LaPorta Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 I’ve got an AudioVision 14 that I’ve had in my closet for the better part of 17 years. Needs to be adjusted for sure, and I remember the geometry being all askew. It has some nicks in the plastic from someone previously trying to open it, and I was uncertain how to open it back then as well so so never attempted it. I never knew these things were so sought after, but I want to keep mine to mate with my 6100 and 8100. Any suggestions as to where to start with this? Recap for sure, but otherwise? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 (edited) I didnt realize they were sought after either. Go figure. I never really went out looking for one, but I never really ran across them either. Edited October 28, 2020 by techknight Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted October 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 Some guy offered me $200 off the bat for it when he saw it in a picture I had posted. It wasn’t even for sale. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 4 minutes ago, LaPorta said: Some guy offered me $200 off the bat for it when he saw it in a picture I had posted. It wasn’t even for sale. Oh wow, thats news to me. I never did like them that much, I think they are ugly. weird fanny pack cleft chin looking thing hanging off the bottom of the monitor containing the audio stuff. no thanks. But everyone has their tastes I suppose. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted October 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 I guess they are a bit bulky, but the sound quality for the time was amazing. There were 5 or 6 in middle schools computer lab, and this one was the last remaining when I picked it up some years later. Just have a soft spot for it from then. I wish they still had the 20” MultiScan that they had on a travel cart. That thing was a behemoth back then. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 (edited) Yea I personally never had experience with them, or even saw one. I have the big brother to it, the 1710AV I halfway wonder if the reason why people want them is for vintage gaming. 1. Its a trinitron, 2. it has audio built-in. Edited October 28, 2020 by techknight Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cory5412 Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 These won't be good for "vintage gaming" except on Macs, they're fixed-sync displays and to the best of my knowledge, nobody has ever gotten anything other than Macs to drive them. Though, they'd be great for vintage Mac vintage gaming. I've got at least one of them, I love these, but the 640x480 resolution is a little limiting these days. I'll probably put mine on the 6200 or 6100 next time I pull one of those out. No restoration tips, just a ntoe to say I love these. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bigD Posted October 28, 2020 Report Share Posted October 28, 2020 (edited) When I was young my Dad’s best friend bought an 840av with the 14” AudioVision display, and it was a pretty impressive piece of hardware for the time. The speakers were high quality, a mic was built in (speech recognition!) , and of course Sony’s Trinitron technology was highly regarded. I always really wanted one, but once I was old enough to afford one used, 640x480 had become a ‘quaint’ resolution. Edited October 28, 2020 by bigD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted October 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2020 I got it apart with only minor damage. The disassembly procedure made it virtually impossible to disassemble without some issue even when it was brand new: you need to press on the top of the case, pushing down on some unseen clips inside to release then, while simultaneously using a pry tool to split the case! Needless to say, one clip broke, but I glued it and it should be good enough to hold the thing once back together. There are screws as well. The nice thing about mine is it is not brittle: I was able to disassemble everything and remove the audio and video boards without any of the tabs breaking when I pushed them out of the way. Here is the inside of the rear case. At the top you can see the little tabs that were supposed to clear the inside clips from the front half. An insane design if I ever saw one. Next, you can see the Trinitron still attached to the front plate. Everything is in great shape inside. Here is the sound "box". It houses the speakers and the audio board (I had already removed it). Last, the audio and monitor boards. Since I cracked this to correct geometry, I figure while I am inside, I don't really want to go in for years and years to come, so I will replace all the capacitors. There's quite a large number of them...I have my work cut out for me. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
badCaps Posted October 29, 2020 Report Share Posted October 29, 2020 I'm following this thread for sure. Sadly, I won't have much to contribute. I have a number of these that all need minor work but have been hesitant to open them up for the reasons you mentioned. I appreciate the pics, keep em coming! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted October 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2020 Sure thing. I really am not sure why they made the design the way they did. I followed the service source documentation, and that is just what they say to do. They even specify the tabs are 1 1'2" in from the sides, because there is no indication they are inside the case at all. All I can figure is that it was purely for aesthetics so there were no visible screw holes on top. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 1, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2020 I made myself a capacitor list, it is quite extensive between the two boards. I'll make a digital sheet and paste it in here as well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 2, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2020 Just ordered the caps for ~$25. Attached is a list of them from Mouser. AudioVision 14%22.xls Quote Link to post Share on other sites
