HDMI Cables for The Original XBOX and Sega Dreamcast | MVG

Pound has released HDMI Adapters for the Original Xbox and the Sega Dreamcast. I picked up both cables and put them to the test. Here is my FULL review and my thoughts. Worth the money? Lets find out!
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► Xbox Cable - amzn.to/2lggs01
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► Pound Website - www.poundtechn...
Music In this Video:
► Double Dragon II (Amiga) - Music theme. Enrique Garcia
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[@markmitchell8390]

To prevent artefacts with the Xbox Pound adaptor, you have to use the additional micro USB power cable.

[@DarkraiNewmoon]

On Reddit Pound announced they're working on a new revision for the Xbox HD Link Cable for release later this year to fix up some compatibility issues and other minor issues.

[@ModernVintageGamer]

That's great news !

[@fossilfern]

Got the reddit link ?

[@MarkVersion1]

How about for the Dreamcast?

[@CAPCOM784]

Intense Mark They need to have a switch to use the s-video pin so all the games will work.

[@TN_AU]

DarkraiNewmoon I find it a bit odd that they didnt rectify all of these issues while in prototype/testing stage before mass production?

[@xCrossBite]

Thank you for mentioning the bit about the Dreamcast HDMI cable having the same compatibility constraints as a VGA connection. I think that's incredibly important for buyers to be aware of!

[@CortinasAndClassics]

I agree, but it was the same story when the VGA box first came out. Nothing has really changed in that department and I remember having to swap cables. At the time tho it wasn't an issue , it was just accepted that some games didn't like VGA. Hopefully they will sort something.

[@bland9876]

This is in my top ten stupidest things along with region-locking

[@CortinasAndClassics]

Yep, all games should be region free.

[@ZinhoMegaman]

Behar Bros HDMI box does what this one doesn't, it has a selector for VGA 480p and RGB 480i, so anyone could play any game, even the ones who doesn't support VGA, you just play in 480i. They have VGA box that do the same, but monitors with 480i support is rare ( most Dell monitors support).

[@WedgeStratos]

Worth mentioning, on many of the non-VGA games, you can start the game using composite cables, hotswap to VGA, and they'll often run just fine in that mode.

[@BigDom1002]

For anybody who is like me from Europe/PAL region and is looking into getting the Xbox HD Cables keep in mind, that you have to softmod your Xbox as 720p/1080i were only available on the NTSC Consoles!

[@TN_AU]

BigDom Gaming correct, back in the day, I got the HD components cable for my PAL xbox. My xbox was already soft modded and for the life of me couldnt work out why I couldn't get my games to output to 720p/1080i. Long story short, found out I had to change the xbox system settings to NTSC through the dashboard settings, again this can only be done on modded xbox only.

[@mrnemo204]

BigDom Gaming NTSC Master race!

[@CanuckGod]

That's quite interesting, I wasn't aware that other regions didn't have that capability out of the box, but then again I live in Canada which is NTSC, so I assumed everyone was capable of running the original Xbox in HD as I had been doing. Nonetheless, great tip for everyone running PAL systems :)

[@mrlurchAU]

I think the big thing for these cables is convenience. With virtually all modern tvs being HDMI, for this scenario they are a good solution. I’m lucky that I have the ability to use component for my Xbox.

[@nabilrezki69]

Indeed! For exemple : i have a brand new 4k Sony TV, and it doesn't have a component output, i'm stuck with RCA (wich look's like gargbage in my opinion), so even if component is better, i don't have any choices and need to get my hands on this Pound HD Link cable if i want to enjoy HD trough HDMI on my Xbox

[@at-cj2iy]

@@nabilrezki69 it's worth it Some modern tv do not support 480i The Xbox menu is 480i not 480p Incase you don't see shit when it's connected Press left trigger, right trigger, Left stick and right stick all at the same time

[@ModernVintageGamer]

Do you own these cables? Interested in picking them up ? Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Have a great week !

