How will it be damaged? What will break?
I had to drive 30 miles with mine on its back. No problems at all with my tv. The guy at bestbuy said that plasma tvs were damaged by laying them on there back, not lcd.

How will it be damaged? What will break?
When I bought my set 5 months ago, I asked the dealer (neither bb or cc) specifically about this. He replied that it shouldn't be an issue for shorter distances, and that they transport such sets on the side all the time. It might have been laying on the side even before you bought it. (And yes I transported my set on the side as well, no issues...)

I have the KDF-E42A10 with vanilla cable connected via coax no STB. My "cable" company actually rebroadcasts D*TV. I also have a Sony DVP-NS70H hooked up via HDMI.

I notice on some cable channels there is a fuzzy/grainy image along the upper horizontal edge of the picture, roughly the last upper inch of the image where the screen meets the housing. On some channels, this image is larger black and white lines. To me, this appears as an incomplete image as if the intended image is too small for the large screen (if that makes any sense) leaving nothing to display in this "extra real estate". The best description I can think of is that the picture is not tuned in along the very upper horizontal section of the screen running the entire width and about an inch or so in height. The bottom edge of the screen/image is fine.

When I watch a true 16:9 DVD (I was using Blade III), this same area is completely black and void of any image whatsoever. I assume a true 16:9 DVD would fill the entire screen (perhaps a wrong assumption).

The problem on the cable channels is only the SD stuff and never the HD channels. HD broadcasts fill the entire screen as it should. I also noticed the same thing on a Dell 37" LCD which I owned for about a day. This tells me it's not the TV...possibly.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love this TV and this is a mild annoyance. I can deal with it but this was my most expensive TV purchase to date after getting rid of my 6 year old 35" Trinitron (no more hernias moving that thing). I am just concerned that my new TV may be a little "off", maybe the image is not centered properly...I don't know, I'm just searching for some enlightenment and could not come up with anything after hours of searching this monster thread.

Can somebody clue me in? Thx...


The white line is always there actually, but most channels are able to properly fit their signal so that you never see it. I have that problem with NBC sometimes on all of my tv's (50A10 and a 2000 27" Trinitron). It's not your tv or your hookups, it's the channel you're watching.

Can anyone who has done the tweeks (red push tweek) and had the firmware updated confirm if the red push tweeks and such are lost. Or if the service menu's have changed?

Don't know if this a repost but the March 2006 Home Theater mag has a list of
all the HDTVs that actually weave a HD picture and those that bob.
Apparently only 48% of the displays they have tested will actually display a 1080i
signal properly.
The rest just take a 540 line field and synthesize it to make a 1080 line frame.

I was glad to hear that our 42A10s and 50A10s do the weave, but
kind of shocked to learn that the 768p A20s don't.
Also the 32a10 doesn't, but the SXRDs do.

Also I am using the unloved Sony 975 upconverting DVD player.
It adds a little bit of softness to the pic.
Which upconverting DVD player to you guys recommend?

Loving my 42A10 after 6+months.

Which upconverting DVD player to you guys recommend?

Do a search on Oppo 971H and you should get a lot of results. They also did a review of it at audioholics, including the supplemental update a couple of days ago (firmware upgrade). Oppo's customer service is also apparently very good.

Can anyone who has done the tweeks (red push tweek) and had the firmware updated confirm if the red push tweeks and such are lost. Or if the service menu's have changed?

I have done the tweaks and had the update .No settings changed afterwards. All good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So does this 1.20 software update bring ANYTHING else but a bug fix? The version numbers after the update is pretty drastic for nothing more but a small bug.

So does this 1.20 software update bring ANYTHING else but a bug fix? The version numbers after the update is pretty drastic for nothing more but a small bug.

Nothing new that I have noticed.

I have the 50a10 and had the firmware done. decided to do the red push fix since "House" looked a little red last night. So i am asuming that damage can only be done if you do a write (mute, enter). And i only did writes on the Tv and then Video red pushes. The Tv was set on 46 before the fix and the video 1 on 3C. Put them both to 3B. Did Writes on both. On the main system screen i pressed "2" instead of jump and it scrolled through some stuff at the top but I didn't press any other buttons so i don't think i did anything there.

Hello, I have not followed this thead on a daily basis since I actually got my 42A10 last summer. First, what is the firmware upgrade & what does it do & how do I go about getting it? Now on to my real question.

I have two HD sources to feed my 42A10. A DirecTV H10 receiver connected via component & an Sony DVP-NS70H Upconverting DVD player connected via the HDMI. As a general rule I leave the H10 set to output 1080i at all times. This is that no matter what (i.e regular SD channels or HD in 720P) the A10 always sees that that the carrier is 1080i. I have noticed that I can get a sharper display if I set the H10 to output the native resolution, but as chaning channel from say 4801 to 720p/1080i incurs a 5 to 7 second delay while the tv 'syncs up' drives me crazy I only do this for special events, like the Super Bowl or (since we just got it on D* last week) the NBA Allstar events on TNT-HD.

Ok, a commercial comes on & I go to switch to the Science Channel, which is SD. Five to seven seconds go buy & the A10 never "syncs up'. I get to messing around with several channels (to include all of my satellite delivered regular locals) & I discovered that if I go to 1080i channel then the display "pops" right in.

To make a long story short, whatever the resolution of the signal when the A10 is first turned on, is the one it sticks at. If it comes on say ESPN2HD, which is 720P, then switching to say HBO-HD or HDNET (both 10801) then I get the color bars like it is trying & then it just fails & I get what is best described as a ghosted tripple picture (complete wtih sidebands). My proof for the above was the DVD-NS70H. If you read the thread here about that device, it is best to feed the A10/A20 with 720p but I set it to 1080i in the menu & got the same thing as above with my H10. I could barely make out the menu to set it back. So I do not believe this is an input issue as both the component & the HDMI input will have the same response.

Now the quick fix for this is to just leave the DVD player & the H10 at one setting & just forget it. I am sure that for most any person who is a member here at AVS could see that that is not a fix at all & not to mention it's still under warranty!

Has anyone else had this kind of problem. Is it the deinterlacer that is going bad? Should I just e-mail sony or just try to call them outright?

Thanks for any replies in advance.


edit:: I have done the red push fix.

The white line is always there actually, but most channels are able to properly fit their signal so that you never see it. I have that problem with NBC sometimes on all of my tv's (50A10 and a 2000 27" Trinitron). It's not your tv or your hookups, it's the channel you're watching.

Thanks for the reply rifleman69. I was thinking it was the signal since I first noticed it on the 37" Dell. I have actually got used to viewing SD over the coax...I guess I've weaned myself off of CRT viewing since the only one left in the house is a Sony 13" (I have a 32" Aquos in the bedroom and am looking for a 23" to place in my loft, actually considering the Dell).

I suppose it's a similar explanation for the black section/missing image when I'm watching a DVD.

My "cable" company (D*TV behind the curtains) is supposed to offer some sort of HD STB upgrade in the near future...probably the H20 boxes or a similar version. I hope to go to a component hookup from whatever STB they provide as this should improve my signal quality.

Again, thanks for calming any fears I had!

Hi,

Lots of info here. I'm thinking of purchasing the 42 inch model and had a few questions.

I have a small child in the house, how fragile is the tv if it were to accidently get bumped or something?

Does the screen scratch easily?

Are the bulbs easily available? I see some on eBay from time to time, would this be a good option for a replacement bulb?

Thanks,

could someone PLEASE help me?

I've tried everything in the manual and it's still not working..I bought my TV yesterday and my sound on my TV isn't working--it was working yesterday though :(

i have the 50a10



Fixed: nevermind..I guess for the xbox 360, in order to get the 720P, you have to plug in all 6 cables in

Hi,

Lots of info here. I'm thinking of purchasing the 42 inch model and had a few questions.

I have a small child in the house, how fragile is the tv if it were to accidently get bumped or something?

Does the screen scratch easily?

Are the bulbs easily available? I see some on eBay from time to time, would this be a good option for a replacement bulb?

Thanks,

I am a freak about scratches, an I read a post in these 200+ pages which someone uses a microfiber towel... which is probably a good idea. I do not own one yet, however thats gonna change soon. One selling point for me on the tv is the bulb. $199 from Crutchfield an it looks like you just pop out the old an install the new

Again, I do not own one... yet ;)

could someone PLEASE help me?

I've tried everything in the manual and it's still not working..I bought my TV yesterday and my sound on my TV isn't working--it was working yesterday though :(

i have the 50a10



Fixed: nevermind..I guess for the xbox 360, in order to get the 720P, you have to plug in all 6 cables in

erm, no actually you DON'T want all 6 cables plugged in! By doing that, you're plugging BOTH Component and Composite video in at the same time! Unplug that yellow one...

I'm noticing 2 models here in Canada... KDFE42A10 and KFE42A10.

Whats the difference?

KDFE42A10 costs $300 more, has a digital tuner and card slot which is not needed in Canada. I just bought the KFE42A10 did the red push fix and it looks just great in my bedroom.

I'm noticing 2 models here in Canada... KDFE42A10 and KFE42A10.

Whats the difference?

The one with the D has a digital tuner the other does not

I had to drive 30 miles with mine on its back. No problems at all with my tv. The guy at bestbuy said that plasma tvs were damaged by laying them on there back, not lcd.

We traveled 45 miles with our 50" lying on it's back in the box. It would not stand up in
an Explorer. No problems so far, that was in Nov.

I'm encountering another problem..I have my tv hooked up right now to my laptop--it's showing the video portion but I'm getting no sound..I'm running mini-stereo audio cable from my sound card headphones to the PC in audio and I'm not hearing anything--what am I doing wrong?

I'm using S-Video for the video display

I have a November 2005 50A10 and when I went to the service web site and entered my serial # it said I needed to update my software.

I'm searching this thread and I see the following:

Could someone please check and see if these are the updated firmware #'s or the old ones. I'd really appreciate it.

ATI : H05-01.20
SAIPH PROGRAM: 1.200
BOOT: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1233
CHIMERA PROGRAM: 1.139
PACK: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
BOOT: 0.004
NVM A0: 2.000
NVM AC: 6.090
NVM AE: ----
HDMI: 1.300

Thank you,

Your numbers show the updated firmware. You're a OK!

Now when I enter the service menu on my 50A10 it looks like I have 1.20 but my numbers differ a bit from Keither:
MINE:
ATI : H05-01.20
SAIPH PROGRAM: 1.200
BOOT: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1203* (his said 1233)
CHIMERA PROGRAM: 1.140
PACK: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
BOOT: 0.004
NVM A0: 7.092* (his said 2.000)
NVM AC: 6.090
NVM AE: ----
HDMI: ----* (his said 1.300)


Can people who have gotten a firmware update or have a newer post November 2005 50A10 verify my settings? I'm wondering why the diff in nvm, nvm a0, and especially the hdmi and see if other people have similar settings.

Thanks in advance.

the best way to damage a TV is by laying it on its back or front.


I suppose if you bump it around and all that, but if it gets a smooth ride then it should be totally fine - should it not? I never had any problems and the people at the store say it doesnt matter at all as long as you dont bump it around a lot. Take a easy ride and it will be just fine. Some cushioning is in order perhaps, but mostly just take a really easy ride... lean it more than lay it on its back or font, but thats why the actual packaging in the box is essential, so its not really laying ON its side, but its on its side.. get it? So as long as its a nice ride.. should have no problems what so ever.

You will also find that lots of people have mentioned driving with these things on their back/side and its fine! I mean most people cars/vans.. or whatever dont have enough room to drive with a 50 inch tv standing upright.

Hello, I have not followed this thead on a daily basis since I actually got my 42A10 last summer. First, what is the firmware upgrade & what does it do & how do I go about getting it? Now on to my real question.

I have two HD sources to feed my 42A10. A DirecTV H10 receiver connected via component & an Sony DVP-NS70H Upconverting DVD player connected via the HDMI. As a general rule I leave the H10 set to output 1080i at all times. This is that no matter what (i.e regular SD channels or HD in 720P) the A10 always sees that that the carrier is 1080i. I have noticed that I can get a sharper display if I set the H10 to output the native resolution, but as chaning channel from say 4801 to 720p/1080i incurs a 5 to 7 second delay while the tv 'syncs up' drives me crazy I only do this for special events, like the Super Bowl or (since we just got it on D* last week) the NBA Allstar events on TNT-HD.

Ok, a commercial comes on & I go to switch to the Science Channel, which is SD. Five to seven seconds go buy & the A10 never "syncs up'. I get to messing around with several channels (to include all of my satellite delivered regular locals) & I discovered that if I go to 1080i channel then the display "pops" right in.

To make a long story short, whatever the resolution of the signal when the A10 is first turned on, is the one it sticks at. If it comes on say ESPN2HD, which is 720P, then switching to say HBO-HD or HDNET (both 10801) then I get the color bars like it is trying & then it just fails & I get what is best described as a ghosted tripple picture (complete wtih sidebands). My proof for the above was the DVD-NS70H. If you read the thread here about that device, it is best to feed the A10/A20 with 720p but I set it to 1080i in the menu & got the same thing as above with my H10. I could barely make out the menu to set it back. So I do not believe this is an input issue as both the component & the HDMI input will have the same response.

Now the quick fix for this is to just leave the DVD player & the H10 at one setting & just forget it. I am sure that for most any person who is a member here at AVS could see that that is not a fix at all & not to mention it's still under warranty!

Has anyone else had this kind of problem. Is it the deinterlacer that is going bad? Should I just e-mail sony or just try to call them outright?

Thanks for any replies in advance.


edit:: I have done the red push fix.

It sounds like you are having the same problem I had a few months ago, where the tv would try to switch to the different res but would "lock up" in doing so. This was going on for a few weeks. The way I solved my issue was to unplug the tv for about thirty seconds, then plug it back in. It hasn't happened since then. It's worth a try.

I'm encountering another problem..I have my tv hooked up right now to my laptop--it's showing the video portion but I'm getting no sound..I'm running mini-stereo audio cable from my sound card headphones to the PC in audio and I'm not hearing anything--what am I doing wrong?

I'm using S-Video for the video display

The PC audio-in is for VIDEO 7, the same video that uses the PC-in. If you are using SVIDEO, your audio has to be going through that video. I don;t remeber off the top of my hea dbut lets say SVIDEO is VIDEO2. Then to get sound you need to use the audio-in of VIDEO 2.

So what is this firmware talk I am reading about on here? I didn't have too much time to read through all pages, so could someone explain what it is briefly? I have not had a single problem with my 50A10 since I bought it (knock on wood) so what exactly is wrong with them?

So what is this firmware talk I am reading about on here? I didn't have too much time to read through all pages, so could someone explain what it is briefly? I have not had a single problem with my 50A10 since I bought it (knock on wood) so what exactly is wrong with them?

www.updatemytv.com

all the info you need is there

Software upgrade
Got a letter from Sony friday that stated their was a software issue on the TV I purchased in Sept.. The letter stated that the upgrade was for the KDLV26/32/40XBR1(Bravia) Flat Panel and KDFE42/50A10 Rear projection LCD televisions. The letter staed that they (sony) have recently learned that a limited number of televisions manufactured through November 2005 may after a long period of time depending on usage, fail to turn on or off due to a software issue. This condition is easily resolved with a simple software upgrade provided by Sony at no charge. I have the KDFE42A10 and had no problems but called the number provided (1-866-210-6333) and since my TV had a manufactors date of Sept 2005 it needed the upgrade, it took the guy about 20 min. to remove a small panel on the back that covered a USB port, he then plug in a device that had the upgrade on it and was done 10min. later. You can also go to WWW.updatemytv.com and input TV model number and serial or call the Toll-Free number. No problems with my TV, just curious to see if anyone has had the upgrade yet. I love my Sony 42A10 and would recomend anyone looking for a TV to buy a Sony 42A10.

d1live posted this last week....the software update is for build dates through Nov 05, as some sets will not turn off properly. Go to the website to see if your TV needs the update. Someone else posted the news release somewhere on this forum, but d1live's summary is accurate.

great, thanks.

