Yet another no-good TV, yet another set of SMPS secondary filter caps.

[technix]

Someone was trying to sell a TV for $25 but it was returned as no good. I took it home for free hoping to fix it.

I took it apart, and went straight for the power board and inspected the secondary capacitors. 12V only, Capxon. Okay they are sus, and they gotta go.

Out goes two 470uF/35V and a 220uF/25V and in goes two Jamicon 1000uF/25V and 470uF/25V caps. Looks fixed now.

The problem is, why are those secondary output filter caps so darn unreliable? I have fixed so many TVs, monitors, set top boxes etc with that exact same fault. Even some enterprise networking gear suffers from bad caps. Grrr

[wasedadoc]

I don't know which of these applies.

1. The designers are incompetent.

2.  The designers do understand but do not adequately specify to manufacturing what capacitors to use.

3.  Component buyers ignore what has been specified, especially if they come across a cheaper component or if the original is difficult to obtain.

[T3sl4co1l]

Design life.

The caps are fine, for what they are. Give or take occasional formulation mistakes, but that's happened even to large brands. This particular brand makes as wide a range of products as anyone else; all of which will do more-or-less what the datasheet says.  If the type chosen isn't well suited to the application, or a longer lifetime is desired (a desire you are asserting, not the manufacturer!), you get unexpected failures.

Key word, "unexpected".  The manufacturer is happy with calculated lifetime, and their customers are happy enough at the price point.  Assuming, you know, a fair market and stable equilibrium and all.  Which... sometimes.

Also assuming that it's past EOL.  You didn't give a mfg date, which would probably give it away (if it's labeled at all, anyway).

Tim