badCaps Posted November 2, 2020 Report Share Posted November 2, 2020 That is quite a list, thanks for posting. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted November 2, 2020 Report Share Posted November 2, 2020 Nice. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2020 I performed the recap. Now I am having a whole host of other issues. Sound cuts in and out/hisses. Monitor speakers are recognized/sounds plays from them on and off. Screen flickers bright and dark on and off as well, though there is a good, sharp image. The unit does not appear to degauss when powered up. I ruled out bad power from the 6100's power jack, as I connected it directly to AC. All caps I installed tester good with my ESR meter. I have not a clue how in the world I could have caused this issue. I do have video available of just what the heck happens, but I cannot upload it here due to space issues. I suppose I could make a dropbox link or something. Any suggestions as to what could possibly cause something like this? Is it possible a different component went/ I would suspect something regarding my work since it was just completed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dcr Posted November 15, 2020 Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Nothing to contribute here either. Just posting my appreciation for pics and info as well. I'm sure mine will need to be worked on in the not too distant future, so I appreciate having this info handy. Hopefully you solve the current issues so others, like me, will be able to avoid whatever the cause is. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Alright, so I did a little more fooling around. So there are the two main issues: one: screen is at times wobbly, then instead of that the screen gets incredibly dark. Turning up the cutoff produces the usual bright white screen/lines of other screens, but it does nothing to make the actual picture brighter. the brightness comes and goes: the picture is otherwise incredibly crisp, the screen's image looks basically brand new. There does not seem to be a loose connection: playing with connectors/wires around the flyback, rear video board, and anode do not seem to make any difference. Sometimes it seems like messing with the rear board does something, but I think that is my mind playing tricks on me. Not sure if this is something loose inside, or what. I re-checked my solder work, and it all seems to check out fine as far as continuity. Perhaps some other part is failing? If I only knew what to look for this would be easier. Regarding the sound, I no longer have an intermittent sound issue, but at increasing volumes, there is a lot of hiss and static. I am not sure if this could be due to the capacitors I used or not. Otherwise, the sound is nice and clear when played, despite the background hiss. Lastly, when I fired it up this time it did indeed degauss. I hope someone might have any sort of insight. Let me know if videos would help at all. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted November 15, 2020 Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Bad solder joints or noisy potentiometers or transistors. Try a can of upside-down air and start hitting components to see if there are drastic changes from component to component. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Will do. Time to get some compressed air... The design does not lend itself to getting underneath the board, but just firing the propellant at the actual component should suffice, yes? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted November 15, 2020 Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Thats the only way you can do it, outside of resoldering bad solder joints. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Alright...time to start the hunt this week! Thanks for the insight. Then I suppose try and resolder, and if that fails replace. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LaPorta Posted November 20, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2020 So I fired the propellant at every last capacitor I could find. There was one set that having fired it at made the issue all that much worse...but that was it. Nothing actually made it better or corrected it. I suppose that area is where I should concentrate my resoldering efforts. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
badCaps Posted November 20, 2020 Report Share Posted November 20, 2020 I've never heard of the upside down can method, that's neat. Similarly when troubleshooting automotive vacuum leaks, you can spray brake parts cleaner around intake components and if the engine chokes you have found an area where a gasket or other component is leaking. I had no idea there was a similar test for electronics. So I think you have found the area to investigate! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
techknight Posted November 23, 2020 Report Share Posted November 23, 2020 (edited) On 11/19/2020 at 9:17 PM, LaPorta said: So I fired the propellant at every last capacitor I could find. There was one set that having fired it at made the issue all that much worse...but that was it. Nothing actually made it better or corrected it. I suppose that area is where I should concentrate my resoldering efforts. Yeap this is the area to investigate. Also, you can use the blowdryer/heatgun method if the freeze spray makes it worse. heat would make it better albeit temporarily. Regardless, now its time to try and narrow the field, hitting it component-by-component and watching for changes in between. Edited November 23, 2020 by techknight Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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