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Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
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#1
Posted to alt.tv.tech.hdtv,sci.electronics.design,sci.electronics.repair
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MicroGem DTV converter gets pretty hot
I just bought a used MicroGem DTV converter at an auction. The price
was right, and it works ok. But I noticed that it gets pretty hot compared to my other converters (other brands). I also read on several websites that these converters are known to die in a short time because of excess heat, and many were sent back to the manufacturer for replacement. Because of the way I bought it, there is no warranty. Rather than let it burn out, I would like to add a heat sink to whatever part(s) gets hot. Does anyone know what part(s) overheats? (I might also enlarge the tiny holes in the case, or maybe even install a small fan (like a CPU fan, if there's a proper voltage source to run a CPU fan). Thanks Frank |
#2
Posted to alt.tv.tech.hdtv,sci.electronics.design,sci.electronics.repair
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MicroGem DTV converter gets pretty hot
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#3
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MicroGem DTV converter gets pretty hot
Hi!
Out of all of the ideas you suggested, I recommend the fan. It's likely to do the most good of anything, especially since there are probably already heatsinks in there. The two things that will produce the most heat in these are the power supply and the video decoder/system processor IC. Capacitors in the power supply may be situated too close to hot-running components or of poor quality. If that's the case, I'd actually suspect some combination of those issues. Provided nothing blows up, bad caps could be replaced with better ones and that might be all you'd have to do. On the other hand, if the video processing system on chip is getting too hot and burning out, that's going to be almost impossible to fix. Some run cooler than others...the LG chips seem to run so cool they don't even require a heatsink while the ones from Zoran must have a heatsink and it gets so hot that you can't touch it after just seconds of operation. If you have a simple voltmeter and know how to use it, you should be able to find suitable power supply voltages to use for the fan. Be extremely careful--parts of the power supply are connected directly to the power line and will buzz/hurt/kill you. Voltages may also be marked on separate boards. If yours has the power supply and television tuning circuitry all on one board (as some do), you'll have to trace the circuit to find out where the power supply outputs are at. William |
#4
Posted to alt.tv.tech.hdtv,sci.electronics.design,sci.electronics.repair
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MicroGem DTV converter gets pretty hot
On Jun 30, 12:39*pm, wrote:
I just bought a used MicroGem DTV converter at an auction. *The price was right, and it works ok. *But I noticed that it gets pretty hot compared to my other converters (other brands). *I also read on several websites that these converters are known to die in a short time because of excess heat, and many were sent back to the manufacturer for replacement. *Because of the way I bought it, there is no warranty. *Rather than let it burn out, I would like to add a heat sink to whatever part(s) gets hot. *Does anyone know what part(s) overheats? *(I might also enlarge the tiny holes in the case, or maybe even install a small fan (like a CPU fan, if there's a proper voltage source to run a CPU fan). Thanks Frank Unplug it from the wall and remove the cover screws to get inside. Leave the cover on and run it for an hour or so to heat it up. Unplug it from the wall and remove the cover and find out where it's really warm. You might not even have room to add a fan but they come in a wide ranges of sizes and power capacity as shown in the DigiKey website. It's actually difficult to build a power supply with such low capacity that there _isn't_ spare capacity to run a fan.Also keep in mind that the fan will _increase_ the supply capacity as it's heat that is the limiting factor and you're getting rid of it. Now if the fan STALLS you have extra problems. G² |
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