pvz

I figured out my problem. I am using VGA cables with HD15 hoods and when wiring one of the hoods I spaced and inverted the wires.
The result was that the only signal being sent to the screen was the ground/shield. It was going into the Red input, and it looked freaky, "ghost" is a good adjective!

So, WOOT, I have most everything running.
I am building a better circuit that uses an EL4583 instead of a LM1881.
This circuit outputs true H-Sync, avoiding the "Back Porch" hack Boom was using on the LM1881.
Again, there is a ton of info on my site on how to do this:
http://www.swooby.com/z/navpc/
Click on the GEX-P7000TV link.

As I have not completed this project 100% (I have no hope that I ever will), the pages are still under construction.

Pv

silvercoupe35

I have an Infiniti G35 coupe so our nav systems should be similar. Also can you explain how you fixed the problem of the ghost screen?

pvz

Nice wheels! You are probably the person that Wonderer said had contacted him w/ similar problems as myself.

Here's what I did wrong:
(next time, be careful what you ask for! )

First of all I am making my setup VERY modular by using a VGA extension cable (excellent quality shielded cable I can pick up for $10 for 10 feet) and this requires wiring VGA HD15 connectors to the GEX cable.

I explain this in detail at my site:
http://www.swooby.com/z/navpc/
(I feel like a parrot repeating that link so much, but if don't then someone is bound to ask "where is your site?")

I cut both a 10' VGA cable and the GEX cable in half.
I wire the exposed ends of the VGA cable to my NAV (female from NAV, male to screen).
I wire the exposed ends of the GEX cable to VGA HD15 hoods (female on the "Green" cable, male on the "Red" cable).
Remember, "Green to Screen".

As nice as this method is, it also opens up more possibilities to make a mistake.
I spent so much time ensuring the "quality" of the connections that I did not notice when I made a [simple] mistake.

On the Green ("to screen") cable I wired the VGA HD15 hood wrong.
Each row is "1 - 5", "6 - 10", and "11 - 15".
I mistakenly wired it as if I was looking at the pins like they went "5 - 1", "10 - 6", "15 - 11".

My pinouts were supposed to be:
1 = Red
2 = Green
3 = Blue
5 = Ground/Shield
etc (see my pages)

So, when I wired it up wrong it went like this:
1 = Ground/Shield
3 = Blue
4 = Green
5 = Red

That made everything FUBARed!
"Blue" came through fine, "Green" was nowhere to be found, and "Red" and "Ground/Shield" were reversed.
Signals returning to ground were getting washed out by the "Red" signal was actually coming up that line.
Because I have everything so well grounded/shielded, that meant that the screen's "Red" input was connected to all of the GEX's ground, thus getting faint echos of EVERY color, thus fading the color to black even more.

Net result is that everything was fading to black and blue, and thus hard to see.
ie: "ghosted"

During my second wiring I accidentally flipped Blue and Green, and was getting psychedelic results on the screen.

It helps to wire the pinouts correctly! Imagine that!

With the pinouts correct everything works grand!

All in all, this setup definitely works, so persist until you get it right!
Just be sure to quintuple check each wire before and after you hook it up (this result in a "dectuple" check, right?)
Following the instructions on my site (a consolidation of this thread + my tweaks) should help .
You should be able to have this up and running in less than a week, maybe slightly more if you are cheap like me and do not overnight the parts from DigiKey.

My page is almost complete, but it is still being modified daily with fine tunings (I have found a few errors here and there).
I will soon have the complete parts list of all of the DigiKey and RadioShack parts needed to build this with the EL4583 chip.
Keep bugging me and I'll get it updated faster (once I am back from my July 4th vacation).

Despite my problems with the wiring I have spent more time on the circuit (trying to perfect it and make it modular), so this is probably the hardest part.
It does cost both time and money, but it isn't that bad.
If I have all of the parts I could build one of these in an evening.
I do not know the precise cost of the parts yet, but for the components on the circuit board (no enclosure or connectors) it is less than $20.
I will disclose all prices (including enclosure and connectors) on my site once I know the final cost.

For a fee I might consider selling hand built IR/OSD circuits (on prototype board) as long as demand doesn't get TOO high.
It would come with ZERO guarantee or liability.

If demand is high enough I could make the leap and build the circuit with surface mount components, thus increasing the quality and decreasing the size.
Still no guarantee!

I've thought about making this an entire kit, but honestly, all but a pre-built circuit board can be found in your local town, so selling a complete kit doesn't make much sense.
This is what you would need:[list=1][*]VGA extension cable, cut in half (figure out your own length)[*]Your GEX cable cut and wired with VGA hoods[*]IR/OSD device in an enclosure with 1/8" phono stereo input and 12V input[*]IR Receiver wired to 12" of a 1/8" phono cable[*]12' Stereo phono cable[*]12V power connector[/list=1]

Pv

silvercoupe35

PVZ thankyou for your response ill will check those connections immeditaly. If you dont mind can you give me your email adress so I can contact you if I need to? Also I might me interested in one of those IR/OSD boards if I cannot get mine to work.

