Vectrex Repair - sound but no picture, power switch refurbish.

[@GrantMeStrength]

In case it helps someone, I’ve just cleaned my switch for the same reasons (sound, no picture - which implied that one of the contacts inside the switch wasn’t making a good connection). I was able to disassemble the switch in situ without having to desolder it from the circuit board. Once the back cover was off, there’s just enough room to prise up the three tabs and remove the switch innards for contact cleaner and sandpaper. The trick was putting the switch back together - it was impossible until I used a little locktite thread fastener (a tiny, tiny amount) to hold the white plastic “bow tie” and the brown disk in place. By rotating the switch shaft until it was in the “off” position, the assembly slid back into place and I could bend the tabs back. Note: it is essential to line up the metal “claw” on the brown plastic component with the matching piece of plastic on the part of the switch that rotates. You’ll see it if you slowly turn the knob. You *must* understand how the pieces fit back together or you will have a frustrating time! Incidentally, before cleaning, the video would just be a white dot, but the sound worked. With a little contact cleaner sprayed into the switch and resoldering the switch wires, things got a little better, but results were a bit random. Once I took it apart and cleaned it properly, it seems to be back to excellent condition.

[@The-Tinkerer]

Nice job, thanks for the written clarification. Horrible fiddly job getting reassembling, I wish there was an easy replacement part somewhere.

[@rolandpater2245]

It took me 2 hours! My final solution is to put all the bits in the wired half. I put the Vectrex on its side so I could shove the two pieces of the switch together without the stuff falling out. An absolute nightmare!

[@sebsebus8719]

I have exactly the same breakdown ;) Thanks I know what I'm going to do this weekend !

[@The-Tinkerer]

How did it go?

[@banterman]

Thanks for this video, chap. Just used it to fix mine! (same issue. Sound, no picture). Worked a charm. Now to figure out why the cartridges aren't working :D.

[@The-Tinkerer]

Great! Glad to have been of help.

[@ebutuoytm7560]

Excellent tutorial! Thank you, just about to tackle mine with your help (same issue)

[@The-Tinkerer]

I hope it helps. Let us know how it goes!

[@ebutuoytm7560]

Thanks! Here's an update: The problem with mine was the power button couldn't be turned off so I had to turn it on from a switched power bar. Other than that everything worked fine on the Vectrex. Volume, picture, sound and start up time were all perfect. I was happy with it but the switch always bugged me (I can't stand things not working the way they should) so after seeing your video I took the plunge, I have all the necessary equipment including a binocular microscope and I'm fairly good with an iron so I thought why not? Anyway, I managed to de-solder the switch from the board, opened it up, cleaned the contacts, threw a tiny bit of silicone grease in there and put it back together. Whoever invented that switch is both a genius and a total maniac. That thing was a bitch to get back together but I eventually managed it. Gave it a turn and it clicked!! Turned it back off and hey presto, another click! I was ecstatic, god only knows how long that switch has been in that state up until now. So...I reassembled everything, plugged it in, turned it on, heard the familiar sound of Mine Storm and.........no picture, except for a white dot in the middle of the screen. My heart sank :( I spent the next hour googling and trouble shooting. Checked all the voltages with a multimeter and found that one half of the board wasn't getting adequate power. It was definitely the power switch but why? everything looked good and it clicked nicely. The good news? I eventually got it fixed!! The problem? A small hairline crack at the base of one of the 4 wire terminals on the back of the switch. A little bit of flux and some solder a power on and everything works! Couldn't be happier. Just goes to show how such a small, simple and easily overlooked problem can bring the whole system down. Anyway, thanks again for your great video, hope this may help someone else with a similar issue.

[@ya9493]

Many thanks for your video, it help me to repair my Vectrex 🙂

[@The-Tinkerer]

That's awesome! Nice one. :)

[@ForeverArcade]

I always wanted one of these. Another great video 👍🏻

[@The-Tinkerer]

Thanks 👍

[@WinrichNaujoks]

How did you know right away that the issue was witht the power switch? You didn't measure it through for resistance or continuity...

