retropie-crt-tvout

since retroarch 1.7.4 the aspect_ratio_index setting changed, this configurations follow this new aspect_ratio_index setting for default. if you want to use them with retroarch 1.7.3 or older you need to run the "fix_aspect_ratio_index" script located at runcommand > user menu, that script will automatically change the aspect_ratio_index setting of every config file depending on the version of your currently installed retroarch.

this is a set of configurations tunned to get the most accurate to real hardware as possible picture on an ntsc crt tv using the composite video out of the raspberry pi while also being able to use it on an hd tv without having to swap sd cards.

the crt configurations aren't perfect as the configurations available in the built-in composite out of the raspberry pi are very limited.

systems (and emulator) configured and tested:

• arcade (finalburn alpha/neo and mame 2003. if the game native vertical resolution is 480 or less)
• atari 8bit computers (atari800)
• atari 2600 (stella)
• atari 5200 (atari800)
• atari 7800 (prosystem)
• colecovision (bluemsx)
• famicom disk system (fceumm and nestopia)
• game gear (genesis plus gx)
• game boy (gambatte and mgba)
• game boy advance (mgba)
• game boy color (gambatte and mgba)
• genesis/mega drive (genesis plus gx only)
• intellivision (freeintv)
• lynx (handy)(horizontal only)
• master system (genesis plus gx only)
• nintendo 64 (mupen64plus)
• neogeo (finalburn alpha)
• neogeo pocket (mednafen neopop)
• neogeo pocket color (mednafen neopop)
• nes (fceumm and nestopia)
• ms-dos (dosbox)
• msx (bluemsx)
• nec pc98 (np2kai)
• ports > cave story (nx engine)
• ports > doom (prboom)
• ports > quake (tyrquake)
• playstation (pcsx-rearmed)
• sega 32x (picodrive)
• sega cd (genesis plus gx only)
• sega sg-1000 (genesis plus gx)
• super nes (snes9x 2010, but other versions should work too)
• turbografx 16/pc engine/pce-cd (mednafen pce fast and mednafen supergrafx)
• wonderswan/color (mednafen wonderswan)
• zx spectrum (fuse)

all the configurations are for the libretro version of the emulators as they use retroarch scaling capabilities and shaders to match each system resolution. one exception is nintendo 64 which can be played without mayor problems with the standalone mupen64plus without modifications, a libretro mupen64plus config is provided anyways if you prefer that version.

it is better if a fresh instalation of retropie is used, but if you plan on applying this to an already working instalation of retropie there are some core options that need to be changed to make some systems work as intended.

please check to_configs/all/retroarch-core-options.cfg and compare it against your current instalation of retropie intead of overwriting it if you wish to keep your own core options.

some systems (famicom disk system, game gear, game boy, game boy color, genesis/mega drive, master system, nes and sega cd) use a separate core options file for crt to avoid interference with other systems and hd tv settings.

selectable settings:

there are some selectable options available through some scripts that can be run through runcommand, in the runcommand menu go to the option called user menu and a bunch of options will appear with straightforward names.

the game boy emulator has selectable palettes:

• set_gb_palette_DMG: adjust the palette of game boy games to resemble the original game boy colors.
• set_gb_palette_GBL: adjust the palette of game boy games to resemble the game boy light colors.
• set_gb_palette_GBP: adjust the palette of game boy games to resemble the game boy pocket colors.

if you do wish to also use your raspberry pi on an hd tv you can use the following scripts:

• run_crt_once: runs the selected game with crt tv opmitized settings for this session.
• run_hdmi_once: runs the selected game with hd tv opmitized settings for this session.
• set_this_system_crt: set the configurations optimized for crt tv's for the system of the selected game only. set_all_systems_crt does the same but to all systems.
• set_this_system_hdmi: set the configurations optimized for hd tv's for the system of the selected game only. set_all_systems_hdmi does the same but to all systems.

portable systems also have some extra settings to display a border around or fill the screen (due to how mid-game rotation is handled wonderswan/color doesn't have a fullscreen mode for crt or a border mode for hdmi):

