RSP-1068 12 volt trigger confusion

[BillGee]

I picked up my brand new RSP-1068 Saturday, replacing an old RTC-970. In the process of hooking everything up, i discovered there are no power outlets on the back of the 1068, so I had no way to trigger my RLC-900 to turn on/off. A quick trip to Radio Shack and 15 minutes with a soldering iron got me a 12 volt relay box.

Now I am trying to figure out how to get the 1068 to actually turn off the relay. What I *want* is for the 12 volt trigger to turn on and off with the preamp. What I *have* is the 12 volt trigger will not turn off unless I turn off both the preamp and zone 2.

That's really annoying!

I've tried configuring all inputs for "All" and for "1" on the 12 volt trigger. I tried setting the Zone 2 trigger to both "On " and "Off". None of this made any difference.

The unit came with firmware 1.1.3. I have downloaded but not installed 1.1.7. It looks like the firmware install is a serious job requiring partial disassembly of the preamp. I would not mind that except that it will take an hour or more to get everything disconnected and the preampout of the rack so I can get the cover off.

I use the zone 2 output but only as a source follower. I don't care about all the zone 2 separate features ... I just want it to feed the source to a downstream integrated amplifier.

A few work-arounds have occurred to me. Before I try them, I'd like to hear what suggestions any of you have.

[Kevin D]

You seem to have tried everything I would suggest on the 12v issue. I believe there were some fixes for the 12v triggers on the newer software, so I would definately update it.

On that, the cover the instructions refer to is the one screw sliding cover over the dip switches, not the entire cover for the receiver. You should be able to easily get to it and flip the switches. Look in the manual, and you should see the 1" x .5" cover in the picture of the rear of the unit.

Kevin D.

[BillGee]

Kevin, thanks for the pointer on the DIP switch cover. I had not spent enough time looking for it. It was hidden among all the cables! :-)

What I discovered may be of general interest to the forum. The top-line conclusion is that upgrading to firmware 1.1.7 did the trick. I now have the ability to control the 12 volt triggers as I would like.

Getting the upgrade proved interesting. All my computers are in another room and I don't have a laptop, so I had to invent a way to get a serial port close to the preamp.

Plan A: I borrowed a laptop from work. What I did not realize until I got it home is that it has no serial port on it!

Plan B: I purchased a USB-to-serial adapter. There are many of them and they are not expensive. Installed it on the laptop and connected then 1068. Flipped DIP switches, turned it on and voila! Got the right prompts on the screen.

However, the firmware download would go only about 15 dots or so then hang. I tried letting it sit for two hours and I tried downloading and installing the upgraded Hyperterminal that Rotel suggests. Nothing doing, and the preamp was non compos mentos because the existing firmware was erased. Panic begins to set in...

Plan C: Eventually I concluded that the USB to serial adapter was not going to work. I unrigged my one remaining Windows desktop computer, moved it to the living room with a spare monitor and got the upgrade done.

The new options for 12 volt triggers are nice. Instead of all or nothing, every input can be set to turn on any combination of the three triggers. To get what I wanted, I set every input to turn on trigger 1, and set Zone 2 for the "zone" trigger.