Thank you again.

pvz

My email address is also on my web site.

Pv

smitht1023

Has this been done with the Kenwood KDS-900?

galfert

Do you think it is possible to hook up the GEX-P910XM to the GEX-7000TV to recieve XM satellite radio? This might be a better solution than the Alpine, Delphi XM radio devices.

Then you don't have to worry about integration of the XM controller into your dash. Any thoughts????

geninfty

galfert, I think I tried that, but GEX-7000TV does not control GEX-P910XM. 7000TV only controls mutli-CD, not anything else or so it seemed to me... So I ended up returning GEX-910XM and got Sony XM. Not so clean setup, but one way to enjoy the XM without FM modulator.

galfert

Thanks genifty, Oh well. Glad to hear that you tried it out. Now we know for sure that it won't work.

Someone needs to come out with an XM radio that you can control via the GEX-P7000TV. If you think about it all they need to do is design an XM radio that all the controls are on a wireless remote. And then the interface is all menu driven on the screen via the remote. It would be sweet!

ps - genifty, where did you mount the Sony XM? any pics?

geninfty

The strategy of Pioneer is, I think, that only headunits control other slave devices. An exception was GEX-7000TV controlling a multi-cd thing. I guess their strategy worked on me- I am getting AVM-P9000, the AV host, to control the system and also get 5+1 in the car.

Anyway, I got sony XM, not a very recomendable mounting- i just double-stick taped it on the right side of the radio. I didn't want it sitting on my dash, blocking my view. One thing I dont like about sony xm is that it has a built-in fan to cool its CPU, which makes some humming noise. It is audible when you are idling. So I ended up disconnecting the fan, but surely not a good thing to do when the interior is very hot.,,

geninfty

Have anybody tried connecting Pioneer AVM-P9000R with the built-in navi screen? Since we already made the navi screen work with GEX-7000TV, I think the navi would work with AVM-P9000R as well. Is this the case? If this works, it will be so cool!! By adding DVD or CD changer, we can live without the head unit, or, we can tap its preamp output inot AVM-P9000R and still use the headunit. Any suggestions?

silvercoupe35

genifty, is your GEX system working? If so I would like to ask you some questions since mine is not working. Thanks

geninfty

mine works fine. ask away...

silvercoupe35

Thank you, basically I have everything hooked up and I checked the connections numerous times and all I am getting is a ghost of my nav screen in b/w. Any suggestions? At this point I am just trying to narrow down the problem, any info would be greatly appreciated thanks.

geninfty

i had a little ghost, i could care less, but i installed a choke and it completely went away. i cannot really say it's the choke, because the pioneer wiring does come with the choker. but anyway, that fixed my problem once for all.

geninfty

I just got pioneer AVM-P9000R- it is called AV Master. those who read the manual of GEX must have heard the name.
i guess i wanted 5+1 decoder at a reasonable price. its MSRP is $1,100, but you can get it around $600 from ebay or one of internet vendors out there. i got one today. factory refurbished one, but so far so good.
the installation is no brainer, at least so i thought, for those who already got their GEX-7000TV working. it IS in principle, but i suffered again. the reason was, again, the voltage drop of ACC line I tapped from the cigarrette output. so i tried around, connecting that ACC to direct battery connection, and voila!! it works!!!

This AVM-P9000R is an interesting stuff. (i am not a pioneer PR guy) this controls pioneer cd changer, dvd changer, XM(i guess) with IP-bus. so our GEX can be controlled with this. It also decodes Dolby 5+1 and DTS. but here is a catch: the digital audio connector is not standard, so it only works with pioneer dvd changer (correct me if i am wrong). it also gives you FM/AM radio (built-in), and finally, this is something i didn't expect, but you can tap our bloz radio speaker output into this, so you can still listen to the radio. it also has moderate amplifier, so you can connect aftermarket speaker without worrying about that bose equalizer. it also gives you kick-ass graphic interface- very nice. also very thorough sound adjustment capability-

so far, i found the speaker output is a little too small with my infinity 6.3 speaker. but i got 5 chan amp anyway, so it's not a problem for me. i think it would be ok when used with high efficiency speaker.(infinity kappa speakers have low efficiency).

in summary, it gives quite a big punch for the buck. if you can land on a good deal from ebay or some vendors, consider adding it into our navi system- it is quite flattering.

happy mod-ing, guys

galfert

geninfty, great news! Got any pictures? I'd really like to see some of those graphics you are talking about too. Is there a way to find out if the GEX-P910XM works now? I'd really like to get XM and I don't like any of the other solutions out there....I want my dash to be stock looking without attachments.

PS - Where do you live? .....keeping my fingers crossed that you live somewhere in Florida so that I can possibly take a first hand look at your setup.

silvercoupe35

geninfty I hear what your saying about a lil ghost, but that is all I am getting is ghost, no pic, no input or no nav, just ghost. lol
Thanks for your response.

geninfty

galfert, i don't have any picture, and i couldn't find any website so far that posts the fantastic graphic interface i was talking about. but you can see the picture if you download the AVM-P9000R manual from pioneer website (need to register). i will try to post some picture here... i recently lost my digital camera though.. dang.

