NORTHSTAR 1201 Owner's manual

Brand: NORTHSTAR

Model: 1201

Type: Owner's manual

This manual is also suitable for

1202

Northstar 1200 Series Display

Owner’s Guide

(P/N GM1200UG, Revision A2)

Northstar Technologies

30 Sudbury Road

Acton, Massachusetts 01720

(978) 897-6600

P/N GM1200UG Rev. A2

Table of contents

Welcome - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1

Features - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1

Optional Features with the Northstar vBox - - - - - 2

What’s in this Manual - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3

Turning the Display On - - - - - - - - - - - - 3

Adjusting the Brightness - - - - - - - - - - - - 3

The DATA and VIDEO Buttons - - - - - - - - - - 3

Turning the Display Off - - - - - - - - - - - - 4

Using Picture-In-Picture on the 1202 - - - - - - - 4

Front Panel - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5

The POWER Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6

The Brightness Control - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6

The DATA Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6

The VIDEO Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6

The RED Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6

The HI/LO Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 7

The MENU Button - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 7

Using the Setup Menu - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 8

1201 Setup Menu - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 10

1202 Setup Menu - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 12

Connections - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 18

The Power Connector - - - - - - - - - - - - 18

The vBox Connector - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19

The VGA Connector - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19

The Video (BNC) Connector - - - - - - - - - - 19

Configurations - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 20

Without Optional vBox - - - - - - - - - - - - 20

With Optional vBox - - - - - - - - - - - - - 21

Installation - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 22

About Video and VGA Cables - - - - - - - - - 23

Choosing a Mounting Location - - - - - - - - 25

Connecting the Power Cable - - - - - - - - - 27

Other Connections - - - - - - - - - - - - - 28

Optional vBox - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 29

Choosing a Mounting Location - - - - - - - - - 29

Installing the vBox - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 29

VBox Connections - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 30

PIP with the vBox - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 33

Maintenance - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 36

Troubleshooting - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 38

Symptoms and Possible Causes - - - - - - - - - 38

Restoring Factory Defaults - - - - - - - - - - - 39

Service - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 40

How To Get Service / Technical Support - - - - - 40

Limited Warranty Policy - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 42

Contacting Northstar - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 43

Appendix A — Installation Checklist - - - - - - - - 44

Appendix B — Specifications - - - - - - - - - - - - 46

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Welcome — Page 1

Welcome

Overview

Congratulations on your purchase of the Northstar 1200 Series

Marine Display. Now you can enjoy clear, crisp, bright images

from sources such as “black box” marine electronics, onboard

computers, entertainment and security systems.

Your Northstar display has been designed for easy setup and

operation. To help you get the best results, please read through

the brief, easy-to-understand instructions in this manual.

Features

Your new display features an easy-to-use, sunlight-viewable,

clear, crisp 12.1” display. As shown in the table below, the 1201

supports VGA and SVGA inputs. The 1202 supports up to UXGA

including the popular SXGA used on black box radars and other

marine electronics.

The display provides front panel controls to switch between one

data input (VGA data such as black box electronics, computers

etc.) and one video (NTSC/PAL from sources such as cameras,

VCR’s, DVD’s, etc.) input.

Product

Compatible

Resolutions

Native

Resolution

Northstar 1202

12” Display

UXGA (1600 x 1200)

SXGA (1280 x 1024)

XGA (1024 x 768)

SVGA (800 x 600)

VGA (640 x 480)

SVGA (800 x 600)

Northstar 1201

12” Display

SVGA (800 x 600)

VGA (640 x 480)

SVGA (800 x 600)

Page 2 — Welcome 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

There are no PC boards to install, no software drivers to load. Just

plug your existing data and video source outputs into the

display. You can switch between them by pressing and

on the front panel.

Optional Features with the Northstar vBox

With the optional vBox, your input capacity will double to two

data inputs and two video inputs. The vBox also adds two useful

nighttime viewing features: Red mode and Hi/Lo mode.

Red Mode

The RED feature tints the VGA display (whatever’s plugged

into the Data port) to a reddish hue for enhanced nighttime

viewing. It’s like adding a night palette to all your marine

electronics automatically. This is particularly useful if your

navigator is connected to your display and you use it at

night.

Hi / Lo Mode

The HI/LO function allows both video and data displayed to

be at a lower intensity for better nighttime viewing.

How’s the Manual?

