FREAK OUT! TV ON THE FRITZ.

This link shows how I deal with faulty electrical goods.

They aren't designed to be repaired these days..the fault finding time would cost more that a new (better) set.

Del

Though I am a TV technician by training, I've been out of the loop too long to know about the new circuits being used in TVs these days. Therefore, when I have a problem with my TV, I send it to the service center. Let them find out what's wrong with it.

If its 10 years old will mostly not work after the FCC change the frequency band so buy a new one. You will be ahead of the game will not have to buy a box coverter.

Then you can get back to your fox news babe fix.

Then you can get back to your fox news babe fix.

I'm still waiting for Fox News to come out with the Fox News Babe Calendar. It's tittled "The Foxes."

Hi. I had this issue a few months ago (was an LG TV - but they all work on the same principle)...It sounds definately like its the Fly Back transformer. Just call your local repair shop and ask how much to change that part along with your make and model. You will get a good estimate over the phone without paying the survey fee. It can be pricey though - be warned

any suggestions: I have a 10 year old Mitsubishi TV that suddenly stopped working. There was some brief breaking up of the picture, which seemed like interference with the cable and a couple of hours later lost picture.

Green light comes on for exactly 3 seconds before disappearing when I try to turn on, along with a very faint wurling sound like some thing is trying to start.

Looks like everyone else is off on a tangent, so I'll actually try to offer some help in diagnosing your problem... If you have enough interest to attempt a fix on your own, I suggest removing the cover and inspecting the circuit board and components in the area where the external power arrives at the board. Look for obvious signs of burned tracings and parts. It is sometimes very easy and cheap to bring a TV back to life. But, one has to be very careful to avoid high voltage areas inside a TV before attempting a fix. Basically, you need to ALWAYS ground the CRT before touching anything else inside a TV (STORED HIGH VOLTAGE CAN KILL, even when the TV is unplugged). You can find out how to do this by searching elsewhere online for TV troubleshooting and repair.

Electrolytic capacitors and varistors often get fried when lightening or voltage surges come down the line supply, and will act as fuses in that they burn up before the voltage spike can destroy components farther down the line on the board. Google "electrolytic capacitors" and "varistors" for descriptions.

Sometimes electrolytic capacitors just fail after about 10 years of service, so you have to consider whether you want to replace all of them in the set, or just drop it off the roof.

Agreed, Electro caps dry out after a time, 10 years isn't too bad a stint out of modern electronics..

You could have a dry join on the main circuit board, if its got a copper/ozone smell, you could have HT arc'ing across a dry joint someplace, you'll have a burn/scorch mark on the top or bottom from a track to a lead, if yes, remove the component, get a bit of steel wool, and clean the legs of the component, they are a bugger to solder if you try to solder before cleaning it.

If the sound is more "tinny" then you could have a dead winding in the transformer of the PSU, or the HT-Flyback transformer, this is a nice device like a car Ignition coil, including the cord running out of the top, and anchoring on the back of the TV tube, this will have a potential of 8-12KV, the tube forming quite a nice HT capacitor, touch this without discharging it, and you'll know what HT means

Have you done a costing of a new TV? a nice wide screen model, plasma/LCD, and all the nifty gizmo's that go with them? could be better to just upgrade.

Copping a huge !ZAP! from the tube, then picking up something nice and heavy and throwing it inside in your rage of it biting you, cause you put your hand in its mouth

Remember, in most cases, a direct lightning strike is not covered under your homeowners policy, but a surge or a surge from a lightning strike is.....If your TV is 10 yrs old, its a good possibility that you wont be able to get parts and its a total loss. If its not digital you might as well kick it to the curb. TV's were very expensive 10 yrs ago compared to todays prices. For the same $ you spent on your TV back then, you will find that you can get a really nice wide-screen HDTV if purchased today. If you can fix your TV, you still have a 10 yr old TV with one new part in it. for the $ it would cost to fix, ( if you called a repairman- $65-$100 just to come to your house) you could probably go buy new.

it is one or two things the light engine needs rebuilt or a new sdk chip or both but in the long run it cost more to fix it then the set is worth that is the problem these days everything is throw away that the land fills are full you can sen it to PTS Electronics to be fix they are ones I would send it if I had that type of set a new light engine will cost about 500 to 700 dollars, if you know how to put this chips in a chip will cost about 10 dollars but you would thing paying a couple thosand dollars for a set it would last longer then 10 yeas

I had a problem with my tv a couple of years ago. Was willing to replace it but thought I'd take one shot at reparing it. I opened it up and upon inspection found a component was loose. A few seconds with a soldering iron and all was well.

