Advice: System Selector

[punkrawk]

I tend to be more of a lurker so I appreciate any help the board is willing to offer.

I finally have a nice widescreen HD television. The problem is when I play videogames I see what looks like macroblocking in "dark areas". I am using a semi-new Radio Shack system selector and nice cables. The cables are not monster but they are a nice set of gold plated connectors. I think I need to try a different type of system selector, maybe a digital one. Do you have any suggestions of what I should look for and what to avoid? Thank you.

P.S. DVDs and TV look great. The problem only appears when playing videogames. That is why I think it is the system selector.

 

[Javery]

I use the pelican system selector pro and I haven't noticed any macroblocking or other picture issues. I don't have a remote for it though so it's a little bit of a pain in the ass to switch inputs all the time.

I'm curious - what do you use as your DVD player so the DVDs look great? I'm just using my Xbox 360 (480p) and although it is an improvement over my unbelievably crappy non-progessive scan (480i) Sony DVD player the picture still looks awful compared to even the 720p TV channels. I know there are "upscaling" players out there that supposedly convert to 720p or 1080i but I haven't tried them out yet. I think I'm just going to suck it up and wait until someone wins the hi-def DVD war but DVDs really don't look that great right now...

 

[punkrawk]

[quote name='javeryh']I use the pelican system selector pro and I haven't noticed any macroblocking or other picture issues. I don't have a remote for it though so it's a little bit of a pain in the ass to switch inputs all the time.

I'm curious - what do you use as your DVD player so the DVDs look great? I'm just using my Xbox 360 (480p) and although it is an improvement over my unbelievably crappy non-progessive scan (480i) Sony DVD player the picture still looks awful compared to even the 720p TV channels. I know there are "upscaling" players out there that supposedly convert to 720p or 1080i but I haven't tried them out yet. I think I'm just going to suck it up and wait until someone wins the hi-def DVD war but DVDs really don't look that great right now...[/QUOTE]

My TV has a special digital connection just for my DVD player. The combination of that, my progressive scan DVD player and my "smart" TV everyone thinks it looks great. My TV can automatically adjust itself to compensate for a few things. I am sure a HD DVD player would look better but I feel as if this is as close as I can get right now.

 

[shipwreck]

One area of warning. If you have a widescreen TV and are connecting a PS2 with component cables to the system selector, there can be issues with the PS2 not scaling correctly to the TV and images will be cut off. This doesn't sound like what is happening to you, but I just thought I'd throw that tidbit into the ring while you are considering a system selector.

 

[bmsdaddy]

What system/systems are you having this issue with? And, you said you have nice cables, are they component cables? I have 360, Xbox, PS2, and GC all set up with component cables running through a Pelican system selector to my 60" SXRD and haven't had any issues like that.

 

[flybrione]

I have one of these.

zektor

They are IMHO the best you can buy at a reasonable price. They support component output and digital audio output for four devices with one output to your TV.

I have my Xbox 360, Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube all hooked up with component cables. The Xbox 360, Xbox and PS2 are also running digital audio. It was probably a better investment than the HDTV I purchased.

A friend of mine bought the newer model up on their site and he loves it.
I have the first generation model.

Be aware that the issue you are having could also be because of the model TV you own.

 

[ashram]

i used those cheap $20 pelicans for about a year...until i ran out of inputs on it (blame the 360) somy wife just got me the system selector pro 2.0 and WOW. i never has an issue with the cheap one, but the pro 2.0 actually made a difference and i was blown away at the quality.

 

[DomLando]

Have the pelican system selector pro and haven't noticed any picture issues with my 60 inch Sony.

 

[daphatty]

I managed to find the Psyclone Source Selector at a Best Buy in Baltimore. (None of the BBs in my area had them at the time.) As far as the picture is concerned, I haven't noticed any signal degredation whatsoever. I currently run my PS2, 360, and DVD Player through it and am very happy with the results. I also like that I can customize the display to say exactly what I have connected. This is particularly helpful since the remote control functions (which are compatible with the logitech harmony BTW) only toggle up and down.

Here's a link to the BB website if you want pick one up. See below for some better photos (cause the ones on BBs website are complete ass!)

- DaPh

 

[Strell]

I got this one from Best Buy: http://www.joytech.net/products.php?section=viewprod&productID=79&lang=1&catID=9

Fully programmable LCD screen, 7 total inputs (1 in the front for EZ access), 6 w/component, 4 w/optical sound. Comes with a remote, too!

VERY nice, if I must say so myself. I'm running my older systems through it (NES, etc), but until I come up with some cash, I'm running PS2/GC with component cables. They all look fantastic, and I'm finally seeing some quality progressive scan output and such.

It's only $90 B&M, and I picked it up with the $10 off $30 Xbox 360 coupon from a while back (convinced the clerk girl that it was indeed a gaming accessory, and she went with it).

Anyway, quite nice.

Here's the thread I found out about this selector from, if you want some more information regarding it and others: http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81685&highlight=joytech