Unfortunatly for me, the radio mount in my vehicle is about 4-6 inches above knee level. Because of this I have to look slightly downward to see the empeg screen. The faceplate on the mark 2 is so thick and centered around the screen, you can't see half of the top line which is where the song title is for most info screens. This pretty much makes the top line useless without leaning down. Even sitting on a desk in front of you can show this effect. Too late now but the faceplate could have been adjusted a bit during design to reduce this effect. Then again, maybe this IS the adjusted version of a really bad faceplate design.

Alex Lear

maybe this IS the adjusted version of a really bad faceplate design.

Because you install the Mk2 at knee level, it is an adjusted version of a really bad design?
YMBJ

Henno
mk2 6 nr 6

Two things are real important in a car:
1)radio placement
2)cup holder placement

Sounds like you need to address #1 :)

AL

I feel I must point out that a large number of tests were carried out
during the design of the faceplate to give as large a viewing angle
as possible, for both left and right seating positions.

Due to the design of the VFD itself, the actual phosphor is some distance
behind the glass, and the inevitable result is that the viewing angle is
not optimal for a contoured fascia. That said, I think calling it a "really bad
design" is somewhat insulting to the people who spend weeks on it.

It's not my personal favourite, I'll admit, but that is more of a stylistic
thing rather than any criticism of the implementation. Some compromises had to
be made during the design, and it was pointed out (by me, in fact), that if the
unit was mounted very low it lost a few pixels off the top. However, (a) there
wasn't any really practical way of solving this, and (b) the vast majority of
cars install the radio much closer to normal eye level.

The only reason I really made a point of it was that at the time I had a
Citroen BX, in which the radio is behind a flap down just in front of the
gear stick, which isn't really a particularly good place anyway. Mind you,
that's the French for you :)

On balance, I don't think anything else could have been done to fix this
(very rare) problem. I can only suggest finding a way to either tilt it very slightly or move it higher, or simply live with it.

Patrick

Opinions expressed in this email may contain up to 42% water by weight, and are mine. All mine.

You guys are not reading my post correctly. First of all, I am not mounting it at knee level, I said 4-6 inches ABOVE knee level. Or if that is confusing, about 12 inches below chin level. However you look at it, it is lower than my eyes which is normal for many cars, trucks, ect. It points straight out of my dash which is the only way it can be mounted. This mounting position is not my choice, it is the stock mounting position. In fact I have mounted it in the top of a double DIN space to reduce this effect and it still happends. I don't really want to hear from people that have "ideal" mounting positions because you can't understand what a problem it is.

Obviously, the sceen is viewable from the left and right. However up and down viewing angles are limited by the faceplate sticking out so much. Yes, I realize the VFD is set in behind the colored display and this is why the problem exists.

I did not say the faceplate was a bad design. I meant maybe this is what they came up with as a fix to a preliminary design that was much worse.

I personally don't think it matters how much time was spend on designing the faceplate. If it is not usable in many vehicles, then empeg should rethink their design. That is a FACT so don't get mad at me for saying it. If the mark 2 oval was just shifted up or made slightly higher toward the top then the screen could be seen from above the unit. You never have to look up at it, but it is common to look down toward it at home and in the car.

I know I am not the only one that has this problem, I am just the first to mention it. Don't get so defensive, this is CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM. This is a problem that may not be fixable but if no one says anything it continues to be a problem. Empeg may not even know this is a problem because they may have only seen the empeg in cars with perfect mounting positions. What happends if a major car audio publication reviews the empeg in a vehicle like mine. They are first going to be faced with an impossible installation because of my dash shape which other manufacturers compensate for and then the screen will not be viewable. Empeg might get a bad review for a problem they didn't even know about.

So, easy on the harsh comments. My viewing problem is REAL!


Alex Lear

First off I don't think anyone meant any of their comments to be harsh. Most of the people on this board can be privately emailed or even called on the phone, and are usually happy to help anyone.