[@fettolehart]

Modern Vintage Gamer i bought an original xbox about 2 months ago and spent 2 weeks trying to find an xbox hdmi cable and had no luck. I have no idea why this never showed up in my searches. 😐

[@c0rpse1]

i have the n64 freak HDMI cable for Og xbox and its great

[@ryanyoder7573]

Modern Vintage Gamer I own both of the cables for the Dreamcast and will try it out and report back. I like to keep my vga input free for consoles and PCs that can’t do hdmi.

[@bENOFFICIALMASSIVE]

I would get the Xbox cable but I'm using a CRT atm so no use. When I get a new TV I might get one. I donated my huge LED to my ex and daughter :) I still like to stay up to date with everything though.

[@Renk1]

Nice review but maybe you should mention that the Xbox HDMI cable won’t give HD resolutions on a PAL console without at least a softmod.

[@TheDomdabomb]

Love how your channel has grown and you keep upping your game with the quality of your videos👌

[@thrillretrogamer9801]

This is why I like your channel, others say it is a good buy but I was always thinking it just doesn't seem right with the look. but keep up the great work. look forward to your next one.

[@HarithBK]

yeah me aswell somthing just seemed off with them and others looking at these cables never go far enough. even this video can go futher by looking at things like frame delay which is an other huge worry i have about these cables as they are just converters and for 30 bucks how good are those converters?

[@hollywood21639]

I have the Xbox cable and haven't noticed the artifacting. I'm very happy with it, especially since the OE HD cables are at least double the price of this cable.

[@Kimomaru]

Another awesome vid, dude. This is a subject that, recently, has been near and dear to my heart. It's becoming a challenge to play these older systems on modern displays without it looking like a shit show. The VGA connector on the Dreamcast is as good as I've ever seen it - just stunning. Thankfully, Super NT has filled the spot in my set up for Super NES and maybe there will be other FPGA systems in the next ten years that'll do the same.

[@michellelesmell]

Also I'm glad you did a video on this. I had no idea people made HDMI cables for the Xbox and Dreamcast. I've been looking for ways to make older consoles less blurry on HDTVs.

[@CAPCOM784]

Michael Sutton They have the Retrotinkx2 that takes composite,svideo,and component and upscales a 480p signal thru hdmi.This is a good option for upscaling old retro consoles.

[@rabiroden]

Retrobit recently announced a team-up with Sega. They'll be reproducing the official Dreamcast VGA box (and a bunch of other stuff). So that'll be another option, if it's any good.

[@WilliamMcCarthyIII]

where can I read about this?

[@Larry]

I'd like to buy them, but can't find the bloody things anywhere, except hideously scalped prices on eBay :(

[@Bittboy]

Larry Bundy Jr I blame Peter Molyneux!

[@Packers4Evar12]

They're only sold on Amazon, but I'm not sure if they're sold out or not right now

[@Grumpy_Wolf]

i have bought 2 of them off amazon in the past week for 30 dollars, so you should have no problem, but the artifacts drove me crazy and I returned them.

[@Punhist]

Hey Larry, I actually contacted people at Pound tech via Amazon to ask about the xbox cable and they told me "We're actively working on getting our UK amazon set up". Granted, that was on 19th of February this year so I got no idea if they're still looking into it or not.

[@hmoham]

Well I would have been interested in the Dreamcast cable if they sold it in the UK, but after seeing this review I will hold out on a V2 that will improve the output image and maybe add a switch to move to S-Video mode for games that don't support VGA.

[@MrMario2011]

Awesome review, and just in time! I actually just got these cables this weekend, I figured they wouldn't be perfect but the convenience factor for $30 still seemed solid enough to me even with some minor issues. Worst case I have some good Component cables for the Xbox and an Akura for the Dreamcast, so these really are for added interest and convenience. For what it's worth, it looks like the Xbox cable was updated to have the HDMI portion of it disconnected, so that way you can hook up your own HDMI cable to it. Glad to see these are at least "pretty good" overall, I had looked at some cables for another company doing this same thing but the quality was much lower than these. Their SNES cable was AWESOME so I'm excited to see one of those from Pound, but their Dreamcast and Xbox cables were horrible and produced massive amounts of screen noise.

