gc-forever - Gamecube/Wii Forums

I'm sorry for the noob question, but I did some digging around and couldn't find too much information. I'm trying to figure out what the best way is to get high quality video out of the Gamecube on modern flat panel TVs.

Right now I've got my backwards compatible Wii with official Wii component cables and I guess the quality is okay. I bought a used Sony Trinitron CRT and the quality is good, but it can only do 480i. The TV is also really large. I have all my other consoles (WiiU and PS3/PS4) connected to my 46" Sony LCD TV via an Onkyo TX-NR818 receiver. I was trying to mess with the upscaling settings through the receiver tonight, but I really didn't notice any difference when switching between source, 480p, 720p, 1080i or 1080p on the receiver. The only time I noticed some difference in quality (for the better) was by enabling small amounts of edge enhancement and noise filtering. I'm probably going to upgrade my TV in the next year or so when I (hopefully) move into a new house or condo and the new TV will likely be even bigger (55-65"). This really concerns me if I were to somehow want to hook up a GC to it.

I understand it's not really possible to take a 480i game (or 480p in a few GC titles) to perfect 1080p glory, but I figured this was the place to ask for the best opinions on how to get the best PQ from the console.

Like I said, right now I'm just using my BC Wii for GC games, but I have a nostalgic itch to pick up a used GC with digital out to use for GC games instead of the Wii. I regret selling mine back in the day to subsidize a Day 1 Wii especially since I had the coveted component cables... really kicking myself today.

Here's to hoping you guys might have some insight for me! Thanks in advance.

your best option will be to use 480p or 576p video out from the GC and allow the receiver to passthru the video in exact ratio but if you need to fill your screen then perform some tests to determine if your onkyo or if the sony will perform a more acceptable upscale...
onkyo has specific hardware upscaling build into the headunit which might outperform sony's built in upscale so try both methods to see which is more acceptable for you...

if you are trying to upscale from a 480i video source then forget about it....you will notice little to no improvement...
also keep in mind since the original source is 480p/576p then there is only so much that can be done to improve it and will never truly be anything more than 480p/576p stretched onto a 1080 resolution...the quality of stretching depends on the hardware you are using (sony/onkyo)

Mega - Thanks for your reply. I know you are one of the gurus around here so thanks for taking the time to offer feedback. Maybe I will just continue to use Gamecube games on the CRT for now. I am just worried a day may come when the CRT will stop working and/or I will not have room for it. Maybe another option is to consider a small flat panel so at least the stretching doesn't look so bad?