I was just checking the viewing angles of my MK1 and it seems that it would be ok in your application (2feet away 1 foot down). I haven't had the opportunity to see an MK2, I've got an extra MK1 blue face plate if you want to try to retrofit it onto the MK2, if it would even fit.

AL

I thought about using the mark 2 with just the colored screen and leave off the faceplate but then I would have to buy new buttons ( the knob would be OK though ). Really, I don't like the idea of having to take off the faceplate just to use the empeg properly.

If you set the empeg on a desk in front of you at about chest height like most desks are you have this problem. If Hugo had a faceplate on the empeg in this picture here he would not have been able to see many of the characters on the top line. The characters on the top left side are the most often used yet they are the most ofter covered.

I am one of the people that gladly helps out others (after Tony) on this BBS. I thought some of the posts were "harsh" because the first reply made it sound like it was my installation that was causing the viewing problem. One of the things I thought about when posting the original message was the replies from people that have ideal installs or mark 1 faceplates.

Alan, the mark 2 viewing angle is greatly decreased when viewing from the top side. Much different from the mark 1.

Alex Lear

What kind of vehicle is yours in mark? I'm guessing it is up high enought to see all the characters. ??

Alex Lear

Hey, no fair using my photograph as an example!

It's interesting that you're having trouble seeing the display and your radio isn't even mounted down very low. I understand your complaint, but it seems to me that the Empeg folks did everything they can to make sure it was readable in the majority of cases. Your car must be an exception.

One other thing to throw into the mix here... isn't the driver's seat adjustment a factor in the visibility equation? Maybe your problem would go away if you just leaned your seat back a notch?

___________
Tony Fabris

...It's in a honda accord '99.. take a look at my install pictures here:
http://mse.ufl.edu/~mark/empeg/

Actually, honda's have a really nice placement for the stereo, which is why this doesn't really effect me too much..
-mark

...proud to have owned one of the first Mark I units

That's a really good placement and it looks like its even tilted up.

Alex Lear

That's a really good placement and it looks like its even tilted up.

Yeah, most cars make sure to tilt the radio display toward the driver. I'm surprised yours doesn't.

The best radio location I've ever seen is the 1980's Volkswagens. My '88 GTI and its counterparts (Golf, Jetta, etc.) had the radio as the very top item in the dashboard, very close to the instrument cluster, just barely below the windshield line. You could actually look directly at the radio and still drive with your peripheral vision. Car reviewers commended VW for doing it that way.

The only problem with the high mounting like that was heat. The radio got a lot of heat from the sun shining directly onto it and onto the dash top above it.

___________
Tony Fabris

I have a 2000 toyota 4runner and the view of the upper left corner is slightly obstructed. I think I miss most of the first character in the song title. The rest of the top line is fine. From the passenger seat it looks fine (or maybe the last character in that line is not as important?). That said -- I am still very happy with my empeg player. By the time the honeymoon phase wears off and I get annoyed with the view angle / placement, it will be time to get a new car. I will just take this into account in my car selection (or will new cars be coming with empegs by that time?).

-Doug
(Mk2-12G-Blue)

haha.. that rules. We're now choosing our cars based on how they'll fit an Empeg. Now THAT's product loyalty!

haha.. that rules. We're now choosing our cars based on how they'll fit an Empeg. Now THAT's product loyalty!

I already did. One of the things which made me choose my current car is that its stereo was a standard DIN size and wouldn't require an adapter kit, and I could install the Empeg right away (actually, I ended up ordering a wiring harness and master sheet from Crutchfield, but I wasn't thinking about that when I bought the car). Also, it was a green car to match the green faceplate on my Empeg. There were different "trim levels" of the car, and I made sure to choose the one with a DIN radio.

I was this close to getting a personalized license plate that said EMPEG. My wife wouldn't let me, though.

___________
Tony Fabris

As long as we're not choosing our wives based on Empeg compatibility, there's still hope.

