Mcbazel ODV-GBS-C Component VGA/Scart to VGA/HDMI Scan Converter for Retro Gaming Console with US Plug not Support AV Input

Let me start off by describing my setup. I have a Denon receiver that feeds an HDMI input into my LG 4K TV (set to game mode). The output resolution on the GBS-C is 1280x960, for a widescreen effect, since 1080p displays in 4:3. You’re probably reading this review because you’re looking for an upscaler. A month ago I was too, and if you don’t know much about tech you’ll be completely lost, when all you want is better video quality for your retro console games. Or in some cases you just need a video signal your TV can understand, like the PSOne’s 240p resolution that isn’t compatible over HDMI. I looked around a bit before buying, and did the research, and if you don’t want to spend a boatload of money on the RetroTink 5x then your options are really limited, due to the chip shortage. Everybody is out of stock of just about everything. If you’re handy with DIY, and a soldering iron, then GBS Control becomes a solid option at a relatively lower price point. But what if you don’t DIY or have the tools to do it? That’s where the McBazel ODV GBS-C comes in. It’s a commercial product that takes the DIY out of the GBS Control, so you can just connect it to your TV’s HDMI input, then connect your gaming console either via component or SCART inputs, and it converts it to a resolution that your TV can understand. It even runs on the same open source firmware that the DIY option uses, so you can update it as new improvements get rolled out by the community. I have my PS2 connected via HD Retrovision component cables, and my PSOne connected via a SCART cable. A couple of caveats on RGB SCART, make sure the one you use has capacitors built into it, or it will only be compatible with the PS2/PS3. Also, when connected via SCART, make sure the switch next to the SCART input on the GBS-C is set to RGBS (middle position). At first mine was set to the first switch position (YPBPR VGA RGBS), and the PSOne had lots of sync issues, screen tearing and dropouts. I almost returned this unit, until I figured this out through trial and error. Now it works great. I have the GBS-C set to output scan lines on the PSOne, because personally I think it looks better. It actually makes it look higher resolution than it does without them. The PS2 uses motion adaptive deinterlacing, and there’s no screen flicker or movement at all like there is with upscalers that use bob deinterlacing. So how’s the lag? Well, there is none. None that’s perceptible anyway. My LED TV adds more lag to the signal than the GBS-C. At first I thought the GBS-C was fairly laggy, but after doing further research it was all the image processing going on in my TV. Once I optimized my TV the lag completely disappeared. Games that require precise timing like Guitar Hero, Tekken 5, and Hot Shots Golf 3 work without any lag issues. I’ve only found one con so far in my use case, and that is that the GBS-C defaults to using the RCA audio inputs if a cable is plugged in, even if the console is turned off. So if I want to play the PSOne over SCART, I have to unplug the audio cables from the PS2’s component input to get any sound. Overall that’s a minor inconvenience, but I’m looking into using the digital audio output from the PS2, and feeding the audio into my receiver that way to see if it solves the problem. I want to just be able to turn on either console without fiddling with wires. Another con, for other people (not me), would be that it doesn’t support S-Video. That means a lot of Nintendo consoles won’t work without conversion first. McBazel shows a S-Video converter that pairs with the GBS-C, but I haven’t found it retail in the US yet. If you need Nintendo S-Video support, then the RetroScaler2x is probably a better option. I included a bunch of photos so people can make up their own minds about the video quality, since the only other review with pictures said it was horrible. It doesn’t seem so bad to me. It’s upscaling 480i and 240p video signals several times, and does a pretty good job to my eyes. The images should be self-explanatory, but if they’re not then the PSOne images all show scan lines, and the PS2 ones don’t. Overall I’ve been very pleased with this upscaler, and GBS-C is probably the best option for PS1/PS2 if you’re on a sensible budget. If you’re a retro console enthusiast, and money isn’t the sticking point, then you probably already know which option is the absolute “best” one, and of course it’s not this one. For everybody else, this option can get you 90% of the way there.

This works fantastic for my use case for my pc crt monitor. I can play ps2 and dreamcast games with little to no input lag. Its easy to use and set up and the picture is great. For the price, you cant beat it. However, there was warping when trying to use vga input from the dreamcast and i could not get that working. I had to use RGB SCART (which still looks pretty good). I would recommend if you want to spend the money to get a retrotink 5x but if youre on a budget this one will get the job done.