I have a small child in the house, how fragile is the tv if it were to accidently get bumped or something?

Does the screen scratch easily?

My E42A10 took a good thump from the backswing of my 3.5 yr olds hockey stick last night, just to the right of center on the screen. My heart pretty much stopped for about 10 seconds, but other than that, no damage. I looked at some black and white solid screens, but couldn't see anything.

I should have seen that coming. Now he's defending the goal on the OTHER side of the living room...

My E42A10 took a good thump from the backswing of my 3.5 yr olds hockey stick last night, just to the right of center on the screen. My heart pretty much stopped for about 10 seconds, but other than that, no damage. I looked at some black and white solid screens, but couldn't see anything.

I should have seen that coming. Now he's defending the goal on the OTHER side of the living room...

After I broke the stick in half over his head, I would have banished him outside to like in the dog house for a week...but, I suppose that would have been too hard on the dog.

KDFE42A10 costs $300 more, has a digital tuner and card slot which is not needed in Canada.

I beg to differ. The digital tuner is well worth it for some of us--and the price difference isn't necessarily $300. In the Toronto area, lots of people can get 10+ high def channels with an outdoor antenna. Even my rabbit ears in the basement let me pick up several channels (gonna put up an outdoor in the spring).

The thing with digital OTA is that, if you have a lock, you get a perfect picture. And the quality is generally even better than satellite or cable as it hasn't gone through an extra round of compression.

I don't *like* paying my provider an extra fee each month for a lesser quality product.

Craig

News to me Craig. How is the quality of air reception and which channels? I just bought mine Friday and could return it if th HD reception was that worthwhile. I'm using SA HD3250 rogers cablebox at the moment.

I just purchased the 50" version of this and am researching what tweaks to make to it. Last night we sat down to watch the Battlestar Galactica DVD's and I was not impressed with the visual noise going on in closeups and such. Not sure what is causing it. DVD player is outputing 480p and generally puts out a nice picture. Going out via component.

Any ideas of where I should first look to get rid of visual "noise?" When I saw noise, I mean things that look like dancing ants.

I just purchased the 50" version of this and am researching what tweaks to make to it. Last night we sat down to watch the Battlestar Galactica DVD's and I was not impressed with the visual noise going on in closeups and such. Not sure what is causing it. DVD player is outputing 480p and generally puts out a nice picture. Going out via component.

Any ideas of where I should first look to get rid of visual "noise?" When I saw noise, I mean things that look like dancing ants.


There is a tweaks thread here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=567709) .

I just purchased the 50" version of this and am researching what tweaks to make to it. Last night we sat down to watch the Battlestar Galactica DVD's and I was not impressed with the visual noise going on in closeups and such. Not sure what is causing it. DVD player is outputing 480p and generally puts out a nice picture. Going out via component.

Any ideas of where I should first look to get rid of visual "noise?" When I saw noise, I mean things that look like dancing ants.

I would try different cables first.

Try different cables, and possibly a different DVD player, on my older HDTV (samsung 50" DLP, which i exchanged) I had the same problem, low level noise.. not macroblocking or anything like that, but dancing pixels in the background - and when someone face was up close you could see a grainy image... not nice! Changing DVD players helped A LOT . .well in that case anyway, high quality cables are important too ... which kind are you using? Some people are all for the DVDHD upconversion players, Im one of those people I saw a good difference, since they can kind of convert the dvd signal into 1080i or 720p. Makes a bit of a difference.. to me anyway.


I beg to differ. The digital tuner is well worth it for some of us--and the price difference isn't necessarily $300. In the Toronto area, lots of people can get 10+ high def channels with an outdoor antenna. Even my rabbit ears in the basement let me pick up several channels (gonna put up an outdoor in the spring).

The thing with digital OTA is that, if you have a lock, you get a perfect picture. And the quality is generally even better than satellite or cable as it hasn't gone through an extra round of compression.

I don't *like* paying my provider an extra fee each month for a lesser quality product.

Craig


As you can see by my sig there I dont have the tuner ..... ofcourse its not useless for americans and some canadians, it would be best for people to find out if its useless first! haha.... for me here in Edmonton its pretty much a 450 dollar EXTRA, that has no use whatsoever for me. So obviously I didnt get it.

Question : do you get Discovery HD? my cable company is thinking of adding that channel on.... i really really hope they do... i love discovery channel! and in HD! my my.

Any recommendations on DVD players these days? BTW, using Monster component cables, so hopefully they aren't it. :)

I've noticed the "crawly" thing varies from DVD to DVD for me, for instance, on the 24 DVD's (the tv series), it's got a lot of that crawly stuff. in Star Wars for instance, it's got little to none. I'd try out a few different DVD's first before plunging into a new DVD player which may not solve your problem.

tornadobox(interesting name) is right, some dvds are better than others for this kind of thing. your cables are probably fine. its hard to tell. especially through the internet.


just cause dvds arent really that high quality, so its easy to have problems like this with some dvds. i noticed it a lot more on certain ones and hardly at all on others as well.

tornadobox(interesting name) is right

i hope interesting in a good way... :)

Maybe it's a TV show transfer issue.

i hope interesting in a good way... :)

Yeah... in a good way sure!

So the firmware fix is to fix the set from getting stuck in a perma green flashing light? right? Well, just got home from work and on my January 2006 build date KDFE42A10 I powered everything on and the green light went solid, but no picture. You could see that the screen was powered up (faint light), but no picture would ever come up. It would not power off via the button or my remote. I unplugged it and plugged it right back in 5 seconds later, and it turned on by itself, and is now working.

Is this that problem? or is this something else? is this common? I've had my set about a month.

I hope you don't blame me here, but there is an awful lot of pages to read through. I am wanting to know, what has been the overall take on the A10? It appears that it is well liked, but maybe that is the only threads I have read. Would most turn back now or glad they purchased it? I have a ISF calibrated Panny 43LC14 and have never liked the bright/backlit screen. This just washes out the blacks. I modded it with a 2 stop camera filter (guide on another thread), which did help cut some of the light, but I am not completely satisfied. The picture is pretty nice, depending on the source. Has anyone gone from another current Plasma, DLP and or LCD, that thinks this is a much better tv overall (more so in the contrast/blacks)? Thanks for the replies to come.

I just purchased the 50" version of this and am researching what tweaks to make to it. Last night we sat down to watch the Battlestar Galactica DVD's and I was not impressed with the visual noise going on in closeups and such. Not sure what is causing it. DVD player is outputing 480p and generally puts out a nice picture. Going out via component.

Any ideas of where I should first look to get rid of visual "noise?" When I saw noise, I mean things that look like dancing ants.

I would try turning off the scaler in the dvd player and let the tv scaler handle that to see if the image is cleaner and try to adjust your settings from there .

d1live posted this last week....the software update is for build dates through Nov 05, as some sets will not turn off properly. Go to the website to see if your TV needs the update. Someone else posted the news release somewhere on this forum, but d1live's summary is accurate.

well, just got done filling out the form online and I do need the upgrade, but why didn't Sony ever contact me about it? Mine was built on Sep 05, but luckily I have yet run into a problem with this set.

Did you register your set? Most people that needed the upgrade haven't had a problem, either, so I guess they upgrade to insure a trouble-free future. Mine didn't need the upgrade.

Hello teckademic. I do not think many people were notified about this update issue yet. Probaly in the next three months we will start to hear about this from Sony or maybe Sony does not want everybody to know about this issue so they may endup scaring away some other potential customers. Just my opinion! Thanks.

I never registered mine either,but mine needs the update,so I filled out the form and got a date for the 24th..

Hello yarrumc, I love my 50" A10 and if I had the choice of buying a new set I would still buy this one today. There are probably better displays out there but for the price I think this is the best tv you can buy. My $0.02. thank you

Hello yarrumc, I love my 50" A10 and if I had the choice of buying a new set I would still buy this one today. There are probably better displays out there but for the price I think this is the best tv you can buy. My $0.02. thank you

Thanks. I know its dumb to buy a tv, if you are fairly happy with what you got, but I am always after the 'better' picture. It's nice to have a lot of options to tweak, to have the best picture. Has anyone switched tv's to this one, that maybe only had their equivalent tv for less than 2 years and why did they switch?

Well, some advice to all of you- wait a couple of weeks before you get your TV upgrade. A repair guy came by tonight and things were not in order.

He did not bring the firmware with him. He ended up having it emailed to him from a support person at his company. He received two files.

At least a portion of the upgrade occurred- but my ATI is still at it's original H05-01.15. I thought perhaps this particular component isn't supposed to get upgraded, but looking back through everyone else's posts, it appears that everyone was upgraded to H05-1.20. All of my other stuff was upgraded to the versions that have been posted. These are the two files he downloaded:

E29974609-sony_dtv_upgrade 1.d05
sony_mix_uc_upgrade.c05

We didn't realize there is more than one file - we first did the upgrade with only the sony_mix_uc_upgrade file on the stick, then we did it again after we added the EXXX_sony_dtv_upgrade file to the flash drive.

Anyone out there know if there are supposed to be more than just these two files? Perhaps there's a 3rd that he didn't receive, or one of the two files is supposed to be in a particular subdirectory on the stick?

If anyone knows anything, please let me know! Thanks!

I read thru at least 50 pages of this thread and I've search for this 50" Sony Wega model along with the terms "Cablecard" and "DVR" but haven't found the answer to my question, so maybe someone can help me understand this before I buy anything:

If I use a Cablecard instead of a digital cable box, will I be able to use my Sony DVD Recorder w/ Hard Drive (a DVR, like a Tivo) for recording all channels?

I'm assuming the coax would go straight to the TV so that I'd be able to receive the digital channels, premiums (HBO) and HD channels. But, in doing that I'm not running the signal(s) through the DVR, so how would I record anything - I don't see that the TV itself has any video output to loop back to the recorder.

I spoke with salespeople at both Best Buy and HHGregg tonight and got conflicting answers - one said it can't be done and the other said I could run the cable to the DVR first and then to the TV but I would lose the ability to record premium/movies like on HBO. Neither guy really sounded like he knew what he was talking about though.

Is the HDMI port a two-way - will it output from the TV to the DVR ?

So, can I record everything via Cablecard or do I have to get a cable box instead?

Thanks in advance for any help you guys can provide.

It sounds like you are having the same problem I had a few months ago, where the tv would try to switch to the different res but would "lock up" in doing so. This was going on for a few weeks. The way I solved my issue was to unplug the tv for about thirty seconds, then plug it back in. It hasn't happened since then. It's worth a try.


Shozbot.. U R DA BOT! That did it Thanks! :D

Good news! My 42A10 is finally scheduled for arrival tomorrow morning between 9am and 1pm. It will be 2 weeks tomorrow since I ordered it so I am finally going to get to enjoy it. The cable box is scheduled for delivery the same time. I printed out the post on the Redpush fix, DarkRain's settings and few others, so I think I am ready to go. Anything else you can think of that I need to get ready? (other than potato chips and a 6 pack!)

The upgrade occurred- but my ATI is still at it's original H05-01.15. I thought that perhaps this particular component didn't get upgraded, but looking back at everyone else's posts, it appears that everyone was upgraded to H05-1.20. All of my other stuff was upgraded to the versions that have been posted.

pnkflyd51 where did you see the versions posted? I'm not having any luck finding out definitively what the versions should be (see my previous post in this thread on the previous page).

pnkflyd51 where did you see the versions posted? I'm not having any luck finding out definitively what the versions should be (see my previous post in this thread on the previous page).

Halfway down page 226, Feb 17th.

I got my TV Today.... awesome.... I havent tweaked it out yet.. but I plan on doing Dark Rains settings tonight.... looks great.


EDIT: used Dark Rains settings for HD and DVD.. looks better for sure... thx!

red push will get done after I watch Sin City

congrats on your new tv. Did you get a perfect tv (no dead pixels, etc)?

I read thru at least 50 pages of this thread and I've search for this 50" Sony Wega model along with the terms "Cablecard" and "DVR" but haven't found the answer to my question, so maybe someone can help me understand this before I buy anything:

If I use a Cablecard instead of a digital cable box, will I be able to use my Sony DVD Recorder w/ Hard Drive (a DVR, like a Tivo) for recording all channels?

I'm assuming the coax would go straight to the TV so that I'd be able to receive the digital channels, premiums (HBO) and HD channels. But, in doing that I'm not running the signal(s) through the DVR, so how would I record anything - I don't see that the TV itself has any video output to loop back to the recorder.

I spoke with salespeople at both Best Buy and HHGregg tonight and got conflicting answers - one said it can't be done and the other said I could run the cable to the DVR first and then to the TV but I would lose the ability to record premium/movies like on HBO. Neither guy really sounded like he knew what he was talking about though.

Is the HDMI port a two-way - will it output from the TV to the DVR ?

So, can I record everything via Cablecard or do I have to get a cable box instead?

Thanks in advance for any help you guys can provide.

there's no way to record any premium content on your DVD recorder. I'm in the same boat as you. I have my DVD recorder hooked up to the cable line first, then out to the TV. The DVD recorder can pick up only the analog channels (and record them), though my TV can pick up some digital and HD channels (and the DVD recorder cannot see these channels).

i'm waiting for the cablecard HD tivo's :)

I hope you don't blame me here, but there is an awful lot of pages to read through. I am wanting to know, what has been the overall take on the A10? It appears that it is well liked, but maybe that is the only threads I have read. Would most turn back now or glad they purchased it? I have a ISF calibrated Panny 43LC14 and have never liked the bright/backlit screen. This just washes out the blacks. I modded it with a 2 stop camera filter (guide on another thread), which did help cut some of the light, but I am not completely satisfied. The picture is pretty nice, depending on the source. Has anyone gone from another current Plasma, DLP and or LCD, that thinks this is a much better tv overall (more so in the contrast/blacks)? Thanks for the replies to come.

There is no sure fire way to determine if the tv is best for you... or me for that matter. I to would like to know or hear of people that decided to steer away from it and why as well.

I am so close to pull the trigger on a 42 but yet I am somewhat concerned that in the next few months I should have waited. its like that with anything now a days. Also, people that left this model probably don't venture into this thread anymore

Halfway down page 226, Feb 17th.

pnkflyd51, that the exact same thread that I quoted in my question.
See my 50A10 has very similar versions to his, but the website says I need a software update. My ATI is H05-01.20 so I thought I would be good but I vary on the following:
NVM: 1.200-1203* (his said 1233)
NVM A0: 7.092* (his said 2.000)
HDMI: ----* (his said 1.300)

I'm just trying to figure out what other people have who have had the update or have a tv that doesn't need the update.