I have a 2000 toyota 4runner and the view of the upper left corner is slightly obstructed. Toyota mounts the radio under the heater vents, cup holder, and heater controls. However, I do like the layout with one exception. I don't know if you have come across this yet but the cup holder opens up in front of the heater vents. I went to McDonalds and got a soda and put it in the cup holder. It was winter so the heater was cranked on high. After a while (of heating) I went to get the soda and the wax cup they use was so hot it left my fingerprints in the wax on the side of the cup and my fingers sore for an hour. It would probably work great for coffee though.

Anyway, the faceplate curve only really covers the left part for me too. There is good visibility of the center and right sides. Mine covers the first 4 characters completely. I happened to switch to a song by No Doubt called
"Just a Girl" but when I looked at it all I saw was
just "a Girl".

Alex Lear

I have to agree with you there.. it's not bad left-right, but it is decreased top/bottom... Again, it's not really bad enough to bother me personally, but I can see how it might bother someone else...

In my install I can't see the top upper left corner of the display, because of overhang of the faceplate, but its not that big of a deal to me. It's only like half a letters worth of loss anyway.

(O|||||O)

"Toyota mounts the radio under the heater vents, cup holder, and heater controls..."

This must have changed in 2000, becasue my 4runner's cup holders are between the seats( next to the brake handle). I am quite happy with it, even w/o the coffee warmer feature. It make a nice home for the empeg. :-)

-Doug
(Mk2-12G-Blue)

alear: I have the same thing. If anyone has ever had this running on their desk, they'd know exactly what you're talking about, unless they are less than 5' tall. There is plenty of space below the display before the fascia starts, if the VFD was 8mm lower...

I wonder, there must be some rejected designs for faceplates for the MK2...if, perhaps, there was enough interest, I wonder if limited runs of alternate faceplates could be made. I don't imagine it would be cheap, but the Type-A people would be happy.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --
MK2 #141, green, 12GB

I was thinking if the VFD was mounted on the PCB only 2 millimeters lower it would be seen perfectly from the front still and would provide greater viewing from above. Viewing from lower-left would be decreased but the most important information is at the top-left anyway and this would only negetively effect people who have mounted their empeg to the roof inside their car.

Alex Lear

You know, if I hadn't read this thread, I never would have noticed, but paying some attention, I see I'm right on the edge. In normal seating, I can see all the pixels just fine. If I lean forward much, I start losing pixels fast. This is in my BMW Z3. If I still had my older Nissan 240SX, there would have been no problem at all because the stereo, despite being at knee level, is angled up to face you directly.

as long as we're not choosing our wives based on Empeg compatibility, there's still hope.

Hm, seeing where some of this board members' loyalty lays, I wonder if some wives are beginning to have second thoughts...

BTW, I actually did consider replacing my Renault Twingo I am very satisfied with because of difficult empeg installation (not done yet, BTW).

Cheers!

Dragi "Bonzi" Raos
Zagreb, Croatia
Q#5196, MkII#80000376, 18GB green

The VFD mounting height is adjustable during manufacture - it depends where the sticky pads that hold the glass to the PCB are placed, as the glass itself has pins coming out of one side only. The manufacturers are instructed to seat the display low down, but we have seen variations in production units.

You may be able to help the problem slightly by removing the front plastic and *gently* (and I mean gently) pushing the glass down with a finger on both sides at the top - the position it's supposed to be is around 1.5-2mm clearance between the metal lip below the display and the glass itself as I remember.

Hugo

Mine covers the first 4 characters completely.

I am in much the same boat with my car -- I lose all of the first four and part of the next four letters of the the top line unless I lean down and peer more or less straight in.

As somebody in this thread mentioned (sorry, I didn't note who) to get an idea of what the empeg screen looks like in a lot of cars, put the empeg on your desk, 15" back from the edge and 10" to the right. Now slide your chair so you are right up against the desk, and look at the display.

Hugo mentioned that the vertical position of the display might be slightly adjustable. If I look absolutely perfectly straight into my display, the upper-leftmost pixel is less than one millimeter from the bottom of the curved fascia. Is this about right?

