I am one of the original people who had a bulb failure and then finally got a replacement back in July.

FTI - I also received my lamp (the one that just failed after ~40 hrs) in July...

Thank for everyone who posted. I only purchased the bulb warranty and the woman on the phone indicated that there needed to be some form submitted for a change as well. I will call them back on Monday. I do want the replacement bulb from them per my service agreement.

In the mean time we received the replacement bulb today (Saturday) I purchased from Visual Apex (shipped direct from BenQ) earier than they had promised.

Does any one have any recommendations on what altitude setting I should use this time?

This lamp issue with the MT700/PE7700 is really starting to get scary. It seems like there have been so many more lamp failure reports the last few weeks. This is going to steer a fair number of people away from these units. Its too bad. Those of us who have spent months and countless hours reading about and planning to purchase one of these units, now have a hard decision and may have to look at other projectors (or wait for others to come). Those who just came here to learn about these projectors will quickly steer away when they hear these stories.
They don't have as much time or emotion invested. Those who own one, will probably stick with it because of the great picture and the money they have invested and hope and pray they don't have to replace the bulb too many times out of warranty at $400 a crack.

If only Toshiba & BenQ would admit the problem and figure out how to fix it. If not, the fall out will be greater.
This is such a shame because I had my heart set on this projector. There really is no other native 720p DLP projector in this price range. I imagine there will be if a person can wait.

At least I will have a few more months to think about it since I broke my foot and had to stop construction on my home theater for a while.
I feel for all of you who are having lamp/projector problems.

Michael_Truong[U] -- It depends on where you are living. If you're in a local theat is under 2000 feet and your room is below 75 degrees F, then the normal fan setting should be fine. This assumes that you don't have other problems in the PJ. I'm up to 378 hours without a problem (but then my MT700 never did have a previous problem) at the normal fan setting. It's never operated over 650 feet above sea level either.

You wont hurt anything by running it at the "High Altitude" setting, except it will be much louder. BTW, make sure you reset the lamp timer (Menu -> Setup -> Lamp -> Reset Timer).

Make sure you document everything: when you bought it, how many hours until the lamp failed, how long it was on during each session (maximum & minimum), how many times it was turned on and of in any one day, how many months old the PJ was when the first lamp failed, etc. You want this information, in case the new lamp fails early too. In that case, you should send the MT700 back to Toshiba for repair of a defective PJ, and may have to argue with them.

Regarding your lamp warranty, If you registered it when you bought the PJ (supposed to register it within 10 days of receipt of the unit), then you shouldn't have a problem. You should follow MikeSRC's recommendation and ask for a supervisor, if you get any run-around. You just need to remind them that this is a lamp warranty and picks up after the Toshiba 90 day warranty ends.

To be perfectly honest, I semi-invented an excuse on my second lamp failure to make sure Tosh looked at the machine, not just replaced the lamp. And it turned out to have a problem, which could likely have had an effect on the lamp. I don't think you'll have any trouble convincing them that the PJ needs looking at, beyond the lamp.

nothru,
I tried out the SPL meter despite Claus' comments about the low end of 50db. I had to turn off my furnace/AC to be able to take any useful readings at all. That's how quiet my PJ is.

At a distance of about 15" directly under the PJ and anything farther away, the meter did not measure anything in any mode. I had to get within about 6" of the out vents (front of PJ, not under) to get anything to register in Standard altitude. The sound is quite directional.

At a distance of about 1" from the out vents, Standard altitude measured 55db and High measured 65db. I will also say that High has a less pleasing sound, not just louder but more annoying. Maybe a bit of vibration causing that, not sure.

Take it for what it's worth. Besides only starting at 50db, I believe the meter is also much less accurate in this range, can't remember.

It does have a lot of error at the very bottom. You were probably measuring the wind ( :eek: ) pressure waves across the microphone, rather than actual sound.

It's a sound pressure (far field) measuring device and doesn't do well as a close mike.

I also measured 55 db, but not from right in front of it. From about two feet away. This projector is rated at 26 db and that is what I was getting for the first month and a half of its life. Tops replaced the fan, but it's actually louder now than when I sent it back, but it sounds more like a fan and less like the grrr. I can clearly hear the fan changing speeds now. I am finding it difficult to even watch anything, especially anything talky with periods devoid of music or other background noise to drown out the projector. I don't know the next step but it looks like I'll be without a TV for a few more days again.

It sounds (pardon the pun) like it.

I just hauled out my RS 33-4050 SPL meter and measured mine (muted the sound out of my receiver). I got nothing (50 dB) until I got to within 2" of the fans, then the meter started to move. With the meter (held vertically) right up against the front (but not touching) of the MT700, I got 54 - 56 dB, and 60 dB with the meter's microphone aimed at the fans (reading the air flowing across the microphone element).

NOTE: With the audio on low (watching Court TV) I got about 56 dB (meter in front of me, about 44" from the PJ. When I moved the meter to about 6" from the fans, the meter rose 2 dB (to 58 dB). This may be a better way to measure it (to see how much sound the fans add to an existing, low but measureable, background). The meter was held vertically at all times (C weighting, Slow response).

This projector is rated at 26 db and that is what I was getting for the first month and a half of its life.

The spec is probably from 1m (like most noise specs). Curious, do you have a meter that can measure 26dB?

No, I do not have an SPL that can measure below 50, I am just assuming it was the advertised noise level before because I could barely hear it.

Using the RS sound meter is pretty useless with a projector, except for comparing the relative sound level of different projectors. When I did my comparison review, I had to place the meter within a few inches of each projector to get a decent reading that could be used for comparison. But even that's got some error built in.

I don't worry about the fan - the heating & a/c stuff in the laundry room keep my noise level around 54dB when stuff is on. It sucks.

Does the digital RS meter go lower than 50dB?

nothru22,
I'm with you. In my case, am told both fans were replaced. Is definitely louder than before. Is a grr just as fans turn on, then just fan noise. Also fan noise varies then on.

At about 150 hrs on 2nd bulb. Why would they replace the color wheel?

Paul, took four measurements of ballast temp in normal setting after PJ on for about 3.5 hrs. Range is +3937 to +5262. Don't know what to make of this. High altitude setting no option - too loud already.

That reminds me I did pay for a 28db PJ. Oh well, maybe I'll end up with a new bulb every 90 days for the next two years. Won't be any problems with bulb going dim! Still split on the forum as to whether 90 days starts again with 2nd bulb. Anyone have first hand knowledge yet?

Jeff - I am assuming that your readings mean that you are varying from 39 degrees to almost 53 degrees C at Normal setting. I was also seeing numbers in the 50 range in Normal, which I think is too much, so I changed to High and it does lower the temp to about 35 which I assume can only increase bulb life.

I don't have a SPL meter but the PJ is not too loud in low speed w/ the PJ about 4 feet above me and about 3 feet in front of my seated position.

I have not played w/ changing any of the fan settings but that maybe the next step, if I can figure it out.

Well, my 2nd lamp was replaced at about 88 days after it was put in. Never discussed lamp vs PJ warranty, they just took it and fixed it. This had to be around 4.5 months after purchase of the PJ, I don't have the dates in front of me.

Paul,
My fan speed would be louder to the ear since the PJ is about 2-3' in back of me (exhaust facing the back of my head). Fan speed noise not as bad if PJ in front. Nothing I can do about that. Got hooked on 12' seating from 118" diag. screen!

My readings are what is actually seen in the service menu for ballast temperature.

Hoping the new (although louder) fans Tops put in will take care of the bulb failure. Will just have to see as more post in this forum, as Toshiba been no help. Would be a lot easier on us all if Toshiba will fix/recall, especially as I how notice enthusiasts who were once interested in this PJ now shying away. Too bad as most agree is has fastastic PQ. Toshiba where are you???

Spiky,
If I understand correctly, you sent in PJ to Tops after 2nd lamp failed (w/in 90 days of receiving lamp) and they replaced it under( lamp) warranty? Did Tops replace anything else besides the lamp?

Not trying to ease the pain for the people whose lamp have died but I start to wonder how many happy PJ owners come here.
It is like taking statistics at the doctor's office to see how many % of the people are sick, darn it is almost 100% ;)

PS: There must have been at least 10000-20000 Benq7700/MT700 sold in the meantime.

ProjectorSolution.com had 4 lamps in stock just a couple of days ago. -art

Like any major car manufacturer, we will not see a recall until X number of "deaths" are associated with the product.

I love my PJ, just wish Toshiba would put the brakes (pun) on this so we can move on and discuss the finer qualities like what was posted early on in this thread which lead me to buy the PJ in the first place. Right now we are on our own to speculate.

I know CT has not had any problems, any others? Is the bulb poll representative nationwide?

I'm on about 150 hours -- no lamp problems.

Like any major car manufacturer, we will not see a recall until X number of "deaths" are associated with the product.

I love my PJ, just wish Toshiba would put the brakes (pun) on this so we can move on and discuss the finer qualities like what was posted early on in this thread which lead me to buy the PJ in the first place. Right now we are on our own to speculate.

I know CT has not had any problems, any others? Is the bulb poll representative nationwide?

I haven't checked my hours lately, but my family watches 1-5 movies per week. No-0-nada problems to date. I have had my 700 for about 3-1/2 months.

Not trying to ease the pain for the people whose lamp have died but I start to wonder how many happy PJ owners come here.
What about those of us that have had our lamp die, but are still happy PJ owners? They're not mutually exclusive. ;)

What about those of us that have had our lamp die, but are still happy PJ owners? They're not mutually exclusive. ;)

:)

Just a quick update -

Called Toshiba this morning and they agreed 2 lamps dying in under 100 hours (total for both lamps) probably means there is something wrong with the PJ, and they are going to have me send in the whole unit. The guy I talked to speculated that it might be a bad ballast. I asked if they have been receiving a lot of calls about this particular problem on this PJ, and the rep I spoke to said "no," and that they get very few calls about projectors in general (of course, I don't know what I expected him to say :D )

What about those of us that have had our lamp die, but are still happy PJ owners? They're not mutually exclusive. ;)

I gotta agree with miltimj...
I bought this PJ based entirely on what I read here, sight unseen. I had never even seen a good PJ at a show or demonstrated well in a store. Once I had this up and running (which was quite an ordeal...bad HDMI cable, but that is another story), I almost cried with joy. The picture is stunning and even DVD's look amazing through my HTPC running NVIDIA DVD Decoder. I hope this problem is not as wide-spread as it seems (oh, and also that Toshiba can fix mine too :rolleyes:!!)

I am 130 hours so far on my MT700 and my unit is one of the first production units I believe (Apr 05)... no lamp problem yet *knock on wood* . Only issue I had so far was a flaky HDMI connector but it seems to have fixed itself after I swapped HDMI cable and re-inserted the old HDMI cable. I am back to using my old HDMI cable and everything is fine. I am still paranoid about the bulb issue though ;-)

I'm at about 430 hours on my original MT700 lamp. It went through a brief period of "flicker" at about 100 hours; but after running it on high brightness for a few hours that went away and hasn't returned. It's too bad that some folks are having problems. These are really great PJ's when they work.

I am also very happy with mine. Just nervous about lamps. With Toshiba's quick turnaround the fixes have been relatively painless. This is still not my least reliable product, Marantz wins that award.

I am up to the mid-60s on the 3rd lamp. I tend to use mine quite a bit. US Open tennis and NFL add up. Plus it's my only HDTV, so I use it for regular TV a bit, too.

jeffcom,
The 2nd repair was a lamp replacement and a correction of loose ballast wires. Resoldered, I imagine.

I'm on 250 hours -- no lamp problems.

Called back Warrentech today and to my delight they had already corrected the issue with my contract so it now correctly showed the warranty starting after 90 days. Even better, they gave me an authorization number and said I could expect the lamp to be delivered within 10 days.

So I am hoping that ...
... I get the lamp soon,
... it works when it gets here, and
... it keeps working for a long, long time!

Otherwise I do think this is a terrific projector and if it keeps working is a terrific value. (And in case you are wondering I don't feel that way just because I bought it :).

okay, so i came here to see if anyone else had had lamp failure issues, and i'm not sure if i was hoping people *had* (might have tips & advice) or *hadn't* (my model was a fluke and i'd be problem-free soon!) but clearly it looks like i am not alone.

yeah, first bulb failed around 170 hours. got the replacement, was fine, turned the PJ to high mode to play some splinter cell on saturday night and poof, gone. probably 130 or so hours on that one.

on the upside, i got the expedited overnight fedex-to-service-center-on-toshiba's-dime service this time, as i pointed out two bulbs failing was unlikely to be the bulbs' fault both times.

my sound system is loud enough i think i'll just leave it in high altitude mode the whole time and crank up the volume. thank god my neighbors never ever complain.

oh, and i guess i'll never turn it to high mode ever again. ugh.

i suppose this must just be a cooling issue, and toshiba got a little overzealous trying to get the fan noise as low as possible without overheating? maybe i should keep enhance my ceiling mount to fit a dorm-room fridge with a hole cut into it for the lens.

