boasts a handful distinct features not included in earlier versions. Like a toggle switch that lets you alternate between a computer display or a television, depending on which one you prefer or what features it can support. When in VGA mode, the VGA box must be switched to P.C. Even if it's hooked up to your television, just as it must be switched to the T.V. setting for S-Video to work. Along with the standard TRS audio connector for sound, which can either be connected to your television (as mine is) or a pair of computer speakers for sound. It does have a variety of other output methods besides VGA which help set it apart, including old school Composite (RCA) and in particular, S-Video. Each of them offer rock solid visuals and appreciated flexibility, especially the S-Video. As not every Dreamcast game will support VGA mode. The image may not be as enthralling, as the graphics aren't as rich or clearly defined, especially solid black lines as they are in VGA mode, but it's pretty darn close! I promise, as a fellow Dreamcast gamer/fan that you won't be disappointed and will still be extremely pleased with what you see all just the same.

Thankfully, it's a pretty rare occurrence that mostly plagues Midway or obscure, off the wall titles. Like, Psychic force 2012 by Taito. So you can enjoy most of your favorite Sega Dreamcast games as they was obviously meant to be witnessed; utilizing the heralded VGA mode! I honestly didn't expect to be blown out of the water by the upgraded 480P resolution as I was, but I couldn't help but be totally shell shocked by it. It was like traveling back in time and watching Soul Calibur or Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast spring to life for the first time. It really grabbed my attention and had me thinking "Wow...". It's strange how something so simple as a VGA box can elevate the entire gaming experience on the Sega Dreamcast to a completely different and joyous level. It's something that I hadn't imagined was possible on Sega's last great console, if only because composite cables were the standard when the sixth generation of dedicated video game consoles were released. My only real regret is that I didn't snatch one of these a long time ago, when they were first commercially available. Boy, was I was missing out big time! So, if you're still fortunate enough have a Dreamcast and enjoy playing video games on one of Sega's most venerable consoles, do yourself a huge favor and purchase a VGA box today; you'll be happy that you did!

Let's just be honest. Dreamcast games may have looked incredible for their day, but time has not been kind to them. It's not the DC's fault, it's just the way it works. Add that to the fact that analog signals transition poorly to HDTV's and you have a game that you remember looking amazing, now just looks bad.

As some others have commented, this is the best video option available for the Dreamcast. In terms of video quality, I'd say it's in the realm of component video. This was the digital video option supported by the GCN, PS2 and Xbox. So that should give you an idea what to expect. The difference is quite noticeable, especially if upgrading from the standard RCA jacks. The games look much cleaner, texture work is more noticable, colors are much more vibrant, edges stick out more, the blur of the composite signal is gone too. Seeing something like Rayman 2 (which was drop dead gorgeous back in '99) running at 60FPS in 640X480p is a thing of beauty. To those who thought the DC couldn't have keep up with it's competition graphically, obviously haven't seen this; Rayman 2 was a 1st gen title too. But games like Soul Calibur, Project Justice and Marvel vs. Capcom 2 look great too. VGA will, restore the games to their former beauty. This is the way the games were meant to look. I did notice a tiny bit of ghosting on fast moving images, but it was barley noticable. It also would have been great to have a widescreen option, but stretching the image doesn't look too bad.

As far as VGA is concerned, it runs a little differently than component video on the other systems. First, there is no 480i option for non supported games. The system runs in 640x480p (your tv may scale it to 720x480p for widescreen). Some third party titles will not run it. While this is the minority, there is a workaround. You can use a gameshark (or equivelent) to boot the games to force it to use the mode, a disc like this can be made for free if you find the file online. You can also unplug the adapter while it is booting and switch to the VGA when it's done. Some games do not even work with these tricks. That is where the analog comes in. On the other side of the box you will find analog outputs, RCA jacks and S-video, both are universally supported. The switch on the side of the box allows you to alternate between the two. For the audio on the VGA you have a standard headphone jack. You do have to reboot to switch.

This leads me to my biggest gripe about the box, the box itself. Unlike a cable which attaches to the back of a system, there is a short cable, that leads to the box; from there you attach your hookups. So now there is a VGA cable, headphone cable, stereo audio and composite video (my tv doesn't support S-video) all attached to a box, attached to the Dreamcast, nice! I'd be lying if I said I didn't think it was really goofy just to look at, let alone hook up. It works, don't get me wrong, but combersome nontheless. The box itself only has the ports so to hook up anything to it you will need universal double male ended cables. It shouldn't be a huge concern but you will need to purchase them separately if you do not already have the hookups.