[@Retroprofrank]

I don't know bro. He's saying that he's using original Xbox component cables when he's not he's using the advanced audio video pack. The five RCA wires that attach to that pack are a lot thinner then the original Xbox component cables. Just my opinion

[@AnTran-pg7ht]

0:17 While it's not a cable, it's an AV pack that definitely supports component. I think you might be confusing the two since Microsoft initially released the Xbox HD AV Pack and then a component cable later in the Xbox's lifespan. I have both of them along with the Advanced AV Pack.

[@Retroprofrank]

An Tran have you ever seen a picture of the original component cables do you know how much thicker they are than the AV package using. I'm not confused I own both there is a difference

[@AnTran-pg7ht]

Retro Pro Frank OK, I get your point. I can't say for certain if the cables improve on the HD AV Pack, but I didn't really notice a difference when I looked at both of their image outputs.

[@JiSiN3000]

FYI: for those who already have a Dreamcast HD Link Cable from Pound. Many games can be forced to play anyway over VGA/HDMI if you use the Utopia Bootloader CD.

[@xraff2]

5:00 what a badass insert disc

[@dcrvx2k]

There was a trick I used to get Dreamcast to play games in unsupported video formats. Boot the game without a video cable and then plug the VGA or SCART cable in after the game was running. I have not tested this in years but it was a workaround I used to play Dreamcast on arcade cabs and VGA monitors.

[@WickedGamerCollector]

Thanks, for this awesome video. I was excited to see cheap cable for the DC and Xbox HDMI Solution. Only shame it did not have the best video output for the money. And Agree make an cable that delivers and make it 5 dollars expensiver if needed. Do it right or don't do it at al.

[@ironmaiden5658]

These cables are really aimed at the consumer who purchased a 4k TV recently with little to no connections. They aren't very good. For all retro gaming consoles its best to own a TV of about 5 years old that supports up to 1080. Most will have Composite, Component, HDMI and at least one VGA input. I run my Xbox via component and my dreamcat via VGA. They look the best. My SNES is component modded as well. I can guarantee it will look better than the SNES HDMI cable soon to be released. Great video BTW. As always. Cheers for all your efforts.

[@swarmland]

I don't think I've seen a single HDMI converter for any console that was satisfactory. The cleanest possible image I've managed to get out of my Xbox for use on my PC monitor is using the official component cables along with a BBS Garo for VGA transcoding, but unfortunately they don't make them anymore.

[@arthurmann1796]

look into this www.chimericsystems.com/product/hdmi-video-adapter

[@TheGebs24]

Very good review. I’m surprised that the HD component cables don’t add as much value as you would think

[@feonjun]

Not only are you a great programing, you're one hell of a presenter as well. I go to no other to get a well thought-out and clear review of a product.

[@tweakpc]

Nice thanks . The biggest problem is the implementation in modern TV. You could check if the color distortion also occurs on other TVs in the same way or differ . AV, Componet inputs are no longer important for modern TV and I fear that manufacturers will save money at this point. The resolution is also an problem, with the Dreamcast I would rather go to VGA and use these on old monitors or HD TV that only offer 1024x resolution, which cost nothing today, but do not interpolate so hard as FHD and 4K TVs. To the noise: Check if the ferrite core has influence on the image errors. More interesting would also be an AV/Componet adapter on HDMI which can be used for several consoles.

[@WhileyisaEskiboy]

VGA all the way for the Dreamcast ! Awesome video keep up the good work , enjoy every video you have posted and sometimes very educational

[@Browningate]

So, it's basically a VGA-to-HDMI transcoder and a Component-to-HDMI transcoder that are powered by the bus, but only work for one system. What I'd like to see is a universal retro transcoder that can take VGA or component and output HDMI, possibly even adding a few features (such as resolution scaling) as well.

[@MrSadface]

Was just looking at my old YPbPr to VGA transcoder from Lik Sang yesterday. Awesome website back in the day.

[@Crlarl]

Since you're the only reviewer that's opened these up, do you mind telling us what converter chips they're using?

[@ModernVintageGamer]

i opened it up to take a look, but they scratched off the chip labels, so i cant really tell which one it is. If anyone knows, please respond here

[@marknalt8537]

I hate when companys scratch the chips numbers off.

