Day: September 5, 2010

So, I’ve pulled the Y-Sus board from the Vision PTS-4241 Plasma TV – this is the presumed faulty board (the symptoms are apparently quite common: Sudden loss of vision with functional sound).

Apart from the FMSD102A module (which may, or may not, be dead – and for which I’ve found a variety of companies in China who’ll ship me 10, 20, 80 or more, and for whom a minimum order of $250 seems not uncommon. I’m hoping to find a source for *one*) there are some capacitors on the board that look highly suspicious (at least to me – for whom a vision of bulging capacitors is a vision of death) – and there’s a few of the same brand on other boards that look similarly unhealthy. So I’m thinking they need to be switched out.

It certainly looks like the FMSD102A has got quite warm at some point, although how to test it I’ve no idea. Also, the report I’ve read suggested that four of the surface mount resistors tend to go ‘phut’ at the same time – and they *look* okay. I’ve not attempted any kind of measurement of resistance because they’re teeny tiny surface mount gidgets and my voltmeter is, well, vague at the best of times.

I’m thinking I might been needing the expertise of John for them, but it all hinges on getting this FMSD102A module. So here’s hoping, otherwise I guess I’ll try and get a replacement board, but then things get pricey, and I’ve no idea if the thing works…

Anyway these are the offending caps:

So, I’ve been aware that my LJ Crossposter has been double spacing all the paragraphs for no apparent reason. I’ve tried to find a reason for this and can’t, so this is a test of the new cross poster.

I apologise for spamming your blogs :)

So, I can’t recall how it started. It seemed like a good idea at the time; I think it was just a pack of Twinings loose leaf tea – possibly Earl Grey – and the realisation that a nicely brewed cup of good quality leaf tea tasted much better than the stuff we got in bags.

It was prettier too – the little leaves all sat there in the tin, rather than the unexciting paper bags filled with what my dad used to describe as floor sweepings. Not that my palette is that attuned, I’m sure. You could probably serve me a well prepared cup of good quality bag tea and I’d probably not notice; but I *think* I can tell the difference and I suspect that’s what counts.

Anyhow, we drifted along for some time supping the Twinings tea, and then it had to happen. We tried something better. We tried little sample packs from Nothing But Tea, we visited Attic in Bristol and Dammann in Paris. And we were taken, hooked, sold. However you want to describe it.

Good tea is all you’ll find in our house (A box of ‘organic tea’ in bags lurks for when we have builders). As with the coffee (I’m sadly missing my Dancing Goat Blend (from Batdorf and Bronson, in Olympia)) you reach this unfortunate point where drinking instant coffee / cheap bag tea is just, well, it’s not that nice. And you want something ‘better’. And then you’re buggered, because you’ve developed a tea habit* and you find yourself browsing and going “Mmm, spicy and fruity liquor, that sounds nice” and ordering more tea, even though you’re broke.

On the plus side, at least you have a decent cuppa :)

* Which goes with my coffee habit; thanks to Kara :-P

The problem with not knowing what your plan is, and having vague notions about what your plan could be is that it leads (at least in my case) to vast amounts of pondering, introspection, and circular thought processes which lead no where in particular – and take you on a mystical journey where you wonder if you should have done something different.

We, at the moment, have a few minor little jobs which are non-critical, but would make the house look ‘better’ – which we’re poking at occasionally. Because I’ve been ill (and would’ve been at work) this weekend we’ve not done much – and bloody hell does it feel good to have a weekend. A weekend where we’re not working, where we get to sit/snuggle/chat/read the paper/etc. A weekend which is restful. I can’t remember the last time we had one of them.

Ignoring that, my brain continues to contemplate the house we saw, and might make an offer on, although we’re off to see some other houses next week. I need to try and get a viewing on Friday and persuade a builder to give up 20 minutes of his time to quote for us, and give his opinion on a couple of options for the layout upstairs of the property.

But really, that’s all we can do. Sit and wait. I should, also, look at whether we can fix the TV. Probably pull the suspect board and see if I can find out which component(s) on it have gone, and how much to replace them (or the board) – because if we can make it work we won’t have to move the old CRT. Which’d be nice :)