Your feedback is important to us. Please take a minute to drop us

an email and let us know what you think of the manual. Send

your comments and suggestions to us at:

docs@NorthstarNav.com

DATA

VIDEO

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 What’s in this Manual — Page 3

What’s in this Manual

This manual is in three basic parts. The first part consists of

information related to getting started as well as basic informa-

tion about the display.

The second part of the manual, beginning on page 22, addresses

the installation process. Typically only the installer will use this

section. However, it does provide ideas and pointers for locating

your display as well a list of installation tips.

Finally, the third section, beginning on page 38, describes how to

troubleshoot the display and how to get service should the need

arise.

Getting Started

Turning the Display On

To turn the display on, simply press until the display

lights up. Within a few seconds, you will see a picture if an

active source is plugged into either the Data or Video

connector on the back panel.

Adjusting the Brightness

The brightness control is located on the right hand side of

the display. Press the up arrow to make the screen brighter

and the down arrow to make the screen dimmer.

The DATA and VIDEO Buttons

These two buttons control what image is displayed on the

screen. Simply press the button corresponding to the image

you wish to view.

Press to see what you’ve connected to the VGA Data

connector on the back of the display. Press to display

PWR

DATA

VIDEO

Page 4 — What’s in this Manual 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

what’s connected to the BNC Video connector. Press both

buttons at once to view Picture-In-Picture (see below).

With the optional vBox, you can have up to four inputs: your

original Data and Video source, plus an Auxiliary Data and

Video source. Each time you press the display will

switch between the two Data sources you have connected.

The same is true for .

Using Picture-In-Picture on the 1202

The 1202 includes a feature called Picture-In-Picture (PIP)

which allows display of a full screen of data with a smaller

video image on top of it. This is useful if you want a view of

your engine room in the corner of your navigator display. PIP

is available only on the 1202. More complete information

about PIP settings can be found on page 14.

Turning the Display Off

To turn the display off, simply press and hold for a few

seconds until the display shuts off.

DATA

VIDEO

PWR

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Front Panel — Page 5

Front Panel

The Northstar 1201 and 1202 displays have several buttons

along the bottom of the display that are used to select data

sources as well as Hi/Lo* and Red* modes.

There is also a control to adjust the brightness of the display.

The figure above shows the front panel and its controls. Each

control is described below.

* Note that Red mode and Hi/Lo mode require the optional vBox.

1202

ORTHST

RED

HI/LO

DATA

IDE

MEN

PWR

HI/LO

RED

VIDEO

DATA

Brightness

Control

Page 6 — Front Panel 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

The POWER Button

This key turns the display (and vBox, if connected) on and

off. You must hold it for a few seconds to turn the display

off. This delay prevents accidental shutoffs.

The Brightness Control

Press the up arrow to make the screen brighter. Press the

down arrow to make the screen dimmer.

The DATA Button

Displays the VGA data source connected to the DATA

input. This key is also used in the Setup Menu to make

choices and adjust various values lower.

If the optional vBox is installed, repeated presses of this key will

alternate between the primary and auxiliary data input.

The VIDEO Button

Displays the NTSC/PAL video source connected to the

VIDEO input. This key is also used in the Setup Menu to

make choices and adjust various values higher.

If the optional vBox is installed, repeated presses of this key will

alternate between the primary and auxiliary video input.

The RED Button

The Red Mode feature is available only when the

optional vBox is connected and affects only Data. This

mode does not alter Video.

PWR

DATA

VIDEO

RED

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Front Panel — Page 7

Red Mode turns data images to a reddish hue, both in Hi and Lo

mode. This is particularly useful for running at night when your

navigator is displayed on your 1201/1202. Press again to turn off.

The HI/LO Button

This feature is available only when the optional vBox is

connected. It selects a day (Hi) or night (Lo) range of the

displayed data or video image. Lower intensity images are more

useful at night.

The MENU Button

This button configures picture quality settings in your

display. Since changing these settings can degrade your

picture quality, Northstar recommends that you don’t adjust the

factory settings.

1201

Northstar ships your 1201 pre-adjusted for the

maximum video quality. Only in rare cases will

further adjustment be necessary. If you are experi-

encing problems with image quality, follow the guidelines in

the section on troubleshooting beginning on page 38.

1202

1202 users will use primarily to turn the

Picture-In-Picture (PIP) feature on and off as

described on page 4.

is also used for adjusting image quality. Only in rare

cases will adjustment be necessary. If you are experiencing

problems with image quality, follow the guidelines in the

section on troubleshooting beginning on page 38.

