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Bad Capacitors - Samsung 226BW LCD monitor — Parallax Forums

Bad Capacitors - Samsung 226BW LCD monitor

Ron CzapalaRon Czapala Posts: 2,418
edited 2011-12-04 11:12 in General Discussion
Well, this is my second Samsung product to fail with bad capacitors. First it was my 40" HDTV now my 22" monitor.
The screen was flickering like mad yesterday when I booted up. It didn't last long but I know it would get progressively worse.
The tops of the caps become doomed as they swell.

I replaced the bad caps in my TV and I ordered new caps from DigiKey to fix the monitor.

I will fix the old one but bought a new ViewSonic 22" LED backlit 1080P monintor anyway - looks great!

I sure hope the bad capacitor issue has been resolved - this is a pain! I had to crank up the temp on my soldering station to remove the bad compenents.


Here is a video describing the monitor fix

Comments

  • LeonLeon Posts: 7,620
    edited 2011-12-03 07:48
    Two or three years ago lots of sub-standard capacitors were supplied to several manufacturers. Perhaps that's what you have in your monitor and TV. How old are they?
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2011-12-03 07:52
    Several years ago, I had to have the processor board in my iMac replaced due to bad caps. It seems there was a spate of such components that were sourced out of China. Do your TV and monitor date back to that time, or are we seeing a new batch of bad components?

    -Phil
  • Ron CzapalaRon Czapala Posts: 2,418
    edited 2011-12-03 08:03
    Actually, both were bought in 2007. The caps in the TV were labeled Samsung, the monitor caps are labeled CapXon.

    I have another Samsung TV from 2009 - I hope it doesn't develop a problem...
  • Martin HodgeMartin Hodge Posts: 1,246
    edited 2011-12-03 12:46
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague

    Everything you ever wanted to know about the "BadCap" fiasco of this decade. Apparently there are still a lot of these in inventories across the globe. (Make sure your Rubycons aren't labeled "Rulycon"!)
  • LoopyBytelooseLoopyByteloose Posts: 12,537
    edited 2011-12-04 00:38
    As absurd as it seems, some of these are fake. In the audio world, they have seen quite a bit of relabeled product and in some cases rather absurd modification -- like putting two smaller caps inside a larger cap's package.

    I have a bunch of supposedly audio grade output transistors here that are apparently relabeled 2n3055s. This were purchased over the counter from a regular local electronics store and they continue to sell them, refusing to admit that the Motorola logo on them is fake (90 degrees out of axis from what Motorola does and typeset with a standard M in a circle rather than the true Motorola logo.

    Elliot Sound Products in Australia keeps tabs of trends in fakes for those that want to ferret out good parts.
  • RonPRonP Posts: 384
    edited 2011-12-04 01:35
    I had the same problem with a my Gateway Monitor purchase around 2002 I think. About 2 years ago it died I replace the popped caps and all was good until this summer it started showing the same signs, turning off by itself. So the caps are just a symptom of the sickness in my case. I have a little fan blowing toward the back of the monitor around the power supply area and everything is fine for now. I need to get a new monitor.

    Ron
  • LoopyBytelooseLoopyByteloose Posts: 12,537
    edited 2011-12-04 03:50
    I run my cable analog TV service through a box to a VGA on my desk that also is shared by my XP computer (have a Vista computer as well).
    It finally went south on me and was behaving very erratic.

    I opened it up and recognized swollen capacitors. So I exchanged them out with higher voltage and greater capacity ones.

    Now it works fine.

    I have had a lot of trouble with early flat screen monitors. I suspect that Taiwan's electronic market is flooded with items that fail to export - we get all the rejects. The first one was an excellent bargain, but the power switch failed and zapped all the electronics with a transient that destroyed everything. The second one limps along now and I have to clean it every six months or so. This appears to be due to conductive dust accumulating on the main IC as it is an earlier production of this type. It may even be tin in ROHS solder growing fingers.

    Now I have a new ViewSonic purchased on sale that I am quite please with.

    These days, replacing capacitors and/or cleaning boards are about the only real service options - not much else is easy to do as parts are hard to locate and even harder to swap out.
  • Ron CzapalaRon Czapala Posts: 2,418
    edited 2011-12-04 06:05
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague

    Everything you ever wanted to know about the "BadCap" fiasco of this decade. Apparently there are still a lot of these in inventories across the globe. (Make sure your Rubycons aren't labeled "Rulycon"!)

    Thanks Martin - very interesting story. Makes you wonder whether critcial devices (medical, military) have bad capacitors waiting to blow....
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    edited 2011-12-04 06:50
    I had to do the same, (pregnant caps), on my brother's 52" Samsung on Thanksgiving morning, so we could watch some football. Not fun taking that thing off the wall. :)
  • LoopyBytelooseLoopyByteloose Posts: 12,537
    edited 2011-12-04 11:12
    If the caps are in a location that is subject to extreme heat, that is an added problem. Try to find a way to ventilate or shield them from the heat.
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