Re: Tron Video Questions

On Thu, 3 Mar 2005 10:43:28 -0500, you wrote:

>1. Upper right corner (if mounted vertically) has a tearing effect in that
>the picture is "falling" about 3 inches down. See pic
>http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,32936.0.html
>
>2. Dripping of the images as described above

        I can't really tell what this "dripping" you describe is from those
pictures... could you possibly take some more detailed ones? (The best way
to photograph a monitor picture is to turn off the room lights, disable the
camera flash, and get a _lot_ closer, so that the monitor fills the
viewfinder.)

        However, based on what I _can_ see, I'm thinking this monitor is
desperately in need of having the electrolytics replaced. Dried-out
electrolytics are the #1 cause of strangely-warped displays on old, dodgy
monitors.

>3. It appeared blue or a color close to it was not displaying. I noticed
>the scores were not displaying and the attract screen that shows points per
>enemy listed no points. From other pics this appears to be blue.

        Actually, it looks to me like the _text_ is missing. The graphic of
the joystick (top picture) is filled in with light blue, and there's a
couple shades of blue visible on the MCP cone in the bottom picture. This
_might_ be a game-board problem...

>4. During the attract mode, when it switches from one game to the other
>there is brief static on the screen in the transition. Not sure if that is
>in the game normally.

        That actually seems to be normal for TRON; every one I've ever dealt
with does this.

>5. Screen image shakes a bit up and down. I cannot remember if I saw this
>in galaxian.

        This _could_ be in the wiring between the monitor and the game boards,
or even on the boards themselves, but given the other picture problems I'm
inclined to suspect this, too, will go away when you recap the monitor. :)

        So, my first suggestion would be to get a cap kit for that 19K4606
monitor and go over it. While you're at it, inspect the chassis board
_carefully_ for cold or cracked solder joints, _particularly_ around those
little vertically-mounted daughtercards -- they're infamous for that. (You
might also cap-kit the 19K4906 that's already in the TRON cabinet while
you're at it; that might well sort out its problems too. Unless, of
course, its "fairly serious problem" is an unfortunate tendancy to throw
foot-long arcs from the flyback or something. :) ) Once you can feel
fairly confident that you've got the monitor sorted out, electronically at
least, you'll have an easier time determining whether the other picture
issues are due to game-board problems, or problems with the picture tube
itself.

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Received on Fri Mar 4 02:25:58 2005