Vectrex with no picture

[Nitrosport]

I picked up a vectrex that wont display anything on the screen. You could hear the game running but nothing. I tried messing with the brightness knob, I checked for broken solder joints, reseated all the ic's, and checked the main power harness that connects the 2 boards. I can't figure out what is wrong with this thing.

Does anyone have any ideas?

[bust3dstr8]

Check it with a multimeter.

[APE992]

Bad caps possibly; the thing uses a CRT. I wouldn't suggest replacing them yourself unless you've got experience replacing caps on a CRT. They tend to be in the tens of kilovolt range - more than enough for a nice shock.

[Nitrosport]

Bad caps possibly; the thing uses a CRT. I wouldn't suggest replacing them yourself unless you've got experience replacing caps on a CRT. They tend to be in the tens of kilovolt range - more than enough for a nice shock.

I just ordered the vectrex cap kit online. I know how to discharge the crt so I will try replacing the caps myself. I also got the debuzz kit since it was like 3 bux. I'll let you know how it goes. I really hope I can resurrect this thing.

[APE992]

I just ordered the vectrex cap kit online. I know how to discharge the crt so I will try replacing the caps myself. I also got the debuzz kit since it was like 3 bux. I'll let you know how it goes. I really hope I can resurrect this thing.

Excellent. Be sure to post results as I've been looking at another Vectrex with a similar issue.

[Nitrosport]

Will do, here is the link to where I got the cap kit:

http://console5.com/store/kits/game-console-cap-kits/vectrex-cap-kit.html

If you think about it, 19 or so bucks is a pretty good deal since you will probably end up spending like $100 at radioshack :roll:. Also, trying to buy each and every cap seperately online is a pain.

[APE992]

It can be, but I've done it often enough with enough capacitors that it isn't much of a problem for me. I recap virtually every piece of hardware that is 10 years or older and have a small collection of capacitors on hand at all times.

Seems I have about half of what the Vectrex needs and the other half are either of a much higher voltage than what I have or a much higher capacitance value. Then again I don't often recap power supplies.

[Nitrosport]

I have a bunch of caps on hand but only about 2 of them are useable on the Vectrex.

[FABombjoy]

With the brightness turned up, do you get a dot in the center of the screen?

The troubleshooting steps for dot or no dot are quite different.

Yes dot: Problem is in the deflection circuit, may be as simple as reseating the thin 2-headed cable between the power & CPU PCBs
No dot: Problem is in HV section. There are many possible components in that HV section, as long as it's not a bad tube, or flyback, you should be able to repair it.

The troubleshooting guide has a list of things to follow under the "No vector" section.

I've put most of what you'll need for reference / troubleshooting in my Wiki (http://console5.com/wiki/Vectrex). Good luck, and keep us posted!

[Nitrosport]

It used to show a tiny dot in the center and when I turned it on now, it shows nothing even with the brightness turned all the way up. Since it showed the dot in the center before, the picture tube should be fine right?

[FABombjoy]

The CRT itself should probably be fine.

You could start by looking for 18VAC at T503's inputs. If you do, continue inspecting HV, if not, the problem is in the power supply section.

I also revised my last post and removed the LM379 reference - that is part of the deflection amp and not of concern with HV loss.