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Picture darkness different between PAL FZ-1 and USNTSC FZ-10

Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:28 pm
by Anonymous
Hi, i recently got myself a japanese version of the vcd module for the FZ-10, thus i unboxed my US FZ-10 and plugged it into my tv. I noticed instantly that the splash screen is significantly brighter on the FZ-10, than the PAL FZ-1 i usually use.

Ive tried this on a modern LCD LG screen, and my old Sony CRT (Trinitron/vega), and its the same there. I am using composite cables. I tried my S-video cable but it turned black and white on my TV (naturally) but you can still see that its much brighter, so its not the composite cables themselves i think.

The PAL machine has a rich black background for the splash screen, while the US FZ-10 has a much duller dark gray, which is also not uniform across the screen. Darker in some areas, brighter in other. I played a vcd in both and the brighter screen is noticable during playback of the film as well.

Does anyone know what the cause of this might be? I was planning to switch over to the NTSC, to get 60hz while playing games, get rid of letterboxing, and have a quieter cdrom drive. But this is disturbing me alot. I lowered the brightness on my LCD on that channel so it looks better now. But why the brightness difference to begin with between PAL and NTSC?

Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 11:26 pm
by Jones
I noticed the same difference with my PAL FZ-1 and my NTSC FZ-1, though without any VCD module. NTSC has more washed out colors and sometimes I even see scan lines.
I've heard from many people that PAL just got the better colours due
to technical reasons of the standard.

I assume that this problem doesnt occur that much on native NTSC TVs - native PAL TVs in NTSC mode probably do not as good as possible.

Anyway, the speed improvement and the correct geometry kept me using NTSC consoles.

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 12:18 am
by Anonymous
Yeah, its exactly as youve described.. I so dearly want it modded for RGB, but no one seems willing to do it on the FZ-10.

In any case, i fiddled with the settings and that improved the picture quality quite a bit, so i can live with it now. But still.. Major difference on the same channel/setting between pal and ntsc..

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 3:18 pm
by acem77
buy a rgb modded fz1, keep the fz10 as a spare,
I can also do digital audio mods on the fz1 and it sounds great!

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 4:22 pm
by Anonymous
acem77 wrote:buy a rgb modded fz1, keep the fz10 as a spare,
I can also do digital audio mods on the fz1 and it sound great!
When you do so for the fz-10, i might consider it.

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 4:47 pm
by Trev
If you already said this than I'm sorry I missed it, but if you want an RGB mod so bad, why won't you do so w/the FZ-1? Just curious ...

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 5:34 pm
by acem77
Trev wrote:If you already said this than I'm sorry I missed it, but if you want an RGB mod so bad, why won't you do so w/the FZ-1? Just curious ...
yes my point lol

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 6:47 pm
by Anonymous
Becouse firstly i dont have a US FZ-1, secondly i like the FZ-10 better.

I could ask acem77 the same thing, why wont you do these mods for the FZ-10 as well? You obviously seem to have the knowhow.

Bottom line is preference i presume.

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 7:00 pm
by Trev
grimm wrote: i like the FZ-10 better.
Why?

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 8:01 pm
by Anonymous
While i like the unique look of the fz-1, i go for sleaker looking consoles aestetically.. My favourite is Neo Geo AES, its low and sleak. I also like the pc engine duo-r/x, fz-10 and others like those for the same reason.

I also like the fact i can sort the memory without using a game, gameguru etc. It also looks more uniform with the VCD-module attached and i also have one less powersupply to worry about that way.

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 1:31 pm
by acem77
grimm wrote:Becouse firstly i dont have a US FZ-1, secondly i like the FZ-10 better.

I could ask acem77 the same thing, why wont you do these mods for the FZ-10 as well? You obviously seem to have the knowhow.

Bottom line is preference i presume.
Have the fz1 cuz I bought it before there was a fz10.
I also like the look and heard it is more reliable.
As for the mod I don’t own a fz10. I did the fz1 mod for myself.
The time i put into the fz1 research and work was worth it for me.
A rgb 3do was priceless and nobody was doing the mod at the time.
Once it was successful I had the knowledge to mod other fz1 systems.
That made the price more reasonable.

I'll gladly do the fz10 mod I have some of the info.
Since I am not doing it for myself time is money.
There would be a higher hourly fee for doing the research and development time.

In my spare time I do other system mods, 360/ps3 bga reflows and reballing plus have a full time job.

Time is short for me.

It’s a game of probability and cost.

Will you find a guy to mod the fz10 for a cheaper price? or will you pay extra to make it happen.
or
Get a modded fz1
or
do it your self, I posted all the info i have for free.

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 3:51 pm
by Trev
What I meant was, if he wanted an RGB mod that bad, why not just get an FZ-1? If he prefers having an FZ-10 w/o RGB its his choice.

I love my FZ-1. It is the most durable console I've ever come across.

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 4:25 pm
by Anonymous
acem77 wrote:
grimm wrote:Becouse firstly i dont have a US FZ-1, secondly i like the FZ-10 better.

I could ask acem77 the same thing, why wont you do these mods for the FZ-10 as well? You obviously seem to have the knowhow.

Bottom line is preference i presume.
Have the fz1 1 cuz I bought it before there was a fz10.
I also like the look and heard it is more reliable.
As for the mod I don’t own a fz10. I did the fz1 mod for myself.
The time i put into the fz1 research and work was worth it for me.
A rgb 3do was priceless and nobody was doing the mod at the time.
Once it was successful I had the knowledge to mod other fz1 systems.
That made the price more reasonable.

I'll gladly do the fz10 mod I have some of the info.
Since I am not doing it for myself time is money.
There would be a higher hourly fee for doing the research and development time.

In my spare time I do other system mods, 360/ps3 bga reflows and reballing plus have a full time job.

Time is short for me.

It’s a game of probability and cost.

Will you find a guy to mod the fz10 for a cheaper price? or will you pay extra to make it happen.
or
Get a modded fz1
or
do it your self, I posted all the info i have for free.
I did check that info you have linked to, and my cousin who knows a little bit of these things tells me the rgb mod is for monitors and not tv's. I dont know the difference personally.

Ive contacted the few i know who can do mods on the Fz-10. otaku's shop has suspended all mods, and the japanese guy on ebay (often sells rgb pc engines, you may know of him) has yet to respond.

Its all about how much you are asking to make that mod happen. I may find it justifiable or i may not, but i have no idea untill you throw a number at me. As for a console itself, i have a practically brand new FZ10 for the purpose of modding one for me in particular. So at least you wont have to purchase a console for that.