HI/LO

1201

1202

Page 8 — Using the Setup Menu 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

Using the Setup Menu

The Setup Menu is used to configure the display. The 1201 and

1202 have different Setup Menus. Follow the steps below for

your specific model.

The Setup Menu will disappear by itself after a certain amount of

time. This time can be set in both the 1201 and the 1202.

The 1201 uses a line-based Setup Menu. When making

adjustments, simply press to activate the menu.

Use the up and down arrows on to select the param-

eter you wish to modify and press and to adjust the

value. When you have finished making changes, press and hold

once again to exit the Setup Menu.

The 1202 uses an icon-based Setup Menu. To activate

it, press once. The menu appears as two rows of

icons. One of these icons is highlighted. This high-

lighted icon represents the set of parameters to be modified. To

advance to the next icon, press .

Once at the desired icon, use the up and down arrows on to

select the parameter you wish to modify. Then use and

to change the value or setting of that item. To exit the

menu, press and hold until the menu disappears.

NOTE: Always make note of a setup value be-

fore changing it. Then if you don’t like

the change, you can restore the previous

setting.

Please read Setup Menu details carefully as it

is possible to misadjust the display and ad-

versely affect display quality.

1201

DATA

VIDEO

1202

DATA

VIDEO

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Using the Setup Menu — Page 9

Page 10 — Using the Setup Menu 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

1201 Setup Menu

Brightness

Adjusts the brightness of the displayed image itself, not the

backlight. Brightness controls how dark the dark parts of the

image appear. If this is turned too high, the display will

become saturated and visual distortion will occur.

Contrast

Adjusts the contrast (strength of the white part of the image)

of the displayed image. If the contrast is too high, the image

may appear washed out.

Tuning (Only When Viewing Data Input)

Used to correct subtle timing differences between the display

and the input source. Misadjustment of this can cause jitter,

ghosting, or even light vertical lines in the image.

Auto Setup (Only When Viewing Data Input)

Pressing while this line is highlighted will cause the

display to adjust certain display parameters (position, size,

tuning, etc.) for their optimum settings.

Color (Only When Viewing Video Input)

Used to increase or decrease the color intensity in the

displayed image — similar to the control on your television.

Tint (Only When Viewing Video Input)

Used to adjust the color values in the displayed image —

similar to the control on your television set.

Input

Selects the input source. Use and instead.

VIDEO

DATA

VIDEO

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Using the Setup Menu — Page 11

Image adjust

Used to adjust image-related parameters such as image posi-

tion, size, and color/tint levels manually.

Reset to RGB Default causes the display to re-calibrate its

colors automatically when displaying an image from the

data input. When displaying a new VGA data source for

the first time, this calibration helps set colors properly.

OSD Menu

This line provides adjustments to the Setup Menu screen

such as position, time-out, etc.

System Info

This line provides information such as input resolution, etc.

Extended Menu

These settings should not be changed.

Exit Menu

Press while on this line to exit the Setup Menu.

As a shortcut, you can also hold down until the Setup

Menu disappears.

VIDEO

Page 12 — Using the Setup Menu 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

1202 Setup Menu

Brightness and Contrast

These controls adjust the brightness and contrast

of the actual LCD panel. Brightness, in this case,

is different from the backlight adjustment. It

adjusts how dark the dark parts of the image appear. The

contrast adjusts the strength of the white part of the image.

These two settings are somewhat interactive. It is possible to

dramatically degrade the display quality using these two

settings. Always remember the previous value before you

change either one so you can return to the old setting.

Color Temperature

Adjusts the warmth of the image displayed. The

higher the color temperature, the brighter and

cooler the displayed image appears.

Video Adjustment (Only When Viewing Video Input)

This icon contains adjustments that are very

similar to the controls on your television; such as

Color, Tint and Sharpness.

The Picture Type adjustment allows selection between the

two settings: Motion and Still. In general, the Still setting will

provide a sharper picture, but may exhibit ghosting or jitter

when viewing rapidly changing images.

Similarly, Video Type provides subtle changes between its

DVD and VCR settings.

Frequency and Phase (Only When Viewing Data Input)

Frequency adjusts the horizontal size of the

image.

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Using the Setup Menu — Page 13

Phase makes fine adjustments to the timing of the image

data. This is used to accommodate slight timing differences

between the display and the image source. These differences

can sometimes appear as noise in the video.

