ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Hi B&O fans,
this is a little guide how to test and repair this magnificent VX5000 video and audio deck. I think, it was besides the VX7000 the most advanced and highest evolution of all video recorders. 12kg high tech in a small cabinet, very stylish ... and very complicated.
The VX5000 is a pretty old machine today, most of them are over 20 years old and have a lot of bigger and smaller defects. All have problems, i have had a lot of them (several hundred...) and 99% could be repaired.
I was asked to rework this article because many of the pictures were lost.
OK, first the defects which you can see on the tv.
1.) Noisy Picture with horizontal bars, sometimes distortions, black and white horizontal bars
The capstan motor is defect.... and the power supply.
2.) Sometimes very strong humming sound, shutdown after some minutes or it's impossible to load or unload the tape
The capstan motor is defect, yes...
3.) It is impossible to load unload the tape, the loading unit is broken
The capstan motor is defect, yes, again...
4.) the internal tuner shows bars, noisy picture, the sound is dull or just a grey/black picture
The tuner unit is defect.
5.) the recorder is dead, just the display shows 0000, no further reaction
power supply defect, fuse blown, probably capstan used until dead...
6.) recorder is working, but the sound is missing, speed is not ok.
There is a small mechanical part broken or missing near the audio heads.
7.) lost time, forgotten adjustments, strange behaviour, slow or no operation when connected to mains
Lithium cell defect
8.) defect tension arm (on the left side of the drive), collision with tape guide unit
Missing part, lost spring, broken part, misalignment
9.) The VX goes into "STOP" mode without any reason
The capstan motor is defect, power supply defect, 12V regulator unit defect, lower mainboard regulator unit defect, defect caps
10.) some more? Tell me ;)
Defects 1-3: The defect Capstan Motor:
Noisy and distorted picture: this has nothing to do with the cylinder head, cleaning the heads will not solve the problem. The VX5000 cylinder head is one of the very best heads ever used, it shows almost no wear even after 20 years, even heavy use shows almost no wear. I had only 2 defect heads until now... and they were mechanically killed by a cleaning attack by the user...
So, DO NOT CLEAN THE HEADS! That's not necessary and just a risk to damage them.
The capstan motor is responsible for the constant tape transport, winding slow and fast, reversing and for loading the tape.
This ist the capstan motor.
This motor is 90% responsible for all defects. It is a 3-phase motor with a variable speed and has a tacho unit. So this part is real hightech... and expensive. The last price for this motor was around 110 Euro, i dont know wether it is still available or not.
But it can be repaired. at least around 80% of them... if necessary, i still have some new and used in working condition.
There are 4 silver capacitors on this motor, smd parts. 1x 3,3uf , 1x47uf , 2 x 22uf . These capacitors dont like age and heat. And they become hot, the board is steel and cooling unit at the same time. SMD parts like these have a lifetime of around 1000 hours on permanent use, not longer. If they go defect, they loose electrolyt and the board becomes black around the caps.
The motor runs now without control, uses to much current and becomes hot, really veeeeery hot... you will burn your fingers especially when you touch the chip.
Exchange the 4 caps, it's really easy. Dont use a solderiron, just use a plier and turn them around... dont pull, just turn. Then clean the contacts on the board with new solder, wash it with some hot water and bathroom cleaner. Disassemble before cleaning the motor axle (just push it through, watch the small plastic washer...) and the plastic cover. Dry it and oil it a little bit when assembled. Clean the axle afterwards.
I dont use smd parts here, just normal 105 degree caps so it's pretty easy.
The capstan is located here. Just open the black metal cover on the underside of the VX, just 7 bolts. Watch for the small noses on the front cover, dont break them off.
The motor itself is mounted with 3 bolts and a fourth one for the power transistor. Just pull off the cable and disassemble the motor. Thats really easy.
This is a close up of the caps. You see the black dirt around the caps? The copper has turned from green to black, it's oxide. This motor is completely dead and will become very hot... let's see wether it becomes a second life.
This is the backside, even zinc plated steel gets corrosion problems with the acid electrolyt.
Disassemble the motor this way...
Now remove the four caps with a plier, just turn them around. they will break off without a damage to the board. But do not pull, just turn! Clean the contacts with solder and with paint thinner, then wash it.
Wash the unit with hot water and a bathroom cleaner. Mainboards can be washed, that's really no problem, i have washed already complete tv sets. The only thing is, how to get them dry again... and very fast.The only problem is, that steelparts can corrode if water stays inside. This one is small enough, dry it with a hairdryer.
But it becomes clean as new.
