Akai 42" Plasma, no picture
 

I just picked up an Akai Plasma PDP42Z5TA to look at, it's about five years old and the screen is dead.
It's still in the Van but I thought I'd pick your brains before I take it apart.

Owner said the sound was working (not verified yet) but nothing on screen.
I tried it at their house, clicks when plugged in, the Standby light goes from Red to Green but nothing on the screen, I heard no sound but it was not hooked up to anything either.

If it was the power supply caps I would think the standby light would stay red, no?

Probably buffer boards and/or Y-main board. Very common on Samsung built TV's. You will need to check the voltages at the y_main. Around 180V, 60V. There is a sticker on the PDP of what it's supposed to be. Check the PS carefully. Usually it it's a cap, it's one of the smaller ones buried among the others. The PS may still power up with a bad cap. There is a lot of info on testing the buffers on the internet. They are expensive used and new ones are NLA. If the buffers are shorted, more than likely the Y-main is toast. Inspect the buffers carefully for burn marks or holes. These are on the right hand side looking from the front.

Well I got the back off, no small feat with all those screws.

I found this on eBay, fits the symptoms, found a blown fuse on the YSUS board.
Do you think this is worth a try?
This isn't my set so they owner will have to risk the $ to buy the part but I do stand to make a few $ if I get it working.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Akai-PDP42Z5...item27b5ce1a5e

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you need to check the buffer boards. if you fix or replace the Y-board and don't check the buffer, you will blow the Y-Main again.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hVi5gd0aec

looks like a LG made set. Generally they are Samsung. Dont worry about the buffers. I replaced lots of those with success. Get it from Coppell tv repair. Do NOT buy it from China! it's a pain to replace as long as you are VERY careful removing the old one

Do you think it might be wise to lust let Coppell repair the YSUS board for $65?

I don't know how much they want to risk on this set, I'd hate to do that and find out it had another problem.

I picked up a LG 42" plasma, same problem, same fix. Got the module from Coppel TV and installed it myself. It was a SOB MF to unsolder / solder, some of the pins connect to a large ground plane and really soaks up the heat! Also be careful with the ribbon connector at the lower right, easily broken.

Bottom line is it's fixed and works great!

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Well I relayed the price options to the person, Chip alone, vs rebuilding the board vs risk that something else could be wrong + labor, we'll see what she says.

If she decides not to fix it then I'll probably wind up with the set.
I'd probably be willing to risk the price of the Module alone just to see if I can make it work.
The experience might come in handy if I ever need to fix my Panasonic.

$65 is not a bad price to have it repaired by coppeltv. he guarantee's his work. The repair is is a pain to do with just a soldering iron and the board is easily damaged. Most of the speckles can be adjusted out but never completely go away. Check the fuses on the Z-board(the board on the opposite side of the set with the 2 large copper ribbons). Generally on LG made sets, the Y-main repair is usually all it needs but on occasion, the Z is bad too.

Well I heard back from the owner, they don't want to fool with it so the set is mine. I actually prefer that outcome, I'm not comfortable doing work for others when I don't know what I'm doing.

I would like to go ahead and replace the chip on the YSUS board myself just for the "fun" and experience of doing it, besides, after removing the fifty screws holding the back on the rest can't be that hard.

How do I go about ordering a chip from Coppel's? Just write them and say I need a YSUS chip for an Akai model xxxx?

By the way, I haven't said thank you yet for the help, so thank you! :yes:

Here's a pic of the back side, is this a Samsung built set?

LG built. There is a number on the label on the heatsink. That's what he will need. Similar to: 6871QYH953A but more than likely a different number

Found it, sometimes it's easier to take a picture than write it down, especially in an awkward location.

I got the Chip off eBay from Coppel's, $32 shipping included.
I'll post again after I get it installed!