Videosphere | Blog of Travis Hydzik

Posts Tagged ‘Videosphere’

Finishing the bezel and mounting the LCD

Sunday, February 17th, 2008

A small update to keep things rolling.

I finished sanding the bezel to a state I was quite happy with. The hole was then trimmed as it was slightly too big and the sides were uneven.

Pictures below just before painting.

First a white undercoat, 2 layers.

Coat of matt black, 2 layers.

Final photos of the Videosphere shell with new bezel.

The LCD screen, after having the corners trimmed.

The LCD screen was glued in place, will be cleaned of glue smudges as the end.

Next, I am looking at connecting the LCD circuitry.

Tags: bezel, black, LCD, paint, Videosphere
Posted in Computersphere | 3 Comments »

Integrating an LCD TV with the Videosphere

Thursday, December 20th, 2007

As I previously posted, I purchased a 8.4″ LCD TV for around $150.

Here is the last update for the year, going on holidays and won’t be back till mid January.

I have started to try to mount the LCD TV into the Videosphere. Firstly removed the LCD from the plastic housing

This is a photo of the back of the LCD

First fit test. You would not believe how close this panel is to not fitting. When choosing the TV I only was concerned about the LCD size fitting the hole, I did not think about the housing. Being a cheap quality LCD the housing protrudes a fair bit. You can observe that the housing isn’t quite flush and this is for two reasons, the LCD is slightly too big, and the hole is actually curved due to the curved screen of the original CRT.

The way I solved the LCD size problem was grinding the corners down. This was fairly dangerous as it was easy to damage the LCD, I still haven’t tested the LCD to see if it still works. Before grinding I disassembled the metal housing, this was so that I could see where the glass was as you do not want to be grinding that.

Here is a photo of the ground corners of the metal housing; I will explain what the cardboard is for next.

This now solved the LCD not fitting problem. The next problem was the gaps caused by the curved hole. This was solved by using car body filler. First I made a cardboard template with the exact same size hole as the Videosphere.
You can observe the LCD metal housing on top of the cardboard below.

It was secured to the Videosphere with some tape.

Car body filler was applied liberally over the cardboard.

And the sanding process began.

I decided to buy myself an early Christmas present to speed things up. $125 from Bunnings, includes the Flex Shaft and 55 accessories.

This was the finished results after another layer of car body filler. It took me a while to get used to the Dremel as I was taking too much out of some areas and leaving indents.

I am quite happy with the results so far. This will be painted black making any imperfections harder to see. Below is a photo of the LCD metal housing over the hole. The hole is slightly uneven and small and that will be fixed up next year.

Tags: body filler, Computersphere, Dremel, LCD, putty, sanding, TV, Videosphere
Posted in Computersphere | 1 Comment »

Cleaning the Videosphere

Sunday, November 4th, 2007

I should mention prices, and note it will all be in Australian dollars.

I picked up the Videosphere about 3 years ago of eBay for about $200.

I will also mention, I am going to try and include everything, even the mundane stuff. So with that said.
Here are some pictures of me washing it. Basically I removed everything that could be removed and scrubbed it with a bit of detergent and brush. The condition is actually quite good, few scratches but nothing major.

This is the colour LCD TV I purchased of eBay about a year ago for $150. I spent a while looking for one that could fit the nicest in the existing hole. The actual tube is specified as 9″.

I also picked up a few sheets of various grade wet and dry for $1.30 each.

Start of new project, modding a JVC Videosphere into a computer (a Computersphere)

Tags: 8.4", cleaned, LCD, Videosphere, washed
Posted in Computersphere | No Comments »

Start of new project, modding a JVC Videosphere into a computer (a Computersphere)

Saturday, November 3rd, 2007

I have had this idea for a while now, most of the parts, have just been too lazy. By starting a thread and posting it should get me motivated.

This project involves modding a JVC Videosphere into a working computer . I shall name it the Computersphere.

It will consist of two parts:
First part
Restoration of a Videosphere into its brand new condition, this will mostly include cleaning and buffing the plastic. I plan to use a 8.4″ colour TV to replace the existing black and white TV. However, all existing knobs and switches will remain and be operational. I have a feeling there is going to be some custom fancy circuitry to convert the analogue dials to digital.

Second part
Once the Videosphere looks and functions brand new, I will insert a VIA EPIA M from a previous modding project. This should be fairly straight forward as there is plenty of room. DVD rom drive in the base, red neons in the base and the top, as there are already ventilation holes.

Picture of the JVC Videosphere

Source: Graham Mancha – Design for Modern Living