ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu (Ed Krimen) (01/19/91)
After having my NEC 3D for almost two months, I have <<<*FINALLY*>>>
gotten a switcher that works and works WELL.
I'm not going to go into detail about how I ended up with what I
ended up with, but I spent *A LOT* of time waiting for things to
arrive via UPS and I made A LOT of phone calls trying to iron things
out.
Before I tell you what I have, lemme say that you should avoid the
Omniswitch like the plague! I went through three of them and they
were all bad. None of them worked with my NEC 3D. One of the places
I called about the switchbox I have now won't even carry the
Omniswitch because he knows they are sh*tty.
I am now using an IB Multisync switchbox. IB Computers of Beaverton,
Oregon distributes them; they are made somewhere in Europe. It's a
very sturdy, well-designed, and well-built box. It's made of metal
and measures about 2"x3". It has audio out and audio in ports. It
has about an 18" cable going to the ST and a very, very long cable
for the multisync. At the end of the multisync cable is a *male*
9-pin plug, which I thought was kinda strange, but IB says that only
within the last few months have multisync monitors become rather
standardized. Therefore, I needed a female 9-pin to female 15-pin
converter since my 3D has a male 15-pin plug; I got that from a place
in Computer Shopper called DALCO, since I got my NEC 3D used and it
didn't come with one. The switchbox retails for $70, but can be found
for less than $55. It uses a 9V, 500milliamp power adaptor that I
needed to sync in monochrome so I used the one from my Atari 2600
in the closet.
So what's the verdict? Do I like it? Yes, I like it very much. Was
it worth the effort? Yes, I think so. The NEC 3D is a VERY nice
monitor. I saw the Acer/Omniswitch combo at my dealer; to test it, I
typed in a small note using NeoDesk 3.0's desktop notepad feature and
I couldn't even read what I wrote. NeoDesk uses a 6x6, the smallest
font, and it was very difficult to read. I did the same on the 3D and
it was crisp. I won't vouch that the 3D is as clear as an SM124, but
I don't need a magnifying glass on the 3D's 14" screen to see the 8x8
or 6x6 fonts. I'm not as picky as others about the sharpness of the
monochrome monitors, but the 3D comes quite close. The color on the
3D is also extraordinary. With the Omniswitch, the reds were pastel
and the screen was very large, even though it was shrunk down to its
smallest size. Whatever the IB switchbox has done differently, it
does it well.
I saw the Sony CPD1302A at a friend's house. I've heard from several
people that it's better than the 3D for connecting to the ST. I
regrettably didn't examine upclose the clarity of the monochrome, but
it and the color both looked great. The screen adjustment controls
are at the back of the 1302 which is a disadvantage; they're on the
front of the 3D. The mechanical click of the 1302 syncing could also
be heard when switching between color and mono.
So there ya' go. As always, if you have any questions, you know
where to reach me.
--
Ed Krimen ...............................................
