View Full Version : New owner of Xevious- some Qs
I get home from work & was floored to see Xevious in the garage. My wife got it off Craigslist & has been searching for yrs, she says. She did it all on the sly w/ help from neighbors & even the daycare lady! It's an early birthday gift. The cab itself is in great shape, nice clean ext. artwork, buttons/stick feel good & springy, so far so good EXCEPT...
the monitor has about 1/4" graphical "smearing" all down the rightmost side, if your ship (or anything) goes into that area it gets distorted- nothing to hurt gameplay. Funny thing is, I recall playing Xevious at a downtown St Paul theater (now gone), THAT one had the same problem. I guess it could be the same machine, assuming it stayed local.
Anyway, is there something inside I can adjust to fix it? What can I do short of buying a new monitor?
& Im very interested in converting it into a MAME/multigame cab, or replacing the controls & just putting in a PS2, but know very little about that right now. Anyone out there have a Xevious cab they've transformed, & can I see the results as an example of the possibilites?
dra600n
09-02-2010, 09:46 PM
Thread fails without pics.
Erm. That's an awesome birthday gift, and an awesome wife to get you something of that nature (I know most of the girls I've dated HATED video games).
I'm not too sure on how to repair cab machines, but have you opened up the back of it to see if there was any knobs on the back of the screen for adjustments? I know old tube tv's had those - not sure how old that cab is or what's actually inside for the display.
CRTGAMER
09-02-2010, 09:52 PM
Congrats!
Be careful, HIGH VOLTAGE even when unplugged.
Maybe adjust the potentiometers with a "plastic screwdriver", remember the baseline.
http://www.advancetechonline.in/images/cd-10.jpg
InsaneDavid
09-02-2010, 10:04 PM
Register over at KLOV (http://forums.arcade-museum.com/index.php) and post the same information there that you posted here. If you want to MAME or consolize an arcade cabinet then you'd be better off to trade an original cab for a generic one for that purpose. No sense in gutting an original machine, especially one you've wanted for so long. Xevious is a fairly unique cab, no sense in making one less of them in the world.
There are a number of problems / solutions for what you are describing. Some will simply require an adjustment while others will require replacing a few cheap components. Ask over at KLOV and you'll get the help you need.
Leo_A
09-02-2010, 10:24 PM
& Im very interested in converting it into a MAME/multigame cab, or replacing the controls & just putting in a PS2, but know very little about that right now. Anyone out there have a Xevious cab they've transformed, & can I see the results as an example of the possibilites?
That would be such a shame to do such a thing to a classic that is in good shape.
Gutted cabs, nonworking cabs of titles no one cares about, and so on are widely available and cheap that would be better suited to such a purpose instead of killing a Xevious in decent shape.
Ok, yes I see your guys' point. Plus Im new at coin-ops (I've never seen screwdrivers like those & wouldnt know where to get 'em) & would likely mess it up. Didnt know Xevious was considered "unique"'.
Still, I'll check over on KLOV for further advice/warnings. Now Im thinking twice on the project.
EDIT: A visit to KLOVs forums tells me Im still too much of a noob to move ahead on this right now. Dont wanna fry myself. May be more info than I want to learn.
Red Baron
09-03-2010, 04:49 PM
There's no shame in admitting such a thing.. I still have a ways to go myself before I would feel comfortable working on cabinets, although it's been a dream of mine to do so. I'm planning on warming myself up first with more education and smaller projects first
(Reminds me of the good ol' days of those 'build it yourself' radio kits.. I wonder if they still sell those.. Or any more advanced versions.)
CRTGAMER
09-03-2010, 05:12 PM
Ok, yes I see your guys' point. Plus Im new at coin-ops (I've never seen screwdrivers like those & wouldnt know where to get 'em) & would likely mess it up. Didnt know Xevious was considered "unique"'.
Still, I'll check over on KLOV for further advice/warnings. Now Im thinking twice on the project.
EDIT: A visit to KLOVs forums tells me Im still too much of a noob to move ahead on this right now. Dont wanna fry myself. May be more info than I want to learn.
Any electrical supplier for the tool. Ideal since its plastic no risk of accidentally shorting the panel. You could use a regular jeweler's screwdriver, risk of that high voltage around the CRT though.
