Restoring Atari Centipede cabinet

[blackace936]

So I've had a Centipede cabinet now for about 4 years that I keep meaning to get around to. It was stored outside for the better part of a decade before I acquired it and is in pretty poor condition. I know my way around electronics and computers but I've never done anything quite like this before. The cabinet itself is a total loss and I plan on building a totally new one that is stained wood rather than rebuilding it to the original MDF and graphics.

Before I get to that though I have to make sure that the electronics themselves are salvageable. After cleaning away all the dirt and cobwebs I did a basic check to make sure nothing was horribly wrong. All the fuses seemed to be intact, nothing obviously wrong with high voltage wires, and no blue smoke stains on the main board. When plugged in nothing really happens though other than the lights for the buttons come on. When those buttons are pressed I get a solid tone that increases in volume when multiple are pressed. I can hear the high pitch whine from the monitor but I get no picture as well so I'm not really able to use test mode.

What should my next steps be? I will upload some pictures of the interior as soon as I get a chance.

[yotsuya]

Try seeing if the test switch is engaged. Sounds like it is. I bet it plays blind.

[Mike A]

If you are going to do a wood stained cab then do a Centipede cabaret.

[blackace936]

damn, it was in test mode. I always thought it was the other way around because the coin slot lights never lit up so I just never though to actually drop a quarter in them haha. So after flipping that switch and dropping in a quarter I can hear a full game being played. It is blind though as I get absolutely nothing from the monitor. The plan was always to replace it with an LCD or LED though so that isn't a huge issue. Anyone have advice on that or should I attempt to get the CRT running instead?

[blackace936]

Pictures as promised

[yotsuya]

Get the CRT running.

I was in the same exact boat you were when I restored mine. I used an LCD and a converter to take the Centipede signal from the PCB and sent it to the LCD, and it looked LIKE ASS. A game like Centieped, with a play field that is 80%+ black, needs the pure black of a CRT.

Let’s help you troubleshoot the CRT. What happens to the monitor when you turn the game on? Do you hear the static hi-voltage sound? You mentioned a whine - is there glow in the neck of the tube?

[blackace936]

As far as I can tell nothing happens with the monitor, no glow. When first powered on I hear an immediate click (maybe a relay?) then the very low pitched whine I always associated with old tube TV's which is what I mentioned earlier. I don't think the whining noise is coming from the monitor upon closer inspection though, probably the main transformer. I don't hear any of the small static popping noises you would expect either.

[yotsuya]

As far as I can tell nothing happens with the monitor, no glow. When first powered on I hear an immediate click (maybe a relay?) then the very low pitched whine I always associated with old tube TV's which is what I mentioned earlier. I don't think the whining noise is coming from the monitor upon closer inspection though, probably the main transformer. I don't hear any of the small static popping noises you would expect either.

Do you see an orange glow on the neck - especially the part close to the neck board

[blackace936]

Nope, no glow in the neck

[yotsuya]

Nope, no glow in the neck

OK, you’re going to have to pull the monitor out of the machine, but take a look at two fuses on the chassis and see if either are blown.

Where do you live, maybe we can hook you up with somebody who fixes monitors?

[blackace936]

Once again, that didn't take long to figure out the problem. The board at the end of the neck is cracked right in twain. Didn't notice it before because there was a paper backing zip tied to it. I'd say this board isn't worth being fixed. Where might I get a replacement? Sticker on the tube says it's a Rauland 19VMJP22 and another sticker on the chassis say Victor Co of Japan model 38-G07904-KM Chassis G07CB0

[yotsuya]

I’ve seen many of them repaired with no issue, but if you want a new one....

https://www.twistywristarcade.com/monitor-components/1077-reproduction-go7-neckboard.html

Do it!!!

[opt2not]

Oh wow, didn’t know repro neck boards were available for the GO7’s. I love those monitors. They’re pretty easy to repair. People say the K7000’s are easier, but out of the half dozen GO7’s I’ve repaired they seem to be consistent in how they fail.

I agree with Yots, those pure blacks are vital for Centi. Keep it original if you have the energy to do so! 

[blackace936]

At your suggestion I did try repairing the board, if it doesn't work I do have the reproduction as a fall back. I've never repaired a board before because I've never worked on anything with traces big enough to do so. My idea with LCD was power savings but I'm happy to keep it original.

[yotsuya]

Sweet! Good luck!

[blackace936]

Oh wow, didn’t know repro neck boards were available for the GO7’s. I love those monitors. They’re pretty easy to repair. People say the K7000’s are easier, but out of the half dozen GO7’s I’ve repaired they seem to be consistent in how they fail.

I agree with Yots, those pure blacks are vital for Centi. Keep it original if you have the energy to do so! 

Where would you say they fail consistently? Repairing the board hasn't had any effect so I'm going to pull the monitor next. My dad used to do monitor repairs back in the 80's or 90's so he's going to give me a hand with more advanced trouble shooting this weekend.

[opt2not]

Oh wow, didn’t know repro neck boards were available for the GO7’s. I love those monitors. They’re pretty easy to repair. People say the K7000’s are easier, but out of the half dozen GO7’s I’ve repaired they seem to be consistent in how they fail.

I agree with Yots, those pure blacks are vital for Centi. Keep it original if you have the energy to do so! 

Where would you say they fail consistently? Repairing the board hasn't had any effect so I'm going to pull the monitor next. My dad used to do monitor repairs back in the 80's or 90's so he's going to give me a hand with more advanced trouble shooting this weekend.

For the most part, on monitors that don’t power-up, reflowing headers, replacing caps, or the fly-back (in that order) has been a regular solution, in my experience.
There are a couple resistors (R516, R517) that are becoming problem components as well because of age, those  mainly affect brightness i believe.
But for a dead monitor the first thing I’d check for is bad solder joints on headers for both the chassis and neck.