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pcbjunkie

TV Tester

Regular price $44.99 CAD
Regular price Sale price $44.99 CAD
Sale Sold out
This is a battery operated signal generator / tester for CRT and LCD television sets. It intended to be taken on the road to test old TVs and monitors. CRT TVs are getting less and less common and many are in the process of failing due to old electrolytic capacitors. It’s always good to test one on-site before dragging it home only to find out that it doesn’t work well.

The tester supports the common SDTV resolutions commonly supported by older CRT TVs and some LCD panels. The tester will help you confirm whether the TV can display a 240p signal and a 480p signal. Older TVs may not be able to display a 480p signal properly, a format that is used by 3rd and 4th generation consoles like the X-Box and PS2. Newer TVs may not be able to able to display a 240p signal over RGB or Component which is used by arcade games and RGB / Component modded consoles.

Having one of these handy will definitely help you find that perfect CRT TV for your arcade and vintage gaming needs, and a large assortment of test patterns can help with adjustments to make it look its best.

Outputs

Video and sync signals:
- RGB and YPbPr Component 1V-pp into 75ohm.
- Composite on Y (black and white patterns only)
Sync Types:
- Separate Composite SYNC for RGB mode.
- Sync on Y in Component mode.

Video Generation

240p - arcade mode
480i - standard NTSC interlaced mode
480p - non interlaced mode

Battery Life

About 3 hours battery life on a good quality CR2032 (depending on the pattern / type of use / monitor) in RGB mode, 1 hour in Component mode.

Pinout

RCA Jacks:

In Component Mode:
Y - Component Luma (green plug)
Pb - Component Chroma (blue plug)
Pr - Component Chroma (red plug)

In RGB Mode:
G - RGB Green
B - RGB Blue
R - RGB Red
SYNC - Negative Composite Sync.

Dimensions

Board Size: 47x62mm
Weight: 70g

Shipping & Returns

Standard 30 days return policy. Buyer pays for return shipping. See Return policy page for more information.

TV Tester Features and Additional Information

Generates the following tests in each mode:
  • Text – for raster direction / yoke polarity
  • Color Grids Primary Colors – for color check and adjustment
  • Color Grids Primary and Secondary Colors – for color check and adjustment
  • Checkerboard – for geometry and convergence checks, white / black level / saturation
  • Grid - for geometry checks
  • Convergence Grid -  for convergence checks
  • Pong - streaking test
  • Hollow / Filled Box – for bloom artifact check
  • Moving Crosshairs - geometry distortion check
  • Vertical Primary Color Bars – for color check and adjustment
  • Vertical Secondary Color Bars – for color check and adjustment
  • Vertical Tertiary Color Bars – for color check and adjustment
  • Scrolling Horizontal Color Bars – bloom and color uniformity
  • Solid Full Screen White – for burn in and degaussing
  • Solid Full Screen Red – for burn in and degaussing
  • Solid Full Screen Green – for burn in and degaussing
  • Solid Full Screen Blue – for burn in and degaussing
  • Alternating Color Grid - color transitions / color saturation test
  • Alternating Full Screen Color – burn in, degaussing, color transitions
  • Random Color Grid - stability testing, demo mode, etc...
Battery life indicator shows battery status through MODE LED.
  • LED always on – full battery
  • Duration of on/off cycle indicates battery depletion level
  • 50% off/on blink – nearly dead

To operate the tester, use Component cables to connect it to the Component (Green, Blue and Red RCA jacks) on your TV port or similar RGB inputs if your TV supports that. Turn the tester on. For composite connect the yellow wire to the Y socket on the tester.

Use the RGB / COMP switch to switch between RGB and Component video signals. Using the wrong signal will cause your TV not to sync, or display nothing or possibly wrong colors.

Press the MODE button to cycle through the available video modes, and TEST to cycle through the tests.

  • Text Pattern

    Firmware version identifier and yoke polarity test.

  • Color Grid

    RGB Color Adjustment

  • Scrolling Horizontal Color Bars

    Bloom and color uniformity

  • Grid

    Geometry checks

  • Checkerboard

    Geometry and convergence checks, white / black level / saturation

  • Hollow / Filled Box

    Bloom artifact check

  • Solid Full Screen Red

    Burn in and degaussing

  • Solid Full Screen Green

    Burn in and degaussing

  • Solid Full Screen Blue

    Burn in and degaussing

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