Why is the Sony PVM 20M4U so Special & Expensive? 📺 Quick Tips: Features Overview 

Hey Steve, Those audio In and Out sockets are linked together with a straight wire (see service manual page 74-74), making a Y-connector. Normally, stereo to mono mixing schemes are using resistors to separate L and R amplifier output channels.

Mono and Left are always output on the white wire. Both signals are always there as part of the analog audio standard. I believe the mono is out of phase and when the input device is switched to mono it knows to process this out-of-phase signal. Perhaps that is what is going on. Does it sound mono when you unplug the red wire?

I definitely have feedback on your stereo audio input trick: don't do that! As Mykhailo mentioned, the audio jack labeled "out" is designed for pass-through use (daisy-chaining) and thus is just connected directly to the input jack, very much as if you were using a "Y" cable. If you short together the left and right channels of your audio source it may work, or _it may damage the output drivers of your audio source._ At the very least you want to use a simple resistive mixer to prevent this from happening. Note that the pass-through jacks for video have a switch on them: if a plug is connected to the "out" jack for these it will disable the internal 75Ω termination. So you don't want to have cables plugged into those output jacks unless the other end of the cable is plugged into a device that provides that output termination. (There's no harm going to come to anything if you do this, though; it will just make the image look a little a little brighter and possibly reduce the video quality slightly.)

Wow, 20 bucks! That's what I call a lucky find!

Lucky....I paid $600 for mine back in 2018 serviced and low hours.

​​@@thecurmudgeon7350 same here, though i paid $800 in shipping as well to get it shipped to Australia. Smashed on arrival. Saddest day of my life lol

Thanks buddy

@Joshua Paul ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0j0IC0bu3dg.html

I dunno, I have the 20M2U and the 20M4U and unless you're right up next to the screen looking for scanline thickness, you aren't going to notice the over all jump in quality that much. I would argue the 20M2U is the better middle ground for a more "natural" look with 600 TVL for 240p sources. I prefer playing NES, SNES and Genesis on the 20M2U vs. the 20M4U any day of the week. I feel like these PVM's are ultimately about preference and to not give into the hype before dropping thousands on these monitors.

@@quibquatch3975 how do you feel they compare in 480i?

It was pretty clean. The customer will be happy I think. 😊

Thanks

Paid £950 for mine but almost mint. Expensive but glad I've finally got a really nice PVM.

I have the three color lines(faulty capacitor) , and I am wondering too what to do....

The same

Did you recap the power supply board!? I picked up mine two years ago and it would power ON with the red light up top and no image. I recapped the whole power supply board and that got it going. Good luck

@@ovalfastlx6724 recapped both the power and main boards. Still just getting a tally light

Did you test the voltage on the PSU to make sure it was sending the proper voltage?

Forgot to mention I did reflow solder to some connectors.

That’s a fuel oil tank and still very common in the east coast.

Are they slowly getting replaced my modern heating systems?

20M2U 600 lines and 20M4U 800 lines. It depends on whether you like sharper image. Some find 20M4U too sharp and think that 600 lines is sweet spot. My PS1 look super sharp on 20M4E and i like it. U=US E=EU A=AU

@@Random.Walker. thank you!

Yes, it does.

Maybe, Try it out and let me know please!

I am assuming the 20m2 has this too. BTW, I did find if you are say using a switcher that outputs different video types (composite, Svideo, rgb/component) like a extron, but you want the monitor to share a single audio output running to it, I run my audio into a in with a y connector, then run a RCA from out to a different input, and then out from that with another RCA cable to another input. This will make them all share the same audio source. No matter which video input is selected, all audio inputs\outputs active, so will pass through.

Not sure, but you can try it safely

Not necessarily, its called a crt filter because thats how it looks on all crt tvs not just a sony

Professional Video Monitor

Some like the age of the tech and rarety of it maybe certain media that this was designed for has a 'not a great of quality" as something bigger better and cheaper technically ". It's just a niche and early 2000s model to make 90 and earlier stuff have that look like it was suppose to back then i guess... not sure

Ha, if only the economy was that easy to manipulate.

its all hype. they aren't much better then any crt over component . people were giving them away until a few youtubes started making videos on how great they are. all of the retro gaming is over blown and hyped now

There's plenty of nostalgia here, if that's what you are looking for....

Ever watched something on your smartphone? 14" is way bigger than that.

@@RetroTechUSA that's different. You can take a phone around wherever you go, and its main purpose is convenience. If you have time to sit down and watch something, then there are millions of better options than a little old 14" monitor 😂