Oh ye of little faith...

Back in March I post an excrutiatingly long entry relating the trials and tribulations involved in finding replacement parts for my busted TV. To recap - briefly - my TV died late last year and I decided it would be fun to try to fix it on my own. I found a web site that had technical information, I found a few web sites with some of the parts I suspected I needed, and I had my brother who is very well versed in the art of making sick electronics well again. That might be the only thing he's good for, but that's not a matter for discussion in this forum. Just kidding, Bro. You know that.

Anyway, the main point of that entry, so long ago, was that I had a bitch of a time finding a 100µf 200v electrolytic capacitor. I wasn't sure if I actually needed it, but after reading about all the bad things that happen to electrolytics over time I decided that, as long as I had my hands in the guts of this thing, I might as well replace a few of what I considered to be the most likely caps to either be bad or almost be bad. In the end, finding that one capacitor was the single longest delay in getting my TV repaired. Of course, that excludes my proclivity for procrastination. To bo honest, I've had all the parts I could find, including the elusive 100µf 200v electrolytic capacitor, for at least a month now (maybe two), but I've honestly not missed my TV that much over the past 5 or 6 months. Except for the important shows, like 24, Battlestar Galactica and American Hotrod, there's really not much good stuff on these days. My time has been better spent doing stuff in my computer and shaving my head, but that's another blog entry altogether!

Anyway, when I got home from work today I just felt like getting my TV fixed. I guess it was just time to do it! It had nothing to do with the crap I've had to put up with from some of the guys at work. Honest, it didn't! Well, maybe a little. I sensed that my reputation as a fixer upper was tarnishing, and we can't have that, now can we? So, when I got home I wasted no time is collecting my tools and getting down to business. I decided I was gonna get this bad boy working again or die trying. Well, I was gonna give it a shot anyway. Had nothing to lose, right? Right!

First step, photo documentation: details of the task at hand...

The main board of my TV (they're so small these days), the replacement parts, and tools needed to get the job done!

Here's a better shot of the new parts, including the elusive 100µf 200v electrolytic capacitor (2nd from the left). I suspect that the main problems with the TV are the voltage regulator IC (on the left) and a dinky little 1K resistor (along the bottom).

From left to right, a big-ass electrolytic capacitor, the 1K resistor, and the regulator IC. You can see how the resistor is burnt. I'm a bit worried at this poing, because a 1Kohm resistor should have a red stripe on it. Brown-Black-Red is the color code for 1Kohm, but I don't see no red! Hmmm...

On the inside of the high voltage section we see the flyback transformer at the top-center. That's what makes the 29,000 volts that Aaron doesn't actually believe can be created from a 120 volt wall socket. Aaron, did you look up induction like I told you to? Nooooo... Anyway, in here are the other two capacitors I replaced, one of which is the elusive 100µf 200v electrolytic capacitor. Notice how we have a couple ceramic resistors showing signs of a heat?

The first part to be replaced was the 1K resistor. When I got the old one out I found out why I didn't see a red stripe - the outer coating came off as dust on my fingertips. Look at the difference between old and new. This baby was baked! Now there was no doubt in my mind that I was on the right track with the reglator and resistor. I was feelin' goooood about this. Next came the regulator IC and the caps. I got so into all this stuff I forgot to take more pictures. Not much more to see anyway.

So, after i got everything replaced, all I had left to do was re-install the board back into the TV and hook up all the wires I unhooked 6 months ago. Did yo catch that. I said, 'Blah blah blah... 6 months ago." All I gotta say is, thank GOD they made all the connector different (so uneducated foreigners and guys like me can't screw things up royally by plugging things in backwards). Anyway, after wrestling with the thing for a while, I got the back on the set with two screws in place. I figure if something goes BOOM when I throw the switch I don't want that back piece flying off and knocking me on my dumb ass. I want some razor sharp shards of that high quality American plastic slicing through my flesh. Yah, that'd be a cool story to tell the guys at work the next day. Truth be told, there probably wasn't much chance of anything like that happening. If I had installed a cap backwards it would have exploded, but as long as the back was in place I was probably safe. famous last words, right???

So, after getting everything all buttoned up, I cautiously plugged in my TV. It had real live electrons for the first time in 6 months. My heart skipped a beat when I saw a spark at the plug, but I immediately knew that these things do that. Certain sections of a TV are always on. That's why they come to life when you press the button on the remote - there are live circuits in there waiting for a signal. So, the plug is in the wall, no smoke, no boom, hmmm. I'm thinking, "This might actually work!" So I go have a seat in my easy chair, grab the remote and press the ON button and.....

Oh, sorry but I'm all out of time for tonight. Tune in tomorrow for the exciting conclusion...