Servicing Japanese cabinets in the UK

[neorichieb1971]

I've said before but perhaps situation has changed. I have 2 NAC's in a garage. One works fine but the other has a dead screen due to a clicking PSU and a capacitor failure. The sound still works so PCB's are still running fine.

I'd ideally like them both serviced.

I only have one option which is to go to a TV repair man that knows UK CRTS, I also have a friend at work that might be able to help but he lives in Leicester and I live in Bedford which is quite far for him to drive as he has a medical condition.

Surely there is someone in the cabinet business in the UK that restores, services such products? I will only need this done once I assume so I can hire a van etc.

I can't have a turd in my garage taking up this much room its been dead for 2 years almost so if nobody is interested its going in the tidy tip. Which is a waste of a cabinet to be honest.

I don't want to touch the innards, just in case there is more to the problem than detaching a few parts and sending them off. I would do the leg work, just need someone with the expertise and a couple hours of his time.

thanks all.

[kamiboy]

Why not try to sell the nonworking unit? I am sure there are some who might be interested in buying a project.

Hell, I am in the market for a cab right now and for the right price it might be worth the hassle to me, I am sure others feel the same way.

[neorichieb1971]

I'd rather keep it. I know from talking to people in the know that its simply a case of putting capacitors in the unit. I just don't feel like I have the necessary skills to do it myself.

I will ask around my local town and see if anyone is interested in fixing the monitor. I spent a lot of money on buttons, joysticks, joystick plates and a marquee holder. Not to mention that half my PCB's are hori and half are TATE. If I sell one cabinet I will have to rotate the monitor more often that I'd like.

[kamiboy]

Changing caps is easy. If you can hold a pen you can hold a soldering iron. No point pussyfooting around repairs, in this hobby it is pretty much a required skillset.

Also, if you insist on having someone else do it, you don't really need to find someone who works with CRT's. Any electronic repairman worth his salt can change a few caps, if that is truly all it takes.

[neorichieb1971]

I'll take your word for it.

[system11]

Problem is it's just as likely that the cap is a symptom not a cause, there could be anything wrong with the monitor - the most common fault I've seen is failed flyback transformers.

How do you know it's a capacitor failure? Do you know which one it is? Do you know what rating it is?

[neorichieb1971]

I don't know for absolute sure its a capacitor. I stated symptoms a while back and people said it was the capacitors.


What started to happen is that when the cab was cold the screen would roll over its own image at the top. As it warmed up it would eventually go back to normal (about 15 minutes). But, on top of that there was a clicking noise coming from the transformer bay which coincidentally disappeared once the screen went back to normal.

Unfortunately my cabs are in an unheated garage and I used to play them all year around. The other NAC starts off blurry but after 1 minute gets its sharpness back. Doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, but if I got the broken one fixed I would want the good one looked at for any weaknesses just so I didn't have to perform another fix so soon after the first one.

[BubbaMc]

I don't know for absolute sure its a capacitor. I stated symptoms a while back and people said it was the capacitors.


What started to happen is that when the cab was cold the screen would roll over its own image at the top. As it warmed up it would eventually go back to normal (about 15 minutes). But, on top of that there was a clicking noise coming from the transformer bay which coincidentally disappeared once the screen went back to normal.

Unfortunately my cabs are in an unheated garage and I used to play them all year around. The other NAC starts off blurry but after 1 minute gets its sharpness back. Doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, but if I got the broken one fixed I would want the good one looked at for any weaknesses just so I didn't have to perform another fix so soon after the first one.

Why not remove the monitor chassis, put it in a box and ship it to a specialist that will return it to a new condition? Shouldn't cost much to ship a chassis.

Here's a specialist where I live: http://www.jomac.net.au/

They will have it made like new again and returned to you for around $200AUD plus shipping.

[Coryoon]

Monitor woes .

Sign up at Arcade Otaku if I were you, awesome place!

You should be able to ship your chassis off to someone if you aren't to handy with a soldering iron.

Discharge you monitor carefully!

http://forum.arcadeotaku.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=385

[system11]

Running cabs in an unheated garage is the #1 best way to kill monitors. I put a heater in mine, costs hundreds to run over the winter. At the very least put one in and warm the place up a little half a day in advance, at the very least it will remove some of the moisture from the air - you need a convector.

[neorichieb1971]

All sounds good. But I am not touching the cabinet myself. I will get an engineer to take out what needs taking out and get him to talk to the specialist. Then reverse the process once the chassis is repaired.

[system11]

It's a shame I can't fix monitors, I'm so close to where you live. I've only fixed one ever and it had an obvious common fault.

[nem]

there could be anything wrong with the monitor - the most common fault I've seen is failed flyback transformers.

I don't think I've ever heard of a broken flyback on a Nanao chassis. Not saying it's impossible, it's just very rare.

[neorichieb1971]

Thanks system11. I would ask firebug since he would help me.. But either he died or changed his number.

I will look into this further come summer time.