Contacted Warrantech today. Records have been changed; I have a new service number and a reference number for the new lamp. The guy I spoke to also had a 100% better attitude than the last person I spoke to, polite and kept me informed during the call.

On the projector side, my wife and I would have agree with those who have posted...this is a great projector when every thing is working properly. We watched Sin City and the blacks in this movie were just incredible on this projector. No regrets on the purchase but my current experience is giving me a few nervous thoughts.

Well I just joined the "Failed Lamp Club". Sunday night, with about 390 hours on the lamp, it went dark (my MT700 is 4 months , 16 days old – the original owner bought it on 5/2/05). I didn't hear it, but my S.O. said that it made a strange sound (a sharp snap - but not a glass breaking, clicking, or arcing sound) sound. The red “Lamp” indicator did not come on, at least before I turned the PJ off. The PJ just sat there as if nothing was wrong, except there was no light coming out of it (the indicators all showed normal operation). We were watching CNN at the time.

I also found out that I can't transfer the transferable Warrantech warranty, I have to get the original owner to do that, and it has to be in writing (and mailed to Warrantech), and there is a $10 transfer fee required. That is going to take a more time :mad:. None of these details are spelled out anywhere, BTW, including on the Warrantech web page, the warranty registration page or in the warranty booklet that came with the MT700.

Fortunately, I'll be out of town for about a week, so the impact on my viewing will not be as bad.

I took the lamp out to look at it. I couldn't find anything that looked bad, except on an external metal grill (there are 2) that had a heat discolored area on it. Everything else looked clean inside (of the parts I could see). When I put it back in, I tried to turn the PJ back on. It took over 2 minutes before the correct indicators lit (for a dead lamp).

BTW, I have followed all of the recommendations that I have made in all my previous posts, so it’s definitely a lamp or PJ problem. Because it took so long to fail, I'm assuming it's a lamp problem. I haven't pulled the MT700 cover (bottom plate) off, but from what I could see, the quality of construction looked very good (including the lamp, BTW).

I will post an update once I get everything resolved.

Claus,
Sorry to hear about the PJ. You were my last holdout, with most hours before bulb failure.

Be sure you send in the PJ to Tops. Looks like most of us are ending up with new high power fans and/or ballast. Make sure they solder the ballast wires properly! :)

Looks like most of us are ending up with new high power fans
:mad: :mad: :mad: :(

I find it hard to believe that this is all a lamp issue, when my projector was at Tops the girl said they were "stacked up" Now more "electronic" issues are surfacing in the Benq camp.

This is just terrible, and I read these threads feeling guilty that Toshiba refunded my projector purchase and lamp warranty in full, I got out just in time even though i had the PJ for 5 months and 120 hours, but my lamp was flickering before it was sent away never to return

I feel for you guys and have yet to replace it, because the market is emerging in this price point.

The clones do offer a great picture, it really stinks that there is a serious design flaw somewhere here, and they have not found it or don't recognize it....


Good luck,
TJ

I have posted the latest MT700 firmware (A00_ver029) for downloading. You will need to make a serial programming cable (Mini DIN8 to DB9) or somehow locate one yourself. I do not know the proper wiring diagram, but maybe you guys can figure it out & share info.

Oh yeah, the Disclaimer: USE THIS SOFTWARE AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

$$$%savefile%com/files/1660885

I have posted the latest MT700 firmware (A00_ver029) for downloading. You will need to make a serial programming cable (Mini DIN8 to DB9) or somehow locate one yourself. I do not know the proper wiring diagram, but maybe you guys can figure it out & share info.

Oh yeah, the Disclaimer: USE THIS SOFTWARE AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

$$$%savefile%com/files/1660885

Replace $ with w
Replace % with .

I think they are making some hardware changes too so I would strongly recommend just sending the unit in rather than updating the firmware yourself. Updating your bios on your computer is one thing. You are out a hundred bucks if you screw it up, but this is a whole different matter.
Warren.

Well I just joined the "Failed Lamp Club". Sunday night, with about 390 hours on the lamp, it went dark (my MT700 is 4 months , 16 days old – the original owner bought it on 5/2/05). I didn't hear it, but my S.O. said that it made a strange sound (a sharp snap - but not a glass breaking, clicking, or arcing sound) sound. The red “Lamp” indicator did not come on, at least before I turned the PJ off. The PJ just sat there as if nothing was wrong, except there was no light coming out of it (the indicators all showed normal operation).

Sorry to hear that Claus. I just had a local customer have his bulb go out as well. His was just under the 90 days and only had about 65 hours on it. The same thing happened with his, only no noticeable noise. Restarting caused the bulb to flash briefly for a split second, then was completely dead. Toshiba is just replacing the lamp at this point.


I took the lamp out to look at it. I couldn't find anything that looked bad, except on an external metal grill (there are 2) that had a heat discolored area on it. Everything else looked clean inside (of the parts I could see). When I put it back in, I tried to turn the PJ back on. It took over 2 minutes before the correct indicators lit (for a dead lamp).

The lamp condition was the same on the one I saw, nothing visibly wrong, but that's typical for projector lamps.

I would like to know the resistance across a new good lamp and off a failed one...

I wonder if the "blown" ones are "open" or as the bulb ages the resistance goes higher and out of spec for a poorly designed ballast circuit.

I will say again, I feel there is a sub-system in the ignitor/ballast system causing this.

Someone please check the "blown" bulb.....

my unit had a "mainboard failure" and exhibited the pulsing bulb just before it left...I am sure if I had kept it the bulb was not long for the world




TJ

I would like to know the resistance across a new good lamp and off a failed one...
I wonder if the "blown" ones are "open" or as the bulb ages the resistance goes higher and out of spec for a poorly designed ballast circuit.
Someone please check the "blown" bulb.....
my unit had a "mainboard failure" and exhibited the pulsing bulb just before it left...I am sure if I had kept it the bulb was not long for the world
I checked the continuity across my first blown lamp and found that it was indeed open (didn't check the second, just sent the unit in without even looking at it).

My unit also exhibited the "pulsing bulb" (brightness wavering slightly) phenomenon with both lamps. I mostly noticed it when I turned the picture brightness up...the brightness would waver a bit then stabilize.

No sound when mine went (either time). But with the second one I could here a crackling sound when I tried to turn it on again, which I presume was some sparking or arcing across the open connection in the lamp.

Has anyone had a lamp failure after receiving their unit back from service (with new ballast and/or fans)???


I will say again, I feel there is a sub-system in the ignitor/ballast system causing this.
I agree...just hope the new ballasts they are installing at Tops are without this defect...

tehotaone -- Mine was running in a normal, steady operation, no pulsing, no flickering, no indication of any problems, it just suddenly went dark. It had been running very steady over the previous 20 hours (when I turned it on it was always running for around 4-5 hours at a time). There has been no change in the operation for the 186 hours that I've put on the lamp (there was 204 hours on the lamp, when I got the MT700).

The way mine has been working: slow warmup (about a minute, or so) and gradual increase in lamp output until it gets to full brightness (in about 5-10 minutes). The exhaust air flow appeared to be fairly solid (no fan problems). The inlet temperature was runing between 72 and 75 degrees F and the exhaust temperature was around 170 degrees F at about 1" away from the exhaust grill.

OK, questions:

Did anyone here have a failure of a bulb that always ran the bulb in "high" mode?

At what interval?

What is the average failure hour if you ran it in "low" mode?


What is the earliest reported failure?

Has anyone had a bulb go with absolutely no signs of flicker at all?



I would think the current limiting in the ballast circuit is allowing fluctuations in the circuit to reach the bulb rather than providing a constant X=current the bulb needs for long term service



Bulbs usually die when being struck or strained, the minute pulsing is pulling on that element like a piece of string, finding the weak point then poof...

If the ballast goes critical it could spike the bulb once and take it out....


That is why I question the new tech that PJs are using that cycle the bulb high to low to afford contrast.....that can't be good for the element..time will tell




TJ

tehotaone -- See my previous post (steady, no pulsing, etc.) before failure (100% "standard" - low- power). See the "Poll: MT700/PE7700 Lamp Life", both the original and the version III.

Has anyone had a bulb go with absolutely no signs of flicker at all?


The one I mentioned above that went at 65 hours displayed no signs of flicker at all before going out.

As I've reported earlier, exactly 200 hours of use, 102 days. What I haven't reported yet is that I didn't have any flicker, and I used full (bright) mode for the first 150 hrs or so, then economy mode until it went out.

No flicker for me either. An hour into a movie it just turned off. You are recommended to put the projector in high mode if you get flicker. There was an explanation from a projector engineer here somewhere about wear of the element and switching modes helps the bulb burn properly.
Warren.

You are recommended to put the projector in high mode if you get flicker. There was an explanation from a projector engineer here somewhere about wear of the element and switching modes helps the bulb burn properly.I believe you're referring to the following post by Infocus engineer and AVS member Bob Williams:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=5820302&&#post5820302

Did you guys not notice the updated firmware has been posted here?

Yes, but if you don't have the correct pin assignments on both ends, you could do some real damage. Also, I haven't heard definitively what the firmware addresses, or if it will work properly with a U.S. model.

There are hardware changes they are making on projectors sent in, so I wouldn't even think about updating the firmware myself. You should send it in if you want it updated.
Warren.

They can't update it at the service center yet. They want us to figure out if there's a way we can do it ourselves.

Yeah im from the UK and have sent an email to the UK branch. My version is 22/02/05 FW 0.22 so its the real old version.

After reading everything on here im worried i have purchased a lemon. Althought he quality is excellent at the mo. (when i sort out my dark screen issues) if the bulb blows the replacements are £400, (about $800 - $900) and thats not good if it blows after my 90 day period (Nov 2nd) if it not only requires FW update, but hardware Update too!!!

While my projector was at Tops I received great service from them, I unfortunately never got to experience their efforts due to a parts issue from Toshiba.

Ultimately, I never got my projector back, just a refund from Toshiba corporate for my full purchase price due to a huge parts delay in my specific senario.


Toshiba came through in the 1.5 week ordeal finally

But it was Toshiba delaying it not Tops

Now I have to decide on a replacement....good and bad :)


TJ
How long did it take Toshiba corporate to send you a check?

After a month and a half long ordeal ( I sent the PJ to Tops 4 times only to have it come back unfixed and something else wrong with it. Hell, the last time I sent it in it was returned UPS ground and untouched) and after a lot of mud slingin I got them to give me a refound.

Ddog!

For people that were wondering what the SCR stands for I found this reference at the TI website.

Sequential Color Recapture and Dynamic Filtering: A Method of Scrolling Color

6/26/2001
Author(s): D. Scott Dewald Steven M. Penn Michael Davis

Abstract: Scrolling color has long been a goal of the projector industry, as it enables the most efficient use of light in a single panel display. Current methods of implementing scrolling color use the techniques of splitting the light into primary colors, and manipulating that light on the modulator. The authors present the techniques of dynamic filtering and sequential color recapture (SCR) to achieve the same result with no moving components other than a color wheel, showing that the efficiency of 3-modulator systems can be approached with one modulator. Analysis of the technique applied to DLP™ projection displays, and results of prototype projection systems using the techniques, will be presented.

Ddog,

I sent my projector in on August 15th, I got the runaround for a week, I complained and climbed the corporate structure over the next few days, and got the ok for a refund in about a 1.5 weeks total.

I knew there was something wrong and as much as I love this PJ I can't in good faith have one.

I got the check for my projector, shipping, and useless bulb warranty in about 1 week.

It is too bad, but now I am out of it and damn close to buying a H78dc3, so I feel really lucky....

PM me for the rest, again this might not be the place to discuss this out of respect to the people plauged with issues and runaround...

TJ

TJ

U'v got mail

THE Dog!

sorry didnt mean to start a new thread. Can someone please tell me how to go about replacing my lamp/projector. I bought this from an internet store (beachaudio.com), so there is no warrenty from the store itself i dont think. I have to go through toshiba then? what is their warrenty policy? what's topps? thanks!


http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=583229

gagaliya -- I answered your questions on the new thread that you started.

BTW, for high ticket items, you should never buy from a non-authorized dealer. Also, posting dealers is against forum rules.

gadaliya, I bought my MAT700 from the same place you bought yours....I had no problems with the service, or subsequent refund.


TJ

CT, you're allowed to say where you bought your projector from, just not how much you paid for it.

thanks a lot guys! i will call toshiba when i get home today, hope everything works out.

gadaliya, I bought my MAT700 from the same place you bought yours....I had no problems with the service, or subsequent refund.

TJ


hey tj, did you buy any warranty from beachaudio? how many days did you have it before returning it back to them for a refund. Or did you mean getting a refund from toshiba and not beachaudio? thanks

I did not buy a warranty from Beach.

I bought the PJ first week of April, and recieved a corporate check from Toshiba on the 1st of Sept.


