Sony PVM — maintenance and repair¶
The PVM is a professional video monitor, not an arcade monitor — and that changes everything for whoever repairs one. This page starts from two documents: Sony's PVM-14L5/20L5 service manual and a PVM-20L2 capacitor map.
Identification¶
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Sony — Trinitron® Color Video Monitor |
| Models covered by the manual | PVM-14L5 · PVM-20L5 (US/CND) · PVM-D14L5A · PVM-D20L5A (AUS) |
| Chassis | SCC-G61K-A (14L5) · SCC-G61L-A (20L5) · SCC-H03D-A · SCC-H03E-A |
| Boards | identified by letter: A, B, B1, C, D, D1, D2, G, J, K, M, Q, T · ⚠️ H1/H2 on the 14″, HA/HB on the 20″ |
ⓘ One manual covers four models and two destinations — as the Wells-Gardner 19″ In Line covered five.
⚠️ The chassis is tied to the mains¶
Sony writes it in three languages on the title page
"AN INSULATED TRANSFORMER SHOULD BE USED DURING ANY SERVICE TO AVOID POSSIBLE SHOCK HAZARD, BECAUSE OF LIVE CHASSIS. THE CHASSIS OF THIS RECEIVER IS DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE AC POWER LINE."
⚠️ A PVM is a hot chassis. ⓘ This is not an arcade peculiarity: the CRT safety page describes the risk for cabinet chassis, and it is identical here — on a set that lives on a desk, gets opened more readily, and whose chassis ground is not earth.
ⓘ And a useful convention: "COMPONENTS IDENTIFIED BY A ⚠️ MARK ON THE SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS, EXPLODED VIEWS AND IN THE PARTS LIST ARE CRITICAL TO SAFE OPERATION". ⚠️ The mark is on the drawing: those parts do not take an equivalent.
Confirming that the protection works ✅¶
The chapter arcade manuals do not have
The manual gives a whole section — 3. Safety Related Adjustment — to confirming that the EHT is regulated and that the protectors trip. ⓘ None of the arcade manuals archived on this wiki does that: they warn of the hazard, this one has you verify the safeguard.
3-1. High tension regulator confirmation
- Power OFF.
- Connect an electrostatic voltmeter to the anode cap. ⚠️ Input impedance 2 × 10⁹ Ω, and calibrated (examples given: Singer ESH-27X or ESH-23X).
- ⚠️ Supply 130 VAC — ⓘ deliberately above nominal: the regulator is verified under stress, not at rest.
- Feed a 480/60i monoscope signal.
- Put BRIGHTNESS and CONTRAST in PRESET (centre value).
- Expected: 22.0 ± 1.0 kV (14″) · 26.5 ± 1.0 kV (20″)
3-2-1. HV protector circuit confirmation — measured between cathode and ground of D501, G board:
| Step | 14″ | 20″ | What must happen |
|---|---|---|---|
| At rest (all-black, BRIGHT/CONTRAST at minimum) | 20.5 ± 1.5 V | 24.5 ± 1.5 V | — |
| Voltage applied | 23.0 ± 0.5 V | 26.0 ± 0.5 V | ⓘ the protector must NOT trip |
| Voltage applied | 25.5 ± 0.5 V | 30.5 ± 0.5 V | ⚠️ the protector MUST trip, the raster disappears |
| On white (BRIGHT/CONTRAST at maximum) | 22.0 ± 1.5 V | 26.5 ± 1.5 V | — |
⚠️ The test runs both ways, and that is the whole point. ⓘ A protector that never trips is as defective as one that trips for nothing — and only the second gets noticed in use.
3-2-2. Beam current ("1K") protector confirmation: feed 1,500.0 µA from a constant current source into the midpoint between R527 and R528 on the G board; ⚠️ the protector must trip and the raster disappear.
The equipment the manual demands
ⓘ This is not hobby tooling, and the manual lists it plainly: a 350 MHz oscilloscope (Sony Tektronix 2465 or equivalent), an NTSC/PAL/SECAM component signal generator, a monoscope generator, a digital VOM, a variable auto-transformer, a high tension voltmeter, a DC power supply, an ammeter, and a luminance meter (Minolta CA-110 or equivalent).
