Is there any reason for it to be that long? was it made that long just so it was graspable? could it be shorter with the newer knob? =]

I suspect the length is due to "graspabiliy" issues with the originall design, and yes I do think it could be made shorter without loss of manouverability...

/Michael

OK, daylight today was utterly laughable - dark grey overcast all day...

But I did manage to borrow a somewhat better camera for a few seconds to get some quick in-car shots.

Here's the first...

/Michael

and the second...

/Michael

and a third.

/Michael

Michael, that looks nice!
That's exactly the fascia I would buy if I had an empeg. You know, I've got the same dashboard, I've got a Lupo; is yours a Polo or a Lupo?
BTW, did you put 2 red leds in order to illuminate the "drawer"? Looks nice!

Hi, it's a Polo.

Yes, two red LEDs in the pocket, two by each mid speaker in the doors and 2 blue LEDs in the door pockets - see attached pic. The door LEDs follow the dash lighting level and I'll redo the pocket LEDs to do the same.

/Michael

Thumbs up!
Where did you connect them? directly to the dimmer? I want to put a red LED in the back of the door handle, so that you can see the handle when it's dark; I think that could look nice.

I have power windows, and the illumination in those switches is also controlled by the dash lighting. I just hooked up the LEDs (with serial resistance) in parallell to the proper pins in that plug. No new wires into the door (which would have been a pain...).

Edit: So doing door handle LED should be easy if you have illuminated switches in the door already. IIRC you'd have to drill a small hole and secure the LED with glue (mine are hotglued - through-hole in the centre/door pockets, glue only for the speaker LEDs)
I used 5mm high intensity LEDs, but for the door handle I'd probably go with standard LEDs and 3mm size.

/Michael

Followup.

I received my fascia today. Very nice!!! Unfortunately, the photos do not do it justice. This is a composite of four shots - off with / without flash and on / illuminated with / without flash in ambient room light. Sorry about the quality. I never said I was good with a camera...

There are a lot of black fascia photos already, so I thought I would post a polished NewFace with a polished knob, clear lens and illuminated button hack. The combination is quite striking. All it really needs is a polished handle, and it would look really slick. Granted, it clashes horribly in my car, but this was for my home unit, so it is perfectly at home sitting above my computer (Shuttle case in silver with blue front).

Some notes:

I was warned in advance that polished would show fingerprints. It does. But the buttons and screws are nearly flush with the surface, so it is easy to clean. It makes the buttons a bit less friendly to use, though, because they are so flush to the fascia.

This particular combination kicks back a lot of light from the illuminated buttons and knob. It will light up the electronics on the display board quite well. That was actually my goal with the combination (kind of a crystal / "visible empeg"). I strongly recommend the combination, although it is probably not for everyone's tastes. I think the new neon blue might do well here, but I haven't seen it in action yet.

I am actually surprised how little light seems to get through the knob. Perhaps it is because of the contrasting brightness of the LEDs being reflected back into the player. I can probably adjust the illumination level to make it fit a bit better.

All in all, I am extremely happy with my purchases! Excellent work!!!

Yes, the fascia are excellent. Here's a polished fascia with chrome handle and black buttons/knob.



It's a great empeg mod.

How well does the original handle match the black annodized fascia? Does it stand out? I don't know whether or not to buy now, or wait to see if 303 will offer handles anytime soon.

thats about it!!!

Its looks GREAT there, but its hard to get an idea of textures etc from a photo

how are the buttons? I heard the buttons are too flush with the fascia and hard to hit? Not a huge deal to me though because I use the remote 90% of the time.

the buttons are not hard to hit. it is just flush for the PolFace, you will get fingerprints!

must admit that placing the polface on and getting the buttons through was the worst part of fitting it. It is a very *snug* fit. That said it does look wonderful and how often are you going to take if off (although I did recently and now the buttons were correctly seated I was careful and didn't disturb them).

http://mysite.mweb.co.za/residents/skibum/pub/empegs1.jpg
http://mysite.mweb.co.za/residents/skibum/pub/empegs2.jpg

It's hard with photos, you'd need to get the exposure just so... This is probably the best of mine for the texture, while this one better describes the colors - though actually somewhat exaggerated...

My handle is definately dark dark grey compared to the fascias true black - at least that's they way they appear to me... Might have something to do with the light and textures also...

The texture of the fascia is sort of brushed (horizontally) beneath the anodization while the handle is sort of rough "fine grit" sandpaper (well, or how you'd like to describe it)

In the dash the handle blends pretty good with the surrounding dash so it's not really an issue - though I'll probably get a handle from Tim anyway, if he decides to produce them.

/Michael

My black Anoface arrived this week and I've just fitted it. See attachment for photo.

The quality of the face is superb and with the black buttons and knob I think it looks totally right in my VW dash.

I need to do a bit of tweaking yet because the handle rubs slightly on the new face. If Tim ever does a handle without the notches and with the same finish as the anoface I will definitely get one as the Anoface matches my dash better than the handle does.

Geoff

How about the possibility of a short (VERY short) knob soon? I mean as short as possible while still sticking out enough to turn it. I barely ever use the knob, so if it stuck out no more than 5mm from the newface, I'd be extremely happy. My handle is already brushed looking, including having filled in the big notch on the left, so the knob is my big hold-out here.

Bruno

>>How about the possibility of a short (VERY short) knob soon?

That could be seen as a threat...if uttered by a psycho dwarf with a knife...in a naturist camp