So the firmware fix is to fix the set from getting stuck in a perma green flashing light? right? Well, just got home from work and on my January 2006 build date KDFE42A10 I powered everything on and the green light went solid, but no picture. You could see that the screen was powered up (faint light), but no picture would ever come up. It would not power off via the button or my remote. I unplugged it and plugged it right back in 5 seconds later, and it turned on by itself, and is now working.

Is this that problem? or is this something else? is this common? I've had my set about a month.

Since nobody has replied, that means nobody else has experienced what I did yesterday?

TexRob,

My 42A10 has done that on several occasions.
It has always fixed itself.
I bought the TV in August.

I just purchased the 50" version of this and am researching what tweaks to make to it. Last night we sat down to watch the Battlestar Galactica DVD's and I was not impressed with the visual noise going on in closeups and such. Not sure what is causing it. DVD player is outputing 480p and generally puts out a nice picture. Going out via component.

Any ideas of where I should first look to get rid of visual "noise?" When I saw noise, I mean things that look like dancing ants.
rickeame,
Make sure to use Component cables (very important to use component cables - Red, Green, Blue - 3 cables instead of one yellow or one S-Video).

I have my DVD set to output at 480i and that way the DRC palette is enabled. I find that this helps greatly with home movies or poorly tranferred movies. I think I set the DRC to 63 Reality and 61 Clarity or something like that.

DVD is just not HD so once Blu-ray is available (and or HD-DVD) then the quality will be great for HD material (shows like Lost, etc that are filmed in HD).

I hope you don't blame me here, but there is an awful lot of pages to read through. I am wanting to know, what has been the overall take on the A10? It appears that it is well liked, but maybe that is the only threads I have read. Would most turn back now or glad they purchased it? I have a ISF calibrated Panny 43LC14 and have never liked the bright/backlit screen. This just washes out the blacks. I modded it with a 2 stop camera filter (guide on another thread), which did help cut some of the light, but I am not completely satisfied. The picture is pretty nice, depending on the source. Has anyone gone from another current Plasma, DLP and or LCD, that thinks this is a much better tv overall (more so in the contrast/blacks)? Thanks for the replies to come.
yarrumc,
I have read every single entry on this thread (yes, I am a geek) since last August when it was only 25 pages and read almost daily.

I'd say overall, 90-95% of the owners love/enjoy/keep this TV. Some have had issues with defects, like green blobs, etc but I don't think I've heard anyone return because of "bad Picture" or the like.

There are pros and cons and you may want to read the Settings thread here

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=567709&page=1&pp=30

I really like my TV and sometimes the picture is breathtaking (HD) and sometimes is so/so - depending on the source. Shows like Lost, or some stuff on PBS can be really good.

I'm a happy owner!

I got a Sony 42" A10 TV last night and was duly impressed with it. I was most impressed with the quality of SDTV. I've seen SDTV on my friend's Sony 65" LCD projection TV from a few years ago and it is really unwatchable, but on my TV it actually looks passable, which was more than what I was hoping for. :D I was also impressed that there was no lip sync lag whatsoever from 480i sources. I was concerned about this as I use a Coolsat 5000 Platinum FTA satellite box that outputs only 480i for all of my TV viewing, but I am using it with component cables so I believe that is making a difference. Xbox 360 and DVDs look excellent as well, after doing the red push fix and using a combination of Dark Rain's and CBagger's settings. Haven't quite gotten the color level right where I want it but will work on it this weekend. Will try to get HDTV OTA content working.

Which leads me to my question. I thought I read somewhere in this thread that someone got OTA programming to work without anything connected to the antenna port. I was wondering how this occurred and how far away the poster was from the broadcast antennas. I live in NJ only 6 miles away from the broadcast antennas in Manhattan, so I'm going to see if I can do this as well. If not, I'll pick up an indoor antenna.

By the way, for anyone with questions about transporting this TV in a car, the TV is lot bigger than it seems in a store. I took it home in the back of a Chevy Trailblazer (which isn't a small SUV), however we had to take off the top cover of the box and it barely cleared the roof of the SUV while standing upright. Can't imagine how anyone would transport a 50" model in an SUV without laying it down on it's back or side.

yarrumc,
I have read every single entry on this thread (yes, I am a geek) since last August when it was only 25 pages and read almost daily.

I'd say overall, 90-95% of the owners love/enjoy/keep this TV. Some have had issues with defects, like green blobs, etc but I don't think I've heard anyone return because of "bad Picture" or the like.

There are pros and cons and you may want to read the Settings thread here

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=567709&page=1&pp=30

I really like my TV and sometimes the picture is breathtaking (HD) and sometimes is so/so - depending on the source. Shows like Lost, or some stuff on PBS can be really good.

I'm a happy owner!

Thanks. I actually looked through most of the settings thread yesterday. Gave me an idea of what needs to be changed, if I were to get this set. I just got the itch to get a new tv, but I might as well wait until next month, when I hear that most new tv's come out. I am also contemplating keeping the tv and getting myself a video processor/scaler instead.

so far so good, no dead pixels or anything, looks great! watched sopranos in HD last night, looked awesome.

yarrumc,
I have read every single entry on this thread (yes, I am a geek) since last August when it was only 25 pages and read almost daily.

--SNIP--


Ahm yes last August. Those were the good ole' days! :D

I got a Sony 42" A10 TV last night and was duly impressed with it. I was most impressed with the quality of SDTV. I've seen SDTV on my friend's Sony 65" LCD projection TV from a few years ago and it is really unwatchable, but on my TV it actually looks passable, which was more than what I was hoping for. :D I was also impressed that there was no lip sync lag whatsoever from 480i sources. I was concerned about this as I use a Coolsat 5000 Platinum FTA satellite box that outputs only 480i for all of my TV viewing, but I am using it with component cables so I believe that is making a difference. Xbox 360 and DVDs look excellent as well, after doing the red push fix and using a combination of Dark Rain's and CBagger's settings. Haven't quite gotten the color level right where I want it but will work on it this weekend. Will try to get HDTV OTA content working.

Which leads me to my question. I thought I read somewhere in this thread that someone got OTA programming to work without anything connected to the antenna port. I was wondering how this occurred and how far away the poster was from the broadcast antennas. I live in NJ only 6 miles away from the broadcast antennas in Manhattan, so I'm going to see if I can do this as well. If not, I'll pick up an indoor antenna.

By the way, for anyone with questions about transporting this TV in a car, the TV is lot bigger than it seems in a store. I took it home in the back of a Chevy Trailblazer (which isn't a small SUV), however we had to take off the top cover of the box and it barely cleared the roof of the SUV while standing upright. Can't imagine how anyone would transport a 50" model in an SUV without laying it down on it's back or side.

I have just a little piece of wire hooked up to my antenna jack, that came with my receiver, it's a slip on coax connector with a piece of wire coming out of it, and I get every OTA channel available and I am about 6 miles from most of the antennas. Rabbit ears, anything, will work. I think you might need something, anything connected though.

TexRob,

My 42A10 has done that on several occasions.
It has always fixed itself.
I bought the TV in August.

Very strange, and annoying considering the difficulty involved in getting to my power connector with my setup.

I have had my A10 since last September and love the set. We recieved the letter to check the serial number and it does need the update to the software. Can anyone who has had this done tell me what I should look for to make sure the tech does this properly and how they make the changes (laptop, memory stick etc..,?) I have read in some of the other posts about inexperienced techs not following the proper procedures and do not want to end up with a problem . Thanks for any info.

I just got a letter today from Sony dated Feb 8, 2006. Periodically the set will neither turn on OR off! This is due to a "software" problem. In the case of the KDF E50A10 (and the 42" model included) a technician will be sent to your house.......at NO CHARGE to us. Since the KDF models do NOT have a USB port, the tech will have to take the back of the set OFF and do "something" inside to update it. I have had the problem a few times and called Sony........the "fix", unplug the power cord from the wall for 30 seconds and put it back in and VOILA.......the work properly for another "few months" until the problem resurfaces. You have to go through the same procedure AGAIN..........UNTIL you get the update.

The gal on the phone (1-866-210-6333) will set an appt.....good luck as I called the local TV guy and he said hes all booked up next week. Seems Sony does not do a good job of communicating with the field tech guys!

Out of curiosity, I wander what the guys gonna do to the "guts" of the TV. Mine will probably be the first set he works on ("lucky" me). I'll report back and let "you all" know how it comes out. Too bad Sony saw fit NOT to put a USB input on the back of the set. The Sony gal said that BRAVIA sets DO have a USB input........btw, BRAVIA sets ARE included in the update. If YOU want to find out if
YOUR set is involved go to.............www.updatemytv.com

You may respond at ....... kmil123@msn.com

kmil - People who have had the upgrade done say it's not a big deal at all and only takes about 10 minutes. Abward posted a picture of the back of the set in post #6642 on page 222 of this thread, and the USB port is located behind the panel pointed out by the green arrow. Others have said that the tech removes the panel, inserts memory stick and waits for the software upgrade to load. Good luck with your upgrade.

And one more question about the update, in this picture, was the panel covering the USB port at the red, green, or blue arrow (or somewhere else)?

http://home.nc.rr.com/abward/Rear%20KDF-E50A10.jpg



The posted picture doesn't look like the back of my KDF-E50A10. Sony said my back had to come OFF......only the BRAVIA as a USB accesible from the rear, supposedly without having to take off the rear!

Well, I just checked my Wega manual and the posted picture does NOT look like the back of my set! I knew it probably wouldn't be that easy. If I'm wrong, please let me know.

Got a letter from Sony friday that stated their was a software issue on the TV I purchased in Sept.. The letter stated that the upgrade was for the KDLV26/32/40XBR1(Bravia) Flat Panel and KDFE42/50A10 Rear projection LCD televisions. The letter staed that they (sony) have recently learned that a limited number of televisions manufactured through November 2005 may after a long period of time depending on usage, fail to turn on or off due to a software issue. This condition is easily resolved with a simple software upgrade provided by Sony at no charge. I have the KDFE42A10 and had no problems but called the number provided (1-866-210-6333) and since my TV had a manufactors date of Sept 2005 it needed the upgrade, it took the guy about 20 min. to remove a small panel on the back that covered a USB port, he then plug in a device that had the upgrade on it and was done 10min. later. You can also go to WWW.updatemytv.com and input TV model number and serial or call the Toll-Free number. No problems with my TV, just curious to see if anyone has had the upgrade yet. I love my Sony 42A10 and would recomend anyone looking for a TV to buy a Sony 42A10.


I have the KDF-E50A10 and it does need a software update. Someone in a post on PAGE 222 shows a picture of the rear, but its (I believe, for the BRAVIA). Sony had told me that the WHOLE BACK of the set has to come off and that Sony would send the serviceman a "kit" to do it. I called the local place that will fix it and they said they've never done one before (lucky me) but that they are trained..........Sony said it would take around a half hour. Is YOUR set the WEGA, like mine, or the BRAVIA? Please let me know........ kmil123@msn.com

The (computer) tech was out yesterday. I had removed the small panel on the rear of the TV to speed things up. My TV's 18" from the wall in a large wall unit. I can slip back there as I'm somewhat thin. Good thing as the tech was a large guy! Everything went smoothly. He said he's doing 3 a day. He told me Sony started out allowing the consumers to do the upgrade, but they were screwing up their TV's. Shutting them down too early etc. I guess perhaps they were mailing a memory stick, or emailing the file? Anyway I'm a happy camper. My first 50A10 was exchanged because it woud sometimes fail to turn on :D

My set too is the KDF-E50A10...........Sony said the whole back has to come off, whereas the BRAVIA has a USB port on the rear. Does my whole back have to come off? I can't seem to find any slot in the rear of the TV (looking at my the diagram in my manual). Your thoughts are appreciated...... kmil123@msn.com

I've had a good experience with the firmware upgrade.
I went on the net on Tuesday and typed in my serial with a November build date and was informed I needed the upgrade on my 42" A10. I scheduled the appointment for that Thursday. On Wednesday my wife receives a call from the tech saying he's in the area if he could stop by. She tells him no, to come on Thursday because she wanted me to be there.

The tech calls me Thursday and comes exactly when he said he would, very polite and knowledgeable. Does the upgrade and the yellow light continues to blink for quite a while. He says he wants to wait extra time to make sure all goes well.
Brings up the service menu and checks the settings against his sheet and states the upgrade was a success. The entire process took 15 minutes and he was on his way.

Mind you the TV always worked properly before the upgrade and continues to do so after the upgrade. I was quite impressed with the way Sony handled this and especially grateful I got an experienced technician.


Did the whole back have to come off........as Sony told me? I too have the A10 KDF-E50A10. Any comments are appreciated. kmil123@msn.com

Did you mean to post 4 replies there? 1 would be sufficient. The posted picture looks exactly like the back of my KDF-E50A10, the green arrow is where the usb key goes. The whole back of the tv does not need to be removed.

Many thanks..........evidently the gal who answered the phone for the software update did not get the right info from her people. It makes me comfortable to know that the entire BACK does NOT have to come off...........did you say you've already had yours done? If so how long did it take and how did it go? Thanks, and have a nice weekend!

That looks like the back of my KDF-E50A10 , too. I don't remember anyone on this board who have had the upgrade done already talking about having to take the back of the TV off.

Yes, I had mine done on Monday, it took 10 minutes and I didn't even have to move the set. The tech was more interested in my Xbox 360 than he was in fixing my tv!

so does the whole back end come off during the process? It would be nice to know since I have a omnimount center stand stuck on the tv and I really don't want to remove it since it it would be in the way. Do they give you a call before coming? My appointment is monday and I haven't heard anything from them as far as just having the confirmation number.

so does the whole back end come off during the process? It would be nice to know since I have a omnimount center stand stuck on the tv and I really don't want to remove it since it it would be in the way. Do they give you a call before coming? My appointment is monday and I haven't heard anything from them as far as just having the confirmation number.


Teck, if you look at where the fan is on the back of the TV (right hand side if you are looking at the front of the tv) there is one screw. They remove that screw and a small piece of plastic comes off. This allows access to the usb input.

That is all that's removed. So you are good...

Question about the KDF-E42A10s and KDF-E50A10s. I currently have an LG DVD recorder/VCR combo unit connected to my 42" A10 via component cables. I am outputting the picture through progressive scan (480p). My question is does setting the progressive scan in the DVD player even make a difference? If the TV has only one resolution - 720p - and scales all inputs to that resolution, does it make a difference if I use 480i or 480p in my DVD player? It's the same source material no matter what setting I have it on.

For that matter, does it make sense to get a 1080i upconverting DVD player if the TV is just going to scale it to 720p anyway?

Thanks.

For that matter, does it make sense to get a 1080i upconverting DVD player if the TV is just going to scale it to 720p anyway?

Thanks.


For what i have read it comes down to : is the scaler in the DVD player better than the TV?

Question : do you get Discovery HD?

Nope, no Discovery. PBS has some awesome shows in high-def, though.

Craig

For what i have read it comes down to : is the scaler in the DVD player better than the TV?

Only way to know which scaler is better on a particular DVD player is to check the image at 480i, 480p and 720p. Does the A10 map pixel to pixel in 720p?