Good luck


TJ

My service history w/ Tops:
#1- Bulb failed at 150 hrs. and replaced.
#2- After running PJ for 3 hrs. it shut down. According to manual, light indicators of PJ point to problem with fans. Tops replace both fans and at my insistence the bulb, due to hard shutdown.

No problems so far, after 5 weeks and 140 hrs. Except that the fans are very much louder. So last night I did a experiment after getting several readings over the past week or so, from the thermal test screen located in the service menu after the PJ is on between 3.5-4.0 hrs. Ok, sit back and relax. To me it is a revelation. All readings are in standard lamp mode. I live near South Bend, IN flat, corn country.

From the thermal test screen:
MAIN +27 +1550
BALLAST TEMP +5262
BLOWER +33 +3200
POWER +24 +1550
These are base readings taken prior to last night.

Now, I turned on the fan to high altitude and after 20 minutes the readings are:
MAIN +52 +2700
BALLAST TEMP. +3425
BLOWER +40 +3800
POWER +49 +2700
What I felt was significant is the two digit MAIN number and BALLAST TEMP.
The fans in high altitude mode are extremely loud and am sure totally unacceptable for HT use. I muted all sound and could hear the fans gradually pick up speed.

Now, after the readings stabilized in high lamp mode, switched to regular fan speed and immediately entered the thermal test screen. The fan began a gradually decrease speed, and the thermal numbers went back to base
.
Observations:
There is a direct correlation between the 2 digit MAIN number and fan speed. Higher the fan speed- higher this number . As fan speed decreases the ballast temp goes up. There is a 35% decrease in ballast temp in high altitude mode.

My questions:
What is your two digit reading for MAIN. Have your fans been replaced. This would help to find out how loud these new fans really are.
What is your ballast temp?
What is a safe ballast temp. I recall a post that +34-3500 and no more. Is this true?
Any comments on other readings here that maybe useful.

It is too bad, but now I am out of it and damn close to buying a H78dc3, so I feel really lucky....
TJ

I just sent my unit in for service on Tuesday, so I won't know what will happen for awhile (replacement vs. repair vs. refund), but unfortunately in the event of a refund, I can't afford any more projector than what I paid for the MT700. :rolleyes: After months and months and months and months of reading reviews, articles, and and forum posts, I finally settled on the MT700. A very close second was the the Sharp XV-Z2000, which looked like it had pretty much the same specs (also has power zoom+focus which is a plus) but was selling at a slightly higher price point. If I do get a refund this will definitely be a replacement candidate. Does anyone have any experience and/or comments about the Z2000? Thanks!!

I am CLOSE I said :) It is a big jump in price....I just want to be sure it is not incremental, everyone spouts how the Optoma is twice the calibrated contrast on the h77 but it is dimmer.

My hope is the H78 will be just as bright but better contrast, more reliable, better support and no G$%Damn panning artifact....!!!

I just want to watch movies and get ready for the xbox360.... I want this one to last me until 1080p is south of 4K...


TJ

Well I just joined the "Failed Lamp Club".

To Claus, Miltimj, Warren and everyone else who has had a failure recently - my condolences. It sucks, but welcome to the club I guess :rolleyes:

Anyhow, a quick update from my situation. Last Tuesday evening I faxed an amendment to my contract to Warrentech/Repairmaster. The amendment corrects the incorrect warranty time period I had entered on their website when I first signed up. That correction was stated (by "Owen") to take 3-5 business days after they received the fax, and that they would contact me within that time period.

Today is the 7th business day (Weds to Thurs) and I hadn't heard anything, so I called. After pressing #2 and being on hold for about 5 minutes, "Elizabeth" (I think that was the name) answered. I have to say, she was much nicer, courteous, and knowledgeable than "Owen." First, she discovered a typo in my file and went away for a minute to ensure it was corrected. Then, she informed me that the contract had just been amended yesterday (the 6th business day, tsk tsk) and that she was faxing the lamp shipment request to "Tritronics" who would ship me the part. If it was in stock I should expect to receive it within 3 business days.

My first question was, "why wasn't the request already faxed?" She really didn't have an answer other than "well the contract was just amended yesterday". I give that a C- (the fact is wasn't faxed yet), but I don't think it was her fault.

Anyhow, she gave me Tritronics' number (1800-638-3328) and an authorization code and told me they would ship it out.

I have to say, I am satisfied. Other than the very annoying initial service rep "Owen" and the contractual mistake (partly my fault for screwing it up to being with, but their fault for taking two extra days to process it), I think I am satisfied with Warrentech/Repairmaster. I am confident that I will receive my bulb in a timely manner, not counting backorder issues, if they are still around.

I checked out Tritronics:

http://www.tritronicsinc.com/aboutus.html

They look like a decent company and even listed some awards. This one caught my attention:

NPSC 2002: Tritronics, Inc sweeped the awards ceremony at the July 2002 National Professional Service Convention held in Orlando! Tritronics was once again awarded Distributor of the Year by Sharp Electronics and Toshiba America. Click here for additional highlights and photos of Tritronics receiving NESDA and OEM recognition for outstanding contribution, promotion, partnership and support of the independent service industry.

Distributor of the year for Toshiba and Sharp? I am hopeful they can get a bulb pretty quickly :)

That said, I searched their site and found that the TLPLMT70 lamp was

Part # TLPLMT70 Vendor: TOSHIBA

TOSHIBA LAMP

INVENTORY NOT AVAILABLE CAN BE ORDERED

You pay: $449.99 EA
Core credit: $0.00
Final price: $ 449.99 EA

Well, I wouldn't except them to have one in stock (I don't know if these PJs are that popular) anyway. So, I am just hoping they can get one ordered and out to me soon.

I will call Tritronics tomorrow early (8:30am-6pm EST) and try to see what the wait is for the bulb.

I will update when I know more.

Phew :)

Long story short - Warrentech/Repairmaster looks like an okay outfit. So far. Minus Owen and their contracting dept. heh. :)

Just so you know, Warrantech has been around a long time and is the largest of the aftermarket insurers in the U.S. The lamp warranty, however, is brand new for them (just started selling them in March or so) and we MT700 owners are probably the first ones to use the warranty. I would expect better service in the future. It's unfortunate that you had to be one of the "guinea pigs". :(

I thought I had read that somewhere - that Warrentech was pretty big. That's good, makes me more comfortable.

But, I'm not really complaining at all. I messed up initially by putting the PJ warranty time (that's what the website asked for though!) instead of the lamp warranty. Makes sense to do otherwise now, but I didn't want to read into anything back when I signed up. That one service guy was weird and rude, but the lady I just talked to was very nice and helpful. Other than the contract amendment taking a pair of extra days, I am pretty much happy.

Now, I'm curious what the bulb stocks are like - I wonder if Tosh/BenQ spun up production and rolled some heads in those lamp production facilities (wherever they're made)? I guess I'll find out soon.

Grade for Warrentech so far, straight B. "B" for not bad. :)

I miss my PJ.

I just had a local customer call Toshiba after his went out (within 90 days) and they have some lamps, so maybe there are enough to go around now.

I just had a local customer call Toshiba after his went out (within 90 days) and they have some lamps, so maybe there are enough to go around now.

If you were in the same room as me I'd hug you right now.

tehotaone -- I just talked to the guy that I bought my MT700 from. He bought a H78DC3. I asked him how he liked it (the last time I talked with him, he had just gotten it). His reply was, "boy it's a bright PJ" - brighter than the MT700, for sure (after calibration with AVIA).

He just sent in the request for transfer of the lamp warranty. So I'll have to wait until probably Monday before Warrantech gets the letter. I'm tempted to call TACP and see what they say. Maybe I can get lucky and have them replace the lamp, even thought it's past 90 days, but less than 500 hours. The PE7700 thread said that BenQ was doing that, because of all the early lamp failure problems.

I'd sure hate to send my MT700 in and wind up getting fans replaced with louder ones, mine is sitting 2 feet behind my left ear.

I'd sure hate to send my MT700 in and wind up getting fans replaced with louder ones, mine is sitting 2 feet behind my left ear.
But this might be the secret of the failing lamps. Inadequate airflow. I may try to call Toshiba tonight. I hated being on hold with them for so long. I talked to the great tech at Tops and decided not to send it back in, as they would just have the same loud fans to put back into it.

Anyone have any suggestions how I can get straight to some higher people at Toshiba?

The lamp failure, based on this thread, boils down to defective bulb, inadequate airflow to bulb and/or ballast causing overheating, a defective ballast or a combination thereof.

The purpose of thread #1816 is to try to sort this all out and rule out some of the possibilities. I don't think we will get any "support" from Toshiba, beyond Tops patching these PJ's up to the 2 yr. warranty. There will be no firmware/hardware upgrades or recalls IMHO. What would be helpful to Tops, again due to lack of Toshiba support, is to give them as much quantitative info as possible.

In my case, I think Tops put in louder fans. Cannot prove this w/ Tops unless I have some numbers to back it up (the 2 digit MAIN number from those w/ original Toshiba fans). Did they put louder fans in to lower ballast temperature? I don't know unless have data to compare other owners BALLAST TEMP that have original fans and those having the new jet engines, I mean fans! For all I know Tops may have installed any fan that happens to be in stock.

As far as normal operating ballast temperature of a like kind PJ, is there anyone in the industry or otherwise qualified individual able to help? Mike SRC? Claus?

Thanks for all your help. I am of the opinion that there are serious and potentially long lasting problems. However, if am way off base let me know. I need less mystery and more facts.

One other thing. Is the purpose of the high altitude fan mode, for those above 3000' or so, to maintain ballast temperaure at the same rate as those at sea level. IOW, will those above 3000' using high altitude setting have same ballast temp. as those at sea level using default fan speed?

I once owned a Nec lt240k projector, this unit shared a bulb with the Ht1000 and ht1100

There was an issue of bulbs here as well, the bulb housing would craze crack and peel, the plastic carrier would outgas and deposit junk on the color wheel.

I did some testing with a non contact pyrometer...

The difference between high and low fan modes in temp was amazing/!?!?

It was in the neighborhood of 20C

Now I don't know the temps of the ballasts, but what I do know is lower temps= longer operating....obvious.

The funny thing is none of these bulbs show signs of heat stress, so your focusing on the ballast overheating is probably a good path to be on.

Higher heat resistance goes up and then puts the ballast in to an erratic current situation? That might sound about right.

But, I bet Toshiba is grabbing at straws to solve the widespread issue ( cheap)...replace the fans..
Lower temps, but it might not be...

TJ

I have a new problem, but can't blame Toshiba. Wed night we had a lovely storm. I've been without electricity since 7pm Wed. The kids were trying to turn on a TV while playing with their flashlights this morning. Guess they still need a couple lessons on electricity. Just hope it's fixed by 12 on Sunday.

Jeffcom -- I didn't write down my readings, when I looked at them (they looked strange though). Now I can't do anything until I get a replacement lamp. When I get it, I will look and let you know what the numbers are. If I read the numbers correctly, the ballast temperature is lower, but all the others are quite a bit higher (which doesn't make sense - what does "BALLAST TEMP. +3425" & "POWER +49 +2700" mean?).

Spiky -- You must have gotten caught in the hurricane (Oops - Tornado). I'm surprised it's taking this long, NSP (good old "Reddy Kilowatt") used to be pretty efficient.

Just a quick update...
A+ to Tops for fast service! :) I called Toshiba on Monday, sent out the projector on Tuesday (FedEx overnight on Toshiba's dime), Tops fixed it on Wednesday, sent it out yesterday, and I got it back today! In fact, I am using it as my computer monitor right now as I type this. The girl at Tops said they replaced the ballast (she didn't mention the fans). I wanted to ask her if it seemed like they get a lot of these units with this problem, but I missed her call when she called me back.

I had never run my fans in high altitude mode before, but now I am paranoid, so I switched it over...wow the fans ARE loud in that mode. Dunno if I'll keep it that way...

How do I check temperatures? I didn't see it in any of the setup menus.

I am so paranoid that the lamp will die any moment...now when I watch a movie, I'm just gonna feel like I am waiting for something bad to happen. :( Many of us have now had our PJ serviced, so now just have to wait and see if anyone with new ballasts and/or fans has a lamp failure. If many of us do, it seems likely that there is a fundamental design problem with these units.

Claus, look forward to your readings. Recall one post who translates a +3425 BALLAST TEMPERATURE to 34 degrees centigrade. I do not know if this is indeed correct. Do appreciated this data so I can compare to mine. Am especially interested in your ballast temp. after 3-4 hrs. of use in default fan mode.

g-mon, to check ballast temp., enter service menu using your remote: press menu - arrow up - down - up - down - up - down - menu. Then scroll in service menu to thermal test and press enter. To exit service menu: scroll to factory, press enter and then press return to user OSD.

