Monitor questions

[big daddy]

It's been a few years since I built my cab and hadn't kept up with my reading since, so forgive my renewed newbieness   

I had a Betson Imperial in my cab (can't even remember the model #)  that finally gave out (screen no longer displays..I can see a faint/wavy image of what is supposed to be the screen, but that's about it).

Anyways, a few questions on this
- I'm wanting to put in a spare TV or monitor I have laying around temporarily so I can keep playing the arcade.  The current Betson has been unplugged for a few weeks.  Is it safe for me to go in and pull it out or do I have to do some sort of discharge first?  It's been so long since I put it in originally, I don't remember if I had to take special precautions or if just leaving it unplugged for several days is enough to keep me from getting killed while handing it now.  Am I safe as long as I handle it by the metal frame and avoid the innards?

- Regarding the bad monitor.  I live in Houston.  Is there any repair services for these things, particularly local, and would it be worth having someone look at it to see if it's repairable?  Or should I pretty much chalk it up as gone and look to replace it?  What's everyone's thoughts on that subject?

- If I do replace it, what are the latest innovations in the arcade monitors front?  The FAQ seems way outdated as it has the same stuff I read several years ago     Is there any new dual monitors available that are cheaper than when I bought the Betson?  Or are there better alternatives now with PC monitors/vid cards that can accurately recreate the arcade resolutions while supporting at least 600x800 for the PC games I have on my cab?  Or is it still predominantly the Monitor, TV, or "betson-like" dual options?  Still use Ultimarc card or similar or are there other options on this front?

Thanks in advance for any pointers.  It feels so overwhelming to have to think I have to go through and read thousands of posts again to get back up to speed just to replace my monitor, so hopefully someone can impart some wisdom and save me some time   

[big daddy]

any input (especially on my safety concern regarding the first point?)   Was hoping to do this while I'm on holiday but don't want to kill myself in the process   

[grantspain]

i have been trying to kill myself on monitors for the last 20 years with no luck so i think you should not be too concerned
do you have a photo of what your monitor is displaying?

[big daddy]

Here's a pic of my monitor.  So anybody have any thoughts as to what is the problem or whether it's worth it to attempt to get it fixed?

(FYI - I'm using Ultimarc card and when I plug in a regular monitor in, it works fine).

[grantspain]

vertical frame collapse
can be caused by many things-bad connection on remote board/vertical yoke connector/or general bad solder on chassis,broken vertical size pot,blown vertical deflection ic or voltage feed missing

almost certainly repairable

would be nice to see exactly what model this monitor is though

[big daddy]

It's the betson imperial multisynch   (27 inch). Not sure how to find out a specific model #, but I believe it to be this one (although I don't remember it being that expensive!  But back then I was spending like crazy so it's possible) 

http://www.betson.com/products/IMP-44-4070-RT

Regarding repair, where would I be able to get something like that repaired.  From what I remember it cost a fortune to ship it to me and I'd imagine shipping it back to Betson distributor just to investigate would cost me a pretty penny.  I was going to email them, but wondering if there are other alternatives.

I live in Houston, so do you think there would be any major repair shops in a city like that to work on it?  I'm not sure what to even search for as for who does these types of repairs so any help would be appreciated.

[qrz]

per Grantspain , loss of vertical deflection .

typical cause is degradation of device/pcb solder connections due to thermal cycling encountered during normal operations 

i.e. resoldering the IC is the first step

there is a 47-330mF/25-50v cap and gen purpose diode in the "pump-up /boost source"
for retrace supply of the IC.
this cap is a common failure...diode is an occassional failure 
note : in normal ops, cathode should read a few volts to gnd higher than the anode .

[MonMotha]

http://retroblast.arcadecontrols.com/files/KT-XX14X-SM.pdf is the service manual for those who don't have it and are troubleshooting (I'm mostly thinking OP).  Section 5-2-17 is the (minimal) troubleshooting flowchart for vertical collapse.

The monitor is a pretty nice one aside from some side compression at CGA.  Definitely worth repairing.

The IC qrz refers to is IC201 TDA8172.  The schematic is a bit difficult to read due to size, but the diode appears to be D202, and I can't read the numbers on any of the caps.

Touching up solder joints and replacing caps is pretty easy to do yourself if you've got basic soldering skills.  Just remember to discharge the anode before removing the chassis board should you need to do so.  This monitor features a bleeder resistor, so it won't give you a big "snap" or anything, but you'll still want to be sure it's "dead" before pulling that cap off.

If you want to find a place to have it repaired, many TV shops will work on these things, but not all, and it's getting harder to find a real TV repair shop these days.  This particular monitor is more like a PC monitor than a TV, but ask around if they'd at least be willing to look at it.  If you describe the symptoms, a good TV tech should have a good idea of what's happening.

[big daddy]

thanks for all the tips.  I'd be scared to work on something like this myself as I have zero electrical experience...but I do know a few people who may be able to help, so I'll run this past them.

Thanks again for all the help (and the link to the PDF!)