80s Philco-branded Philips 13" - Very dark screen

[YamahaFreak]

I have rescued a 13-inch Philips (Magnavox) CRT TV set, probably built in the mid-90s (build date is obscured by wear on the label) from an abandoned motel. I kept it mostly because of the curiosity of the set being branded Philco, despite that brand having ceased television manufacture decades prior. After thoroughly cleaning the TV and checking for any obvious signs of trouble, I plugged it in and powered it on. All seems well, but the picture is extremely dark, to the point of being almost totally black. I tried adjusting the flyback G2 control, and although this did produce a picture, it was very washed out, as though something before the flyback is keeping the picture dark. I also tried adjusting the sub brite control on the board, to no avail...I am out of ideas. I returned the flyback to its previous setting, to avoid any undue wear.

[Findm-Keepm]

Model number? Sams doesn't yield without that or a chassis number.

[Electronic M]

Philco existed as a elcheapo badge into the DTV transition...Those magnavox DTV converter boxes were also sold in white plastic with Philco brand on them.

[YamahaFreak]

Originally Posted by Findm-Keepm

Model number? Sams doesn't yield without that or a chassis number.

Sorry about that, I should have thought to mark that down! The model number is P1321R C403. Chassis number 13Y401-00AA. Label says it is a Philips set. The more and more I stare at what's left of the manufacturing year, it looks like it could be 1993.

[YamahaFreak]

Originally Posted by Electronic M

Philco existed as a elcheapo badge into the DTV transition...Those magnavox DTV converter boxes were also sold in white plastic with Philco brand on them.

Yeah, I think Philips might still have the rights to use the name. I have seen at least one 'Philco' DVD player...

[zeno]

Post the CRT voltages & its easy to nail down the bad stage.
With its history its probably a dead CRT.

73 Zeno
LFOD !

[KentTeffeteller]

My late Grandmother in Athens had a knob tuned Philco set from that era. Was a reasonably basic model that screen size or a bit bigger. Had a nice picture. Ad slogan from Knoxville, "Philco, What A Picture, What a Price". Also, they used "Philco, Your Better Buy".

[YamahaFreak]

Originally Posted by zeno

Post the CRT voltages & its easy to nail down the bad stage.
With its history its probably a dead CRT.

73 Zeno
LFOD !

The CRT is very much alive, the onscreen menus are bright and sharp. It's just the picture itself that is almost black.

[JohnCT]

Originally Posted by YamahaFreak

The CRT is very much alive, the onscreen menus are bright and sharp. It's just the picture itself that is almost black.

Could be a bad eeprom. They weren't nearly as much trouble as the Thomson RCA/GEs, but we used to stock them. Unfortunately, I tossed all my Philips parts many years ago.

I may have the SM for the Y series. I'll take a look when I get to work.

John

[Jeffhs]

Originally Posted by JohnCT

Could be a bad eeprom. They weren't nearly as much trouble as the Thomson RCA/GEs, but we used to stock them. Unfortunately, I tossed all my Philips parts many years ago.

I may have the SM for the Y series. I'll take a look when I get to work.

John

I have an RCA CTC185 table set (Thomson/RCA) which still works every bit as well as when it was new (it was my first new TV after I moved here in 1999). I never had one problem with it, with the EEPROM or anything else, save for having to replace the antenna connector after about six months (under warranty). Other than that, the set still works, but I don't use it anymore (or at all) since getting a flat screen TV about two or three years ago.

[YamahaFreak]

I figured I'd try to take some photos and show what I'm dealing with. (Hard to take images that accurately show the dark screen, but I promise you, Super Mario doesn't usually look this satanic.) As you can see, the onscreen menus and OSD are fine...it's the image itself that is dark.

[radiotvnut]

A service manual (rather it be a Sam's Photofact or factory manual) will be a big help. It could be something as simple as a dried out electrolytic capacitor in the video chain.

As far as the Philco name, Ford bought them in, I believe, 1961. Then, Ford sold Philco to GTE (who already had Sylvania) in 1974. At that point, Philco and Sylvania TV's were basically the same inside; but, the Philco-branded sets were the "loss leader." In '81, NAP (who already had Magnavox) bought the Sylvania and Philco brands from GTE. I believe NAP still owns the rights to the Philco name; but, they have licensed the Philco, Magnavox, and Sylvania brands to Funai and other outfits.

[JohnCT]

Originally Posted by YamahaFreak

I figured I'd try to take some photos and show what I'm dealing with. (Hard to take images that accurately show the dark screen, but I promise you, Super Mario doesn't usually look this satanic.) As you can see, the onscreen menus and OSD are fine...it's the image itself that is dark.

Hard to tell, but it looks like the picture is all chrominance and no luminance. Turn the color control off and see if the image disappears. With a scope, this would be very easy to find but I realize that not everyone has one.

Depending on the year, it could be a delay line of sorts or a rudimentary comb filter issue.

Some TVs had a service switch of sorts on the CRT module. It will be a small three position switch if it has one. Some had a similar switch on the chassis somewhere, but those were mostly imports. If you can find one, try all three positions.

John

[YamahaFreak]

Will do some more tinkering and troubleshooting tonight. I DO have a scope, but don't really know how to use it.

[old_tv_nut]

I think the details that do show are too sharp to be chrominance. So, there is something wrong with the luminance level (brightness/black level/DC level, whichever you want to call it).