Agree that Tops overall has been good. The overnight Fed-Ex shipping usually means will get PJ back by Friday if ship on Monday. Some get just bulb, others fans, or ballast or some get a combination. I have received two of three. Just need a ballast. Maybe a third Tops service is the charm.

Thanks to all for your help.

I just sent my MT700 to Topps yesterday due to a bad HDMI connection. I had this problem a month ago but just trying a different HDMI cable and then going back to my old one seemed to have made the problem go away. A month later, with no change or movement to the PJ, the picture went out and I would see a lime colored bar / stripe projected onto my screen every few seconds. I tried another HDMI cable just to be sure. A little wiggle on the HDMI connection would only mometarily bring the picture back.

I enclosed a letter to Topps describing my HDMI issues and I also asked them to check the ballast for any potential problems. I don't know if they will/can actually detect anything alarming if there even is something wrong with my ballast but I thought I'd give it a try.

hey guys update on the lamp replacement. 1) called toshiba 2)faxed in reciept 3) called again to confirm, they told me they placed the order but the lamp is in backorder and don't know WHEN it will be avaliable.

What the heck, how could a manufacture not have their parts in stock! anyone know how long this usually takes? i am without a tv right now:/ thanks

gagalyia - sorry to hear you don't have an ETA. I think it won't be too long, but that's just a guess.

Okay all - update on my replacement. Tritronics just had two lamps shipped to them which arrived the day I called (Fri). One was already marked for some other guy, and I was able to get my hands on the 2nd.

I tried to muscle Warrentech/Repairmaster into paying for overnight shipping or 2nd day air because of their delays, but even the service manager didn't have the authorization to do so. I was told it wasn't that he 'wouldn't', it's that he 'couldn't'. Odd.

Anyhow, even though Tritronics never does this, I was able to get them to ship the lamp via 2nd day air (at my cost) so that it would be here tuesday versus Friday or at worst, the week after that. It was nice of them to accomodate me.

All in all, not hassle free, but I've been through worse. I can't wait to get my PJ up and running again. It's been so long it'll be like the first day I bought it! :)

Good luck and happy thoughts to the rest who are waiting on bulbs - don't worry...the bulbs are out there!

My service history w/ Tops:
#1- Bulb failed at 150 hrs. and replaced.
#2- After running PJ for 3 hrs. it shut down. According to manual, light indicators of PJ point to problem with fans. Tops replace both fans and at my insistence the bulb, due to hard shutdown.

No problems so far, after 5 weeks and 140 hrs. Except that the fans are very much louder. So last night I did a experiment after getting several readings over the past week or so, from the thermal test screen located in the service menu after the PJ is on between 3.5-4.0 hrs. Ok, sit back and relax. To me it is a revelation. All readings are in standard lamp mode. I live near South Bend, IN flat, corn country.

From the thermal test screen:
MAIN +27 +1550
BALLAST TEMP +5262
BLOWER +33 +3200
POWER +24 +1550
These are base readings taken prior to last night.

Now, I turned on the fan to high altitude and after 20 minutes the readings are:
MAIN +52 +2700
BALLAST TEMP. +3425
BLOWER +40 +3800
POWER +49 +2700
What I felt was significant is the two digit MAIN number and BALLAST TEMP.
The fans in high altitude mode are extremely loud and am sure totally unacceptable for HT use. I muted all sound and could hear the fans gradually pick up speed.

Now, after the readings stabilized in high lamp mode, switched to regular fan speed and immediately entered the thermal test screen. The fan began a gradually decrease speed, and the thermal numbers went back to base
.
Observations:
There is a direct correlation between the 2 digit MAIN number and fan speed. Higher the fan speed- higher this number . As fan speed decreases the ballast temp goes up. There is a 35% decrease in ballast temp in high altitude mode.

My questions:
What is your two digit reading for MAIN. Have your fans been replaced. This would help to find out how loud these new fans really are.
What is your ballast temp?
What is a safe ballast temp. I recall a post that +34-3500 and no more. Is this true?
Any comments on other readings here that maybe useful.

Jeffcom,

I am at about 100 hours on my original bulb. My numbers are;

Main +24 +1580
Power +24 +1450
Inlet Temp +2187
Ballast Temp +5275

This was after being on for about 2 hours. I am also curios if my temps are in line or if I need to worry about my bulb. I know there are complaints but I wonder if it is a very small % of the number of units that are out there. There must be thousands of this model built and we have reports of maybe 15-20 early bulb problems. Your (or anyone else's) thoughts.

Claus,
It's called Xcel, now. And I finally got it back at 49 hours. My friend 2 miles away was still out at about 65 hours dark. I hope his is back. Xcel lost 6 substations in this storm. Around 2 dozen houses were destroyed by tornadoes or other wind.

Jeff,
Temp readings after 3.5 hours on standard lamp, standard fan:

Main: 26 1500-1600
Blower: 34 3150-3200
Power: solid at 28 1550
Inlet: 2137-2150
Ballast: 5525-5600 ....but generally rising, not fluctuating like the others
Edit: the ballast didn't really go over 5600. I must've first looked when it was changing a bit, it did level off.

btw, ceiling mounted in my basement, never gets real warm down there. 70 deg today, that's actually warmer than usual.

Jeff:

If you're interested, my temps are as follows:

Main: 27-28 1500-1600
Blower: 34 3150-3200
Power: 27 1550
Inlet: 2587-2612 (sticks to 2587 mostly)
Ballast: 5887-5900

Original bulb, normal fan setting, standard lamp setting. Temps after approx 5 straight hrs of runtime.

I just sent my MT700 to Topps yesterday due to a bad HDMI connection. ...A little wiggle on the HDMI connection would only mometarily bring the picture back.Perhaps that's why I'm getting a physical HDMI upgrade (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6178982&&#post6178982) while it (PE7700) also gets a new bulb...

It's called Xcel, now. And I finally got it back at 49 hours. My friend 2 miles away was still out at about 65 hours dark. I hope his is back. Xcel lost 6 substations in this storm. Around 2 dozen houses were destroyed by tornadoes or other wind.I lost three trees in my backyard, and I was by far the luckiest in the neighborhood. At least mine were 100 yards away at the back edge of our lot, and not on our roof or vehicles like a few of my neighbors. Our power was only off overnight, but I borrowed my parents' generator to keep the refrigerators and freezer going through the night.. Fun times.

Thank you SJK, Spiky and benchobi.

Please keep those readings coming.

Observations so far:
The new fans I have maybe OEM, just the 2-digit MAIN number increased by Tops to increase fan speed. Will check service menu and find out if number can be adjusted. This would make sense as benchobi has same number as I, w/ original fans.

Increased fan speed, +24 vs. +27 (or 12% in my case, a noticable increase in db) does not appear to decrease or level off ballast temp. After 5 hrs use ballast temp. jumps to +5887. I will also check my ballast temp. after 5 hrs.

SJK, Do hope someone comes forth with a safe ballast temp. for the MT-700 or for a like kind industry standard .Looks like ballast temp. continues to rise w/out leveling off. At this point would have to say the ballast is not maintaining a constant normal operating temperature for one reason or another, with fan speed at an acceptable noise level.

Is there someone who can PM me with suggestion on how to find the normal operating ballast temp. for this type of PJ? Maybe a different thread or specific forum member?

I'm check my measurements in a few days when I get a chance, but I'm not seeing anything in the ones posted that indicate anything significant one way or the other. The projector doesn't run any hotter than others I've had (less than some), so I'm still of the opinion that it's got something to do with the circuit design. It's possible that the ballast temp is too high, but changing the fan speed doesn't seem to affect anything.

Also, the projector has a thermal switch that shuts down the projector if the internal temperature gets too high. Has anyone had the "Temp" light turn red?

Mike,
Should the ballast temp. level off at some point? If so what would that temp. be? Appears the longer the PJ is on the hotter the ballast temp. gets. Doesn't seem right.

Changing the fan speed to high (+52 MAIN) decreases ballast temp. by 35%, but fan is so loud as to be unacceptable.

Could you elaborate on "circuit design"? Is there something in the service menu to explore?

I think what Mike is referring to is the physical design of the internal air flow path and the design of the ballast regulator circuits. Yes, the ballast temperature should level off (I am surprised that yours, Jeffcom, keeps rising). It would depend on what your PJ ambient temperature is doing (if you're ceiling mounted - I don't remember - then the temperature might continue to rise because the exhaust heat is being trapped by the ceiling - heat rises, as you know).

You might want to try using a fan to gently circulate air around the PJ, and see if that helps to keep the ballast temperature under control (a cheap experiment and possible quieter than runing the fans at high speed).

From my 32 years in the spacecraft power systems design efforts, I would say that I would start getting worried if the "Ballast" temperature reached 70 degrees C. All of our designs were capable of running that hot for extended periods of time (nominal temperatures were in the 25 degrees C range though). I have seen HP instruments that ran for extended periods of time, in equipment racks, with inlet air temperatures over 70 degrees C (but they were designed to run hot).

NOTE: Using the ASUS Probe software on my PC, the MB runs at 58 - 62 degrees C and the CPU runs at 70 - 75 degrees C with great regularity (during the summer - inlet air temperatures around 80 degrees F = 26 C).

Claus,
Could you translate ballast temp. as shown in the service menu into degrees centigrade?

For example what would degree centigrade be for a ballast temp. of +5262?

Am now in the process of checking ballast temp. after 5 hrs. of use to see if has risen from previous readings at 3.5 hrs. Fan cycling remains the same even after many hours of continuous use.

The PJ is mounted 18" down from the ceiling, in basement. There is a ceiling register about 3' away for ventilation. Will try a box fan on low speed to see if ballast temp. is lowered after X hrs use.

I think what Mike is referring to is the physical design of the internal air flow path and the design of the ballast regulator circuits.

Primarily the latter. I'm not convinced it's a heat issue as much as a faulty ballast circuit design/construction. Just speculating though.

Jeff,
I'm going to correct mine. The ballast temp did level out. I checked it a couple times later. It generally stayed around 5600.

Update.
Had the PJ running for 8.5 hrs. yesterday. Enjoyed Sin City during the tests. Usually it is on 1x per day for 4-5 hrs.

The ballast temperature topped off at about +5412.
While in thermal test in service menu I put a box fan near air intake and almost immediately the ballast temp. went down, way down.

Also while in thermal test, changed FAN from auto to manual. Able to change MAIN two digit number higher> no difference in fan speed. Changed BLOWER and the fan speed increase with each click. Must have looked at the numbers wrong originally, as BLOWER correlates directly with fan speed, not MAIN. Anyway changed all numbers back to "default" and fan back to auto.

Also noticed decrease in ballast temp. after the A/C turns on. Have a ceiling register about 3' away from the PJ and opposite the side of air intake. PJ is 18" from the ceiling. After A/C goes off, temp. goes up slowly. Will need to check once heating season starts!

Would like to know how to translate ballast temp. as described in the MT-700 service menu, into degrees centigrade. If heat is not an issue then faulty ballast circuit design falls squarely on Toshiba as we can do nothing about that in the meantime.

According to basement in another thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6255005&&#post6255005), a BenQ CSR said that the issues are due to a bad batch of initial bulbs, and that the issue should be fixed for the long term (different batch of bulbs) after sending in the projector. Granted, this is for the PE7700, but the root cause is most likely the same for the MT700.

Tim -- basement said he just sent in the lamp, not the PJ. That means that the new lamps will fit, without sending in the MT700 for retrofit. That's good news. That doesn't mean that some folks don't also have bad ballast regulators too (bad solder joints?).

I guess I'm not saying that you can't have a bad ballast, but that it's very likely that the actual bulb is the culprit, if that CSR is correct. I could have sent my lamp as well I'm guessing, if there weren't the HDMI issue as well (see my post(s) in the PE7700 thread if you haven't already).

miltimj,
Music to my ears if is only bad bulb. Be nice to get confirmation from others, incl. Toshiba.
Ballast hardware on the other hand....

Am on my 2nd bulb, replaced 5 wks ago. 180 hours to date.

Anybody on the ballast temp. conversion to centigrade?

I've heard that the ballast temp conversion could just be adding a decimal point in the middle (e.g. +5412 = 54.12 degrees C). I think it was just a guess, but it makes sense to me, and would be my guess as well.

I just posted some pictures, that I took of my failed lamp, on this thread (2 posts for 4 pix): http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6257312&&#post6257312.

Tim, that's my take on the temps too. It's the only way they make sense.

g-mon, to check ballast temp., enter service menu using your remote: press menu - arrow up - down - up - down - up - down - menu. Then scroll in service menu to thermal test and press enter. To exit service menu: scroll to factory, press enter and then press return to user OSD.

Thanks for the info Jeffcom. I entered the menu last night and wrote down the numbers after ~10 minutes and again after ~90 mins or so. Wouldn't ya know it, I forgot to bring them with me to work to post this morning. I'll post the numbers tomorrow, but I do remember that the 10 minute numbers were about the same as the 90 minute numbers (3rd lamp, new ballast, lamp in eco mode, high altitude mode).

