Hitachi & Other Manufacturers Convergence Problems (STK392-110 ICs) Read Post 1
Edit by 57
Warning. This repair is not intended for amateurs. These TVs have high voltages that can kill and desoldering/soldering ICs and resistors and boards is not easy. If you have any doubts, leave it to the professionals.
This convergence IC issue is hitting a lot of older CRT-RPTVs (all manufacturers since similar ICs are used). There could be issues with the ICs, the resistors, cracked solder on the board, or all of these. If there are fuses on the board, be sure to check those too (first). The parts can be purchased for under $100 for DIY'ers. The repair done by a pro is typically $3-400. Once repaired, a proper manual convergence is usually necessary and the TV looks like new again.
If you replace only the ICs and there is a problem with the resistors, the ICs may blow again almost immediately, so while the board is out, replace the appropriate resistors - if you buy the "kits" everything will be supplied. You should also check the board for cracked solder. Since the ICs are relatively inexpensive, you should always replace both (or however many there are) ICs when doing the repair. You cannot properly measure the resistors when they are in place.
If you've done the repair and something doesn't work correctly and you've tried everything else, try unplugging the TV overnight. This has resolved issues for 1-2 people.
Once the problem arises, you should repair the TV, as using it in this condition can cause additional damage to the board.
Sample photo of what the TV looks like with such a "failure" at the end of this post:
Link to kits:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=426706&postcount=107
Link to Hitachi parts:
http://www.hitachiserviceusa.com/PartDist.asp
http://www.tvrepairkits.com/xcart/home.php?cat=1373 Repair kits, etc
Links to informative posts/sites on How to Fix:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=564268&postcount=220
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=564352&postcount=224
http://home.earthlink.net/~oleg.filippov/ConvergenceFix.htm
http://www.urwathrtz.webs.com/
If the fix doesn't work, here are some things that people have done incorrectly:
- bad solder on the board
- shorted (bad) soldering during replacement of ICs or resistors
- didn't replace resistors (possibly blowing the new ICs)
- incorrect resistors, resistor values
- incorrect ICs
- too much heat
- fuse
- wires put back incorrectly
- jumpers not put back properly
- Etc.
Here's the thread on the DCAM convergence on Hitachi TVs:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=9539
A Hitachi repairman makes the following recommendation:
When the parts arrived, I replace IK05 and the burned resistor first.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
WARNING: MAKE SURE TO APPLY THERMAL GREASE TO THE BACK OF THE AMPLIFIER CHIPS BEING REPLACED TO FACILITATE HEAT TRANSFER. OTHERWISE, YOUR AMPS WILL QUICKLY BURN UP.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
As expected, this fixed the blue gun, but not the green. Next, IK04 was replaced which took care of the green gun. Of course, the TV still needed a manual convergence to get the guns back in alignment. This isn’t in the manual, but was posted at: http://www.espnhd.com/voice/showthread.php?t=3736 After the manual convergence was completed, the picture looked great!!!!! By the way, I’ve copied the convergence procedure from the link above and added it to the end of this post.
Now for my two cents worth on the problem… I predict virtually everyone with these TV’s will see this same failure. The reason is poor thermal design. Specifically, the limited airflow around the heat sinks does not allow for adequate cooling of the amplifiers. The excessive operating temperatures then degrade the amplifiers to the point they eventually fail. The sad thing is that the Hitachi Engineers didn’t see this one coming. Even sadder is that they are choosing to do nothing about the problem now. A one time free repair and/or retrofit would be nice. Anyway, this is going to cost a lot of people a lot of money for repairs. This issue especially frustrates me because I’m a reliability engineer for a major computer R&D corporation, and am tasked to find these sorts of problems. Surely Hitachi has people that are supposed to do the same sort of job, right? Hopefully, this post will help some of you avoid the major repair costs. I’ve heard repair shop charges can easily go over the $300 mark for these repairs. Not to mention the hassle and cost of getting the TV to the shop. My grand total spent for this job was about US$17.
Good Luck!!!
Robert
The below convergence procedure was copied from: http://www.espnhd.com/voice/showthread.php?t=3736
Manual Convergence for the Hitachi
1) Receive an NTSC signal.
2) Press Magic Focus to begin magic focus
3) Press magic focus again during the magic focus process to get the ?stop? screen
4) While stop screen is up, press STATUS or INFO on the remote control (R/C) to bring you to DCAM mode and
the service grid (64 point grid)
5) When you first get in here? I believe red is the selected color by default (it is flashing).
