TESmart HDMI switcher quirks

 Back in October 2021 I purchased a TESmart 16 Port HDMI Switch 4K UHD 3840x2160@60Hz HDMI Switcher Box with RS232 LAN Port Support HDCP 2.2 × 1 straight from the manufacturer; as it was near Halloween I got a coupon, but at that point it was already cheaper than its listing on Amazon. How could I say no?

So I got it, and it does switch automatically. I'm still not sure if the switching works on a priority system like the DVDO Edge, and I'm still not exactly sure how to stop it from auto-switching and then turn the auto-switching back on. 

There were some quirks, so I'll just repost my findings from the shmups forum.

Jefferson wrote:

Just bought the TESmart 16x1 switch 4k60 switch. So far I really like it (after I disabled the beeping). I have tested the following:

N64Digital

DCDigital

PS1Digital

RetroTINK 5X Pro

All work fine, with the exception of CEC not working on my PS1Digital unless I power cycle the switch. CEC works fine for the N64Digital.

I got mine too the other day! Straight from the manufacture's website (ordered 10/23; arrived 11/10), and with a Halloween coupon code, about $50 cheaper than Amazon, and that's before Amazon taxes.

Seems great except for one major issue: no audio out of my PS4! The same PS4 settings give me audio when going from PS4 straight to the Dell monitor (it's not an actual TV, but I can't see why that would make a difference). PSVR doesn't seem to have anything to do with it. PS3, Xbox 360, and Switch work fine. :?

I tried the various YouTube folklore home remedies like unplugging the PS4 and monitor and waiting before trying again, and playing around with the audio settings; switching from HDMI Linear PCM to anything else just gave me two different flavors of loud and potentially speaker-damaging noise. The PS4 said it recognized 7.1 and gave me the option to check 5.1, but checked or unchecked, I'm still not getting audio.

Audio from the controller works as usual, and it's neat that I can choose to get all audio from that little port (not just chat), but since I work with headphones on, I kinda don't want to play with headphones on too.

Switching ports on the TESmart and swapping out my older HDMI 1.4 cables for my fancier HDMI 2.x cables didn't help either.

And although I do have an HDMI extractor that lets me do PS4 > PSVR > HDMI audio extractor (plus yet another power outlet used) > RCA to DVDO Edge (and setting the DVDO Edge to output Stereo instead of HDMI) > TESmart switch... I really don't want to do that every time, just for the PS4, especially when everything else is switched automatically.

Help?

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EDIT: I hooked up the full setup of PS4+PSVR > TESmart (with mClassic) to my older Dell monitor that only has VGA and DVI with the good ol' Tendak and that works, so there you go. Tried it again without the mClassic and the mClassic didn't affect compatibility.

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EDIT 2: Today I chained some HDMI cables to an actual TV (i.e. not a PC monitor) in another room and I get sound with the PS4! So I dunno why this TESmart scaler doesn't like to play nice with my Dell S2716DG.

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EDIT 3: Today's crazy chain combo that works on the troublesome Dell S2716DG (optional components in italics):

PS4+PSVR > TESmart > mClassic (requires USB power) > Tendak HDMI-to-VGA adapter > Toodles T-SLG (VGA scanline generator) > VGA-to-HDMI adapter (requires USB power)

Picture quality still looks good, and yay, I can have fake scanlines on 1080p sources again!

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EDIT 4: I get PS4 audio through the TESmart with my Genki ShadowCast!

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EDIT 5: I noticed I would occasionally get no audio playing certain consoles, and while I'm not sure if it's the TV or the TESmart, here's what I do now to absolutely got-dang-guarantee I get audio:

I try to make sure the console is the LAST thing I power on. I always set the TV input first, wait for the "no input detected" screen, then turn on my USB-powered stuff (RetroTinks, gscartsw and gcompsw, HDMI splitters and whatnot) along with the TESmart, wait for the RT5X blue screen, and finally turn on the console.

