can you use something else to replace the RGB board on WOW?

ThumB

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can you use something else to replace the RGB board on WOW?

I have a dead RGB board for my Wizard of Wor. Can I use something else like one of those cheap RGB china boards to replace it?
If not, anyone have one or know how to bypass using it?
 
The video signal from WoW and GORF is basically Component video (YPbPr), so you could probably use the YPbPr input of a converter like the GBS-8200 (haven't personally tried though, so maybe the levels are different).

That's not ideal though, since it converts to VGA, so you'll need to install a VGA monitor, and you'll have the slight lag added from the converter. If you're gonna do that, you might as well find a 19" CRT TV with YPbPr input and swap it into the cabinet.

I'm not aware of a converter that takes YPbPr and outputs 15kHz RGB, like the WoW/GORF converter boards do. It is a pretty simple circuit, so in a pinch, you could build your own. Simply cloning the original possible... the only IC used on the board (TBA530) is obsolete, but still available and pretty cheap. A new design probably wouldn't be too tough either.

Or, just put out a WTB, and maybe someone will sell you an original board.

DogP
 
The short answer is no, and you probably wouldn't get great results with an off-the-shelf converter. Why not try to repair the one you have? It's a pretty straightforward circuit, based around a 2N4401 and TBA530. The TBA is out of production, but looks like it can be had on eBay for a few bucks.

Those delay lines (the big tubes) are the only part that's going to be hard to replace. They're 270ns delay lines, which are just wire wound around a tube. If they're broken, it's probably at either end of the tube, where a simple physical repair should get it working again.

I'd poke around on that board and see what I could see. If you have good +5, -5, +12 supplies on the board, and you get continuity through the delay lines, you could shotgun the zener diode at CR1, the 2N4401, and the TBA530 and stand a pretty good chance of it working again.

What symptoms does your board have?
 
Oh, I didn't catch the part about yours being dead... yeah, definitely fix it. I figured yours was a deconversion project or something and was completely missing.

DogP
 
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