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Problem with Princeton Digital VL1918 (Black) Monitor

vl1918 it poweres on and shuts off.repeat

I have a VL 1918 Princeton monitor that is malfunctioning. The symptoms are: it powers on and off continuously with a 'clap sound right before turning off. I have taken it apart and there is a hissing noise coming from one of the transistors or one of the other things ,for which, I do not know the names.The hiss is hard to hear and track and could be normal. Yes I am shooting around but, I would really like to fix it. I also know it is an older monitor I guess but, I would still like to try. It also is not under warranty. I am fairly handy and have always wanted to figure something like this out. Any directives as intricate and seemingly advanced as they may be I will research and try to execute. Thank you very much

Posted by Greg DeAngelis on Nov 15, 2007

- By Dgoat419 Apr 07, 2009
- My monitor keeps going black and making a faint "clap" soud everytime it comes off of standby. It does go away after a few minutes. Its been going on for about a week or so and its very irritating.
- By tehalterego Mar 23, 2009
- Same here, except my neighbor was throwing it out. replaced the 3 capacitors and have replaced my old 17 inch crt!
- By mikezuk Feb 20, 2009
- Hello everyone, I just wanted to say thank you to all that posted how to fix the issue (on/off) with the Princeton vl1918.
  
  I took the power supply board to Radio Shack and the manager replaced the caps for me. No charge. I reassembled the monitor and it works perfectly.
  
  Thanks. Mike
- By Guest Feb 10, 2009
- same as mentioned before by others
- By wpdn1855 Jan 08, 2009
- i am having the same problem and have read the solutions below. i know nothing about fixing computers. is this something that i can do myself or will i need a technician? one of the solutions said something about "unsoldering" and if that's the case i need to have someone else do it. i just want to know if it's worth spending the money on the parts or if i should just trash it.
- By featsfan Jan 06, 2009
- I've had my Princeton VL1918 for almost 2 1/2 years. It just started going off and on yesterday. It makes a faint "click" just before going dark and just before coming back on. However, I can resolve my problem temporarily by turning my wireless mouse off, wait 10-15 seconds, then turn the mouse back on. This makes NO sense to me.
  
  Anyone have a solution for this problem??
- By leanda26 Jan 01, 2009
- I have a Princeton VL1918 monitor and it flashes on and off constantly and makes a clapping sound when it flashes on I would really like to fix it!! Please help if possible
- By egilchrist Dec 10, 2008
- My monitor started doing the same thing this morning. It just keeps cycling on and off.
- By futonman Oct 02, 2008
- Hello, I had the same problem and followed the advise of changing the 3 Capacitors. I bought them at Radio Shack since I don't like to wait, and they cost $1.25 each.
  
  In 30 minutes it was back together and when I plugged it in it turned on and didn't flash on and off but I had no picture.
  
  So, I took it apart again, which takes about 3 minutes, and found that I had not reconnected the main plug. Duh!
  
  Anyway thank you for this site and the suggestion because I would not have been able to troubleshoot the problem.
  
  Thank you,
  
  Allen
- By edeincorp Aug 11, 2008
- Monitor blinks off and on
- By PDXFreak Jul 31, 2008
- Had the same exact issue and followed the easy step you provided and BAM...just like magic up and running in about 45 min...You ROCK!!! Thank You...Thank You... Thank You
- By Guest Jul 14, 2008
- Exact the same problem for me... I haven't really try to open it, but i will pretty soon if i don't hear anything from the manufacturer (princeton), any way... if any of you have any info on how to fix it... please let me know... or post it...
- By NoResults Jul 14, 2008
- I have the same problem as I stated earlier however the power board does not have 3 470uf 25V caps. It only has two which I replaced to no avail.
  
  There are four other caps on this board rated at 25V 220 uf. should these be replaced?
  
  Is it possible I have an older or newer power board in this monitor? Thanks
- By NoResults Jul 13, 2008
- I have the same problem and cannot find a third (3) 470uf RAD is it possible that later power boards only have two? They are loacated with two other smaller RADs by a L shape aluminum shield on the power board.
  
  Any ideas. I have not procedded to put the two new 470uf on till I find if there is a third somewhere.
  
