Entertainment Center: TVs, Stereos, VCRs and DVDs - Sony 32 in.

I have a 32 inch sony TV.It,s a 1993.I,ve had the tuner repaired w/ it was 3-4 yrs. old.It started a few years ago,losing the reception like you pulled the cable out.(like what the bad tuner was doing.)We taped the cable so it wouldn,t move,it was ok your a year or two.Recently I had to move it.After I did it was cutting out ever few minutes.I you wiggled the cable it would come back and in turn you could make it happen by moving the cable.So I took the jack out of the tuner and replaced it w/ one I made because the old jack looked slightly darkend were it plugged into the tuner.Well I tell you this made a difference.Wiggling the cable no longer effects the picture, although when it does go wiggling it brings it back.Also now tuning the tv off & on brings the picture back.I doesn,t happen until you,ve been watching for some time.I also noticed that before some times w/ it goes the sides were sucked in& somtimes not.Now there always sucked in w/ it goes.Did I have two problems?Is this the tuner?I,m ready to take it in to r&r the tuner.How much should this cost?And will this fix it?

Good morning, David:

Nice fix on the antenna cable. When you get an intermittant connection on these critters, they drive you nuts.

But, alas, I think you are into something new. The clue is that the picture is pulling in from the sides when it fails.

Check out this website for additional information paying attention to Chapter 22.12 and 22.24:
http://an.hitchcock.org/repairfaq/REPAIR/F_tvfaq.html

What you have is an eight year old television set and it appears that a filter capacitor in the low voltage Power Supply is failing.
These capacitors are used to filter out the AC (alternating current) from the power to the circuits. When they start to fail, it affects both low voltage and high voltage supplies which results in a shut down (usually).

It's repairable, of course. But, before you tie a bunch of money up in the repair, remember you will still have an eight year old set when it is done.

Smokey ;)

Thanks for the info.I guess that sounds expensive.You know I just discovered three things. My daughter brings the picture back by turning the set off then on.(don,t know if I mentioned that)and hitting the side or top of the set.(doesn,t always work)But most interestingly is that,I think that it won,t lose picture w/ watching DVD?.I wached a whole movie without any problems.This in it self is not a great feet.Because you may not loose it for a couple hours.But when I switched from DVD to tv the set was on the fritz but swiching to DVD it was fine.I.m intersed in what you think of this?I,m going to check out the site you recomended now .Thanks

Good evening, David:

My, My! New information! I love it!

Considering the set is Japanese, the problem could well be a bad solder connection. Japanese circuit boards are notorious for this problem. But, I'm not kicking Sony. I have a 27" Sony in my den and love it. But, I'm a technician and if it acts up, I can fix it.

If you're up to it, I can give you some guidance on how to find a bad solder connection and tell you how to fix it.


Smokey ;)

Thanks,for the info again.I would be interested in your advise in finding bad solder connections .

Good evening, David:
To locate the bad connection, do the following:
a) Unplug the set and remove the back.
b) Now that you have the set open, you may find it full of dust and such. Now is a good time to clean it out. Use this website
for guidance: http://an.hitchcock.org/repairfaq/REPAIR/F_tvfaq.html
using Chapter 20.10 through 20.13
c)Once the set is clean set up a mirror in front of the TV so that you can see the picture from behind the set.
d) Obtain a non-metallic wand of plastic or wood (not a pencil)
that is non-conductive. It should be about 12" long.

e) Plug in the set and turn it on. Allow it to run for a little while to warm up and stabilize.
f) Watch the mirror. Poke and prod around the circuit boards to try to locate a "sensitive spot"....a spot that causes the TV to
"act up" a bit.
CAUTION: STAY AWAY FROM THE LARGE WIRE THAT IS CONNECTED TO THE TOP/CENTER OF THE PICTURE TUBE. THAT'S THE HIGH VOLTAGE LEAD AND IT IS DANGEROUS.

g) if you locate a sensitive spot, mark it for reference.
h) Power the television down and unplug it.

i) Access the underside of the circuit board and locate the area that was sensitive.

j) Use a low heat soldering iron (not a soldering gun) and some
good 60-40 electronic solder. Resolder all the connections in the sensitive area. Remember that a little solder is great but a lot of solder is disasterous. You may find the loose connection or you may never actually see it.

k) With the back off, plug in the set, and turn it on. See if you found the correct connection. (You may have to do this two or three times before you actually find the right one....or there may be more than one spot)

Circuit boards are machine manufactured these days and once in a while a solder connection is not correct. Also heat and time will cause a poor connection to fail. Hence, hitting the set or such will cause the set to resume normal operation for a while.

Let us know how this turns out.

Smokey ;)

Thank you Smokey, again.especally for that web site you recomended.Very interesting.I ran in to a friend that re routed the tv to use the VCR tuner.I,m not sure how?But it works.Just out of couriousity,I wonder is it ok to do this?And if so is the VCR tuner as good as the TV (when/it wworks)?And is there a VCR with a better tuner then some?Mine is a Quazar Hi-FI.VCR,s are so cheap I probly could get a good one cheap.

Well, that narrows down your problem to the tuner.

Using the VCR tuner? Sure. Why not? I did it for years on an
old Zenith that had a bad tuner. The set wasn't worth repairing
because of age. So, I used the VCR tuner and left the TV on
Channel 3 (which worked). The kids were elated. Since the VCR had stereo sound, I plugged the sound into their stereo system.
One old TV now functioned with stereo sound and, again, the
kids were elated. They wanted their MTV.



And, if the VCR is delivering a good picture then the tuner must
be in good shape for the job.


Smokey ;)