Arguing from my position of total ignorance of how design and production actually works, it looks like the problem could be solved easily just by changing the shape of the curve on top of the "wing" design of the left side of the fascia. Yes, I know, you'd be compromising the aerodynamic efficiency of the wing, but relatively few of us actually fly our empegs in any case.

tanstaafl.





"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

Hmmm, this might not go over well with those of you who drive on the wrong side of the road ;-) but, this problem would appear to go away for the rest of us if the wing was just facing the other direction.

-Mike

If the display is mounted at the right height, there should be no problems from either side: as a reference, looking straight into my empeg the bottom left of the active area is basically at the plasticwork edge: the top left is 3 or 4mm clear. We altered the wing shape between original SLA prototype and actual plastic to open the wing shape out and to improve the angle (the plastic was also made thinner).

Hugo

The viewing angle was far more restricted on the original design, and I worked extremely hard with the designers to fix the problem just days before the moulding tool had to be signed off. After many CAD simulations, and physical testing of a new SLA model, I was completely satisfied with the resultant design.

Our A-Class demonstrator has the worst viewing angle of any car I've personally seen, with the stereo near the floor, and the driver in a high seating position. The display JUST clips the top leftmost character, and I'm rather tall so that's worst case.

I'm sorry your car has an even worse viewing angle, but when you talk about really bad design it does rather sound as if the blame should be shared with your car manufacturer!

Rob

Actually, I just checked and the stereo is just BELOW knee level in the A-Class. If it was an inch higher, or I was an inch shorter, or I put the seat back a couple of inches, then there would be no clipping at all.

We've seen Mk.2 empegs in a wide variety of vehicles and I haven't seen anything close to the problem you describe - what car have you got?

Rob

when you talk about really bad design it does rather sound as if the blame should be shared with your car manufacturer!

And you may want to consider the driving position, I guess
I suppose that the viewing angle is less restricted when you're further removed from the wheel

Henno
mk2 6 nr 6

NB: and where you drive, of course. I bet that the viewability problem is less critical in left hand drive countries . . .

Rob make sure you are sitting in the left front car seat when testing the viewing angle. Most of us are sitting in the left side seat in the U.S. Viewing is not as bad from the right side because the curved face "curves up".

Alex Lear

If the display is mounted at the right height, there should be no problems from either side: as a reference, looking straight into my empeg the bottom left of the active area is basically at the plasticwork edge: the top left is 3 or 4mm clear.

For further reference, on my unit, the left hand edge of the active part is almost perfectly equally spaced from the top and bottom edges of the fascia. This would appear to mean it's not quite as it is intended to be. It won't matter to me when I install it, though, because we sit on the right side of the car when driving, plus my car (for all its other faults) has the mount tilted upwards.

Richard.

Yes, I have checked from both seats. There is slightly more viewing restriction in left hand drive vehicles, but in the case of the A-Class this still only affects the upper half of the top left character. I just checked the height of the stereo - it's slightly below knee level. In my case I have the seat most of the way back, but my head is near the roof of the vehicle. A shorter person (mentioning no names) would have the seat further forward, but the reduced height compensates for this and the net viewing angle is much the same.

One thing that comes to mind (and perhaps you covered this - I haven't had time to catch up with all several hundred messages from the last week) is that your DIN bay has no incline. Practically every bay I've ever seen is inclined upwards, usually by between 10 and 20 degrees. That's why the empeg disk tray has a corresponding but opposite incline.

Rob

Rob, as you catch up with the messages, you'll notice that Hugo mentioned there's a possibility of some manufacturing variation in the mounting height of the VFD display. From what I've gleaned from the messages so far, I think the folks complaining may be the ones with the unlucky combination of a higher-than-usual VFD display and a car with a low and/or non-tilted mounting spot.

By the way, welcome back from holiday. We missed you. Did you have a good time off?

___________
Tony Fabris

looking straight into my empeg the bottom left of the active area is basically at the plasticwork edge: the top left is 3 or 4mm clear.

Hugo -- Mine is almost the exact opposite, i.e., my bottom left is 3 or 4mm clear, and my top left is basically at the plasticwork edge.