  Thanks
- By OldJimS May 09, 2008
- I am experiencing the same problem and have not found a fix.
- By Sharla8 Mar 23, 2008
- Subs over here too. My sons VL1918 is doing the same thing-shutting off and on sounding like a submarine signal. I would like to know if there is a solution Princeton has come up with. Seeing there are so many having the same problem.
  Thnaks
- By Guest Mar 20, 2008
- I have the same monitor and problem with the monitor flashing on and off for a few seconds. I notice it most when I "wake-up" my computer from the screen saver by movong the mouse.
- By PrinceV1918 Mar 18, 2008
- exactly the same problem. How can I know which capacitators needs to be replaced in the external power supply. Is there a scatch of the ciruits ?
- By JohnG58 Mar 10, 2008
- Same problem. Monitor turns off and on by itself with a ping or clap noise.
- By vl1918 Feb 25, 2008
- Yes, I have the exact same problem
- By Guest Feb 16, 2008
- Had the same problem of cycling on and off. Tried replacing the three 470 microfarad capacitors and it worked just fine. Thanks for the great fix!!!
- By pak5 Dec 29, 2007
- I have a Princeton Vl 1918 LCD Monitor. It power on for a second and off for a second and on and off contineousely. When hooked up with the PC and I can see desktop but same thing power on and then off and on and off endlessly by itself. Please help me how to fix this problem. Thanks
- By Guest Dec 27, 2007
- vl1918 it poweres on and shuts off
- By Guest Dec 17, 2007
- Princton VL1918 dead, only thing on is the on-off light. Removed cables and no change.
- By Guest Dec 06, 2007
- Same problem here ... it sounds like a sub pingng for a target. i have 4 of these please help
- By haikued Nov 19, 2007
- I have the same problem. For awhile it would eventually stop cycling on and off, but now it goes on ad infinitum. I suspect a power supply problem, perhaps a capacitor, but don't know.
- By mtwrangler Nov 19, 2007
- the monitor comes on, gives a picture but then shuts down as if it goes into sleep mode, any suggestions?
  
  Thanks,
  
  Kevin

Solutions (18)

Best Solution

Just another voice to say that the solution provided here by others does indeed work.

Had same symptoms: screen comes on for about a second, a metallic popping sound occurs, screen shuts off for about a second, repeat. Problem occurs even if monitor is not plugged into computer (thus isolating it to monitor). Monitor purchased from Costco approximately two years ago.

Found 3 suitable 470uF 35V capacitors at the local Radio Shack for a little over $4 (more pricy than online, but no shipping cost, so it's a wash) Entire repair took less than 30 minutes.

The repair itself is already covered pretty well by others here, so I'll just add some disassembly instructions:

Set the monitor face down on a towel to protect screen. Remove 4 Phillips screws securing base to back of monitor, set base aside. Remove 3 Phillips screws from bottom edge of monitor cover. With flat screwdriver carefully pry along the other 3 edges to disengage the catches (about 3 per edge). Remove back cover. Identify the raised metal shroud containing the power supply module at center. Carefully lift one side of each piece of foil tape to expose connectors (for the short pieces of tape it's easier to remove the side that's laying flat, for the long piece at the top of the monitor, it's easier to remove the side that's vertical on the power module). Disconnect all cables, noting how to replace them later. Remove 4 Phillips screws securing the power module. Remove the power module and set the rest of the monitor aside. Flip the power module over, orient it such that the plastic covering is on the left (done only so that these instructions make sense). Carefully pull up the plastic cover from the right circuit board near the center of the power module, you can leave it attached to the metal shroud at the left side (it is difficult to remove from the metal without damaging it). Gently bend (without crimping) the plastic back and out of the way and remove the 4 Phillips screws securing the left circuit board (the one with the power connector). You will need a small "jeweler's" screwdriver for one of the screws - make note where that screw goes (top right of circuit board, or top center of overall module, when oriented as I did). Slightly tilt the left side of the circuit board up, and slide the circuit board out and to the left, over the bent back plastic, disengaging a connector from the neighboring board.

Then perform repair, and reassemble in reverse order.

Thanks to all who posted the original solution!!

By davbol Apr 17, 2009
- 1 Solutions

Had the same problem with mine, on and off making sound.Read other blogs and pulled it apart, found the three caps on the pwr supply. Pulled out pwr supply, ran down to local electronic store picked up new ones, I got 470uf 35v caps, went home and repaired it in 30 min..Back up and working like new for $5.00
Just note when taking out bad caps and installing new ones you pay close attention to the pos and neg markings on the caps, they must go in the right way....

