Sony VCB-MH3 Backup Camera

NR4A · 11-26-2006, 02:13 PM

Our Horizon has the Sony color backup camera which we noticed was suffering from what looked like low signal from the camera to the monitor this past week. Outside temps were in the 50's here in Sunny (?) Florida.

When we stopped for the week I pulled the mini-din connector from the camera to the cable and saw no corrosion. Plugged it back in to no avail. The monitor works fine on the TripTek and external composite video.

Miraculously on our trip back home today the temps warmed up to 77 and the camera came to full life halfway home.

This same sequence happened last month, too. Dead - then back to life on it's own.

I know the MH3 is no longer available, and I can not fathom investing $250 in it's replacement.

Has anyone found a cheap fix/replacement for their backup cams?

NR4A · 11-26-2006, 02:13 PM

Our Horizon has the Sony color backup camera which we noticed was suffering from what looked like low signal from the camera to the monitor this past week. Outside temps were in the 50's here in Sunny (?) Florida.

When we stopped for the week I pulled the mini-din connector from the camera to the cable and saw no corrosion. Plugged it back in to no avail. The monitor works fine on the TripTek and external composite video.

Miraculously on our trip back home today the temps warmed up to 77 and the camera came to full life halfway home.

This same sequence happened last month, too. Dead - then back to life on it's own.

I know the MH3 is no longer available, and I can not fathom investing $250 in it's replacement.

Has anyone found a cheap fix/replacement for their backup cams?

smlranger · 11-26-2006, 04:11 PM

Sam:

You might want to check with Tim at RVCAMS.com. He sells Sony stuff and has been very helpful to me and others with questions/problems with back-up systems.

tomsm · 11-27-2006, 01:55 AM

Sam - I went through the same progression with mine. The way it went back and forth from working to not working made me think it was a loose connection/cable problem. I finally unmounted the camera and plugged it directly into the back of the monitor - no change...

That's when I called Tim and he said that's a normal failure mode for the Sony color cam. Bit the bullet, ordered the replacement, and have had no further problems.

John_Canfield · 11-27-2006, 05:41 AM

It seems like Sony has camera issues - we recently had to replace the side view cam I installed last summer

Tim at RV Cams told me that is not unusual for the side cam to last a year. Maybe the same engineering team that designed the laptop batteries that catch fire worked on the cams

Cruzer · 11-27-2006, 07:38 AM

For what it's worth - Sony has a new camera/monitor setup now. My 2007 Bus came with the VCB-MH62 monitor, which seems to be a better monitor than my previous Sony. The camera is now a VCB-RV2MH. Whether or not this model is more reliable is yet to be determined because I haven't had it that long. It has a wider field of vision and the side cameras plug right into the monitor rather than using an interface box. I hooked up a rocker switch to a DPDT relay that cuts out the turn signal feeds to the monitor in case I want to keep the rear cam on and not let it auto-cycle with the side cams. I prefer that for interstate driving because I can better judge my distance when passing another vehicle. Otherwise I had to wait until the last minute to turn on the blinkers to prevent the side cams from coming on. This way I still have the side cams for city driving.

NR4A · 11-27-2006, 08:40 AM

John -

I agree Sony has issues - they have for years and years.

In my thoughts while travelling down the road - you can buy a decent quality Webcam for $40 at your neighborhood Wallyworld. It would seem that one could (should) be able to convert a USB Cam to standard composite video. I may investigate and try a reverse engineering to resolve my webcam dilemma.

My other thought was a pinhole camera that are relatively inexpensive, and mount it in the existing Sony case. Having to trace out the DC and Video Out leads.

NR4A · 11-27-2006, 08:44 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> Sam - I went through the same progression with mine. The way it went back and forth from working to not working made me think it was a loose connection/cable problem. I finally unmounted the camera and plugged it directly into the back of the monitor - no change...

That's when I called Tim and he said that's a normal failure mode for the Sony color cam. Bit the bullet, ordered the replacement, and have had no further problems. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Thanks for the words of wisdom, Tom - I know that I am prolonging the enevitable.

Maybe an early Xmas gift to myself is in order.

Pusherman · 11-27-2006, 03:52 PM

Different question:

I have an 07 Journey which came with the Voyager black and white system. My first trip out after about 2 hours on the road, the monitor view begins to roll. When I push the source button to source 'b' it stops. Do I have a problem with the camera or the monitor?

Cruzer · 11-28-2006, 04:06 AM

That'd most likely be a monitor issue. The camera provides a sync signal that the monitor locks onto. Earlier TV sets had the knob for adjusting horizontal phase but most newer sets are auto-calibrating. There may be a dashpot inside the monitor that can be adjusted or the Horizontal phase lock circuitry may be going south.

jreeley · 06-06-2010, 11:39 AM

Thank you all for posting your information about your camera problems, because they really helped me find the underlaying cause of my problem.
My camera started to malfunction on our first time out this year and I went through the same progressions as most of you. It would work sometimes for short periods and then shut down. I bought the $40 camera to replace it, but decided to see if I could install the cmos board from the replacement, into the Sony housing, because the Sony camera has a much better lense than any of the cheap cameras. That's when I saw the "Desiccant (Silica Gel)" and realized the problem was moisture. The desiccant absorbes moisture over time and will eventually absorb enough that it will start to release it as temperature increases.

Bottom line is...DRY out your camera and REPLACE THE DESICCANT!