HDR-HC9, A/V Remote Terminal, and LANC

Riku Naskali · September 1st, 2008, 06:48 AM

Success! I don't know what I've done wrong earlier, but now it works perfectly.

The schematic is exactly like Tom's first one, 3 as a ground and the resistor between pins 7 and 8. And the device is Lanc Shepherd, camera CX-6.

Paul Stone · March 30th, 2009, 06:49 PM

New member here. Posting my first message.
I have enjoyed reading your posts on the development of an adapter to enable you to continue to use you standard LanC remotes with the new Sony AV/R connector.

I have learned a few things.
Sony has three remote tripods.

VCT 50AV List price $80 at B&H $56
VCT 80AV List Price $180 at B&H $122
VCT-1170RM List $499 at B&H $315

I called Sony and asked them for the part number for the remote handle on all three of these tripods. The 50 AV and the 80AV both take the exact same remote handle. The price of the replacement part is $116.95 (yes, that is $36.95 more than the 50AV tripod itself). The remote on the 1170 RM Looks identical to the others; however, it has the old style LanC connector (2.5mm stereo). The remote for the VCT-1170RM costs $161.95.

I own the VCT80AV. The zoom control with this remote is very nice. It is continiusly variable and offers a lot of control, none of the instant on and off stuff I got with their clip on, 2 speed remotes. I liked it well enough that I ordered two of the 50AV tripods just for the remotes. (These tripods have a lot of plastic including the gear on the center column. The proper thing to do with these tripods is to harvest the remote and toss the rest, although I may remove the 'non-removable' fluid head and adapt it for use on another tripod.) The remote is the entire handle and can be used on almost any tripod. The handle is 10mm in dia. and fits my Davis and Sanborn FL12 fluid head just fine (had to make a spacer).

I plan to take one of the remotes and patch in a standard 2.5mm stereo connector for use on my Sony HDR-FX1. The others will be used on my HDR-SR11's (I only have two).

The VCT 50AV costs $10 less than the adaptor cable from Extreme Recall.

I found a pinout diagram here: The SONY LANC protocol
It differes slightly from the pictures published here.

My question: Has anyone spliced in a standard 2.5mm Stereo connector on one of the remotes for the VCT 80AV or the VCT 50AV? If so, how did it work?

Thanks,

Paul

Dave Blackhurst · March 30th, 2009, 10:36 PM

Hi Paul -

Sounds to me like the "AV" remotes have an improved zoom function over the old 2 speed standard Sony arrangement (I've got several Sony remotes with that approach).

You should be able to splice in a 2.5mm and it should work fine (I'd suggest making it a "two headed snake" - that way it should work with both cameras as needed). AFAIK, while a LANC using the A/V jack requires the dropping resistor to signal the A/V port to expect the LANC information, I believe that connecting the tip/ring/sleeve in the correct order should allow an AV series to be backwards compatible with the 2.5mm jack/plug.

The German LANC diagrams look right, although the sleeve (ground) can also connect to the pin BETWEEN the two LANC pins (pin 3). He's got it showing pin 8, which can be either ground or no connection, so it may vary from one Sony product to another. My reverse engineering has it on pin 3.

Paul Stone · March 30th, 2009, 11:15 PM

Thanks Dave,

I have already ordered the 2.5mm stereo connectors (actually two) both the plug and the jack. I plan to cut the wire on the remote and attach the plug to the end with the remote and the jack to the end with the Sony mini-D 10 pin connector. This will allow me to use it with either style camcorder.

I read earlier today that the LanC technology was developed to start and stop multiple cameras at the same time (helps with sychronization in post production).

Has anyone heard of a wireless system to do this? I have a multi camera shoot coming up on late May.

Connecting a single remote, using only the record button, to a splitter and then connecting to two camcorders could be interesting.

Thanks,

Paul

Dave Blackhurst · March 31st, 2009, 12:55 AM

Minor flaw, the AV version of the LANC controller requires a dropping/signal resistor between two of the pins, and I'd suspect the resistor is at the controller end of the cable... meaning if you cut the cable, you wouldn't be able to use it with the A/V end again. There is a slim chance they put the resistor in the molded plug, but I doubt it. When you open the cable, I'd carefully remove the outer sheath (the thin black that keeps the wires bundled inside together). If there are more than 3 wires, the 2.5mm will come up short on conductors.

