Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

[qotsa]

My Grandpa's TV recently went out and with me being the family tech guy, I've been assigned the task to repair it. He gave me $60 and said have at it. I'm currently without a multimeter and am on a tight budget. It's about zero degrees outside so I'm hoping to get a consensus in the comfort of my apartment to possibly avoid the 30 minute round-trip drive to Walmart to pick up a cheap meter.

Here's what's going on:

Vizio 32" E321VL

Plug power cord in. Vizio logo turns amber.

Turn power on via remote. Vizio logo turns bright white, backlight comes on, Giant Visio "V" comes onto screen for about a second then goes away. Backlight turns off but Vizio logo stays bright white. Pushing input, menu, etc buttons on remote or TV does nothing.

Turn TV off via remote, white logo turns amber.

Turn TV back on and the process is repeated.

I've unplugged the TV overnight which did not change anything. My instinct tells me it's the power supply board (0500-0412-1300 $36.99) that is bad, but I know Vizio's are notorious for having their main boards (3632-1732-0150 $62.99) go out.

Thoughts? Should I go ahead and get a meter? I may be able to borrow one from a neighbor or friend.

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Main board. EEPROM can be replaced.
http://www.shopjimmy.com/vizio-e321v...eprom-only.htm

(Technically a serial flash. Firmware on it becomes corrupted.)

$25 is a lot for that chip though; the chip costs a few dollars, but it has been programmed by those guys.

A multimeter confirms the diagnosis.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Main board. EEPROM can be replaced.
http://www.shopjimmy.com/vizio-e321v...eprom-only.htm

(Technically a serial flash. Firmware on it becomes corrupted.)

$25 is a lot for that chip though; the chip costs a few dollars, but it has been programmed by those guys.

A multimeter confirms the diagnosis.

Oh wow, thanks for the quick and helpful response. I have limited soldering experience. I have soldered on a few caps that replaced bulging ones before. Do you think a semi-novice shouldn't have too much difficulty replacing this chip?

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

If you can remove the chip without damage to the board... you can probably put it back on.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Looks like I got lucky!

www.ebay.com/itm/221359133048

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Oh lordy, that chip is soooo small and there's about 10 of them on the main board that I have to sort through to figure out which one it is. Looks like I have my work cut out for me! Hey, ya got to start somewhere, and I'm eager to learn

EDIT: "U18" EEPROM...found it!

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Even better price, that's quite reasonable.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Even better price, that's quite reasonable.

Ordered. Now I'm about to watch some youtube videos to learn some soldering skills. I love the internet. Thanks tom66!

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Probably should try to remove the original IC before buying a new one; no returns of course...

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

[duplicate post; my error]

[ecking767]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

before ordering that eeprom I will try to input a signal to the HDMI ports, this doesn't seem to be an eeprom problem. your TV is responding, meaning turning off / on. your could have a power supply & inverter board

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

before ordering that eeprom I will try to input a signal to the HDMI ports, this doesn't seem to be an eeprom problem. your TV is responding, meaning turning off / on. your could have a power supply & inverter board

I'm not sure what you mean by "input a signal to the HDMI ports". That's a tough one to google.

[ecking767]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

I'm not sure what you mean by "input a signal to the HDMI ports". That's a tough one to google.

Not really, Choose a signal like: DVD player, Direct TV receiver, Cable box receiver, XBOX, and or PS3 using HDMI port. If you have the original remote controller then press HDMI, there is only 2 HMDI ports on that TV, so connect to HDMI 1 for now.


1) have your signal on and playing a signal with sound
2) Power up your TV, wait about 10 to 15 second then press HDMI on the remote
3 turn up the volume on the tv
4) if you hear sound then your main board is working


the default HDMI port input will be HMDI 1 when you press HDMI on the remote

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Not really, Choose a signal like: DVD player, Direct TV receiver, Cable box receiver, XBOX, and or PS3 using HDMI port. If you have the original remote controller then press HDMI, there is only 2 HMDI ports on that TV, so connect to HDMI 1 for now.


1) have your signal on and playing a signal with sound
2) Power up your TV, wait about 10 to 15 second then press HDMI on the remote
3 turn up the volume on the tv
4) if you hear sound then your main board is working


the default HDMI port input will be HMDI 1 when you press HDMI on the remote

ohhh, ok. I was over-thinking it and thought I'd be injecting a signal with an oscilloscope or something

I'll check if I have sound

EDIT: I can't change input because after the giant visio logo disappears the backlights turn off so I can't see anything on the screen if I hit the input or menu buttons. I've got a multimeter and will start testing for voltages on these spots.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

I'm getting some oddball voltages here out the power supply board.

If you look at the attached picture, here are the voltages I measured with the TV on(Visio logo white)... from left to right. In other words, #1 = far left cable and #14 = far right, white cable:

1. 5v
2. 5v
3. 7v
4. 7v
5. 26v
6. 26v
7. 26v
8. 0v
9. 0v
10. 0v
11. 0v
12. 12v
13. 12v
14. 12v

Does the diagram list them in the wrong order? Even if so, don't these voltages seem odd? Maybe it is the power supply board that's bad.

[tom66]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Check your meter is set to DC volts. Not AC.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

Check your meter is set to DC volts. Not AC.

doh

1. 2.5v
2. 2.5v
3. 3.5v
4. 3.5v
5. 12v
6. 12v
7. 12v
8. 0v
9. 0v
10. 0v
11. 0v
12. 5.7v
13. 5.7v
14. 5.7v

hmmm. Looks like it checks out. Does this verify the power supply board is probably good?

[ecking767]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

you don't need to see what on the screen, All you needed to do was input a signal then power up the TV and press HDMI on the remote. for now you need to take voltage measurement on that power connector you posted the picture of. Mainly the pin label off /on. Do this with the tv power on.

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

This little fella that's leaving the main board appears to be going to the inverter that is tucked away under the assembly, near the lcd panel.

Here are what the wires are reading in DC voltage:

Yellow: 5.5v
White: 3v
Red: 3.5v

[qotsa]

Re: Vizio 32" E321VL struggling to power on

you don't need to see what on the screen, All you needed to was input a signal then power up the TV and press HDMI on the remote. for now you need to voltage measurement on that power connector you posted the picture of. Mainly the pin label off /on.

Both on/off readings were 3.5v

I'm working on finding an HDMI cable