[@Crlarl]

Modern Vintage Gamer Well, that's shitty. They said on Reddit that the Xbox one uses a Macro Silicon IC but didn't specify. My money's on it being the MS9281/MS9282 for both devices.

[@voltz15]

This sort of thing only happens with companies being shady. They know they have an inferior product and are taking liberties to hide themselves.

[@EvilCerealBoX]

I think its smart so it is harder for their product to get cloned so easily.

[@notrealy180217]

The Xbox is crazy with how many of the games have 720, and even 1080i. I have component cables and the original Xbox just looks amazing on a modern flatscreen. Maybe I should get HDMI.

[@vinceplayzforeal]

Original Xbox Is My Favorite Console Ever Made, And I Am So Happy That Pound Made These Cables To Futureproof the DreamCast And The Xbox!

[@vorenge]

Objective as always MVG (Lantus), I just can't appreciate you enough over the years. Thanks for checking these out and sharing exactly what I wanted to know about them.

I found that note on their site about xbox cable: "We have recently learned that our cable has issues with some modded XBoxes with their shielding removed as well as XBOX revisions v1.4 (late 2003 - early 2004 model XBoxes). We are working on a solution to resolve this issue. If you notice wavy or distorted image quality, please return the cable to us through Amazon. We have a no questions asked return policy. Thank you!"

[@valrond]

It looks like I will be keeping my VGA cables for Dreamcast and Xbox.

[@matilija]

You should reseat the HDlink cable into your xbox and check tony hawk again, that artifacting can occur in all xbox cables if the cable isn't seated all the way into the AV out.

[@redroosteralexander]

I actually had to shell out for the HD AV pack and a converter box for my HDMi solution. I can't deal with the weird colors and the new weird issues of the Pound cables. My solution costs more but the original look cannot be beat, unless pound fixes their issues and adds upscaling to 1080p... A man can dream

[@PoundTechnology]

Might I inquire as to what kind of color issues you ran into? Was it similar to what MGV ran into?

[@redroosteralexander]

Pound Technology Mainly darker hues. It's more of a picky thing. However in certain dark scenes in can look like a degrade in quality. I like the original look of component, but for those who don't want the hassle of my HDMI to component method. Your cable is a decent alternative for those who simply just want to play on modern TVs

[@GadgetUK164]

Great review! Seems like both are good for the price, and to allow connectivity quick and easy to a HD TV, but the fact the Dreamcast cable lacks a way to support none VGA games (granted there's no easy answer, except a switch to feed composite through and use that instead). But the artifacts would make me avoid that XBOX cable. Loving the Fast Striker there!!! Made me want to go play it on the MVS!

[@Crlarl]

GadgetUK164 - Retro Gaming Repairs & Mods The chip that is used can (probably) take 480i/576i from the RGBs output.

[@Shane-Singleton]

Thank you for giving an honest review. I've already got a VGA box for my Dreamcast but (and i'll have to check later) I think I may be using RCA cables on my Xbox. Having the ability to plug it into HDMI would almost certainly be an improvement. Interesting that this video came up today in my playlist. I was just telling a coworker about how much I love the Crimson Skies game for the original Xbox.

[@timothy2830]

They need to add a PUSH BUTTON switch to the Dreamcast cable. It's been years since I made one of these, but I think it's a ground line for VGA connection detection. You can boot it temporarily in Composite/S-Vid mode (lift ground), then after the boot screen (timed by listening to audio), connect the VGA 'ground' to make "non-VGA" games force into VGA.

[@electronash]

The DC VGA capture definitely looks better than the Pound cable here, but the VGA cable also seems to have too high an output level, as though there is no 75-Ohm termination. Also, I'm not sure why other reviews of the Pound cable seem to detect the signal as 480p (720x480), but your TV detects it as 640x480. The Dreamcast actually renders at 640x480 of course (for 98% of games), but it adds border pixels on either side of the image, so actually outputs at 720x480. Older TVs / monitors didn't really have an issue with that very often, or could be adjusted easily, but many modern displays detect it as having 720 pixels along each line. The display then fits that to the 4:3 frame, which results in the image being squashed horizontally. Every other review has shown this, and most of them are probably using an Elgato, which might not have the input template to handle 640x480, hence detects it as 720x480 and squishes the image. It would be very interesting to know if the Dreamcast Pound cable does output 640x480 timings (which isn't hard to do, and doesn't require a framebuffer or anything.) From what you showed here (on the TV at the start), it looks like it does actually output 640x480, but I think the image is still squished, which doesn't make much sense? (and I'm not talking about the aspect ratio of showing the 4:3 frame on a widescreen TV, as that is the correct mode.) btw, If you want a good representation of a true digital HDMI mod for Dreamcast, and some nice Daytona USA footage for comparison, check out my vid. ;)