ⓘ The electrostatic voltmeter of section 3 comes on top of that list — it is the instrument most often missing, and without it the EHT confirmation cannot be done.
The adjustments, in the manual's order¶
ⓘ Chapter 2 runs: landing, H blanking, linearity, convergence (1), deflection yoke neck rotation, convergence (2), G2, white balance — ⚠️ twice, at 15 k and at 33 k —, SUB BRIGHT / SUB CONTRAST (likewise, 15 k and 33 k), white balance interference correction (NTSC composite, PAL composite, component, SDI, HD/SDI), then focus.
⚠️ "15 k" and "33 k" are two scan rates, and each has its own white balance adjustments. ⓘ Setting one does not set the other — which is why a PVM can be right at 15 kHz and wrong at 31/33 kHz, or the reverse.
Four series, four ways of handling safety ✅¶
The same chapter title, and not the same content
This wiki now archives five PVM service manuals. ⓘ My starting hypothesis was that one "Safety Related Adjustment" chapter would recur from series to series with different thresholds. ⚠️ It only half holds, and that is more instructive: the title recurs, the content changes in kind.
| Manual | What the safety chapter actually contains |
|---|---|
| PVM-14L5 / 20L5 | ✅ Confirmation of the EHT and of the protectors, with thresholds both ways (see above) |
| PVM-1450QM / 1454QM / 1354 | ⚠️ Adjustment of a +B hold-down circuit: at IABL = 600 ± 50 µA, the raster must go out below 130.5 V of +B (TP502) |
| PVM-1341 / 1342Q / 1343MD | ⚠️ Leakage current check — limit 0.5 mA, and for the MD models, measurement per UL 544 § 27 |
| PVM-2010QM | ⓘ no chapter of that name |
| PVM-20M2 / 20M4 | ⚠️ scan with no text layer — not examined here |
⚠️ And the difference in kind matters. The 20L5 has you confirm a safeguard: you can check it whenever. The 1450QM describes an adjustment to redo "when replacing the following components (marked with ⚠️ on the schematic diagram)" — ⓘ a post-repair obligation, not a routine check.
⚠️ The \"MD\" models are medical equipment
The PVM-1343MD manual is explicit:
"This model is for patient care equipment which corresponds to UL 544." "This measurement should be done only by B.E.D. (Biomedical Engineering Department) technician in a hospital."
ⓘ The MD suffix is not a cosmetic variant: these monitors fall under a patient-safety standard, and their leakage check uses the SA 1116 input circuit described in UL 544 § 27.5, the procedure in § 27.5 to 27.13.
⚠️ A second-hand PVM-xxxxMD is therefore a set whose documentation assumes a check its new owner will not perform. ⓘ This wiki notes it; it does not claim the check is required outside a hospital setting.
✅ The leakage check, and what it settles elsewhere on this wiki
The PVM-1341 gives the check in a form neither Motorola nor Electrohome used: the limit is a current — 0.5 mA — and voltage is only one of three measurement methods offered.
ⓘ That settles a divergence this wiki had kept open since August between the Motorola (7.5 V) and Electrohome (0.3 V) limits, and corrects a claim that stood there. → CRT safety
Cap map — PVM-20L2 and PVM-20L2MD ✅¶
177 capacitors, location by location, across six boards
ⓘ A community survey released under Public Domain Mark 1.0 — ⚠️ the cleanest rights situation on this whole wiki. Its header states the parts' class: "105C / 20% rated caps" — ⓘ a temperature and tolerance specification this wiki's cap maps carried nowhere.
⚠️ And the document does not quite reconcile with itself: the per-location list gives 177 capacitors, its own quantity summary totals 176 — ⓘ one 10 µF 50 V apart. This wiki publishes both figures without arbitrating.
⚠️ Check against your own board before ordering: a revision changes the list, and where it disagrees, the board in front of you is right.
