Sylvania Halo-vision question
 

Hi,
Does anyone have some photos of a Sylvania Halo-vision tv set lit up?
Did they use incandescent lamps to light the frame?,also how many years were they made?

They used a cold-cathode fluorescent, I believe - not sure how it was powered.

They used white neon sign tubing and a small step-up transformer to power it. IIRC, it had a selector switch to select different briteness levels. I used to unplug them because most buyers didn't like them. I was doing repair work in a used tv store many years ago.

I restored one about a year ago: http://www.videokarma.org/showthread...ight=halolight

http://miniman82.4t.com/images/IMG_0420.JPG

http://miniman82.4t.com/images/IMG_0421.JPG

I've only seen one set, and the white neon was already broken, and the step-up transformer was burned out.

Miniman, your set looks really nice.

I don't have it anymore, I sold it on Ebay to a guy in Minnesota.

Thanks for the great pictures!
That's a beautiful Tv,I actually like the idea of the backlit frame!

I'm suprised to learn they used neon though.

Could you leave the "Halo" lit even if the tv itself was off?

How rare are they?
Was the Halo-Vision available as a portable too or only on consoles?

No, the set have to be on for the frame to be lit. I suppose you could wire it to it's own wall plug though, it's easy to disconnect from the chassis and has it's own transformer. They are not rare at all, I see them on the net all the time (edit: guy I sold it to had like 15 of them!). I've seen it in tabletop versions, nothing portable to my knowledge.

were they still being made as late as 1957?

The cabinet on this one is a bit to conservative for my tatses,I'd like to see a modernistic one with tapered legs and a blonde finish!

Neon (orange-red if really neon) tubes use cold cathode discharge. Use a different mixture of gasses (probably with a little mercury) and a phosphor coating, and you have a cold-cathode fluorescent lamp.

Less conservative Halolight
 

Here is a pic of my den with one of my Halolights. I have 4 of them that I have restored. Two are blonde like this set (23" - identical), one is similar but a little older with a darker cabinet and the last one has a similar protruding halolight but with a base that has simulated drawers. Got that from a VK member here about 5 years ago.

As a sidenote, those models were also available in Canada (although I have never
seen one with my eyes). According to some service data I have come across,
those sets were also available with 25-Hz (or rather 25-cps...) power line
capability, which involved a somewhat more complex power supply for that
fluorescent light. 25-Hz power was used in some areas of Canada as late as
1964, so there was a demand for electronics compatible with that frequency.
The only 25-Hz unit I have is a Motorola clock radio.

You will reduce eyestrain if there's ambient light in a dimly lit room where you're watching TV. But it works best with a TV lamp like the classic black panther that softly lights the room behind the TV. Locating the light in front, as Sylvania did, just makes you squint more, and that's why customers paid to have them disconnected.

Phil Nelson

Here's a link to a 1956 Sylvania Halo-Vision ad:1956-SYLVANIA-brochure-HALOLIGHT.jpg
Address:http://www.tvhistory.tv/1956-SYLVANI...-HALOLIGHT.jpg Courtesy: TV History site

I believe Sylvania offered Halo-Vision sets until at least 1960.

-Steve D.