Trying to hook up my old NES to my HDTV, help please

[ShadeTail]

I've tried connecting my NES to my HDTV using RCA cables plugged into the A/V ports. I get sound, but no video. I've triple-checked that the cables are hooked up to the correct ports on both ends, so that isn't the problem. Any ideas about why, and how I can fix this?

My TV is an LG-brand from 2010, if that matters any.

 

[GRColin]

Is the audio portion of the cables going into a receiver or are all 3 plugged in? Also, try changing inputs on the tv in case you haven't yet.

 

[ShadeTail]

Just FYI, the NES only has two cables, because it only produces mono sound.

Anyway, I've tried plugging the cables directly into my TV, and also routing them through my receiver. Both give me the same result: sound without video. I've also tried both of the composite video inputs on my TV, again with the same result.

 

[De-Ting]

I don't know, my parents always helped me hook it up!

 

[used44]

Sounds like you know what you're doing. Bad cables maybe?

 

[ShadeTail]

Well, I can confirm the cable I've been using isn't bad. I've managed to make it work by connecting the RF port on the console with the coaxial cable port on my TV. The image is pretty poor, though, even for a legacy system like the NES. If I could figure out how to make the composite AV port work, it would probably look better.

 

[WickedLiquid]

I just always used the coaxial cable up untill the PS2 generation when i switched to RCA and then HDMI for PS3.

Just stick with the cable, that's how NES was meant to be played.

 

[used44]

Maybe I'm misunderstanding but how does using an rf switch prove the quality of your RCA cable?

 

[ShadeTail]

I didn't use an RF switch. I got an RCA-to-coaxial plug for $2 from an electronics store, attached that to my TV's cable port, then used the RCA cable to connect that to the RF port on my console.

 

[used44]

Oh, got it.

Can you try a different tv? I use the original NES RCA cables to hook mine to my HDTV (which happens to be a LG also) and it works great. It has worked on my other tvs also.

 

[madster111]

It's very odd that it wouldn't work. It's just an analog picture signal.
Could be a 50/60hz thing, maybe? Although you'd expect the coax to do the same if it was.

 

[drathbone]

If it's not the cable and it's not the port on the TV, then my guess is it's the RCA video output on the console, especially if the coaxial output is working which tells us the console is at least outputting video from something and not just failing alltogether. Process of elimination.

Also,the video is going to look like chit because your blowing up 256x240 on an HD TV screen. Unless you have a setting to minimize it it's going to look pretty crappy