||| Video Production Major, California State University, Chico
||| INTERNET: ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu FREENET: al661
/ | \ SysOp, Fuji BBS: 916-894-1261 FIDONET: 1:119/4.0bill@mwca.UUCP (Bill Sheppard) (01/22/91)
In article <1991Jan18.220827.4568@ecst.csuchico.edu> ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu (Ed Krimen) writes: >[discussion of switchbox woes deleted] >I am now using an IB Multisync switchbox... >...for less than $55. It uses a 9V, 500milliamp power adaptor that I >needed to sync in monochrome so I used the one from my Atari 2600 >in the closet. I'm surprised a power supply is needed. I've built a cable (RF nightmare, I'm sure, but the picture quality is perfect with the Sony 1302) which has a headphone jack for audio and a switch for mono/color switching. No need for a power supply, the switch grounds the mono detect line when in mono mode from the ground connection of the monitor port. It's ugly, but works perfectly, and the headphone connection allows me to use my powered speakers for awesome sound, or a small amplifier I built around Radio Shack's amplifier chip for ~$10 with headphones for non-powered speakers. Perhaps the IB switchbox has an amplifier in it for which power is needed? Anyway, my setup just looks like a serial cable with a headphone socket and an ugly pink toggle switch a few inches from the ST end. I've hardwired the nine-pin female connection for the Sony, but would be easy enough to rework for other connections. -- ################################################################################ # Bill Sheppard -- bills@microware.com -- {uunet,sun}!mcrware!mwca!bill # # Microware Systems Corporation --- OS-9: Seven generations beyond __/_!! # #######Opinions expressed are my own, though you'd be wise to adopt them!#######
ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu (Ed Krimen) (01/23/91)
bill@mwca.UUCP (Bill Sheppard) writes: - I'm surprised a power supply is needed. I am too, but just as long as the damn thing works. :^) Actually a friend of mine who has a 3D connected to his Amiga mentioned that a power source may be needed because of something funky (<-- good term, huh? :^) with the 3D's output. I got the box used and I thought the port where the power supply goes in was a headphone jack. I opened up the box and it didn't look like it was going to any audio source. A friend of mine also has the 1302 and he doesn't need a power supply for his switch. -- Ed Krimen ............................................... ||| Video Production Major, California State University, Chico ||| INTERNET: ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu FREENET: al661 / | \ SysOp, Fuji BBS: 916-894-1261 FIDONET: 1:119/4.0
Roger.Sheppard@bbs.actrix.gen.nz (01/23/91)
<1991Jan22.195929.23721@ecst.csuchico.edu> Sender: Followup-To: Distribution:world Organization: Actrix Information Exchange, Wellington, New Zealand Keywords: Comment-To: ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu In article <1991Jan22.195929.23721@ecst.csuchico.edu> ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu (Ed Krimen) writes: > bill@mwca.UUCP (Bill Sheppard) writes: > > - I'm surprised a power supply is needed. > > I am too, but just as long as the damn thing works. :^) Actually a > friend of mine who has a 3D connected to his Amiga mentioned that a > power source may be needed because of something funky (<-- good term, > huh? :^) with the 3D's output. I got the box used and I thought the > port where the power supply goes in was a headphone jack. I opened > up the box and it didn't look like it was going to any audio source. > > A friend of mine also has the 1302 and he doesn't need a power supply > for his switch. > > -- > Ed Krimen ............................................... > ||| Video Production Major, California State University, Chico > ||| INTERNET: ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu FREENET: al661 > / | \ SysOp, Fuji BBS: 916-894-1261 FIDONET: 1:119/4.0 I have read somewhere that the ST puts out a short Frame sync pulse that does not lock some monitors in the Mono Mode, so they put in a 555 timer IC, this could be what the P.S.U. is for, also I have read that the later versions of the NEC 2A do work on a Atari, Note the Atari only has 2 scan modes, similar to CGA/VGA but with Analog inputs, anothere thing that is often forgoten is that the RGB voltages are 1 volt pk-pk and some monitors can only take 0.75 volts pk-pk, so to get this voltage down, just fit 22 ohm resitors in the RGB lines at the monitor end of the cable... -- Roger W. Sheppard 85 Donovan Rd, Kapiti New Zealand...
ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu (Ed Krimen) (01/24/91)
s37837k@saha.hut.fi (Jari Lehto) writes: - What happens, if you unplug this power supply during operation? The computer reboots and it goes back to color. When I operate the switch when the power supply is not connected, it just stays in color mode. If I switch it several times, eventually it will reboot the computer and still stay in color. - Are there many components besides the switch and audio connector in - that box of yours? Nope. Looks pretty basic to me, but then what do I know? I thought the NEC 2A wouldn't work with the ST. :^D -- Ed Krimen ............................................... ||| Video Production Major, California State University, Chico ||| INTERNET: ekrimen@ecst.csuchico.edu FREENET: al661 / | \ SysOp, Fuji BBS: 916-894-1261 FIDONET: 1:119/4.0