Rotating your CRT: Fire, Failure or Just Fine?

[agustusx]

I've got a 10 year old 19" Viewsonic PC monitor that I recently set up as my dedicated PS2/Mame monitor. Using the hdboxpro clone (megacool) I have the PS2 hooked up to it for great visuals. I also use the VGA passthrough of the megacool to hook up my laptop for Mame action.

Now that its been set up a few days, I thought, why not tate it?

As I understand CRT's not designed to be rotated can catch a fire Seems like it may just be a legal warning, since I know tons of folks rotate CRT's that were not designed to be.

Anyone start a fire?

[corbie]

That's honestly why I finally broke down and bought an Egret 2 cabinet. I ruined my less than 1 year old Sony Wega 27" CRT television that I used with my PC Engine, Saturn, Super NES, and JVC X'Eye consoles by flipping it on its side for my Saturn vertical shooters. These CRT televisions are getting hard to find so I decided I wasn't going to rotate my CRT televisions anymore, thus I finally picked up a Taito Egret II cabinet for the vertical stuff.

I guess the good news is that it didn't actually start a fire though. Just ruined my TV.

[sven666]

TATE = certain death of the whole family!

[jpj]

there are magnets underneath the glass, so just make sure it is turned off for a good 15 minutes before and after rotating it, otherwise it will distort the picture (or warp colours).

TVs are definitely not designed to be flipped though, so make sure it is firmly in place. last thing you want is for it to be not balanced well and fall onto the floor (which is probably where the fire warnings come from).

once you tate, you'll never go back i regularly flip my TVs. one's 19" and one's 32", and i've never had any issues. i have however started a fire in gloucester park, burnt down someone's conservatory, burnt my old bedroom, barbequed a dreamcast, and set fire to someone's acoustic guitar (sadly these are true )

[Jockel]

i regularly flip my TVs. [...] and i've never had any issues.

Same here.
I think all this "catching fire" stuff is just urban myth-crap.
1111 Posts, cock-a-doodle-do.

[cools]

In theory, should the TV not have adequate vents in the necessary places it's possible for them to heat up (shortening life, weakening components, subsequent overheat, then fire) when rotated.

In practice, they don't get that hot.

[BIL]

Never had any issues with mine. The "creaking" sound in Under Defeat's second boss BGM did cause me to leap out of my chair and dive for the TV, though! Thought it was gonna do a faceplant onto my tile floor, false alarm.

I definitely had to leave it off for a while, as jpj said. Noticed the "magnet" effect initially, put it back in yoko and read what to do online. I just let it sit for a day or so to be absolutely safe, as it cost a bit. No issues since in two years + of tate.

[jonny5]

find a sony PVM or NEC XM29.....best of the best for tating

although, in my experience most monitors are fine with tating(no warping or anything), but with TV's its hit or miss....some are fine tated, others dont like it at all

[Danbo]

I used to rotate a CRT for non-shmup reasons, made sure to turn it off for a while before and after rotation and it held up well. Survived with only a small buzzing noise after using it for a while, then it went on to die a peaceful death in an attic somewhere.

[zakk]

total protonic reversal

[msm]

find a sony PVM or NEC XM29.....best of the best for tating

i had colour problems when tating a sony PVM

never had any tv's/monitors explode/catch fire.

[TJB]

Mines been fine, 29'' Philips, been tipping it on/off since I bought it last year, I don't really bother tipping it over anymore though as I use it for everything else.

The service menu hates me though, it'll never save the adjustments I make to the horizontal geometry, well, it sometimes does but as a totally different number.

Well actually I once messed around with it without writing down the original numbers (lesson learned) and well, now it has these two spots of discoloration when tipped, doesn't matter how long I leave it off for, they're there (and become less obvious the longer the TV has been on whilst tipped), I was meant to find a degaussing wand last year but...

eh.

[neorichieb1971]

I think an XRGB is a better investment than a CRT these days. No fires here.