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Prince · 08-07-2003, 12:15 PM

Please note, that, YES I realize this is a PSX-related question and YES the products in question are legally obtained and owned. I do not condone piracy in any form.

Now that that is out of the way, the reason I am posting this here instead of Gaming is because my problem has to do with the technical differences between PAL and NTSC video signals. Let me explain.

I moved to the US from Europe, and brought with me a bunch of PAL psx games, and a PAL console, with the controllers, memory cards, the shit. However, although I fixed the voltage issue with a step down transformer, it turns out that I cannot seem to be able to get the video signal to display properly on the American (NTSC) television set (brand new Hitachi 28", bought this spring).

I knew this would happen, so I purchased a PAL-to-NTSC converter from Chipzone...which did not help one bit. I sent it back and got a replacement...and it doesn't work for me either. The problem is that the resulting image has the right colours, but it is extremely jumpy. It's a pity since the audio works fine and the colours are there.

I asked about the refresh rate differences (50 Hz/60 Hz) but the blokes at Chipzone said that it does not matter; the converter works with a PAL psx and an NTSC tv set.

Yeah well, it doesn't. Any ideas? I am under the impression that the refresh rate of a PAL tv set is 50 Hz, and that of a US (NTSC) set is 60 Hz. Is this precisely the problem, as I have assumed, or should the converter fix this for me?

It says on the bottom of my PSX unit: ~AC 220-240V 50/60Hz 10W. As I said, I used a step down transformer to change the voltage at the US apartment to the required. Does the mention of 50/60Hz have anything to do with the refresh rate, or is that only related to the power supply or something?

I know this is a long shot, but thanks for any advice you can give. I am also sorry for such a long post and the redundancy of my questions, but this is something that is really bugging me and I want to find a way to fix this. Or at the very least understand why I cannot.

08-07-2003, 12:15 PM	#1 (permalink)
Prince /nɑndəsˈkrɪpt/ Location: LV-426	Video signal problems Please note, that, YES I realize this is a PSX-related question and YES the products in question are legally obtained and owned. I do not condone piracy in any form. Now that that is out of the way, the reason I am posting this here instead of Gaming is because my problem has to do with the technical differences between PAL and NTSC video signals. Let me explain. I moved to the US from Europe, and brought with me a bunch of PAL psx games, and a PAL console, with the controllers, memory cards, the shit. However, although I fixed the voltage issue with a step down transformer, it turns out that I cannot seem to be able to get the video signal to display properly on the American (NTSC) television set (brand new Hitachi 28", bought this spring). I knew this would happen, so I purchased a PAL-to-NTSC converter from Chipzone...which did not help one bit. I sent it back and got a replacement...and it doesn't work for me either. The problem is that the resulting image has the right colours, but it is extremely jumpy. It's a pity since the audio works fine and the colours are there. I asked about the refresh rate differences (50 Hz/60 Hz) but the blokes at Chipzone said that it does not matter; the converter works with a PAL psx and an NTSC tv set. Yeah well, it doesn't. Any ideas? I am under the impression that the refresh rate of a PAL tv set is 50 Hz, and that of a US (NTSC) set is 60 Hz. Is this precisely the problem, as I have assumed, or should the converter fix this for me? It says on the bottom of my PSX unit: ~AC 220-240V 50/60Hz 10W. As I said, I used a step down transformer to change the voltage at the US apartment to the required. Does the mention of 50/60Hz have anything to do with the refresh rate, or is that only related to the power supply or something? I know this is a long shot, but thanks for any advice you can give. I am also sorry for such a long post and the redundancy of my questions, but this is something that is really bugging me and I want to find a way to fix this. Or at the very least understand why I cannot.