A board — 118 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C161 | 47uF | 25V |
| C167 | 470uF | 10V |
| C168 | 470uF | 10V |
| C200 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C203 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C204 | 10uF | 50V |
| C205 | 1000uF | 16V |
| C206 | 100uF | 25V |
| C207 | 100uF | 25V |
| C208 | 10uF | 50V |
| C209 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C312 | 2.2uF | 50V |
| C315 | 10uF | 50V |
| C316 | 47uF | 25V |
| C318 | 10uF | 50V |
| C325 | 10uF | 50V |
| C355 | 1uF | 50V |
| C356 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C359 | 47uF | 25V |
| C368 | 10uF | 50V |
| C370 | 47uF | 25V |
| C371 | 47uF | 25V |
| C374 | 1uF | 50V |
| C376 | 0.47uF | 50V |
| C380 | 1000uF | 16V |
| C391 | 47uF | 25V |
| C394 | 47uF | 25V |
| C397 | 47uF | 25V |
| C398 | 47uF | 25V |
| C399 | 47uF | 25V |
| C407 | 47uF | 25V |
| C415 | 10uF | 50V |
| C419 | 470uF | 10V |
| C422 | 1uF | 50V |
| C430 | 330uF | 16V |
| C441 | 3.3uF | 50V |
| C478 | 10uF | 50V |
| C495 | 10uF | 50V |
| C498 | 2.2uF | 50V |
| C506 | 0.47uF | 50V |
| C507 | 100uF | 25V |
| C509 | 470uF | 100V |
| C512 | 0.47uF | 50V |
| C513 | 10uF | 50V |
| C518 | 220uF | 160V |
| C522 | 2200uF | 16V |
| C523 | 1uF | 50V |
| C529 | 0.47uF | 50V |
| C530 | 220uF | 25V |
| C531 | 47uF | 25V |
| C534 | 22uF | 250V |
| C537 | 470uF | 50V |
| C541 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C549 | 10uF | 50V |
| C550 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C552 | 220uF | 25V |
| C555 | 10uF | 50V |
| C556 | 10uF | 50V |
| C558 | 1uF | 50V |
| C564 | 10uF | 50V |
| C565 | 1uF | 50V |
| C568 | 1uF | 50V |
| C570 | 1000uF | 16V |
| C572 | 4.7uF | 160V |
| C577 | 10uF | 50V |
| C579 | 100uF | 50V |
| C581 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C584 | 2.2uF | 160V |
| C585 | 4.7uF | 250V |
| C586 | 1000uF | 25V |
| C588 | 10uF | 50V |
| C590 | 2.2uF | 50V |
| C592 | 4.7uF | 160V |
| C595 | 220uF | 25V |
| C596 | 100uF | 25V |
| C599 | 10uF | 50V |
| C1300 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1304 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1305 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1308 | 100uF | 10V |
| C1311 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1314 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1315 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1317 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1318 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1319 | 22uF | 16V |
| C1320 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1321 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1322 | 220uF | 16V |
| C1326 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1329 | 10uF | 50V |
| C1331 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1332 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1333 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1335 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1336 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1345 | 10uF | 50V |
| C1346 | 47uF | 16V |
| C1351 | 1uF | 50V |
| C1357 | 330uF | 16V |
| C1358 | 47uF | 16V |
| C1366 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1367 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1372 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1373 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1374 | 47uF | 25V |
| C1375 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C1394 | 47uF | 50V |
| C1395 | 47uF | 50V |
| C1398 | 22uF | 16V |
| C1399 | 47uF | 50V |
| C1500 | 2200uF | 16V |
| C1501 | 470uF | 10V |
| C1508 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C1509 | 10uF | 50V |
| C1510 | 4.7uF | 50V |
| C1517 | 100uF | 10V |
| C1518 | 47uF | 16V |
M board — 6 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C1200 | 470uF | 10V |
| C1210 | 100uF | 16V |
| C1213 | 1uF | 50V |
| C1214 | 1uF | 50V |
| C1215 | 1uF | 50V |
| C1216 | 1uF | 50V |
G board — 12 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C616 | 47uF | 35V |
| C618 | 10uF | 50V |
| C619 | 220uF | 50V |
| C623 | 4700uF | 35V |
| C627 | 4700uF | 35V |
| C629 | 3300uF | 25V |
| C630 | 10uF | 50V |
| C632 | 47uF | 160V |
| C633 | 3300uF | 16V |
| C636 | 47uF | 50V |
| C639 | 10uF | 50V |
| C640 | 10uF | 50V |
GA board — 2 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C1601 | 100uF | 50V |
| C1602 | 220uF | 50V |
C board — 4 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C705 | 100uF | 16V |
| C724 | 10uF | 100V |
| C726 | 22uF | 250V |
| C733 | 10uF | 250V |
Q board — Terminal Board ASSY, I/O — 35 capacitors
| Location | Value | Voltage |
|---|---|---|
| C2402 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2403 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2404 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2405 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2406 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2407 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2408 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2409 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2411 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2412 | 10uF | 16V |