Here it is already completed with new caps. All you need is:
2x 22uf 25V (original 35V)
1x 47uf 16V (original 6.3V)
1x 3,3uf 16V (original 50V)
Minus is the black bar on the smd parts.
Some more details...
Finished, the motor should now be working again. Assemble it to the VX, load a tape and test it. If load works, reversing and the chip does not become hot, then it's ok for the next 10 years. If you used 105degree caps, you will not repair it again in your life.
The VX5000 has a self test program and some test modes. So you can test the motor, the drive and the general function of the VX.
LED test:
Press "HQ OFF" on the front keys and at the same time connect the VX to the mains. After 10 seconds release "HQ OFF", then press it again. All leds and indicators will now light up in a sequence.
RAM/ROM test:
Press "HQ OFF" on the front keys and at the same time connect the VX to the mains. After 10 seconds release "HQ OFF", then press ">>". On the screen you will see ... maybe you must press "VTAPE" on the Beolink 1000...
VX5000
Version x.xx
Datestamp
Rom PASS
Int Ram PASS
Ext Ram PASS
Drive test:
Load a tape before test. Disconnect mains. Press "SOUND" on the front keys and at the same time connect the VX to the mains. When the VX starts to play, release the button. Press VTAPE on your Beolink 1000 to see status messages.
It will play, rewind, record and play again and eject the tape. If everything is ok, it will go into standby. If something is wrong, it will show "FAIL" on the display.
All tests are ended by disconnecting mains.
How to dismantle the VX:
OK, here we are, a quite normal black VX5000. There is no difference to VX5500 or VX7000. The steel cabinet and all covers are quite the same.
This one here had an accident, it was dropped by the owner... you see later what happened
Put some thick newspaper or a towel on the desk and flip it over.
These are the 7 bolts on the black steel bottom cover. Open them. Pull off the cover, watch for the noses on the front cover, they can break off. If some are broken off, then i know at once, that this unit was opened
To remove the sidepanels, use only your hands, nothing else! Pull the corner a little bit outwards, around 5mm.
Push it backwards, around 10mm.....
and pull upwards and the sidepanel is disassembled without any scratch. Most of the VX decks were treated with a screwdriver... nasty
Remove 2 bolts on each side, these here...
and 2 on the rear side...
Then you can remove the top cover.
To remove the front cover remove 6 bolts, 3 on the top, 3 on the bottom. Pull on the left side here...
Now you can remove the the frontcover.
Watch for the ground cable... it must go under the display.
When you assemble the front cover, take care for this hook. Open the cassette flap when mounting the front cover. If you forget it, you can load a tape, but unloading is impossible. It will break the flap, the front cover or the gear wheel !!! The hook must be in a guide rail inside the flap.
Move all 4 potis to one side, also the sliders when mounting the front cover... or you will have no sound on the next recording because the connection slider-poti is lost. ;)
On the headphone jack is the next point, put a small screwdriver inside and move it a little bit around until it snaps into the front cover, the headphone jack can move in a slide.
The broken loading unit:
If you see something like this, then the loading unit is broken.
OK, the real reason is a defect capstan motor. The motor did not reverse and has broken the gearbox. Maybe a very rude owner can also cause this defect by pushing the tape inside fighting against the crazy VX...
How to repair the motor was in part 1. How to dismantle the VX was in part 2.
To repair the broken loading unit, you must dismantle the VX completly, also the front cover must be removed.
You need a spare part from B&O, it is still available, costs around 20 Euro, has the part number 2700082 Gear Wheel. VX5000,5500 and 7000 have the same part. But there seems to be a number change, the box says part number 2700011 Gearweel VX7000... but it fits perfectly.
Ok, here we are, this is the broken loading unit... the gear wheel is broken Quite normal after 20 years. B&O has noticed this defect on the VX5000/5500 series and has improved/changed the material of the plastic. The newer VX7000 has almost no problem with this part.
It is mounted with 2 bolts and is hooked to the frame in the front.
It cannot be fixed with glue or anything like that... at least not for a long time.
To open it, open these small plastic hooks veeeeery carefully, they break off easily. Then you can pull out the gear wheel.
Mount the cassette holder and assemble the unit again. Watch for the alignment of the gear wheels, it must look like that:
The 2 gearwheels and the frame of the gearbox must fit together like shown on this picture and must be aligned like this.
If there is a problem to mount the axle and the gearbox, press the left button, inside the gear is a nose on the gearwheel....
Insert the 2 bolts in the holes and mount it into the VX again. On the front there are only 2 hooks, in the back the 2 bolts. Check wether it's horizontal and then tighten the bolts.