You might be able to put the resistor inside the jack side of the 2.5mm, I was fiddling with making the whole adapter in a single compact molded assembly, so that probably would work.

Paul Stone · April 2nd, 2009, 04:18 PM

After doing additional research the remote handle on the VCT-1170RM tripod from Sony is not identical to those on the VCT-50 AV and VCT-80AV (except for the connector).

The VCT-1170RM has the wide angle and telephoto reversed from what they are on the VCT-50AV.

Reviews at B&h Photo Video indicate that this tripod is not worth the money and the remote is not satisfactory.

I personally plan to convert a remote for the VCT-50AV for the old style LanC 2.5mm Stereo connector.

Paul Stone · April 9th, 2009, 09:32 PM

I received the last of my three VCT-50AV tripods today. I cut off the end of the cord (10 Pin AV/R connector) and repled it with a standard 2.5mm stereo connector.

It worked.

I have a DCR-SR62 Handycam that takes both the standard LanC and the AV/R connector.
When I cut the end off (made it 6" shorter), I pluged both the cut off AV/R connector and the 2.5mm stereo connector into the DCR-SR62. I used an ohm meter to test for continuity between the wires I had cut off and the 2.5mm connector.

The remote had three insulted wires plus a ground.

The white wire goes to the tip.
The red wire goes to the center.
The uninsulated ground was connected to the base.
The black wire is not used.

The DCR-SR62 turned on and off with the remote. It zoomed in and out, and the slow zoom worked as well. The guide frame was not launched when I pressed that button mostly because the camera does not have that feature. I did not attempt to record or take a still picture.

I put it on my HDR-FX1 and all the zoom features work. The camera turned on and off, started and stopped recording, etc. with this remote.

The guide frame did not work; however, I am new enough to this camera that I don't know if it has that feature.

It looks like everything is working fine.

September 1st, 2008, 06:48 AM	#46
Riku Naskali New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: Tampere, FINLAND Posts: 8	Hurray! Success! I don't know what I've done wrong earlier, but now it works perfectly. The schematic is exactly like Tom's first one, 3 as a ground and the resistor between pins 7 and 8. And the device is Lanc Shepherd, camera CX-6.

March 30th, 2009, 06:49 PM	#47
Paul Stone New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Federal Way, WA Posts: 6	Sony AV/R LanC and Tripods New member here. Posting my first message. I have enjoyed reading your posts on the development of an adapter to enable you to continue to use you standard LanC remotes with the new Sony AV/R connector. I have learned a few things. Sony has three remote tripods. VCT 50AV List price $80 at B&H $56 VCT 80AV List Price $180 at B&H $122 VCT-1170RM List $499 at B&H $315 I called Sony and asked them for the part number for the remote handle on all three of these tripods. The 50 AV and the 80AV both take the exact same remote handle. The price of the replacement part is $116.95 (yes, that is $36.95 more than the 50AV tripod itself). The remote on the 1170 RM Looks identical to the others; however, it has the old style LanC connector (2.5mm stereo). The remote for the VCT-1170RM costs $161.95. I own the VCT80AV. The zoom control with this remote is very nice. It is continiusly variable and offers a lot of control, none of the instant on and off stuff I got with their clip on, 2 speed remotes. I liked it well enough that I ordered two of the 50AV tripods just for the remotes. (These tripods have a lot of plastic including the gear on the center column. The proper thing to do with these tripods is to harvest the remote and toss the rest, although I may remove the 'non-removable' fluid head and adapt it for use on another tripod.) The remote is the entire handle and can be used on almost any tripod. The handle is 10mm in dia. and fits my Davis and Sanborn FL12 fluid head just fine (had to make a spacer). I plan to take one of the remotes and patch in a standard 2.5mm stereo connector for use on my Sony HDR-FX1. The others will be used on my HDR-SR11's (I only have two). The VCT 50AV costs $10 less than the adaptor cable from Extreme Recall. I found a pinout diagram here: The SONY LANC protocol It differes slightly from the pictures published here. My question: Has anyone spliced in a standard 2.5mm Stereo connector on one of the remotes for the VCT 80AV or the VCT 50AV? If so, how did it work? Thanks, Paul