By mikeyveeee Mar 14, 2008
- 1 Solutions

I'm no expert by any means, yet this worked perfectly the first try.
I was unsure about Radio Shack, which only offer 470 / 35v vs. the 470 / 25v that came with the circuit; all worked perfectly.

If you can plug in a soldering iron then you can do this; I did have to buy some thinner solder (.022 inch diameter) as the stuff I had was too thick.

Don't throw the monitor out!

Here's a link that has some nice pictures to go with the instructions.

http://www.thisoldtractor.com/gtbender/princeton_graphics_vl1918_monitor_repair.htm

By sam4026 Aug 30, 2009
sam4026 Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 8 Score

- By skunkbad Dec 17, 2010
- Thank you for posting the tutorial. It just saved me from buying a new monitor!

This is a great website. I had my VL1918 disassembled already when I went searching on the internet & found you all. I heard the internal noise, prior to this & had let this nice LCD monitor sit in my garage for about 6 months til now. When I had the thing open, I was searching for physical signs of component failure, & only found the 470uf caps were a little bulged out on top. After the advice herein, I went to Frys in Wilsonville, OR to find some caps, all they had were 50v versions ($2.48 each). I hoped they weren't too large, but figured the higher voltage rating will be better. I turned on the monitor before final assembly, & it worked, so I worked on final assembly. I had a box of fiber washers & found some that were 1/8" tall, and that gave me the ability to get the power supply board finally screwed down. Put it all back together & it works again. Yeah!. I won't have to use it for target practice after all.
I had looked on the Princeton website & found that this model, purchased @Costco only had a one year warranty. I only got two years & a little more out of it. All their new models have 3 year warranties. I hope to now get another 10 years out of this one.

3each 470uf 50v capacitors worked!; even though I think only one was really completely bad, they should have used 35v caps in this power supply. (design flaw)

I say Bully to all of you!!!

By BullyBully Oct 05, 2008
- 1 Solutions

My VL1918 does the same- pings like a submarine and flashes on and off. I got the three 470uF 25V caps and replaced them-- in about 45 minutes my monitor was working again. I figured I had nothing to loose, it was going in the trash so I gave it a shot.

Looks like the caps are in the power supply- many monitors have an external power supply- would have been a smart move in this case. anyway this was a fairly easy fix- the caps I bought cost 39 cents each.

By bobjimbo2 Jan 08, 2008
- 3 Solutions

To the person that had only 2 470 uf capacitors. --- I've had the same problem. You need to replace the 2 470 uf capacitors but also, you need to replace the 2 220 uf capacitors that are next to the 470 uf capacitors. I relace these 4 (2-470 and 2 -220 uf) and the screen was fixed.

By surfingbird Sep 08, 2009
surfingbird Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 4 Score

I just resolved this issue on my VL1918. The issue is that three capacitors are blown - all 470uF 25V. You can get the blow by blow and caps from http://www.lcdpart.com/Products/vl1918.html. Alternatively, you can just buy the caps and figure out how to open it yourself. You are really paying for the knowledge than anything else, since the caps are dirty cheap. I'm planning on buying a couple more dead VL1918's with this issue and repairing them - good deal for only 30 min work!

By peakbagger Dec 07, 2007
- 2 Solutions

- By peakbagger Oct 04, 2009
- I just wanted to append this to my original solution. Two years after I posted this solution the monitor started doing the same thing again. I bought 3 470uF 35v caps from radioshack and replaced. Working again.
  
  Thing is - this does not resolve the original underlying issue, which is probably has something to do with the transformer or something which I have no idea about. It is not a big deal to me to spend $4.00 and 30 - 45 minutes of my time every two years to get it working again :-).

I found a discarded Vl1918 monitor that had this problem,,, checked the internet, found this page, and tried the solution referenced on this site:

(http://www.thisoldtractor.com/gtbender/princeton_graphics_vl1918_monitor_repair.htm

(that is, changing the 470uF caps), and viola! it works! Instant free monitor!

Note, I found some 470uF caps on some very old modems that I had in the attic, used those & they work fine. They are only 16volts (the originals are 25) but as of now they are okay.

Since these monitors seem so frequently to develop this problem, my question is what capacitors would be a more PERMANENT fix? Would 470 uF 50 volt caps do the trick? or are higher uF caps,,, or both?

By briandeeeee Apr 18, 2010
briandeeeee Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 2 Score

I resolved the problem the lcd was replaced with a sony 22 inches and i bought the guarraty for 2 years a 50 dlls for any kind of problems.
wide screen with speakers.

