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Dante of the Inferno · 2011-02-20, 20:30

So I'm trying to hook up a laptop to my friend's old Sony CRT TV. The laptop has 2 display outputs: S-Video and VGA. The TV has 4 types of auxiliary input: S-Video, component (RW audio and Y video), component (RW audio and RGB video) and Dual-Link DVI-D. Obviously, I can use the S-Video on both the laptop and the TV, but the video looks decidedly awful. So I was wondering, can a somehow connect to the TV using one of the other input ports and the my laptop's VGA port?

NOTE: yes, some cables do exist that can connect the two ports together. HOWEVER, the ones that I have found only work when outputting from a computer and inputting to a monitor, which a TV apparently does not count as (go figure, a projector =/= a tv screen).

synaesthetic · 2011-02-20, 22:56

You need a converter box to switch the VGA RGB signal to Component RGB. The signals are not compatible out of the box.

Dante of the Inferno · 2011-02-21, 00:42

This has been what is confusing me. Is VGA an analog port? If so, then what separates it from S-Video so much that it needs a chip to split the color signals?

synaesthetic · 2011-02-21, 16:25

VGA is analog, yes.

The difference is that S-Video has the picture information encoded in two channels, as opposed to RCA composite video, which has the information encoded in a single channel.

VGA has uh... well, fifteen pins, and it's encoded very differently. VGA sends red, green and blue information directly to the display (and has a R, G, and B return), as well as sending refresh rate information (H- and V-sync), power (5VDC) and various other things.

S-Video (4-pin) sends only luma and chroma information to the display to generate the image.

They are not compatible without some type of converter between the two devices.

Edit: The easiest way to connect them would be to take the VGA output from the laptop into a VGA-to-DVI converter, and plug into the TV's DVI port. DVI and VGA are common computer display standards, so converters are readily available (albeit somewhat expensive) and work rather well.

Dante of the Inferno · 2011-02-21, 17:35

Analog to digital converters are often far too expensive for what I want to do, so I'm considering using the VGA to RGB conversion. Will this combination give a higher quality than say, a VGA to S-Video or RCA (RWY) combination?

2011-02-20, 20:30	Link #1
Dante of the Inferno Turnin' the Tables Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Where dimensions collide... Age: 36	Display Follies So I'm trying to hook up a laptop to my friend's old Sony CRT TV. The laptop has 2 display outputs: S-Video and VGA. The TV has 4 types of auxiliary input: S-Video, component (RW audio and Y video), component (RW audio and RGB video) and Dual-Link DVI-D. Obviously, I can use the S-Video on both the laptop and the TV, but the video looks decidedly awful. So I was wondering, can a somehow connect to the TV using one of the other input ports and the my laptop's VGA port? NOTE: yes, some cables do exist that can connect the two ports together. HOWEVER, the ones that I have found only work when outputting from a computer and inputting to a monitor, which a TV apparently does not count as (go figure, a projector =/= a tv screen). __________________ I'm not afraid of tomorrowI'm only scared of myself

2011-02-20, 22:56	Link #2
synaesthetic blinded by blood Author Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Oakland, CA Age: 40	You need a converter box to switch the VGA RGB signal to Component RGB. The signals are not compatible out of the box. __________________ Indie science fiction author and all-around weirdo: Check out my original fiction here! Read an excerpt from my sci-fi novel Binary System!

2011-02-21, 00:42	Link #3
Dante of the Inferno Turnin' the Tables Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Where dimensions collide... Age: 36	This has been what is confusing me. Is VGA an analog port? If so, then what separates it from S-Video so much that it needs a chip to split the color signals? __________________ I'm not afraid of tomorrowI'm only scared of myself

2011-02-21, 16:25	Link #4
synaesthetic blinded by blood Author Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Oakland, CA Age: 40	VGA is analog, yes. The difference is that S-Video has the picture information encoded in two channels, as opposed to RCA composite video, which has the information encoded in a single channel. VGA has uh... well, fifteen pins, and it's encoded very differently. VGA sends red, green and blue information directly to the display (and has a R, G, and B return), as well as sending refresh rate information (H- and V-sync), power (5VDC) and various other things. S-Video (4-pin) sends only luma and chroma information to the display to generate the image. They are not compatible without some type of converter between the two devices. Edit: The easiest way to connect them would be to take the VGA output from the laptop into a VGA-to-DVI converter, and plug into the TV's DVI port. DVI and VGA are common computer display standards, so converters are readily available (albeit somewhat expensive) and work rather well. __________________ Indie science fiction author and all-around weirdo: Check out my original fiction here! Read an excerpt from my sci-fi novel Binary System!

2011-02-21, 17:35	Link #5
Dante of the Inferno Turnin' the Tables Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Where dimensions collide... Age: 36	Analog to digital converters are often far too expensive for what I want to do, so I'm considering using the VGA to RGB conversion. Will this combination give a higher quality than say, a VGA to S-Video or RCA (RWY) combination? __________________ I'm not afraid of tomorrowI'm only scared of myself