Options for my Megatouch monitor

[geforcefly]

My Mega Maxx Sapphire 2 bartop has a 13" Tatung (Type-53) VGA monitor that works fine other than the fact the horizontal width adjustment doesn't work.  I have no experience fixing a CRT monitor and I'm afraid that I could really inflict damage on myself trying to fix it.

The touch controller is the white Microtouch one (remember, it's a Maxx and not a Force), and therefore I was wondering how I should go about with this (and the pros and cons of each of the following five options)
1. Fix the monitor (don't know where, though)
2. Do nothing and live with the problem (it's never going on location)
3. Replace the monitor with another 13" VGA CRT monitor (do they even exist anymore?)
4. Replace the monitor with a 15" touchscreen LCD monitor that's compatible with the white Microtouch controller (capacitive preferred)
5. Replace the monitor with a 15" LCD + add a touchscreen that's compatible with the white Microtouch controller

What do you guys and gals think would be an ideal solution?  Of course, the LCD would be favorable for me (and I can recap them without risking life and limb). 

[srarcade]

Is it simple as a bad satellite board? Can you see the horiz pot has all 3 legs? I've had some where the pot broke so slightly you would never know without looking closely. You can simply detach and swap the pot. Hope its that simple. Otherwise you might find a chassis pretty cheap to swap the whole thing. I'm not so sure about finding a compatible controller for a flat panel, I have not seen one that small.

[geforcefly]

I'll check it out over the weekend and see what I find (and test the pot)
EDIT: Got really busy, I will get to it when I get a chance.

[lilshawn]

a faulty width adjustment (often not wide enough or too wide even when the width is maxed out) is often just an old electrolytic capacitor (or "cap") failing causing it.

the monitor uses a charging and discharging capacitor to "time" the scanning beam as it goes across the screen...when caps get old the capacitance ability goes down....and the picture changes because it takes longer to charge up and it doesn't discharge as much over the time period needed. so the picture goes really wide or really narrow. (depending on how they use the cap to time)

it's usually just a matter of removing the offending capacitor and replacing it with a new one.

kits are available on the internet to replace a pile of caps on a monitor. they often come with instructions on where they go.

the monitor is pretty old, so it's likely going to need most of them changed. if you do change them, that monitor could last another 20 years.

[obcd]

Be aware that most 15 inch LCD's are not designed for the resolution of 640 x 480 that the maxx is using.
They usually only show a crystal clear picture when they are used at their native resolution. Further, you will need a new (flat)
touchscreen overlay as the one you have now follows the curve of the picture tube front. You will also need a new bezel to make it look properly.

[lilshawn]

Be aware that most 15 inch LCD's are not designed for the resolution of 640 x 480 that the maxx is using.
They usually only show a crystal clear picture when they are used at their native resolution. Further, you will need a new (flat)
touchscreen overlay as the one you have now follows the curve of the picture tube front. You will also need a new bezel to make it look properly.

happ sells these kits to convert CRT to LCD including a plastic bezel to shim out the curve in the plastic case so it was flat. Not sure if they do any more or not for the flatside cabs but they do for the radion for sure. maybe it could be modded slightly for use in a MAXX.

https://na.suzohapp.com/products/monitors/49-2885-00

[obcd]

Not exactly a cheap solution... You might find a complete second hand unit for that price.
Problem is that such unit might show similar faults.

[geforcefly]

Well, looks like I may want to get the old one fixed then (or get lucky and find one with a good monitor).  I've heard the type-53 Tatung is known to have the horizontal width issue.

[obcd]

If it's a frequently appearing fault on that chassis type, someone should be able to tell you which components go bad.

[lilshawn]

I'll stand by my original post... Really all this needs is a handful of caps to get back in shape again.

[obcd]

Yes, it's very likely an electrolityc capacitor, but it probably would help if someone could tell which one most of the time is responsable.
Replacing all off them can be good (if the chassis has it's age) but can also be tricky. (Sometimes you need to go over the adjustments again) Not the mention that the possibility of making a mistake increases when the number of components you replace increases. I never had much luck randomly exchanging components to fix an issue.

[lilshawn]

I can almost guarantee nothing will need to be changed. if anything, the monitor is currently running out of whack BECAUSE of the caps. at worst you'll have to adjust the horizontal size and vertical sizing because someone has adjusted the picture size to compensate for the clapped out caps. this is easily done with the control panel adjustments on the monitor.

the key to doing caps is to do them one at a time. note the polarity and how it's marked on the board ...there is usually a dot or a + mark or a stripe or something indicating which side is positive and which side is negative.

remove the capacitor and compare it to the new one. it should be the same uF rating...a larger voltage rating is okay. 220uF - 50 volts okay check... install with the negative to the dot (or however they mark it) and it's done. of course there is always exceptions to the rules...sometimes a slightly larger value cap is substituted (100uf replaced with a 220uF) but it's rare and it's often indicated why in the kit you buy.

It's really easier than it sounds.

[geforcefly]

Thanks for the suggestions!  I'm not that great at soldering (I have revived a few LCD monitors) but just the thought of working on a CRT still kind of scares me.

[lilshawn]

monitor work is fine really. there is really no chance of death or injury if you work on it while it's not powered on. but people can be retards and try and poke bits where they shouldn't while it's powered on.

search youtube for "CRT discharge" it's really easy and most of the time it's usually not needed except for really big or really old tubes...but better to be safe than sorry.

basically you attach a wire to the frame of the monitor and attach the other end onto a flat bladed screwdriver. you then stick your grounded screwdriver under the big suction cup to ground out the inside of tube to the frame. a little spring clip holds the suction cup onto the "bellybutton" of the tube...since you have a handy dandy screwdriver already jammed in there, just use it to to pop the clip out.

I'm lazy and don't even discharge the tube any more. most fly backs will bleed off excess voltage in the tube so it's not much of a problem. Been zapped good a few times, not a big deal. the static I accumulate while cleaning dust off a bunch of turned on games is far more annoying.

...but I'll do it for big 30 inch tubes. they tend to hang onto their charge.

once you've discharged the tube and removed the chassis you are basically home free.

reattaching the lead is as easy as folding the suction cup inside out and using it as a handle to clip the wire back onto the bellybutton.