In a previoius post you alluded to being able to reposition the display vertically to some degree. Could you elaborate on the procedure, with caveats and warnings as to the pitfalls and what to do and not to do? I don't wish to take a chance of damaging my empeg, but on the other hand if a simple, relatively safe procedure can gain me half a line of viewable area I'd like to do it.

tanstaafl.

"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

I'll send an email over to our manufacturer (if Hugo hasn't already done so) to check up on their VFD alignment procedure. I know they're very unhappy with the way the component fits (as they don't like any human factor in assembly) but that's how the VFD is designed and we can't change it. Hopefully they'll come up with something to improve consistancy in positioning it.

The holiday was good thanks, although I'm already regretting the decision to go back to work on a Friday :-)

Rob

Could the fact that you guys drive from the right seat have anything to do with this discrepancy in visibility experienced?

Cheers!

Dragi "Bonzi" Raos
Zagreb, Croatia
Q#5196, MkII#80000376, 18GB green

We also have left seats, so it's not hard to check this! I posted elsewhere in this thread to point out that left hand drive is slightly worse than right hand drive, but still not a big problem in the cars that we've tested.

Rob

Do you guys at empeg think a margin could be implimented on the first line? This would essentially leave spaces in the first few character spots on the top line then display the song title. Selectable, of course, so users with viewing problems could still see the whole title and people without the problem wouldn't lose valuable characters.

I'm not sure how hard this would be to program but it sounds like its easier than changing manufacturing techniques.

Alex Lear

Perhaps when the new UI comes out they will have it be selectable... right justify, left justify, center justify?

Tom

Reg #2845: Mark 1 #00173, Mark 2 #119

We also have left seats...



Dragi "Bonzi" Raos
Zagreb, Croatia
Q#5196, MkII#80000376, 18GB green

Alex,

This has been asked before, and you may already have answered this / I may have missed your answer, but what car do you drive that gives you this problem?

Henno
mk2 6 nr 6

Henno, I have a 1995 Toyota 4Runner. I don't have a digital camera to take a picture of the empeg but here is a picture of the stock radio.



Note that the picture is taken from dash height and not driver height.

The radio faces straight out and doesn't lean up at all. I have a second video head unit in the lower part of the double DIN opening so I can't really lean the empeg back either. Plus the current mounting position will have to do because the 4Runner dash had to be cut to accomidate the empegs width. Thats a seperate thread here. The problem may come because SUV's position the driver in a more upright seating position. So if you mix that with an over 6 foot driver, low dash mount, no tilt mounting, and Murphy's law you get pixel obscurity.

Alex Lear

Well there's a couple things about that picture.

1) it's from dash height but it's very far forward. It looks like you took it from right next to the steering wheel.

2) that is incredibly low. I see no reason that you should blame empeg for the visibility. That's not very fair.

3) how short are your knees?

DiGNAN
13653

Well Alex, we're finally coming to grips with the problem.

Note Dignan's observation (next post):
how short are your knees?

And, like you say (above):
. . . mix that with an over 6 foot driver

We're at the bottom of the issue: you're the first empeg incompatible customer on this board, or is your car to blame?
No kidding: you're having real bad luck; best to blame Murphy

Henno
mk2 6 nr 6

I have adjusted my screen which was mounted a little high on the circuit board. However, the first 3-4 characters are still at least half covered. If you had read my post, I clearly said I do not have digital camera. The picture I got was from the internet. It was there to simply show the dash. The picture may have been taken slightly more forward than the driver would normally sit but it is way back from the steering wheel. You don't know what zoom setting it was on so for all we know it could have been taken from outside the back of the vehicle! The picture was not there to show viewing angle because it doesn't! I even tried to make a note about the picture so it wouldn't fool people.

The fact that I am 6'1" tall (which isn't that odd) shouldn't be an issue.

THE PROBLEM IS REAL!