March 30th, 2009, 11:15 PM	#49
Paul Stone New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Federal Way, WA Posts: 6	VCT 50AV Remote Modification Thanks Dave, I have already ordered the 2.5mm stereo connectors (actually two) both the plug and the jack. I plan to cut the wire on the remote and attach the plug to the end with the remote and the jack to the end with the Sony mini-D 10 pin connector. This will allow me to use it with either style camcorder. I read earlier today that the LanC technology was developed to start and stop multiple cameras at the same time (helps with sychronization in post production). Has anyone heard of a wireless system to do this? I have a multi camera shoot coming up on late May. Connecting a single remote, using only the record button, to a splitter and then connecting to two camcorders could be interesting. Thanks, Paul

April 2nd, 2009, 04:18 PM	#51
Paul Stone New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Federal Way, WA Posts: 6	Correction: VCT-1170RM After doing additional research the remote handle on the VCT-1170RM tripod from Sony is not identical to those on the VCT-50 AV and VCT-80AV (except for the connector). The VCT-1170RM has the wide angle and telephoto reversed from what they are on the VCT-50AV. Reviews at B&h Photo Video indicate that this tripod is not worth the money and the remote is not satisfactory. I personally plan to convert a remote for the VCT-50AV for the old style LanC 2.5mm Stereo connector.

April 9th, 2009, 09:32 PM	#52
Paul Stone New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Federal Way, WA Posts: 6	Update: Adapting VCT-50AV remote to HDR-FX1 with standard LanC I received the last of my three VCT-50AV tripods today. I cut off the end of the cord (10 Pin AV/R connector) and repled it with a standard 2.5mm stereo connector. It worked. I have a DCR-SR62 Handycam that takes both the standard LanC and the AV/R connector. When I cut the end off (made it 6" shorter), I pluged both the cut off AV/R connector and the 2.5mm stereo connector into the DCR-SR62. I used an ohm meter to test for continuity between the wires I had cut off and the 2.5mm connector. The remote had three insulted wires plus a ground. The white wire goes to the tip. The red wire goes to the center. The uninsulated ground was connected to the base. The black wire is not used. The DCR-SR62 turned on and off with the remote. It zoomed in and out, and the slow zoom worked as well. The guide frame was not launched when I pressed that button mostly because the camera does not have that feature. I did not attempt to record or take a still picture. I put it on my HDR-FX1 and all the zoom features work. The camera turned on and off, started and stopped recording, etc. with this remote. The guide frame did not work; however, I am new enough to this camera that I don't know if it has that feature. It looks like everything is working fine.

March 30th, 2009, 10:36 PM	#48
Dave Blackhurst Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Apple Valley CA Posts: 2,009	Hi Paul - Sounds to me like the "AV" remotes have an improved zoom function over the old 2 speed standard Sony arrangement (I've got several Sony remotes with that approach). You should be able to splice in a 2.5mm and it should work fine (I'd suggest making it a "two headed snake" - that way it should work with both cameras as needed). AFAIK, while a LANC using the A/V jack requires the dropping resistor to signal the A/V port to expect the LANC information, I believe that connecting the tip/ring/sleeve in the correct order should allow an AV series to be backwards compatible with the 2.5mm jack/plug. The German LANC diagrams look right, although the sleeve (ground) can also connect to the pin BETWEEN the two LANC pins (pin 3). He's got it showing pin 8, which can be either ground or no connection, so it may vary from one Sony product to another. My reverse engineering has it on pin 3.

March 31st, 2009, 12:55 AM	#50
Dave Blackhurst Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Apple Valley CA Posts: 2,009	Minor flaw, the AV version of the LANC controller requires a dropping/signal resistor between two of the pins, and I'd suspect the resistor is at the controller end of the cable... meaning if you cut the cable, you wouldn't be able to use it with the A/V end again. There is a slim chance they put the resistor in the molded plug, but I doubt it. When you open the cable, I'd carefully remove the outer sheath (the thin black that keeps the wires bundled inside together). If there are more than 3 wires, the 2.5mm will come up short on conductors. You might be able to put the resistor inside the jack side of the 2.5mm, I was fiddling with making the whole adapter in a single compact molded assembly, so that probably would work.

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