The defect tuner unit:
The tuner has also some caps inside and becomes pretty warm in standby.... and hot if defect.
The sysmptom is a noisy black picture. The repair itself is easy... but the tuner unit has to be unsoldered from the upper mainboard. That's very difficult without experience...
I use for the 1uf and 6.8uf MKS types, they last a lifetime. The other ones are 220uf 105degree Low ESR miniature types instead of 100uf. They last at least 1000 hours at 105 degrees... that's long enough. Inside the tuner are around 50-60 degrees during operation. => around 50.000-100.000 hours
So, replace all electrolyt caps. The smaller ones ( 2x 1uf, 1x 6,8uf) with WIMA MKS-2-5, the bigger ones with Low ESR 105 degree miniature types.
The 3x 100uf caps can be replaced by 220uf, the picture is a little bit crispier... just my opinion.
Partlist:
2x 1uf MKS-2-5
1x 6,8uf MKS-2-5
1x 10uf
3x 100uf or 220uf Low ESR
The sound of the tuner is not loud enough or noisy or missing:
First of all, replace all caps inside the metal tuner box. Use MKS or MKP plastic caps for replacement for the 1uf caps, also the 6.8uf makes sense in plastic.
Some versions use 33uF, 47uF or even 100uF caps for filters in the power supply lines. Replace them by 100 or 220uF type, the bigger the better. Sometimes the 220uF in miniature 105 degree version is easier to get than the original ones. So, dont care... it's more important that you can close the box again.
If this is done, there can still be problems with the sound. If you press Shift-7 for the "tuner mode" and you hear still almost nothing, then the caps around the SHARP stereo decoder IC 1801= IR3P02 have problems. Replace C1829, C1830, C1831 and C1842 (all 1uF 50V) by a Wima MKS-2 1uf type... you will hear it. Replace also C1835 and C1836 = 0.33uF by a Wima MKS type.
Here you can make a sound check: C1835/1836 are the output of the decoder chip. You could connect them using a further 1uF cap with the scart cable Pin 1 or 3... ground = pin 4... then you should hear the tuner sound at it's maximum sound.
Check also Pin 23 of the chip, there should be around 12V, it's the power supply of the chip.
Note: there are differences between the real hardware and the circuit plans. I refer to the real hardware chipnumbers on the board. Also the dimensions of the caps are different to the plans... original size of C1835/1836 is 0.33uF, the plan says 3.3uF. I believe in the used hardware ;)
The defect power supply:
Most of the VX5x00 have problems with the power supply. 20 years of use have left some wear and tear, some more, some less. Up to now i found on every VX at least one defect cap in this power supply, none of them was 100% intact.
The power supply is easy to remove. Just remove the black steel cover on the back, two bolts. Remove the 3 bolts on the upper mainboard and open it a bit and move it 2-3cm to the front.
Then pull the 4/5 plugs from the power supply, use a small flat plier for this. There are two 2-pin wires used, there is no risk to use the wrong one, they are electrically parallel. Then remove 3 bolts to the steel frame and lift it out of the VX frame.
OK, here is the power supply, the regulator unit is already removed (1 bolt), just unsolder the black wire.
This picture shows already the repaired unit, your unit looks a little bit different.
B&O used here a big 4700uf 35V and a smaller 4700 16V cap. These caps have direct contact to each other, there is no gap between... so there is no cooling air for them and the hot part above, the diodes. The unit becomes very hot and the parts become grilled. That's a very bad design.
Ok, i use here 2 x 4700uf 35V types, they are smaller than the original caps and there is a 5mm gap now between, you can see it on the picture. The left cap needs also an additional drilled hole for the ground pin, the distance between the pins is different to original.
The hight of these caps should not be more than 35mm, otherwise they wont fit. This modification keeps the complete power supply almost 10 degrees cooler than original... that means twice the lifetime: 20-40 years
There are also 2 x 220uf caps on this board. Usually they have always dirty black feet, up to now only a small handfull survived, 95% are dead.
What you need is:
2x 4700uf 35V (or 1x35v and 1x25V), maximum 35mm hight
2x 220uf 16V
USE ONLY 105 DEGREE TYPES !
The next part should be a close look to the power supply.
This board has several caps with problems... look at the dirt on the board, it's an exploded caps which has lost the electrolyt all over the board... The caps are already removed.
This board has always very serious trouble with the 1000uf cap. Usually every VX5000 and most of the newer VX5500 have a problem. The 1000uf sometimes really explodes and you find pieces of this cap in the power supply, most of them make a puddle of acid on the board, the copper of board is black and corroded around the pins... and it stinks awfully, really nasty.
