LCD Fade Out and VU Meter Display Problem? at DVinfo.net

Dale Paterson · December 19th, 2005, 12:35 AM

A couple of days ago I was shooting some footage with my FX1E and the LCD display sort of 'faded out' (subject as well as text prompts) and then 'faded in' again in a split second.

Has this happened to anyone else?

Right after this I noticed the following (but I cannot be sure that I just did not notice this before or if this was caused because of the above problem):

Set Audio to Manual and have a good look at the Left (L) and Right (R) VU Meters on the LCD.

For explanation purposes they should (I think) look like this (assuming that there is no sound present):

L==========
R==========

BUT

Mine look like this

L==========
R-------------

In other words the dashes representing the Right (R) Scale are 'thinner' than the dashes representing the Left (L) Scale almost as if the Left (L) Scale is displayed as 'Bold' and the Right (R) Scale is displayed as 'Normal'.

PLEASE NOTE:

It is the actual scale representation that you should be looking at AND NOT the audio levels.

(Actually you cannot really see cleary from the above representation but I hope you get the picture. It is not the number of dashes to which I refer - both L and R are actually equal on the camera - but rather the thickness of the dashes that are different).

It is the same on the viewfinder so it cannot be the LCD (if this is in fact a genuine problem).

I have not noticed this before although I do not normally use Manual Audio.

Mine is a FX1E (PAL) but please check your FX1 (NTSC) and respond as well as I am trying to gather stats on this issue.

So far the score is (from other forums):

FX1E (PAL) - have same problem - 3
FX1 (NTSC) - no problem - 0

Please respond - it will only take you a minute to check out your camera and post the results!!!

The purpose of these posts is to ensure that this is not a current / potential problem developing i.e. is this an indicator that there is an audio problem developing or is it just cosmetics that Sony overlooked or is there an LCD display issue.

There may also be a firmware update that solves this problem and possibly other issues but I need this info to take to Sony and if it is in fact a problem indicator I can track down the cause and solution and post it on the message boards for eveyones benefit.
__________________
Regards,

Dale.

Sony HDR-FX1E / Sony DCR-VX2100E / Sony DCR-TRV27E / Sony DCR-TRV285E

SONY like.no.other

Steve Crisdale · December 19th, 2005, 05:48 AM

Well spotted!!

I never actually noticed it before... or to be more precise, it's never bothered me enough to truly take notice of it before.

I doubt that it would be anything more than a pixel displacement issue. Namely the number of pixels able to show the Left channel graph are enough to show the correct thickness of line, while the Right channel graph must discard info to fit within the available pixels on screen to display... much the same as what a computer screen does with lines.

It certainly doesn't appear to indicate an imminent audio failure. I certainly doubt that my PAL FX-1e just suddenly decided to display the meters in that fashion out of sympathy with your unit!! Besides; I've not had audio problems for the 12 months that I've had the camera.

Has your audio suddenly gone "up the khyber"?

Dale Paterson · December 19th, 2005, 11:07 AM

Thanks so much for the reply Steve - much appreciated.

No - my audio is perfect but what worried me was the fact that the LCD disappeared on me for a split second and it was only after that that I noticed this oddity. Now I'm more worried about the LCD that disappeared on me than the VU Meter Display.

One thing I can tell you though is that so far it appears to be the FX1E (PAL) that has this odd VU Meter Display - it looks like this does not happen with the FX1 (NTSC).

Any ideas on my LCD disappearance? When it disappeared and came on again the camera did not emit a beep or anything like that so I think it is safe to say that it (the camera) did not loose power or anything like that. Besides that the battery was fully charged and probably has not been used more than ten times and has always been allowed to run totally flat before recharging (creature of habit).

Having said all of that the LCD has not disappeared again (yet).

Regards,

Dale.

December 19th, 2005, 12:35 AM	#1
Dale Paterson Major Player Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Posts: 200	LCD Fade Out and VU Meter Display Problem? A couple of days ago I was shooting some footage with my FX1E and the LCD display sort of 'faded out' (subject as well as text prompts) and then 'faded in' again in a split second. Has this happened to anyone else? Right after this I noticed the following (but I cannot be sure that I just did not notice this before or if this was caused because of the above problem): Set Audio to Manual and have a good look at the Left (L) and Right (R) VU Meters on the LCD. For explanation purposes they should (I think) look like this (assuming that there is no sound present): L========== R========== BUT Mine look like this L========== R------------- In other words the dashes representing the Right (R) Scale are 'thinner' than the dashes representing the Left (L) Scale almost as if the Left (L) Scale is displayed as 'Bold' and the Right (R) Scale is displayed as 'Normal'. PLEASE NOTE: It is the actual scale representation that you should be looking at AND NOT the audio levels. (Actually you cannot really see cleary from the above representation but I hope you get the picture. It is not the number of dashes to which I refer - both L and R are actually equal on the camera - but rather the thickness of the dashes that are different). It is the same on the viewfinder so it cannot be the LCD (if this is in fact a genuine problem). I have not noticed this before although I do not normally use Manual Audio. Mine is a FX1E (PAL) but please check your FX1 (NTSC) and respond as well as I am trying to gather stats on this issue. So far the score is (from other forums): FX1E (PAL) - have same problem - 3 FX1 (NTSC) - no problem - 0 Please respond - it will only take you a minute to check out your camera and post the results!!! The purpose of these posts is to ensure that this is not a current / potential problem developing i.e. is this an indicator that there is an audio problem developing or is it just cosmetics that Sony overlooked or is there an LCD display issue. There may also be a firmware update that solves this problem and possibly other issues but I need this info to take to Sony and if it is in fact a problem indicator I can track down the cause and solution and post it on the message boards for eveyones benefit. __________________ Regards, Dale. Sony HDR-FX1E / Sony DCR-VX2100E / Sony DCR-TRV27E / Sony DCR-TRV285E SONY like.no.other

December 19th, 2005, 05:48 AM	#2
Steve Crisdale Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Katoomba NSW Australia Posts: 635	Well spotted!! I never actually noticed it before... or to be more precise, it's never bothered me enough to truly take notice of it before. I doubt that it would be anything more than a pixel displacement issue. Namely the number of pixels able to show the Left channel graph are enough to show the correct thickness of line, while the Right channel graph must discard info to fit within the available pixels on screen to display... much the same as what a computer screen does with lines. It certainly doesn't appear to indicate an imminent audio failure. I certainly doubt that my PAL FX-1e just suddenly decided to display the meters in that fashion out of sympathy with your unit!! Besides; I've not had audio problems for the 12 months that I've had the camera. Has your audio suddenly gone "up the khyber"?

December 19th, 2005, 11:07 AM	#3
Dale Paterson Major Player Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Johannesburg, South Africa Posts: 200	Thanks so much for the reply Steve - much appreciated. No - my audio is perfect but what worried me was the fact that the LCD disappeared on me for a split second and it was only after that that I noticed this oddity. Now I'm more worried about the LCD that disappeared on me than the VU Meter Display. One thing I can tell you though is that so far it appears to be the FX1E (PAL) that has this odd VU Meter Display - it looks like this does not happen with the FX1 (NTSC). Any ideas on my LCD disappearance? When it disappeared and came on again the camera did not emit a beep or anything like that so I think it is safe to say that it (the camera) did not loose power or anything like that. Besides that the battery was fully charged and probably has not been used more than ten times and has always been allowed to run totally flat before recharging (creature of habit). Having said all of that the LCD has not disappeared again (yet). Regards, Dale.