Also, not to change the subject, but I noticed you can change color wheel speed in the service menu!?! Should I mess with this? Would increasing color wheel speed reduce rainbows?
Thanks!
g-mon

Also, not to change the subject, but I noticed you can change color wheel speed in the service menu!?! Should I mess with this? Would increasing color wheel speed reduce rainbows?
Thanks!
g-mon

There's more discussion on doing that earlier in this thread as well as in the PE7700 thread. Increasing the wheel speed to 5X makes the projector a lot noisier (at least mine does) with no noticeable benefit. Likewise, the color wheel sync setting should not be changed much, if at all.

Ok, I went into thermal test. After 10 minutes the Ballast was running 6500, After watching the Bronco's kick butt on KC and then Charlie's Angels 2 (just wanted to watch a brighter movie for the thermal test. I don't like that stuff of course.... really.. ) it was running 7100. Half way through The Incredibles it was still 7100. Seemed to be pegged there. My room temp was 78 when I started (I live in Phoenix so that is a normal room temp in summer.) I turned the thermostat down to 76 but that didn't make a difference. I then turned on High Altitude mode and watched the rest of The Incredibles. Ballast temp was now 4800. What an aweful howl it makes in High Altitude mode though. It is simply not bearable on my projector. I don't think it is the fan noise, but an airflow howl. I guess I should play with the fan speed to get it up somewhere between normal and high altitude modes. If it is on Auto it should keep the thing at a proper tempature shouldn't it? I would think it would automatically turn it up all the way to high altitude mode if it had to.
Warren.

If you're not worried about aesthetics and can do something like this, you could try mounting a fan from the ceiling (like those clip on fans, but slightly larger), and you can screw it into the ceiling. The larger the fan, the lower the setting you can put it on because it will be moving the same amount of air. It should be much quieter than high altitude mode, and work better as well.

I have all of my components in my TV stand, including my very hot receiver, and I put a 12" oscillating fan behind there (it's in a corner, so you can't see the fan), and put it on low, and it works very well. You can barely hear it (not at all when there's even the slightest amount of audio), and it blows a steady stream of warm air away from the components.

There's more discussion on doing that earlier in this thread as well as in the PE7700 thread. Increasing the wheel speed to 5X makes the projector a lot noisier (at least mine does) with no noticeable benefit. Likewise, the color wheel sync setting should not be changed much, if at all.
I gotta disagree. While it doesn't get rid of rainbows, increasing the speed to 5x does reduce them. Once we figured out how to change it, I set it to 5x for every input. And the increase in noise may be noticeable in a quiet room, but not with something playing, it is still very quiet.

In my case, the constant noise is much more objectionable than the occasional rainbow, but from other postings it appears the noise level increase varies from one unit to another, so whatever gives you the best results for your viewing is the way to go.

Warren,
You may be at the upper limits of ballast temp @ 71 degrees centigrade, likely due to the room temperature. If yours is ceiling mounted the temp surrounding PJ maybe even higher than 78 degrees.
Two options to decrease ballast temp. Increase fan speed incrementally by going to thermal test in service menu, change fan from auto to manual and increase the two digit BLOWER number. Or Tim's suggestion to place a external fan near the air intake. The safer and very effective method is the latter. Try this; after PJ is on a while just hold a fan a couple of feet from air intake while watching the thermal test menu and you will see a difference almost immediately.

I cannot explain why my replacement fans seem louder, by comparing my blower number to benchobi and Spiky (numbers are the same). Maybe the fans are not OEM.

BTW Charlie's Angles Superbit rocks. :D

not to keep beating on a dead horse but has anyone got their replacement bulb yet from toshiba? i dont have ANY tv right now and my tv recorder is getting full (going to miss all the shows in the series). Will they give me a refund? at this point i dont mind paying 1 k more and buy a infocus 7205. Maybe i should've listened to the "women" of the house and bought a 50" plasma instead. On top of no tv, i have to listen to them whine about "i told you so" every single day. argggggg going cra(*)&#(@*&#(*@##@zy

Warren -- You need to get your room temperature down! I turn on my room A/C and get the room down to about 74-75 degrees before I even consider turning on my PJ.

gagaliya -- That's why I went to Fry's and bought a Mits HC3 as a backup (on sale for a price of a 32" CRT TV set). It's not a MT700 and is input challenged but it puts out a nice picture from its VGA input without calibration, and it lets me watch the "big" screen while I'm waiting for my replacement lamp.

Tim -

I think I'll have to go along with the theory that the four digit temp is the actual temp X 100. I deal with measurement equipment in my biz and its not uncommon to see an instrument report a value that needs to be scaled by some factor of 10.

Claus-

I keep my room temp the same as yours. Even if 78 is ok for the PJ it's a little warm for me. :p

FTI - I also received my lamp (the one that just failed after ~40 hrs) in July...
Thanks for the warning - I am dropping this pj from any potential purchase lists.

Help! I just recieved my MT700 issues back from Tops due to a bad HDMI connection. It was a very quick turnaround. Sent last friday and received today (Tuesday). The HDMI connection works now but I now have some strange color issues. Scenes with white have a weird yellowish blotches. For example in the opening of Star Wars, Princess Leia's white dress and Luke's clothing has yellowish blotches as do the white walls of the Rebel ship. Desert scenes with sand are also discolored with with yellowish blotches. Greys have blotches of blue such as the Deathstar. I have attached photos for reference. I tried different settings on the MT700 and my Denon 2910 but no help. I also swapped HDMI cable and still same symptom. I didn't get feedback from Tops as to what they did. I plan to call them tomorrow. Does anyone have any idea what could be the issue? Any suggestions would be most appreciated!

Here are two more pictures from my previous post. Thanks!

Quack724, this may be a problem with your CW delay.

See posts #1627-1641 in this thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6093539&&#post6093539

...which refer to the following original post by keener in the BenQ thread describing the problem:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6087132&&#post6087132

...and the solution he found by changing CW delay to ~55:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6093110&&#post6093110

Hi Tim, thanks very much for your detailed suggestion. I immediately tried it out but with no success. Going into the Service menu I found out my CW delay was at 60. I changed it to 55 (and for the heck of it, even down to 40) but saw no difference. I also increased slightly but saw no difference. I also changed my CW speed from 4x to "5x with SLR" and 5x with no SLR" and also saw no difference. As a sanity check I even changed DVD players (Denon 2910 to Samsung 850) and the artifacts were even worse on the Samsung.

Sorry if I missed this in previous threads, but are the changes in the Service menu saved by default? Meaning, when I changed the CW delay to 55 was it taken into effect right away or do I have to save it (The CW speed change seemed to kick in right away)? I actually hope the changes are taken into effect right away but are not saved when I power off in case I changed something I was not suppose to.

I have a feeling I need to send this unit back to Tops. :( :confused:

Mine reverted back to the default as soon as I exited the service menu. Unless you save the settings they wont be (mine weren't saved even when I tried to save them -- others have been able to save, but not me).

How does one even try to save the settings? I did not see the option in the Service Menu.

Re: the artifacts, I want to clarify that I made no changes to the MT700 prior to seeing the artifacts. Just powered up the unit upon it's return from Tops, popped in Star Wars and immediately saw UGLINESS.

It's on the main service menu page, IIRC. I can't check, because I don't have my replacement lamp yet.

It seems like you still may have an HDMI problem (cable, PJ, or source). You should not have "ugliness" (especially if you didn't have it initially).

quack724,
To save new service menu settings- in FACTORY menu, save under LOAD SAVED CURRENT FACTORY SETTINGS. Then press RETURN TO USER OSD.

Quack, when changing the CW delay to extreme levels (low or high), you should definitely notice the picture going from bad to worse. If not, it's not saving or showing what changes you're applying.

I noticed in the other thread that you mentioned you don't have a component cable but used multiple DVD players. The benefit of using component is to see if the actual HDMI output, input, or cable is the problem by using a completely different connection. Do you have a Yellow/Red/White cable? (Or just three RCAs of any color :)) They will work just as well as a branded component cable for the most part.

The thing that makes me more curious is that changing DVD players changed the situation. Have you tried connection a computer and using Through mode?

FYI, CW speed most likely won't affect the issue you're having - CW delay is very likely, however.

I checked my temp numbers a couple of nights ago. With fan in high altitude mode, lamp in economy mode, the ballast temp stayed around 3500-3550 after about 90 minutes of use.

Last night I started playing around with fan speeds to see if I could set a speed higher than standard, but lower than high altitude. The idea being to keep ballast temp ~50°C or less, but to not have to listen to the sound of a jet engine over my head (high altitude mode) while watching a movie. The problem I came across was that as soon as I exited the temperature menu (still in the factory menu tho), it defaulted back to Auto fan speed immediately. Anyone know how to make the manual setting stick?

I changed my color wheel speed to 5x w/o SLR, and delay to 55. I didn't notice any increase in dB from the PJ, nor did I notice any change in the picture (but then again, I don't see rainbows anymore :)) Forgive my ignorance, but what is "SLR"? I noticed the "white peaking" slider became available if "5x with SLR" was selected.

Thanks for the warning - I am dropping this pj from any potential purchase lists.
Other than the lamp issue, I have nothing but praise for this projector. It is a great PJ at this price point. You might want to hold off judgement for a bit longer...if the lamp issue is resolved (there is some evidence to suggest it may have been a bad initial batch of lamps for the most part), then I would not hesitate to highly recommend this unit to anyone. Just my 2-cents.
g-mon

gagaliya -- That's why I went to Fry's and bought a Mits HC3 as a backup (on sale for a price of a 32" CRT TV set). It's not a MT700 and is input challenged but it puts out a nice picture from its VGA input without calibration, and it lets me watch the "big" screen while I'm waiting for my replacement lamp.

wow you are hardcore projector fan i see:) unfortunately i will not be getting another projector anytime soon after this fiasco. Ordered a hyundai imagequest 32' lcd hdtv for 900, should hold me over until this is fixed.

I called them again and it's still on backorder with no eta. How ridiculus is that, a big company with no replacement parts for their popular product. Will give it another week then ask for refund.

I cranked the air up so it was 75 in my room. Chilly in Phoenix. Watched a few SD tv shows, then a few episodes of Firefly (the greatest show ever.) I have a 2.35 setup so SD is using only half the screen and DLP chip. I thought this would make the projector run cooler at first, but now realize that all half the light is being shot up into the projector instead of the screen, so it should run even warmer. I checked the temp and it was peaking over 7300. I cranked up the fan speed to afterburner level and it started cooling off. I then set it back to auto. Even while it was running around 7100 is kept dropping the fan speed a notch or two at a time. I hope it knows what it is doing.
Benq has said it was a defective batch of bulbs, hence the shortage of bulbs. Now we are all paranoid of Ballast Temp, not knowing anything about it. Wish they could get an engineer on here.
Warren.

Quack, when changing the CW delay to extreme levels (low or high), you should definitely notice the picture going from bad to worse. If not, it's not saving or showing what changes you're applying.

I noticed in the other thread that you mentioned you don't have a component cable but used multiple DVD players. The benefit of using component is to see if the actual HDMI output, input, or cable is the problem by using a completely different connection. Do you have a Yellow/Red/White cable? (Or just three RCAs of any color :)) They will work just as well as a branded component cable for the most part.

The thing that makes me more curious is that changing DVD players changed the situation. Have you tried connection a computer and using Through mode?

FYI, CW speed most likely won't affect the issue you're having - CW delay is very likely, however.


Tim and All.. I called Toshiba and Tops, described the problem to them and sent the unit back per their recommendation. With daytime ambient light, it is more difficult for me to spot the issues. I did not clearly seem them until evening. So instead of waiting another day I decided to just send the unit back with printed color photos and see how it goes and hopefully get my unit back to enjoy problem free for this coming weekend ;)

I also agree with gmon that despite the troubles I still think the MT700 is a fantastic unit at it's price point. The fast & friendly service from Tops has also alleviated some of the frustration. But since the MT700 is discontinued, I would have to look into an Optoma H77 or splurge on a H78DC3 or the if I had to do it all over again. My MT700 was one of the first that came off the line...No more early production units for me ;)



To save new service menu settings- in FACTORY menu, save under LOAD SAVED CURRENT FACTORY SETTINGS. Then press RETURN TO USER OSD.

Jeffcom, sorry if this is a stupid question but when you said Factory menu are you referring to the normal user menu? Last night while I was trying to save the settings I did not see the option in the service menu so I tried to exit and go back to the normal menu. But I could not figure out how to exit the Service menu. Everytime I pressed menu twice on the remote, it would always go back to Service menu and not the normal user menu.



It seems like you still may have an HDMI problem (cable, PJ, or source). You should not have "ugliness" (especially if you didn't have it initially).


Claus, last night I actually tried two different DVD players (Denon 2910 and Samsung 850) as well as two different HDMI cables..same ugliness. So I really do think there is something going on with the projector itself.

