'81 System 3 Zenith - Videokarma.org TV - Video

zenith2134 · #1 12-30-2008, 11:28 PM

Hey, was given this TV from a friend the other day. It was headed for the dumpster so I HAD to save it.

Its a 19" tabletop from 1981, with the 9-151 tuning board and the stand-up HV assembly. Got a great picture, didn't even have to adjust focus or grayscale! Love Zeniths.

These sets are just about the last TVs I'll collect. This one is a non-remote set, however has an electronic LED tuner which tops out at Channel 40. Volume and power are manual switches, and pots.

the CRT is a 19VLQP22 which was apparently used in many arcade games in the early 1980s. Its an Extended-Field-Length in-line gun with 'Tri-Focus'.

This one's also got the photocell (color sentry) to automatically adjust the set's brightness in accordance to the ambient lighting in the room. I keep it turned off, hehe.

As Grimer pointed out, these sets always revert back to channel 2 after being powered down. Can be a bitch if watching OTA, but luckily I run DTV via RF output and have it set so channel 3 is actually channel 2

Anyone like these sets ? The last of the last 'GOOD' Zeniths....Built in Missouri but with Mexican boards.

radiotvnut · #2 12-31-2008, 12:32 AM

Yep, those were the last Zenith's that I cared anything about. 9-151 - IF/tuner, 9-152 - chroma/video/vertical, 9-160 - power supply/horiz sweep, and 9-155 - video output. I saw a lot of these back in the early to mid '90's. I thought I saw one of these at the SA last Saturday; but, when I turned it around and looked at it from the front, I discovered it was a mid to late '80's motel set. I wasn't too fond of the next chassis that used the 9-181 main board and a 9-186 HV module. Those could be a real pain to troubleshoot and the picture didn't seem to be as good. I think the motel set I saw may have had this later chassis or the even later 9-470 chassis.

zenith2134 · #3 12-31-2008, 11:43 AM

True, the 9-181 board chassis sets weren't as reliable. I had one or two and they sucked after a while of watching them. This one has a great picture even when compared to the old ones, though. Want pics?

radiotvnut · #4 12-31-2008, 12:14 PM

Of course I want pictures!

zenith2134 · #5 01-01-2009, 02:32 PM

Okay, here are the pictures. They didn't come out as well as I would have liked. This is because A) I am slightly hungover from the New Year celebrations last night

and B) the lighting in my bedroom ranges from direct sunlight to total darkness

The set produces a much sharper and more vibrant picture than these show....

*zenithfan1* · #6 01-01-2009, 03:22 PM

Nice! It kinda has a '70s look to it. My '77 Chromacolor is trimmed out like that on the edges.

radiotvnut · #7 01-01-2009, 03:46 PM

I had a '78 single knob tuned System 3 with that cabinet style. Mine was the first generation system 3 that used a power transformer and the following boards: 9-153 (HV), 9-152 (vert/chroma/video), 9-151 (IF/tuner), and 9-155 (video output). There were some late CCII's that used a similar cabinet. Since this is from '81, they were probably using up the remaining '70's style cabinets that were on hand.

zenith2134 · #8 01-01-2009, 08:25 PM

Yeah the tube looks real good for its age....

Right now, I've got the set running some local programming with the contrast, color, and brightness set to maximum. I read this on Sam Goldwasser's TV repair FAQ.....supposedly, it cleans the cathodes and allows them to emit more electrons....

Any truth to this? I don't have access to a tester or cleaner at this time

Geoff Bourquin · #9 01-01-2009, 11:25 PM

What I remember about those sets is that if the CRT is strong the focus was so sharp you could cut yourself, even at high beam current

radiotvnut · #10 01-01-2009, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geoff Bourquin

What I remember about those sets is that if the CRT is strong the focus was so sharp you could cut yourself, even at high beam current

Around '90, my Dad trash picked a Zenith System 3 space command set with 14 position varactor tuner. He had the 9-160 sweep module changed and that set produced a very sharp, detailed picture. Not bad for a set that was 10 years old at the time. We used it here for a while and then we donated it to our church for use in the youth room. I'll bet it's still there.

I would not hesitate to buy one of these 9-160 based 17" or 19" sets if one came along; especially if I knew that the CRT was good. I have run into several of the early inline Zenith CRT's that were bad, especially the 23v and 25v tubes. I recently donated a 25" Zenith 9-160 based console with the one knob tuner to the thrift store. The chassis was fine; but, the CRT was very weak.

zenith2134 · #11 01-02-2009, 12:16 AM

Trust me, not only is the camera crappy, but those pics were rushed. And the 'cathode-cleaning' trick seems to make it look even better!!!

I am very impressed by the CRT strength and the brightness levels I'm seeing here. Very sharp, bright, and vivid colors.

So, in your opinion guys, would this set have an 'early' in-line which usually turns out to be bad? Its got the 19VLQP22 EFL/Tri-Focus. I wish someone would explain to me what that means! I know it means it has 3 focus electrodes or something, but whats EFL?!

radiotvnut · #12 01-02-2009, 12:57 AM

Yes, I would consider that an early Zenith inline tube. There were a few later CCII's that used a similar tube. If that tube has made it 28 years and is still good, it will probably remain good. I've seen way more 23V and 25V inline tubes with this type gun that were weak/dead than 19V and smaller tubes. I think I've only seen maybe a half dozen 19V tubes that were weak; and, only two of them were unwatchable. I'm not even going to try and remember how many of the 23V/25V tubes that I've found that were weak, even back in the early '90's when these sets were only 8-10 years old.

I've also seen a similar CRT in Magnavox and Sylvania sets. Again, the 19V's held up much better than the larger sizes.

I think those CRT's had 2 focus voltages plus the HV. Maybe someone will chime in with more detailed info. I do know these tubes produced a better picture than the regular in-line gun tube that Zenith started using in around '83 and continued to use up until they discontinued CRT production.

zenith2134 · #13 01-02-2009, 01:08 AM

Yeah the focus on this one is better than the 'Custom Series' 19 inch I used to watch in my dorm. And that set was no slouch, either! Must be that Extended Field Length gun too...

zenith2134 · #14 01-04-2009, 12:38 PM

Quick question: how should I set up the TV to adjust the Auto phase control for the color circuit (on the 9-152, IIRC) I mistakenly turned it thinking it was the vertical height adjustment and now the tint control is wrong. (I screwed up.)

As I understand it, the APC controls the phase of the color carrier signal which is sent to the matrix decoder.... Should I be using test bars or snow??

basil lambri · #15 01-19-2009, 08:29 PM

Zenith 2134, I had the same exact problem with a Zenith Sysyem 3 19' set made in 1987. I mistakenly adjusted the color level and the tint controls fer the Color Sentry. I foolishly believed that there would be a pre-set position where those controls could return to and there isn't. I messed it up royally. I did this to fix it: I used a test pattern on the TV and first I adjusted the gray scale with the Color Sentry on. Then I adjusted the color and the tint using blue-filtered glasses. I set the controls at the precise positions where they shoukd be. That fixed it. The picture is the same as before I messed it up. I still watch that TV.