| C2414 | 1uF | 50V |
| C2416 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2422 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2423 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2425 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2426 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2427 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2429 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2431 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2432 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2434 | 0.1uF | 50V |
| C2436 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2438 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2439 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2441 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2442 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2443 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2444 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2447 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2448 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2449 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2450 | 22uF | 16V |
| C2451 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2452 | 47uF | 16V |
| C2454 | 4.7uF | 25V |
Procedure — working through a chassis ✅¶
Discharge the anode before anything else
The tube holds its charge with the cabinet unplugged, and so does the main filter capacitor. Discharge it, keep one hand in your pocket, and do not work on it alone. → CRT safety
Hot chassis: the ground is not earth
Some arcade chassis are referenced to the mains. On those, chassis ground is not earth, and an earthed oscilloscope clipped to it makes a dead short through your probe. Work through an isolation transformer. → CRT safety
1. Cold, before switching on. Cracked solder joints are the fault on these chassis — around the connectors, the flyback and anything heavy enough to work its own joints loose. Also swollen capacitors, cooked resistors, the brown halo of something that has been running hot. Reflow what looks suspect before diagnosing: a good share of intermittent chassis faults end there.
2. Fuse and primary side. A fuse that goes again is a short downstream, not a fuse problem — find it before fitting another.
3. Is there EHT at all? The tick of the flyback at switch-on, the filament glowing in the neck. No EHT points at the supply or the line stage. EHT but no picture points at video or the G2 — two very different jobs, and this is the measurement that separates them.
4. Recap — before any adjustment. This page does not carry a single list: take the one for your exact chassis. On a chassis of this age recap is not optional: the electrolytics are thirty years old and have been running hot since day one. → Recap
5. Adjustments, and only now. ⚠️ Never before the recap. Setting the geometry of a chassis whose capacitors are dying records the drift and makes you do the whole job twice. Write down where every pot was before you touch it. → CRT safety
6. Scan rate. This page covers several chassis with different capabilities — take the line for yours from its table. A board whose rate the chassis does not accept shows nothing, and nothing is faulty.
7. Verification. Let it run warm for a good while and check the geometry stops moving. A chassis that is right cold and wrong after twenty minutes is still a thermal fault — usually a joint, sometimes a capacitor you left in.
Sources & attribution¶
- PDF — sony-pvm-14l5-20l5-service-manual.pdf — Sony, PVM-14L5/20L5/D14L5A/D20L5A Service Manual, 184 pp., chassis SCC-G61K-A / G61L-A / H03D-A / H03E-A. ⓘ Archived for preservation: these monitors are no longer made or sold, and their service documentation is what still makes them repairable. ⚠️ The source item declares no licence**, and the manual carries Sony's own reservations — reproduced rather than smoothed away. Via Internet Archive.
- ODT — sony-pvm-20l2-capacitor-list.odt — Sony PVM-20L2 & PVM-20L2MD Capacitor List, community survey, Public Domain Mark 1.0, via Internet Archive.
- Sony product sheets PVM-1354Q/1954Q, PVM-1351Q, PVM-122, PVM-91, PVM-8040 — ⚠️ catalogued as "service manual" by the archive, they are one- or two-page sales leaflets. Cited here for what they are.
Review & corrections
How this space is used
Spotted a wrong value, an outdated procedure, a chip reference that does not match your board? Say so here, with what you observed (model, board revision, serial number, measurement). Every report is cross-checked against a source before anything changes — an unverifiable correction is published as “reported by …, not cross-checked” rather than silently applied.
Reading is open to everyone; posting requires signing in with Discord. Reports from the wiki's declared reviewers are handled first; anyone else's are read too, but go through a human before anything is changed.