Sony HB-F1XV
 | |
| Sony HB-F1XV | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Sony |
| Type | MSX2+ home computer |
| Released | 21 October 1989 (Japan)[1] |
| Intro price | ¥69,800[1] |
| CPU | Zilog Z80A (Z0840004SPC), 3.58 MHz |
| Memory | 64 KB RAM, 16 KB SRAM for MSX-JE, 128 KB VRAM |
| Storage | Built-in 3.5-inch floppy drive (720 KB), two cartridge slots |
| Display | Yamaha V9958 |
| Sound | PSG in the Yamaha S1985 MSX-Engine; Yamaha YM2413 (MSX-MUSIC) |
| Power | AC 100 V, 50/60 Hz, 31 W[2] |
| OS / Firmware | — |
| Predecessor | Sony HB-F1XDJ |
| Model no. | HB-F1XV |
The Sony HB-F1XV is an MSX2+ computer that Sony released in Japan on 21 October 1989 at ¥69,800. It was the last MSX that Sony made and sold.[1] It replaced the Sony HB-F1XDJ with the same hardware, a different colour scheme and a larger set of bundled software.[3][4]
History
[edit | edit source]The HB-F1XV came with three disks: F1 Synth, a version of the Synth Saurus music program; F1 Tool Disk II, with the Halos graphics editor and game programming tools; and a Japanese word processor with MSX-DOS 1. Some units also had a fourth, the XV Story Disk.[1][3] The HB-F1XDJ owner who wrote the 第三研究所 maintenance notes describes the HB-F1XV as almost identical to the HB-F1XDJ apart from the software and the colour of the drive panel, with the same hardware.[4]
Specifications
[edit | edit source]| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Standard | MSX2+ |
| CPU | Zilog Z0840004SPC (Z80A) |
| MSX-Engine | Yamaha S1985, with the PSG |
| RAM | 64 KB in slot 3-0, plus 16 KB SRAM used by MSX-JE |
| Video | Yamaha V9958, 128 KB VRAM |
| FM sound | Yamaha YM2413 (MSX-MUSIC) |
| Floppy drive | 3.5-inch, 720 KB; controller MB89311 |
| Cartridge slots | Two: one on top, one at the back |
| Power | AC 100 V, 50/60 Hz, 31 W[2] |
Hardware
[edit | edit source]Photographs of the two main boards show the same layout: "MSX2+SYSTEM" printed on the board, the transformer and reservoir capacitor at the left, the HIC-1 video and audio module at the rear right and a coin cell at the right.[5][6] The HIC-1 is Mitsumi's EMC-NX0039 module, which encodes RGB to composite video and mixes and amplifies the sound. It carries three surface-mount electrolytic capacitors that are known to leak.[7][8]
The calendar clock runs from two AA cells. The MSX Resource Center recommends lithium or Eneloop cells and advises against alkaline ones, which leak.[1] A coin cell soldered to the main board backs the SRAM; one owner replaced his with a socket for a CR2032.[9][4]
Known faults
[edit | edit source]- Leaking capacitors on the HIC-1 module. A forum member who has seen the fault on two HB-F1XD and one HB-F1XV reports that the first sign is usually lower sound volume.[8]
- The floppy drive belt, which the MSX Resource Center names as the main cause of failure: it softens with age.[1]
- A slight crackle on FM sound, for which Niga's fix replaces C99 with a wire link and C20 with a non-polarised capacitor.[1]
- Broken traces on the keyboard film; classicpc.org in Japan has offered a repair kit for the HB-F1XD, XDJ and XV keyboards.[3][1]
The details are in the Sony HB-F1XV Troubleshooting Guide, Sony HB-F1XV General Maintenance and Sony HB-F1XV Capacitor Replacement Guide. The HB-F1XDJ guides cover the shared hardware at greater length.