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EDIT 6: This gets me audio on a TV, although restarting after a firmware update made the audio glitchy until I put the PS4 to rest and then woke it up:

PS4+PSVR > TESmart > HDMI splitter > HDMI splitter

Although it's probably the case that only one HDMI splitter is necessary.

AutoHotkey ideas

AutoHotkey scripts using three keys (but the first one should be Shift): https://www.autohotkey.com/board/topic/61408-hotkeys-composed-of-three-keys/

RAlt + Q, W, E, R, T, etc

LAlt + Y, U, I, O, P, etc

End + Q, W, E, R, T, etc (with End::Send {End} ; Make the release of End produce an End keystroke.)

Home & End::

Back to the Dreamcast

I was having trouble updating my GDEMU firmware; my Dreamcast was in a DreamCase and that meant a different power supply and an SD card extension. I'm only 50% sure I used the listed compatible SD cards (including the one that my games were on), so after putting my Dreamcast back in its original shell with its original power supply (not even with resistors added) and using the somewhat well-known SD card popular with GameCube homebrew, I was finally able to update my GDEMU firmware.

Why was I so insistent on updating the GDEMU firmware?

Turns out, the GDEMU freezes on certain sections, apparently for loading certain sections too fast. I can reliably get Soulcalibur to freeze by going to Museum > Exhibition Mode > Yoshimitsu; the game will freeze during the fade to black after Yoshimitsu's demo ends. I also learned the hard way that House of the Dead 2 will freeze after beating the game, right before you get to save your game, losing any progress you may have made along the way. I can confirm setting the GDEMU load speed to 600 fixes the Soulcalibur problem, and hopefully all other freezing problems. My characters in Phantasy Star Online 2 still loaded from the GDEMU much faster than from disc at 600, so I may just keep it at that speed.

I don't know if the GDEMU is getting any more updates, but if there are any, I'll need clear access to the SD card slot (no extensions), and I'll need to watch out for LED patterns, which not only means the DreamCase is out, but also a good number of 3D-printed trays are out as well.

Other things I've learned when swapping cases:

Generally helpful vid here. 

Not all replacement shells are equal. (I will link to a future Twitter post with pictures)

You can't do a case swap for the Broadband Adapter. The hole is a little wider and all the 3rd party shells I've seen are only big enough for the standard modem.

If your Dreamcast turns off after a while, especially shortly after turning it on, cleaning the power pins with alcohol may or may not help, but bending them towards the back of the console most certainly will. HOWEVER, THE MOST IMPORTANT PART IS TO CHECK IF YOU REATTACHED THE SMALL RIBBON CABLE FROM THE CONTROLLER PORT. MY DUMB ASS KEEPS MISSING THIS!

SD card compatibility here (TLDR: up to 32 GB for SDHC; with SDXC being unsupported), and the best, largest, cheapest officially compatible SD cards here. Format in FAT32, with 64kB clusters.

Screws needed: Lists from iFixit, or just buy the screw sets here.

 Or to put it another way:

• 9 black medium screws
• 4 for the bottom of the Dreamcast
• 5 for the motherboard
• (VA0 units only) 1 for the fan 
• 9 short brass screws
• 2 for the power supply
• 3 for the GDROM drive
• 2 for the power button switch
• 2 for the motherboard
• 6 long brass screws
• 4 for the controller port
• 2 for modem
• (VA1 and maybe VA2 models only)
• 2 tiny black screws for the fan

Numbers for Genki Shadowcast and my new laptop

Lag testing

TV: Toshiba 43LF421U21 43-inch Smart HD 1080p TV - Fire TV, Released 2020

Monitor: Dell U2913WM

PC: Alienware 15 Notebook m15 R6

Nintendo Switch game with clock: Tetris 99

In-game clock displayed on TV: 00:00:56:65

In-game clock displayed on monitor (full screen while capturing): 00:00:56:58

I think I've determined that my TV in game mode has two frames of lag (need to find those pics). But the photo I took to test Shadowcast lag shows that even when I'm recording, the lag on the monitor is shorter than on the TV!