Question about the KDF-E42A10s and KDF-E50A10s. I currently have an LG DVD recorder/VCR combo unit connected to my 42" A10 via component cables. I am outputting the picture through progressive scan (480p). My question is does setting the progressive scan in the DVD player even make a difference? If the TV has only one resolution - 720p - and scales all inputs to that resolution, does it make a difference if I use 480i or 480p in my DVD player? It's the same source material no matter what setting I have it on.

For that matter, does it make sense to get a 1080i upconverting DVD player if the TV is just going to scale it to 720p anyway?

Thanks.

you can get a dvd player that outputs at 720p so the tv doesn't have to scale it at all. like dark rain has said many times, upscaling players don't make much of a difference, really, since dvds are encoded at 480i anyways. you might get a bit of a sharper picture, but you aren't going to get any more detail than the original source provides.

Many people would dispute that point. It depends on the scaler.

Got the install last night, took about 5 minutes. TV still works like a champ...and everything is a-ok.

so does the whole back end come off during the process? It would be nice to know since I have a omnimount center stand stuck on the tv and I really don't want to remove it since it it would be in the way. Do they give you a call before coming? My appointment is monday and I haven't heard anything from them as far as just having the confirmation number.


Again, in my case Sony set up an appt for me WHILE I was on the phone. I don't know how they were able to do it and it turned out that when I called the local folks who will actually DO the work.........they had no idea about the "appt" and were actually all booked up for the following Monday (which is when I had mine scheduled). I would call Sony AGAIN........but first try and find out WHO will do the work and also contact them. Hope this helps.

BTW, Sony should have given you a "confirmation" number.....I did get one!

Again, in my case Sony set up an appt for me WHILE I was on the phone. I don't know how they were able to do it and it turned out that when I called the local folks who will actually DO the work.........they had no idea about the "appt" and were actually all booked up for the following Monday (which is when I had mine scheduled). I would call Sony AGAIN........but first try and find out WHO will do the work and also contact them. Hope this helps.

BTW, Sony should have given you a "confirmation" number.....I did get one!

Usually the work is being done by a computer hardware repair company. Not the local TV persons.

http://home.nc.rr.com/abward/Rear%20KDF-E50A10.jpg




The whole back does not come off the tv, it's just one little part where the USB jump drive fits into comes off...It's the green arrow in the image above.

Hey all, I've tried to read as much as I can and haven't seen anyone ask this. I'm interested in the a10, still deciding on which size, but regardless of that how can I ensure that my newly purchased a10 will already have that new update from the factory so I don't have to deal with tech's coming to my house?? I wonder if it's even possible, and I assume would depend on where I buy it from. I'm sure if I went to best buy and asked for a tv with a only a certain production date they would laugh at me :rolleyes:

thanks

I just posted this in the Tweeks thread, but since this thread is so much more popular I thought I would repost it here in hopes that I can get an answer somewhere:


I got my 42A10 yesterday, and I am mostly pleased thus far. However I am encountering a problem with my Xbox (the old one) and I am wondering if any of you have any advice. I play almost exclusively Halo2 so keep that in mind, I haven't checked other games, which I should. I purchased the HD AV pack for the Xbox, plugged it in, set the Xbox Dashboard settings to widescreen, 420p, 720p, and 1080i compatible. When I load the game, it looks pixelated very badly. The game states that it is capable of 420p and 16:9 output so I thought it should look good at these settings. If I remove the 720p and 1080i setting from the xbox dashboard it improves a little, removing all 3 settings (420, 720, 1080) makes it look the best. I am sort of annoyed though, because as I stated earlier I bought the cables specifically so I could get the 420p picture, and I don't believe I am. The one thing I haven't checked is if there are settings within the game to change, but any idea why this is occuring? I have read about something about holding triggers and hitting the joystick in the dashboard, but I didn't understand what that was for, or why I would need to do that if the dashboard settings are set up so that it knows the tv is HD.

Hey all, I've tried to read as much as I can and haven't seen anyone ask this. I'm interested in the a10, still deciding on which size, but regardless of that how can I ensure that my newly purchased a10 will already have that new update from the factory so I don't have to deal with tech's coming to my house?? I wonder if it's even possible, and I assume would depend on where I buy it from. I'm sure if I went to best buy and asked for a tv with a only a certain production date they would laugh at me :rolleyes:

thanks


Check the manufactured date, and if it's older than December 2005...enter the serial code on the website. The place you're buying from should be able to help you with this. If they don't help you, find another place to buy the tv from.

I just posted this in the Tweeks thread, but since this thread is so much more popular I thought I would repost it here in hopes that I can get an answer somewhere:


I got my 42A10 yesterday, and I am mostly pleased thus far. However I am encountering a problem with my Xbox (the old one) and I am wondering if any of you have any advice. I play almost exclusively Halo2 so keep that in mind, I haven't checked other games, which I should. I purchased the HD AV pack for the Xbox, plugged it in, set the Xbox Dashboard settings to widescreen, 420p, 720p, and 1080i compatible. When I load the game, it looks pixelated very badly. The game states that it is capable of 420p and 16:9 output so I thought it should look good at these settings. If I remove the 720p and 1080i setting from the xbox dashboard it improves a little, removing all 3 settings (420, 720, 1080) makes it look the best. I am sort of annoyed though, because as I stated earlier I bought the cables specifically so I could get the 420p picture, and I don't believe I am. The one thing I haven't checked is if there are settings within the game to change, but any idea why this is occuring? I have read about something about holding triggers and hitting the joystick in the dashboard, but I didn't understand what that was for, or why I would need to do that if the dashboard settings are set up so that it knows the tv is HD.

Sorry I am not being much help here, but I did the exact same thing you did and am not having a problem.
Using the HD cable kit for the Xbox, I've got it connected to Input4. I went into the Xbox's dashboard and enabled all the resolutions, and 16x9 mode.
I haven't gone back and tried Halo1, but Halo2 looks fine for me. The remote's Display button displays the proper resolution info for me (according to what is listed on the back of the game box).

Turns out the filenames need to be:

sony_dtv_upgrade.d05
sony_mix_uc_upgrade.c05

Both in the root directory of the USB flash drive.

When the tech tried to flash my TV, he had the dtv_upgrade file named wrong on his stick. I played around and once I named it as it shows above, the ATI finally upgraded from H05-01.15 to H05-01.20

I now have the same versions as "The Keither" posted a couple of days ago- which are:

ATI : H05-01.20
SAIPH PROGRAM: 1.200
BOOT: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1233
CHIMERA PROGRAM: 1.139
PACK: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
BOOT: 0.004
NVM A0: 2.000
NVM AC: 6.090
NVM AE: ----
HDMI: 1.300

Many people would dispute that point. It depends on the scaler.

The thing is that nobody that I know would spend the kind of money it takes for it to make a difference. And for the A10 it really isn't worth spending more money on an upconverting DVD player than the TV is worth.

The thing is that nobody that I know would spend the kind of money it takes for it to make a difference. And for the A10 it really isn't worth spending more money on an upconverting DVD player than the TV is worth.

so, pretty much one would not be able to distinguish two tvs side by side with the same upconverting dvd player for both, but one upconverting to 720p or 1080i while the other using 480p? I could always tell the difference on my old crt when upconverting and that being a crt which I have always heard that a crt would not benefit much from an upconverting as an rptv would.

Turns out the filenames need to be:

sony_dtv_upgrade.d05
sony_mix_uc_upgrade.c05

Both in the root directory of the USB flash drive.

When the tech tried to flash my TV, he had the dtv_upgrade file named wrong on his stick. I played around and once I named it as it shows above, the ATI finally upgraded from H05-01.15 to H05-01.20

I now have the same versions as "The Keither" posted a couple of days ago- which are:

ATI : H05-01.20
SAIPH PROGRAM: 1.200
BOOT: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1233
CHIMERA PROGRAM: 1.139
PACK: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
BOOT: 0.004
NVM A0: 2.000
NVM AC: 6.090
NVM AE: ----
HDMI: 1.300
So...since you have the files...are you going to share them with the rest of us? :confused: :D

Does anyone know of a good upconverting dvd player for $300 or so? I would like to buy one for the hell of it to just see if there is a difference or not, then return it. I am not too interested in one at the moment as I am quite pleased with my sony.

CC has a Samsung DVD-HD850 on sale and with rebates for about 70% less than your price point.

Usually the work is being done by a computer hardware repair company. Not the local TV persons.


In my case, I've known the company for 30 years and they deal in high end electronics, including TV's so I'll probably be very comfortable with them. According to a recent response I got on this board, there is a "hidden" USB or a memory stick slot on the back of the TV so the back of the set need not come off. I sure hope that's the case....I have the KDF-E50A10 Sony LCD. He should be out here in the next week or so! I'm keeping the proverbial "fingers" crossed hoping all goes well!

Have any of you guys experienced higher brightness levels on the Star Wars II & III discs compared to your other DVDs?
I have the pic at 69 and the brightness at 50 which allows me to see the "THX" logo against the shadow background on the Optimizer.
When I watch the SW discs I feel like they are so bright that I turn the brightness to 40 which makes the "THX" logo disappear.
Am I losing anything by not being able to correctly display the logo?
The PQ seems better to me with the brightness down.

On the Indian Jones discs I tend to be closer to 50 on the brightness.

Does anyone know of a good upconverting dvd player for $300 or so? I would like to buy one for the hell of it to just see if there is a difference or not, then return it. I am not too interested in one at the moment as I am quite pleased with my sony.


I'm using the new sony NS3100ES it runs roughly 400 bucks and I love it.I run it at 720 via HDMI and that looks the best to me.

so, pretty much one would not be able to distinguish two tvs side by side with the same upconverting dvd player for both, but one upconverting to 720p or 1080i while the other using 480p? I could always tell the difference on my old crt when upconverting and that being a crt which I have always heard that a crt would not benefit much from an upconverting as an rptv would.

You might see a slight difference in PQ. But for it to be more noticeable you'd need something like the Denon 2910, 3910, or 5910 DVD players. Those players use some serious video processing over the sub $500 junk.

I cant wait for Bluray or HDDVD... anyone know how expensive those players will be?

CC has a Samsung DVD-HD850 on sale and with rebates for about 70% less than your price point.

I have this player and I see no difference between it and my previous generic prog scan player. In fact, using the upconvert feature seems to soften the image, so I have set to 480p and let my tv do the work.

I cant wait for Bluray or HDDVD... anyone know how expensive those players will be?

I would guess around $3-400. The PS3 will have Bluray built in and the 360 will be offering an addon HDDVD. No price points have been confirmed yet though (from what I've read) so it's hard to say. Anything more than $400 I would consider to be a luxury item.

Shozbot: do we know when these players will hit the market? The only thing that I know is that I read that the movies themselves will be regular priced, which is great to know but Id love to know the price for these units, but ofcourse dont expect anyone to know if there isnt any real info about them heh. It will be interesting to see the difference in quality to bluray or hddvd from regular dvds.

BB will be carrying in March (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7652523&type=product&id=1134699969167)

REFLEX - How does SD look on your new TV? You have a Motorola DVR, right? Using the HDMI/DVI connection? Just wondering, since I have the same cable box and the SD is OK, but not quite as good as I hoped for.

Im using component connection, my HDMI is being used by the DVD player right now. SD cable looks a lot better on this TV than on my previous Samsung DLP, big difference actually. im satisfied with it for sure




I guess now the thing is to wait a while and see about which to go for , bluray or hddvd....both are going to be sweet but not exactly the same, and the players will ofcourse only play that kind... bluray or hddvd.. correct? I wonder how that is going to work out.

So HD-DVD or Bluray will display at true HD... so I guess its pretty safe to say that the quality will be quite a big better than regular DVDs... big difference huh?

Wow... thats such a funny joke! Thats crazy! You really must have a life! ;)

Tech arrived on time. He was from Qualxserv, a technology services company contracted my Sony. I had the TV turned in the proper postion to get to the screw. Then I knew I had a first timer when he said where is the usb port and started to open the door where the light assembly is located. Thanks to abward and d1live for their pictures and discussion as to where the location of the usb port was located. I got a phillips screwdriver and showed him the panel to remove. I was amazed that the port was located to the left of the plastic cover and not straight on. You had to use a short memory stick or you could not plug it in. He had the instructions and we went by them. Unplug tv and install memory stick. Plug in tv and turn on using switch on tv. Set came on normal and then automaticlly went black and Standby/Power light and Timer light started flashing red. After about seven minutes the Stby/Pwr light started flashing amber and the Timer light continued to flash red. This was what we were looking for per the instructions. Removed memory stick and pushed Power button on tv. Light started flashing green as a normal turn on and then went solid green. Picture returned as normal. None of my custom settings changed. Gave the tech the address to this forum as he would be the one to service my set. He had not heard of the blue or green blob,missing pixels or any info on the light engine etc. It looks like Sony would prepare these techs much better than we have read on this forum. Thanks for all the post on this forum. It is an education for sure.

just got home from c'city..i found the 42' to look better than the 50' and none looked better than the flat panel lcd's :eek:

Mine is a July build and needs the update. I'm scheduled for next Tues. afternoon. My crossing my fingers.

Hey epicbloodline, what LCDs did you look at? I thought the LCD looked good but after you look
at them for a while they somehow seem less realistic than the projections, maybe the contrast
and other settings need adjusting on the ones I saw. The Sony 40" is like $3500 that's double
the price of a A10 42". Actually the 42" should look better than the 50" just like the 50" looks
better than a 60".
Grateful11

Originally Posted by AkaStp
Fwiw, the fully boxed 50A10 will just fit in the top of a Volvo V70 with some twine and easily fits in the back of a Ford F250 pickup. If you can't have it stand upright then lay it on its back where its sure to break.

Not! I hauled mine for 45 miles on its back in the box in an Explorer and
came through fine. Sure to break! How could you be sure of anything?

Not! I hauled mine for 45 miles on its back in the box in an Explorer and
came through fine. Sure to break! How could you be sure of anything?
He was misquoted.

Thats not what I said. What I actually posted (last week) was...
"Fwiw, the fully boxed 50A10 will just fit in the back of a Volvo V70 (tight squeeze though) and easily fits in the back of a Honda Pilot. If you can't have it stand upright then lay it on its back (but not front)."
What you quoted was a post (since deleted by the mods) that someone fabricated so as to look like I said it.

Sorry about that. I just wanted to make sure others didn't think they couldn't lay it on its back. I hope they stopped the person that edited the post. I can edit mine back out if you would like.

So...since you have the files...are you going to share them with the rest of us? :confused: :D


Is there a way to upload the files to this forum? One file is 1.25 MB and the other is 7.8 MB.

Tech arrived on time. He was from Qualxserv, a technology services company contracted my Sony. I had the TV turned in the proper postion to get to the screw. Then I knew I had a first timer when he said where is the usb port and started to open the door where the light assembly is located. Thanks to abward and d1live for their pictures and discussion as to where the location of the usb port was located. I got a phillips screwdriver and showed him the panel to remove. I was amazed that the port was located to the left of the plastic cover and not straight on. You had to use a short memory stick or you could not plug it in. He had the instructions and we went by them. Unplug tv and install memory stick. Plug in tv and turn on using switch on tv. Set came on normal and then automaticlly went black and Standby/Power light and Timer light started flashing red. After about seven minutes the Stby/Pwr light started flashing amber and the Timer light continued to flash red. This was what we were looking for per the instructions. Removed memory stick and pushed Power button on tv. Light started flashing green as a normal turn on and then went solid green. Picture returned as normal. None of my custom settings changed. Gave the tech the address to this forum as he would be the one to service my set. He had not heard of the blue or green blob,missing pixels or any info on the light engine etc. It looks like Sony would prepare these techs much better than we have read on this forum. Thanks for all the post on this forum. It is an education for sure.

