Help a newbie replace the right thing

[EduCatOR]

Hi guys!

So I've only replaced 1 cap so far and I am not even really sure if it was successful or not. I am a 1st timer newbie and am interested in learning the craft. I plan to purchase a multimeter real soon but am having trouble with a few pieces of electronics so far.

The first is a vizio tv. (vw26L) Originally just would shut off after a certain amount of time, eventually it just start working again for a while. Finally one night the whole screen turned purple and it let out a crazy high pitched noise. Everything I researched pointed to the caps. One guy said he replaced 10 of the caps in his and it was working again. My questions are:

1. Are the caps I am taking a picture of no good? They aren't puffed up int he center, but in the middle of each 'flap', if you will.

2. Could that big black cap need replacing? Is there anyway to tell if its bad besides a multimeter?

3. How do you deal with the white stuff on the caps. Is it there to reduce noise?

4. Where is the best place to buy caps generally? (If they don't have them here) Amazon seems good but I always end up paying a bunch for shipping.

To replace the caps it would cost me about $36.

I appreciate all the help and am going to practice a bit more with soldering before I attempt it on this board.

Take care!

[c_hegge]

Re: Help a newbie replace the right thing

1. Are the caps I am taking a picture of no good? They aren't puffed up int he center, but in the middle of each 'flap', if you will.

2. Could that big black cap need replacing? Is there anyway to tell if its bad besides a multimeter?

The caps don't look like they have failed, but you would need an ESR meter to test them. A regular multimeter has no capacitance or ESR test (the two most important characteristics of a capacitor). Su'scon are generally a very poorly regarded brand.

3. How do you deal with the white stuff on the caps. Is it there to reduce noise?

It's just glue, You don't really need it there, you can cut through it with a knife usually to remove glued down components.

4. Where is the best place to buy caps generally? (If they dont have them here) Amazon seems good but I always end up paying a bunch for shipping.

Digikey, element14 or Mouser. Never buy caps from fleabay or Amazon, as they will often be fakes.

To replace the caps it would cost me about $36.

For that number of caps, it shouldn't even be $20.

Bear in mind also, that we prefer it if off-site image hosting is not used. We prefer images to be uploaded as attachments to your posts. (see https://www.badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1868).