I am tired of explaining this to people that have ideal installs in their vehicles. This doesn't concern you. If this was the case in your vehicle you wouldn't be saying things like "it's your cars fault" or "you took the picture too close." This is not a problem that I created for myself, other people in this thread have commented that they have seen or have the problem too. I really believe that there is more than a few people with this problem even if it is not as bad. I really don't think my car is to blame more than the empeg itself. Every other radio that has been in the vehicle (and every other car stereo on the market)can be clearly veiwed. It's time to stop blaming me or my vehicle and ask yourself, "Does the faceplate limit the viewing angle?" Once you answer that, you may begin to understand the problem for me.

I think the biggest problem with this thread is that people are willing to put up with obscured pixels rather than admit that in this case the empeg has a problem. This issue is not new. empeg knew the faceplate would limit viewing. I'm sure they didn't anticipate it being such a problem for some customers. I have put up with the problem so far but I think it's silly to do so. The empeg is a really great hardware/software product and shouldn't be limited by the physical case.

Even this is a problem that could be handled in software. I have suggested a reasonable fix to the problem by adding a (selectable) few character margin for the top line and I hope they don't consider it a waste of their time. At least one of their current customers is counting on it and some future customers will appreciate it.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my empeg as much as anyone and I enjoy the feedback from this BBS as long as you are really trying to see the frustration from my view too.

Alex Lear

Actually, I think we are thinking two different things. I was hoping to just move the title to the right (like a left margin not a top margin) a few characters worth even if it means chopping off a few characters on the end of the title. Menus and visualizations don't need changing just the two info screens with data on the top line.

Alex Lear

I was hoping to just move the title to the right (like a left margin not a top margin) a few characters worth even if it means chopping off a few characters on the end of the title.

This sounds like a very fast and good work-around to your problem. I like it. It could be controlled from Emplode, and written as a config.ini option.

It's a shame that it has to be done at all, though. For the record, I don't think anyone was saying your problem wasn't real, or that it was somehow your fault. I think what we were saying is that Empeg designed the unit with a pretty fair eye towards making it work for the majority of modern cars, and you were just unlucky that your car's dash mounts the radio flat instead of angled.

I'm glad to hear that you were able to improve the situation by tweaking the display mounting a bit. Do you have any notes or tips from that experience to help others in the same situation?

___________
Tony Fabris

> THE PROBLEM IS REAL!

I don't know, but if anyone took a second to connect it on their desks, they SHOULD be able to see what you are talking about if they did (unless they are so short, their eyes are less than a 6" above the desk, or their desk is so expansive, that the unit is more than 4' away.) Certainly they'd find out sooner than the time it takes to try and write helpful replies to you -- someone who seems to be an engineer.

I am maybe 10 degrees above the player at current view height, and two feet away, and the entire top half of the first character on the first line is cut off by the curve of the fascia, and 1/3 of the nextmost character.

No mystery there. You are clearly sane and have a legitimate design concern.

It is only when I am about 5 degrees above the unit, from the same distance, that NONE of the display area is blocked by the fascia.

Looking at the unit, this would be less of a problem in RHD vehicles, since the curvature of the fascia over the right-hand side is less intrusive.

And, big surprise, if I angle the unit as if I were sitting in a RHD vehicle, same distance, same angle, the top-leftmost character is only BARELY cut off by the fascia.

FWIW

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --
MK2 #141, green, 12GB

We did rather better than put a unit on a desk (which has little correlation with a real car). We have comprehensive engineering diagrams from SolidWorks which show the exact viewing range to within a fraction of a degree, and those figures were considered adequate for the vast majority of vehicles.

Please don't make out that we didn't spend any time on this (as project manager for the new fascia I lost a LOT of sleep over just this issue) and please don't suggest that the people that worked on it aren't even engineers. I might be a mere electronics and computing graduate, but the people that designed and manufactured the plastic are top professionals in their field and put in a great deal of research.

