The question: fix a 12-year-old projector or buy a new one?
Short answer: An Epson EX5200 projector from approximately 2013 was brought in with intermittent startup failure — it would power on successfully on some attempts and refuse on others. The fault was completely degraded power-board capacitors. A full recap restored the unit to reliable operation. At the repair cost versus replacement cost ratio, this was one of the clearest repair decisions in recent workshop experience.
The customer had already been quoted a full replacement by two other shops. One suggested the projector was too old to repair. The other quoted a board swap at ₹8,500 without testing the components first. Neither had done a component-level diagnosis. The customer wanted a second opinion before deciding.
What the bench found
Step 1: Optical system evaluation
Before any power-board work, the bench team evaluated the optical system — because if the LCD panels are degraded or the lens has significant haze, restoring the power board produces a working projector with poor image quality, and the repair is a waste of money. The Epson EX5200 uses three HTPS (high-temperature polysilicon) LCD panels. At 12 years of age with moderate use, the panels can show yellowing (silicon degradation) or pixel fade. In this case, the panels were projected onto a white surface and evaluated: image quality was still clean and colour-accurate. The optical system was in significantly better shape than the power electronics.
Step 2: Capacitor condition on the power board
The power board had eight electrolytic capacitors in the main supply rails. Six of the eight had visible top-bulge. The measured capacitance of the bulged units was 30–60% below their rated value — a significant loss that explained the intermittent startup behaviour. When capacitance drops this far, the power supply cannot hold stable voltage during the startup surge, and the projector's protection circuit cuts power before the lamp ignites. Importantly, this happens only sometimes because the capacitors' behaviour varies with temperature, which is why the fault appears intermittent.
A board with six out of eight failed capacitors is not a board-swap job — it is a recap job. Swapping the board would have cost ₹7,000 to ₹9,000 for a used board of uncertain age. A recap with new 105°C units cost ₹3,200 and resulted in a board with better capacitors than the original specification (the OEM units were 85°C-rated).
Step 3: The recap and test
All eight capacitors were replaced with Nichicon 105°C low-ESR (low equivalent series resistance, meaning they can handle fast charge/discharge cycles without heating up) units of matched capacitance and voltage ratings. After reassembly: twenty-five consecutive successful power-on tests over three different ambient temperatures. The intermittent startup failure was completely resolved. Final bench time: two hours and fifty minutes.
The repair vs replace framework
When to repair an old projector in India
Repair makes sense when: the optical system (LCD panels, colour wheel for DLP, lens) is still producing a good image; the fault is isolated to electronics (power board, ballast capacitors); the repair cost is less than 25% of a comparable new projector's price. For a 12-year-old unit with a clean optical system, a ₹3,200 recap against a ₹45,000 replacement projector is an obvious decision. For context on what individual repair types cost, the guide to projector power board repair costs in India has current bench ranges.
When to replace
Replace when the fault involves the optical block: a cracked LCD panel plus a degraded colour wheel plus a failing lamp simultaneously pushes the combined repair cost above the replacement threshold. Or when the DLP chip itself has failed on a unit where chip sourcing costs more than a new entry-level projector. The bench team will tell you honestly which situation applies — we have no incentive to repair something that should be replaced, or to replace something that should be repaired. For more on how a ballast fault can look similar to a power-board fault, see the story on the school annual function emergency. For urgent power-board diagnosis in Hyderabad, WhatsApp the model and symptoms to 7702503336.