File sizes

1 hour and 20 minutes of raw 720p60 capture (default settings) by Genki Shadowcast (rounded down): 9.00 GB

Encoding with MeGUI

• 2000 kbps quick & cropped... barely passable quality (don't do this)
• 5000 kbps placebo... lossless, but takes forever (don't do this either)
• 2000 kbps / Advanced Settings: Encoding Mode: Automated 2pass, Bitrate 2000 kbps, Very Slow, Target Playback Device: PS3... very very good, damn near lossless, and although it takes a while, it won't be an overnight affair. This is the one to use, or if you're even more impatient, try the next-fastest preset at a higher bitrate. More info on presets here.

Comparing file sizes...

• 5 minutes, 39 seconds @ 720p60 capture (default settings)
• raw capture: 644 MB
• 2000 kbps... 97.0 MB (15% of original size)
• 5000 kbps... 218 MB (33% of original size)

Windows 11 annoyances, fixed

• Not getting the full 2560x1080 resolution of my ultrawide monitor (Dell U2913WM) through HDMI, from the laptop to the monitor? 
  
  At first I couldn't just select it from the menu; I had to open that little popup bubble on the right-corner that said, "This device could perform better" or something like that, where it took me to the NVIDIA settings and I was able to choose it.
  
  That was all well and good until I got my Dell D3100 dock and went back to my multi-monitor setup. Moving the HDMI from the back of my laptop to the dock, I couldn't get ultrawide no matter what, so I plugged the HDMI cable into the back of the laptop again and I got it.
  
  
• Can't change from the default Microsoft apps to view pictures and videos?
  
  The old trick of "right-click > Open With > Choose Another App > Always use this app" doesn't work anymore. Neither does the other way Microsoft wants us to use.
  
  Credit to Amdkt7 for this one. If you want to change your default app for images (e.g. IrfanView), Apps & features, scroll down to Microsoft Photos, scroll down and hit both the Repair and Reset functions, and then immediately do that old way of right-click and Open With to choose IrfanView. Similarly, if you want to use Media Player Classic for videos, you would go to Movies & TV and do the same thing.

Guspaz's pearls of wisdom

Just documenting them here before I lose them forever. More added as they come!

On Sabrent, Anker, and power adapters:

I've been quite happy with my Sabrent SSD, a field in which they've rapidly built themselves a good reputation, but when it comes to power adapters, I normally first look for Anker. If you need a 10-port charger, Anker has a 10-port charger that does 2.4A per port, shared for 12A total: https://us.anker.com/collections/chargers/products/a2133

It has PowerIQ so it should support full speed charging/power on anything you plug into it.

On high-speed HDMI cables and certification:

(NOTE: I'm going to use "HDMI 2.1" in this post, treat it as me saying "Ultra High Speed", meaning specifically 48 Gbps rated cables)

You can't use cat5e anything with HDMI 2.1, and there are no cheap yet effective solutions. The only way to do longer HDMI 2.1 runs is fiber optic, and those cables all cost a fortune.

I've been quite happy with Cable Matters' 15 meter (49.2 feet) HDMI 2.1 cable, which currently sells for $150 CAD.

HDMI 2.1 devices are very picky about cables, there are so many stories out there about people buying HDMI 2.1 cables and then not being able to do 4K120 over them because the cables aren't good enough. It's a major problem, especially for these fiber optic cables, and with HDMI 2.1, pretty much any cable longer than maybe 10-15 feet must be fiber optic to deliver the full 48 Gbps.

There are three things you should do when buying an HDMI 2.1 cable:

1) Only buy a cable that uses the specific wording "Ultra High Speed HDMI". Don't buy a cable that is labeled only as 4K or 8K or HDMI 2.1 or anything like that. If it doesn't specifically advertise "Ultra High Speed HDMI", ignore it.