I'm not sure what kind of "helpful" response you're expecting. I'm not saying that this client isn't telling the truth, I am saying that this problem occurs only in a fraction of vehicles. Those are vehicles in which the manufacturer has seen fit to position the stereo low down and not tilt the bay upwards. What can we do about this? With the panel, nothing - we already redesigned the CAD to improve the viewing angle as far as the designer was able to go without scrapping the whole style. Will we scrap a $40,000 tool and design project? No, because this is far from a universal problem and it makes no commercial sense for us to do so. Will we work around in software? Maybe, I don't manage the software development and I have no idea what would be involved in that.

Rob

... tweaking the display mounting a bit. Do you have any notes or tips from that experience to help others in the same situation?

Yes, please! If anything, my empeg position is worse than yours -- not as low, but further to the right, with absolutely no tilt to it, and further back towards the driver. I lose all of my first two or three letters, and the top half of the next four or five. Judging from what Hugo said here and here my display is mounted a full 3--4 millimeters higher than optimal.

Lowering my display would go a long ways towards inproving readability. I tried removing the fascia and gently pushing down on the display panel, but nothing moved nor could I see what might move, so I guess I didn't understand Hugo's instruction and I didn't want to press the issue. (pun intended.)

tanstaafl.



"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

Edited by tanstaafl. on 4/9/00 11:21 AM.

When I say "display panel" I meant the VFD's glass. This is the big bit of glass with pins at the bottom of it. DO NOT do it with the power on, as there's 60v on this part (and on the display PSU).

You should be able to just get your fingers on both sides of the top edge and gently pull the display towards the bottom of the case. It won't move much, but you're trying to get the bottom edge of the glass around 1.5mm from the metal lip on the bottom of the front of the case.

Hugo

Rob, I know the display was professionally designed. It really does look great. It is helpful to know that you are aware of the problem, even if nothing gets done about it. Initially I set out to just tell you of the problem, not to get you to change your manufacturing design. I figured maybe no one there has a 4Runner and you may not even know there is a problem. The same goes with the Toyota dash needing to be cut to make the empeg fit. Maybe a future version will eliminate these problems and maybe it won't but at least you are aware of the specific problem.

As for a software fix, it would be nice. Not fixing a problem that the faceplate design created doesn't sound like something that empeg would do. However, like most owners, I would also like to see other software advances before this like VR.

I am still very impressed with my empeg and use it all the time.

Alex Lear

DO NOT do it with the power on, as there's 60v on this part (and on the display PSU).

As Mike will attest, I'm told.

___________
Tony Fabris

You should be able to just get your fingers on both sides of the top edge and gently pull the display towards the bottom of the case.

I tried that (twice, now) and the display doesn't move. I have pressed hard enough to cause mild discomfort on the balls of my fingertips, and am afraid to press harder than that.

I would guess the bottom edge of the glass is 3--5 mm above the metal lip on the bottom of the front of the case.

What holds that display glass in place? I remember reading somewhere something about sticky pads...

The VFD mounting height is adjustable during manufacture - it depends where the sticky pads that hold the glass to the PCB are placed, as the glass itself has pins coming out of one side only.

(boy, am I good, or what! :-)

...but I don't really understand the construction of it.

tanstaafl.





"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

This problem is also very real in my Volvo S40. Passengers
(on the right) can read the track info OK, but I can't see the
first couple of characters of the top line.

I think this problem could easily be solved in software. If the
track number and elapsed time would shift to the top line and
the rest one line down, I would be able to see everything.

If the track number and elapsed time would shift to the top line and the rest one line down, I would be able to see everything.

Simple. What an excellent idea. I cannot read the first five letters of the top line because of a mounting position that is too low and not angled, plus my display screen on the empeg itself is mounted at the extreme top of the allowable range. This idea would solve the problem completely.

tanstaafl.



"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"

Any feedback or status on the complexity of implementing this? (I realize my response is eons late...)

Any feedback or status on the complexity of implementing this? (I realize my response is eons late...)

Not in software (which I think would be a really great idea... but there is a hardware solution which you can implement. See here in Tony's incredible FAQ.

Also, refer to this post for a little more insight on just how to do it.

tanstaafl.

may be it is better to replace the original fascia. http://empeg.comms.net/php/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=prodject&Number=113528&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=0&fpart=