Sega New Astro City- CRT PCB issue (brightness)

[Pinball]

Toshiba CRT brightness switches between bright and darker, apparently linked to the control PCB located in the control panel. Affected by vibration e.g. when I slam down panel (I think the small brightness pot on the PCB which had been pressed down onto PCB by frustrated previous owner presumably).

I checked for cold solder joints, and re-soldered brightness pot. Problem still present, I think due to faulty pot (you can see from one photo that it is cracked).

I can't find anywhere to get a replacement brightness pot or even the PCB. Does anyone know where to get these?? See photos.

Thanks guys!

 

[Kid Panda]

Have you jiggled the ribbon cable when it's plugged in? I had the same problem with one of mine a couple of years ago and it ended up beign the ribbon cable.

 

[Pinball]

I did and there is no obvious cause in the cables or components i.e. nothing happens. I should probably replace the cable/connector and control panel PCB, but cannot find anywhere that sells them. If anyone could provide a seller for these it would be awesome, as currently the cab is fcked.

 

[Westcb]

I had this same issue, I switched out the pcb board and immediately fixed it. I want to say mine was isolated to the pot as if I put pressure on it I could trigger the problem. I also tried reflowing but it did not resolve the issue. If you can find a rating on the potentiometer you should be able to find a compatible replacement.

 

[NoAffinity]

I've read that a good servicing of the faulty pot with deoxit can restore it.

Desolder pot. Clean with deoxit. Resolder pot.

I haven't personally tried this method, but it might be worth a shot if no other options are panning out.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Pinball]

I've read that a good servicing of the faulty pot with deoxit can restore it.

Desolder pot. Clean with deoxit. Resolder pot.

I haven't personally tried this method, but it might be worth a shot if no other options are panning out.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

I tried this today with some contact cleaner spray... and it worked! Sprayed the whole board and under components.

Brightness stays bright now, after several hours of solid play. I didn't even desolder first. I should have thought of this earlier- cheers :-)

Pretty impressive how long these 1994 devices have lasted, really.

 

[Kid Panda]

Good deal.

 

[NoAffinity]

Nice! I love those simple fixes (aka inexpensive fixes).

 

[Pinball]

Nice! I love those simple fixes (aka inexpensive fixes).

Definitely! In addition, the connector was loose on the Toshiba monitor PCB- re-seating connectors always worth doing. It's still working perfectly now.

Next change is to upgrade speakers (awaited from Australia) :-)