Problem with Hantarex Polo 25 Monitor

[DashRendar]

So I picked up a JAMMA cab last night. 

Everything works (it powers up, the sound is fantastic, you can hear the game playing when you push the buttons and move the joysticks), but the monitor stays dark.

It's a Hantarex Polo 25 (25" monitor) in there.  I've read that Hantarex monitors are infamous for having problems, and it appears this one does as well.

I'm getting ZERO display.  There's never a flicker of light when I turn on the arcade or anything.

Eventually this will become a MAME cab with a dedicated PC monitor, but for now it'd be great to get the original game working.

It does appear to be connected to the power supply, from what I can tell.  I don't hear any crackling or popping noises coming from the monitor.

Does anyone have any troubleshooting ideas for me? 

[Malenko]

any neck glow?

[DashRendar]

Good question- that's something I didn't think to look for.

I'll check that when I get home.

[grantspain]

probably the easiest monitor to fix ever made

[DashRendar]

probably the easiest monitor to fix ever made

That's a good thing!

Ok, I don't see any glow from the neck of the monitor.  Wonder if this is a power issue?

I thought maybe the fuse might have blown on the back of the monitor.  Pulled it out but can't see the fuse line inside- it's like it's covered in white paper (but it's definitely a fuse).

Anyway, here are some pictures of what I'm looking at:


Fuse cover is a little damaged on one side, but it's intact.  You can kinda see the white area around the fuse that I'm referring to.


The power supply.  The monitor's cables are the purple ones.


Not sure what this does, but it looks important.  Learning as I go...


The JAMMA board.  I'm sure there's nothing to worry about here, but I'm seeing some flashing red lights (you can see them in the top left of the board in the pic).  I don't know if that's normal or not for these.

[grantspain]

you will need to pull the chassis and check for dry solder joints

[Nipedley]

That cab looks identical to my Midway Terminator 2, have the same isolation transformer as well though oddly my monitor was entirely different.

My initial thoughts would be A) are you sure you are getting power and B) are the fuses ok? Remember you cant check a fuse visually, you need to use a multi meter to check on continuity or resistance (should be 0).

That's the easy things to check out of the way then.

[Malenko]

That cab looks identical to my Midway Terminator 2, have the same isolation transformer as well though oddly my monitor was entirely different.

My initial thoughts would be A) are you sure you are getting power and B) are the fuses ok? Remember you cant check a fuse visually, you need to use a multi meter to check on continuity or resistance (should be 0).

That's the easy things to check out of the way then.

its a midway cab,the PCB is definitely NFL Blitz  the red lights are for sound board and hard drive activity, nothing to worry about. Did you check for voltage at the monitor?

[DashRendar]

That cab looks identical to my Midway Terminator 2, have the same isolation transformer as well though oddly my monitor was entirely different.

My initial thoughts would be A) are you sure you are getting power and B) are the fuses ok? Remember you cant check a fuse visually, you need to use a multi meter to check on continuity or resistance (should be 0).

That's the easy things to check out of the way then.

its a midway cab,the PCB is definitely NFL Blitz  the red lights are for sound board and hard drive activity, nothing to worry about. Did you check for voltage at the monitor?

Yep, it's an NFL Blitz '99 cab.

I take it the black box in the 3rd pic is the isolation transformer?  This is my first actual cab, even though I've been coming to these forums for months to learn from you guys.  So still figuring this out.

I do have a multimeter, but it's loaned out at the moment.  Once I get that back, I'll check the voltage on the fuse.

[Malenko]

the black box is the power supply (the one you said you dont know what it does but it looks important) , the iso xformer is the metal thing with the copper coil

[Nipedley]

Yeah, the big metal thing you called a power supply is just a big transformer and couples as the isolation transformer for the monitor too (so in a way the monitor's power supply), the black box is the game board's power supply which is what the general 'power supply' term applies to.

So we know that the power supply (black box) works fine since it's powering your game boards

[DashRendar]

Ah, got them switched around then.  I figured the isolation transformer was the power supply, since it had the power cable coming out of it.

Since I am new at this, just need to be aware of the danger spots in this thing-

* Anode
* Flyback Transformer
* Red cable connecting the two
* Capacitors on the PCB and in the monitor

I suspect the power supply is something not to handle either, at least not when the thing is turned on. 

Did I miss anything?  (sorry for the newbie questions)

[Malenko]

you really dont want to handle anything in the cab when its powered on, I always unplug my machines before doing anything, even swapping JAMMA boards.

Do you hear the monitor come on? like a crackling or a hum?  it'd be best to get the meter back so you can test for voltages

[Nipedley]

While off the only things that can really get you are capacitors (including the monitor tube's anode, the flyback and the big red wire as you say), if you stay shot of them you should be fine.

It would be suicide to try anything while it was on anyway Reminds me of the time I was working on the T2 cab, delicately adjusting the picture (the adjustment pots being right next to the yoke) and someone decides to come and start shouting and banging on the door. From the surprise my hand jerks away and I nearly had a heart attack at the thought of what would have happened if it had jerked a different way!

I think we established that your monitor isnt powering up so now it's down to finding out why. Voltage tester would be good to test the power wires coming from the isolation transformer, its usually 120v, once you've established that then it's time to test the fuses with continuity.

[DashRendar]

Thanks for all the great advice guys.  The BYOAC community is one of the best I know. 

And yep- I know not to mess with the cab's guts while the thing is on.  Powered off but plugged in, well...probably shouldn't do that either I suppose.  There's something to be said for the safety of knowing that the power cable is physically unplugged (rather than leaving it in and forgetting that you left the machine on, heh).

I haven't heard any crackling, popping, or humming noises from the monitor, and the neck does not glow.  So I agree- it appears to be a power issue.

[DashRendar]

Well, I'm happy to announce that my monitor is fixed!

Very very simple problem- it was the fuse.  Since other people might have a similar problem with their Hantarex Polo 25" monitor, I'll include the fuse type-

Slow-blow 3.15 Amp 250 Volt fuse (available at Radio Shack)

The original fuse had a ceramic chamber, but the replacement I got had a glass chamber.  Still, the replacement is working great.

Very impressed with this monitor- while there's some burn-in, the colors are vivid and the display is crisp.

Now it's time to invite some buddies over to play some football.   

[Nipedley]

Glad to hear it was a simple fix after all, enjoy your game

[Malenko]

its never just a fuse...........











when ppl sell on ebay/craigslist

[Nipedley]

The 10" hantarex I got for my megatech cab had a dead fuse, it's been working fine since for 3 years and counting

Speaking of which my T2 randomly blew a fuse its second day with me, no problems whatsoever until the flyback died a few years later.

I recognise that there are very good reasons fuses blow but it also seems that old age & bad conditions will deteriorate one as well

[grantspain]

i have never had a blown fuse on a polo chassis

[DashRendar]

Well, I am keeping in mind that it could be something bigger...voltage is wrong for the monitor, or something else.

For now, I'll keep an eye on it and see how the new fuse pans out.

Clearly I'm hoping there's nothing else wrong with it.  I know that the game had 2 previous private owners, plus the arcade that originally had it.  The monitor's fuse appears to be the original one that came with it.

[grantspain]

for a fuse to blow its normally a fatal problem on the primary side of smps,otherwise someone did some thing daft
unlikely the fuse will blow again,fuses tend to blow straight away unless under rated