As of writing this review, there wasn't much info about this or any prebuilt GBS-Control devices currently on sale. Just to toss my 2 cents in here: If you have a bunch of old game consoles you want to use on modern TVs, but don't want to spend $200+ to do it, this is probably the easiest bet. The adaptive de-interlacing is the star of the show here, offering a great picture on 480i content (particularly the PS2) with minimal lag. I own an OSSC, but couldn't use the bob de-interlacing due to it causing image retention on my computer monitor. This GBS-C adaptive de-interlacing solved that, and now I can play all my PS2 games in great quality. As for 240p content, it's great for that too. The scanline generator looks good, and the image is plenty sharp. Maybe not quite as sharp as the OSSC when configured, but it isn't that far off, and looks sharper than the samples of the Retrotink 2x I've seen. If I didn't already have the OSSC, I'd be totally content with the picture. One thing I'd like to point out is black levels / contrast. This thing outputs a limited black range, so make sure you configure the black-level setting in your TV accordingly. Setting your TV to full-range will make it look washed out. The menu interface is great. You configure it with your cellphone by connecting to it with WiFi. If you've ever had a DSLR Camera with built in WiFi, it's very much like that. You can save profiles, and the layout is easy to understand. I prefer it to the OSSC in the regard. Build quality seems good, for the price I'm pretty impressed. I can't comment about the power supply, it doesn't look very robust... but I havn't had any issues. I don't really like the look of the scaler, but the outer shell seems nice and connectors seem solid. Overall, I'm super happy with this. Unless you really like tinkering to get the perfect picture (OSSC) or don't mind spending way more for ease of use AND picture quality (Retrotink 5x), I honestly think that this is the best scaler for the money currently.

A complete waste of time. Poor build quality, especially poor documentation that's in incomprehensible pidgin English, doesn't work properly with a single system the listing says it does. Weird timing issues, video drops, screen tearing, jittery picture, garbage audio, an incredibly jank way of syncing it to your phone, the list goes on and on and on. I'm sure there are good GBS-Cs out there, but this surely ain't it.

Just FYI - it works with Atari STE 520 using the a ST to color VGA adapter - testing with a non-15KHz compatible screen it correctly upscaled to a 1280 x 960 monitor. Was easy to set up and just worked first time - the WIFI server based configuration was useful to save a screen configuration preset. I can't vouch for the latency as have not tried any games - although that's not my main reason to get this.

Great downscaler! Should be noted that vertical adjustment doesn’t work when downscaling however, and smaller text becomes almost unreadable at times. But otherwise great little doohickey!

No issues so far, works every time i use it. It does get a bit warm after a while though.

Works perfectly and automatically with my NEC PC-9821 and FM-TOWNS after some time manually adjusting the settings. These computers require a very odd 24khz frequency monitor, glad to see it works amazing and no need to hunt down a rare expensive monitor anymore. Display is absolutely beautiful and lag free on my 2001 DELL Computer CRT using VGA. Really well made, easy to use. Very cool and practical to also be to adjust everything from online on your phone. Settings are also well described and you can easily save presets for different devices. Time will tell if lasts, but now it does exactly what I want it to!

Soporta de manera correcta el 240p, pasa las pruebas del Drop Shadow y el Striped Sprite de Artemio. La interfaz web accesible mediante wifi tiene opciones para ajustar la resolución, el tamaño , posición, filtros, intensidad y varios otros detalles, da muy buen resultado, y permite guardar presets. Dichos presets después se pueden cargar con la perilla, sin necesidad de entrar a la interfaz web. Estoy muy contento.

Lo estoy usando para ps2 y Wii, para juegos de ps1, ps2, gc,wii con cables genéricos por componentes, por el momento a funcionado muy bien en un monitor asus 1080p ,la imagen es limpia, no se siente lag, comparado con sus competidores es más barato ossc, retro think lo cual es un plus, además de que no se va la imagen en los cambios de resolución a diferencia del ossc, seguiré probando por el momento estoy contento con el funcionamiento.

As someone who uses a slim Playstation 2 to also watch DVD movies, the GBS-C has been terrific at rendering a 480p signal to my 1080p monitor. There was a minor adjustment though to shift the picture upwards by 5 or 6 units to make the black borders at the top and bottom even on a widescreen movie. This was done in the WiFi & phone browser. With games, I found no adjustments were needed unless its for personal preferences. Also with games, at the default 1280 x 960 resolution setting, the GBS-C will automatically pseudo-widescreen the 4:3 aspect ratio. For most games, you probably won't mind this. But with movies (non-widescreen ones, and optionally games if preferred) - switching to 1920 x 1080 setting will keep the 4:3 aspect ratio with black bars on the sides. This can be done with the VR dial. ------------ There's one major flaw on the GBS-C however, and it has to do with the cooling vent holes at the bottom of the unit. There's just not enough clearance for the hot air to escape when laid flat on the surface. This causes a lot of unnecessary heat buildup and I was shocked to find a single 100 minute movie made the right side of the unit very hot afterwards. The kind of hot that makes you wonder if it'll still work after a year from now. I would suggest either placing the unit upright or use something to support & raise it up from the surface by at least 1/2 inch or more if keeping it flat like I did. Doing so has removed around 60% to 70% heat buildup and now after watching a movie, the right side's only warm to the touch. ------------------------- Overall I think the GBS-C is worth considering for what it can do at this price but be aware of its flaw. If its still too much for your budget or you don't need all those connection types or even 480p, a S-video cable with the right converter for your display might just do the trick. Note: Disregard the green/magenta and wavy lines in the photos, those are caused by the camera. Movie is on 480p, while game is 480i.

Resultados bastante decentes en consolas 240p pero lo más interesante es 480i del PS2 da un excelente resultado. Lo único malo es que presenta ruido a pesar de usar cables de alta calidad (HD retrovison). Recomendable.