[@The-Tinkerer]

I can't recall now. Fairly sure I'd measured the voltage in/out on the circuit. That and research of the symptoms pointed to that.

[@n8goulet]

I bought two Vectrex's brand new in the early 80s. One still works great, the other after being in long term storage does not power on at all. Where would I start to troubleshoot? Is there anything that commonly fails that would cause no power?

[@The-Tinkerer]

Hi - thanks for your comment. I've updated the description with some links that helped me. Good luck! Vectrex repair guide has list of components to check. www.playvectrex.com/shoptalk/vecguid.pdf This talks about repairing the -13V circuit (removal of PSU board required) int03.co.uk/blog/2016/01/31/vectrex-repair-black-screen-no-vector/ Switch removal and Cap replacement guide (German) circuit-board.de/forum/index.php/Thread/25374-Die-Vectrex-Kur-Kondensatoren-richtig-tauschen-weg-mit-dem-Brummen-Tipps-Tricks/ groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.games.vectrex/1Q-aQaVcd7s atariage.com/forums/topic/281906-repairing-removing-a-knob/

[@gtd65]

Bought mine brand new from Woolies in '82 or '83

[@The-Tinkerer]

Woolies had everything - sadly missed.

[@painco94]

it seems I have a similar failure (I get sound, but nothing the CRT). Is there an easy way to confirm that the problem is the same you encountered?

[@The-Tinkerer]

Hi - The easiest way is to measure the voltages coming from the output side of the switch. If there is none - then it's not passing current through! It's been a long time, but I think I measured the current from where ever the switch wires went to. Hope that makes sense / helps?

[@helibournon1196]

22/7/23 My Vectrex has the same problem but I dont know anyone who van fix it. It is in perfect condition otherwise

[@The-Tinkerer]

vectorgaming.proboards.com/thread/2308/vectrex-repair-service-providers-thread

[@SuperGamesLegend]

I have doubts that cleaning the power switch was the issue. It's working and I'm happy for you though. It's worth mentioning that the brightness control knob in back should be tried before just tearing into a 40 year old piece of electronics. I have a Vectrex and I'm a Technician of 25 + years. I would hate to see someone get hurt or damage thier system unnecessarily. Make sure you unplug anything you are working on and use the proper equipment and precautions!

[@The-Tinkerer]

Great to have feedback from a pro. Good points, I've taken for granted that people would try the tightness knob. I had previously bypassed the power switch completely to test so I know it was that at fault. Ideally I'd prefer to source a replacement but it is a known issue, for example: circuit-board.de/forum/index.php/Thread/25374-Die-Vectrex-Kur-Kondensatoren-richtig-tauschen-weg-mit-dem-Brummen-Tipps-Tricks/ and atariage.com/forums/topic/281906-repairing-removing-a-knob/

[@GrantMeStrength]

The Vectrex power switch configuration is a little odd in that it doesn't control the DC or Mains supply, but instead passes two taps from the transformer onto the power supply board, where they are converted to +/-5 volts, and -13 volts. The DPST switch controls the two taps separately. If the switch connections are faulty, then bad things will happen. For example, if the connection that feeds the -13 volts is missing, then there's sound but no picture. This is exactly the issue I just had - I had sound but no picture. Once I repaired the bad soldering on the switch (the circuit boards were definitely not the peak of 1980s soldering skill) and used contact cleaner, the picture came back. Thanks for the video which helped a lot!

[@andymouse]

@@GrantMeStrength I see your point about the DPST, If you lost a tap you would have only 1 rail instead of 2 thei is easy to check on either side of the bridge (ac/dc) if the output from the bridge is normal then move on. This would be a lot easy to check than opening the switch up mechanically ! I'm not totally convinced this is the problem all the time as you would be surprised how many people just forget about the brightness control and feel embarrassed when they find it !