6) To choose other colors to converge, use the following buttons on the R/C:
a) ?STATUS? - Green
b) ?0? - Red
c) ?ANT? - Blue
7) Start from the center of the screen and work your way out on one color at a time. I adjusted red across the
whole screen to match green. Then I switched to blue, and adjusted that to green as well. After you adjust blue, you
may want to go back and adjust some red again? etc. until the convergence looks good.
(a) Use 4, 6, 2, and 5 on the R/C to move the cursor position(dotted lines).
(b) Use thumb stick to move the convergence point color.
** There have been other posts in here to tape together the color filters found in the Avia DVD to help converge
lines more easily. I have used this method, and it works well for adjusting to a greater detail. Basically, you put the
red filter next to the green and adjust your red to the green line both horizontally, and then vertically. Then you do
the same with the blue next to the green. Some people recommended you should be at normal viewing distance. I
did mine from just a few feet back from the set. Maybe my eyes aren?t as good? maybe I just felt like it worked
better this way. There are some other posts also recommending using binoculars. I think it?s great that people
suggest things to make the process easier? but my girlfriend would think I was insane if she saw me with
binoculars on the couch adjusting the convergence. I don?t know? whatever works best I guess.
8) I did not adjust the green at all. I use the green as the guide and did not adjust the location of any green point.
This is highly suggested unless you have geometry problems.
9) When going along the lines and adjusting, you may run into the problem of getting an ?S? curve on the line.
You?ll know if you get there. Basically, no matter what you do to adjust the line to be converged, the middle of the
line between the points will not straighten out (it bends between the points). To fix this, the manual recommends
going to the (7x5) mode which gives you less points to adjust. I had this problem, and the solution worked. There is
also another mode (3x3) which gives you even less points. Basically, if the set looks good, you only fine tune it in
(13x9) mode (64 point). If you have serious problems, the grids work as:
3x3 - ?coarse?
7x5 - ?medium?
13x9 - ?fine?
10) To get to each of these patterns use the following on the R/C: (only if you need to)
1. (3x3) Press ?STATUS? 5 times (only works when DCU is in uncorrected state)
2. (7x5) Press ?0? 5 times
3. (13x9) Press ?ANT? 5 times
11) If you adjust the 3x3, then you should go to the 7x5, and then the 13x9. You get the point? depending on where
you start, work your way up, and always finish on the 13x9
12) When finishing up the 13x9 mode, to get additional ?grids? on the edges of the screen, press the PIP CH button
on the remote control while in the digital convergence adjustment mode (DCAM). Fine tune the edge convergence
as necessary. To exit, press PIP CH again.
13) When convergence is acceptable, press PIP MODE to write data to ROM memory. ROM WRITE? is displayed
to alarm system that ROM will be overwritten with new data. Press the PIP MODE button again to write
displayed data to ROM.
14) DATA WRITE TO ROM will take approximately 4 seconds and no picture will be displayed.
15) Green dots will be displayed when operation is completed.
WARNING: YOU MUST DO THE FOLLOWING STEPS TO COMPLETE MAGIC FOCUS
INITIALIZATION!!! THERE HAVE BEEN MANY POSTS THAT PEOPLE HAVE HAD PROBLEMS
WITHOUT DOING THIS STEP BECAUSE THEY LOOSE MAGIC FOCUS!
16) Press MUTE to return to convergence pattern, then confirm again convergence is acceptable.
17) Press PIP MODE and then PIP CH to initialize Magic Focus. The initialize operation starts and several
windows appear during this operation. It takes about 30 seconds or less.
18) When green dots appear, initialize operation is finished.
19) Turn power OFF.
21) Wait a few seconds. Turn the TV on, and you should have your normal signal. Press Magic Focus button just
to make sure the magic focus still works (and that you did the last few steps properly)
Edit by 57
Warning. This repair is not intended for amateurs. These TVs have high voltages that can kill and desoldering/soldering ICs and resistors and boards is not easy. If you have any doubts, leave it to the professionals.