Really the pots are not too difficult to tweak. Just remember where it starts and go in small increment. Most of the pots have less then a full turn.
http://www.blind-summit.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2006/07/replacing-your-innards-pot-diagram.gif
Look for the Pots!
http://www.binbin.net/photos/bourns/100/100k-side-ad-6mm-cermet-potentiometer-rc.jpghttp://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRhjDr9HHo4Kx0Mn_7aiLS5wXC5pzE0b zTQX_jWC1ybL5Q9Ads&t=1&usg=__NZYi844jCY2Vz36NCX56-gm5nNI=
Arcade Antics
09-03-2010, 06:01 PM
the monitor has about 1/4" graphical "smearing" all down the rightmost side, if your ship (or anything) goes into that area it gets distorted- nothing to hurt gameplay.
If you can't adjust it out with the hold/size pots, you'll need a cap kit. What type of monitor is in there? If it's a Matsushita, you'll probably want to call someone who's local, ideally another gamer who has experience working on monitors, for some help.
Anyway, is there something inside I can adjust to fix it? What can I do short of buying a new monitor?
Look for the adjustment pots and see if you can adjust it out. CRT posted images of what they look like.
Im very interested in converting it into a MAME/multigame cab, or replacing the controls & just putting in a PS2, but know very little about that right now. Anyone out there have a Xevious cab they've transformed, & can I see the results as an example of the possibilites?
lol/no.
Seriously, chopping a dedicated Xevious is sacrilege. Keep it as Xevious and sell it if you don't like it.
diskoboy
09-03-2010, 10:55 PM
A picture of the monitor in action would work wonders.
But Arcade Antics is on the right track - a cap kit usually solves most problems on monitors that still function okay. The capacitors dry up over time, and as they fail, the picture looks like it starts to curl or bend on the edges.
And if it is still the factory monitor, AA was right again - Atari was using Matsushita monitors around this time.
As for a new replacement monitor - good luck. They quit manufacturing CRT monitors in 2008. The places that haven't sold their stocks are selling them at basically double the price they were when they were still in production (some go as high as $400..). Most people that have extra monitors are not willing to part with them for cheap. It took me 6 months to track down a Vision Pro for my Pac-Man at a reasonable price.
Leo_A
09-03-2010, 11:09 PM
Didnt know Xevious was considered "unique"'.
It's a popular classic that is always in demand (Although not at the same level as something like Ms. Pac-Man) and hasn't been produced in three decades.
You'd be able to get all the gutted cabs in decent shape you'd ever need for dozens of MAME cabinets by selling it if you don't care for Xevious and don't want to keep it intact.
Oh, I LOVE Xevious, it's one of my top 3 fave games behind Mr DO! & Mario Bros.
KLOV lists it on the low end of popularity, #12/100 (100 being the most often wanted)
& yeah it uses a Matsushita 19", I think its the orig. as I forgot to mention there's definite title screen burn-in. 99% sure I need a cap kit, when it really starts bugging me enough, I'll look around locally for a repair.
diskoboy
09-04-2010, 11:58 AM
& yeah it uses a Matsushita 19", I think its the orig. as I forgot to mention there's definite title screen burn-in. 99% sure I need a cap kit, when it really starts bugging me enough, I'll look around locally for a repair.
If you can solder, you can do a cap kit, easily, yourself.
The only thing about recapping a monitor that most people find intimidating is removing the anode from the tube. And even it's a breeze... It's the high voltage in the anode that feaks people out. Just find a screwdriver, a piece of stereo wire, and few alligator clips. This should give you a basic idea...
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f357/jam3p/CRT_Discharge_Tool.jpg
Turn the cab power off first, of course. You then connect the clip to the metal chassis of the monitor, then stick the blade under the "suction cup" and touch the contacts underneath. You'll hear a crackle or a loud pop, and you may see an arc of electricity. Wait a few minutes, repeat the process until it doesn't make a noise when you touch the contacts with your screwdriver. At this point, remove the suction cup from the tube - your monitor is discharged and now taking out and working on your monitor is safe!
I've recapped so many G07's and WG 46XX models, I could probably do them in my sleep now! :)