Samsung LCD Bulging Capacitor Problem-Many Models

[Doug0915]

1. What brands and values of parts has Samsung or others who have successfully repaird these sets used as replacement parts?

2. If the problem is with a particular batch of caps, has the manufacturer addressed the problems?

3. Are other brands available with the same specs and physical dimensions?

If all seven of the brown caps in the pic are from the same manufacturere, once you find good replacements, I'd replace all of them. If those two blew, the others may be from the same manufacturing lot. If so, it's likely the other rest of them aren't far behind.

I'd also be looking at identifying and replacing the blue components.



Per my reply, above, I don't know if the problem was under-spec'd parts or bad parts from a previously qualified supplier. Considering the number of complaints about capacitor problems with their TV sets, I agree that Samsung should recall at least the lots known to have caps with high failure rates.

And, as noted, the could be in what looks like inductors, which could be the initial cause of all the component failures.

So as far as I can tell from the photos (funny, It's easier to look at my Cannon 10Mpix image then with a flashlight!) when the repair tech came last year to repair the same supposed problem he used the same type unless he replaced ALL of the caps at that time and what is on the board are all after manufacturing repair caps.

Samsung got stung quite bad last year with this problem, quite a few LCD's went bad JUST after the manufacturer warranty period. Evidentially there is a class action lawsuit somewhere. Unfortunately for me Samsung only agreed to fix the problem once after the warranty period, which in my mind was the WRONG decision.

If they wanted to keep customers the correct answer would be to commit to repair the issue even if it keeps cropping up for a long period of time (just that problem though). Even if they repaired my TV 5 times it's probably less money lost to them then from me NEVER buying another Samsung product again and telling every person I know of my story...problem is that sort of thing is hard to quantify on a balance sheet, which is number customers who did not buy your product due to reputation tarnish.

 

[Doug0915]

Replace them all. No reason not to. That is a single sided board so replacing those caps is an easy job. The caps are right next to heatsinks and between two inductors so they failed first, the others will follow given enough time.

I use newark instead of digikey because digikey still holds on to that stupid $25 minimum order policy. Newark and Mouser let you order any amount.


Luckily even good capacitors are cheap, about 70 cents for the 1000uf ones below that are better than what they used, low esr, higher voltage, and high temp.
http://www.newark.com/rubycon/35zl1000m12-5x25/capacitor-alum-elect-1000uf-35v/dp/38M4497

Can't read the values on the others but I'm guessing they are probably 220uf, if so , those are 20 cents each.
http://www.newark.com/rubycon/35zlh220m8x11-5/capacitor-alum-elect-220uf-35v/dp/38M4487

So, if I were to go with 35v and looking at the one at the second link pdf below:

http://www.newark.com/rubycon/35zl1000m12-5x25/capacitor-alum-elect-1000uf-35v/dp/38M4497

http://www.rubycon.co.jp/en/catalog/e_pdfs/aluminum/e_ZL.pdf

The dimensions of the 35v 1000uf is 12.5×25 (is that in mm?).

Given that I don't think I can tell the brand without ripping one off how safe is it to assume that the Rubycon 25v 1000uf 12.5x20 is going to be the same or pretty close to what is currently on the board (for sizing purposes)?

edit:

Hmm..this one is rated longer hours

http://www.newark.com/panasonic/eeufm1v102/capacitor-alum-elec-1000%C2%B5f-35vdc/dp/04M9026

 

[KGB]

So, if I were to go with 35v and looking at the one at the second link pdf below:

http://www.newark.com/rubycon/35zl1000m12-5x25/capacitor-alum-elect-1000uf-35v/dp/38M4497

http://www.rubycon.co.jp/en/catalog/e_pdfs/aluminum/e_ZL.pdf

The dimensions of the 35v 1000uf is 12.5×25 (is that in mm?).

Given that I don't think I can tell the brand without ripping one off how safe is it to assume that the Rubycon 25v 1000uf 12.5x20 is going to be the same or pretty close to what is currently on the board (for sizing purposes)?

edit:

Hmm..this one is rated longer hours

http://www.newark.com/panasonic/eeufm1v102/capacitor-alum-elec-1000µf-35vdc/dp/04M9026

Okay.... definitely replace all the electrolytic caps on that board.
If you can, keep the same capacitance value (uf) while increasing the voltage rating (WV) but be careful of the dimensions, which it seems you are on the right track.

Yes, those dimensions are in mm and they are not all standardized. Keep in mind also the lead spacing. When I'm not certain of the dimensions, I'll remove one of each size and physically measure them.

While everyone knows of the electrolyte debacle from years ago, there was also a more recent issue with a certain manufacturer dilspensing too much electrolyte into their caps causing premature failures.

 

[KGB]

Also, that white shit in the pic looks like RTV used as a mechanical support.

 

[tk149]

I bought my LN52A550 in July 2008. No problems so far. I didn't even know that there were problems until I saw this thread just now.

 

[GrumpyMan]

Just to let everyone know my TV is still working like a champ after I replaced the caps. Easier than I thought to do.