[@d0minant24]

Thanks for the review MVG, keep rocking it with the OG xbox content. I bought my pound cable for the xbox a few weeks ago but haven't gamed with it enough yet. Will have to test to see if I can find the issues you were having.

[@prmicrotech]

I just picked them up and will be testing them by end of July. I'm quite busy unfortunately to do so before that. However, for the price I think it's a good deal from all my research. Thanks for the content. Love the channel.

[@TheGunmanChannel]

They are $130 to get shipped from USA to Australia 😂😂 no thanks but thanks for the video.

[@claytonbeeney]

I love everything about this show from the subject matter to the music.

[@luckyspray]

Lots of people claim that LEVELHIKE HDMI CABLES are much better than POUND HD LINK CABLES. I hope you could do a VS. Between this two brands my friend. I'm peruvian and your channel should be considered World Heritage 🙌🏻💥

[@aliasdjavanguard]

HDMI upgrade for OG XB can be made using the original scart, and a Wii to HDMI converter. Minor soldering requred.

[@snowboardman420]

I remember getting a vga box for my Dreamcast back in 2001. I hooked it up to a computer monitor and played unreal tournament on it. My jaw dropped. To me it was my first HD gaming experience. Though technically not HD, it was still so good compared to composite.

[@itchyisvegeta]

Were you able to notice that the Xbox's cable doesn't pull sound from the SPDIF digital port? This has been the biggest deal breaker for me on this, and I am hoping a later revision addresses this.

[@Systemsquirrel]

All these cables are is a component to hdmi converter for the xbox and a RGB or S-Video (since some DC games are RGB incompatible) converter for the DC. You can just buy a component RGB or whatever to HDMI converters and not be limited with it to just one system.

[@matilija]

It's actually vga to hdmi for the dreamcast, and while you can get some component to hdmi for the xbox, I wouldn't recommend any cheap ones, most crush black levels, something the hdlink cable thankfully avoids.

[@piratebear3126]

One thing with the Dreamcast is the VGA lockout on games can be bypassed with a pirate boot disc, but there's usually a good reason that the decks locked out VGA mode. Typically it will make the game run at a poor frame rate at best.

[@ianray9137]

I agree 100% on the Xbox HDMI cables reviewed. I bought it as well and I wouldn't recommend them to anyone just due to the video signal noise/artifacts on the screen. They need better shielding. The best HD video cables I have ever used on the Xbox were the Monster component cables, absolutely perfect picture quality imo.

[@jf4066]

I really appreciate you taking the time to make this video!

[@GoldSrc_]

You should have used static scenes to show the differences, but even with moving scenes, the HDMI cables were too soft for my liking, the DC VGA cable looks pretty damn amazing.

[@ENunn]

Great video! Next time you do something like this, you should learn how to properly deinterlace stuff with the Yadif 2x deinterlacer. You can use it with stuff like Handbrake or Virtualdub or Avidemux or something. You'll be able to deinterlace the video to 50/60fps and it won't look like the HDMI or VGA cables add a framerate boost over Composite/S-Video.

[@Starlesslemon]

Pound with Mclassic has made the original Xbox playable again for me.

[@NonsensicalSpudz]

ROOOLLLLING START

[@WhiteJarrah]

There's another issue with the Xbox HD Link cable. The key benefit of using component cables is that some games output at 720p or 1080i over these cables. But only NTSC consoles support these modes. These modes have been disabled on PAL consoles. Even if you have component cables, it'll only output 576i. You can fix this with a soft mod, but you still need compatible games that support these modes. So for PAL Xbox consoles you're probably better off just using RGB SCART with a SCART to HDMI upscaler.

