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XBox hookup options
Kate of Lokys
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I got an XBox 360 this summer, and for a couple of months, I was spoiled by the crystal-clear quality of a component hookup to a 36" 1080i LCD HDTV. It was awesome.
But now I am away at college where I cannot have nice things, and the LCD is languishing unused back in my parents' basement because, you know, their friends might want to use it once every couple of months, or something.
My current display options are... more limited. They consist of the following:
1. A hulking behemoth of an old-school CRT standard-def TV. It's fairly big for what it is, maybe 24-25" if I had to guess, but it is ancient. When I press the power button on the remote, antiquated components deep within the bowels of its plastic shell begin to hum and pulse with low activity, slowly building in intensity until the screen snaps to life a few seconds later with a sound that resembles nothing so much as a lightsaber being severed in half by some unimaginable force. Seriously, every time I turn the thing on I instinctively duck and cover because I am just sure that this is going to be the time that it decides to simply explode instead of coming to life. Also, it only has composite input.
2. A polite, well-mannered Samsung 19" widescreen LCD monitor. It has behaved with quiet, functional grace since the day of its purchase more than a year ago, and I have never had cause to complain about its performance. I watch movies and play games without a hint of ghosting, and the colours are appropriately vivid. TF2 looks fucking fantastic on it. It features both VGA and DVI inputs, though since I lack a DVI cable, I use the VGA.
So, as I see it, I can either hook the 360 up to the TV via composite, or I can hook it up to my monitor as follows: 360 > HDMI cable > HDMI/DVI adapter > monitor. (I know Microsoft sells a special XBox 360 VGA cable, but I'd rather just pay $3 each for an HDMI cable and adapter on monoprice).
Now, my questions:
1. Which would be better for general gaming: a bigger, fuzzier picture, or a smaller, sharper one? I know that certain games like Dead Rising are unplayable on standard-def displays, which sucks, but I don't have Dead Rising yet - my game library consists of Rock Band and Assassin's Creed.
2. What do I do about sound if I use my monitor? I have a basic little set of Logitech X-240 speakers, but as far as I know, my monitor itself is mute, and I don't know whether or not the speakers have RCA inputs.
3. How much of a huge hassle is it going to be to move the monitor every time I want to get my rock on? We're a one-computer family at the moment, and my boyfriend often needs to do actual work.
4. What would my best options be for an upgrade in the not-too-distant future? Would I be better off buying a new monitor for $200, or paying an extra $100 for a proper little 22-24" LCD TV with HDMI/composite input? Money is kind of tight at the moment, so any upgrade would need to wait a month or two anyway, but I don't want to half-ass it.
tl;dr version: I have an XBox 360 and a lamentable lack of accompanying HDTV. Would I be better off hooking it up to my big old tube TV, or to my LCD monitor?
But now I am away at college where I cannot have nice things, and the LCD is languishing unused back in my parents' basement because, you know, their friends might want to use it once every couple of months, or something.
My current display options are... more limited. They consist of the following:
1. A hulking behemoth of an old-school CRT standard-def TV. It's fairly big for what it is, maybe 24-25" if I had to guess, but it is ancient. When I press the power button on the remote, antiquated components deep within the bowels of its plastic shell begin to hum and pulse with low activity, slowly building in intensity until the screen snaps to life a few seconds later with a sound that resembles nothing so much as a lightsaber being severed in half by some unimaginable force. Seriously, every time I turn the thing on I instinctively duck and cover because I am just sure that this is going to be the time that it decides to simply explode instead of coming to life. Also, it only has composite input.
2. A polite, well-mannered Samsung 19" widescreen LCD monitor. It has behaved with quiet, functional grace since the day of its purchase more than a year ago, and I have never had cause to complain about its performance. I watch movies and play games without a hint of ghosting, and the colours are appropriately vivid. TF2 looks fucking fantastic on it. It features both VGA and DVI inputs, though since I lack a DVI cable, I use the VGA.
So, as I see it, I can either hook the 360 up to the TV via composite, or I can hook it up to my monitor as follows: 360 > HDMI cable > HDMI/DVI adapter > monitor. (I know Microsoft sells a special XBox 360 VGA cable, but I'd rather just pay $3 each for an HDMI cable and adapter on monoprice).
Now, my questions:
1. Which would be better for general gaming: a bigger, fuzzier picture, or a smaller, sharper one? I know that certain games like Dead Rising are unplayable on standard-def displays, which sucks, but I don't have Dead Rising yet - my game library consists of Rock Band and Assassin's Creed.
2. What do I do about sound if I use my monitor? I have a basic little set of Logitech X-240 speakers, but as far as I know, my monitor itself is mute, and I don't know whether or not the speakers have RCA inputs.
3. How much of a huge hassle is it going to be to move the monitor every time I want to get my rock on? We're a one-computer family at the moment, and my boyfriend often needs to do actual work.
4. What would my best options be for an upgrade in the not-too-distant future? Would I be better off buying a new monitor for $200, or paying an extra $100 for a proper little 22-24" LCD TV with HDMI/composite input? Money is kind of tight at the moment, so any upgrade would need to wait a month or two anyway, but I don't want to half-ass it.
tl;dr version: I have an XBox 360 and a lamentable lack of accompanying HDTV. Would I be better off hooking it up to my big old tube TV, or to my LCD monitor?
Kate of Lokys on
0
Posts
I know you didn't want to go down this road, but it's at least worth looking into finding a deal on the VGA cable. I got a first-party one for like fifteen bucks a year ago. DealExtreme sells a third-party one for $12. You don't have to deal with all the hassle of getting audio to work, and it even comes with an RCA->1/8" adapter for your speakers.
Via component or DVI, DVDs played on the 360 do not get upscaled past 480p. But through a VGA cable they'll scale up however high you like. The official site says this:
I swear I'd seen a chart on xbox.com showing what resolutions you could get with what connections, but the gist of it is that HDMI > VGA > DVI > component.
Monoprice XBOX 360 VGA CABLE - $8.41
Monoprice also has the little RCA speaker cable adapters for under $1.