GC Modded RGB and Sky+ Box

[JibberX]

You think you've got an ideal setup then something wierd throws it out....

Anyone know why the RGB passthrough on my new Sky+ box is kinda not doing what it should be doing.

What I do is have the RGB from the Sky+ going into the RGB SCART port on the TV then I stick the modded RGB Cube cable into the back of the Sky+ box....now that all worked fine with normal Sky, but the new Sky+ box seems to see the Composite signal in the modded RGB cable and use that. As an experiment I took the power out of the Sky+ box then wedged it back in, and for about 1 second it was passing the RGB from the cube through, then it went back to composite.

It all works if I plug things in direct, am I missing something, so I have a faulty Sky+ box, design flaw? Wierdness?

[Papercut]

might be an rgb switching voltage problem.

see here:

http://ntsc-uk.domino.org/viewtopic.php?t=12989

worth checking, at least.

[JibberX]

Are we thinking the switching voltage is lost through the new box, for reasons known only to itslef, and by result I am gonna have to wangle a different resistor is there. I guess that makes partial sence, I have no idea what the innards of a sky+ box are or why they are different....worth a stab. Or I could just buy a normal Component lead and use that on my third input and save the scart from my maulings....

[Papercut]

Are we thinking the switching voltage is lost through the new box, for reasons known only to itslef, and by result I am gonna have to wangle a different resistor is there.

not really, I was just thinking that maybe the Sky+ box is more senstivive when it comes to the RGB switching voltage.

The switching voltage may not fall within the 1 - 3v range, so maybe the Sky+ box doesn't attempt to output/switch RGB video through itself.

I guess that makes partial sence, I have no idea what the innards of a sky+ box are or why they are different....worth a stab. Or I could just buy a normal Component lead and use that on my third input and save the scart from my maulings....

I wouldn't go hacking at the innards of the Sky+ box

You should be able to use a cheapie multi meter just to see what the switching voltages are.

Do you have another RGB scart source that does work with Sky+? Do you have a TV that can switch manually to RGB (via scart)? Would be best to test and compare with those if possible.

[JibberX]

I was going to draw a fancinating diagram, but needless to say I've tried every single combination, with RGB passthroughs DVD, Sky boxes, toasters the works, and the outcome is the sky+ box is mangling the rgb signal for whatever reason from the Cube, but not for the DVD player.

[Papercut]

... the sky+ box is mangling the rgb signal for whatever reason from the Cube, but not for the DVD player.

it probably isn't the Sky box's fault then. I doubt the Sky+ box examines at the video signal at all, it probably just reads the switching voltages on pins 8 and 16 to decide what to output.

Check the rgb switch voltage on the DVD player and compare it to the Cube. There is a good chance that the DVD player is in the 1 - 3v range, but the Cube isn't.

[JibberX]

Damn I am gonna have to draw that diagram (it's lunch)

[Papercut]

Damn I am gonna have to draw that diagram (it's lunch)

why? sure you just have:

Cube -> Sky box -> TV

or

DVD player -> Sky box -> TV

via scart. Or do you have a scart switch box in there somewhere?

[JibberX]

That's what I've tried.

[Papercut]

I understand now

the top two are interesting, very weird that:

gcn -> dvd -> tv

is rgb, but

gcn -> dvd -> sky+ -> tv

isn't.

could still be switching voltages. If we assume that the dvd player passes on the gcn scart signals 'as-is' _and_ your tv doesn't care what the rgb switch voltage is, that explains whats happening in the top right and bottom right hook ups.

if we assume that the Sky+ box generates it's own switching voltages rather than passing them on for through connections _and_ it's fussy about the rgb switch voltage _and_ the rgb switch voltage is wrong, that explains whats happening in the top left and bottom left hook ups.

check out the voltage on pins 8 and 16 from the gcn, dvd player and sky+ box and compare them, then see what the voltages are from the sky+ box with the dvd player and then gcn switched through it. That would tell you if there was something wrong there.

I'm assuming your TV can't be manually switched to RGB here, is that right? I'm thinking that the RGB signal is there, but the TV switches to composite video, and can't be overridden.

[JibberX]

I'm assuming your TV can't be manually switched to RGB here, is that right? I'm thinking that the RGB signal is there, but the TV switches to composite video, and can't be overridden.

Correct, which is a bitch, just need that button, I was convinced there is something in the many menus, but only for ext2 and ext3 not the first one! Insanity.