I am quite excited because this AVM can be the answer to get around the headunit mod- i really hate that bloz HU, but don't want to mess up the integrated look either. for those who got the navi screen with $2000 more, why don't we get the best out of it? we don't have to buy that expensive pioneer lcd screen unit. it will cost another $600 to get a quality HU and a custom dash kit- about the same price you pay for AVM, which allows that bloz unit in the place and still listen to it!! ( i am not sure about the sound quality after that bloz equalizer and speaker input step)

i am not sure if it controls XM... we can ask pioneer people or learn it in a little clumsy way.

I live in nor-cal... sorry... but if you have a working GEX mod, then adding AVM is really simple. oh, again, be careful with the large current sucked from ACC... I am going to add a relay. i am afraid there's no other way around.

silvercoupe35, i am sorry to hear that. how does look like "all ghost"... do you see nothing but the blurry stuff? it looks to me, that these pioneer machines do some "sync-ing" when it is powered up... all i can say is to check the cable again or try with another GEX or AV master unit to see if the problem is the unit or the wiring.

pvz

Hot off the presses, I have finished my new and improved IR/OSD circuit.
I JUST dropped it in to my car and it is working without any problems so far (knock on wood).

The most notable difference is that I use a EL4583 chip instead of a LM1881; true "H-Sync", no more "Back Porch"!
I also have my IR remote working directly off of the GEX's 5V wire; no more 12V input!

Here is a pic of the schematic:


Here is a pic of the actual device:


Note that I wired the GEX cable to HD15 VGA hoods.
There is no 12V input.
The only other input is a 1/8" stereo phono cable that runs to the IR eye.

Full pics and a lot more info are available at my site:
http://www.swooby.com/z/navpc/

Pv

pvz

Hmmm, my TV's video quality is horrible when I drive.
This might have something to do with the "rabbit-ears" moving all of the time while I am driving, but I think it has more to do with the EMI in the car while the engine is running.
The quality degrades more with higher RPMs.

My Navigation screen is crystal clear all of the time, so I think the problem can be isolated to the TV tuner in the GEX itself (I don't think my IR/OSD circuit is to blame).

Does anyone have experience with poor TV quality, and do they have a solution for it?
Would a simple magentic choke on the power lines do the trick?

Pv

geninfty

thanks pvz for your great input to this forum even though you are driving a nissan... do you know how we do the mod on Lexus Navi system as well by the way? any forum?

geninfty

TV is horrible when you drive in urban area, but not as a function of engine RPM? like you said, it must be the emi, but you are not supposed to watch the tv while driving ?

pvz

This modification should work on any video system that uses RGBS signals.
Check your service manual wirings, and if it carries RGBS then you should be able to use this mod.

geninfty

Thanks for your input. The navi system of Lexus is not manufactured by Apline, but some other vendor. Unlike Honda
or Acura, it is very hard to work on Lexus- I don't even know where the navi CPU or DVD reader is!! It is concealed so well...

BTW, I am working on my AVM-P9000R project. I added Kenwood
Excelon 5ch amp to my system, and the sound quality is much better than using the built-in amp in AVM (duh), but alas, it picks up noise from the navi system- I tried many different ways and finally found out that i need to ground the case of amp and avm. More importantly, i should connect directly the cases of amp and avm together before it its the grounding point. this sounds like some sort of black magic, and I guess it is.

Most of all, I am completely out of the curse of Bose system- now the sound makes sense- not the "fabricated" feeling of bloze *equalizer* any more.

silvercoupe35

PVZ, if I cannot get my system working ( I have a feeling it has something to do with my IR/OSD circuit) would I be able to send to you what I have done and you make it work? I am asking this b/c you have said you would make them and sell them. BTW where are you from maybe I can drie it down to you. Let me know thanks.

pvz

PM or email me with your current issue and we'll talk.
I live in Seattle, WA, so that would be a long drive for you!

I have considered several options related to building and selling these IR/OSD devices.
My pages clearly disclose that my current version takes around $50 in parts.
There are extra costs such as tax, shipping, handling, wire, solder, screws, etc.
Small, but they add up, and I do not think that selling them for $75 would me fair to me (for my time and energy).

In addition to that, I know that I can lower my cost and increase the quality if I were to build this with surface mount components, all ordered from DigiKey.

Since this thread is my only [current] method of advertisement, who all would be interested in purchasing an IR/OSD, and now that you know that it [currently] costs me $50, what would you consider a fair price?

Pv@swooby.com

wang

hey boom,
i want to play regular dvds on the oem navigational screen, with sound going though the stock radio, i dont have the navigational system though, i just got the stock navigational display screen, and the harddrive and the harddrive disk... my question is: would the ac still work without the nav.dvd unit? i dont really need the navigation to work... just as long as i can play dvds on the screen and the ac to work thats all i need... i cant afford the nav. dvd unit... can u help me? seems like you know a lot about this area... or if you know anyone that might be able to help...
thanks

silvercoupe35

Do everything except ignore the red plug on the GEX