I found a VGA to component cable at a surplus store

analog pc connections on a digital television are always going to be finnicky, but going from rgb to component is generally a bad idea. i would recommend a digital connection.

I found a VGA to component cable at a surplus store and have been tearing what's left of my hair out ever since.

Are you sure it is a VGA to component cable and not a VGA to RGB cable? Although they look similar, RGB and component connections are not the same. To convert from VGA to component is not simple and requires some electronics to do combine the signals properly.

Very true.
But most of the time the difference between YCbCr (component; sometimes called YPbPr) and RGB is less than between a non-calibrated and calibrated TV...

A component signal is VERY different from an RGB signal. If your TV is expecting one and receives the other it will look very strange.

Agree, it requires a transcoder. A few TVs (FPs) have the transcoder built in, but most do not.

I stand corrected.

I was under the impression that modern flat panel TVs have to convert to RGB before the signal hits the screen.
If you feed them RGB (VGA) - they don't touch it, if not - they convert it, i.e. all of them can do it.
The fine details - WTW, BTB, chroma upsampling - can be different.

BTW, I usually use an old (from a Matrox card of ~5 years ago) VGA->RGB adapter (if needed) and never had problem with them.

You are correct, all the TV do in fact convert the incoming signals to RGB at the final stage before they display.

Some TV can accept either RGB or YPbPr on the same inputs, usually you have to select which format in the configuration menu, but others cannot.

The point is that a cable cannot convert the signal. There needs to be some electronics in the loop.

The point is that a cable cannot convert the signal. There needs to be some electronics in the loop.That I do know. And actually started my post with "Very true."
I thought every modern TV can handle both...

Guys, thanks so much for responding to my query....
Even though the box in the store clearly stated that the cable was a VGA to component cable I'm beginning to suspect that it is in fact a VGA to RGB cable based on the strange results I'm getting when I hook it up ( and the fact that the cable was only $15).

Question: Is there an economical (cheapy mccheapy) way to hook up my laptop to this TV?

I will someday build a dedicated HTPC for this display, but for now, funds are limited as I'm in the middle of a career change ( between jobs - I'm home ALOT).
As I said, the PC input is not an option with this set as I am afraid that the annoying border will get burnt in ( yes I know that this supposed to be imposable with LCOS sets but there is a guy in another thread that swears that he has had this happen and I will not risk it just so I can watch my collection of obscure British comedies).

Once again, thanks for your responses!

Does the laptop have a DVI port? If so you could try a DVI to HDMI cable.

Most computers will allow you to set an HDTV compatible resolution on the DVI port.

I wish....

No, the laptop is a couple of years old and only has a vga output.

Funny, I remember that the ancient laptop I had before this one had an S-video output. No such luck on this one.

You're out of luck then. The only solution is to buy a device called a transcoder which will convert VGA to component.

Last time I checked they were going for around $150 or so.

Hi all,

I've been wanting to get an HD monitor and connect it to my laptop for some time now. My laptop is older - its a Toshiba Satellite A100 TA7 (http://sarnia.**********/c-buy-and-sell-computers-Toshiba-Satellite-A100-Laptop-W0QQAdIdZ82799495). It has S-video and VGA HD-15 inputs.

The monitor I'm looking at purchasing is similar to this one. (http://www.samsung.com/ca/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=tv&type=tv&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LN22A450C1DXZC&fullspec=F) The one I want is the 22" Samsung LN22A330. I want it to be able to run basic cable, play Xbox 360 on it and connect my laptop to it. Using my limited knowledge and judging from the specs it appears that it should be able to do all 3. Am I correct in assuming I would have to use a VGA to VGA cable?

The problem is that I've seen a lot of differing information about VGA to VGA connections. Is it worth making this purchase? Will the quality of picture on the Samsung be good enough? As well, and I guess most importantly, which cable is ideal for making this possible?

Thanks for any help! Cheers

I have an LG 42PC5D, and I have connected my pc via vga cable before and it worked fine (playing Call of Duty with a 512 Mb video card on a 42 inch plasma is something else!). Anyways, I tried hooking up the computer last night, it went through its motions of booting up, and just before the login screen came up, the tv went to black, and the message "invalid format" started to float around. Anybody have an idea of what could have happened to cause this? I checked all of my connections, my desktop resolution hasn't changed since the last time I hooked up the computer to the tv, so I'm stumped.:confused:

I get the 'invalid format' just before it gives a display...and it happens on HDDVD player @ 1080i via HDMI and HTPC @ 1360x768 via DVItoHDMI. I haven't had a stuck screen in a long long time.

Reboot everything and you should be all good.

Refresh rate?

It's simply that the resolution being sent by the computer isn't supported by the display.

Usually (?) the computer will change to a supported resolution on a reboot since that information is passed back by the monitor.

I was wondering if there is a way to display computer content on my tv
(th50px75) this tv doesn't have a dvi port. my pc does. Is there a way to display pc content on this tv by means of other cables or adapters.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thank-you
Andrew.

Does your tv have a RBG input (I think thats the name)
Your computer should have that output (15 pin)

a dvi male to hdmi male cable can be had for less than $10 at monoprice. the image will be overscanned, so be prepared to deal with that.