The elusive Indextron

[rcpilot23]

Well done

I have 2 x Sony Indextron TVs that I still need to send to Andy in USA

[HelloVoltage]

Originally Posted by rcpilot23

Well done

I have 2 x Sony Indextron TVs that I still need to send to Andy in USA

if you mean watchcubes, have 9 working for a wall (3x3 array) project, can also possibly repair for you. If one of yours is white, would trade straight for a working black or working blue.

[HelloVoltage]

the composite cable in post 170 of this thread should be disregarded. I used it in ignorance. The port into which it is inserted is much more complex, hence the thread I started here: http://www.videokarma.org/showthread.php?t=274650

[rcpilot23]

Originally Posted by HelloVoltage

if you mean watchcubes, have 9 working for a wall (3x3 array) project, can also possibly repair for you. If one of yours is white, would trade straight for a working black or working blue.

Mine are blue and black

[HelloVoltage]

expected. That white is a rare beast.

[jhalphen]

Hi to all,
Hi HelloVoltage,

Nice screen displays in your post #178, Congratulations! on getting it working.

What a collection of Indextrons! i'm impressed.
If you have time, it would be useful to know about the differences between the different XAV versions (50, 51...).

I have a XAV-U50, display unit only. Never powered it up as have no data on the multipin connector at the rear of unit.
Would you have identification of the pins or a schematic of the connection cable?
Guess it goes to the Diversity unit which i don't have.
Am hoping the display unit could be fed composite NTSC or RGB or VGA, whatever Sony decided to use.

Thanks! for any tips,

Best Regards
jhalphen
Paris/France

[HelloVoltage]

jhalphen , what is the origin of the photo you provided in post 167? I mistakenly assumed that was your collection.

Never found any schematics, after trying to contact sony america and sony japan. May have also contacted sony singapore. There was likely some update/revision support so the service manuals must exist somehwhere. I search on japanese hobbyist sites sometimes , but have mostly just done repairs by repairing capacitor corroded trace, and looking at IC white pages and other service manuals for unilink devices from the time to try figure out how use the displays with no diversity unit present.
The cable that I found to be modifiable for test purposes is listed on ebay as Female MDR - Female MDR Camera Link Cable Frame Grabber Communications AIA
screenshot supplied

It does not have sufficient depth to make contact when the unit housing are on, or retaining tabs, so is it only suitable for testing with both display and diversity unit housings removed.
Will post the pinouts of the 26 pin connectors after determining if functionality is the same across all 3 models.
Been spending most focus on the xav-55n, as that extra power harness that allows for power up functionality with no diversity unit required, but no menu without the diversity unit. Also, the masking on the front bezel of the xav-u51 lacks the "diversity" mention as does the xav-55n, but lacks the extra harness present on the xav-55n. Having them all in a row on the bench will hopefully accelerate the fixes.

Also, just a weird UX note. The physical menu illumination has a choice of color between amber and green. Quirky.

edit. image as attachment is poor quality


double edit: archived JIC https://web.archive.org/web/20230117...m/121905099223

shameful triple edit: I just reread this multiple times because something looked off. The ebay listing mentions "11 shielded pairs". I don't recall that from when I purchased. I assume It would mean 22 of the 26 pins are shielded in a 26 pin cable, but one should specifically ask to make sure any cable received will be a 26 pin connector, just in case anything has changed. Also to make clear, there is no mirroring, the pinoutput and pininput of the double female mdr is the same as the sony cable for these indextrons. The difference is that 1-4 and 14-17 are bridged in the original cable, where all pins are individually connected in the MDR. This does not change functionality, as 1-4 is reserved for relayed 12v, and 14-17 is reserved for ground.

[jhalphen]

Hi to all,
Hi HelloVoltage,

Thanks! for your reply.
The photo posted in #167 is not from my collection, i have none in this type model. No Diversity unit, just the Indextron display box.
The photo was captured from Japanese auction site (now Buyee) attempting to get data on the XAV-U50 system.

I still believe Menus, etc. were generated by a RGB color generator, so the damn thing must have some RGB input data connections.

Your cable data is interesting, Thanks!, but too old to cope.

Best Regards
jhalphen
Paris/france