Picture Type offers two settings: Motion and Still. In general,

the Still setting will provide a sharper picture, but may

exhibit ghosting or jitter when viewing rapidly changing

images.

Video System (Only When Viewing Video Input)

Always leave this setting in Auto mode. Your

1202 will configure itself automatically.

Status (Only When Viewing Data Input)

This icon shows technical information about the

data input signal including resolution and

frequency. This can be helpful when problems

concerning scaling or image quality are encountered.

Position

Use this function if the image is not centered on

the screen. This situation can occur if the video

timing is slightly different between the display

and image source.

Rotation (Only When Viewing Video Input)

Northstar does not recommend changing this

setting. It rotates the image from landscape format

to portrait format. This setting is only available

when displaying video — it does not apply to the data input.

NTSC

PAL

NTSC

PAL

Page 14 — Using the Setup Menu 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

Picture-in-Picture (Only When Viewing Data Input)

Picture-In-Picture (PIP) displays a small video

window on top of the data display. Use this icon

to turn PIP on and off or move the video picture

around the screen. You can choose one of three sizes for the

video picture: 1 is the smallest and 3 is the largest. Choose

Off if you do not wish to see the video input.

PIP Source must always be set to Auto.

Horizontal Position and Vertical Position adjust the position

of the PIP window on the screen.

Advanced PIP Settings include Brightness, Contrast, Sharp-

ness, Tint, and Color all adjust the image of the PIP window.

For guidelines on PIP with an optional vBox connected, see

page 33.

Video Scaling (Only When Viewing Video Input)

This setting determines how images displayed

from the video input will be scaled. This is typi-

cally used when viewing DVD or other images not

in the typical 4:3 (i.e., television) aspect ratio. DVDs often

provide letterbox (16:9) aspect ratio images.

Graphic Scaling Modes (Only When Viewing Data Input)

This icon is used to determine how the internal

scaler will scale the image on the data input for

display. Typically, only SXGA sources (i.e., black

box radars) will gain any benefit from this setting.

Fill Screen scales the horizontal and vertical dimensions

independently to fill the screen. In the case of SXGA input,

there will be horizontal elongation of the image.

1200 Series Display, Rev. A2 Using the Setup Menu — Page 15

Fill to Aspect Ratio scales the image by the same amount

both vertically and horizontally — preserving the original

aspect ratio. In the case of SXGA, this will result in some

empty space right and left of the image. This is normal.

Nonlinear Scaling Modes is not recommended for the 1200

series display.

Language

This icon selects the language to use in the Setup

Menu. The three choices are English, Danish, and

Chinese.

Video source

Northstar strongly recommends leaving the Video

System setting on Auto so that the display will

automatically configure itself to the source.

Utilities

The Utilities icon encompasses numerous general

settings for the display. This icon also has some

items that contain submenus.

User Settings

User Time-out adjusts the time before the Setup Menu will

automatically disappear (in increments of five seconds.)

DPMS should always be enabled.

Display Input must be disabled for proper operation of

your display.

Auto Source Select must be set to High for your display to

work properly.

Gamma should always be set to the 1.0 setting.

Language

Page 16 — Using the Setup Menu 1200 Series Display, Rev. A2

OSD Settings

OSD Setting allows you to place the Setup Menu wherever

you’d like it on the screen.

OSD Background allows the Setup Menu to be either

Translucent or Opaque. Many users find it easier to read in

the Opaque setting.

OSD Rotate should always be set to Normal.

Freeze. Northstar recommends not freezing the image.

Zoom enables the zoom function on the image displayed. If

the image has been zoomed, then you can use the Hori-

zontal Pan and Vertical Pan to display the image.

Direct Access #1 should always be set to Brightness.

Direct Access #2 should always be set to Contrast.

Display Orientation should always be set to Normal.

Calibrate RGB Gain causes the display to re-calibrate its

colors automatically when displaying an image from the data

input. When displaying a new VGA data source for the first

time, this calibration helps set colors properly.

Load Factory Defaults restores the factory default settings.

This is particularly useful if the display has been adjusted to

an undesirable state.

Exit Menu

Use this icon to exit the Setup Menu. Once at the

Exit icon, press to exit the Setup Menu.

As a shortcut, you can also hold down until

the Setup Menu disappears.

EXIT

VIDEO

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NORTHSTAR 1201 Owner's manual

Brand: NORTHSTAR

Model: 1201

Type: Owner's manual

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1202

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NORTHSTAR 1201 Owner's manual

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NORTHSTAR 1201 Owner's manual

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