But since the MT700 is discontinued

what? are you serious?! i thought it's a new projector that was just released very recently. how could it be discontinued already?

what? are you serious?! i thought it's a new projector that was just released very recently. how could it be discontinued already?


Sorry I meant to say that Toshiba has exited the home theater projector business..this was mentioned in a previous post. But I believe MT700s are still selling.

Quack, to return from service menu to factory (standard) menu, you select the Factory option in the service menu, then "Return to User OSD". That's what I believe he was referring to as the second step, so you return to the standard menu.

gagaliya, Toshiba is getting out of the projector business all together. Look in this thread for some more discussion of it. The BenQ PE7700 is still available, however (which is the twin, and OEM PJ of the two).

quack724 -- "Claus, last night I actually tried two different DVD players (Denon 2910 and Samsung 850) as well as two different HDMI cables..same ugliness. So I really do think there is something going on with the projector itself."

It sure sounds (looks :rolleyes: ) like it.

miltimj -- Yes, that's what I was referring to.

BenQ is still making the PE7700. Toshiba will still be selling the MT700, at least until their contract with BenQ runs out (BenQ makes the MT700 for Toshiba). I'm not sure if Toshiba has made a formal announcement (they have stated it "unofficially" though) about their getting out of the FP (all OEM-ed) business (not their flat panel or RPTV business though). They also have other FP PJs that they have to clear out too, so it will be a while. Toshiba has also said that they will honor the warranty's on all PJs sold.

see below

quack724,
If Tim's clarification about getting out of service menu doesn't help, PM me.

Note the 7700 thread. More posts about bulbs being the culprit. Still burning hrs. on my 2nd before the 90 days are up to be sure. Ok, great excuse to rent more movies!

Everyone, I got my MT700 back from Tops. Fast turnaround time once again (sent Wed, fixed Thur, received back on Fri). I watched a movie on Fri and Sat night and things seem to be OK now. Although I wish all the issues were fixed the first time I sent it back I am very pleased with Toshiba and Tops for the courteous and quick service. Should any future issues arise, I really hope to receive the same level service again as it really helped to alleviate the recent frustrations.

Jeff, I am now able to get out fo Service Menu.. thanks a lot! :cool:

Lamp just went. About 135 hours in low mode -- outside warranty. Man this stinks.

Lamp just went. About 135 hours in low mode -- outside warranty. Man this stinks.

welcome to the club:( give toshiba a call anyway. They may still replace it for you. When i called i didnt even need to explain anything they just placed the order (backordered) for me, guess all the cs over there already knew about the defective bulb problem with the mt700.

on Saturday my bulb died to :(, Only Low- Mode for roundabout 250 hours, 5 Months past buying. I cant believe it! Hope there is no Problem to get a bulb with warranty.

Greets Damdy

I decided to call the warranty department instead of customer service. I gave him all pertinent info (including date of purchase in May). He said they'd send me a new lamp. I'll report back to let everyone know if this actually happens.

Re: my service requests (HDMI connection and color issues), I called Tops and I spoke to a lady who queried my SN# and indicated that the main board was replaced twice.

What is the warranty dept's number? Is it a much shorter wait on the phone?

What is the warranty dept's number? Is it a much shorter wait on the phone?

1-866-590-0912. I called today at about 1:00 pm central and got somebody on the 1st ring.

got somebody on the 1st ring.
Yoinks! Sign me up! I've been waiting to bitch about my projector noise since I figured out sending it back to the tech would result in the same fan being put back in.

nothru22,
I too have the noisy fans. Were installed by Tops after OEM's died. Been waiting for my 2nd bulb to fail before sending in PJ on this. From post on the 7700 forum, the new-and-improved bulbs get shipped this month.

Be sure to post your luck with Tops if you decide to attempt a remedy.

Tops is more than willing to help me out but all they have is the same fans. It's Toshiba I have to take this up with.

Sounds like Toshiba needs to supply the quiet OEM fans to Tops.

I wonder how/why fans are also failing so fast, since many people seem to be getting them replaced. (I would sure like to know from the Tops company what the specific fan failure is, and also if Toshiba/Benq is supplying the louder fans themselves.)

Fans are not failing. My guess is that the supplied (quiet) fans do not provide enough air flow to the inside of the projector, causing the bulbs to fail. Bigger louder fans pushing more air equals a cooler inside.

Ballast temperatures provided by several members who have the OEM fans are not bearing this out. IOW the temps are the same regardless of fan. Toshiba may not be supplying the parts and Tops are probably just using louder in stock fans. Still think Tops not getting the support they need from Toshiba.

According to the BenQ PE7700 thread, the problem is not the fans, but a bad batch of lamps with internal wires that are too small (an excuse, maybe?). There are (new) 80mm fans that are quiet (21 dB) and will push a lot of air (used in quiet PCs - it has to do with the fan blade design). It sounds ( :eek: ) like Tops didn't have any "on the shelf".

ChrisW6ATV - You need to double check on that PE7700 lamp that you got (from the "store"), to see if it's from the "old" batch. Supposedly the new lamp design has not gotten into the supply chain yet (one of the last PE7700 posts - at least that was what one AVS member was told by BenQ - another excuse?).

Jeffcom -- I agree.

Claus-

I have not yet heard of any way to tell if a bulb is the 'new design' or not. One of the pictures I took of it shows the hand-written numbers on the housing, so maybe that will help. I do suspect that my new bulb is 'old style' though, because of the reports that the new ones have not yet arrived, and also comments from Visual Apex that when I ordered it, Benq had 'a few left' or 'a few in stock'. VA itself did not have any of their own stock, so they arranged for a direct shipment from Benq to me (but the box has VA's return address).

Chris,
Oops :eek: , you may still have one of the "bad" ones. I sure hope not, I hope V/A can help you out. I'm still waiting for Warrantech to ge the warranty registration transferred, and I really need to try to call TACP and see what they say.

I am not saying that poor air flow is the actual problem. I am saying putting louder more powerful fans in there might be one of the ways Toshiba is trying to deal with the problem. That isn't to say it's the right move or even helpful. It's the only way I can explain this. I may finally call them tonight. I've been avoiding it because I don't have time to be on hold for an hour again and I know I'll get the runaround. I'll just get some lowlevel tech that will tell me to send it to Tops. (And Tops is great, but if they don't get the info or parts from Toshiba, then they can't do anything.)

Toshiba still does not have any of the "new" lamps as of yesterday. When I get one, I'll post some pictures of the two (if there's any noticeable difference).

nothru22, are you calling the 800-631-3811 number? I've never had a problem with someone picking up right away on that number. Granted, they don't know anything and will likely tell you to send it to Tops, but you shouldn't have to wait long to hear that. :rolleyes:

I usually call them around this time of day if that means anything.

But if the fans are on Auto wouldn't they spool up faster to move more air if they have to? It seems like they should, but why the high altitude setting then?
Warren.

I just spoke with "Devon" in Toshiba's warranty department. He said the new lamps are in, and mine has been approved to be sent out. Again, mine failed outside the warranty, and they were made aware of this. Good news if the lamps really are in -- not to mention the free replacement!

Mike, you gave a number (1-800-631-3811) which is different than the one on my Toshiba Warranty sheet (TACP Customer Solutions Center, 1-866-590-0912).

Would you recommend that I call that number rather than the TACP# to discuss the failure of my lamp? Warrantech still has not responded to the "transfer of warranty" request that was mailed to them 2 weeks ago (even using Pony Express from Chicago to Dallas-Ft.Worth, they should have had at least a week to process it).

ssj2 -- I went back and saw that you called the TACP# with good luck. I was going to call them today, but I got diverted. I guess I’ll have to call them Monday.

If I can get Toshiba to replace the lamp free, then that will save an extra (Warrantech) lamp replacement for later.

The cheapo Mitsubishi HC3 that I'm using as a backup PJ is pretty good, but is just not up to the MT700 PQ.

Mike, you gave a number (1-800-631-3811) which is different than the one on my Toshiba Warranty sheet (TACP Customer Solutions Center, 1-866-590-0912).

It's just another customer support line. I believe they all go to the same place, so whichever one works for you.


Would you recommend that I call that number rather than the TACP# to discuss the failure of my lamp?

I'd give it a shot. They seem to be well aware of the issue and that it goes beyond the normal lamp warranty period.

Anybody get one of those new bulbs, the one with the thicker filament mentioned in the BenQ thread?

No idea what lamp I got, probably an old one from the timing. But mine is still working, approaching 200 hours. That right there is enough for a new post!

Have 243 hrs on my 2nd bulb (old style). Claus got about 390 out of his 1st one, so hang tight. I may get to 400 hrs before the 90 day warranty expires. Toshiba may extend the time frame on warranty anyway, so long as under 500 hrs I suppose.

Anybody get one of those new bulbs, the one with the thicker filament mentioned in the BenQ thread?

My local customer just called to say that he received his new bulb today from Toshiba. I think it's likely one of the "new" ones, as it wasn't being shipped from their regular warehouse (maybe from BenQ?). I'm going to swing by and check it out tonight. I have one on it's way to me as well. If there's any difference that can be seen on the outside, I'll post a picture of the old and new bulbs.

Thanks, Mike. The pictures will help me, ChrisW6ATV, and others.

Well, there's nothing to see on the new bulb. I could post some pictures, but they'd be exactly like the ones Chris posted on the lamp life thread. The only noticeable difference between the two is the number written on the lamp. The old one appears to be B8U6 (or 846) and the new one's B817. The filaments look identical to the naked eye.

Well I think my 2nd bulb is on its way out. Has 250 hrs. The old style.
After about 1/2 hr. the screen went dark- no light out of PJ, green light still on.
Shut down PJ- light went to orange as usual. Hmm.

3 hrs. later turn PJ on. Operated like nothing ever happened. On for three hrs., normal shut down.

Will see what happens today. Hope this damn bulb lasts until the Notre Dame vs. USC game is over.(in Hi-Def via OTA) Then I won't care when it goes out. (a matter of when not if) Am saying prayers to Touchdown Jesus.

Any ideas as to what is going on? Is there some way I can nurse it through Saturday?

Jeff, it's times like those where HD DVRs are wonderful things...

You could try changing it to high altitude mode and ensure that the room & PJ is as cool as possible while using it.

Tim,
Yeh, been holding off on DVR until next year, when my service D***** TV rolls out their own system. Heard they are cutting Tvio.

Thanks for the tip.

Just read the PE7700/MT-700 bulb failure thread. Can't believe they are already out of bulbs!

Mike, you must have gotten the last one. :)

I hate to interrupt all the bulb chat, but I have a question for the group.

What DVD source do you guys use? I'm using a Denon 1920 and can't stand the macroblocking anymore. I tried a Panny S97 and found the MB was only slighty better. (Yeah I calibrated a bunch of times for both). I'm considering one of several options.

1) buying a used 480p player like a Panny RP/XP and just using that via component, saying screw you to upconversion

2) trying other non-faroudja players like the Sony NS70/90 or Sony 975, or the Samsung sil-504 players. I haven't read about much in the way of great performance this way, so I don't like this option. UNLESS, 480i from the Sony 975 via HDMI will give me a great picture, but I'm not sure the core performance of that unit is up to snuff.

2) trying something expensive like a Pioneer 59avi or the new 79avi. I'm getting into the audio thing (thank you ascend), so it may not be completely burned money. I like this option a lot, although it will hurt...badly. And my friends would tease me for being stupid enough to spend $800-1000 on a fricken dvd player.

Anyhow, I'm just wondering if anyone else has gone through the same thought process and had anything to add, especially if I'm not considering a viable option. I guess if I see a representative sample of what people are using with their MT700's it may help. Plus, I was bored talking about bulbs so much :)

John, I use an Oppo player and don't see macroblocking. I used a very nice HTPC prior to the Oppo. Obviously there's no macroblocking with an HTPC. I actually prefer the image from the Oppo.

By the way, my understanding is that the MT700 won't take a 480i source on the HDMI input.

The macroblocking is worse on the Oppo than the S97 or 1920, from my experience.

There she BLOWS!!!!!!! Last night in the middle of Crash (great movie BTW). I contacted Toshiba and sent a letter (via fax) to them outlining the problem. 100 or so hours and 4 months use. I will let you know if they do the RIGHT thing.

By the way, my understanding is that the MT700 won't take a 480i source on the HDMI input.

Ouch, how did I miss that? I hate to not believe you, but do you have a source? I'd hate to base my decision on "I think" information...

BTW, when I fed 480i via HDMI from my HDTivo I got "HDMI(Unsupported)", so it appears that 480i over HDMI does not work (i.e. no digital DCDi deinterlacing).



Jon O.

I found this quote from post 188 of this thread. I know I've seen it elsewhere as well -- perhaps the Benq PE7700 thread.