The box I got was the one in the first picture. A clear 3rd party adapter made by retro-bit (whoever they are). You could splurge on the official one, but I can't see a reason to unless this breaks. It has a bright red led as a power indicator. The unit didn't work on VGA with my one dreamcast. The analog was fine, but no VGA, strange. But it works on my other one, so I just swapped them, no biggie for me. The box feels a little cheap but it does the job.

While I am not totally satisfied with the product, I knew it would have a few caveats before I bought into it and you should too. I would buy it again too if I had to because the positives outweigh the negatives in my opinion. If you want a connection that you can plug in and forget about, get the S-Video, it's a nice option particlary if you have and older TV that supports it. But if you want to hook up a DC to an HD set or monitor, you really cant beat the VGA option. Reccomended

Many years ago, when I first purchase my Sega Dremacast console, I was amazed at the graphics it produced. Most of the games that i purchased were fighting games. These fighting games were rendered in 3D. At that time I was confused when I would read on the back of the cover "VGA box compatable". I could not comprehend what that meant. During that time the digital age was growing, and their wasnt too many people at that time that really cared about resolution. Information about progressive scan, and high definition terminology was rare. And when you had a chance to read about progressive scan and high definition, it was brief information. I was curious to find out what VGA stood for, and it surprise me that VGA stood for video graphics aray or video graphics adapter. I learn that computers use VGA to produce the video graphics onto the computer screen.

Unlike composite and S-video, VGA perfomrs differentatly. Colors are produce in what is called RGB (red,green,blue) and the vertical and horizontal lines or synctronize in progressive scanning. When I learn that Dreamcast can be played with that kind of quality on computer monitor, I imediatatly went searching for a VGA box. When I purchase the VGA box back in the year 2001, I seen a complete contrast between compostie and S-video interlace scanning, vs VGA progressive scanning. I seen colors and detail that was imposible to see on a regular TV at that time. Most of the 3D games that I played came to life (soul caliber, dead or alive 2, sonic, etc), and most of my freinds and relatives were in disbelief.

Unforntunatly, my VGA box did not last long, and Dreamcast was begining to fade out. Playstation and the newly X-box was emerging. Ten years later, I went to Amazon and purcahse the Sega Dremacast VGA box, and I was able to re-live those moments again. This particaular VGA box model is pretty good, at first when I purchase this model, something was wrong with the color sync. The green and the red colors were not producing corectly. I had a chance to have another one shipped, and it worked perfectly.

If you are new to the Sega Dreamcast VGA box and you love to see games in good resolution, I highly reconmend you purchase this. ypu will not be disapointed.

Works great. I haven't had any problems with it and use it every week. It's given new life to my DC.

It took me a long time to learn how to hook it up. (Like a week) but once I got everything working I couldn't be more pleased. Now I can play Shenmue and Skies of Arcadia. Yeah Boy!!!!

The fact that the Dreamcast, natively with first party and nearly all third party support, supports true 480P VGA out of the box is absolutely superb. The Dreamcast is easily one of the best highly-integrated computers designed for efficient graphics rendering ever made, along with some of the best software to go along with it. For it to output 480P over native VGA is superlative, and was way ahead of its time, but that's the way Sega is, or at least was, with their hardware; top-notch quality, excellent fit and finish, innovative and beneficial features, and revolutionary, or at least extremely passionately designed features and characteristics. This VGA is an absolute must buy if you're a Dreamcast owner, and have a compatible display that has a 480P VGA - or even component, simply buy a VGA to Component transcoder - input and really appreciate the gorgeous crispness and great visuals this machine is capable of.

First of all, this box does deliver on what it states it does. However, you have to have the plug in just the right position on the Dreamcast side. If you push it flush into the console, it will not display on the television or monitor via VGA. This is exceptionally frustrating if you happen to move the console after successfully getting it to work.

Also, the heading for this product is as follows: Sega Dreamcast DC VGA Box w/S-Video & RCA - by OEM.

This is definitely not an OEM product- it is a third-party, unlicensed model.

All I can say is "buyer, beware".

Just as a note to all, this isn't the official Dreamcast VGA box, but one made by "retro-bit" (never heard of this company.) Anyways, I bought this VGA box along with these two items:

Cables To Go 27411 6 FT 3.5 MM M/M STEREO AUDIO CABLE PC-99
6 feet Coax High Resolution VGA Monitor Cable - HD15 M/M

All three work perfectly together for me. Make sure you have one Input slot containing both a VGA/RGB/Analog PC In and a Headphone/Audio In on your TV. I have a 40 inch Sharp Quattron LED TV and strangely I had to put the switch on the VGA box to "PC" rather than "TV." Odd, but oh well... The picture looks very nice (much better than the traditional composite hook-up) and the audio comes through my TV speakers very clear.

It's nice to be able to enjoy the Sega Dreamcast once again.