I noticed there is a new sony stalk remote, it is wireless,
model RMX5S.
obviously it won't work with the EMPEG....yet..

is it IR or RF ?

32Gig MK2 In 2001 VW Golf TDI

not too sure, the sony pulse mag doens't say anything, and the sales guy said it's IR, but I then asked if it's mounted on the right of the steering column (NZ cars are right hand drive)how is the head gonna pick up the signal, he said oh, errr... it just does.
So this lead me to beleive that it's possibly RF, also he stated that it only works on the new head units, so this confirms it since the older ones were all IR.

the sony website is void of any info about it. they have the it works you don't need to know any more than that attitude.

32Gig MK2 In 2001 VW Golf TDI

I have that exact remote stalk already.

It comes with many of the new Sony head units including mine, which is the Sony CDX-M770. I just verified the part number on mine (easy to do as it is sitting here next to me since I didn't actually install it - read below).

Anyway, here is what I have to say about it:

a) It is indeed IR. A unique feature is that the direction of the IR LED can be adjusted over a 60 degree or so range by an external thumbwheel. The only thing is that the IR LED is at the base of the stalk and seems to be mounted parallel to the mounting plane of the remote, and the available adjustment lets the LED's effective direction pivot around the vertical axis of the remote.

b) It sucks for my application! I used to have a wired remote with my last Sony head, and had mounted the stalk in the center console between the seats... which turned out to be a very nice location. Due to the IR interface and LED location/orientation, the new stalk won't work there (blocked by shifter, etc). In fact, I tried locating the remote in many places in my Honda CRX, and the few the worked were not really that much better than just using the front panel or regular IR remote (which also comes with the player I have).

I would recommend sticking with the wired ones, unless you have a place you want to mount a stalk such that the base of the stalk would have a direct line of sight to your head.... As a note, I did find that interior reflections allowed it to work in some unexpected locations as well, but not usually as reliably.

In addition, making it work with the EMPEG may or may not be another issue due to the IR interface.

Oh and one more thing... the Sony directions show the typical steering column mounting as a possibility, but I had trouble finding a good orientation for the remote and LED adjustment that worked reliably. Obviosuly, this would vary depending on the car, etc.... .

The Sony directions made no recommendations how to tweak this and actualy make it work (as usual)... they just describe how to physically install the remote and how to adjust the LED....

The orientations that worked for me on the steering column usually had the remote IR LED pointed at something at least somewhat reflective (windows, plastic trim, etc). But as I said, I wasn't too happy with the consistancy of the operation. Of course, your results may vary :).

Another note... holding the stalk in my hand and pointing it at the receiver worked fine with direct line of sight, so I am pretty sure my remote is not defective or anything.

IR would suck for me too when I had a wired one I never mounted it and would just hold it in one hand. it worked really nice that way until the wire broke

32Gig MK2 In 2001 VW Golf TDI