Type: Line blending. Sharp, prone to frame skips if the custom 240p resolution is not perfectly tuned to match the vertical frequency of the input source.
Setup required: High barrier to entry; an Extron Insider Account is required to download the PCS and EDID manager to program and upload custom EDID.bin
Cost and availability: Moderately cost to benefit, available second-hand online
Below is specific to the Extron IN1606
The Extron IN1606 is one of several scalers that will likely work with the Product Configuration Software (PCS) to upload custom EDID.bin files to output 240p. Models like the DVS 605 and DSC 301 HD are also reported to output 240p with a custom resolution. The biggest hurdle is that you must have an Extron Insider account to download the programs to make and upload custom resolutions. Fine-tuning the resolution to output 60Hz may be a challenge, as I could only output a vertical frequency close to 58-59Hz at best which caused very distracting frame skips. The best results on the IN1606 were achieved by programming the EDID resolution to 2046 x 253, then reducing the H size to 1920 and V to 240 pixels in the image window tab within the PCS, the vertical frequency increased almost to 60Hz. It is otherwise flexible with input resolutions up to 1080p, but will only downscale to 240p and not 480i.
HD resolutions are sharply downscaled to 240p whilst preserving a high level of vertical detail. Out of all the downscalers I have tested, the smooth yet sharp image actually impressed me the most with a fine balance of sharpness and vertical blending. It surpasses the Corio2 tvONE 750 which is in the same category of line-averaging, and the output was never as jarring as any of the line deleting scalers. In fact, the scaling is so well balanced that it can almost be forgiven for the missing 480i output.
Locking down the software to program 240p resolutions will not make this a viable solution to the masses. If an Extron Insider with a compatible scaler can successfully output a solid 60Hz without frame skips, this will be a 240p downscaling powerhouse. Just tell me how in the video’s comments!
Verdict: Seldom recommended