 

[Modelworks]

Given that I don't think I can tell the brand without ripping one off how safe is it to assume that the Rubycon 25v 1000uf 12.5x20 is going to be the same or pretty close to what is currently on the board (for sizing purposes)?

edit:

Hmm..this one is rated longer hours

http://www.newark.com/panasonic/eeufm1v102/capacitor-alum-elec-1000%C2%B5f-35vdc/dp/04M9026

The leads on caps are pretty long so even if it is off a mm or two it will still work. The reason why I didn't suggest the panasonic over the Rubycon is because the capacitors are near inductors which suggest they are being used in a switching supply circuit. For that you want capacitors that are low ESR. The Rubycon ones are low ESR while the Panasonic are for more generic use.

While the hours are important it doesn't directly correlate to how long the capacitor will last, the graphs are kind of non linear when it comes to temperatures. If that area gets to 105C there is something wrong anyway. That is hot enough to make water boil.

The heatshrink over the inductors is actually there to keep the coils from making noise. Inductors sometimes make a high pitched noise when used at high frequencies.

 

[KGB]

We need an update here!!

Did the OP smoke the whole thing?

 

[Harvey]

So, if I were to go with 35v and looking at the one at the second link pdf below:

http://www.newark.com/rubycon/35zl1000m12-5x25/capacitor-alum-elect-1000uf-35v/dp/38M4497

http://www.rubycon.co.jp/en/catalog/e_pdfs/aluminum/e_ZL.pdf

The dimensions of the 35v 1000uf is 12.5×25 (is that in mm?).

Given that I don't think I can tell the brand without ripping one off how safe is it to assume that the Rubycon 25v 1000uf 12.5x20 is going to be the same or pretty close to what is currently on the board (for sizing purposes)?Given that I don't think I can tell the brand without ripping one off how safe is it to assume that the Rubycon 25v 1000uf 12.5x20 is going to be the same or pretty close to what is currently on the board (for sizing purposes)?

Rubycon is a respectible brand. You may be able to find the model number of the series by using a flashlight and a magnifying glass to looki closely at any of the caps from the same maker that have the same color outer sleeve.

You should find a string of numbers and letters that vary only with the actual value of each component. That will identify the series, and you can then find the specs on the manufacturer's site and possibly on the spec pages of vendors like Digi-Key, Newark, etc.

edit:

Hmm..this one is rated longer hours

http://www.newark.com/panasonic/eeufm1v102/capacitor-alum-elec-1000%C2%B5f-35vdc/dp/04M9026

That page also gives you other good info.

Manufacturer Part No: EEUFM1V102

The data sheet for this series shows that this cap is from Panasonic's FM series. You can use that designation (or any other manufacturer's model identification) and the published specs for the part to cross reference between models from various manufacturers.

 

[doanwon]

Hi All,

Your forum is very helpful. My brother's Samsung LN-4061F had the slow turn-on time (clicking relay and so on..) for a long time and then recently it would turn on with pictures and then turn off after about a minute. I proceeded to fix the slow turn-on by replacing the 4 1000uF caps as per the agreed fix. This solved the problem with slow turn-on but the lamp and picture still turned off and back on at around a minute cycle (with the chirping when turned on). Should I replace more caps? Is the problem related to the caps? Thank you in advance.

Peter

 

[doanwon]

PS. The TV won't respond to the remote anymore, and the power button at the front won't work. When pressing a command from the remote the LED does blink but the TV just does not do anything. I have read mention of a stuck front button, but I even unplugged the cables relaying command to the board. Thanks.

 

[slag]

A guy on my local craigslist was looking for someone to solder two caps for him the other day. I responded and he said it was for a samsung. He had one of the caps, but RS didn't carry the other. Luckily, I have an assortment from digikey and had the 680 uF he needed. He had darn near ruined the through hole mount on the board, but I was able to scrape back part of the pcb and solder one of the legs through the hole and to the copper trace. He emailed me later that night to let me know it worked! He gave me 20 bucks for the work, but really, I shouldn't have taken the money. It only took like 10 minutes total.

My neighbor last week had me solder two 2200 mF caps to his board (I supplied them again as mine were 50 volt panasonic caps and he had no name 15 volt crappy caps from a "kit" he bought on ebay. Soldered it up for him and his works also. His was also a samsung, 50 or 55 inch lcd I believe. His wife thinks I'm a god.

 

[Harvey]

A guy on my local craigslist was looking for someone to solder two caps for him the other day. I responded and he said it was for a samsung. He had one of the caps, but RS didn't carry the other.

Just replacing caps with any parts having the same value and voltage ratings isn't good enough for digital gear. Even if Radio Shack has the values you need, I don't know if they carry caps rated high enough for temperature range, high frequency characteristics and leakage.

To identify the parts you need, check the manufacturer's exact model number for the part(s). If you can't find the exact make and model of the original part, DigiKey's catalog usually lists the relevant specs for various makers' parts, or you can go to other cap manufacturers' sites to look for cross reference information, or you may be able to find what you need by searching Google.