Same here same company did the work,it was his first set he has done.
Went off without a hitch....

ok heres my issue. i went to the setup wizard and used thier advanced setup. i selected all six formats (10801,720p, etc...) Afterwards i noticed it made the SD cable a little better and displayed them in a stretched picture mode. But now my HD channels are in that same "stretched mode" i first noticed this on INHD. The INHD logo is almost half off the screen, and the only way i can get it to go back to normal is to do the wizard again, but instead of picking hd mode i have to chose sd mode and then i can see the logo or if i display in 480i can see the logo. When i open the quick menu by hitting the settings button once, i get format picture as an option long as im using pass-through mode, but not in any other circumstances.
If im not mistaken i think somehow the 8300 is stuck in stretch mode, it says im supposed to be able to adjust this by hitting the # key. but when i do, nothing happens. Is there a specific way i need to set up the cable box to get the best pic, and get my screen size right?

thanks in advance AVS'ers

ok heres my issue. i went to the setup wizard and used thier advanced setup. i selected all six formats (10801,720p, etc...) Afterwards i noticed it made the SD cable a little better and displayed them in a stretched picture mode. But now my HD channels are in that same "stretched mode" i first noticed this on INHD. The INHD logo is almost half off the screen, and the only way i can get it to go back to normal is to do the wizard again, but instead of picking hd mode i have to chose sd mode and then i can see the logo or if i display in 480i can see the logo. When i open the quick menu by hitting the settings button once, i get format picture as an option long as im using pass-through mode, but not in any other circumstances.
If im not mistaken i think somehow the 8300 is stuck in stretch mode, it says im supposed to be able to adjust this by hitting the # key. but when i do, nothing happens. Is there a specific way i need to set up the cable box to get the best pic, and get my screen size right?

thanks in advance AVS'ers

Run the advanced setup wizard and select all formats
Hit settings twice make sure picture format is set to pass- through

Make sure you don't have the cable box picture size is set incorrectly.
Hit Settings once, page to picture size and make sure that it is set to "Normal"
Make sure the A10 is displaying "Normal" Wide Mode when watching SD and "Full" when watching HD. Then if you decide to watch SD or HD in a way other than which it was intended, you can adjust using your A10 remote or the cable box's.

You should be able to scroll through the pictures sizes on the 8300 using the #key as you stated. This works fine on mine.
If you still have problems, I suggest doing a hard reboot by unplugging box from power source(wait 30 sec. plug back in) and trying again. If that doesn't work you can always call the cable Co. and ask for assistance. In the end, you just might have a defective box.

Enjoying my 42a10 for three weeks now. A few questions. How do I access the Diagnostics screen from Wega Gate? It wont let me enter. Can I find out bulb hours used? If so, how? Also, I have nothing connected to the Ant and Cable RF inputs. Can I skip these as I cycle through my other inputs? It is annoying hitting the static every time.

Don't know too much about the Diagnostics Menu from WegaGate. When I check it on mine, I get two Categories: Diagnostics and Cable. The Subcategories are then In Band and Out of Band. These then have several headings underneath, including Freq, Modulation, Status, etc. However, no values appear for these show up. So, I don't think it of any use, anyway.

To check the lamp use, you need to go into the Service Menu. Instructions can be found here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6200303#post6200303

I also don't have an antenna connected, but when I change inputs I don't come across the antenna input, only the video inputs and cable. I do have a cable running into my tuner, so I don't get the static when cycling through. If you want to get rid of the static, set your cable channel to "0" and it will display a blank screen instead of the static.

Roscoa - I checked the Diagnostic Screen with my input set to my cable box and it says that "Diagnostics information is not available", so my guess is the Diagnostics is only available for the Cable Input. Doesn't work with the Antenna input, either.

Tech arrived on time. He was from Qualxserv, a technology services company contracted my Sony. I had the TV turned in the proper postion to get to the screw. Then I knew I had a first timer when he said where is the usb port and started to open the door where the light assembly is located. Thanks to abward and d1live for their pictures and discussion as to where the location of the usb port was located. I got a phillips screwdriver and showed him the panel to remove. I was amazed that the port was located to the left of the plastic cover and not straight on. You had to use a short memory stick or you could not plug it in. He had the instructions and we went by them. Unplug tv and install memory stick. Plug in tv and turn on using switch on tv. Set came on normal and then automaticlly went black and Standby/Power light and Timer light started flashing red. After about seven minutes the Stby/Pwr light started flashing amber and the Timer light continued to flash red. This was what we were looking for per the instructions. Removed memory stick and pushed Power button on tv. Light started flashing green as a normal turn on and then went solid green. Picture returned as normal. None of my custom settings changed. Gave the tech the address to this forum as he would be the one to service my set. He had not heard of the blue or green blob,missing pixels or any info on the light engine etc. It looks like Sony would prepare these techs much better than we have read on this forum. Thanks for all the post on this forum. It is an education for sure.

Fortnr, check the versions of your firmware (on remote, press Display, Channel 5, the + sound volume and the Power (On) - to make sure that your ATI was upgraded to H05-01.20. From what you describe, you didn't get the 1st update- which is a blue screen that lasts about 1.5 minutes. I had a problem with my update too until I used a properly named file. (see an above post...)

I think you can check your firmware from the Diagnostics Screen, as well. When I go to Diagnostics using WegaGate, in the bottom left corner of the box is faint wording that says "H05-1.20". Again, the Diagnostics is only available for the Cable Input, but it keeps you from going into the Service Menu.

Enjoying my 42a10 for three weeks now. A few questions. How do I access the Diagnostics screen from Wega Gate? It wont let me enter. Can I find out bulb hours used? If so, how? Also, I have nothing connected to the Ant and Cable RF inputs. Can I skip these as I cycle through my other inputs? It is annoying hitting the static every time.
For the OTA tuner, the diagnostics will show a good amount of info. The most useful info is the Signal Strength. For me it show 95-98% signal strength as I am 8 miles from the transmitter. I have not check it with cable as I just cancelled cable and only want OTA HD :-) I feel like I'm beating the system, free HD! Once we got the A10 we stopped watching cable and so cancelled for now.

I cant wait for Bluray or HDDVD... anyone know how expensive those players will be?
Reflex,
There is a good amount of info in the Blu-ray/HD-DVD cateorgies (look at the main page for the avs forum)

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=148

Warning! Blu-Ray vs HDDVD is quite a "religious" war so you sort of have to read through the back and forth arging about features, etc.

This March a HD-DVD player by Toshiba will be 499. A number of Bluray players will be available in the Spring/Summer - Sony 999, Samsung 800 - 1000, Pioneer 1500 - 1800 and more players also.

The PS3 will play BR at 1080p (and all other formats). Prices are still not release - people are guessing around 500. The dates are supposed to be Japan in the Spring (but rumors say Sept) and USA later this year (Sept to Nov).

I plan to get a BluRay player once they get in the 300 to 500 range. My opinion is that BR will win the format war (but I've been wrong before). I may buy a player and rent BluRay disk from Net flix as they will only support BD.

... I may buy a player and rent BluRay disk from Net flix as they will only support BD.

http://www.betanews.com/article/Netflix_to_Offer_HD_DVD_and_Bluray/1138127535

Looks like they are saying they'll support both formats. I don't care which one wins out, I just hope one fails quickly. I also hope that I'll still be able to use my HTPC to play them on my shiny new Sony! :D

Well, after reading nearly every thread of all of the HDTV display forums here at AVS since November, especially this one, I finally ordered a 42A10. Whew! That was a lot of reading, let me tell you. Thank you all for your input even though I didn't ask you anything, the questions others asked and the responses you all gave really helped me to narrow my choices down and ultimately led me here. It arrives Wednesday, just in time for Lost in HD. Now for my first question (don't recall this being asked so please forgive me if it has) what do I need to be able to see Lost in HD out of the box? Can I simply scan for channels using the ota receiver or will I need some kind of indoor antennae? Thanks in advance and again, thank you for all of your insightful responses!

You choose a awesome tv and will not regret it. Depending on where your located and how far away you are from the HD signals will depend if you need a indoor antenna or outdoor. I myself dont even have a antenna hooked up to my tv and I get ever local channel. I must be pretty close to the signals. I get FOX, ABC, PBS, NBC, UPN and one other channel all in crystal clear HD.

You can find out what HD signals you have in your area and what kind of antenna you would need here......
http://antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

Some shows on some HD channels come in really really well, although I notice sometimes when there is lots of movement the whole screen or the area with most movement in is become pixelated.... Im under the impression this isnt the TVs fault, but its the signals fault correct? Im getting my HD source from a Motorola HD box.... through good component cables, is there anyway to get a cleaner feed?

Cause there was one shot of a Van Gough painting up (spelling?) close and it looked amazing, not to mention some of the PBSHD stuff they had on some aquarium in the states.... looked fantastic. but the next show on Ireland had more movement in it and there was some parts that looked quite pixelated... just wondering if there is anything I can do to help?

Just got the the 42 incher. I wanted the 50 and at 2200 it wasn't too bad a deal for a retail store but it won't fit in my expensive 7' tall soild wood entertainment center. It's a fairly large complex piece of funiture and I hate to not use it so I had to stick the 42'' in there. I had 40 inches of clearance and the TV was just over 39 inches wide :)
It is not as big as I would like but I will go back in 2 years and get a 60'' and hopefully it will look as good as "God's own TV" the new SXRD Sony, DAYUMM that thing is bad ass!
Anyway, after I adjusted it with the ever so popular Dark Rain's tweak guide (thank you Darky) it looks pretty good on the HD signals but man oh man does SD look like a hammered nut sack!
Yuck, it is uglier than Rosie in a thong. DVD's look damn good though even on SVIDEO. I will actually get a component cable for my DVD player now.
I am glad I found this site because it really helped me make up my mind on the Sony. I have not had any issues with red push and the SDE isn't too bad in fact had you guys not educated me on it I probally wouldn't have ever noticed it, thanks alot! LOL :)
I think everyone's setup may bit a little different due to room dynamics but Dark Rain is da man for such an easy guide. I just used the standard settings and it looks great on the HD and it made a HUGE difference in the DVD picture quality.
Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the blue blob bite.

Ready to pull the trigger, but am finding prices are still very near Sony's list. B&H had a great price, under $2000, but is out of stock. Given the blue blob and potential of bad pixels it seems best to buy locally (Las Vegas).

Which B&M really have the best "no question return" policy?

Who seems to really deal?

Do they all require you to play the Price Match game?

Who has good Repair Plans? Someone, said BB covers bulbs, but that's not what their site says!

Are there rebates I should know about? For example, if I buy an HC1 HD camcorder I get a $300 rebate.

And what about the cheaper KF-E50A10 with no tuner. Can't find it anywhere.

I visit this thread very infrequently since I'm very pleased with my 42A10 purchased in Aug 05. I'm glad I popped in otherwise I would not have known about the firmware update, which my set needs. I've experienced the "no picture" start up a few times but unplugging power cords has long been a part of my troubleshooting routine, so it hasn't caused me any major grief.

FWIW, while I'm here....if anyone else uses DVI-HDMI from a nvidia video card to the TV.....DO NOT attempt to change screen resolution back to 1280x720 after using the overscan correction tool. You'll be able to see bios and splash screens but nothing but a black screen after that. Took me a while to figure that one out. Your effectively bumping the resolution into unsupported territory when you do that.

d-v-c,
I got mine in August from abt electronics.
The price they quote includes shipping and getting it on your TV stand up and running with the delivery guy.
i figured that i was saving 6% local sale tax by ordering it from them.
Their prices are lower now than what I paid 6 months ago.
Give them a call.

I have my PC hooked up to my e50A10 through the VGA. Every so often, the "Video 7"label in the top left corner, will continually come on for a couple of seconds, go off for anywhere from 3 seconds to a minute or so and then come back on again. This process will repeat continually. Not sure what triggers it or how to stop it. Other times, you can watch all night and no Video 7 labels.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Interesting, this happened to us last night while watching a movie. For a few minutes minutes during the movie, the label (I've changed mine to say "PC") started popping up. It didn't seem to match how the labels usually pop up. It came up for a second, went away, came back and stayed on for a few seconds and was turning on and off randomly. Then it just stopped and all was back to normal. There were no signs that it lost the signal or lost sync, it just popped up the label for a while.

It may or may not be totally unrelated, but when I turned the TV on this morning it took a real long time to turn on. The green light flashed, and it seemed to take 2-3 times longer than normal to turn on the bulb. I wonder if the software on these things has some glitches that show up after time (like the power problem that the new firmware update is fixing). Mine was built in December so it isn't one of the units due for the update. Maybe just taking a copy of the new firmware and installing it will fix strange things like this?

Which B&M really have the best "no question return" policy?

Who seems to really deal?

Do they all require you to play the Price Match game?

Who has good Repair Plans? Someone, said BB covers bulbs, but that's not what their site says!

Are there rebates I should know about? For example, if I buy an HC1 HD camcorder I get a $300 rebate.

And what about the cheaper KF-E50A10 with no tuner. Can't find it anywhere.

1. Costco

2. Local eletronics stores, not the big chains. But the chains regularly sell the TV for 10% off MSRP, usually at least 1 sale per month. Best Buy had a 20% off MSRP back in August, which was the lowest big chain price I've seen.

3. The "bulb" EW question is a very touchy subject. Either GET IT IN WRITING that they will cover the bulb OR purchase the MUCH CHEAPER EW plan from Sony at SonyStyle.com and use the savings to BUY YOUR OWN BULB. You can even buy the plan for up to 1 year after you have already bought your TV.

4. None that I know of.

5. The KF-E50A10 is only sold in CANADA. In the USA, the FCC now requires all TVs that are 36" or larger to contain an integrated digital tuner, so it is not allowed for sale here.

I think I have some info that may be able to help those with geometry problems.

A few pages back, I posted how I had about a 1/8" tilt from left up to right on my set - it wasn't something that ruined the picture, but tickers and such were noticably slanted (I actually saw it most prominently in my Xbox 360 dashboard).

I called up Sony who got me in touch with a service tech who suspected that the mirror was tilted. So he opened up the back of the set (seemed real simple - he removed like 9 screws and the back panel and the "input panel" came right off). Unfortunately, I was busy on the phone and didn't exactly watch what he did after he got the back off (and I really regret it now, but he must of just found the mirror and adjusted it with his hands, cause he didn't use any tools or anything.

Now, everything for the most part seems pretty good, and I'm not measuring any tilt near an eighth of an inch. I'm going to call them up and try to ask him what he did, but I bet someone would see it if they just took off the back, which I think I'm going to try sometime.

Anyway, I don't mean to motivate anyone to take the back TV panel off, but since we're all under warranty if you're seeing some geometry tilt, it's worth a shot to give service a call. FYI, the people Sony had me contact was A1 TV Service in Silver Spring, MD.