Is better to buy good brands.
thank you

Crist

By Guest May 18, 2008
- 0 Solutions

I had the same problem with my Princeton Monitor..cycleing off and on.....you can order the kit...which I did...and you get a pack of capacitors (3) and one black and white piece of paper with very simple instructions...for about $35.00....but basically your paying for the knowledge...I'm so far away from any type of electrical knowledge you can't imagine...however if I can do it so can you....It took my about 30 minutes and I was back running...I'm glad I remember because the monitor has just started cycleing again...so guess what..this time 3 capacitors at Radio Shack and presto...back in business... hopefully...Their is an obvious problem with this model of monitor that's causing this problem. and it's seem to be re - occur..

By Guest May 15, 2008
- 0 Solutions

I have replaced the Capacitors with 470uf 35 volt and now both of my monitors are working

By juan434 Jul 30, 2010
juan434 Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

This solution worked for me perfectly. Thank you very much to all who posted this solution. The link and photos on the Gregory Bender site were also very reassuring.

By Rational Nov 07, 2009
Rational Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

wow At work they were throeing away this very monitor. I spent $4.90 on 3 caps. I am now using same monitor to say way cool...

I can now store this when it is needed thanks for the help from you all.

this is neat really neat

Thanks

By unclemaui Oct 17, 2009
unclemaui Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

I just want to say thank you to all of you that posted this information. About 30 years ago I worked in the electronics industry. The company I worked for built PC boards for modems. When I read the symtoms that others posted and suggested fixes I was not intimidated. I thought after all I am going to have to replace it if I don't fix it anyway. I went to Radio Shack, bought the capacitors, a solder ****** and solder with a rosin center - I didn't need to buy flux separately. I took out my old soldering iron and went to work. I am happy to know that the knowledge and toucht are still there. My monitor appears to be working just fine.

So thanks everyone.
Sincerely,
Leanne

By hitlinks Oct 13, 2009
hitlinks Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

woWW wowww wubsy. this works. i was really about to throw this in the trash. I had already replaced it... thanks for the help everybuggy...

By rwburbage Sep 06, 2009
rwburbage Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

- By rwburbage Sep 06, 2009
- Wowwww Wubsy. I had this very problem. Monitor makes this small sound from the speakers and shutrs off. keeps doing this. I used the above process and it works. Thanks everybuggy for the help and taking the time to make these notes. I used this guys website to follow the steps. He took pics as he repaired it.
  
  http://www.thisoldtractor.com/gtbender/princeton_graphics_vl1918_monitor_repair.htm

One of our monitors at work did this; as we had an extra, we just shelved the old one. However, my monitor at home (same model) started doing this but only temporarily (for about a minute after turning it on, then runs normal), so I searched for the problem (and possible solution) and found this thread.

Took apart at-work monitor in about 30 minutes, found caps (2 bulged, the other fine), contacted the local Radio Shack, and confirmed they have 6 in stock; will be picking up over the weekend and will attempt to fix (work monitor first, don't want to prematurely trash the one at home until I can replace it or know I can fix it right; 'tupid recession). Will let everyone know how it went after I'm done.

~Jimmy D.

By Ruined Saint Jun 12, 2009
Ruined Saint Level 1
- 1 Solutions
- 1 Score

- By Ruined Saint Jun 18, 2009
- Alrighty... After a short delay (my boss insisting that he had a sodering iron but then finally buying my own after waiting since Friday for him to bring it in), I finally sat down today and worked on the office monitor. Instructions included here worked like a charm. Will have to wait a day or two to find another Radio Shack; the nearest one only had five, leaving me one shy for the monitor at home.

I have replaced the Capacitors with 470uf 35 volt and now both of my monitors are working. 8 dollars saved me over 200. I did the simple switch of the three bad capacitors and now they work fine. There are several picture tutorials on the web. I had never replaced electronic components before, this was a fun project. All you need is a soldering iron.

By nick71 May 26, 2009
- 1 Solutions

See my comments of Jul 14th. My power board does not have 3 470 uf caps. Only 2. Replaced thlem to no avail. My monitor has a manufacturer date of May 2005. Maybee this is an earlier power board.

Any suggestions would be helpful. I just hate just throwing it in the garbage.

Thanks

\

By NoResults Oct 07, 2008
- 1 Solutions

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vl1918 it poweres on and shuts off.repeat

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