Polaroid TLU-03711C / FLM-3732 / FLM-373B - High Pitched Buzzing Sound When TV is Turned On –

I was having an ongoing problem with my Polaroid TLU-03711C television (which is very similar to, if not the same as the Polaroid FLM-3732 and Polaroid FLM-373B). Every time I would power the TV on it would start making this annoying high pitched buzzing/beeping sound which would continue for a number of minutes before eventually fading away. At first this was a manageable problem but the buzzing/beeping got gradually worse and was starting to become an issue. I called Polaroid but they were far from helpful and didn’t offer any information or guidance. I thought I was well and truly up the creek without a paddle. However, after a few Google searches I found that this is a common problem which effects quite a few Polaroid televisions, not particular to one model number, but right across the board. The issue is caused by a blown capacitor (kind of like a fuse going, in very layman’s terms). There are two capacitors which are linked to the TV’s sound/speakers; one or both may have blown which would cause the irritating buzzing/beeping sound. The solution to fix the issue involved opening up the back of the TV and replacing the two capacitors – something I’m not amazingly competent at. I am by no means an expert at this but I was able to successfully complete the task with relative ease. My method may not be the most tech savvy but it should solve the issue at hand. I found a really useful guide online which addressed how to replace the capacitors (http://tinyurl.com/c3dvc3), it had pictures and explained stuff really clearly so I thought I would give it a go as I didn’t have much to lose! My guide is very similar but addresses a different problem. I am pleased to say that my TV is now working perfectly – So here we go…

- This guide is attempted at your own risk -

What’s Needed Philips-head screwdriver Pliers Two replacement capacitors – 1000uf 16v (Available from Maplins [UK], Radioshack [US]) Approx Time Taken About 1 hour

Step One Unplug the TV and all other socket and place it on a blanket or carpeted floor with the screen facing down. The backside of the TV should be facing you like below.

Step Two Using the Philips-head screwdriver remove the three screws which hold the plastic vented back-panel in place. Keep these screws safe as obviously you’ll need to put them back in once completed. Screw locations pictured below.

Step Three With the screws now removed, remove the back-panel, this takes a little bit of force to pry open and reveal the control box cover. After doing this your TV should look like the picture below on the right.

Step Four Once again using the Philips-head screwdriver remove the three screws which are circled below (left). Then carefully remove the control box cover (pictured right).

Step Five Locate the capacitors which have blown, the capacitors relating to the sound/speakers are circled below. If either (or both) of the capacitors are indeed blown the top of them should be bulging/ballooned compared to other still-functional capacitors (see bottom row, right side picture for example of a blown capacitor).

You will notice in the above pictures that there is a swelling on the top of the capacitors, this means they have blown and this is the cause of the speaker buzzing/beeping sound. A fully functioning capacitor should be flat at the top.

Step Six Using the pliers, remove the blown capacitor(s). This may take a bit of wiggling about as they are soldered into place. Both of my capacitors had blown but I guess its possible for just one to go, in either case it’s better to remove them both. Be careful not to disrupt any of the other bits and pieces.

Once you have removed the capacitors you will need to get your replacement ones ready. I bought my replacement capacitors from Maplins (a UK store) but they can easily be found online or in stores such as Radio Shack (US store) or similar. I asked the guy behind the counter and he found me what I needed. The voltage wasn’t an exact match (original blown capacitors were 10V, the replacement ones were 16v) but he said this “didn’t matter”. The part that does matter is that the replacements are 1000uf (don’t ask me what that means!). They each cost me £0.37, which is about $0.80 (US – approx).

Step Seven Using the Philips-head screwdriver you will need to remove the four screws in each corner which holds the board on which the capacitors are located. Circled below (capacitors still pictured as I took this photo afterwards)

Step Eight Remove the plastic shield underneath the board, keep it safe as it will have to go back in place shortly. This next part is very, very important – you will notice on both of the capacitors that there is a negative “ – “ sign down on side of the capacitor. You must make sure that the prod underneath the negative sign goes into the little hole opposite the hole marked “ + “ on the board. Negative must go in negative and vice versa. Double check and make sure that both capacitors are placed in the correct way round (negative and positive).

Step Nine If you are competent enough to try it, the capacitors can be soldered into place using a soldering iron. I’m not that good so my very un-technical way of positioning the capacitors in place was fold the capacitors prongs outwards on the underside of the board – no soldering involved. See the picture below. Not technical, but does the job.

Step Ten Place the plastic shield back underneath the board and screw the board back into place. Also replace the control box cover and screw that into place and finally screw back on the vented back-panel. Everything will now look just as it did when you started. Your TV now, in theory, should be working. I did this process and got rid of the irritating buzzing/beeping sound. Ta-dah! Thanks to the writer of the original guide which helped me out so much (http://tinyurl.com/c3dvc3). This method worked for me and hopefully it’ll work for you. The total cost of fixing this issue cost me less than £1 – the cheapest quote I got from a TV repair company was £175. Hope this helps!