This convergence IC issue is hitting a lot of older CRT-RPTVs (all manufacturers since similar ICs are used). There could be issues with the ICs, the resistors, cracked solder on the board, or all of these. If there are fuses on the board, be sure to check those too (first). The parts can be purchased for under $100 for DIY'ers. The repair done by a pro is typically $3-400. Once repaired, a proper manual convergence is usually necessary and the TV looks like new again.
If you replace only the ICs and there is a problem with the resistors, the ICs may blow again almost immediately, so while the board is out, replace the appropriate resistors - if you buy the "kits" everything will be supplied. You should also check the board for cracked solder. Since the ICs are relatively inexpensive, you should always replace both (or however many there are) ICs when doing the repair. You cannot properly measure the resistors when they are in place.
If you've done the repair and something doesn't work correctly and you've tried everything else, try unplugging the TV overnight. This has resolved issues for 1-2 people.
Once the problem arises, you should repair the TV, as using it in this condition can cause additional damage to the board.
Sample photo of what the TV looks like with such a "failure" at the end of this post:
Link to kits:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=426706&postcount=107
Link to Hitachi parts:
http://www.hitachiserviceusa.com/PartDist.asp
http://www.tvrepairkits.com/xcart/home.php?cat=1373 Repair kits, etc
Links to informative posts/sites on How to Fix:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=564268&postcount=220
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=564352&postcount=224
http://home.earthlink.net/~oleg.filippov/ConvergenceFix.htm
http://www.urwathrtz.webs.com/
If the fix doesn't work, here are some things that people have done incorrectly:
- bad solder on the board
- shorted (bad) soldering during replacement of ICs or resistors
- didn't replace resistors (possibly blowing the new ICs)
- incorrect resistors, resistor values
- incorrect ICs
- too much heat
- fuse
- wires put back incorrectly
- jumpers not put back properly
- Etc.
Here's the thread on the DCAM convergence on Hitachi TVs:
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=9539
A Hitachi repairman makes the following recommendation:
I have a three year old Hitachi 53UDX10BA that recently developed a convergence problem. Some of you may have already read my original posts on this topic. Anyway, the blue gun started to sag in the top-middle of the screen, then the green. This produced a sort of rainbow pattern at the top of the screen. A lesser pattern also appeared at the bottom. After the problem became unbearable, I opened up the back of the TV to make a visual inspection. It turned out RK54 on the convergence PCB was burned to a crisp. This resistor was just off the output of convergence amplifier IK05 STK392-110, which controls the blue gun’s vertical convergence. It appeared the amp had gone bad and taken out the resistor. I also suspected convergence amp IK04 STK392-110 had gone bad because it controls the green gun vertical convergence. A brief search of the internet seemed to validate the above was likely the problem. So, I ordered two of the STK392-110 amplifiers from http://www.electronix.com/catalog for $5.39 each. What a bargain!!!
When the parts arrived, I replace IK05 and the burned resistor first.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
WARNING: MAKE SURE TO APPLY THERMAL GREASE TO THE BACK OF THE AMPLIFIER CHIPS BEING REPLACED TO FACILITATE HEAT TRANSFER. OTHERWISE, YOUR AMPS WILL QUICKLY BURN UP.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
As expected, this fixed the blue gun, but not the green. Next, IK04 was replaced which took care of the green gun. Of course, the TV still needed a manual convergence to get the guns back in alignment. This isn’t in the manual, but was posted at: http://www.espnhd.com/voice/showthread.php?t=3736 After the manual convergence was completed, the picture looked great!!!!! By the way, I’ve copied the convergence procedure from the link above and added it to the end of this post.
Now for my two cents worth on the problem… I predict virtually everyone with these TV’s will see this same failure. The reason is poor thermal design. Specifically, the limited airflow around the heat sinks does not allow for adequate cooling of the amplifiers. The excessive operating temperatures then degrade the amplifiers to the point they eventually fail. The sad thing is that the Hitachi Engineers didn’t see this one coming. Even sadder is that they are choosing to do nothing about the problem now. A one time free repair and/or retrofit would be nice. Anyway, this is going to cost a lot of people a lot of money for repairs. This issue especially frustrates me because I’m a reliability engineer for a major computer R&D corporation, and am tasked to find these sorts of problems. Surely Hitachi has people that are supposed to do the same sort of job, right? Hopefully, this post will help some of you avoid the major repair costs. I’ve heard repair shop charges can easily go over the $300 mark for these repairs. Not to mention the hassle and cost of getting the TV to the shop. My grand total spent for this job was about US$17.
