Xbox 360 and VGA

Hydro2Oxide

Hydro2Oxide

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Hey guys, just got a new 1920x1080 monitor and much to my dismay its got no HDMI ports. I'll have to buy an Xbox 360 to VGA cable and was looking for some insight.

-Will I have to sacrifice any quality because it's not HDMI? How noticeably bad is it if so?
-How does the audio component work, do I get a female cable to plug speakers/headphones in to?
-What's the best 3rd party cable for this? I'd hate to buy a 40 dollar MS cable when a 10$ knockoff will do.
-Should I get a generic HDMI to VGA cable instead?

Thanks!
 
[quote name='Hydro2Oxide']Hey guys, just got a new 1920x1080 monitor and much to my dismay its got no HDMI ports. I'll have to buy an Xbox 360 to VGA cable and was looking for some insight.

-Will I have to sacrifice any quality because it's not HDMI? How noticeably bad is it if so?
-How does the audio component work, do I get a female cable to plug speakers/headphones in to?
-What's the best 3rd party cable for this? I'd hate to buy a 40 dollar MS cable when a 10$ knockoff will do.
-Should I get a generic HDMI to VGA cable instead?

Thanks![/QUOTE]

Does your monitor have component hookups? I'd go that route over the MS VGA cables because I've tried both of them out and the Components seemed a little more crisp and clear.
HDMI is obviously the best but I feel Component is a close 2nd. If you go with the VGA though, get the Genuine MS ones as the knockoffs are noticeably worse(I tried 2 diff ones :whistle2:().

Both the VGA and the Component cables split the cable into your red/white male audio outputs. Best bet is to go Toslink(Optical) for sound since it's the highest quality audio signal.

Haven't tried the HDMI to VGA cable so I can't help you there. They're pretty cheap, so it might be worth it to try it out and see. Good Luck.
 
I use a vga cable hooked to my monitor, at 1680x1050. I dont have a tv near me to use, so I use that cable. I use speakers that i bought for the 360, even though i went almost 2 months without sound. I like the quality, and it seems great. Of course HDMI is probably the highest quality possible that you can get.
 
I use VGA too, also at 1680x1050. Forget what you may have heard elsewhere, you won't have much noticable difference picture quality-wise, especially on something coming out of the 360 since it wasn't really designed at the time to take advantage of what the newer HDMI specifications offer.

I'm guessing you're not watching HD DVDs on the thing since the format has been dead for a while, but it's also worth noting that VGA and HDMI let you view the picture on those at 1080p, while the component only allows 1080i (which actually isn't a big deal depending on your television, but that's a whole other paragraph). Also, the component cable won't upscale regular DVDs, while the other two will.

And keep in mind that HDMI carries audio, while VGA doesn't.
 
[quote name='KaneRobot']

And keep in mind that HDMI carries audio, while VGA doesn't.[/QUOTE]

To piggyback off this comment, the whole reason I got the cheap monoprice VGA cable ($7.10 + shipping) was for the optical audio slot that comes on it. I need optical for my receiver which only has HDMI passthrough, and this was the cheapest alternative for my Arcade unit. I still had to crack open the cable's case to fit the HDMI, but it works like a charm.
 
[quote name='kevlar51']Monoprice has a fairly inexpensive 360 VGA cable (with audio hookups too)[/QUOTE]


Read the reviews of the cable you buy there. I had terrible ghosting and there was a shadow effect from the cable I purchased on monoprice. Nothing like the official cable. Seems like it is hit or miss, but just beware.
 
See if there are any used office MS cables in Gamestop around you. They're run around $10. That's where I got my VGA cable, and it runs perfectly fine.

I use my computer speakers for the sound. I just need to switch the input to my speakers whenever I play.
 
I'll defend the 360 VGA Cable. It looks fantastic to me. I just purchased a monitor with a native resolution of 1920x1080 and i have it hooked up via VGA. It looks phenomenal to me. You just have to change your resolution settings in the 360 to output at 1920x1080.

