Apple IIe PAL Version - Picture Quality

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X5900's picture
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Apple IIe PAL Version - Picture Quality

Just a quick question, is anyone here using the PAL Version of the Apple IIe? If so, hows the picture quality in either Mono or Colour setting on modern LCD TV's?

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Re: Apple IIe PAL Version - Picture Quality

My cheap LCD television is just okay with Apple //e colour. Usable but not pleasant. Modern televisions don't really know what to make of the colour signal from a //e.

Specifically, my television 'strobes' purple and green around any text or graphic that is on screen, and everything is smudgy and blurry. I can only describe it as psychedelic. I'll grab a picture when I get home.

Picture quality was a lot better when using the 80 column card output, but obviously no colour.

If you have the desk space I recommend picking up an older CRT television with AV input. My Samsung colour television was free on Gumtree, and it works really well as a colour monitor for my //e or Commodore 128D. The downside is 80 column text is nearly impossible to read on older CRT televisions, they did not have the resolution.

IMAGE(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/25662678/Frogger.jpg)

X5900's picture
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Re: Apple IIe PAL Version - Picture Quality

Thanks, CWJ. What you're describing is exactly what I get with my machine, strobing color fringing around each letter. I wasn't sure if this was a defect with the PAL circuit or not. After reading a bit into it, how the signal is processed on the PAL motherboards, I don't think there's any solution for it. I can't even use my 9 inch IIc monitor on the IIe, it doesn't like the PAL signal either. I do have 2 Apple IIc's, which both do work excellent on modern LCD displays.

Some time ago, I've managed to get my hands on a brand new Apple IIe motherboard (new old stock that is, but never used). This board is the 60Hz NTSC version and it works, like the IIc's, perfectly on LCD TVs. I'll have to burn a new Keyboard Rom and give it a try.

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Re: Apple IIe PAL Version - Picture Quality

Others here would know better than I do, but in short, the original Apple ][ colour circuitry actually utilised some of the quirks of the NTSC specifcations to produce colour. By the time the //e came along they included PAL colour circuitry as well, but don't think it was ever as good as NTSC colour.

Have you tried using a PC capture card? Wonder if that would be better.

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