• set_this_portable_crt_border: adjusts the image to match each scanline perfectly and has a border corresponding the emulated system only for the system of the selected game, if the system isn't a portable it does nothing. set_all_portable_crt_border does the same but to all portable systems.
• set_this_portable_crt_fullscreen: fills the screen as much as possible while trying to maintain the image inside the viewable boundaries of the tv only for the system of the selected game, if the system isn't a portable it does nothing. set_all_portable_crt_fullscreen does the same but to all portable systems.
• set_this_portable_crt_pixelperfect: this is exactly like set_this_portable_crt_border but without the border only for the system of the selected game, the the system isn't a portable it does nothing. set_all_portable_crt_pixelperfect does the same but to all portable systems.
• set_this_portable_hdmi_1080_border: displays the image of the portable system in a multiple of its original resolution displaying a border corresponding the emulated system on the edges of the screen, adjusted for 1080p resolution. set_all_portable_hdmi_1080_border does the same but to all portable systems.
• set_this_portable_hdmi_720_border: displays the image of the portable system in a multiple of its original resolution displaying a border corresponding the emulated system on the edges of the screen, adjusted for 720p resolution. set_all_portable_hdmi_720_border does the same but to all portable systems.
• set_this_portable_hdmi_no_border: displays the image of the portable system in a multiple of its original resolution leaving the edges of the screen blank. set_all_portable_hdmi_no_border does the same but to all portable systems.

if you wish to force 480i you can create a 480i.txt file inside the configuration folder of the system with a list with the file name (case insensitive, extension optional but recommended) of the games you want to force 480i.
if you want to force 480i for a whole system you can write all inside the 480i.txt file.
this can also be used to set 480i in kodi.
alternatively you can create a 240p.txt file to force 480i to all games BUT the ones inside the list.

example: configs/psx/480i.txt containing Bloody Roar 2.pbp to force 480i only to Bloody Roar 2
               configs/psx/480i.txt containing all to force 480i for all the PlayStation games.
               configs/ports/kodi/480i.txt containing all to force 480i on Kodi.
               configs/dreamcast/240p.txt containing Street Fighter III to force 480i to all games but Street Fighter III.

enhance arcade games:

arcade games are tricky to get a good picture out of because of the nature of arcade monitors , the great range of resolutions those games use and some games even use the monitor in a vertical position.
the good news is that there is something that can be done to try to frame them and don't lose the borders of the image that many times contains important information for the game.

• vertical mode: a new addition is the vertical mode that allows you to play vertical arcade games without having to rotate your tv.
  to use it first you have to open the game you want to apply this mode, open retroarch menu go to overrides and save game overrides. this will create a file in the configs/arcade/config_crt/emulator/rom.cfg folder, where emulator is the name of the emulator used (typically FinalBurn Neo or MAME 2003 (0.78)) and rom is the filename of the game.
  once you have that file open it on a text editor and replace its contents with the contents of the configs/arcade/vertical.cfg file.
  if after that the game isn't displaying correctly or is vertical but upside down, change video_allow_rotate to false, uncomment (delete the slashes before) video_rotation and assign it a value between 1 and 3.
  I recommend running vertical games in 480i mode because you'll lose image detail without the extra resolution, but they still look excellent in 240p.

• expand field of view: there are 3 additional configurations that can be used to force the game picture to fit inside the viewable area of the screen without having to resort to adjust your tv (and potentially screw up all the other systems in the process).
  those configs are used in the same way as the vertical mode above (except it doesn't have anything to manually adjust), the files are configs/arcade/expand1.cfg, configs/arcade/expand2.cfg and configs/arcade/expand3.cfg each one being more aggressive.
  for reference, expand1.cfg is being used in popeye and expand3.cfg is applied in all the mortal kombat games.

if you prefer to have all set up, an optional zip file named arcade_tweaks.zip with all the vertical games (and a few of the other problem games like mortal kombat) already configured is included.

how to use:

• it is recommended to use a fresh installation of retropie but isn't mandatory.

1. connect your raspberry pi to your network (ethernet or wireless, it doesn't matter).
2. update it to the latest version of retropie.
3. connect to your raspberry pi via samba shares.
4. copy the contents of the bios and configs folders in the respective folders inside your raspberry pi.
5. turn off your raspberry pi and put its sd card on your pc.
6. copy the contents of the to_config.txt file at the end of the config.txt file on the sd card (use notepad++ or similar for this, never use windows notepad).
7. put the sd card back on your raspberry pi and copy some games.
8. install low resolution friendly themes for emulation station (gbz35, gbz35-dark, freeplay, tft, pixel-tft, minilumi and simpler-turtlemini are good ones or you can try this one that I made).
9. read above if you want to change how portable consoles are going to look or change game boy palettes or apply some tweaks to arcade games.
10. enjoy your games on a good'ol crt tv.

follow the retropie documentation if you don't know how to connect your raspberry pi to your network, samba shares or how to use runcommand.