[@JMLRetroRoom]

Pound + mClassic for OG Xbox = ✅ If you haven’t tried it I recommend you do. Set the Xbox to only 480p output though.

[@androidfanatic6528]

Thanks for this video - was about to pull the trigger on the Pound HDMI for the original XBOX, but will hold off a little while to see if they address the artifacting.

[@WhiteJarrah]

Why are you using a generic Dreamcast VGA cable? You can buy a VGA box that allows you to switch between VGA and composite with S-video. I personally have the official HKT-8100 VGA box that Sega released. These boxes are kind of a necessity, as not all Dreamcast games support VGA.

[@AndreiNeacsu]

I got my Xbox link cable as soon as it was available. Have not had any problem with it. I also owned a hi-def component and VGA to HDMI that is significantly brighter and has some noise. I don't really know which is the "right" brightness, but I like the HD-Link more.

[@cardzgamez]

READ fixes display out put issues Make sure you power adapter is 10 amps Make sure pound cable is plugged is plugged into a 5v usb port *flat screens don't always provide 5v* if you have taken out the mother board or power supply some screws are needed for grounding so if all are not present then it also can cause this issue

[@jothain]

Huge thanks. Just found these cables after fetching Xbox from the storage with only original cable. Gotta order component cable for it and skip these

[@jasonwilliams5046]

I have the Pound HDMI for my OG Xbox. What I’ve found to get the best picture on my Vizio HDTV. Input setting, turn Full UHD Color on Color temp normal Black detail off Dynamic Contrast ratio off Game low latency on Gamma 2.2 Auto brightness off It does make the image darker, simple remedy is increase the backlight to 59. The colors aren’t as vibrant, increase the color to 55

[@patchesmcadams1587]

Luckily I have a VGA cable for my dreamcast and the HD component cables for my Xbox Original but once I come to a point where I have an HD TV that doesn't have those im puts I'll get these cables for sure because although u don't recommend them, I think they look great for the price and are much more convenient that buying adapters

[@DoomBunnyKiller00]

This seems good just incase your TV doesn't support component cables (my TV is 8 yrs old so i don't know if newer ones even have comp inputs anymore) but i have a really nice pair of Monster component cables for my Xbox that work great (i have some for PS2 as well). I never did buy a VGA box for my Dreamcast though, so i hardly ever use it as regular composite cables look horrid. But this might just do the trick. Good video!

[@lahma69]

As always, well informed, top notch videos with honest, accurate information. Keep up the great work! Oh, and btw, I finally got a chance to play your Postal port on my 1.0.0 Switch. Great work! The only issue I'm having is that audio isn't working on ANY home brew apps for me, but I suspect this has something to do with me being on 1.0.0? Additionally, I couldn't get your Doom or car racing game (can't remember what it's called off the top of my head) ports working, but again, I suspect this has something to do with me being on 1.0.0 (I think your Doom port specifically states that you must be on 4.0+ firmware). Keep up the great work!

[@kleber7982]

In another video, someone said that the VGA problem can be fixed. Just turn on the game without the cabe, wait a few seconds, put the cabe.

[@johnstopforth4465]

You can use the dreamcast utopia boot disc to fool the cable to 60hz and improve game compatibility but some will still be subject to slowdown especially level 2 of Gunbird

[@Robertkopp84]

They have to implement a full sync buffer like the LM1881 and recreate the sync for the xbox cable. The sync on luma problems become very apparent in digital video. For the DC you would have to combine 2 cables in one. No mode switching available because SEGA did not want to risk people entering the wrong mode ending up killing the customers Hardware. If you make the cables more complex you will most likely nearly double the price at least for the dreamcast one wich makes them unreasonable for most people.

[@getdrinking]

Is there any difference in latency or input lag using these cables?

[@matilija]

There might be, but if there is, it's imperceptible. I mean like maybe microseconds difference between these and straight analogue.

[@matilija]

@D. I'll take their word for it, but at the same time, let ya know that I really can't perceive the difference, I've switched back and forth between my original xbox component and this cable and really can't tell a difference in lag, both seem just as responsive to me, more likely their TV has a processing difference on the ports than these cables are producing the difference. There is, however, a distinct difference in black levels where it appears like dark areas are crushed more with the pound cables...but to each their own.