Hello all... hoping someone can help me narrow down an issue. I have the KDF55XS955 and pretty much all of my equipment (Motorola Moxi, PS2, XBox and Gamecube) are running to it component connection via a Joytech 240C AV switcher. It's a nice piece, but I'm having a serious problem with some games (on the PS2, sometimes on the Cube) losing the picture momentarily... sometimes, it's just a second-the screen goes black, though the audio keeps playing, then comes back on. I'm also searching for issues on the Joytech, but wondered if anyone else had experienced this kind of picture drop-out.
TIA, Dan

(sorry if I posted in the wrong forum...)

anyone else had experienced this kind of picture drop-out.
TIA, Dan

My 42A10 has blacked out a few times while watching the olympics! Audio keeps playing but the picture turns black for a second. I told my wife it was a source issue, but I'm not too sure I believe that myself.

Alright I'm confused. I'm at my folks house today, they have the same set I do (50A10), I checked their firmware version against mine, all the versions are the same. I had my set done last Monday, theirs has not been updated yet. According to the updatemytv site, their set needs the update. Something isn't right here. I think maybe my set was not upgraded.

Alright I'm confused. I'm at my folks house today, they have the same set I do (50A10), I checked their firmware version against mine, all the versions are the same. I had my set done last Monday, theirs has not been updated yet. According to the updatemytv site, their set needs the update. Something isn't right here. I think maybe my set was not upgraded.

Firmware should be version 1.20 after the update. I wouldn't rely on what the Web site says.

I've had a few people PM me for the firmware files. I'll email them to the next 10 people who PM me- after that I'll let others send them out.

1. Costco.

Amazingly -- Costco was more expensive than UE! :eek:

Clearly if B&H can price it under $2K, then dealer cost is not high. So dealers must be making a lot of profit.

Is it true a replacement is coming?

Thanks Pnkflyd51 for suggesting looking for the version after upgrade since the tech did not know how. I took Melanotheron's advice of looking under diagnostics under the cable selection. It showed H05-01.20. So it looks like I did get the upgrade ok. Thanks guys. This forum is the best.

Ok, I was wrong, my tv shows different numbers than theirs. I'm not certain the H05-1.20 is the number we should be looking at. My tv reads as this (post update):

ATI: H05-1.20
SAIPH Program: 1.200
Boot: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1233
CHIMERA program: 1.139
Pack: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
Boot: 0.004
NVM A0: 2.000
NVM AC: 6.090
HDMI: 1.300

Their tv reads (pre-update):

ATI: H05-01.20
SAIPH Program: 1.000
Boot: 1.000
CHIMERA Program: 1.000
Pack: 1.000
OSD: 0.300
Boot: 0.004
NVM A0: 7.092
NVM AC: 6.090
HDMI: 1.300

News to me Craig. How is the quality of air reception and which channels? I just bought mine Friday and could return it if th HD reception was that worthwhile. I'm using SA HD3250 rogers cablebox at the moment.
Mine looks KICK ASS with just an el-cheapo rabbit ears from BB. I have the antenna setting about 7' off the ground on top of my entertainment center.
I am in between Waco, Texas and Fort Worth, Texas. I receive about 28 different digital channels with this antenna and they all look great. Funny thing is the SD reception is pure crap but ALL of the HD signals are lound and clear.
I do not plan on getting a better antenna as this one works just fine the cheapest one in the store no-less!

ATI: H05-1.20

Looks like Sony may be using the ATI deinterlacer which is why is passes the MT magazine test.

It would be interesting to see what the A20 uses since it fails the test!

Ok, I was wrong, my tv shows different numbers than theirs. I'm not certain the H05-1.20 is the number we should be looking at. My tv reads as this (post update):

ATI: H05-1.20
SAIPH Program: 1.200
Boot: 1.000
NVM: 1.200-1233 1.200-1213
CHIMERA program: 1.139 1.140
Pack: 1.061
OSD: 0.300
Boot: 0.004
NVM A0: 2.000 7.092
NVM AC: 6.090
HDMI: 1.300

Their tv reads (pre-update):

ATI: H05-01.20
SAIPH Program: 1.000
Boot: 1.000
CHIMERA Program: 1.000
Pack: 1.000
OSD: 0.300
Boot: 0.004
NVM A0: 7.092
NVM AC: 6.090
HDMI: 1.300

My tv is was built after NOV 05, so it doesn't need the update. My numbers differ from yours (with update) a little bit, I have highlighted those in red. Hope this helps.

Ok i am a little confused by this one. Is the sound coming from your TV speakers or from your Home Theatre speakers? If you are playing Star Wars 3 through a DVD player hooked to your HT, then it would be the HT speakers with the problem.


This is an occasional problem for me. I have an external Zvox 315 Powered Speaker and I'll notice a loud "POP" when I change the channels. It just started up again, more of an annoyance than anything. I've gotten "rid" of it before but I must admit I forgot what I did. I tried unpluging the unit to no avail and even changed the volume in the back and took out the connectors and reinserted the. Again, to no avail.

Who else has been having this problem and what's been done to "cure" it.
BTW, I've seen occasional posts on the same problem but can't find them. Any help is appreciated........... kmil123@msn.com

Amazingly -- Costco was more expensive than UE! :eek:

Clearly if B&H can price it under $2K, then dealer cost is not high. So dealers must be making a lot of profit.

Is it true a replacement is coming?

Did Costco tell you that it included a matching Sony Stand? My stand is still in the box plus
unlimited returns is worth something. I saw the 50" last week for $400 off MSRP @ C.C.

Well mine is upgraded now. The guy was in the area and called and I said sure come on by,
I was scheduled for tomorrow afternoon between 1:00 and 5:00. All he had to
do was turn it on about 20 degree angle remove the little door and plug
in the Jump Drive. He was here for about 20 minutes, only because he was talking to
me. It only took about 5-10 minutes to upgrade it. He was a Tech for Qualiserve or
something like that. He said this is all he's been doing for 2 weeks in the Charlotte area.
He said he was hoping that there won't be that many around but there were quite a few
in this area. Very nice clean-cut guy, no fly-by-night service tech. I lost nothing as far as
settings. No complaints here.
Grateful11

Tech just called and said he would be here in the next hour. He said he was a Dell service person so I guess they are using computer guys to do this. He also told me mine would be the 3rd one he has done ( not real confidence inspiring). Can someone give me a quick lowdown on how to make sure my settings are correct when he is done. I tried the remote keys in the previous post with no luck

Amazingly -- Costco was more expensive than UE! :eek:

Clearly if B&H can price it under $2K, then dealer cost is not high. So dealers must be making a lot of profit.

Is it true a replacement is coming?

You asked for the store with the best return policy. The consensus here seems to be Costco.

If I remember correctly, the Costco deal includes the TV AND THE STAND, so it might actually be a better price than at first glance.

I dunno, I bought mine from CC

Bought a component cable for my DVD player and set it to progressive scan.
Wow, big difference.
The best improvement though thus far has been switching my SD Dish Network receiver to 16:9 and using the S-Video connection. SD no longer looks like the aforementioned "hammered nutsack" but looks rather good.
I had to tweak every input over and over again but in the end 3 days of tweaking have been well worth the effort.
Not a bad little TV for 1700 and change. :)

My tv is was built after NOV 05, so it doesn't need the update. My numbers differ from yours (with update) a little bit, I have highlighted those in red. Hope this helps.



The H05-01.20 probably means nothing..I'm having my update done in 2 weeks and I already have that. Mine reads H05-01.20 00050

Firmware should be version 1.20 after the update. I wouldn't rely on what the Web site says.


DR. Are you saying that if the firmware is displayed on the diagnostics screen as
H05-01.20 00050 that I do not need the upgrade despite the fact that my serial no. when entered on the website displays that I am in need of the upgrade?

I went to up www.updatemytv.com and I found out that my tv needs the upgrade. I'm not that surprised as my set was manufactured in September. Unfortunately that doesn't help me that much as I'm in Canada. I found the equivalent site on the canadian sony site and they tell me that I don't need the upgrade. I'm not sure who's right. Anyone have a similar experience ?

If I were to get my hands on the files, is is just a matter of putting them on a usb thumbdrive, plugging the drive in the usb port in the back of the tv and powering it up?

Has anyone perform the upgrade themselves?

Thanks.

The H05-01.20 probably means nothing..I'm having my update done in 2 weeks and I already have that. Mine reads H05-01.20 00050

I want to apologize for suggesting that the H05-1.20 value is what changes during the firmware update. I swear that I read somewhere on this thread that this value is what you are looking for, but, quite honestly, I don't know for sure. When I saw this value in the Diagnostics screen, it seemed like a good thing to check to keep folks out of the Service Menu. Since my tv didn't need the firmware update, I have no way of knowing if this is what should be checked. I'm really sorry for the misinformation, this thread has been a big help to me with my 50A10, and I really meant no harm. I can't blame anyone if they choose to disregard anything I post on this thread, but I really was trying to be helpful.

Sorry that I am such a moron.

DR. Are you saying that if the firmware is displayed on the diagnostics screen as
H05-01.20 00050 that I do not need the upgrade despite the fact that my serial no. when entered on the website displays that I am in need of the upgrade?

You might still need it, but they do state that only certain A10s are affected. Mine reads H05-01.15. I have a July 2005 build.

FWIW, I think I may have experienced this "software issue" last night. I went to change inputs but the TV wouldn't let me do it. It would just go black for a second and stay on the same input. I then tried to shut the TV off and it wouldn't let me do that either. Unplugging and plugging the TV back in fixed it. I've had the TV since August '05 and this is the first error I've seen.

Did Costco tell you that it included a matching Sony Stand? My stand is still in the box plus
unlimited returns is worth something. I saw the 50" last week for $400 off MSRP @ C.C.

Yes, the Costco included a stand -- which I don't need. I'd rather have $$$$$.

I'll have to check CC. I'm going to UE tonight because Toshiba will be there with their HD-DVD.

I considering purchasing a Harmony 676. Anybody out there using it with the 50a10? Any problems going from TV to DVD?

I considering purchasing a Harmony 676. Anybody out there using it with the 50a10? Any problems going from TV to DVD?


I have a Harmony 680, and it seems to control my 42a10 ok, but I have not fully configured the activities yet...just tried device mode. (I'm waiting until I rewire my system)

I considering purchasing a Harmony 676. Anybody out there using it with the 50a10? Any problems going from TV to DVD?

I have a Harmony 659 and it works like a champ. Had to have it learn the Wega Gate function from the TV remote, and that also works great. Lets me adjust things on the fly, which my wife absolutely loves. :D

I have the KDF-E42A10 that was built in August 2005. I went to Wega Gate , settings,diagnostics. Before the update that I had done today, the value in the lower left corner was H05-01.19 00047. After the update, the diagnostics shows the display H05-01.20 00050. Everyting was done by the SONY tech in less than 15 min.
All my DarkRain settings and the red push 003B were still ther after the upgrade. I have never had any problems since I bought the set from BB on Sept. 1, 2006. No spots ,blushing or any problems other owners posted. I hope not to open a can of worms by bragging that I have a perfect set and **** then will happen.
The tech said that everyone should get the upgrade even as I never had any problems. He predicts that the on/off problem will happen sometimes in the futue. Don't wait ! Because of this forum, we will get the jump on other owners that will be notified by mail in the future for the upgrade. The Tech indicates that his company already is swamped and future upgrade service calls will be put on a VERY long list. DON"T WAIT. The web site is : www.updatemytv.com or better still it would be better to call 1-866-210-6333 and talk to a live person and quickly set up an appointment. Have your info from the back of the set: model #, serial number, build date, who you bought the set from and date of purchase.

I have the 659 with my 42a10 and it works great, also had the firmware update last Friday and everything still works fine.

Yes, the Costco included a stand -- which I don't need. I'd rather have $$$$$.

I'll have to check CC. I'm going to UE tonight because Toshiba will be there with their HD-DVD.

Unlimited return policy has got to be worth something. If you're going to buy an EW it
will cost you more than $2399 @ CC even if you get the set for $2099 which is not effect
at our local store this week.

Well mine is upgraded now. The guy was in the area and called and I said sure come on by,
I was scheduled for tomorrow afternoon between 1:00 and 5:00. All he had to
do was turn it on about 20 degree angle remove the little door and plug
in the Jump Drive. He was here for about 20 minutes, only because he was talking to
me. It only took about 5-10 minutes to upgrade it. He was a Tech for Qualiserve or
something like that. He said this is all he's been doing for 2 weeks in the Charlotte area.
He said he was hoping that there won't be that many around but there were quite a few
in this area. Very nice clean-cut guy, no fly-by-night service tech. I lost nothing as far as
settings. No complaints here.
Grateful11

Hey I live in Charlotte was his name (Greg I beleive that was his name) :confused: ,and driving a black truck? He was from Kannapolis at least his caller ID said so. He said it was his first of the GWV's I said oops but it's working fine, if I could only get TWC's 8300HD box from locking up almost everytime I use the PiP :mad: I be Very Happy. BTW -- I LOVE my Sony :D
Mark

I just purchased a 42a10 from CC for $1499.. I had a quick question in regards to a UPS and surge.

I have noticed some surge protectors have a coax cable input and output that you hook up for cable television. The cable goes from the wall, to the protector, and then another cable goes to your tv.

The UPS/Surge Protector that I have been looking at do not have anything for cable. Is there a chance of surge through cable? I will have a digital cable box hooked to my tv, and I wasn't sure if surge can go through the box and to the tv.

Thanks,
Del

I just bought a Samsung DLP and the PQ is terrible - grainy, pixulated and DVDs look terrible. I am taking it back and I was looking at 42 inch version of this TV, but I am not too familiar with the LCD tecnology. The consensus among the people I had talked to was DLP was the way to go, but I had never considered an LCD rear projection TV. Can anyone who maybe has had both compare/contrast them? PQ is my main thing - I will hook up a Motorola CAble Box via compent chords, a DVD player via HDMI and an xbox via component. Thanks for any advice.

Well like I said, youll find many people who went from Samsung DLP to Song LCD. Both have their ups and downs, but overall the Sony is ranked much higher in public opinion, and thats what matters around here.


Comparing video games, HD broadcasts and DVD... .the Sony looks better to me everytime. :cool:

Got the update done at 9AM this morning. Tech from QualXserv arrive exactly at 9AM and
left the house at 9:19.
My TV had been doing a lot of not turning on and not turning off of late.
Everything seems to be working great so far.

I just bought a Samsung DLP and the PQ is terrible - grainy, pixulated and DVDs look terrible. I am taking it back and I was looking at 42 inch version of this TV, but I am not too familiar with the LCD tecnology. The consensus among the people I had talked to was DLP was the way to go, but I had never considered an LCD rear projection TV. Can anyone who maybe has had both compare/contrast them? PQ is my main thing - I will hook up a Motorola CAble Box via compent chords, a DVD player via HDMI and an xbox via component. Thanks for any advice.


I used to be sold on DLP. If anyone asked me my opinion I always told them that I thought DLP was better. Then it came time for me to buy a TV myslef. I had my wife with me and we looked at alot of different TVs in different stores. We kept coming back to the Sony LCD over the DLP every time. The picture just looks better. But it all depends on how it looks to you, sinc eyou have to look at it every day.

I went from a Samsung DLP to the Sony LCD 50A-10. The Sony is much better in my opinion.

Returned a 42" Samsung DLP and "upgraded" to the Sony 42. I also thought the DLP picture was too grainy and am much happier with the Sony.

I just purchased a 42a10 from CC for $1499.. I had a quick question in regards to a UPS and surge.

