500 and color

[Kolvir]

I have a Amiga 500 that I am trying to get cleaned up to sell.

I am only getting monochrome on the Magnavox Color display it came with. Is there some setting somewhere that I need to change, something simple I could be missing? I have it hooked up to the RGB out, but were there any monochrome only video cables that used the same port and looked similar to the color ones?

Thank you.

[x56h34]

Monitor is PAL and Amiga is NTSC or the other way around?

[Kolvir]

How can I tell? Wouldn't the video not work at all if that were the case?

[Ilwrath]

Some of the Magnavox Color displays have a "grayscale" or monochrome button.  I think they were for less eye strain, or something.  Anyhow, try poking at the buttons on the monitor.  It may be that simple.

Also, by RGB out, I'm assuming you're using the cable that goes from the Amiga 23 pin video -> db9 on the Magnavox?
(There were several other cables, including one from the Amiga 23 pin -> 3 RCA connectors, I think - if you're using this one, check and make sure you have all of those plugged in correctly.)

[Kolvir]

Yes it is a 23 to 9 pin cable, but I'm thinking now that there is something wrong with it. On the 23 pin side there are screws to open it up and once opened I counted 9 wires plus the ground, but only 5 are connected.

brown to 13
orange to 3
yellow to 4
green to 5
purple to 10

white, blue, red and black are not connected, and are much shorter, there are no solder points on any other pins. Do I have something besides a Amiga video cable here? Is it possible to solder the unconnected wires to get a working cable? Thanks for the help so far, I'm pretty Amiga ignorant, though I remember that I would have given my left arm to have a 500 when I was a kid, stuck on a C64 up into the early 90s.

[Ilwrath]

Hmm... The only 23 -> 9 analog cable I have is the NEC model, which is molded and rubberized, hence I can't open it to check for you.  (It's one solid coated piece)

Here are the best pinouts I could find, though.  It looks like your cable is using the wrong ground, perhaps.  (digital ground - pin 13, instead of regular ground, pin 16-20)  Not sure if this would affect color, though.  (I suspect it SHOULDN'T, but then again, I'm far from an expert in my understanding of how video signals work.)  You will probably want to check out what is happening at the 9pin end of your cable, as well!

9-pin Video connector Analog RGB
(used by C=1084, Magnavox, etc. monitors)
  01 = Sync ground   
  02 = RGB ground   
  03 = Red Signal
  04 = Green Signal
  05 = Blue Signal
  06 = no connection
  07 = Composite Sync
  08 = no connection
  09 = no connection
 
23-pin AMIGA Video
  01-02 = External Clock + enable (usually unused)
  03 = Red Signal
  04 = Green Signal
  05 = Blue Signal
  06-09 = Digital signals (usually unused)
  10 = Composite Sync
  11 = Horz. Sync
  12 = Vertical Sync
  13 = Digital Ground (don't ground unless using digital)
  14 = Genlock overlay
  15 = Clock output
  16-20 = Ground
  21-23 = power outputs (+5/+12v!) (don't ground!)
 

[Kolvir]

I'd bet I'd be better off by getting a new video cable, but seeing as I am interested in getting this computer to work only to sell, I don't want to invest much. Where can I get one on the cheap?

[vortexau]

If you are handy with a soldering iron - it'd be possible to make your own.

Many Australian 1084 & Philips 8833 monitors were D23-to-Scart.  I made-up my own extra-long cable just to use with an A600 to my television RGB-in.  The first thing to acquire is a multi-strand cable then you just have to solder the correct colour-to-pins.

Watch out for assembly locking-collars that are easier to slip over the cable BEFORE you cut back the outer sheath and fan-out the individual core-wires!

Of course, its EASIER to just modify an existing cable, such as one that just lacks the correct connector on one end!  That's HALF the work.