Karaoke Forums

Ok... had to buy a new laptop for karaoke recently and realized that they no longer make s-video availabe. Therefore I am forced to use the vga port. What are my options for hooking up to a second screen for the audience to also see the lyrics. All the vga splitters I've seen are male to dual female and I need male to dual male. Any suggestions?

Search this (copy the line below to your search) there are many different products to choose from. Some have options for RCA, S-video, VGA.

VGA to TV Video Scan Converter

I convert from VGA to RCA then to coax to feed the bar TVs. Coax being a more durable cable.

ebay are full of the vga leads you require.
Also VGA gender changers.

I find it difficult to believe the svideo out is MIA..

However, make sure the unit you choose has dual display enabled..

I have seen some that shipped without this critical function..

You can buy really nice LCD computer monitors for dirt cheap these days 17", 19", 22", 24" etc. Just plug the monitor's VGA cable into the VGA port on the laptop and windows will recognize it. Just specify the laptop screen as the desktop and the other screen as the external and you are all set. It's a pretty simple procedure. If you need a longer VGA cable they are $10-$15, no big deal.

I have my 19" mounted to a speaker stand and it looks cool and works great.

I have two monitors on my stand that are back to back so one faces the audience. I use a splitter similar to the one below. It works great.


http://www.cablestogo.com/product.asp?c ... &sku=29610

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KingBing Entertainment C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!! [font=MS Sans Serif][/font]

Most new laptops do not have S-Video ... however, I was under the impression that the VGA out on a laptop will make it so that whatever is on that screen will be the same as your laptop display therefore not operate as a true external monitor. I could be wrong though.

The choice is yours.
You can have both the same if you want to.
Most people in this situation would just display the lyrics on the external screen and have the nuts & bolts an the laptop screen.

That's why you neede the duel display feature jdM was talking about.

Go into the control panel and then open display. Make sure you can turn on the second display. This is the screen that will be on the bar TV. You may have to drag the karaoke screen over to the second display. I us the VGA out to a box like i told you to search for. It works great and gives you different output options for different needs. I use RCA cables in some bars and coax in others. Just depends which is the easiest for me.

I've been buying laptops this past month, and some will use dual display some some will not.

If not, the VGA out will have the same display as the LCD..

Not fatal, but that will slow up the show..

I bought a sweet Toshiba with composite out (TV).. Got to work, right?

Nope, Micro$oft updated the video drivers and killed the TV out..

Go figure..

So, buy what works for you..

Try it out in the store before you buy it. Check for the duel display feature. Don't buy it without it.

Recently I had my main laptop kick the bucket for good, (motherboard pooped the bed). I had a backup laptop that was already set up for hosting, so I could spend some time actually making a good decision on what to replace the first one with. So, I went out looking to see what was available as far as new laptops go, and found nothing with s-video. Too bad, too, cuz it's just the easiest way to hook things up. Anyway, I looked at the VGA output option. Not a bad option really. But do you think I could find a VGA to rca/s-video adapter??? Not only not, but,,,,,H-E-double hockey sticks NO! I eventually did find one about 2 weeks later. It's a Manhattan PC TV converter. Very simple to hook up and use, even has a couple of features that I like. Not too terribly expensive either, but I paid a little more for it than I probably needed to. I made the decision to buy a couple of used older laptops that both had s-video out. That way it gives me options on how to set things up. I also considered a new "portable" desktop unit. If you guys have never seen anything like it, it's kinda cool. The "tower" is connected directly to the back of the monitor of your choosing. The ones I looked at had all the outputs that a person could possible use. VGA, S-video, HDMI, composite RCA's, 6 USB 2.0 outputs, E-SATA, Firewire, and the normal audio/mic jacks. VERY fast computer, with as big a hard drive you want. The "tower" (if you want to call it that) was smaller than a cereal box. The unit only weighs around 6 pounds too. Was a little pricey for my budget, but in all honesty, was probably a great bargain. The company that puts them together has lifetime warranty on their stuff at no extra charge, also including maintanence. A person could put one of these entire units, including monotor into a small luggage bag on wheels and take it everywhere they go. I thought it was a terrific idea. I might still get one next spring.

But as far as your problem goes, there are converters out there, like the one I use among others, that will convert your VGA signal to a "split-able" signal maybe using a simple RF Modulator. Having no S-Video kinda sucks, but definitely NOT a huge issue these days.

Good Luck!

Another option could be, a "Docking Station" or the smaller cousin, the "Port Replicator"..

Often they come with different video outs..

"VGA to TV Video Scan Converter"

This thing is way cheaper than a docking station.