Monitor dark replace chasis or just cap kit?

[beaver24]

I have just picked up a cab. I believe it has a WG 7000 series 25" monitor it is a 1992 mortal kombat conversion. It has a zenith tube in it and I am using j-pac with arcadevga card. The monitor is extemely dark, I can increase brightness/contrast but then I get a ton of color bleed and sometimes screen rolls. If I increase screen setting on flyback bright enough to read the screen has a maroon tint to it. I am fairly skilled electronically, but am a bit fearful of death and high voltage  . The chasis kit seems fairly easy. I was wondering if this monitor was worth gettiing a cap kit or 8liners chasis or if I should replace it. Or if maybe there is something else to look for. Other than the darkness all the colors seem crisp.

[Ken Layton]

Capkit it first then see how it looks before doing anything else. Capkits are cheap.

[beaver24]

Thanks ken, wow that was a fast reply. Is it harder to do a full on cap kit than a chassis change? I can solder fairly well so I'd assume that is good enough. Am I risking zapping myself if its discharged. I'm just weighing the extra $70 versus lots of time and swearing and then ultimately having to replace the chassis anyhow.

[Jess--]

if its producing any sort of picture then it is probably worthwhile doing the capkit.

however you may be able to get some more use out of it before capkitting it by doing the following.

1. increase the screen setting to get your bright picture (with the maroon background)
2. find the Blue and Red cutoff controls (on the neck board) and reduce them to get your background back to black

you may find this brings your monitor back to being bright and crisp without the capkit however it is worth bearing in mind that all you are doing is adjusting for failing caps, the screen will go dark again over time as the existing caps get worse and you will need to do the capkit in the end.

[beaver24]

I ordered up the kit. How much should expect to pay if I decide to bring the board to someone to do it. I'll disconnect and such, but depending on how close the joints are etc. I don't trust my skills sometimes.

[beaver24]

Ken,
In a lot of threads you mention that flybacks are popular wear items in these. Do you thing with these symptoms that's a posssiblilty or that is more than likely the caps? That would make my descision of chasis replacement or caps easier. I just don't wanna keep taking this darned thing apart. My cab is done other than this, I just never liked how the monitor displayed. Thanks again you guys are a welath of knowledge for someone who would rather learn to do things himself, but is sometimes afraid to attempt it. I read around and think "hell I can fix that"
Chris

[Jess--]

I know the question about flybacks was aimed at ken but I shall answer aswell.

flybacks fail fairly often, however it is rare to find a faulty one that is still working, generally they fail completely and completely shut the monitor down.

[beaver24]

Thanks Jess. That question wasn't completely aimed at Ken he just posts about a lot of failures to those flybacks. I will do the caps first. I just am not one of those nickel and dime people to try 100 different things to repair something I should have replaced. But concensus is caps so when they come in I will do it.

[JLR2000]

I'll chime in that you should do the capkit -

I had never done one before and asked a ton of questions here, bought mine from Bob Roberts (the best).  Let me tell you that I have done a little soldering , maybe 10 - 15 times before over the years (not much at all) on very small things (ie: soldering wires to a switch).  This was my first real "electronics" grade soldering.

The task went smoothly once I got the proper tools.  By that I mean I farted around with a solder suction ball, the solder braid and a solder removal hyperdemical needle looking thingy.....let me tell you that these may have good applications in certain situations but IMO not for doing a capkit.  I spent around $10 for a de-soldering iron (Radio Shack) that heats and has a built in suction ball to remove exactly where you need it to and it made the job so much easier.  I HIGHLY recommend you buy that - it's cheap and will save you time, frustration and possibly money in the future.

I also fretted about the "shock".  All I can say is follow the guidelines you have read here and online and you will be fine.  I've removed two arcade monitors now and neither popped or sparked (although I'm always expecting it to).  Be AWARE of what safety precautions to take but don't be AFRAID and you'll be fine.

I was very pleased after I did my cap kit and the monitor fired up beautifully....the scariest part for me was putting the neck board on firmly with the fear of breaking the neck of the tube!

Good luck - and get to it.

[beaver24]

Thanks JLR after looking at the board I really am not too worried about completing the cap kit. Most seem pretty accessible. I guess part of my fear is that I'm throwing money and time at it and it won't fix my problem. I guess over-searching these threads can be a bad thing as I have read that a brightness problem on a monitor can be a million different things, but the cap kit is usually only listed for waviness etc. What would be my next order of business if the cap kit doesn't fix it. I am waiting on the caps, thy should be in soon. That is the hard part waiting a week for each part when one doesn't work.It wouldn't be such a hard decision if the alvaamusements chassis wasn't only $80, that is if they ever email me back.

