Philips Videopac G7200 Troubleshooting Guide
The checks below for the Philips Videopac G7200 come from Philips's instructions for use and from repairs reported on the Videopac / Odyssey2 forum, where several owners worked from a G7200 circuit diagram.[1][2][3] The G7200 has two boards: the game board and a monitor and power supply board joined to it by a plug.[4] Routine care is on Philips Videopac G7200 General Maintenance.
Warning: the monitor and power supply board carries mains voltage, and the tube and line output transformer carry high voltage. See CRT Discharge Procedure.[3]
First, find which board is at fault
[edit | edit source]The DIN socket at the back carries the game board's RGB, sync and sound for a SCART television.[1] Connect it to a television with an RGB-capable SCART input:
- A good colour picture through SCART with nothing on the G7200's own screen puts the fault in the monitor or its supply.[5]
- No picture through SCART either points to the game board or to the supply that feeds it with 5 V and 12 V.[5]
- One owner proved his game board good by running it from another G7200's monitor and supply board, and found no voltage at the plug between the two boards.[4]
Behaviour that is not a fault
[edit | edit source]- The screen is black and white; the game's colours appear as grey levels and the contrast control sets how they are told apart.[1]
- A French Philips G7200 starts with QUEL JEU?; the other versions show SELECT GAME.[6]
- DIN pin 6 carries 12 V, not video; it switches a SCART television to its external input. There is no composite video anywhere in a G7200.[6]
Power faults
[edit | edit source]| Symptom | Probable cause | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Dead, or works only with the switch held in a middle position | Worn power switch | Replace the switch; see the maintenance guide[2][7] |
| Dead with a good fuse | Broken fuse holder | Check continuity through the fuse holder, not just the fuse[2] |
| Dead, no voltage on the secondary side, fuse good | Switch-mode supply fault (TEA1039 controller, BUX84 switching transistor) | Repair the supply; owners have replaced half of it with the matching half of a Minitel supply[8][4][9] |
| Game board dead, monitor board known good | No 5 V or 12 V reaching the game board | Measure at the plug between the boards[4][5] |
Monitor faults
[edit | edit source]No raster and no glow from the tube
[edit | edit source]The tube's heater is powered partly from the line output transformer, so if the horizontal stage does not run the tube does not glow either.[2] gertk's sequence, with an oscilloscope:[2]
- Check that every supply voltage reaches the monitor board.
- Look for the horizontal pulse from the sync separator at point G, pin 13 of the TEA1011 (IC1).
- If it is there, look for the drive at point P, pin 15 of IC1.
- Follow the drive to the base of the horizontal output transistor TS3.
- With the probe on 10:1 or, better, 100:1, look for the pulse at the collector of TS3.
- If the pulse is at the collector and there is still no high voltage on the tube, the line output transformer is faulty.
One repairer who worked through a Radiola Jet 27 found cracked solder joints and bad capacitors on the board, fixed them, and was left with a line output transformer that gave no high voltage.[2] Another console's transformer was marked 11 SF 107 11720, No 133840. No replacement is sold. Owners take one from another G7200, an N60 or a Minitel 1, and Rene_G7400 warns that a transformer of a different type can ruin the console.[9]
Picture squeezed vertically
[edit | edit source]For a picture shrunk to a band about 1 cm high, owners give this order:[3]
- Turn the height control R25.
- Check the TEA1011's supplies: 24 V at pin 2 and 11 V at pin 12.
- If both are right, replace C49, C50, C51 and C52 and check every resistor round the TEA1011, especially the fusible resistor R23.
A French G7200 lost about the bottom 15 per cent of its picture, and its RGB output flickered every 30 seconds; the thread records no fix.[10]
Game board faults
[edit | edit source]- A scrambled screen that ignores the keys and RESET: the 8048's RESET input had failed on one console. Shorting RESET to ground did nothing, and a G7000's 8048 made it work. A non-French 8048 changes the start-up text from QUEL JEU? to SELECT GAME; an 8748 programmed with the French BIOS keeps it.[11] A blank 8048 will not work because the BIOS is in the chip's mask ROM.[12]
- Keys 0 to 7 dead together: a broken track to pin 16 of the keyboard connector, at the bend of the foil.[7][13]
Test points
[edit | edit source]| Point | Expected | Source |
|---|---|---|
| TEA1011 (IC1) pin 2 | 24 V | Owner, from the circuit diagram[3] |
| TEA1011 (IC1) pin 12 | 11 V | Owner, from the circuit diagram[3] |
| TEA1011 pin 13 (point G) | Horizontal pulse from the sync separator | Owner[2] |
| TEA1011 pin 15 (point P) | Horizontal drive | Owner[2] |
| TS3 collector | Flyback pulse; use a 10:1 or 100:1 probe | Owner[2] |
| Game board supply | 5 V and 12 V | Owner[5] |
| DIN pins 3, 5 and 8 | Blue, red and green, 0.7 V into 75 Ω | Philips[1] |
| DIN pin 4 | Sync, 0.3 V into 75 Ω | Philips[1] |
| DIN pin 6 | 12 V status (SCART switching) | Philips[1] |
| DIN pin 7 | Sound, 0.2 V rms into 1 kΩ | Philips[1] |
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Philips Videopac G7200
- Philips Videopac G7200 General Maintenance
- Philips Videopac G7200 Capacitor Replacement Guide
- Philips Videopac G7000 Troubleshooting Guide, for faults on the shared game hardware
- CRT Discharge Procedure
- Capacitor Failure Symptoms