There is no 480i over HDMI. That would be the best way to watch SDTV from the HD Tivo but alas. The scaler in the HD Tivo is not horrible so I just keep mine at 720p. My HDMI is broken on the Tivo anyway.

On the DVD players, I use a Denon 2900. Best DVDp ever. Smooth, detailed picture. With a well-made DVD, there is hardly any improvement going to HD. (not none, just not much) Between the pic and the sound, it was worth every penny, and I spent 90000 of them.

I have one disc (Blue Man Group-Complex) on which the SiL de-interlacer chokes. Badly, the blue heads bleed into space. So for that I switch to interlaced output and let that nice perfect-for-video Faroudja in the Tosh take over. But for film sources, the SiL is nicer.

Those of you with MB problems, why not just run interlaced output? The MT700 has a great de-interlacer. Isn't it exactly the same one as in those players?

I suspect that this (480i & HDMI) is related to the fact that the MT700 has an HDCP compatable HDMI input and the HDCP specs do not allow "standard" video (480i)? I haven't read the HDMI/HDCP specifications, so I'm really guessing here, but it's the only reason that might make sense (from a regulations standpoint). It certainly doesn't make engineering, or a logistical, sense.

Jon O.

I found this quote from post 188 of this thread. I know I've seen it elsewhere as well -- perhaps the Benq PE7700 thread.

Thanks ssj2. I even checked with my PJ just a minute ago with my Cox HD/DVR. I could have sworn I had fed the PJ 480i over HDMI, but like usual I was wrong :) Looks like that option is out the window...

There is no 480i over HDMI. That would be the best way to watch SDTV from the HD Tivo but alas. The scaler in the HD Tivo is not horrible so I just keep mine at 720p. My HDMI is broken on the Tivo anyway.

Yeah this stinks, I wonder if it was an oversight or if it has to do with the HDMI spec?

BTW - nice Serenity plug. Such an awesome movie...I wish more people would go see it. :(

I suspect that this (480i & HDMI) is related to the fact that the MT700 has an HDCP compatable HDMI input and the HDCP specs do not allow "standard" video (480i)? I haven't read the HDMI/HDCP specifications, so I'm really guessing here, but it's the only reason that might make sense (from a regulations standpoint). It certainly doesn't make engineering, or a logistical, sense.

Yeah, you're probably right. It's really too bad :( . I wonder why 480i over HDMI would be such a big deal? I guess I need to read up on my HDCP as well.

I'm thinking about picking up either a good 480p player (comp) or getting something good for audio and video like the 59avi or 79avi. I think the 59avi prices are very good right now...hmmm....the option of a scaler later is very interesting....

I never thought buying a projector and speakers (Ascend) with such great bang for my buck would lead me to overspending in other areas of my HT to match their performance :)

I never thought I would EVER consider spending $1k on a dvd player (79avi), but for the projector, garbage in = garbage out. Might as well feed it something better :)

Those of you with MB problems, why not just run interlaced output? The MT700 has a great de-interlacer. Isn't it exactly the same one as in those players?

Good advice for some players. However, with the Oppo the black level with a 480i output is severly crushed. Unless there's been a firmware fix, the Panasonic S77 doesn't output 0 ire on it's component outputs, and the analog white level is too high. So for those who have already purchased either of the two most popular (budget) MB-prone players, the interlaced options aren't very good.

For me I don't have the macroblocking problem with my Oppo/MT700 (or don't see it). Counting myself lucky.

Well, that's annoying about the Oppo and S77. So, MB on progressive out, and black level issues on interlaced out. What's so great about them, again?

On the HDTivo 480i output issue, hook up the Svideo as well as HDMI. I have mine run to my receiver anyway, in case I want to burn a DVD.

Well, that's annoying about the Oppo and S77. So, MB on progressive out, and black level issues on interlaced out. What's so great about them, again?

Their DVI output. I don't have any MB problems with the Oppo and a MT700 either, just a great picture.

If you're using 480i, there's no reason to spend even as much as the Oppo or Panny costs. Just get a low cost player (JVC for example), that uses a good MPEG decoder.

Great Thread. Lots of info. Too long to see if anyone has run into a problem with MT700 having a shadow effect on the left edge of the image. It moves with the zoom adjustment of the lens, but disappears if I change the ratio of the picture to 4.3 etc.. Any ideas? By the way my lamp life so far is 178 hrs and 60 days. Thanks for any input on this subject..

Well, there's nothing to see on the new bulb. I could post some pictures, but they'd be exactly like the ones Chris posted on the lamp life thread. The only noticeable difference between the two is the number written on the lamp. The old one appears to be B8U6 (or 846) and the new one's B817. The filaments look identical to the naked eye.


got my new lamp today finally!! as mike said, the two lamps looked exactly the same to the naked eye. The very tip of the old lamp's bulb was white and broken.

both lamps have handwritten (using markers) numbers on them, which i thought was very strange and unprofessional. They are:

old: 94-4-7 B1057
new: 94-4-6 A809 there is a red "c" letter on the lamp it self, also hand written.

other than that everything else is exactly the same as far as i can tell. Hope mine is from a good batch, really dont want to go through this mess again.

1 question, is it recommanded to leave a new lamp in high power mode for the first couple hours to "burn in" or something?

gaga

No. If you get some flickering at any time in the standard mode, it is probably the lamp burning through something. Setting it to high at that point should help it burn through a bit faster. After a couple hours you should be able to go back to standard and the flickering will be gone. But this won't necessarily be in the first few hours, so start in standard.

Nothing new to report anyone? Suspect one of three things are going on:
*some are waiting for new-and-improved bulb which is on perpetual back order.
*a few have the bulb and are anxiously awaiting whether will pass the 500 hr. mark.
*the rest (like me) are on their 1st or 2nd bulb from bad batch and are hoping it blows within the warranty period as it is sketchy whether Toshiba will replace beyound this point. Guess it depends on who you talk to.

nothru22,
Any luck on getting those jet fans replaced? I will be looking into mine as soon as this damn 2nd bulb blows. Up to 270 hrs. Warranty ends 11/8.

Nothing new to report anyone? Suspect one of three things are going on:
*some are waiting for new-and-improved bulb which is on perpetual back order.


I am in the above situation.

I received my replacement lamp yesterday. Mine went bad after the warranty, and Toshiba replaced it without questions. The new lamp arrived double-boxed, witha pre-paid return Fed-Ex sticker so they could properly dispose of the old lamp.

The lamp was easy to install, and everything was back up and running in no time. The new lamp looks just as good as the old. If there's a drop in brightness or difference in color I can't see it.

I don't know how to explain this, but ever since I got my projector back I swear I'm seeing more jagged lines on DVDs and satellite. It's not screen door effect. I always have my projector slightly out of focus to eliminate that. But I swear I did not see this many blocks on diagonal lines before. I checked in the service menu and I put everything back into film mode, and that actually helped my DVDs over HDMI a little, but I can still see it. Any help would be appreciated.

Has everyone traded in their MT700 or what?

If Toshiba hadn't responded with a new lamp I might have looked to trade. However, I'm back up and running with a projector that throws a great image right out of the box. I'm not sure what I'd trade for that would do better. I thought about the Panasonic AE900, but I'm not comfortable with the long-term reliability of lcd -- from greater susceptibility to dust blobs, bad polarizing plates, and vertical banding. Since I'm not bothered by rainbows I'm in no mood to switch.

2 more weeks till the next bulb shipment. :eek:

So suddenly there's no interest in tweaking this projector or making the picture better anymore? I'm disappointed no one even tried to mess with the firmware.

Am afraid is unlikely there will be any firmware upgrades from Toshiba as they are out of the HT PJ market. At least they are doing a reasonable job honoring the warranty and taking care of the bulb problem.

So suddenly there's no interest in tweaking this projector or making the picture better anymore? I'm disappointed no one even tried to mess with the firmware.

Good point. However, I switched from a very good CRT/HTPC combo to my current MT700/Oppo combo just because I was tired of constantly messing it. However, I'm certainly happy the ride the coat tails of others who venture forth.

I'm curious what improvements people were hoping for in a firmware upgrade. For me the most important would be HDMI updates due to updated protocols.

So suddenly there's no interest in tweaking this projector or making the picture better anymore?

Actually, right now I'm working towards making my picture better. :)

I've been using a DIY BO cloth screen for a while but I think like to spring for a "professional" screen sometime in the near future. Most likely some sort of gray screen. It should function better than my DIY screen and look better as well.

The only firmware change I've heard of was on the PE7700 and even that appears to be vague as to its existence. I cannot get BenQ to acknowledge that there even is a firmware change. In any event, it's unlikely that there would ever be one available for the MT700. I'm still enjoying the MT700 and have been going back and forth with a Panasonic AE900 I have in house. The MT700 still wins the black level battle, but not by much. If I sell the MT700, it will be to get a DC3 chip machine.

Mike, I'm glad you mentioned the AE900. As a previous CRT owner the black level of MT700 was one of my concerns. However, after using a ND2 filter and a Optoma Graywolf screen it's been much improved.

Do you find shadow detail of the AE900 to be any better than the MT700? How about sharpness when fed a digital source? Which of the two do you think wins the overall picture quality battle, and for what reasons?

I know I asked a lot. Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

The AE900 is not better than the MT700 in black level or shadow detail, but it's close. The picture is a bit sharper and has the traditional LCD brighter colors. You'll see some color bleed up close due to convergence of the 3 LCD panels (just like a CRT, but with no way to correct it), but it's not noticeable at any normal viewing distance. I have a few more comments on the AE900 thread and here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6426871&&#post6426871).

Thanks Mike.

The only firmware change I've heard of was on the PE7700 and even that appears to be vague as to its existence.
The technician from Tops posted the updated firmware in this very thread! No one seemed to acknowledge it. He mentioned something about having to make a custom cable to get it into the projector. I have no experience with this and don't know anyone who does or I'd be right on top of this. Then again, the color wheel speed fixed my component problem ages ago (and I just watched Alien vs Predator in HD over component last night. It would've been completely unwatchable with factory settings with all those dark scenes.)

That's right, it was posted here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6222971&&#post6222971), but he didn't know the wiring and without that, there's no way to do it safely. How did you know he was from Topps?

Who said he was from Topps? Not me. :D

Am afraid is unlikely there will be any firmware upgrades from Toshiba as they are out of the HT PJ market. At least they are doing a reasonable job honoring the warranty and taking care of the bulb problem.

Wait, what? Out of the HT PJ market? Explain.

Since their HT projectors (with "MT" prefix) were outsourced, they weren't making any money off them and there will not be any new HT projectors coming from Toshiba. NEC is doing the same thing.

The technician from Tops posted the updated firmware in this very thread! No one seemed to acknowledge it.

That post right below about there possibly being a hardware update as well has me a bit skeered. Might be nothing to it, but I'm not gonna take the chance! :eek:

Plus, wouldn't you need some sort of "loader" to flash the firmware? (Maybe it's in the posted file?)

Now if someone wants to try it, I'm sure I can come up with how to make a cable. Page 36 in the manual gives the pinout of the connector.

Does anyone have any idea of what that firmware does? Or which version it is? Can't seem to get it anymore, anyway.

There was talk about it on the BenQ PE7700 thread, but all I was able to discern from that was that it seemed to address the base black level over component issue. I didn't see anything conclusive about anything else.

Does anybody use the Contrast & Tint controls on HDTV sources? My sources are both DVI -- an Oppo with it's own memory settings, and a Dish 941 HDTV DVR with it's own memory settings.

For HDTV I use the HDnet test patterns to set contrast and brightness, which are slightly different than those for the Oppo (set to -3 brightness on the player after newest firmware). Should color and tint settings I set from the Oppo (using AVIA) be used with HDTV as well, or are they strictly NTSC concerns?

Thanks.

It depends on what looks good. They probably should be different, since they may be recorded to different standards, and, in my case, are watched under different room conditions.

I haven't kept up with the thread for a couple months, as I've been pretty happy with my ht (aside from my lamp just blowing early). The Optoma Graywolf was the perfect screen for me.

calibrated, no filter RGB Gains: 54, 40, 39
calibrated, B+W FL-D RGB Gains: 51, 49, 57
relative difference RGB: -3, +9, +18

You're probably best off using the relative change from your current settings as opposed to starting with mine.


These were done using Smart III and seem visually good to me. It seems like all photo filter mfgs have their own FL-D recipe, so this will only be good with a B+W FL-D.

BTW, I think I may have better no filter numbers in my pj than the above (the above measurements were separated by a bit of bulb life), but need to get my new lamp to check.

Toshiba just tried to jerk me around on shipping my projector to service! The first time I had it serviced the customer service person gave me a Fedex account number to send it through and I had no problems. This time the guy was trying to tell me I have to ship it back on my coin and that's what customer's do! I don't take crap so finally he agreed to give me the account number again (make sure you save it.) I'm so glad the people from Tops are the actual ones that fix the projector and that it's no one from Toshiba.