[Kevin Mullins]

Just wanted to pop in and give another note on the cap kit....
Defineately suggest it first like the rest of the fellas here.

The fact that your monitor comes on and functions is an indication that the flyback is fine.
As mentioned before, they either work or they don't at all.
It is actually considered a transformer due to the fact that it is made up of various windings inside to determine the different voltages required throughout the chassis.
So long story short, either the coils inside are good and you get voltage or they are bad and you get zilch. (usually they've gone up in some form of blaze of glory)

But on a monitor that most likely hadn't been touched or has been in an arcade for extended periods of time, it is always good to do the cap kit first.

Another note on doing the cap kit though.....

A. Do you have the schematic handy? (just always a good idea)

B. Always do one cap at a time and look at the cap you are removing to make sure you have the orientation correct as in exactly the way it came out. 
Look for the negative stripe or other similar markings.
( !! the polarity absolutely matters !! )

C. Expect to possibly have to re-adjust the colors, brightness, contrast, etc after the cap kit.

Good luck and let us know how it goes or if there's any other concerns or questions.

[beaver24]

Cap kit done, didn't make a bit of difference, but it was kinda fun to do. Basically everything is dark, if I increase brightness/contrast I get color smear. If I up the screen it all goes red. Colors are turned way down and red isn't even up 1 bit. I have heard some say that the arcadevga through jpac without an amp is dim, colud that be my issue? Do you think a chassis would fix my problems or do you think I may have a tube or power problem? Part of me says just to mount up my 25" TV with component in and call it a day, but I would like to be authentic on my monitor. I just really don't wanna keep buying non-returnable parts. Looking for advice at this point. Replace or repair?

[JLR2000]

Cap kit done, didn't make a bit of difference, but it was kinda fun to do. Basically everything is dark, if I increase brightness/contrast I get color smear. If I up the screen it all goes red. Colors are turned way down and red isn't even up 1 bit. I have heard some say that the arcadevga through jpac without an amp is dim, colud that be my issue? Do you think a chassis would fix my problems or do you think I may have a tube or power problem? Part of me says just to mount up my 25" TV with component in and call it a day, but I would like to be authentic on my monitor. I just really don't wanna keep buying non-returnable parts. Looking for advice at this point. Replace or repair?

Sorry the CapKit didn't resolve your issue - but they are almost always recommended for older monitors so I'm sure it wasn't a waste of time.  I have an ArcadeVGA going thru a JPAC and it's not dim whatsoever (for comparison sake) IMO.  Hopefully some of the other monitor gurus here can help some more, but congrats on breaking your Capkit "cherry"... 

[beaver24]

Thanks JLR I didn't think it was a waste of time, I love doing stuff I have never done before. I hope the other Monitor guys can give me some advice also, kinda just want to finish the project. I have no problem buying parts if the guys think that it'll fix problem.
Chris

[Kevin Mullins]

A few questions...

Does this k7000 have a remote adjustment board?
Do all the adjustment potentiometers seems to at least "function" in some manner?
And did it look this way with the arcade pcb as well?

[Ken Layton]

The k7000 series must have an amplifier to boost the video signal if you are NOT feeding it a standard arcade board signal. This sounds like what your problem is that you need an amplifier.

I understand the Wei-ya (sold by Alva Amusement) 825H chassis accepts low level video signals perfectly fine.

[beaver24]

The arcade pcb was a little dark, but then again it was a dark game -Time Killers. As long as you all don't think that its likely the tube is bad I'll go ahead and order a chassis from alva.

[shess]

The jpac has a built in amp, so you shouldn't have a problem with that.  Don't know how else to help you, but it's probably not an amp issue.

[Ken Layton]

If a tube problem is suspected (especially if the monitor has a ZENITH tube!) then you should connect it to a tester/rejuvenator to confirm (and possibly fix) the problem.

[beaver24]

Ken,
Judging by the symptoms does a tube seem legit. I live in the sticks and am not too sure where to find someone with a rejuvenator. Colors seem nice just dark if that makes sense. I used the nokia test thing, it was just the brightness/contrast setting everything looked the same no gradients etc.
Chris

[Ken Layton]

TV repair shops usually have a rejuvenator.

[beaver24]

All right I've been rejuvenated. I got lucky and found a guy in town who works out of his basement. All the guns were low especially the red which is odd b/c that was the dominant color. It looks 100% better, I think I still need to adjust colors a bit but brightness/contrast is back. Question is how long will this honeymoon last or should I go tube shoppin?

[Ken Layton]

A rejuvenated tube may last one day or it may last ten years. It all depends on that individual tube. But in my opinion I'd say in a home use environment your rejuvenated tube should last you a while. Any time a tube is rejuvenated you'll need to readjust the color pots on the neckboard and brightness/contrast/screen controls on the main board.