Hope you can be this lucky.

Around where I live we we warned that all cables were being changed to fiber optics and all signals will only be broad-casted in High-speed HD. TV's 10 years or older may not be able to handle the change and we were warned that "your TV's may become obsolete due to signal changes" Before you rip that TV apart make sure your area didn't occur changes from your cable provider. It might be that simple and save you time and money.

Throw it away and buy a new one. A fairly good 19" color portable can be had for $80

First disconnect the antenna/cable connector. Second disconnect the power( unplug the thingy).

Reconnect the antenna/cable to your left big toe. cut the power cord from the TV and strip the cut ends.

Bite down on the bare conductor making sure to have plenty of spit bubbled up in your mouth.

Plug that baby in and YOU'LL SEE BABES ON FOX NEWS ON MARS.

if you are going for the ridiculous, at least try to make it funny!
thanks, I'll let you know how it goes.

I agree with Del, nuke it and get a new one. Destroy it from a distance because TVs can be dangerous. In all seriousness, don't open the TV unless you are reasonably handy around electricity. If I can't fix it with it completely dead on power, I'm not going to touch it and I've heard that TVs and microwaves are generally things that you don't want to mess with unless you know what you are doing.

WOW!

All these posts and the only "good" advise is "if you are not handy around "electronics" NOT electrical then don't try this.

lots of people can wire a house. But that does not qualified them to work on a 25KV high voltage circuit.

Try doing a google search on your model number. Look for links to a website called techassist.org (I think that is the name) Your unit may have some "common" problems that your can try before you just toss it.

If this fails, unless your looking for a learning experience, toss it the cost of new units are so cheap now-a-days it hard to justify any repairs on Electronics. This is why I closed my TV shop and went to work as a Engineer (well I pretend to be an engieer...God knows I try!)

Good luck.

bill12780

that is what I got from our Mitsubishi 36" tube, 10 years. the fly-back gone bad. We bought a sony wega trinitron flat tube set. $1000 bucks and 3years of service, it too went out as the fly-back. the set was even equipped to tell you this through self diagnostics. Open it up, and sure enough, the flyback was 'bubbly'. Here the catch, sony does not make parts for it, it's a throw away ( sucker weighs 175lbs because of the tube) They got me on that one! I should sue them for getting a hernia taking this thing out to the curb.

I think I have the same set. feels more like 400 lbs. it was good up until now.

so freaking heavy I don't want to have to try to move it!
thanks, I won't be buying a Sony for my next tv.

any suggestions: I have a 10 year old Mitsubishi TV that suddenly stopped working.

Yes - simply garabage it. Get a new one for next 10 years.

About 75% of the problems with that vintage TV can be solved by locating and repairing bad solder connections in and around the power supply and Horizontal Output circuit. Do not just reheat and reflow. Remove the old solder, clean the connection well and use new solder. DO NOT MIX LEAD-FREE SOLDER WITH LEAD SOLDER. After a number of years of turning on and off, heating and cooling, some solder connections develop cracks causing intermittent problems, some just arc out and don't come back.

If no solder connection problems exist, the next most likely cause is the B+ Regulator. On your set it is an IC on a heat sink. The quickest way to test it is to plug the set into a variac and apply approx 90 Volts AC. If the set comes on and works fair (The picture may be a bit smallish and slightly off-color) Slowly increase the input voltage to 120 Volts AC. If the picture breaks into diagonal bars and then goes black, the regulator is bad. These are only a few dollars and easy to replace. If this doesn't work. Refer to the other posts which advise "Get a new TV".

Clarification: To prevent dangerous X-ray emission if the High Voltage exceeds design levels, TV's have a circuit that senses if the voltage rises above a specified level and forces the horizontal oscillator off frequency (Diagonal bars). A crowbar circuit shuts down the power supply. On some sets you may hear a click, click sound indicating an attempt to restart should the problem cease to exist (Intermittent). This way you can not run a TV in a dangerous mode. It is for your protection.

The problem you are experiencing is due to several leaking filters in the stand by power supply as well as the main power supply.These filters usualy show themselves by leaking onto the printed circuit board some times they penatrate through the board do to the corrosive liquid found inside the filters the fiter breaks down over a period of time and eats its way through the board leaving its electroletic compound to reak havok on the rest of the surrounding components sometimes eating circuit traces and other components such as diodes and resistors extreme cases include gouging on the circuit board witch means all afected areas have to be scraped and cleaned down to new material and all traces repaired with wire jumpers complete removal of this module is required so make plug locations map so not to forget were plug connections go