Good Luck!!!
Robert
The below convergence procedure was copied from: http://www.espnhd.com/voice/showthread.php?t=3736
Manual Convergence for the Hitachi
1) Receive an NTSC signal.
2) Press Magic Focus to begin magic focus
3) Press magic focus again during the magic focus process to get the ?stop? screen
4) While stop screen is up, press STATUS or INFO on the remote control (R/C) to bring you to DCAM mode and
the service grid (64 point grid)
5) When you first get in here? I believe red is the selected color by default (it is flashing).
6) To choose other colors to converge, use the following buttons on the R/C:
a) ?STATUS? - Green
b) ?0? - Red
c) ?ANT? - Blue
7) Start from the center of the screen and work your way out on one color at a time. I adjusted red across the
whole screen to match green. Then I switched to blue, and adjusted that to green as well. After you adjust blue, you
may want to go back and adjust some red again? etc. until the convergence looks good.
(a) Use 4, 6, 2, and 5 on the R/C to move the cursor position(dotted lines).
(b) Use thumb stick to move the convergence point color.
** There have been other posts in here to tape together the color filters found in the Avia DVD to help converge
lines more easily. I have used this method, and it works well for adjusting to a greater detail. Basically, you put the
red filter next to the green and adjust your red to the green line both horizontally, and then vertically. Then you do
the same with the blue next to the green. Some people recommended you should be at normal viewing distance. I
did mine from just a few feet back from the set. Maybe my eyes aren?t as good? maybe I just felt like it worked
better this way. There are some other posts also recommending using binoculars. I think it?s great that people
suggest things to make the process easier? but my girlfriend would think I was insane if she saw me with
binoculars on the couch adjusting the convergence. I don?t know? whatever works best I guess.
8) I did not adjust the green at all. I use the green as the guide and did not adjust the location of any green point.
This is highly suggested unless you have geometry problems.
9) When going along the lines and adjusting, you may run into the problem of getting an ?S? curve on the line.
You?ll know if you get there. Basically, no matter what you do to adjust the line to be converged, the middle of the
line between the points will not straighten out (it bends between the points). To fix this, the manual recommends
going to the (7x5) mode which gives you less points to adjust. I had this problem, and the solution worked. There is
also another mode (3x3) which gives you even less points. Basically, if the set looks good, you only fine tune it in
(13x9) mode (64 point). If you have serious problems, the grids work as:
3x3 - ?coarse?
7x5 - ?medium?
13x9 - ?fine?
10) To get to each of these patterns use the following on the R/C: (only if you need to)
1. (3x3) Press ?STATUS? 5 times (only works when DCU is in uncorrected state)
2. (7x5) Press ?0? 5 times
3. (13x9) Press ?ANT? 5 times
11) If you adjust the 3x3, then you should go to the 7x5, and then the 13x9. You get the point? depending on where
you start, work your way up, and always finish on the 13x9
12) When finishing up the 13x9 mode, to get additional ?grids? on the edges of the screen, press the PIP CH button
on the remote control while in the digital convergence adjustment mode (DCAM). Fine tune the edge convergence
as necessary. To exit, press PIP CH again.
13) When convergence is acceptable, press PIP MODE to write data to ROM memory. ROM WRITE? is displayed
to alarm system that ROM will be overwritten with new data. Press the PIP MODE button again to write
displayed data to ROM.
14) DATA WRITE TO ROM will take approximately 4 seconds and no picture will be displayed.
15) Green dots will be displayed when operation is completed.
WARNING: YOU MUST DO THE FOLLOWING STEPS TO COMPLETE MAGIC FOCUS
INITIALIZATION!!! THERE HAVE BEEN MANY POSTS THAT PEOPLE HAVE HAD PROBLEMS
WITHOUT DOING THIS STEP BECAUSE THEY LOOSE MAGIC FOCUS!
16) Press MUTE to return to convergence pattern, then confirm again convergence is acceptable.
17) Press PIP MODE and then PIP CH to initialize Magic Focus. The initialize operation starts and several
windows appear during this operation. It takes about 30 seconds or less.
18) When green dots appear, initialize operation is finished.
19) Turn power OFF.
21) Wait a few seconds. Turn the TV on, and you should have your normal signal. Press Magic Focus button just
to make sure the magic focus still works (and that you did the last few steps properly)
