Not sure how your stalk gets its data to the Sony interface, though, so I'm not sure if "out of range" is the reason you're having the problem. I'd be curious to know more details, because my friend Tod's stalk converter isn't working 100 percent, either, and we haven't yet cracked the dash open to work on it a second time.

My Saab uses the same idea as the empeg/sony stalk. 0-5volt ADC range with resistors on each button. The problem is it that the circuit has to stay hooked up because the values are decoded by one of the in-dash computers and includes the horn as one of the values. Therefore I bought a converter which gets tapped to the same wire that goes from the buttons to the computer. This adapter (I don't know what's inside) is made by Autoleads to control Sony headunits with Saab steering wheel buttons. As the voltage of the Saab circuit stays between 0 and 5 volts and the fact that the converter is "compatible with all Sony head units with RM-X2S or RM-X4S joystick ports" I didn't think I'd have a problem. I calculated the ADC values from a Saab stereo sight and they do not match the raw stalk values I get coming out of the converter. The values coming out start much higher which is why I think the 3 nonworking buttons have ADC values the empeg will not recognize.

As far as why I have an empeg: Me love it!!

What I was going to try to do was drop the voltage going into the converter (which gets plugged directly into the tuner). I don't know if the resistor should be added in parallel or series as the converter thing confuses me (not hard to do anyways )