Electra UFO Chase Video Problwm - Need Help

mikemolang

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Hi,

I recently bought an 1974 Electra UFO Chase video game. I gave it a good cleaning, reseated the connectors, and checked the fuses (none were blow). When I finally powered it on I was able to play the game blind, but there was no video.

My first level of troubleshooting revealed that the wires that carried the video signal from the main board to the monitor were disconnected. I connected them, got a garbled image on the screen, and proceeded to adjust the monitor's horizontal and vertical pots. I was able to get a very distorted and ghosted image on screen, but far from playable.

I then hooked up a known good video source to the monitor to determine if the problem was in the video source or the monitor. With very little effort I was able to use the same adjustment knobs and get a very reasonable image on the monitor. Thus, the problem seems to be in the video source.

I reattached the game's video source to the monitor and without changing the pots, the image on screen is attached. NOTE: This is a B&W game and monitor. The blue color, planets, and stars are all the result of a film overlay, not the video image. You can also watch a video of the monitor by searching for "Elektra UFO Chase Video Problem" on YouTube.

So, now I need to figure out where the video source is coming up short. I have the manual and schematics, but video is very new to me. (I am an electromechanical guy).

Any thoughts?

Best,
Mike
 

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i am not a B/W expert, but from what i can see you have a Horizontal hold issue.

if you chassis has this adjustment, i would try that first.

if your chassis has never had a cap kit and a good re-flow, i would also start there first.

then adjust the H-Hold if it has that adjustment.

Peace
Buffett
 
what model of chassis do you have or if your not sure please post pictures.
 
Electra UFO Chase Video Problem - Need Help

Thanks, guys. A photo of the chassis is attached but I think that you may be heading down the wrong hole (or I know less than I thought I did, which is also possible!)

I mentioned that I hooked up a known good video source to the game's monitor and with very little effort I was able to get a reasonable image on the monitor. Thus, the problem seems to be in the game's original video source, and not in the game's monitor. I also hooked up the game's video source to a different monitor, and could not get a picture.

This is a very old game, and seems to use a regular B&W TV (the schematic leads me to believe that it was a GE TV, not that that matters).

I have to start probing out the mainboard where the video signal is generated using discrete logic chips and assorted transistors. What would be helpful is if someone could tell me (by looking at the image of the screen) what part of the horizontal circuitry is likely to be the culprit. I am imagining something like "check the blanking circuit", or, "that is typical of xxx".

Best,
Mike
 

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