ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Hi,
just thought I’d mention some of my experiences while moving from a BS3 to a BS4. The first question I hear you ask is why? Well, it is a good question as the benefits of the BS4 over the BS3 aren’t that obvious. Firstly. It was because I wanted to have access to downloadable PUCs rather than to have to get the machine over to a service centre each time, also I felt that the video processing must be better.
The rest of my system is using ML, so a BeoLink Converter NL/ML was necessary, plus a set of DIN to RJ45 converters (which I bought from Sounds Heavenly). The setup of the NL/ML converter was really easy - and everything worked as before. I also needed to get a Beoremote 1 as I couldn’t get a Beo4 to work with it (it has the option in the menu, but I think it is only for the Be4 NAV remote). I needed also to rewire the IR puck to use a RJ45 connector.
i am using a LG 75” OLED display which I controlled the on/off using a raspberry pi connected to the serial port and told the BS3 that it was connecting to a Beovision 4 (it uses a Panasonic panel, so I could interpret the Panasonic serial commands in the pi). I switched the LG on and off using HDMI CEC commands using an adaptor from Phase Eight. It worked well, but there was no obvious way I could get the BS4 to believe that it was plugged into a Beovision 12 so I could continue to use the serial port. The only commands I know of how to get to the service menus are the usual 0,0,GO and Red,GO - but nothing in those menus allowed me to remove the automatic screen detection and force it to believe it was connected to a BV12.
To get past this, I used the Screen menu to download a Samsung TV PUC and connected that to the raspberry (as a wired connection with no modulation) and used LIRC libraries to detect an on/off request from the BS4. Unfortunately, unlike the Panasonic codes, the IR is sent 3 times and it is the same IR command for on and off, so I have to interrogate the screen via CEC to see whether it is on or off, then tell it to switch to the opposite. It’s made my simple program to control the screen a bit more complicated and really I’d prefer to go back to using the serial port if only I could convince the BS4 that a Beovision 12 was attached!
i did ask B&O for the way to use the serial port, but they wouldn’t tell me. if anyone knows I’d be really happy if you could tell me! they did send me a LG TV PUC though, which would not install. After a few backwards and forwards, they just told me to get dealer help as they had already told me how to do it, and it worked for them, but it certainly wasn't for me. I could download it into the BS4 via the USB port, but it wouldn’t show up in the list of downloaded PUCs. I’ll be asking my dealer about it tomorrow.
the weirdest thing though was I was happily using a 10m copper HDMI cable which was buried in the wall for the BS3, but it was VERY temperamental with the BS4 - the screen cut out on a regular basis. It’s odd as I thought the bitrate for the BS3 was the same as the BS4. I tried with a 5M HDMI cable and that worked fine.
I've just finished putting a 10m Optical Fibre HDMI cable into the wall (after testing it for a few days) and that seems to be working fine.
overall, it was a costly venture in both time and money, I *think* the picture is better, but the gain in swapping really I’m not sure is justified. I needed a Beoremote One, a BeoLink NL/ML converter, the DIN to powerlink converters, a whole lot of time re-wiring, a 1m Fibre-optic HDMI cable - and a lot of painting and plastering!
Hi Frog
I really appreciate this being put down as an actual user experience!
For the very reasons you are struggling with, and lots more, I am sticking to the BS 3. Which by now with some very slight external help even allows me to watch full UHD material.
BTW if you can program the PI, why not just intercept the IR codes?
I do. I mentioned that I’m using the LIRC libraries to do so on the Pi, replacing the serial part of the program, but as it doesn’t have discrete on and off IR commands, I have to check with HDMI CEC to see what state the TV is in before switching on or off. The IR pulse is sent 3 times, so I also have to be wary of this (sometimes it is only 2 recognised).
I forgot the BS4 aspect and read it another way. I had the same issue with the missing discrete codes and ended up simply hard wiring a on off solution into the TV. Actually when fiddling with this I discovered that at least some LG TVs support RS232 and discrete codes through the USB (undocumented).
Perhaps worth looking into, as I remember it required a specific cable, which I never got around to buy.
I’m quite happy using HDMI CEC for the power cycling on the LG. I did look at the serial option (it’s just a 3.5 mm jack, but as I already had the code complete and working for the BS3, and I didn’t need an extra cable, I stayed with what worked.
how do you get 4K on the Beosystem 3 - using a HDMI switch, so only the audio is going through the BS3?
Most Scandinavian models dosent even have the 3.5 mm jack, that is why i looked into the USB solution.
frog: using a HDMI switch, so only the audio is going through the BS3?
Even simpler,- source switching of the display combined with audio extraction from HDMI. 7.1 is working fine, not sure about Atmos since I am not using it...