NFS Porsche Unleashed....Techno-Geeks please respond

[BRAINIAC]

A friend of mine has bought NFS-PU and loves it. (He's a former 911 owner.) Any way, he was wondering if it's possible to connect a High-definition T.V. to his computer as his monitor. His goal is to have a 65" screen for his "Next best thing to driving a real Porsche" driving simulator. Anyone done this?

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Tyson Schmidt
72 911 Cabriolet
92 C-2 Cabriolet

[paulhagedorn]

It is definitely possible to do that. He has to get a video card that has a video out that has a plug that is adaptable to tv. I know that the Voodoo cards have this, asa does my ATI card. The only problem is that computer screens are much higher resolution than tv's. He will also have to get the cable to plug in to the card and into the tv. Really easy, though.

[BRAINIAC]

Right-on! So what do you think of this idea? Will it look right on a 65" HDTV set?

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Tyson Schmidt
72 911 Cabriolet
92 C-2 Cabriolet

[campbellcj]

Yup, it should be feasible. My Elsa GeForceDDR card has an S-Video out as well, although I've never tried it.

You may need to set the PC/game resolution and refresh to something the HD monitor can handle...I'd start with 640x480 and slowly work up through the settings to find the best one.

65" HDTV...sheesh, I'm jealous.

Chris C.

[ClayMcguill]

Hey, if it works, we want pics.

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Clay McGuill '66 912, '97 Jeep Cherokee www.geocities.com/the912guy

[BRAINIAC]

Yeah, I know. They are 5-6 large, but he says he can get one that is "refurbished" for $2800. I wish I had that kinda money to throw around. (Well I did until the C2 came along) I still haven't tried the game yet. He says it's pretty addictive. I'm paying him a visit when his new force-feedback controls arrive. Then I'll school him.

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Tyson Schmidt
72 911 Cabriolet
92 C-2 Cabriolet

[Clark Griswald]

Yes, can do. When not driving my cars, I like to play around with home theater.

I have NFS running on my 8 foot projection system. It looks great. You get immersed in the action. And my surround sound system adds that much more.

The above information is correct, you need a video card with an output connector and resolution that is compatible with your tv. You can use S video, RCA, or VGA if your set supports it. My video card is an ATI AIW Radeon, there are others that can do this as well.

HDTV is plenty high resolution for a video game. Most video games are designed for 800x600 anyway. Your video card will scale this properly for you TV resolution.


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Chuck Moreland '86 Cab - "Sparky", '77 Targa - "Sweet Pea"

[This message has been edited by Clark Griswald (edited 06-28-2001).]

[mjc76]

Most of the newer large rear projection TV's have a VGA (DB15) connector on the back I know two brands for sure have them (Pioneer and Mitsubishi). If he has RGBHV conections then he will need a VGA to BNC5 (RGBHV)
breakout cable. If the TV only has HD Color Component inputs then he will need a VGA to HD Color Component converter (about $100). The TV's are limited to 640x480 anything higher may damage the tv. If he wants more resolution he will have to go to a fixed display device (DLP,LCD,Plasma, or DILA), or a data grade front projector.

[campbellcj]

Your friend also should get a PlayStation2 with the new Gran Turismo 3...just out or coming out shortly. It is widely touted as the best driving sim ever produced for home use. If it is even better than GT2 then I will back that statement 100% -- GT2 kicked a$$ And the PS2 definitely does work great with your home theater, surround sound and all. Not much p-car content in this game, but I believe there are a few Ruf cars as well as hundreds of other cool choices.

Chris C.

[phillocks]

Warning
If you try and put the res up too high the picture will start to flicker.
This is with a dell 800Mhz P3, 320MB RAM and 32MB video card.
You really need a lot of power to get the cest from that game