Yep, another thread about a monitor problem.

Greetings everyone,
I recently found out that I am having problems with the color on my monitor. It seems that the color is displayed a littled darker than it should be. Most the games seem to have a little too much "blue". I guess my machine's been like this for 6 years, and I just never knew. I was at a local arcade that just got in Samurai Shodown V, and I realized that their colors are WAY more vivid, bright, and sharper than mine can be set to. Do I just need to replace the caps, or do I need an entirely new monitor? Like I said, the monitor looks fine, and I always thought that it was the way it was supposed to be until I played a Neo with a great monitor. Too much of the color Blue is giving me the blues.

There are adjustments on the crt base pc board to adjust the R,G & B video gains and cut offs. You may be able to back the blue gain off (or up the red and green depending on the condition of the crt) to get a reasonable gray scale. Beware there is high voltage around the crt base.
A cap kit usually does not have an effect on the individual video drives, but it wouldnt do any harm.
The tube may have seen better days, the first indications that its getting tired is lack of emmission and poor gray scale tracking.
The monitor pcb itself maybe OK but the tube is a bit flat.

ttooddddyy said:

There are adjustments on the crt base pc board to adjust the R,G & B video gains and cut offs. You may be able to back the blue gain off (or up the red and green depending on the condition of the crt) to get a reasonable gray scale. Beware there is high voltage around the crt base.
A cap kit usually does not have an effect on the individual video drives, but it wouldnt do any harm.
The tube may have seen better days, the first indications that its getting tired is lack of emmission and poor gray scale tracking.
The monitor pcb itself maybe OK but the tube is a bit flat.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I have attached a picture of the 6 potentiameters located on the back of the monitor, can you tell me which ones I should adjust? Should I do this with the power off or on? Not sure if it makes a difference, but this is a dedicated cabinet. Thanks

Res turn off the cab for a while untill the monitor discharges and reach you head around and in there. On the PCB with the knobs it will be written what each one does. BE CAREFUL when adjusting with the monitor on.

BTW- AES is great

I dont recognise the monitor, what model is it ?

Before touching anything please read this.
http://www.arcadecontrols.com/arcade_monitors.shtml

I would look for the B gain pot, its probably marked on the board, the will be RGB gain and RGB bias or cut-off adjustments. Before you tweek anything use a texter to mark the original settings so you can return if it all turns to shit. Look for the blue gain and back it off slightly- do not get carried away as this can easily go from bad to worse if your not sure what your doing. It may be a good idea to get a TV repair guy to set it up and advise on the condition of the crt.

It has to be adjusted with the monitor on, place a mirror in front.
If your not confident with that, locate the B gain pot and back it off (counter clock usually reduces the gain) a few degrees with the monitor off and go for a trial and error adjustment- it may br safer. Remember to mark the pots first.

What exactly is a "cap" and how do you replace it?

Sith05 said:

What exactly is a "cap" and how do you replace it?

Click to expand...

*cap* = capacitor

They look like little black or blue barrels with 2 wires coming from them.The have a number value usually with uf next to it.

Sith05 said:

What exactly is a "cap" and how do you replace it?

Click to expand...

Ooops I forgot,to remove and replace you just desolder the legs,noting which is the positive and negative poles before doing so.

Just solder in the replacement.

ttooddddyy said:

It has to be adjusted with the monitor on, place a mirror in front.
If your not confident with that, locate the B gain pot and back it off (counter clock usually reduces the gain) a few degrees with the monitor off and go for a trial and error adjustment- it may br safer. Remember to mark the pots first.

Click to expand...

.......I love you.

Haha, now my monitor is crisp and clear with vibrant colors. Thank you so much for all your help. You have improved my Neo gaming experience 10-fold.

I was shocked as shit when I opened my machine to find a half naked midget who had made a home in my cab. . . We have differences to resolve, so I'll have to check my RGB later. This is valuable information though, so thanks to all who have posted.

-T

--- By the way, I have discovered that my midget has an unhealthy hate for the color blue. Problem solved. . .

ttooddddyy said:

I dont recognise the monitor, what model is it ?

Before touching anything please read this.
http://www.arcadecontrols.com/arcade_monitors.shtml

I would look for the B gain pot, its probably marked on the board, the will be RGB gain and RGB bias or cut-off adjustments. Before you tweek anything use a texter to mark the original settings so you can return if it all turns to shit. Look for the blue gain and back it off slightly- do not get carried away as this can easily go from bad to worse if your not sure what your doing. It may be a good idea to get a TV repair guy to set it up and advise on the condition of the crt.

Click to expand...

That's a good ol' WG K7000 series. I've capped so many of those I can do it in about 20-30 minutes(including resoldering the flyback and any other bad joints).

Namco boards have really good color level screens to adjust the balance with. If you have one, I'd balance the color with that, and then put the Neo back in.