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Atari ST display

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fatwizard

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Sep 28, 2012
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I have been playing around with the Atari STf I recently bought, and the biggest challenge so far has been finding something to use a a monitor. I finally got it working with my Commodore 1084 monitor, but I could never get a good display with the cheap Chinese RBG upscaler that worked so well with my Amiga's. My question is, what is everybody else doing for a display on their ST's?
 
I always liked the Atari SM124 monochrome monitor for use with my Mega-ST/2 due to it's sharper image than say the SC1224.
 
There are some (BenQ?) VGA monitors which sync fine on the 15 kHz horizontal frequency of the Atari. With a suitable switchbox you can switch between monochrome 640x400 mode (which is 31 kHz sync) and RGB color (640x200 and 320x200)

In the early days I used an Eizo flexscan 14 inch CRT on my ST's
 
ChrisUnionNJ said:
You should not need a upscaler for a 1084 just the
right video cable..
Click to expand...

No, I made the cable to connect directly to my 1084 and that's all good. The upscaler would have let me use one of my more modern monitors. I have lost count of how many monitors I have here, but NONE of them will work at 15kh. I got a good deal on an Atari sm124 monochrome monitor, but I don't have it yet, and I will be wanting a color display to play some games. I just don't want to put a bunch of miles on the 1084, and my old eyes would love a bigger screen.
 
I use a Nec Multisync LCD 1550M for these computers Amiga,Atari ST,Apple//GS
this monitor also has audio also not super big but 15 inch is ok with me..
 
gertk said:
There are some (BenQ?) VGA monitors which sync fine on the 15 kHz horizontal frequency of the Atari. With a suitable switchbox you can switch between monochrome 640x400 mode (which is 31 kHz sync) and RGB color (640x200 and 320x200)

In the early days I used an Eizo flexscan 14 inch CRT on my ST's
Click to expand...

The trouble I have trying to get a LCD monitor like the Benq you mention, or any of the others on the list, is I can never find one with the exact model number specified, and I can't be confident it will work at 15kh. I have too many LCD's that won't around here already.
 
I have both the Atari mono and color monitors for my 1040ST and I have to say the monochrome one is very sharp. If you want to game a color monitor is a must.
 
The SM124 monitor I bought came this week. It is indeed very sharp. I tried running a game with it connected, and got a row of bombs. The 1084 is working well, and I must say the ST's graphics look great. I'll just keep looking for another display so the 1084 can go back where it belongs.
 
Some Atari ST games are designed for or support the 640x400 monochrome mode, but most use the 320x200 mode and require a color monitor.
 
fatwizard said:
The SM124 monitor I bought came this week. It is indeed very sharp. I tried running a game with it connected, and got a row of bombs. The 1084 is working well, and I must say the ST's graphics look great. I'll just keep looking for another display so the 1084 can go back where it belongs.
Click to expand...

Well you can get a cheap RGB to VGA upscaler like the GBS-8220:

https://youtu.be/xqlrOcGZx38 (this is nice video of what is involved, what applies to the Amiga should apply here)

Get an expensive upscaler already packaged:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Analog-RGB...714366?hash=item361736ffbe:g:Sg0AAOSw3txbMDPW

Review this very long thread on AtariAge to find verified working LCD displays that work with Atari:

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/23...es-nec-multisync-lcd-1970vx/page-1?hl=monitor

Or install an RF Modulator and hook it to a big television. If you are using it for games this isn't a terrible idea.
 
I have the cheap upscaler already. I have used it quite successfully with my Amigas, and I expected it to work with the ST. It doesn't though. It will eventually produce a picture after endless jacking with the settings, but nowhere near acceptable. I fear a similar result with the expensive upscaler.

I have done some research on this and found some solutions involving resistors on the RBG and sync lines, but I didn't get good results. If anyone has gotten the GBS-8220 or a similar device to work with the ST, I would love to hear from them.
 
fatwizard said:
I have the cheap upscaler already. I have used it quite successfully with my Amigas, and I expected it to work with the ST. It doesn't though. It will eventually produce a picture after endless jacking with the settings, but nowhere near acceptable. I fear a similar result with the expensive upscaler.

I have done some research on this and found some solutions involving resistors on the RBG and sync lines, but I didn't get good results. If anyone has gotten the GBS-8220 or a similar device to work with the ST, I would love to hear from them.
Click to expand...

The GBS 8220 was discussed at length at the AtariAge forum as well and it works for some and not others.

The video outs on the various STs are definitely not created equal. My vanilla 1040STf syncs terribly with my NEC LCD that supports 15khz, but the monitor has no problem syncing with my 1040STE.
 
Last edited:
The NEC 1970vx will work, does 15Khz, works great with my Amiga and ST systems. You can get a nice cable for it (VGA) with switch for color and mono from Best Electronics.
 
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