Electron Shepherd has opened pre-orders for the next version of their HDMI plug and play adapter for the original Xbox – An high quality device that’s only $32 plus shipping. That’s almost the same price as those low-end HDMI adapters that are filled with interference, but this actually performs as it should! It’s due to ship this year and once it’s readily available, I think it’ll be the go-to plug-and-play HDMI adapter for the original Xbox. More info below the link:
Pre-Order Here: https://retrorgb.link/xbox2hdmi
I recently did a livestream testing this adapter and it performed really well, with one exception: My capture card didn’t like the digital audio. No problem though, Electron Shepherd is including a switch in this revision that toggles between analog and digital audio. Just start out with it in the digital position and give it a try – My TV’s and AVR seemed to work perfectly with it in digital mode, so compatibility should be high. That said, if you have any dropouts or audio pops, power off the Xbox, remove the device, switch it to analog mode and try again! Having both analog and digital options ensure compatibility with all devices.
As for the video output, it was excellent. The brightness and colors seemed perfect and I didn’t see any visible interference in any resolution I tried: 480i*, 480p, 720p and 1080i. This is equal to or better than any other P&P HDMI adapter for the original Xbox. Of course, if you’re looking for that last 1% increase in clarity, you can always pick up an internal, digital-to-digital mod, however that’s a complication installation. Probably perfect for huge fans of the original Xbox with some extra cash to spend, but this device should be good for everyone else.
And lastly, strain relief didn’t seem to be an issue at all. The device itself is smaller than most original Xbox A/V plugs, so when combined with an HDMI cable, it’s about the same or less pressure as official Microsoft solutions.
As you can probably tell, I really liked it! If you’d like to see it in action, check out the livestream below. Please note this is a really nerdy livestream where I compare a few products and this post summarizes it all pretty nicely…but if you’re a fellow nerd, have at it!
*As a note, the Xbox dashboard in 480i has vertical lines that are part of the artwork – This can often look like interference. Also, how your TV or capture deinterlaces video can have a big affect on the image. This isn’t an issue, as 99% of Xbox games support 480p and up, however I wanted to make a note about this, in case you saw some “lines” in the livestream:
