[mamed]

So I saw a post where someone was making custom vga cables for sgi systems that kinda negated the need for sync on green. I’d be plugging mine into modern monitors. I’ve seen people plug these into huge TVs (o2s and octanes). So would I need one of those cables then vga > hdmi?

[weblacky]

Please provide a link, many machines run BOTH H/V and SOG Sync at the same time. So the the display often still needs to be SOG tolerant, even when using separate H/V Sync.

[CB_HK]

The biggest issue I’ve found with trying HDMI adapters is pretty much inline with what Weblacky is getting at. Most SGIs push out SoG regardless of the VGA adapter you use. The only system I know off hand where you can disable SoG is the Onyx2. That’s done via software.

The long and short of it is that the handful of VGA to HDMI adapters I tried ended up being washed out or green in color due to what I can only imagine is the SoG signal making it’s way through.

Lastly, I haven’t found an HDMI adapter that can support all the different formats that SGIs natively output. So that’s one other thing to keep in mind: whether the adapter supports less than 1920x1080.

[kaigan]

I've been looking into good options for this, myself, as I want to be able to do HDMI video capture from SGI systems. I've had good luck with the following setup:

One of these cables: https://www.pccables.com/13W3-M-to-VGA-H...Cable.html. This cable is configurable for a variety of systems and modes related to devices with 13W3 outputs.

I set the cable for for RGBHV mode and then plug it into this: https://www.extron.com/product/rgbhdmi300a. The scaler works very well and gives a sharp output. The Extron boxes show up on eBay for reasonable prices fairly often. I paid $50 for mine. For general purpose use, this setup should do the trick.

For direct analog use, there's also this: https://www.extron.com/product/rgb160xi and this: https://www.extron.com/product/rgb112xi. For the RGB 112xi, you would need to get a 5-BNC to DE-15 cable, though. I have one of the RGB 160xi boxes as well and it works great with the cable I listed above. There's a dedicated DIP switch on the back to filter the SoG signal. Again, these show up on eBay for reasonable prices fairly reliably.

Edit: There's also a little bit of additional information from other users in these two threads. That's where I learned about the Extron boxes to begin with, actually: https://forums.irixnet.org/thread-1302.html and https://forums.irixnet.org/thread-768.html.

[weblacky]

FYI cablesonline sells that 13W3 to VGA DIP switch cable on eBay for $20, I have 5 of them, don't need to spend $35. However I tend to use SOG mode and not H/V with them...I 've have issues with H/V.

13W3 Male to SVGA (HD15) Male Universal Cable w/ 12 Dip Switches - W3-606 https://ebay.us/4teb1u


Kaigan, what settings do you use for the scaler? Anything we'd need to know if someone got one?

[mamed]

So I saw a post where someone was making custom vga cables for sgi systems that kinda negated the need for sync on green. I’d be plugging mine into modern monitors. I’ve seen people plug these into huge TVs (o2s and octanes). So would I need one of those cables then vga > hdmi?

FYI cablesonline sells that 13W3 to VGA DIP switch cable on eBay for $20, I have 5 of them, don't need to spend $35.  However I tend to use SOG mode and not H/V with them...I 've have issues with H/V.

13W3 Male to SVGA (HD15) Male Universal Cable w/ 12 Dip Switches - W3-606 https://ebay.us/4teb1u


Kaigan, what settings do you use for the scaler?  Anything we'd need to know if someone got one?

https://forums.irixnet.org/thread-1929.h...light=Hdmi

I’ll try and find the one about the special vga cables but here’s one of the links I found

[kaigan]

Kaigan, what settings do you use for the scaler? Anything we'd need to know if someone got one?

It's pretty much just the default settings. The only thing I change is the output resolution setting so that it matches the input from the SGI computer: 1280x1024, for example. That way, there isn't any actual scaling being done - it's just the raw signal. As long as the monitor support the resolution, it should work fine. Whatever signal processing the monitor does will still be present, but that's an inherent issue with using panels that have a fixed internal resolution. If the monitor doesn't like the base resolution, trying a multiple with an integer scaler may fix things.

[Intuition]

So I have been trying to set up a VGA to HDMI scaler to capture video directly from the signal into a video capture card for a week or so.

The first scaler I bought was from Atlona.... it was only giving me black.
The vga cable from the Octane to the back of any of my 4 vga capable HDMI monitors
works to display the Octane in most modes except for a couple of the 1600x1200 rates which go black.

I tried quite a few of the Atlona menu scaler modes hoping to hit one that aligned with the Octane's output.
If it said 60hz I would set to looking for 60hz at the same resolution. To no avail. Still black.

Purchased a 2nd VGA to HDMI unit from Tripp-Lite. Same thing.
No go signal out the HDMI end yet any monitor I plug the VGA out to works.

Did a search for VGA to HDMI on Google and this thread comes up.
Made me realize... maybe.. the sync on green is being adjusted to in the HMDI input.... though the monitors ok... they don't appear green.
BUT.. the scalers probably just go black because of this SoG signal maybe making them not come through?

I am wondering now.... should I get one of the special cables with switches mentioned here to disable the green going through the VGA cable?

[pcar]

So I have been trying to set up a VGA to HDMI scaler to capture video directly from the signal into a video capture card for a week or so.

The first scaler I bought was from Atlona.... it was only giving me black.
The vga cable from the Octane to the back of any of my 4 vga capable HDMI monitors
works to display the Octane in most modes except for a couple of the 1600x1200 rates which go black.

I tried quite a few of the Atlona menu scaler modes hoping to hit one that aligned with the Octane's output.
If it said 60hz I would set to looking for 60hz at the same resolution. To no avail. Still black.

Purchased a 2nd VGA to HDMI unit from Tripp-Lite. Same thing.
No go signal out the HDMI end yet any monitor I plug the VGA out to works.

Did a search for VGA to HDMI on Google and this thread comes up.
Made me realize... maybe.. the sync on green is being adjusted to in the HMDI input.... though the monitors ok... they don't appear green.
BUT.. the scalers probably just go black because of this SoG signal maybe making them not come through?

I am wondering now.... should I get one of the special cables with switches mentioned here to disable the green going through the VGA cable?

I am using an Extron 300A RGB --> HDMI signal processor and it works perfectly, normal RGB/VGA cable from o2, and a HQ HDMI cable from the Extron to the monitor.  And for extra credit i routed it all through a capture card so I can capture in OBS and stream old SGI stuff on Twitch

https://forums.irixnet.org/thread-2020-p...l#pid30015

PM me if you want to go over the setup or anything.

[Intuition]

Oh thats great to hear Pcar

I did consider the EXTRON 300A at one point. Wish I would have picked it sooner. Already have a Atlona and Tripp-Lite to no go.

I'll order an Extron and hit you up if I have questions.