[mythtv-users] OT - MX4000 to FX5200

[Brad Fuller]

Kevin Kuphal wrote:
> Brad Fuller wrote:
>   
>> Brian Wood wrote:
>>   
>>     
>>> On May 4, 2006, at 8:46 AM, Kevin Kuphal wrote:
>>>
>>>   
>>>     
>>>       
>>>> Brad Fuller wrote:
>>>>     
>>>>       
>>>>         
>>>>> I'm going to swap out the cable. The first thing I thought of when  
>>>>> the
>>>>> B&W popped up was that since the MX4000 works and the FX5200 doesn't,
>>>>> maybe the S-Video out voltage level is flaky and maybe at the edge.
>>>>> Since I'm running a long cable (10ft of S-Video going to a
>>>>> S-Video<->Composite converter and about 20ft of RG6) that maybe it's
>>>>> just not making it somehow. I realize that this is no where near the
>>>>> length limit, but what the heck.
>>>>>
>>>>>       
>>>>>         
>>>>>           
>>>> If you're plugging the S-VIDEO output into a Composite input you  
>>>> need to
>>>> change the TV-OUT format line in your xorg.conf from "S-VIDEO" to
>>>> "COMPOSITE".  That controls the color signalling that the card sends,
>>>> not the type of connector that it uses.  Having this set wrong will
>>>> result in B&W picture.
>>>>     
>>>>       
>>>>         
>>> Depends on what type of "converter" he is using, but I agree this is  
>>> the root of the problem.
>>>
>>> Be aware that the adapter supplied with nVidia cards is *not* a  
>>> converter, it is simply ti allow you to access the composite signal  
>>> from the S-Video-type connector.
>>>
>>> But like I said, if his target is a composite input, there is no  
>>> reason to fool with S-Video at all.
>>>   
>>>     
>>>       
>> The only difference between composite and S-Video is that luminance and
>> chroma are separated on S-Video.
>> Unless the driver can tell the video board to combine Y and C and send
>> it out on a single pin (and indicate what pin it's sending the combined
>> signal on) then signifying "SVIDEO" or "COMPOSITE" in xorg.conf works
>> equally. I doubt that there is any difference between using "SVIDEO" or
>> "COMPOSITE" on a board that has only SVIDEO out.
>>
>> Do you have a different explanation?
>>   
>>     
> I don't have an explanation other than that it works.  I have more than 
> one nvidia board with only S-VIDEO out where if I do not set the tv-out 
> format to COMPOSITE, I get a B&W signal when using an s-video to 
> composite cable connected to it.
>   
I just tested it and it doesn't matter. And, obviously, with the MX4000
it worked fine.

But, if I switch out the cable, I get color.
So, the cable is the B&W problem.

However, I still can't get xorg to recognize there is a TV at the end of
the long cable (no matter if it's set to SVIDEO or COMPOSITE).
If I replace the long cable with a shorter one, xorg recognizes there is
a TV out there (actually, it's probably the nvidia driver doing the
telling) and I get the second screen. With the longer cable, no go.

AFAIU, specifying ConnectedMontior "TV" suppose to force video out the
SVIDEO port. I don't know why this doesn't work.