Can a PAL Monitor/TV work in the US

May 13, 2007 12:06 PM

Just how international are A/V Standards, anyway...?

As noted in a previous question, there's a possibility that I might get a US job, yadda yadda... :-)

Anyway, I've been making a few preparations that are generally useful whether I move overseas or not, including de-cluttering a little and deciding what I would take out to the US with me if I were to do so (some shipping is included in the relocation package). So far, it's just computer hardware, really, which is generally multi-voltage input, either by design or with the replacement of PSUs. There are a couple of other items I'm considering, specifically TV/Monitors, a Samsung 940MW that I already own, and an LG M228WA that I'm considering buying. Both are computer monitors that can handle a variety of additional A/V inputs, such as Composite, RGB and Component.

I'm not concerned about the Samsung, which specifically lists as a feature it's ability to tune into PAL, NTSC and SECAM broadcast TV and therefore presumably can plug into any cable TV, satellite TV, games console, DVD player, etc in the US. The LG website is not so forthcoming, however, with no specific information on supported TV standards.

So, to cut a long story short (too late, I hear you cry) my question:

Are there different international standards that apply to Video standards, e.g. Composite, S-Video, RGB, Component and HDMI, in the same way that the NTSC/PAL divide can cause problems? Can a US DVD player (for example) be plugged into a PAL TV player using Component connections without difficulty?

Bonus points if you can spot any other reason I couldn't use TV/monitors like these in the US (I've checked the power supplies, they'll take 110V AC, and they both have FCC approval)

posted by Nice Guy Mike to technology (5 comments total)

Not quite an answer, but why would you buy a new monitor in the UK when the dollar is so high, making already cheap US electronics even cheaper?
posted by TrashyRambo at 12:30 PM on May 13, 2007

dammit: dollar is so low
posted by TrashyRambo at 12:31 PM on May 13, 2007

Well, analog composite video (aka "baseband") is transmitted either as NTSC or PAL, with a different number of scanlines and refresh rates according to the format. (Composite video is exactly the same as broadcast video, except it's not modulated on top of the RF carrier.) So that's potentially a problem, although I think most recently-manufactured TVs will go either way, particularly if it has FCC approval. (Why get FCC approval on a device that can't be used in the U.S.?)

Component, S-Video, and RGB are similar, in that an NTSC and PAL source will have a different number of scan lines in them, and the refresh/sync signal will be different. (S-Video is really just composite video, except the color information is broken out from the luminance information and sent down a different wire ... component breaks the signal down further still, putting each color's intensity on a different wire [sort of, but that's the nontechnical explanation].)

The real problem that you might get into, although probably not with those TVs, is that RGB is common interconnect on consumer equipment in Europe (via the SCART connector) while it's virtually unheard of on consumer gear in the U.S. (except in a VGA connector) because everything here is Component on RCA connectors or S-Video. But if the TV has component inputs, I suspect you'll be able to attach it to a U.S. DVD player just fine. (And if it doesn't like NTSC-on-component, most DVD players can be switched in software to produce a PAL analog signal anyway, even when playing an NTSC disc. But I don't think you'll need to do that.)

I can't really say for certain what the differences are on the digital interconnects like HDMI, but it seems like it would just be a resolution and frame-rate issue (Digital-PAL is generally 720x586@25fps versus 720x480@30/24fps for NTSC); I think any decent monitor should take either input and scale it appropriately to the display's native (actual hardware pixel, e.g. 1280x1024) resolution. I would think you'd have fewer problems with digital interconnects than analog ones; although there might be a decrease in quality somewhere due to scaling, you should get picture.

So in short, I really wouldn't worry about it too much. So much stuff in a modern monitor is done with digital signal processing that it's been a while since I've run into one that wouldn't accept both NTSC and PAL on at least one input, somehow. At the very least, as long as you have VGA, you'll never have a doorstop, since VGA is the lingua franca of video these days.
posted by Kadin2048 at 12:35 PM on May 13, 2007

All the inputs are identical.

Technically, many dvd/vcr/monitors that work in PAL *also* work in NTSC. They're cross capable. Usually the ones that you buy in the US are *not*. So, can a US DVD player be plugged into a PAL TV? Probably. I'd contact the manufacturers directly for those answers.

Composite, S-Video, RGB, Component and HDMI, in the same way that the NTSC/PAL divide can cause problems? Can a US DVD player (for example) be plugged into a PAL TV player using Component connections without difficulty?
posted by filmgeek at 4:28 PM on May 13, 2007

TrashyRambo: Because this way, I get a nice big monitor to use for the next 6-8 months... :-)

Kadin, thanks for the in-depth answer. Looks like the LG will need to be NTSC capable across the board if I'm to use it for anything beyond PC work... I think LG themselves are the only ones who can answer that question, so it'll be an email-job.
posted by Nice Guy Mike at 3:00 PM on May 14, 2007