Retrovisor Television Help - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

victoredaye · 15th Jan 2021, 4:44 pm

Hello All,

I have two Retrovisor televisions sets that I would like to get working to either receive modern television signal or at least play DVDs or video files through.

Can anyone help with advice as to what I would need to achieve this?

hamid_1 · 16th Jan 2021, 2:10 am

Looks like you've got one of these: http://www.radiocraft.co.uk/retrovisor.htm

It's a reproduction colour TV from the 1990s. No SCART socket, so you'll need a UHF modulator to make it work.

First of all, make sure the TV switches on and there's snow on the screen. If not, the set will need some repair before you can use it. Assuming it's good, you have two options.

The first option: buy a UHF modulator. Here are a couple of examples:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Labgear-AV-...dp/B000NPDLE4/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/AVE-Composi...dp/B003Y3XIKE/

I've used one almost identical to the second one above. As well as the modulator, you'll need an aerial lead to connect the RF OUT from the modulator to the aerial socket on your TV. You'll also need a DVD player or Freeview box and a SCART lead to connect it to the modulator. After connecting everything up, switch everything on, then either start a tuning search on your TV or simply switch it onto channel BBC1, then adjust the channel numbers on the modulator until you see a picture. That's it!

The second option, instead of buying a separate modulator, is to use something with a built-in modulator. Old Sky and Sky+ boxes had them as standard. There are a small number of Freeview boxes with modulators, such as the Goodmans GDR10 and GDR11 or Humax F2-Fox-T and PVR9200. Be aware that these are old and only available secondhand with no long-term guarantees, but are worth considering if you can get one cheap, or if you want to reduce the number of boxes and wires.

If you happen to have an old VHS video recorder lying around, it almost certainly has a modulator built-in. Just hook it up to your TV and try it. Even if it can no longer play tapes (but it still switches on), you can connect any Freeview box to its SCART socket, then select the AV channel on your video recorder. You can now watch Freeview on your TV by switching on your TV and setting it to the video recorder's channel. Use the Freeview remote control to select the programme you want to watch.

victoredaye · 16th Jan 2021, 5:24 pm

Thank you, that has been very helpful. I shall give it all a go and see how I get on.

Panrock · 16th Jan 2021, 5:25 pm

The one on the left happens to be the first Retrovisor ever made. The earliest sets had TV22-style moulded knobs. The shade of cream was matched to that found on the DAC90A, to simulate what a cream TV22 might have looked like.

Steve

15th Jan 2021, 4:44 pm	#1
victoredaye Diode Join Date: Jan 2021 Location: Saxmundham, Suffolk, UK Posts: 2	Retrovisor Television Help Hello All, I have two Retrovisor televisions sets that I would like to get working to either receive modern television signal or at least play DVDs or video files through. Can anyone help with advice as to what I would need to achieve this? Attached Thumbnails

16th Jan 2021, 2:10 am	#2
hamid_1 Heptode Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: High Wycombe, Bucks. UK. Posts: 774	Re: Retrovisor Television Help Looks like you've got one of these: http://www.radiocraft.co.uk/retrovisor.htm It's a reproduction colour TV from the 1990s. No SCART socket, so you'll need a UHF modulator to make it work. First of all, make sure the TV switches on and there's snow on the screen. If not, the set will need some repair before you can use it. Assuming it's good, you have two options. The first option: buy a UHF modulator. Here are a couple of examples: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Labgear-AV-...dp/B000NPDLE4/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/AVE-Composi...dp/B003Y3XIKE/ I've used one almost identical to the second one above. As well as the modulator, you'll need an aerial lead to connect the RF OUT from the modulator to the aerial socket on your TV. You'll also need a DVD player or Freeview box and a SCART lead to connect it to the modulator. After connecting everything up, switch everything on, then either start a tuning search on your TV or simply switch it onto channel BBC1, then adjust the channel numbers on the modulator until you see a picture. That's it! The second option, instead of buying a separate modulator, is to use something with a built-in modulator. Old Sky and Sky+ boxes had them as standard. There are a small number of Freeview boxes with modulators, such as the Goodmans GDR10 and GDR11 or Humax F2-Fox-T and PVR9200. Be aware that these are old and only available secondhand with no long-term guarantees, but are worth considering if you can get one cheap, or if you want to reduce the number of boxes and wires. If you happen to have an old VHS video recorder lying around, it almost certainly has a modulator built-in. Just hook it up to your TV and try it. Even if it can no longer play tapes (but it still switches on), you can connect any Freeview box to its SCART socket, then select the AV channel on your video recorder. You can now watch Freeview on your TV by switching on your TV and setting it to the video recorder's channel. Use the Freeview remote control to select the programme you want to watch.

16th Jan 2021, 5:24 pm	#3
victoredaye Diode Join Date: Jan 2021 Location: Saxmundham, Suffolk, UK Posts: 2	Re: Retrovisor Television Help Thank you, that has been very helpful. I shall give it all a go and see how I get on.

16th Jan 2021, 5:25 pm	#4
Panrock Nonode Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Worcestershire, UK. Posts: 2,368	Re: Retrovisor Television Help The one on the left happens to be the first Retrovisor ever made. The earliest sets had TV22-style moulded knobs. The shade of cream was matched to that found on the DAC90A, to simulate what a cream TV22 might have looked like. Steve