First build based on a 27” WG D9200 – good idea?

[Bunghoolio]

First build based on a 27” WG D9200 – good idea?

Hoping to get a better idea of what I’m getting myself into by purchasing a used WG D9200 27” CRT . 
I just talked to the seller yesterday, a local guy here in St. Paul who repairs them, and he told he just finished replacing over 75 caps. He also gave me a run down of some other shops in the area, some of the shoddy repairs he’s seen coming in, and he actually sounds like he might do things the right way. He tells me he ran it all night and day and it has passed his tests. Asking about $250.

This is my first step into the Arcade world. I have reads old posts for Many hours and it really makes my head spin when I try to figure out how to best go about this and wind up with a Mamecade that is fairly stable, plays a wide variety of games, and gives a fairly accurate representation. I am 40, so almost all of my games of interest are from 1995 and before. One thing I came away with is that the 9200 is one of the best monitors you can find. So that is why I am pursuing it. I just worry about it needing a lot of attention and costly repairs going forward. I talked to another guy that has a Golden Tee Complete cab that hopefully I can put this in (has a monitor that needs repair in it).


Is it really hit and miss with the 9200, or can I expect it to need repairs more than once a year with light use?
Are they best left to electrical engineers with free time? I’m a mainframe/unix programmer with only basic soldering skills.

My other ideas, are to create one or two vertical mount bartops (with 17” 4:3 LCD) – one with just spinner games, and the other with 19” classic games, or a single bartop with both.  This would be the easier/cheaper way to go. But the chance to get a full-size D9200 at a good price seems like a rare opportunity.

Thanks for any rational advice.

[ahofle]

Absolutely jump on that thing in my opinion.  No one makes 27" digital multi-syncs anymore, so it's not like you can hold out for another model.  It has all new caps instead of the junk ones that it apparently came with.  Plus you know someone local that can repair them which is a huge plus.  I would grab that thing in a heartbeat.  I have a D9400 that has been going for years now, and a Betson Kortek multi-sync that died after only a couple of years.  I had that one repaired for $250 just to have a spare (had to ship the chassis to Betson).

[MonMotha]

The only real problem with the D9200 is that when it goes, it REALLY goes.  They basically destroy themselves at the slightest hint of a problem whereas most (good) designs limit the damage to just the area of the circuitry with the problem.  Hence your repair costs, if it does have a problem, may be higher.  Having already been professionally repaired with (hopefully) good parts, you'll hopefully have a relatively trouble-free experience.  I've not found the D9200 to be any less reliable in terms of frequency of major incidents than any of the other 2000s era digital multisyncs, just that those incidents are always very major when they do occur.

[paigeoliver]

I have been running a D9200 in light use for around 10 years now. No issues at all. I haven't had to do a thing to it.

$250 total for a recapped D9200 is a GOOD price. I charge almost $100 just to cap them. I wouldn't sell one for less than $400. You can still get the refurb chassis for them from Happ and perhaps some other places as well. If you buy one then get a new flyback and HOT and just bag them up and save them in case they are obsolete 20 years from now when you need them.

I think you can still get 25" trisync flat tube monitors from Neiman Video Display. At least they still have them on their website. I have one a local guy brought to me for repair right now and I absolutely love the design. All analog adjustment knobs like an old school monitor instead of the on screen display and buttons of the other trisyncs.

D9200s do have a high failure rate, but a high failure rate in the arcade monitor world means that a guy who just has one of the darn things will probably never have to do a thing to it.

[Bunghoolio]

That settles it, I think I'll pick it up this weekend. I want to see the Golden Tee Complete cab a guy is selling first. Hate to put it in a cabinet with such little personality, but I can't seem to find a Discs of Tron Env to hack up for cheap.

Should I expect a new flyback and HOT, or are those components less of a worry? What would be the going rate upcharge for replacing those two?
He told me its one of the cleanest he has seen. Of course, I will have to take his word for it with my lack of experience, I will be able to see it running and he is close to my home.

Also, should I be concerned with this..."The D9200's have a design flaw where failure of the H.O.T. can have a cascading effect whereby several components fail."

[paigeoliver]

Just buy a spare flyback and HOT and put them in a plastic bag inside your cabinet. That way you have the parts on hand if it ever blows up. The repair tech can handle the rest.

In my game collection I have 4 monitors that worry me. The B&W vector in my Asteroids, the B&W monitor in my Space Invaders, the B&W monitor in my Clowns and most importantly the modified B&W TV SET in my Pro Tennis.

Notice how my top 4 worry cabs were all running monitors that were obsolete over 30 years ago. I would put my D9200 8th on my worry list, after whatever the hell monitor is in my 29" candy cabinet and both my 25" cabinets that I don't have spare chassis for (as I have a D9200 parts chassis).

[MonMotha]

Also, should I be concerned with this..."The D9200's have a design flaw where failure of the H.O.T. can have a cascading effect whereby several components fail."

This is pretty much what I was saying.  When it goes, it's a doozy to fix since it blows up half the stuff on the board which makes things more difficult to repair (especially since, if you miss something, it'll often re-blow everything).  Doesn't seem to affect how often it breaks, just the severity when it does. In light duty home use, you'll probably never have an issue.