Howdy.
I set up all of my old game consoles for fun, and feel like there must be a better way. I have an NES on the antenna connector (RG6?), about eight consoles on composite (Y/R/W), and four or five on HDMI. I still have my old school Composite switch, but I need more inputs, and it would be nice to be able to use the TV remote instead of getting my old bones up. My TV has two or three HDMI ports but I need a few more.
Do I just need an RF adapter, a bigger Composite switch, and some kind of HDMI switch, or is there another option I’m not thinking of?
Thanks!
I hate to be that guy, but it may be worth weighing your options with an emulation setup. That way you can okay everything on one machine, on one tv input, and not need to get up to turn anything on.
If you like the original controllers 8bitdo sells conversion kits that make old controllers wireless. It’s an investment for sure, but idk, might be your cup of tea.
Yeah I’ll probably do some of that too. Thank you for the tip on controllers.
As someone who briefly lived a similar dream, I wish someone had pointed out to me that you’re still going to have to get your old bones up to get the wired controllers for those older consoles. I’d just keep the old school composite switch accessible so you can plug in whatever you want to play while you’re grabbing the controllers and plugging in the cartridge. Then you just need an HDMI switcher, which could also be your surroud sound system (if you’re spending money anyway…)
Yeah, it’s not like I’ll switch games that often anyway, but it’s annoying having more cables than I have switch inputs. I guess just bigger switches. Maybe a tree set up. XBox, Playstation, Nintendo, Other, and each with a sub-switch for the consoles.
Oh I get it completely, and I was banging my head against the wall looking for something that worked. Ultimately, some clean cable management and a few of those rubber cord grips were so much more functional than anything else I tried.
Also remember that you’ll need to automate those branching switches, and each one can add a bit of lag if they are digital.
Cable management is a good idea. It’s a rats’ nest back there.
Input switcher things still exist specifically for this kinda stuff but they are getting harder to find. Especially ones with inputs as old as the NES using the RF/antenna hook thingy.
I found this really cool modular switch, but they seem to always be out of stock:
I love the idea but god DAMN are they expensive. The controller module, 4 inputs, 1 output, and the remote brings you to $217 before tax.
Yeah, I’m looking at connecting 12 machines?
Genesis/CD/32X
Saturn
DreamcastTurbo Duo
Gamecube
WiiPlaystation
PS2
PS3Xbox
Xbox 360
Xbox OneDoing the math…
Control Unit - $40
Remote - $12
Composite/Svideo - $30x8 Component - $35x4Output - Composite. - $25
Output - Component. - $25$482.
You know what, fine… VGA In - $25 (*2?)
VGA Out - $35$567.
That is neat!
probably just a switcher for each connector type: coax, rca, hdmi, etc.
Yeah, probably. I was hoping there was an all-in-one solution!
haha heck this is where being in the “biz” has its advantages. (home AV)
look into something like a b&k ct600 kit. whichever is the composite/component video Switcher piece.
key digital makes some stuff.
eBay!
Something I just thought of that I didn’t before is powering the consoles on and off. You might be able to get a power strip with a wireless connection to remotely turn off individual outlets. Then you set each console to the on position and turn them off by turning off the outlet.
Not sure what the consequences on the hardware level would be, but essentially unplugging it from the wall while it is powered on doesn’t usually harm a game console any different than just powering it off with the switch would. Maybe on the newer stuff, or the original Xbox maybe, since theyre more similar to PCs. But older stuff I can’t see that being a problem.
If you wanted a truly remote setup, that is.
Wireless controllers hanging on the wall with receivers already plugged into the consoles, app controlled power outlets, remote for TV, and remote for input matrices. Might be able to consolidate with a control system or IR based solution to reduce to 1 remote for TV and input matrices. Flaschcart or modded consoles loaded with all the games already. Etc.
Sweet idea. Even more there are smart switches that can be controlled from a phone. Likey acnything that has composite but not hdmi can just be unplugged
Everything just plugs into one octopus adapter at the same time
Older top end home receivers have a lot of video and hdmi inputs. I’ve been rescuing them from the garbage. If it had a composite input on it most people don’t want it.
Most of the really old game systems make you put a cartridge in them anyway, not sure how you’d get over that.
Flash carts
I had a pcie analogue camera capture card for CCTV applications, took 8x composite on a pigtail out the back
Con: need a PC
I wonder what sort of lag that would add. Digital converters always seem to make Mario jump slower.
If vsync is turned off I’d expect less delay than one frame rendered
That could work.
More TVs, obviously.
Hey, I’d never heard of those! That sounds great, connecting multiple inputs to multiple outputs. Maybe there’s one that also does composite!
You can get A/V switches with remote controls. The one i have takes rca, pcbr and hdmi and they all operate independently so you have 12 different inputs! I just programmed it into my universal remote and use a soundbar.
Hdmi splitter puts HDMI audio to OPTICAL, rca hooks to a 3.5mm cable that hooks into the ANALOGUE on the soundbar.
For older tv tuner stuff, i run it through my VCR