I have noticed some surge protectors have a coax cable input and output that you hook up for cable television. The cable goes from the wall, to the protector, and then another cable goes to your tv.

The UPS/Surge Protector that I have been looking at do not have anything for cable. Is there a chance of surge through cable? I will have a digital cable box hooked to my tv, and I wasn't sure if surge can go through the box and to the tv.

Thanks,
Del

How did you get a 42A10 for only $1499.99 at CC? I just bought mine 2 weeks ago and they were $1799.99

How did you get a 42A10 for only $1499.99 at CC? I just bought mine 2 weeks ago and they were $1799.99 Must have been a shelf model (OUT OF THE BOX), my brothers have been looking, actually waiting for the new model or til the price drops under 1699, for 1499 Ill buy another for the bedroom.

Must have been a shelf model (OUT OF THE BOX), my brothers have been looking, actually waiting for the new model or til the price drops under 1699, for 1499 Ill buy another for the bedroom.

I picked one up for the inlaws for 1499 at CC through a price match with HHGregg
when they had employee pricing a month or so ago. CC wanted to keep the ad, I joked
with and told them I wanted to tape it to the door. If I hadn't already bought my 50" I
probably would have bought a 42" at that price. It was no open box, it was brand new.

Okay, I've only had 5 people so far PM me asking for the firmware files. I just sent it to them now. If anyone else wants them, PM me with your email address and I'll send it to you (I'll bcc: so that your email addr is known only by me.) I'll send the next batch on Saturday sometime.

After that, I hope one or more of the people I send the files too will volunteer to send the files to people who want them.

Thanks.

Must have been a shelf model (OUT OF THE BOX), my brothers have been looking, actually waiting for the new model or til the price drops under 1699, for 1499 Ill buy another for the bedroom.


Brand new... It was a price match with a local competitor (Brandsmart)

I finally broke down and bought the KDF-E50A10 yesterday (well ordered it actually). Should arrive around March 7th and I'm very excited about it. I read just about every page of this thread (as many as I could stand to read at any one time anyway) over the last week or so and all I have to say is this forum is both a blessing and a curse. The more you read about any given TV, the more you either want it or don't want it, and after a while you pretty much can't decide on anything at all! Sometimes knowing too much about a product can be a bad thing. Surprisingly though, overall I got the feeling that people who own this TV really love it. But I didn't completely base my purchase purely on owner testimonials, I looked at this TV at every B&M in town who had it (which was just about everybody) and compared it to whatever sets they had nearby. Most people seem to compare this set to a DLP, since they are basically competing technologies, but at CC I was able to compare it to the Panasonic 3LCD set and I have to say that Sony does a much better job with the 3LCD technology than the Panasonic. Even SDE seemed to be minimized in the Sony set (which I would have though would have been defined by the LCD's?) But the color was better, the picture was sharper, the darks were deeper, overall a much better-quality picture. But it also looked much better than any of the DLP's (but I blame a lot of that on the fact that half of those sets were most so poorly set up in most of the stores). Unbelievably Costco actually had most of their sets dialed in pretty decent, it became extremely tough to make a decision between a Sammy DLP and the Sony LCD. Ultimately the Sony won out. Thanks to everyone who posted positive and negative about this set, it has educated me greatly if nothing else. And I'm looking forward to getting my new 50" A10! :)

I finally broke down and bought the KDF-E50A10 yesterday (well ordered it actually). Should arrive around March 7th and I'm very excited about it. I read just about every page of this thread (as many as I could stand to read at any one time anyway) over the last week or so and all I have to say is this forum is both a blessing and a curse. The more you read about any given TV, the more you either want it or don't want it, and after a while you pretty much can't decide on anything at all! Sometimes knowing too much about a product can be a bad thing. Surprisingly though, overall I got the feeling that people who own this TV really love it. But I didn't completely base my purchase purely on owner testimonials, I looked at this TV at every B&M in town who had it (which was just about everybody) and compared it to whatever sets they had nearby. Most people seem to compare this set to a DLP, since they are basically competing technologies, but at CC I was able to compare it to the Panasonic 3LCD set and I have to say that Sony does a much better job with the 3LCD technology than the Panasonic. Even SDE seemed to be minimized in the Sony set (which I would have though would have been defined by the LCD's?) But the color was better, the picture was sharper, the darks were deeper, overall a much better-quality picture. But it also looked much better than any of the DLP's (but I blame a lot of that on the fact that half of those sets were most so poorly set up in most of the stores). Unbelievably Costco actually had most of their sets dialed in pretty decent, it became extremely tough to make a decision between a Sammy DLP and the Sony LCD. Ultimately the Sony won out. Thanks to everyone who posted positive and negative about this set, it has educated me greatly if nothing else. And I'm looking forward to getting my new 50" A10! :)
Good choice .I think you will be very happy. Good luck and enjoy.

I have the KDF-E42A10 that was built in August 2005. I went to Wega Gate , settings,diagnostics. Before the update that I had done today, the value in the lower left corner was H05-01.19 00047. After the update, the diagnostics shows the display H05-01.20 00050. Everyting was done by the SONY tech in less than 15 min.

I don't think that has anything to do with it. I have a Nov 05 50a10 which now says H05-1.20 00050 and the website says I need an update :(
I posted my settings before in #6872 and they are similar to most people's but not exactly.

I have my appointment this Sat, so I will post my before and after as well.
Hopefully all will go well :)

Run the advanced setup wizard and select all formats
Hit settings twice make sure picture format is set to pass- through

Make sure you don't have the cable box picture size is set incorrectly.
Hit Settings once, page to picture size and make sure that it is set to "Normal"
Make sure the A10 is displaying "Normal" Wide Mode when watching SD and "Full" when watching HD. Then if you decide to watch SD or HD in a way other than which it was intended, you can adjust using your A10 remote or the cable box's.

You should be able to scroll through the pictures sizes on the 8300 using the #key as you stated. This works fine on mine.
If you still have problems, I suggest doing a hard reboot by unplugging box from power source(wait 30 sec. plug back in) and trying again. If that doesn't work you can always call the cable Co. and ask for assistance. In the end, you just might have a defective box.

yup i ended up doing the unplug reboot. worked fine after that. thanks bro!

Got my Sony KDF-E42A10 from a local electronics store for $1942 flat instead of the listed $2050 + 5% tax ($2152) about 2 weeks ago. I absolutely love this TV... I had been looking at alot of DLP's and was about to buy a Samsung DLP when I decided to give it more time and research some more, glad I did...

Oh and I contacted local (Panama) Sony support and they are sending me a tech on thursday to update my set since I checked on the sony website and it says my TV (checked by serial number) needs updating for the on/off problem.

Just wanted to know, does the TV's firmware ver display on the service menu? (I know how to get in there) or is there some other command I need to put in to check the version and make sure I have the latest firmware?

Got my Sony KDF-E42A10 from a local electronics store for $1942 flat instead of the listed $2050 + 5% tax ($2152) about 2 weeks ago.

WHERE? WHO?

Its a good choice.. the sony over the samsung dlp many have done the switch after being disapointed with the dlps.

WHERE? WHO?

Panafoto

Sorry, I live in Panama City, Panama (Central America) so I didnt think that info would be useful. :(

I picked one up for the inlaws for 1499 at CC through a price match with HHGregg
when they had employee pricing a month or so ago. CC wanted to keep the ad, I joked
with and told them I wanted to tape it to the door. If I hadn't already bought my 50" I
probably would have bought a 42" at that price. It was no open box, it was brand new.

Yup, thats how I got mine for $1479 as well :) I was watching the other store's deals like a hawk for 30 days after my purchase, since CC will price match 110%.

If you keep searching on eBay every once in a while, you will see some sellers selling the 42" A10 for around $1350-1400 plus shipping and maybe sales tax. If you have an SUV or large truck and live close to a reputable seller (key word is "reputable"), you may be able to contact him and negotiate to purchase in cash and pick up in person to avoid sales tax and shipping. Some sellers are willing to do do this to avoid the hassle of having to ship out the TV, and they always welcome cash over PayPal or anything else so they don't have to report the tax. Just make sure you get a receipt. You can always get an EW later on from a company that specializes in that, but be advised that Sony automatically gives you a 1-year warranty covering parts and labor.

Just a suggestion, but of course it is not as simple and may not give you as much piece of mind as buying from a Circuit City or Best Buy.

I used to be sold on DLP. If anyone asked me my opinion I always told them that I thought DLP was better. Then it came time for me to buy a TV myslef. I had my wife with me and we looked at alot of different TVs in different stores. We kept coming back to the Sony LCD over the DLP every time. The picture just looks better. But it all depends on how it looks to you, sinc eyou have to look at it every day.

We did the same thing back in November...saw the Sony compared to a few others and didn't see the motion blur or graininess. Then we went and looked at some plasma's and I believe another Mitsubishi DLP which all looked great for HD stuff, but on regular non HD stuff was just plain terrible. So as we watched the DLP from a distance, I glanced up and saw the Sony again from at least 50 feet away. It still looked clearer compared to the sets beside it, and the DLP 10 feet in front of me.


Then we Costco matched the price and got another 15% off...came out to just about 2100 with the stand after delivery fees. Monopriced the cables and we are set!

I just noticed the KDF-E42A10 is $1499 at Amazon, shipping was $99. I have no experience with Amazon shipping something this large but just a FYI.

few questions on this tv(42A10), i just picked it up at cc

whenever there is solid black on the top or bottom (or both) of the tv there is a bright line right at the division. Just curious if this is normal for this tv. It isnt too bad, and only happens when there are light colors but i just want to make sure it isnt defective. I thought maybe it is on purpose and just for a better effect. Also is there any worry of burn in on this type of television, because i like to turn on the music channels and sometimes it sits on the same picture for several minutes. is this allright?

thanks

jeremy

Hey I live in Charlotte was his name (Greg I beleive that was his name) :confused: ,and driving a black truck? He was from Kannapolis at least his caller ID said so. He said it was his first of the GWV's I said oops but it's working fine, if I could only get TWC's 8300HD box from locking up almost everytime I use the PiP :mad: I be Very Happy. BTW -- I LOVE my Sony :D
Mark

I just checked my Caller ID and the guys name was Dean but he was in a small dark pickup.
Grateful11

I just noticed the KDF-E42A10 is $1499 at Amazon, shipping was $99. I have no experience with Amazon shipping something this large but just a FYI.

Wow. This truly is a great deal when you figure there is no tax on the item (at least I don't think there would be). My g/f had her 30" Sony HD delivered by Amazon and it worked out fine.

-Scott

went on the website this morning and got an appointmemnt for Friday afternoon. If it is this easy why don't they just send you the memory key and give you an option to set an appointment? Anyone had it done in Austin yet?

Mustangsupra-You do not have to worry about burnin on this type RPTV LCD. I do not have that defining line you are talking about but then I don't know if you are on Vivid, Standard, or Custom(Picture selection on remote). You need to start out with Dark Rains setup under Custom to start with and then adjust to your taste. There is a world of info in this thread. If you are running the picture in the vivid mode you will see bright lines etc. Have fun setting your set for the best picture. When you finish I am sure you will say like most other people "What a Picture"!

I agree, the tv comes in "vivid" mode which has all the colors WAYYY turned up.

Read the info on this thread and setup ure video to custom using dark rain's setup as reference and tweak from there. I did.

By chance went to RCWilly in Las Vegas. The A10 was price was lower than I'd every seen it in LV. Bought an HTIB ($500) and an audio cab plus cables. Manager took off enough money that the A10 wound-up at B&H price (under $2000).

Great shopping experience! Also got an iPod Shuttle gift for $40.

Shipping for $50. 5-year Warranty (+ 1 Sony year) WITH one free buld for $400.

By the way, they claim Sony will replace a bulb if it fails in the first year.

I just noticed the KDF-E42A10 is $1499 at Amazon, shipping was $99. I have no experience with Amazon shipping something this large but just a FYI.

TVs over 27" are not returnable from Amazon in case there's a problem with it. Be sure to read their return policy.

few questions on this tv(42A10), i just picked it up at cc

whenever there is solid black on the top or bottom (or both) of the tv there is a bright line right at the division. Just curious if this is normal for this tv. It isnt too bad, and only happens when there are light colors but i just want to make sure it isnt defective. I thought maybe it is on purpose and just for a better effect. Also is there any worry of burn in on this type of television, because i like to turn on the music channels and sometimes it sits on the same picture for several minutes. is this allright?

thanks

jeremy

It's either a possible overscan issue or maybe the projection mirror is a bit off. I'd have to see it to really know.

No worry about burn in on the A10.

I've had my E50A10 for about 2 weeks now. I spent time comparing DLPs and the SXRD, but what convinced me was seeing the A10 sitting next to the 50" SXRD at BB and not noticing a whole lot of difference (at least to me) in the PQ to justify another $1000.

CC delivered it on 2/18 (just in time for the Daytona 500). I I put Dark Rain's settings in as a starting point (thank you). According to the sticker it has a build date of February 2006, but just for fun I put the serial number into the website to double check if it needed the update but it doesn't.

That being said, I fired it up last night, the power light flashed like normal but when it went solid on I had no picture or sound and I could not turn the tv off. I unplugged it, waited 30 seconds, and then plugged it back in and every thing was fine.

I have it running through a UPS.

According to the diagnostic screen, it is H05-01.20, but I know that there is some discussion that this is not the software version.

I've had my E50A10 for about 2 weeks now. I spent time comparing DLPs and the SXRD, but what convinced me was seeing the A10 sitting next to the 50" SXRD at BB and not noticing a whole lot of difference (at least to me) in the PQ to justify another $1000.

CC delivered it on 2/18 (just in time for the Daytona 500). I I put Dark Rain's settings in as a starting point (thank you). According to the sticker it has a build date of February 2006, but just for fun I put the serial number into the website to double check if it needed the update but it doesn't.

That being said, I fired it up last night, the power light flashed like normal but when it went solid on I had no picture or sound and I could not turn the tv off. I unplugged it, waited 30 seconds, and then plugged it back in and every thing was fine.

I have it running through a UPS.

According to the diagnostic screen, it is H05-01.20, but I know that there is some discussion that this is not the software version.

I had this happen for the first time after about a month. Supposedly powering up, but no picture is a different problem than the software fix. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. The way I understood it was that a neverending blinking green light was what the fix was for.

went on the website this morning and got an appointmemnt for Friday afternoon. If it is this easy why don't they just send you the memory key and give you an option to set an appointment? Anyone had it done in Austin yet?



Because if they send you the firmware update, and you DON'T read to keep the memorystick in until the lights have changed...you ruin your tv. And Sony would have a bunch of irate customers on their hands.

Because if they send you the firmware update, and you DON'T read to keep the memorystick in until the lights have changed...you ruin your tv. And Sony would have a bunch of irate customers on their hands.

Well, I agree with you somewhat rifleman, but if you read a few pages back, you'd see the awful time I had with these QualServX or whoever they were people regarding this update.

Thankfully, he left me his usb memory stick and I got the update to work, simply by fooling around. So, even if the firmware fails for a reason like, oh, say the stupid tech hits the power button as the update starts, the "bricked" tv can be brought back to life.

Boy was that a scary day and a half.