[@jenslorbeer5307]

Cool review! But you might wanna change the battery in your dreamcast, the date says 11-27-98😉 if one ownes a vga Box this is not an upgrade but a convenient solution for modern displays.

[@justanotheryoutubechannel]

I wouldn’t trust pound personally, not after the comparisons digital foundry did and showed the horrific colours of the Dreamcast cable, it looked almost like they were totally broken. They were wayyyyyyyy too dark.

[@lightningfarronxp8899]

I'll admit these cables aren't the best possible video quality by any means but what they offer in convenience, simplicity and results, they are the best possible option for either the average retro gamer or someone who doesn't want to deal with Frankenstein setups (having multiple cables and converter boxes hooked up to one device).

[@ModernVintageGamer]

oh for sure, if you are a streamer and just want to connect this up to a capture card, the convenience factor cant be ignored

[@shloppy2747]

Thanks for the video, was really considering buying the original xbox cables. I think I'll wait until Pound fixes the issues.

[@doezbay]

Very good review. I think i stick to my vga and component cables until something better is in sight.

[@alextirrellRI]

Slightly intrigued by the Dreamcast cable because the VGA cable I bought does not work properly with my TV---though I did just aquire a PVM so I may just go SCART and be done with it. My HDTV still has component so I may as well just go that route for my Xbox.

[@k.tucker2011]

These cables may not be perfect but i will need them to work on my new 4k tv. Thanks for bringing this to light bro

[@Crlarl]

K. Tucker What's your TV?

[@snozzberrybush]

That's why I've soldered and sold hundreds of xbox 360 component cables soldered to brand new original xbox ends. I'd sell them for the same price actually, 29.99. Get an authentic video signal from the encoder chip itself rather than various components in an hdmi adapter itself.. there is nothing but conductor(wire) in component cables. I do this because the 3rd party existing brand new ones for sale for the xbox are thin, cheap, distort, and are a complete waste. I basically explain what your video does to people and it's not hard to convince them that sticking with authentic microsoft products is the best choice rather than cheaply make alternatives.

[@duncanwade1026]

Have you tested if the Xbox HD Link cable supports 5.1? None of the product descriptions for any OG Xbox HDMI cables say whether they support it.

[@XNINEZERO]

Xbox: OEM Component cables. No substitute. Dreamcast : The Akura. No Substitute. You're welcome.

[@almighty151986]

The original Xbox doesn't actually do '720p' games..... it can output '720p' (And '1080i') but it doesn't render at those resolutions, most of the Xbox's used the Conexant CX25871 video encoder chip which has a maximum INPUT resolution of 1024x768...... so at absolute best case the games are being rendered at 1024x768 and not any where close to 1280x720. Microsoft did change the video encoders in the later machines with notable mentions being the Focus FS454 which can accept 1280x1024 maximum input resolution but for compatibility with machines using the Conexant encoder games stuck to the 1024x768 limit.

[@Superdimensional]

I think your mileage may vary by set with the Dreamcast, with my TV I had some analog interference on VGA and in order to get the picture centered and in the middle of the TV it introduced scaling artifacts plus I had analog interference. With HDMI I eliminated both those issues, the picture was just as sharp but colors are richer and blacks deeper, so for me HDMI was a total win over VGA on my Sony XBR 1080p

[@bookshelffury]

hey modern vintage gamer, is it worth it to turn an xbox 360 component cable into one for the original xbox by soldering on a OG connector? would it get better picture quality than those cheap component cables for $6? I really dont like artifacts so i think im gonna go component.

[@aussieguy1012]

yep works fine. As long as your soldering is fine they are good quality shielding.

[@Crlarl]

Absolutely! Great shielding, cheap and unlike Pound, you get surround sound.

[@bookshelffury]

im glad im not the only one who still cares about surround sound :) it really brings the ps2/xbox era games to life.

[@Crlarl]

bookshelffury Absolutely! It's an often overlooked/underappreciated part of gaming.