Documentation
[edit | edit source]No service manual for the HB-F1XV has been found. Sony's service guide for the MSX2 HB-F1XD, which uses the same HIC-1 module, is hosted here as the Sony HB-F1XD Service Guide.[10]
Gallery
[edit | edit source]-
HB-F1XV main board -
Rating label: 100 V, 31 W, 50/60 Hz
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Sony HB-F1XV General Maintenance
- Sony HB-F1XV Troubleshooting Guide
- Sony HB-F1XV Capacitor Replacement Guide
- Sony HB-F1XDJ
- Sony HB-F1XD Service Guide
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Sony HB-F1XV, MSX Resource Center wiki—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Community specification and maintenance page: MSX2+, released 1989-10-21 at ¥69,800, the last MSX made and sold by Sony; S1985 MSX-Engine, Zilog Z0840004SPC CPU, MB89311 floppy controller, V9958, YM2413; 64 KB RAM in slot 3-0 plus 16 KB SRAM; 720 KB drive; three or four disks supplied (F1 Synth, F1 Tool Disk II, a Japanese word processor with MSX-DOS 1, and on some units a Story Disk). Maintenance notes: the drive belt is the main cause of failure and softens with age (59 mm diameter, 186 mm long, 2.8 mm wide, 0.4 mm thick); HIC-1 daughterboard with three SMD electrolytics that leak; FM crackle fix (C99 replaced with a wire, C20 with a non-polarised capacitor of the same value, after Niga; a 4.7 kΩ resistor between C20 and the sound input can be added but is not essential); link to a keyboard repair kit for the HB-F1XD, XDJ and XV from classicpc.org; lithium AA or Eneloop cells recommended, alkaline advised against.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rating label of the HB-F1XV, photographed for the MSX Resource Center wiki (File:Sony HB-F1XV rating label.jpg, uploaded by Mars2000you, 24 January 2023): "MODEL HB-F1XV PERSONAL COMPUTER 100V 31W 50/60Hz", ソニー株式会社, Made in Japan.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 MSX2+, Japanese Wikipedia—link(accessed 2026-10-21) In Japanese. The HB-F1XDJ was released on 21 October 1988; its case was carried over from the MSX2 HB-F1XD series; MSX-JE built in. After about a year of use the FM sound on the HB-F1XDJ became quieter because of a circuit fault, which Sony dealt with by replacing a capacitor. Across the series, dirt getting in between the keys breaks the traces on the keyboard film. The HB-F1XV changed the colouring and expanded the bundled software.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 8ビットパソコン HB-F1XDJ (MSX2+) ネタ, 25 October 2016—link(accessed 2026-10-21) In Japanese. An owner's notes on the HB-F1XDJ, which he says apply to the HB-F1XV because its hardware is the same: kanji dictionary SRAM backed by a tabbed Sony CR2032 soldered to the main board under the keyboard, which clears the dictionary at every start when flat; calendar and clock backed by two AA dry cells, manganese cells recommended, alkaline cells acceptable but watch for leaks; Mitsumi D357B 720 KB drive without VFO, with a rubber belt that stretches or melts; floppy drive powered by +5 V only, 34-pin signal connector, pin 1 on the left; AC 100 V present at the left-hand side of the case; disassembly sequence; old jumper wires on the main board come away easily and the board's joints and traces are fragile; some lots lose FM volume, cured by replacing C99, a 50 V 1 µF electrolytic in the YM2413 block on the left of the main board; quaternary-salt electrolytics used in places, which leak and break traces when the machine is stored unpowered in damp places; match the height of replacement capacitors; keyboard film traces corroded by spilled liquid, repaired with conductive silver ink; joystick ports gold-plated but prone to dirty contacts; a start-up password can be set and is cleared by holding GRAPH and STOP while switching on; after a drive swap, a reversed signal cable leaves the drive lamp lit and makes the head chatter, and a drive that is not recognised gives "Disk Offline".
- ↑ File:Sony HB-F1XV main board.jpg, photograph of an HB-F1XV main board uploaded to the MSX Resource Center wiki by Gdx on 4 April 2016. Read from it: the same layout as the HB-F1XDJ board, with "MSX2+SYSTEM" and "AUDIO & VIDEO" printed on it, the large reservoir capacitor at top left, the HIC-1 module at the rear right, the coin cell at the right, and a trimmer marked CV2 beside test point TP1 near the front right.
- ↑ File:Sony HB-F1XDJ main board.jpg, photograph of an HB-F1XDJ main board uploaded to the MSX Resource Center wiki by Gdx on 4 April 2016. Read from it: "MSX2+SYSTEM" on the board; transformer and large reservoir capacitor at the left; HIC-1 module upright near the rear connectors at the right; coin cell marked BATT1 at the right; blue trimmer beside test point TP1 marked ALM near the front right; Zilog Z80 CPU and Sony ROM at the centre.