The cable is pretty helpful as far as audio goes. It has the red and white cables coming off the end of the cord. The cables come with a converter so you can turn the red and white cables into a single 3.5mm jack that you normally plug into your computer speakers.

I haven't had any problems or issues with the VGA cable and to me it's been well worth the money. Here's a picture of what it comes with. Currently you can get it at amazon for $32 and free shipping new. You can most likely find the cable used and get the audio and vga connector (separate silver thing in picture) at radioshack or something.
 
Return and get a HDMI monitor. I'll admit VGA has close to the same clarity of HDMI, but the colors are just too washed out for my taste.
 
Wait, does your monitor have DVI ports? That is just like HDMI without audio. You can get an HDMI to DVI cable for less than $5 off monoprice. The only pain would be switching between your PC (if it is hook up too) and 360.
 
[quote name='Bretts31344']Wait, does your monitor have DVI ports? That is just like HDMI without audio. You can get an HDMI to DVI cable for less than $5 off monoprice. The only pain would be switching between your PC (if it is hook up too) and 360.[/QUOTE]

It does, but only 1. I'd rather not have to plug in and out my PC and 360.
[quote name='BackInBlack']Return and get a HDMI monitor. I'll admit VGA has close to the same clarity of HDMI, but the colors are just too washed out for my taste.[/QUOTE]

I would but this was a gift and I've already got it opened and stuff, I doubt they'd take it back.
[quote name='mordecaix7']I'll defend the 360 VGA Cable. It looks fantastic to me. I just purchased a monitor with a native resolution of 1920x1080 and i have it hooked up via VGA. It looks phenomenal to me. You just have to change your resolution settings in the 360 to output at 1920x1080.

The cable is pretty helpful as far as audio goes. It has the red and white cables coming off the end of the cord. The cables come with a converter so you can turn the red and white cables into a single 3.5mm jack that you normally plug into your computer speakers.

I haven't had any problems or issues with the VGA cable and to me it's been well worth the money. Here's a picture of what it comes with. Currently you can get it at amazon for $32 and free shipping new. You can most likely find the cable used and get the audio and vga connector (separate silver thing in picture) at radioshack or something.[/QUOTE]

Bah, I'm really not a fan of paying 30 bucks for a cable.
[quote name='Over easy']See if there are any used office MS cables in Gamestop around you. They're run around $10. That's where I got my VGA cable, and it runs perfectly fine.

I use my computer speakers for the sound. I just need to switch the input to my speakers whenever I play.[/QUOTE]

I'll be sure to check, $10 sounds good to me.



Anyhow, I've got an Amazon gift card that I want to spend so I think I'll go with this one. The only thing I'm unsure of is how do I get the audio? Sorry if I'm missing something obvious.
 
The audio comes from the red and white RCA cables attached to it. You only see the white in the picture but the red is there just barely. You might need to get an adapter to go from the RCA connector's to a stereo 3.5 single connector.
 
You said that you have a DVI port? Most monitors have a vga port only or a vga port and a dvi port. You can just use the hdmi/dvi dongle for the 360 and then use your vga port for your pc. If you really want hdmi for your 360.
 
[quote name='kevlar51']Monoprice has a fairly inexpensive 360 VGA cable (with audio hookups too)[/QUOTE]

I have that cable and it is *terrible*. Awful picture quality. In fact I ordered the genuine Microsoft cable yesterday from amazom because I have that terrible, terrible monoprice cable. It gives really awful picture quality. When it comes to monoprice, stick to standard cables, not specialty cables, IMHO.
 
I can now confirm that the monoprice VGA cable is indeed complete garbage as I got my official Microsoft VGA cable today and just tried it out. The official Microsoft cable produces a *much* better picture with no ghosting and other garbage. Do yourself a favor and do not buy the monoprice VGA cable for the 360. Spend the extra bones on the Microsoft one. It also comes with the likely needed adapter to go from two RCA audio plus to a mini-jack. The monoprice cable is a waste of money.
 
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