Clean it with water, remove the caps, then clean it with paint thinner under side. Take care not to destroy the copper when you remove the 1000uf cap, sometimes the copper is so damaged and corroded around the pins that it seperates from the board.
... and the same board cleaned and repaired
For this board you need for repair:
1x 1000uf 16V
3x 47uf 25V
2x 4,7uf 35V Miniature
This here is the 12V regulator and HF modulator board. For disassembly remove the black plastic cover on the backside, 2 bolts and bend 2 hooks a little bit. Remove the wires with a flat plier carefully.
VX5000 and VX5500 use the same board, but modified components. So, if your board looks different, no problem.
The 12V regulator becomes hot, really hot, in normal operation already around 60 degrees. If the capstan motor is defect, it becomes so hot that the solder around the 12V 7812 chip melts and the chip seperates from the board... sometimes up to 180 degrees and more. If this has happened the board material turns from bright brown to dark black, sometimes so crispy that it breakes. The alumenum cooler material turns colours to yellow or even blue... unbeleavable. All caps on this board are then scrap and must be replaced. Surprisingly the two 47uf bipolar caps survive this torture every time and had never to be replaced... must be an extrordinary quality.
Unsolder the cooler for better replacing the caps and for rework of the IC35 7812 contact pins. Bend the two hooks of the cooler to allign with the board, remove the small plastic clip.
Interesting is the black plastic clip. It can tell you the condition of your VX. If you can open it without any problem and use it again, the VX is in pretty good shape. If it breaks like glass, ok, then the VX was used for a long time and has probably lots of problems.
Almost every VX with the shutdown symptom has killed this part: it's the 7812 12V regulator. It becomes soooo hot, that the connectors and the tin/copper of the board corrode... either it will shut down or the 12V are open to 18-22Volts and grills the chips....
Surprisingly this chip survives this torture, it's a special version with insulated case, not easy to get. If it is necessary to replace, use a insulation foil to the cooler.
Clean the pins and the pads for the chip, scratch the green paint off the copper and make them bigger.
Cleaned and ready for the new IC35
For the 12V regulator you need:
1x 1,0uf 35V Miniature (or 1uf MKS, better)
1x 3,3uf 35V Miniature (watch out for polarity, the print on the board for C3523 is wrong !!! )
1x 4,7uf 35V Miniature
2x 10uf 16V Miniature
6x 47uf 16V
2x 100uf 16V
(2x 47uf 16V bipolar... usually intact )
Broken time and adjustments:
A defect lithium cell is sometimes very difficult to see. Sometimes the VX works quite normal, the picture is good, but if you disconnect mains, then the logon (tv set and VX are talking when connected by scart, the tv makes a download of channel data to the VX) is very slow.
Sometimes the VX disappears from the AV-menu. Also the operation is very slow, commands of the Beolink are not executed, the keyboard does not work.... a lot of very strange errors.
Usually its lifespan is around 15-20 years in a VX, pretty long... but not long enough. This VX here has a defect lithium cell.
The lithium cell is located here:
The lithium cell has 3.6Volt. If it is less than 3.3V it should be replaced. I dont know what this part cost in a B&O shop... and i dont want to know. Probably around 30-40 Euro...
This battery can be bought in any good shop, costs around 3-10 Euro.
Here it is:
Cut the foil, and replace it carefully. Take care not to shortcut anything, this battery has a lot of power and can explode.
DO NOT SOLDER DIRECT ON THE BATTERY! THEY DONT LIKE HEAT!
The defect tension arm:
Sometimes a small spring gets lost, it's the one on the right side. Without this spring the "tension arm" will be in the wrong position, the tape is kept loaded on the tension arm and will be destroyed when ejected... or some other parts.
I have simulated this defect here, you see the two guides for the tape around the cylinder are still retracted, but the tension arm is in the forward position.
Check the spring. The tension arm is controlled by the small gear motor on the right. Check the joints and move them, they should also move the tension arm.
The broken sound and wrong speed:
Sometimes a small part in the deck gets lost, it is a very small steel bolt. The white plastic part and the bolt are one part, it is still available at B&O, the part number is 3016023 Guide pol control, costs around 5 Euro.
The plastic part breaks around the bolt, there is almost every time a split in the material... and the steel bolt gets lost... hopefully not in the electric parts.
Without this part there is no sound and the tapespeed is out of control, the tape is usually to fast. The tape has no contact to the audio head (used for standard stereo...)