- ↑ MSX2以降用ハイブリッドIC「EMC-NX0039」の回路図, 19 May 2020—link(accessed 2026-10-21) In Japanese, with the author's redrawn schematic as a PDF. Mitsumi hybrid IC EMC-NX0039 (HIC-1): RGB to NTSC encoder (CXA1145M), sound output amplifier mixing the PSG, the 1-bit sound port and the audio from slots 1 and 2, reset and pause muting, cassette interface amplifiers and relay control. Used in the Sony HB-F1II, HB-F1XD, HB-F1XDmk2, HB-F1XDJ and HB-F1XV and the Panasonic FS-A1mkII and FS-A1F. Sony part number 1-464-877-11. Two 10 µF and one 100 µF electrolytics, all known to leak; the author replaced them with tantalums and advises fused types because tantalums fail short. C26 is a through-hole part on early modules and an SMD part on later ones. R32 and R33 are 220 kΩ on Sony modules and 150 kΩ on Panasonic ones.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Urgent alert to MSX2/2+ owners: suicide capacitors on HIC-1 daughterboard, July 2015 onwards—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Opening post by sd_snatcher, 19 July 2015: the HIC-1 (EMC-NX0039) module in the Sony HB-F1XV, HB-F1XDJ, HB-F1XDmkII and HB-F1XD and the Panasonic FS-A1, FS-A1mkII and FS-A1F carries three SMD aluminium electrolytics that leak and damage the board: C10 10 µF 16 V, C14 10 µF 16 V and C22 100 µF 16 V, C22 the worst; ceramic or tantalum replacements in 3216 (10 µF) and 4532 or 6032 (100 µF) sizes, rated 16 V or more. Reply by jltursan: two HB-F1XD and one HB-F1XV affected, the first symptom usually lower sound volume. Reply by RetroTechie: cut through the solder or use two irons to lift the old parts without heating the board. Reply by dublevay, 5 September 2020, on an HB-F1XV: the original 100 µF part was a 6.3 V type marked 6A and the 10 µF parts were 16 V; hot air blew three small resistors (820 Ω, 1 kΩ and 0 Ω) off the module, which he refitted; he fitted Kemet tantalums first; the band on a tantalum marks its positive end, unlike an aluminium electrolytic, which marks the negative; after fitting tantalums, then Panasonic HD (10 µF, 16 V) and HC (100 µF, 6.3 V as original) SMD electrolytics chosen to match the original sizes, there was still no composite or RF picture until the 22 µH inductor (marked 220) below the lower 10 µF capacitor, which had a bad joint, was reflowed; RGB worked throughout. Reply by Louthrax, 23 December 2025, on reassembling an HB-F1XDJ: the three cables from the lamp and slider housing go in the space between the drive and the top of the keyboard, not on top of the drive.
- ↑ Sony HB-F1XDJ capacitor leakage repair guide, 21 December 2017—link(accessed 2026-10-21) Repair report by Omega: an HB-F1XDJ that sometimes would not start, was unstable when it did, and produced wrong key presses (EF for E). Electrolyte had leaked round the HIC module and from through-hole capacitors on the main board, through to the solder side; all four ELNA 47 µF capacitors (6.3 V, per his later correction) had leaked and lost their capacitance. He desoldered the SMD capacitors with hot air, cleaned with isopropyl alcohol, neutralised with vinegar, scraped the pads, used SMD flux and fitted Panasonic parts, replaced every ELNA electrolytic on the board, left the Nichicon ones, and removed the flat CR2032. The capacitors on the HIC module served only the RGB to composite circuit; RGB passes through the module unaffected. Some copper was corroded but no traces needed repair, and the machine then started every time and the keyboard worked. He advises HB-F1XDJ owners to check for leakage and have the ELNA capacitors replaced preventively, because broken traces mean labour-intensive repairs. Reply by Wierzbowsky, 7 January 2018, on an HB-F1XV: replaced the three daughterboard capacitors with 10 µF 16 V size B and 100 µF 16 V size D tantalums before any leak, and replaced the soldered cell, which he calls the clock battery, with a socket for a CR2032.
- ↑ Sony, HB-F1XD サービスガイド (Japanese), PDF page 12 (printed page 11): HIC-1 circuit diagram, "HIC-1 RGB/NTSC ENCODER". Hosted here as Sony HB-F1XD Service Guide.