2) Only buy certified Ultra High Speed cables. Make sure the cable is advertised as being certified. In the case of the Cable Matters ones, they both list "Certified" in the product entry, and advertise their certified status in the the marketing artwork on Amazon, and in the product description.

3) Once you get the cable, there will be an "Ultra High Speed" certification hologram and QR code on the box. Download the official "HDMI Cable Certification" app for your iPhone or Android phone and use it to validate the hologram. If the hologram is absent or does not pass verification, return the cable for a refund due to false advertising.

I think that if you follow these three steps, you can avoid the vast majority of issues with bad cables that fail to deliver actual 48 Gbps performance.

Bringing my Gefen Home Theater Scale out of retirement

So my DVDO Edge went up in smoke. Or rather, my first DVDO Edge went in smoke... and really, it was just the power supply, which I'm reading is a "common" occurrence (link 1, 2). Since I have a TESmart 16:1 HDMI switcher, the Edge was really downgraded to just deinterlacing and making the OSSC play nice with its more exotic modes: the PSP-specific sampling mode, Line 5x, and 480p/576p proc Line2x.

After waiting so long for the zooming/cropping modes of the RetroTINK-5X Pro, I found the OSSC's PSP-specific mode the superior one all along, and that meant an external scaler again. My long boxed-up Gefen Home Theater Scaler was perfect for this, and it did display the PSP-specific sampling mode just fine (will try 5x and 480p 2x later). 

The box-shaped remote was as crappy as I remembered, with buttons barely registering and making me question if I really needed a new battery. I tried programming a secondhand Chunghop remote and I had some success, although my programmed buttons for Up and Right didn't work. I did get a brand new controller for about $10 so I'll try again with programming.

Then for whatever reason I became interested getting a second Gefen HTS, and it was cheap enough, so I did: 

• Gefen Home Theater Scaler HDMI Untested: $41.36 shipped
• Gefen ITE Power Supply, GT-4201D-05, DC 5V 4.0A, Genuine: $20.46 shipped
• GEFEN RMT-SR-IR REMOTE: $21.90 shipped

Okay, so I should've stopped with just the second Gefen HTS itself. And wouldn't you know it: this second scaler came with its own set of problems:

• The remote didn't work, and without the remote, the second scaler was just a brick. So maybe "untested" really meant broken this time? Well, no. I remembered seeing dip switches under the battery cover, and I also remembered the "Remote" option in the scaler menu. Some searching led me to a PDF of another Gefen Remote, and while the dip switch settings weren't quite the same, I was able to figure it out for my scaler:
1. IR Channel 1: 1: down (off), 2: down (off)
2. IR Channel 2: 1: up (on), 2: down (off)
3. IR Channel 3: 1: down (off), 2: up (on)
4. IR Channel 4: 1: up (on), 2: up (on)
• Turns out this second scaler was stuck looking for Remote 2 and my square remote was set to Remote 1. That meant going through the different combinations of dip switches on the remote until it responded.
• Good news: The firmware of this new scaler was 4.8! Higher than my original one which was 2.2. The menu looked exactly the same (so no new features) except the cursor was highlighted in red.
• Bad news: I saw screen tearing! It went away after I hit Reset on the remote to return to the default settings. I hope that fixed it for good.
• I ordered the 2nd remote (now oval-shaped) before figuring out the whole IR Channel thing, but some good things came out of it:
• The battery was included!
• The buttons are much better; more tactile and responsive.
• The scaler, power supply, and remote complete the set. Or maybe I'll give the old Gefen HTS to my brother so he could enjoy 5x with the SNES or whatever.
• Update: the oval-shaped remote doesn't seem to actually work with the Gefen HTS, and I'm having even worse luck with the brand-new Chunghop remote. What am I doing wrong?
• More IR links for fun and profit:
• Replacing All My Infrared Remotes With Girder 6 and an Android Phone.
• Welcome to the USB-UIRT home page!
• Girder Automation Software
• Configuration of USB IR receiver program (Girder Ver. 3.29b)
• DVDO Documentation