 

[Hatrik]

I truly appreciate this post. I too was having the exact same problem with my Samsung just as described above. My TV starting making a clicking noise and would take several tries before actually turning on. In time it eventually stop turning on all together and would only just click every minute or so trying to turn on but couldnt. I called around but just to have a technician check the TV was gonna cost 100.00 not including the parts and labor when they find out what the actual problem was gonna be. This was all before I started scanning the internet for a possible solution and found this article which described my issue to a "T". I took matters into my own hands kinda. Well I decided to open my T.V. and see if i could Identify these caps I just read about sure enough there the caps were bulging on the top just like in the pictures shown. I no experience with soldering so i did the next best thing I simply unscrewed the entire mother and took the mother board to the nearest T.V. repair shop I showed them the blown capasitors and ask what would they charge to replace and solder on 4 new caps. Since I took the mother board out of the T.V. for them already The price for repair I thought was reasonable. He told me $70.00 with no guarantees that soldering on the caps would fix the problem I ask could you do it today, he said yes so I put $70 dolars on the table pretty quick. Within 15 minutes he came out with my mother board completly finished with 4 new installed caps he even installed higher voltage caps on the board that were originally on the board he did a great and I was happy. I hurried home reinstalled the mother board back to the T.V. plug it up turned it on and Whallaa!! Works Perfect!! Thanks for the awesome post!!! Saved me Hundreds!!

 

[CubanlB]

Since this thread just got res'd I'll chime in and say I just did a cap replacement on a Samsung 4665fx about a week ago and now it's running great. I know a lot of information on the internet isn't exactly authoritative but most people seem to think high temp 12v or higher 1000uf caps are just fine, my 15v caps from parts express seem to be working fine. I can report back in a few months of usage on the TV. Hopefully nothing goes awry.

Not to jeopardize my nerd cred, but I had basically no soldering experience and I replaced my 3 bulged caps in less than an hour, working very slowly.

 

[JackBurton]

Well bad news. I replaced the caps on my parents TV (5271F) and it worked great for about a year. It turns on now, but the screen is now f'ed up. When you power it on, the image is displayed but it's smeared. After about 30 minutes though it goes back to normal. Now I have to see what the hell is going on with that. Shitty Samsung.

 

[CubanlB]

Well bad news. I replaced the caps on my parents TV (5271F) and it worked great for about a year. It turns on now, but the screen is now f'ed up. When you power it on, the image is displayed but the imaged is smeared. After about 30 minutes though it goes back to normal. Now I have to see what the hell is going on with that. Shitty Samsung.

Ugh, this does not give me hope for my TV. Would I be a bad person to craigslist the thing?

Makes me like my Panasonic a little more though.

Edit: What caps did you replace the Samsung caps with? Are you going to crack the TV open and see if it had the same failure?

 

[vishnus]

i have same problem with samsung lcd tv, power supply problem due to that 4 capacitor(1000mf, 25v), i have replaced it with same value and now its working fine.

 

[KGB]

GOOD JOB! :thumbsup:

 

[GrumpyMan]

Holy necro Batman! It's funny how this thread pops up every once in a while.

 

[Oyeve]

Holy necro Batman! It's funny how this thread pops up every once in a while.

Yeah, my 20c cap is still working like a champ on my sammy.

 

[martyg1234]

recently contacted samsung about their capacitor problem. hope this helps everyone. here is their reply



Thank you for contacting Samsung Electronics.
We understand you would like to know if 2011 TV's are facing the capacitor problem or it have been resolved.

We are glad to inform you that, day by day Samsung improvising their products, and the capacitor issues are only there for
2007 and 2008 TV's.

And after 2008, there are no reported issues, because the capacitors have been updated or the advance capacitors are
been upgraded in the TV's.

So far we couldn't addressed any issue with the 2011 TV's.

If you require any further information, please feel free to contact us.

Thank you.

Samsung Online Support.

Follow Samsung Service on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

 

[thegimp03]

My Samsung 4071F still works fine and I haven't had any of the issues others have reported in this thread.

 

[EvilYoda]

My parents currently have my LN46A650 from mid-2008 and it's finally shut down due to the BCP...put a call in to Samsung and a local tech should be calling me back to arrange an inspection. I debated for a while whether to call or just do the service on my own. But I guess if they'll cover it, I might as well? Still not feeling 100% about my decision, but what's done is done. I'm perfectly comfortable with a soldering iron too, hmm.

 

[slag]

Just replacing caps with any parts having the same value and voltage ratings isn't good enough for digital gear. Even if Radio Shack has the values you need, I don't know if they carry caps rated high enough for temperature range, high frequency characteristics and leakage.

To identify the parts you need, check the manufacturer's exact model number for the part(s). If you can't find the exact make and model of the original part, DigiKey's catalog usually lists the relevant specs for various makers' parts, or you can go to other cap manufacturers' sites to look for cross reference information, or you may be able to find what you need by searching Google.

I agree. I buy almost exclusively from Digikey as I also repair the Mitsubishi 52 and 62 inch dlp tvs with panasonic caps. Once in awhile I get the cheaper nichion?(sp) caps but always make sure they are within spec or usually higher rated in terms of voltage, heat, and ripple.