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Philips, Videopac G7200: Instructions for Use / Gebrauchsanleitung, English section, pp. 2 to 4 (retrieved from the Internet Archive): the G7200 as a self-contained game computer with keyboard, two hand controls and a black and white monitor with loudspeaker; it accepts all Videopac cartridges including the C7010 chess module; numbered parts (9-inch black and white monitor, on/off switch, special contrast control, volume control, brightness control, loudspeaker, mains flex, DIN output socket, slots for the C7010); in the UK the set is supplied without a mains plug; switching on by pushing the power switch inwards from left to right; the seven-position contrast control and its setting for cartridges 1 to 43; the eight-pin DIN output socket and its SCART wiring. Hosted as File:Philips Videopac G7200 Instructions for Use.pdf.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "Radiola Jet 27/ G7200", posts by Stevo and gertk, March to June 2015 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a Radiola Jet 27 with a broken power switch and a missing red lever; no glow from the tube; gertk explains that the filament is partly powered from the line output transformer and suggests checking for a missing supply voltage or a faulty TEA1011 (IC1), then the horizontal pulse at point G (IC1 pin 13), point P (IC1 pin 15), the base of TS3 and, with a 10:1 or 100:1 probe, the collector of TS3; a broken fuse holder; a repairer who found cracked solder joints and bad capacitors on the board and no high voltage from the line output transformer.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "Squeezed G7200 image, Caps to replace?", posts by blanka, Rene_G7400 and gertk, 23 to 25 August 2015 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a G7200 picture shrunk to about 1 cm high; Rene_G7400 suggests the height control R25; gertk gives the TEA1011 supply voltages (24 V at pin 2, 11 V at pin 12), suggests replacing C49, C50, C51 and C52 and checking every resistor round the TEA1011, especially the fusible resistor R23, and warns of dangerous voltages inside a G7200.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 out of order.", posts by VideopacBelgium, July 2014 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a UK G7200 that would not switch on after a new power switch; the fuse was good and the game board worked with another G7200 monitor and supply board; no voltage at the plug between the main Videopac board and the monitor and power supply board; the TEA1039 and BUX84 were replaced without success.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 screen replacement", posts by BorisBecks and gertk, May 2023 (retrieved 2026-10-21): the G7200's monochrome tube is driven from the TTL RGB signals of the Videopac main board; the rear DIN connector carries RGB and sync in a SCART-compatible form; BorisBecks found 5 V and 12 V supplied to the main board.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "UK G7200 vs FR G7200", posts by VideopacBelgium, Rene_G7400, Define and grips03, December 2013 and January 2017 (retrieved 2026-10-21): all G7200 consoles have the RGB output; the versions differ in the start-up screen, the keyboard language and the mains plug; DIN pin 4 (sync) goes to SCART pin 20; there is no composite video signal inside a G7200, and DIN pin 6 'status CVBS' is a 12 V switching signal.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "Radiola JET27 powerswitch and keyboard mod", posts by gertk, 13 and 14 March 2012 (retrieved 2026-10-21): replacing the power switch of a Radiola Jet 27, the same on a Philips G7200 or Schneider: the plastic switch holder is trimmed and a cable tie holds the switch; keys 0 to 7 dead because the silver track to pin 16 of the keyboard connector had broken at the bend of the foil, bridged with a strand of wire fixed with superglue and rubber cement; conductive glue as an alternative.
- ↑ Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 - power supply dead and ..", posts by swasti, April 2020 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a G7200 with no voltage on the secondary side of its supply and an intact fuse; the downloaded service manual lacked the power supply and monitor sections.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 Repair Help", posts by Konsole4us, Rene_G7400 and VideopacBelgium, April and May 2016 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a repair shop fixed a G7200's power unit but found its line output transformer, marked 11 SF 107 11720 No 133840, defective; Rene_G7400 says a replacement must be the same type, from another G7200, an N60 or a Minitel 1, because of the very high voltages; VideopacBelgium replaced half of a G7200 power supply with half of a Minitel power supply.
- ↑ Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 screen problems", post by Spiderman, 26 December 2019 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a French G7200 whose RGB output flickers every 30 seconds and whose picture is missing about 15 per cent at the bottom.
- ↑ Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200: broken, CPU and red switch, fix possible?", posts by gehtjanx, gertk and Rene_G7400, May 2016 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a G7200 stuck on a scrambled screen that worked with the 8048 from a G7000; the original 8048's RESET input was dead; a G7000 CPU works in the G7200 but changes the start-up text; an 8748 can be programmed instead; the missing red power switch cover.
- ↑ Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "problems with replacement chips P8048H on the videopac g7400", posts by maeloterkim, manopac and gertk, March and April 2023 (retrieved 2026-10-21): generic P8048H chips do not work as replacements because the 8048 contains the console's ROM; an 8748 programmed with the BIOS is the alternative.
- ↑ Videopac / Odyssey2 forum (videopac.nl), Hardware board, "G7200 keyboard flexcable", posts by Joletaxi and VideopacBelgium, May 2020 (retrieved 2026-10-21): a G7200 with the 0 to 7 keys and some letter keys dead, thought to be the keyboard flex cable, which owners repair with silver glue; RGB cables need a DIN plug of the 'C' pin layout.