I don't have quite the dynamic range & shadow detailed I'd like with HDTV. I have brightness and contrast properly set per the HDnet test patterns. I had the same issues with my previous CRT & HDTV. I believe some of this is due to the source material itself (whether by the network or Dishnetwork). However, will using the gamma controls help this? I already have them set at 71 per previous advice.

the black level of MT700 was one of my concerns. However, after using a ND2 filter and a Optoma Graywolf screen it's been much improved.



hey is it a neccesity to have a nd2 filter for your mt700. What does it do exactly - make the picture darker? what nd2 filter are you using, can you post the exact model # so i can find it in an online store please :) thanks

An ND2 cuts the amount of light output by 1 f-stop (= 50%). It does not effect anything else (supposedly). Most filter manufacturers have them (Hoya, Tiffen, QuantRay, etc.) and they can be found on any on-line vendor site that handles camera filters. Major differences between brands and models are in the coatings and materials (having to do with scratch resistance, needed for camera lens use but not for PJ use).

I have a Tokina ND2 on my MT700 and a QuantaRay (very inexpensive from my local Wolf Camera shop) on my HC3. They both do an excellent job with no apparent effect on colors. I need the ND2 filter because I have a high gain (106" Da-Light, High-Power, gain = 2.8) screen (bought for my old PJ which had a very low light output). If I were using a HCMW (gain = 1.1), I wouldn't need the ND2 filter.

The reason for using the ND2 filter is to drop the brightness down to SMPTE levels (12-16 Ft-L, brighter than most movie theaters). Some owners like brighter pictures. In my case, the ND2 filter brings the screen brightness down to around 22-25 Ft-L, which is still very bright. Pictures which are too bright lead to eye fatigue and possible headaches (more for DLP PJs, but also true for some LCD PJs, like my HC3). Since an ND2 filter cuts light output, it also improves black levels, but it does not change the measured contrast ratio. With a matte white (gain = 1) or a gray screen (gain = 0.8) of 92" to 106" diagonal size, and the MT700, a ND2 filter is not really needed.

thanks ct_weibe! you have always been very helpful. For the screen i have the:

Carada Brilliant White

Our Brilliant White screen material has a gain of 1.4 for that extra bit of punch, with a minimal decrease in viewing angle. It is also a thicker, more opaque gauge of vinyl than our Classic Cinema White. With its higher gain, it is a good option for dimmer projectors, or in environments with some ambient light such as boardrooms or churches.

And the mt700 is set on normal mode (not high power). Hmm do you think i need a nd2 filter? 1.4 gain seems to be somewhere in the middle.

Your post is confusing. Do you have 2 Carada screens? A lot depends on the screen size and personal preferences. The Brilliant White (BW) is closer to 1.3 gain and the Classic Cinema White (CCW) is 1.0. You want to shoot for a screen brightness of 25 Ft-L (foot lamberts) or less (SMPTE standard is 12-16 Ft-L). If your screen is 92" or smaller then the BW may be a tad too bright. For 96" or larger, the BW will be OK. In either case, the CCW is just fine. The calibrated output of the MT700, in the Normal Mode, is between 300 Lumens and 600 Lumens, depending on who you believe. Based on my experience , I'm guessing it's around 400 - 500 Lumens. MikeSRC or others with the measuring tools, can give you a better number.

Brightness (Ft-L) = (PJ Output in Lumens) x (Screen Gain) / (Screen area in square feet).

Regardless, it's really up to your perception of how bright it is. If it's too bright for you, get a ND2 filter. If it doesn't give you eyestrain or headaches, then it's OK. Human eyes do not have a linear response to light, and a cut in brightness of 50% does not really look that much darker, because your eye compensates for the brightness difference.

Gagaliya, Claus has pretty much answered your questions. I use a Hoya multi-coat ND2.

A Hoya ND2 HMC filter will cost you under $30 shipped. Very good quality filter, certainly good enough for a projector. For the price, you can always try it out. A cheaper Hoya filter will cost $5 less, probably just as good for a projector. These are virtually always instock at B&H.

Hi all,

I know there has been a lot of issues regarding the lamp life of this unit but out of frustration I need to vent a little and see if anyone has any suggestions.

In late Sept after only about 200 hours the lamp with out any warning went dead on my Toshiba TDPMT700. I called Toshiba and they refused to warrantee it since they had no knowledge of the issue, they had plenty in stock and I purchased the machine 6 months ago. No problem, I offered to buy a lamp. They referred me to one of there authoized suppliers so I did. I called several of them and they all said 2 to 4 weeks due to no national inventory!

I called Toshiba back and they told me to buy it from their accessory division. No problem, I called them. They said they had them in stock. Great here is my credit card. next week no lamp. Call them back, oh sorry we are out of stock and it could be a few weeks before we have them

I called support back and they refute the claim. After several hours of phone calls with Toshiba Support Supervisors, they agree to send me one imediately since they had then in stock. Great Thank you. Well unfortunately, after 3 weeks and a dozen follow up calls and promises no lamp.

Today, I was told the lamp would be in around mid November! So that would make it about 2 months with no lamp and no projector!!

DOES ANYONE HAVE A LAMP FOR THE TDPMT700?????

I am so un happy with this service it is insane!

Well, my projector was in the capable hands of Tops today and I'm surprised as to the source of the extra noise: the color wheel. It's been replaced (again) and is supposed to be running much quieter. I'll have it back thursday (just sent it in last night) so I'm very pleased. Tops gets an A+++.

nothru22,
As a member of the "jet engine" club, am very curious as to the outcome of Tops repair. Look forward to your post. Would have never thought of color wheel.

If Mr. York has indeed fixed the sound coming from my projector that reminds me oh so much of my future mother-in-law's mouth then I will use this forum to declare my man-love for him!

Actually, he still has it till the Fedex man gets there tomorrow so I must try not to rile him!

Can anyone confirm that the Benq PE7700 lamp works in the TDP MT700? I have a line on one and will buy it if it will work.

I believe my local BenQ dealer has provided several MT700 owners with BenQ 7700 replacement lamps. Not sure, but hey the projectors are identical except for some cosmetics. -art

Yes, the Benq bulb will work. I am currently using one in my MT700.

I also have a Benq bulb in my Toshiba. The picture appears to be the same (that is, wonderful) as with the original bulb, with 46 hours on it so far.

The calibrated output of the MT700, in the Normal Mode, is between 300 Lumens and 600 Lumens, depending on who you believe. Based on my experience , I'm guessing it's around 400 - 500 Lumens. MikeSRC or others with the measuring tools, can give you a better number.


I got 350 lumens, calibrated, which was 14 ft-L on a 92" screen.

Yikes! I just had a bulb failure last night and came here to see if this was a problem. Now I see a lot of people with lamp failures.

I got my unit in August, have somewhere between 200 and 250 hours on the lamp (I didn't have the theater room constructed and ready until Sept. 8, start of NFL season).

I'll call Monday and see what they say.

Eric

Eric, you should be ok. Read the lamp failure thread also, for info.

Eric-

Humorous to me that you are trying to explain 'only' 250 hrs on your lamp in 6 weeks!

I have had mine such early Aug hooked up 100% and my bulb failed last week at 175 hrs.

I will say the hrs started to crank up with football season...AND now I am missing said football season.

Argh, no other sports to watch on it after football until final 4.........

Jim

Yeah, I blew two bulbs in 250 hours. Very sad watching football on the tiny 32" screen. :)

Called Toshiba today and spoke to Lydia. Used the 866-590-0912 number, which I thought would be for the warranty dept. I remember talking to here on previous occasions by calling 800-631-3811. Guess maybe are all the same department?

Anyway got nowhere on my 2nd bulb failure. She insisted that the 90 day warranty applied to the first bulb only.( My bulb had been replaced on 8/8.) Was surprised at this response as Toshiba has been very good on my two prior service attempts and have heard of a 2nd bulb replacement being honored, due to the defect.

Lydia suggested I call Topps to see if they would warranty the bulb! This I have not heard of before. Need to cut to the chase before go any further.

Need help, who I need to call and the phone number to get this back on track. Thanks.

Did Lydia give you the Topps number (or do you have it)? That sounds like a real (loud) complaint to Tosh for giving you a defective replacement lamp.

I'm frustrated too, and am almost ready to just buy one outright.

Claus,
I have the Topps number and will call them and explain that Toshiba expects them to replace bulb.

Thought you would have your bulb by now since you also have the extended warranty.

The Topps number is in this thread. Search for 866.

Jeff, some people had luck going to the place they bought their projectors from to get their lamp replaced. You shouldn't have to. These lamps are clearly defective, BenQ is replacing second and third lamps without question.
Warren.

I posted this on the other lamp thread but wanted to ask ppl here as well..

For those who have received lamp replacement approval from Toshiba, did Toshiba request you to send in your old bulb back first as a requirement to get your new replacement bulb?

Also does anyone know if all replacement bulbs now are dated Sept 05 or later or are replacment bulbs received lately of the old batch?

Toshiba didn't request for me to send the old lamp back.

Steve, thanks for your info..

Again posted in other thread but I saw Jeffcom's troubles so posting here as well... For those who have received their bulbs from Toshiba, what number did you use??

TACP 1-866-590-0912 or 1 800 631 3811 or BOTH ? I am wondering if they are two different groups and perhaps not talking to each other and thus one camp not being fully aware of the bulb issue. I am giving Toshiba the benefit of the doubt here.

NoThru22,
Did you get your PJ back from Tops? Was the noise coming from the color wheel like they said, or was it the fans? Is the noise level back to original specifications?

I have been avoiding posting this because I do not want people to think I'm a doomsayer, but I can't really hear any difference now that I have the projector back. Has anyone compared the noise level to a Panasonic AE700 because they have a few right down the road and I can compare. I was thinking maybe I have interference in my power line but I'm either running it on a sinewave output SmartUPS or a Furman power conditioner and the sound remains the same. I guess I'll have to live with it.

The good news is that the new mainboard with the new HDMI connector came with the new firmware. I have to calibrate it from scratch and I'm still not finding the sweetspot I had it at before, but I'm sure I will. My only problem is that it won't say any of my HDMI input settings. It took a few tries before it would save my component picture settings, such as film mode and then the regular picture settings, but everytime I shut the projector off it forgets my overscan and picture settings for HDMI. I have tried save factory settings in the service menu and save picture settings but to no avail.

The new HDMI connector is indeed much better. I never had a problem with the old one but this new one grips the cable much better.

Save your picture settings to User 1 for HDMI. If you change settings in the service menu, go back to the user menu to save in User 1. (or 2 or 3) You can't change the factory settings, it seems. I haven't been able to find a way to change the overscan and make it stick for HDMI. It sticks for the other inputs, from what I can tell.

Great. I just got my Tivo replaced to use the HDMI and I can see all sorts of noise at the top of the screen, so I have to use overscan. I'll have to go into that menu everytime I turn on my display? And I can't get it to save the film mode setting either.

Have also found it impossible to keep overscan settings, very annoying. There are two places in the service menu to change overscan, but don't think it matters any.

Toshiba said they would replace my bulb but said it was on backorder and wouldn't give me a date. I'll call them again tomorrow to see if they have them in stock and when they'll ship me one.

Eric

Hello all of you guys! I'm Kid (nickname, of course) and I live in Brazil. I've bought my MT700 in May, when I was on vacation in NYC. I've never had a single problem with it, although whenever I watch a movie I got pretty scared that my lamp is gonna blow over my head.
It never happened.
But today I was watching a dvd from the Millennium tv show and all of a sudden a giant hair sliped over the image, just like it used to happen in movie theaters.
Needles to say, I'm desperate. There's no service for Toshiba projectors in Brazil and, of course, my warranty is valid only in the US, and it's impossible to me to ship the projector back.
I've read this entire thread since its beginning, and I hope that any of you guys can help me on that. What should I do? How can I locate where the hair is (I'm sure it's in the inside, I've cleaned the whole outside of the projector)? Should I open it and try to clean it inside? I'm afraid the hair is located inside the optical/light engine, which is supposed to be sealed. If so, what do I do???
I'm sorry for such a long post (and the bad english...), but I'd really appreciate any help you can give me.
Thanks a LOT!!!!

Kid, A hair could get between the bulb and the color wheel. It is really easy to remove the bulb and check there. Make sure the projector is off overnight first. I am sure there are other places, but you want to get familiar with the bulb replacement procedure anyway. :)
Warren.

Great. I just got my Tivo replaced to use the HDMI and I can see all sorts of noise at the top of the screen, so I have to use overscan. I'll have to go into that menu everytime I turn on my display? And I can't get it to save the film mode setting either.
Yes, this is what I do if necessary. I also have the HDTivo. But I generally only use it to watch HD material, and this seldom needs overscan adjusted. Occasionally there is a line on the left or top to get rid of. Most SD has a nasty bunch of nothing at the top, so if I was watching SD over HDMI it would be ugly. I also have my Svideo hooked up, and that is an option instead for SD viewing.