[@muhaxiiii]

Even with the problems mentioned, it's pretty much the cheapest and easiest way to get those 2 consoles hooked up to a modern TV. Not everyone has room for CRT/VGA displays and component seems to be dying out as well. And not everyone wants to dish out the money for Framemeister or OSSC.

[@dimetronus]

You may try Akura HDMI converter for Dreamcast from Behar Bros. Works great and has some addition features. But costs about 90$

[@theeggman4806]

They also only carry analog audio no DTS or Dolbly digital 5.1

[@arthurmann1796]

www.chimericsystems.com/product/hdmi-video-adapter i know this post is old, but the adapter at www.chimericsystems.com/product/hdmi-video-adapter does support digital audio and looks just as good as the official hd cables from xbox.

[@phil_matic]

wow, the vga cable is a little crisper, but man from a versatility standpoint, the HD link wins this.

[@select_input]

Great video! Own the Xbox cable, worked out well for me but I know others had interference issues. I was impressed for the price, especially with a softmod.

[@h0w17z3r]

ended up having to make a component cable for my xbox out of a 360 cable to get a good result. Also re-cap your xboxes folks.

[@AmbientMess]

Shame you didn't get to try out a native 720p game like Sould Calibur 2 or a 1080i title like Enter The Matrix. Would like to see a comparison for these in the near future

[@Superdimensional]

Here’s the thing with the XBOX one, no HD audio, just stereo. So while you pick Of HDMI video, you’ll only get Stereo Audio. Better to try and find the Monster Gamelink component cables. The Dreamcast ones are great though.

[@Todo-1996]

I think VGA is the best way to go with a Dreamcast. The colors are crisp and bright and the graphics are not as jaggy. It's strange how the HDMI cable causes a green tint. I don't think I would be very happy with that.

[@StandingUpForBetter]

Thanks for the review. Sadly I sold my Dreamcast a while ago and my Xbox 360 and Xbox One X are my original Xbox gaming machines. I do know not everyone original Xbox game is compatible but there are a lot that are and the games look great played via those systems. I would be interested if Pound made a similar cable for the N64. Right now I have an s video to an HDMI upscaler adapter and it looks really good but if Pound could improve the quality even more with one of their cables I would be on board. Again, thanks for the video.

[@DeskoDev]

Colors look slightly off on VGA compared to higher quality VGA boxes. Same goes for the HDMI Link Cable. Even it looks a little off color-wise.

[@rieschrispy]

Looks like there's some sort of softening filter when outputting on the dreamcast, and also on the xbox in 480p. Don't notice it on the 720p output, but since theres artifacting, I would guess there is some sort of postprocessing going on there too. I'm picking up the dreamcast cables for the convenience of having an hdmi output. As far as the lack of svideo or RGB upconversion for the DC cables, since they are developing SNES cables that will obviously have some sort of upscaler, I could see a future DC cable with a toggle to switch between vga and RGB output. I use a vga box with that capability now for that exact reason. Could also get around the issue by patching the games for VGA output, but obviously that is not a good solution for everybody.

[@Googlesucksballs]

I hope they fix those problems I already got a component cable for my modded xbox but It would be nice to get a hdmi cable for this too so when I take it on the road with me or to a friends place I don't have to worry about not being able to play it on most modern TVs.

[@ToddsNerdCave]

Great video brotha! Makes you wonder about those upcoming snes and tg16 cables.

[@pumpkinqueen21]

I bought one last week, and I love it for the dreamcast

[@give_me_my_nick_back]

I think the best option to get HDMI for Xbox is to buy wii 2 hdmi or ps2 2 hdmi (safer bet but a bit costlier) and hope to get one with better chip that will support 1080i and DIY one from that adapter and some cheap AV cable. Who know they might even use the same DAC chips and the price they ask is just too high.

[@xirxes]

What I'd like to know is if the audio on the OG Xbox passes through in analog stereo, or if they send the PCM audio you can get out of the SPDIF on the original HD AV pack. That would be a pretty big miss IMO

[@DeskoDev]

Analog stereo. :(

[@xirxes]

Fate For Windows Definitely a deal breaker. I modded a coax output on to my console and it sounds miles better than the analog on my sound system. Plus most Xbox games support 5.1.