Playchoice 19" LCD upgrade single monitor

iyouwas

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Hi all,

Just wondering how difficult it would be to replace the monitor in my playchoice, to a Dynex 19" lcd flat screen.

Is it even possible, and what does it require.

Thanks!!!!

Tom
 
Understood.

There's some red shadows above words and images at the top of the screen and nowhere else.

Thinking the monitor may be going bad is all.

Thanks!
 
I have a theory -- that the problem with LCDs is scaling. You'll always wind up with ugly "tween" pixels unless you match the game resolution with an LCD whose resolution is a multiple of it. However, that's not so easy. Here's my theory so far:
  • 192 active lines, at 4:3 that's 256 pixels per line, doubled 512x384, see 384 below.
  • 224 active lines, big problem. 224*4/3=298.6666... these games can't be 4:3 aspect, because you can't have 2/3 of a pixel. What aspect do these games run in?
  • 240 active lines, at 4:3 that's 320 pixels per line, doubled 640x480, see 480 below.
  • 384 active lines, at 4:3 that's 512 pixels per line, doubled 1024x768. I've seen arcade-intended LCDs with 1024x768 native; they should look quite good with these games, but it may take some tweaking to sync up the LCD pixels with the game.
  • 480 active lines, at 4:3 that's 640 pixels per line, doubled 1280x960. Neither 640x480 nor 1280x960 are common LCD resolutions, though a few rare panels in each resolution exist that were sold as computer monitors. If you happen to find one, hang on to it.

Obviously, an LCD will never look like a classic CRT, but I think with the right forethought and some careful matching, they can look even better.
 
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There's some red shadows above words and images at the top of the screen and nowhere else.

Thinking the monitor may be going bad is all.

These monitors are easily fixed. Post a good picture of the screen, we can help you repair it.

And yes, replacing the monitor with an LCD is not an upgrade.

-Ian
 
Here are some pics of the affected top area of the monitor.
I cropped to show more clearly, the red coming above the images.

Hope this helps.
 

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Here are some pics of the affected top area of the monitor.

The convergence is just a little bit out of adjustment. It's not failing. That's not even an electrical problem. It's just the positioning of the convergence magnets/yoke is a little out of whack.

Read up on the procedure for converging a monitor before fiddling with it though, as it is easy to get it much farther out of whack if you aren't careful.

-Ian
 
THANKS!!

I will look into it.

I have another pic to show you.
Someone on here said that this is caused by a faulty Z80 chip.

Its the game select screen on the playchoice.
 

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THANKS!!

I will look into it.

I have another pic to show you.
Someone on here said that this is caused by a faulty Z80 chip.

Its the game select screen on the playchoice.

HEY!!! That's exactly what my monitor looks like occasionally. It takes a minute for it to do it usually, and then when it does it, I can unplug the monitor connection (not the power) and plug it back in and the monitor will be back to normal until I switch games again (I have a dual monitor and it only does it on the game monitor, regardless of whether I switch the upper and lower). Could you possibly unplug your monitor harness and plug it back in when this occurs and tell me if this resolves the issue temporarily?
That would be nifty!
 
Well, I have a brand new Z80 coming in from ebay.
Should be here in about 5 days.
While I'm back there, before I change it out I will try it for you.

I'm just suprised that this happened to somebody else.
Seems not many have very much input on this issue.
 
Well, as I understand it, the game is controlled by the RP2A03E, while the menu is controlled by the Z80. My menu is fine, but the game looks just like your menu does. I don't have a spare processor to test, though. I'm going to take my board to a local member's house and do some more testing on it.

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After searching a few forums, I came across this bit of info. The chip that is giving you problems, the RP2A03E, can be found in a old Nintendo Entertainment System.

Chances are very likely that the chip would be a pretty good replacement for the use your looking for.
As most of the old NESs had that blinky flashing issue, the chip was well preserved.
If youce got a old nes lying around, id give it a shot.

I hope this helps
 
I've repaired at least a hundred NES's at this point, and have yet to see a bad processor in one. That's not to say that it won't happen on a PlayChoice, since that's in a different environment, but any given NES should have a good processor.

I've got more NES's and NES parts laying around than I care to think about. If you need a processor, I can get you one.

But, seeming as though the NES is so dirt common, you shouldn't have any problems locating one yourself. If you've got access to a working PlayChoice board, I would start by swapping chips for test - that way it it isn't the processor, you won't have to waste the time desoldering it from a Nintendo.

-Ian
 
I've repaired at least a hundred NES's at this point, and have yet to see a bad processor in one. That's not to say that it won't happen on a PlayChoice, since that's in a different environment, but any given NES should have a good processor.

I've got more NES's and NES parts laying around than I care to think about. If you need a processor, I can get you one.

But, seeming as though the NES is so dirt common, you shouldn't have any problems locating one yourself. If you've got access to a working PlayChoice board, I would start by swapping chips for test - that way it it isn't the processor, you won't have to waste the time desoldering it from a Nintendo.

-Ian

I did see that Nintendos use them. I'm going to go to a local forum member's house who has a known working PC10 board, so we can swap it out and test it (possibly change the socket).

Of course, if any of you guys can think of any other reasons my machine is doing that, please speak up!

(Sorry to hijack the thread!)
 
No worries, ;-)

Because if this thread helps solve your problem,
then it has done its purpose.
I learned something, actually a few things along the way.

Keep me posted on your results!


Tom
 
Well, my Z80 came today from ebay.
Replaced it, and no change in menu screen.
Still all crazy like your game screen.
So I suppose that our problems lie deeper in the board.
Well at least mine does. Its a very sad day for me.
Thought I nailed the problem.


Good luck on your end SpiffWilkie.


Tom
 
Any updates on this?
Mine is doing the same thing to the top monitor.
I have a few Nintendos around here to rob a z80 from one.
 
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