Longtime reader, seldom poster. I thought I remember seeing within the last few pages about a new model coming out to replace the A10s, but now I can't find that reference. Is there a new model coming out anytime soon? I understand there probably won't be as many new features as when the A10s came out last year, but maybe a new model would drive prices for the existing ones down?

Well, I agree with you somewhat rifleman, but if you read a few pages back, you'd see the awful time I had with these QualServX or whoever they were people regarding this update.

Thankfully, he left me his usb memory stick and I got the update to work, simply by fooling around. So, even if the firmware fails for a reason like, oh, say the stupid tech hits the power button as the update starts, the "bricked" tv can be brought back to life.

Boy was that a scary day and a half.


Ok I didn't mean the tv was a 75 pound paper-weight, but you can see the things that can and will go wrong if people are left to "upgrade" their own tv's. Fortunately I had a Dell guy come out who knew what he was doing. 10 min later I said bye and my tv had been updated. Not everyone who has an HDTV is as knowledgable as you or I or many others on these forums. We're the minority.

Just got my Grand Wega updated

From

H05-01.20 00050
NVM - 1.100-1101
Program - 1.100

to

H05-01.20 00050
NVM - 1.200-1233
Program - 1.139

After reading and researching for at least a month, I pulled the trigger on a KDF-E50A10 a few days ago (I was very close to buying a Samsung HL-R5067W until I saw them sitting side by side at BB...that sent me back researching, thankfully). I got my HD cable box yesterday evening and hooked it up. :eek: WOW! I thought the 'regular' picture was great. HD on it is incredible! Thanks to DarkRain for the settings and this forum for all the available information.

Ok I didn't mean the tv was a 75 pound paper-weight, but you can see the things that can and will go wrong if people are left to "upgrade" their own tv's. Fortunately I had a Dell guy come out who knew what he was doing. 10 min later I said bye and my tv had been updated. Not everyone who has an HDTV is as knowledgable as you or I or many others on these forums. We're the minority.


For awhile there, I truly thought it was a paper weight :(

You are correct though, I sometimes forget that there are people in this world who dont learn everything they can about what they have. Whether it be an HDTV, a computer, a car, whatever.

I always laugh when I see someone who had a vcr with the time blinking 12:00

After reading and researching for at least a month, I pulled the trigger on a KDF-E50A10 a few days ago (I was very close to buying a Samsung HL-R5067W until I saw them sitting side by side at BB...that sent me back researching, thankfully). I got my HD cable box yesterday evening and hooked it up. :eek: WOW! I thought the 'regular' picture was great. HD on it is incredible! Thanks to DarkRain for the settings and this forum for all the available information.

Did you do the red push fix?

does anyone know the dimensions of the 42" a10 in the box? i need to know if it will fit in my vehicle but cant find the size IN BOX anywhere, might just have to goto the store
thx much

So yeah, I'm really curious now. Is there a replacement for the A10's coming out anytime soon? Has one been announced even?

hey all.

i just wanted to thank you guys and avsforum for this thread.
i've been watching these threads for about two years waiting for the perfect time to buy a samsung DLP. in the end, i bought the e50a10 and i couldn't be happier.

i know a lot of people have been complaining about color blotches and things, but my TV has been perfect right out of the box and i've always had bad luck with electronics.

my only complaint is the slight overscan.
i had to use a custom resolution in powerstrip to get "most" of the screen to fill up in 1:1 pixel mapping, but it's still not filled up all the way. i'm using 1200x666 and i've got maybe about a half inch border around my picture when in PC mode.

can anyone help me get the last half inch?

i have a very slight geometry problem, as the sides slightly come in towards the middle in a concave shape (hour glass) but it's not bad. colors are perfect, especially after the red push fix... and i only used the 2B one, not the most neutral one.

i see the screen door effect on bright scenes (9 feet away), but you only see it when your eyes are fixed in one area, and that's only when i'm concentrating on what might be wrong with the TV and not actually trying to enjoy it.

The TV looks better with the 3LCD sticker removed.

What about the 42a10? :P

sugarkang,

Try my powerstrip timings listed in my signature below (assuming you are using the VGA input).

Tim

hey all.

i just wanted to thank you guys and avsforum for this thread.
i've been watching these threads for about two years waiting for the perfect time to buy a samsung DLP. in the end, i bought the e50a10 and i couldn't be happier.

i know a lot of people have been complaining about color blotches and things, but my TV has been perfect right out of the box and i've always had bad luck with electronics.

my only complaint is the slight overscan.
i had to use a custom resolution in powerstrip to get "most" of the screen to fill up in 1:1 pixel mapping, but it's still not filled up all the way. i'm using 1200x666 and i've got maybe about a half inch border around my picture when in PC mode.

can anyone help me get the last half inch?

i have a very slight geometry problem, as the sides slightly come in towards the middle in a concave shape (hour glass) but it's not bad. colors are perfect, especially after the red push fix... and i only used the 2B one, not the most neutral one.

i see the screen door effect on bright scenes (9 feet away), but you only see it when your eyes are fixed in one area, and that's only when i'm concentrating on what might be wrong with the TV and not actually trying to enjoy it.

does anyone know the dimensions of the 42" a10 in the box? i need to know if it will fit in my vehicle but cant find the size IN BOX anywhere, might just have to goto the store
thx much

In the box dimensions on page 38, post #1139.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6014799&highlight=box+size#post6014799

So yeah, I'm really curious now. Is there a replacement for the A10's coming out anytime soon? Has one been announced even?

Interestingly (and I know there are rules about price posting) but CC and BB both significantly reduced the A10's price online.

Trying to clear them out maybe?

Did you do the red push fix?

I don't think so, can you explain?

I don't think so, can you explain?

It's a fix to tone down the red colors in the picture. You have to enter the Service Menu to do it, though, so if you aren't bothered by the red content you shouldn't do it. I was just wondering since you said you used Dark Rain's settings, which are based on having done the red push fix.

Interestingly (and I know there are rules about price posting) but CC and BB both significantly reduced the A10's price online.

Trying to clear them out maybe?


They're getting close to what I paid for mine in November. Try your local electronics dealers to beat the big boys prices, they usually can. In Oregon, Video Only isn't the fanciest store in the world by any means, but they'll wheel and deal to beat ANY price. All it takes is just a little shopping around.

I Paid $1912 For The 50 Inch Right Before Christmas At Circuit City.was On Sale For $2249 ,and Had A 15%off Coupon.got Lucky I Guess.

It's a fix to tone down the red colors in the picture. You have to enter the Service Menu to do it, though, so if you aren't bothered by the red content you shouldn't do it. I was just wondering since you said you used Dark Rain's settings, which are based on having done the red push fix.

I haven't noticed the reds being too red, but I'll look closer this evening. I guess it's all explained in the tweeks thread?

A question regarding Extended Warranty..

Let's say I go to Future Shop (I'm in Canada) to buy my 42a10. The guy is gonna push the EW on me. I can get THEIR warranty, or I can get SONY'S warranty, correct?

In the opinion of you folks that have extended warranties, which is the best route?

What is the major difference, if any?

thanks!

the tech had a sheet with specs to check in the service menu to make sure it was done correctly. Not sure if this is new but he checked about six values on the screen and compared them to what was on his written sheet. I guess this takes any uncertainty out of the equation im terms of whether the update was sucessful or not.

I have seen the price drops too at CC and Best Buy.......

any word on the NEW sonys for this year

I dont want to buy something now and in 3 months be pissed because they added something like an extra HDMI or something

After much hand wringing, I finally decided to take the plunge and purchase the 42" model. I ordered it through Amazon, and plan to pick up an extended warranty through Sony as I see that Amazon is a certfied online retailer.

Anyway, I've lurked enough on these forums (months now) to know that I'll be in picture tweaking utopia (I'm a graphic designer by trade), and I'm more than ready to pull up my sleaves and tackle the red push and proper black level calibration.

There is one subject however that I haven't got a decent handle on and I was hoping you guys might be able to point me in the right direction with some tips.

I am excited to have the opportunity to run my computer through the TV (mostly for gaming). I have an ATIXT800 PE card. Here are my questions:

1) To run a cord from my computer to my TV will probably requite 16ft. Will I run into image degradation doing this with a long VGA cord. Any suggestions on where to pick up one for a reasonable price? Is there a different type of cord I should use instead of straight out VGA?

2) If I decide to simply lug my computer over the TV on occasion, will I simply be able to plug and play ala my trusty 19" monitor?

3) What software should I purchase, or download to help? Powerstrip? Anything I should know about this program in realtionship to my Sony?

Thanks in advance for your time.

After much hand wringing, I finally decided to take the plunge and purchase the 42" model. I ordered it through Amazon, and plan to pick up an extended warranty through Sony as I see that Amazon is a certfied online retailer.

Anyway, I've lurked enough on these forums (months now) to know that I'll be in picture tweaking utopia (I'm a graphic designer by trade), and I'm more than ready to pull up my sleaves and tackle the red push and proper black level calibration.

There is one subject however that I haven't got a decent handle on and I was hoping you guys might be able to point me in the right direction with some tips.

I am excited to have the opportunity to run my computer through the TV (mostly for gaming). I have an ATIXT800 PE card. Here are my questions:

1) To run a cord from my computer to my TV will probably requite 16ft. Will I run into image degradation doing this with a long VGA cord. Any suggestions on where to pick up one for a reasonable price? Is there a different type of cord I should use instead of straight out VGA?

2) If I decide to simply lug my computer over the TV on occasion, will I simply be able to plug and play ala my trusty 19" monitor?

3) What software should I purchase, or download to help? Powerstrip? Anything I should know about this program in realtionship to my Sony?

Thanks in advance for your time.

1. I'm not familiar with the XT800. Do you mean X800 or X1800? If so, they both should have come with an adapter for component hookup to your tv, which would be a little easier (and cheaper) than using the VGA since there is a component input on the side of the tv. Otherwise, I doubt you'll notice too much image degradation using the longer VGA.


2. Yes, it is plug & play, you will just need to adjust your settings via Catalyst.

3. Powerstrip is good to use if you are running into issues with the picture not filling the screen 100%. There have been several posts regarding the settings for powerstrip in both this thread as well as the tweaks thread found here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=567709

Added a Harmony 676 today, I can change channels on my TV and adjust volume on my amp without pushing extra buttons. Awesome tech support.

I can press "watch DVD", turns on my TV, amp & DVD, and starts movie.

A decent mid-priced vga cord should be fine. I've heard of people going much longer distances without problems with decent cables.

See my signature for Powerstrip timings that will yield 1:1 pixel mapping and allow for overscan adjustment.

In the TV's menu, if you choose "movie" mode it turns on the advanced iris and I think also the black corrector and tends to make things pretty dark. If you use text mode you can see more detail, but the blacks aren't quite as black. It's a shame they don't allow all the same picture adjustments when using the PC input.

I used to have my computer in another room with my old TV. I finally broke down and purchased an inexpensive small form factor bare bones PC and am glad I did. It's nice to have the system "dedicated" to the TV.

After much hand wringing, I finally decided to take the plunge and purchase the 42" model. I ordered it through Amazon, and plan to pick up an extended warranty through Sony as I see that Amazon is a certfied online retailer.

Anyway, I've lurked enough on these forums (months now) to know that I'll be in picture tweaking utopia (I'm a graphic designer by trade), and I'm more than ready to pull up my sleaves and tackle the red push and proper black level calibration.

There is one subject however that I haven't got a decent handle on and I was hoping you guys might be able to point me in the right direction with some tips.

I am excited to have the opportunity to run my computer through the TV (mostly for gaming). I have an ATIXT800 PE card. Here are my questions:

1) To run a cord from my computer to my TV will probably requite 16ft. Will I run into image degradation doing this with a long VGA cord. Any suggestions on where to pick up one for a reasonable price? Is there a different type of cord I should use instead of straight out VGA?

2) If I decide to simply lug my computer over the TV on occasion, will I simply be able to plug and play ala my trusty 19" monitor?

3) What software should I purchase, or download to help? Powerstrip? Anything I should know about this program in realtionship to my Sony?

Thanks in advance for your time.

Shozbot. Actually, I was kind of lazy when I typed the card name. In actuality it is the X800 XT Platinum addition. It was ATI's last top of the line AGP card, I believe. Picked it up last year. Great card BTW. Thanks for the link. VERY helpful.

Mr. Pibb. Thanks for the information on modes, and the word on the VGA cables. I am saddened to hear that I won't have all the tweaking option available to me via the TV. I am supposing that I can make up with that somewhat by adjusting color curves in my card's video control panel. I would love to have a dedicated computer on the TV. Maybe next year. ;-)

So i went to www.updatemytv.com to check my tv and it does require the update, but here is my problem. When filling out the information there is no way to change it to canada. Has anyone figured out what to do if they are in canada and require this update? I sent an email, so i guess i will just have to wait.

Yeah you have to visit sony.com and go to your region and email product suppot. I did that since Im in Panama City, Panama (Central America) and my country does not appear on that list which is US-Only.

Zawada,
Check this link for Sony Canada:

http://www.sony.ca/sonyca/view/english/warranty/consumer_support_WEGA.shtml

Also, make sure of your model number. I have the Canadian KF version (without the digital tuner) but when I type in my serial number under the KDF version, it says I need the update, but my understanding is that the KF versions do not.

Yes I had a technician do the upgrade on Wednesday, then tell me I didn't need one anyway because I have a KFE.

I just emailed out the firmware files to all who have asked for it. I've sent it to about a dozen people. I'm hoping one of you will volunteer to send it on to others.

Thanks.

FYI, I thought you all might want to know about my new camcorder.

Since I have a widescreen TV, I thought it might be a good idea to purchase a widescreen camcorder, since my 15 year old Sony analog camcorder finally died.

Sony has a new true HD model, but it is tons of bucks. I ended up with the new Canon Elura 100, for $399. It is a digital miniDV camcorder that takes 16:9 video. It also can do stills at 1.3MP, is very small and light weight, and has a widescreen 2.7" display.

I was anxious to see how this would work with my A10. I hooked it up via both composite and firewire (via my DVD recorder), and the widescreen video looks great! The TV somehow detects that this is widescreen video and the picture completely fills the TV screen perfectly.

I also played back on an old TV, and you can choose to see the 16:9 video with bars, or cropped.

Highly recommended for A10 owners!

Zawada,
Check this link for Sony Canada:

http://www.sony.ca/sonyca/view/english/warranty/consumer_support_WEGA.shtml

Also, make sure of your model number. I have the Canadian KF version (without the digital tuner) but when I type in my serial number under the KDF version, it says I need the update, but my understanding is that the KF versions do not.


So KF versions dont require the upgrade?

Originally posted by Zawada
So KF versions dont require the upgrade?

I don't know this for sure. The "recall" specifically addresses the KDF versions and I believe a few forum members have contacted Sony Canada (I have not) and have been told the update is NOT required for the KF. Perhaps other readers can clarify this. Call me cynical, however, but since the KF versions only came to market late November, they may not yet be displaying this power problem. I've decided to wait and see.

I got mixed messages. Sony said I needed one then said they would sent an upgrade guy over just the same. The techie did the install took a copy of my invoice so he could get paid then told me I didn't need one anyway so go figure. Interestingly, I had chaxis 3c on the original firmware and it upgraded to chaxis 46 default after the upgrade. The program went from v1.15 to v1.1-A. I fixed the red push back to 0000 and 3b without any problems.