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/8298/p1070011wj0.jpg
Bad capacitors:
The VX has lots of capacitors inside, really a lot, i think around 200-250. Lots of them are in bad shape after 20 years, heat and chemical problems have destroyed them inside.
But this is the real amount of bad caps in a 20 year old VX5000, no joke!
So, if you want a almost new VX, you have to replace them.
How to discover a bad cap?
Hmmm, sometimes it's very easy, sometimes very difficult.
The easy ones have black or green corroded wires, dirt, dust and sometimes a real puddle of black liquid around them.
The other ones... lots of work.
The upper mainboard:
This here is the upper mainboard. It can be removed pretty easy out of the VX, every connector or plug is used only one time, so it's almost impossible to plug a wire into the wrong socket.
The foil cable is something special. Pull the bright plastic part a little bit and the foil cable will be released... and if you press it into the socket, it will fix the foil. But press on both sides at the same time.
The upper mainboard contains a lot of caps, more than 100... and especially the 3.3uF types are used in the switching matrix for sound and picture. And they are probably the worst ones.
I can only recommend to replace all of them. I know, it's a lot of work, but it is impssible to measure which one is defect. After this long time all of them are defect.
Some more: the problem is the heat inside the VX (did you know there is a fan inside? Yes, there is a little fan inside like in a power supply of a computer...) and the next one: there is really no space inside, it's full with electronics. So: if you replace caps, use a miniature type of cap and use a 105 degree type. First of all there will be more cooling air inside available and working on the boards is also easier. And the biggest advantage: the miniature type are more expensive... and have a higher quality. They last longer and the smaller size makes a better signal, you will see an improvement in sound and picture... not only because they are now new.
Here you see the upper mainboard with it's original caps and some new miniature caps. There is now much more space around the parts.
Excellent thread, have a VX7000, is that about the same?
Brengen & Ophalen
The VX7000 cabinet looks the same, the drive is similar, but electronics and boards are completely different. And the capstan Motor is much more durable.
But the capacitor problem is quite the same. The VX7000 suffers a lot from bad caps... even there are much less caps in the 7000
If you see distortions on the screen, it is probably a cap on the upper mainboard.
If there is no function at all, probably power supply and a problem on the lower Mainboard.
Good to see you back, Die_Bogener, and thanks for reviving this excellent thread!
My VX5000 is still working great after I fixed the capstan motor according to your instructions, almost six years ago (or at least it should be still working, I don't use it every year! )
--mika
Hi Martin
We haven't seen you for a long time - now we know why - replacing all those 100's of caps took you a lonnnnng time, buried in your workshop
Menahem
Wow - excellent thread - great job - thanks
Greetings Millemissen
There is a tv - and there is a BV
Sorry for resurrecting an old thread, but I have just inherited an old VX7000 VCR, including a MX5500 TV with motor stand.
Have just had a go with the VX to see if it still works.
Loads tape fine, it can fwd and rwd, stop and pause, no funny noises. The on-screen menu responds very slow, maybe this is the battery running low ? need to measure it.
But the more critical issue is the picture. It goes from great with stereo sound (2 seconds) to worse, going to mono sound, and then very noisy and then black. Then back to great, and the cycle continues.
Is this the capstain motor, and or many bad caps ? :)
Need to figure out if I will fix it, or just scrap it, don't want to spend too much money on it, I will not use it myself, and the 2nd hand price is not existing :)
/Jacob
Weebyx: Need to figure out if I will fix it, or just scrap it, don't want to spend too much money on it, I will not use it myself, and the 2nd hand price is not existing :) /Jacob
Hello to all
I have a VX 4000 VCR which have some image problem (see attached how looks on TV). I changed the caps from power supply, I will change also the Lithium battery because is dead. I will change as well the 3.3 uF electrolytics from main board. Hope on image improvement after it. Or, can be other caps bad?
In addition, I see that the fan is not spinning once I connect the machine on mains. Is it controlled by a thermal sensor or it have to rotate from the beginning of power ON?
Thank you in advance.
The image problem with the horizontal distortions is caused by the capstan motor. Overload, it becomes hot. Replace the capstan caps.
The fan should be active by "PLAY"... but i'm not sure, i dont remember.
Inspired by this post which has really informative information on how restore these cool vhs decks I went and plugged my V7000 into the Beovision LX5500 1989 which for the last 3-5 years has not really been used.
It works and very well. Still not ready to give up yet.
I can recall the v7000 getting hot after about an hour giving wierd picture or something. I will let it run and see what happens