Recap guide
Recap the Commodore 1084 monitor
Taicon-brand caps and the vertical-deflection electrolytics are the usual troublemakers, and a pinched picture is one reported result. Guides cover the 1084S and its sibling, the Amiga 1081.
Open the interactive checklist Tick off each capacitor as you replace it. It saves in your browser.
Worth a recap. Reports say it is a common and useful fix on this machine.
Which board do I have?
Boards changed during production. These notes come from the linked sources, and many are only partly documented, so check the board in front of you.
- 1084S-D (Low confidence). How to tell: Variant suffix as printed on the monitor; an EEVblog thread notes the 1084S-D has no vertical linearity trimpot unlike other 1084S variants. Capacitors: In that thread vertical distortion was fixed by replacing C306 (47uF) and C307 (1000uF 25V). Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
- 1084S-D2 (Medium confidence). How to tell: 13 inch 1992 Taiwan built version per CRT Database, with S-Video and RGB inputs. Capacitors: CRT Database says Taicon brand caps have a high failure rate and points to a full cap list; it also describes a D2 to D1 digital RGBi conversion. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
- 1084S-P (Philips built) (Low confidence). How to tell: A 1988 repair bulletin covers 1084S-P monitors made by Philips from June to September 1988. Capacitors: That bulletin's repair kit fixes high voltage loss with C476 (0.047uF mylar) and C356 and C561 ceramics, not electrolytics. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
Where to start
Clues from write-ups and forum threads, not a diagnosis. Low confidence means one thread or one repair; high means several write-ups agree.
- Taicon caps (Medium confidence). The CRT Database page flags Taicon-brand caps as having a high failure rate and includes a capacitor list with ratings. Source
- Pinched or distorted picture (Low confidence). In one forum thread on a 1084S-D, replacing two caps fixed vertical linearity. One report names C306 (47uF, dead) and C307 (1000uF, replaced) for a pinched picture. Source
Tips, tales and maybes
Found in write-ups and forum threads. These are other people's reports, not tested by us. Check part references and values against your own board.
- Tip: Power switch latches break (Medium confidence). The CRT Database page says the most common 1084S-D2 failure is the plastic power switch latches breaking, and suggests taping the switch on and using a power strip or fitting a matching SPDT switch, before the recap work. Source
- Story: 1084S-D recap with glue disease (Medium confidence). A restoration of a distorted 1084S-D with wavy RGB outlines found a bulging 220uF 400V supply cap, cracked joints, Daewoo glue disease, a loose cap on the video board and a failed TC4066BP swapped for a CD4066BE. The TDA1670A degauss IC was also replaced. Source
- Story: Folded sides after a flyback swap (Low confidence). A 1084S-P1 with the image folded at the right edge kept the fault after a new flyback and a replacement for C2515 (1uF), which had measured about 250nF with high ESR. The cause was still open at the end of the thread. Source
- Story: No image, filament barely heating (Low confidence). On a 1084S with no image and a barely heated filament, the owner wound extra turns on the line output transformer core for heater voltage. Replies said far fewer turns would do and suspected a secondary supply fault instead. Source
- Tip: 1081 bipolar cap C473 can explode (Medium confidence). An Amiga 1081 monitor page (a sibling of the 1084) says the bipolar cap C473 needs special care, a commenter warning that ordinary small electrolytics will explode and suggesting MKP polypropylene instead, physically larger. It also notes some boards lack C496 and C497 and some have C566. Source
Before you start
- Boards changed during production. Check your board number against the guides before you order parts.
- A tube and its high-voltage circuit can hold a lethal charge. Do not open the tube, and leave the analog board to a professional.
Guides we used
This page and the interactive bench are built from these. They have the photos and the full detail, so please read them and support their authors.
- Commodore 1084S-D2 (CRT Database) (List) by crtdatabase.com. Has a capacitor list. Page includes a capacitor list with ratings, service manual links and common faults (Taicon caps, power switch latch)
- CRT monitor display distortion problem (Forum) by EEVblog forum. 1084S-D worked example: vertical linearity fix by replacing two caps; also notes brown glue residue
- Amiga 1081 - Old Crap Vintage Computing (List) by oldcrap.org. Has a capacitor list. Sibling model 1081; capacitor list given as an image; warns small radial electrolytics used for bipolar spots can explode, suggests film caps
- 1084S-P Monitor Repair Kit 314891-01 (Manual) by Commodore service bulletin (funet.fi archive). Has a capacitor list. Service bulletin for loss of high voltage: line output transformer plus C476, C356, C561; not a general recap list
The capacitor list
We have not checked a capacitor list for this machine yet, so none is shown. Follow the guide above for your board, then add the capacitors in the interactive checklist and it builds a shopping list for you.
Skip the sourcing
While you are in there
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Steps, tools and safety
The steps, the tools in top, middle and budget picks, and the safety list are the same for every machine, so they live on one page: How to recap, step by step.
Values are shown as published in the guides above, and boards changed during production. Check the board in front of you. A recap involves hot tools and, on some machines, dangerous voltages. You do it at your own risk.