[AuSsIeThUnDeR36]

I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the right section but I thought I would post my findings on the subject of getting the best video quality for your ps2 when playing this awesome game.
You probably have your ps2 connected via the plug that came with it that has the 3 coloured ends (yellow red and white) known as RCA. Now running your ps2 is fine using this connection, the yellow cable provides the video signal and the red and white provide the audio signal from the left and right of your tv speakers.
But it could be better, right?
I'm guessing most of you now have a flat screen that's either LCD or LED, or both.
On the back of your tv, if you have the green, blue and red ports, along with the RCA ports, then you are in luck.
You can set up your ps2 to make use of these ports by buying a cable that will have the green, blue and red plugs, mine even had the S Video connector. Most tvs have an S Video port on the back of them. The green, blue and red connections are called 'Component' cables for it divides the video signal into the different colour spectrums, producing a clearer picture.
So what you do is connect the blue, green and red connectors to the colour corresponding to the back of your tv. They will be in a row under AV1 or AV2.
On your tv, have it set to AV1 or AV2.
Now, turn on your ps2, with no game inside, you need to set it to work off the the new video mode. Here's how -
On the ps2 go to the options where you can choose between RGB or Y Pb/Cb Pr/Cr. Choose the 2nd one, not RGB. That's it, now your ps2 display should be much smoother. Load gta sa and you may make some changes to your tv's display including the colour, brightness etc.
You do this by using the tv menu system and going into 'picture' or display. Some tvs will have a little picture of a screen. As a reference, here are my settings for the clearest display for gta sa.
Backlight 5, Contrast 90, Brightness 45,
Sharpness 50, Colour 40
as always, tvs do differ, but those are my settings imo for the best picture quality and running via component cables.
It might not be in 1080 HD but I managed to get the game running at 576i which isn't bad for an 8 yr old game. Try running in 4:3 mode.
What can I expect?
Palm trees look natural and real, rain really looks 'wet', cars have a nice shine on them, in the desert, bushes really do look prickly and realistic. The biggest change you will see is facial expressions. Characters look much more animated. There is a lot of face animation going on in there that the RCA just doesn't pick up. Audio quality is noticably improved.
So if you want better video and audio quality it is most beneficial to spend the $19 on a ps2 cable with the green, blue and red ports. You should be able to find this ps2 plug n play device at your local electronics store but make sure you have the coloured ports (green, blue, red) on the back of your tv.
Hope you found this post helpful.

This post has been edited by AuSsIeThUnDeR36 on Thursday, Jul 5 2012, 13:33

[Varrio]

Can anyone validate this? I'm curious as to if this works or not. I'm afraid of somehow destroying my PS2 using this method. Props if this is legit.

[AuSsIeThUnDeR36]

QUOTE (Varrio @ Friday, Jul 6 2012, 01:51)

Can anyone validate this? I'm curious as to if this works or not. I'm afraid of somehow destroying my PS2 using this method. Props if this is legit.

No this will not harm your ps2, gta sa will look much nicer, trust me. I have my ps2 slim set up with the green, blue and red cords and have had no problems. It's just sending a nice signal to the tv display, there is no harm to the ps2 in doing so. It also has S Video which I can select via the tv remote by pressing 'source' (the device selection between HDMI, S Video or component) In my opinion, component is better than S Video and the normal RCA. Normal RCA is fine if you have a small screen, as the graphics get 'compressed' somewhat, with less pixellation. Basically, I wanted to upgrade my connection from RCA to see what component connections look like.
On the other hand, if you have a big screen and you try running gta sa in wide screen or wide screen zoom mode, it will look horribly pixellated. In that case, try selecting 4:3 via your screen settings on the tv remote. You will find you now have black areas either side of the game, but the graphics will be much clearer.
Should I upload a video of my setup so you can see what Im talking about?

[Varrio]

QUOTE (AuSsIeThUnDeR36 @ Friday, Jul 6 2012, 02:28)

QUOTE (Varrio @ Friday, Jul 6 2012, 01:51) Can anyone validate this? I'm curious as to if this works or not. I'm afraid of somehow destroying my PS2 using this method. Props if this is legit. No this will not harm your ps2, gta sa will look much nicer, trust me. I have my ps2 slim set up with the green, blue and red cords and have had no problems. It's just sending a nice signal to the tv display, there is no harm to the ps2 in doing so. It also has S Video which I can select via the tv remote by pressing 'source' (the device selection between HDMI, S Video or component) In my opinion, component is better than S Video and the normal RCA. Normal RCA is fine if you have a small screen, as the graphics get 'compressed' somewhat, with less pixellation. Basically, I wanted to upgrade my connection from RCA to see what component connections look like. On the other hand, if you have a big screen and you try running gta sa in wide screen or wide screen zoom mode, it will look horribly pixellated. In that case, try selecting 4:3 via your screen settings on the tv remote. You will find you now have black areas either side of the game, but the graphics will be much clearer. Should I upload a video of my setup so you can see what Im talking about?

Thanks. A video tutorial would be nice. I can't seem to find any "AV1" or "AV2" outputs on my Panasonic plasma, though there are Video and Audio components labeled 1 and 2 which none seem to work with your method.

[DarrinPA]

QUOTE (AuSsIeThUnDeR36 @ Thursday, Jul 5 2012, 21:28)

On the other hand, if you have a big screen and you try running gta sa in wide screen or wide screen zoom mode, it will look horribly pixellated. In that case, try selecting 4:3 via your screen settings on the tv remote. You will find you now have black areas either side of the game, but the graphics will be much clearer.

Does the actual PS2 have a wide screen setting? The orginal Xbox does if you go through the setting when there is no disc in the system. That way it's meant to be stretched.

[AuSsIeThUnDeR36]

But if it is in wide screen mode, CJ will look short and wider. In 4:3 mode, CJ looks normal, I will do a video on how to connect it all and the difference in video quality. Here it is -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi_CuBioZY0

This post has been edited by AuSsIeThUnDeR36 on Monday, Jul 9 2012, 05:31