I think you probably missed it, but he did actually reply to this above:

So I guess that means it's a no-go. Digital RGB is CGA or EGA (in 15kHz modes) essentially. Can't do NTSC/PAL through that connector.

Oh shoot, ok. Thank you. Yes, I did miss that.

If you are feeling industrious, you might be able to RGB mod it for analog. If it's already got an RGBI board in it, there's a pretty good chance it's an isolated design.

You'd need the full schematics though. And also some equipment of course.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/28614378601...mis&media=COPY

I’m considering something like this at the moment

That device will not work. It doesn't output RGBI, it outputs analog RGB.

Unfortunately, it's fairly easy to go from digital RGBI to analog RBG, but it's a completely different thing to try and cram analog RGB into RGBI.

The problem is that RGBI is very specifically formatted to display preset colors, modulated by the Intensity Bit, which gives you a dark and light choice for one of each colors.

It's fairly trivial to make a device that takes the RGBI output from a microcomputer and output it as RGB because that's what happens inside the monitor anyways. Inside any RGBI monitor there is a circuit that "sees" the signal and decodes the colors with a matrix defined in hardware. It then converts it to an analog value to be driven by the output section of the monitor like any other TV.

The other way around is far more complex because it involves trying to digitize arbitrary analog video to fit inside the very limited color space defined by RGBI. It's not impossible, but it's a non-trivial problem and it would almost certainly introduce an undesirable amount of processing lag. The reason it's not a common adapter is that the use case is fringe enough that no one has risen to that challenge yet. Also, many RGBI monitors possess an alternative method of input which allows for analog RGB or at least YC (or s-video) connection, making it unnecessary.

I think it's an interesting problem, and it would be fascinating to see it done, but, again, it's not really practical.

I believe that if you did convert RGB into RGBI, the result would look very posterized because of the limited number of colors that RGBI can represent. You could imagine some sort of dithering algorithm, like that used to produce graphics on dot-matrix printers, but that would be quite complex and produce very coarse results.

Absolutely. Anything that contained a significant amount of detail would be completely changed.

I actually thought about it for awhile, and I'm not sure how it would look for the intended purpose. Since they are just trying to play 8 bit or 16 bit game consoles on it, perhaps the palette is already limited enough that it would be okay. I'm assuming that this would have to be done with an FPGA and some algorithm would have to be employed to examine the color information and represent it as accurately as possible in what will essentially be a 16 color 200 line EGA mode. Could look cool though.

Very cool set never seen one that fancy from 80s before. I'm not a fan of PVMs as they are to expensive and industrial looking for my taste and also I find RF to look just fine. Glad you saved it and I bet it sounds pretty good with those speakers. A 20" screen for computer monitor man you would definitely need a big desk to fit that buddy. My most fancy set is 1988 JVC 20" and it only has S-video and composite.

It's actually more like just a regular 20" TV that has an RGBI input on it. The Sylvania tubes they used I gather weren't the highest line and you probably wouldn't want to do 80 column modes on it or anything. I'm not sure what the intended use was, but it probably wasn't text. It might have been for using with some kind of equipment like to display the HUD of an industrial computer with 3 or 4 bit digital output

@lliamc00 Thanks for the kind words. And yes it was made for a PC/text. I included the page from the Sears catalog that even says so, and states it is heavier duty. It's been so long since I had the back off of it I can't exactly remember what tube it has. I don't think it's a Sylvania and so what if it is.

PVM/BVM's have been hyped TO DEATH. So many of these guys that pay exorbitant $ for studio sets only to have buyer remorse for any number of reasons and then belittle others with "lesser" sets. (Even a $100K Mercedes wears out.) If all I had was rf, as a gamer I'd be happy, simple as that. (I am not talking about VK at all.) I gave up on social media "know-it-all" sites years ago ��.

I live in NKY, right by Cincinnati. I mean "spitting distance". Looks like you are about ~4hrs from here. If you want it, pm me. I will give it to you. Not kidding. I have to move coming up and I'd love it to go to someone like you. I can't take the whole hoard with me so you'd be welcome to it. Connector included. ��

Edit- I think it is a Sanyo tube.

I also love regular old TVs, and I think they're just fine. I was referring to the specific Sylvania tubes used in these sets at that point in time in the early 80s. From what I gather they tended be rather soft and had a high failure rate.

I've seen text on a TV like this over RGBI in 20" and it's not exactly what I'd call super legible, regardless of the brand. That's why computer monitors tended to be like 14" approximately; especially if you're going to be doing a lot of reading and typing on it. The tighter dot pitch of the smaller screen at the same resolution makes the text a lot sharper and that dramatically reduces eye strain.

Regardless, I think it's lucky that yours has a Sanyo tube in it as it should last a long time.

People get crazy about the PVM thing for sure. I personally have a decent little collection of monitors and TVs, but I'm old and I've been amassing them for 30 years now and I also repair them myself. I didn't just roll out of bed and start ebaying expensive sets.

I started saving crts around 2009 when it became obvious that LCDs were not the end all answer. I agree and I couldn't bring myself to buy/sell sets on ebay. You hear way too many nightmare shipping stories. The seller may or may not take the fall but there is no way I'm taking the chance. You can find several pics of sets purchased on ebay that arrived looking like it was dragged behind the truck on the way. Bottom line that is one less tube.

That Savon Pat guy (supposed to be a former Sony tech) still repairs pvms in California somewhere.

I have actually read more than once of people driving from the east coast, all the way out there 'cuz they are too scared to use a shipper. Could be fun for a vacation I guess. Then burn another vacation to go back out and get it. :)