I have an Infocus 7205 that has about 465 hours on the bulb. It seems like it's at best only half the brightness it was new (the room now needs to be totally dark to see an "Ok" picture) while using a stewart filmscreen Firehawk screen only 15 feet away. What should I do? Does the warranty cover this type of behavior? Should return it to the dealer I purchased it from or send it back to Infocus? or?

If it has been less than 90d and 500 hours then you can get a lamp replacement. Your dealer may be able to convince Infocus that the AND 500 hours means OR 500 hours - good luck on that. If not it is still worth a try to send it in and see if it is a power supply issue instead which would be covered under the full projector warranty.

Try reseating the lamp yourself and jumping to high power mode for a few hours. Lamps do drop off a lot initially before they settle in for the long haul. Make sure nobody sat on your remote and adjusted your contrast accidently though!

Infocus is selling a 1yr extended warranty on lamps now - so early failures are starting to be recognized as an industry problem. I hear HP projectors the lamp is warranted same as projector.

Yep, I just got the word from Infocus. I think the 90 day thing is nuts. I'm not even sure if it's not working right or if it's just me getting use to it but it seems just on the border of being just Ok (not a wow anymore). I think I need to visit a local shop to compare. My room has some ambient light and it seems like a sunny day lets in more ambient light than a cloudy day so again, maybe it's just me (we've had lots of sunny days lately). Maybe it's just because the days are longer than when I purchased it... I'm not sure. The bottom line is, They quoted me $495 for a bulb thats only got 465 hours on it... I think thats just not right 90 days or not, it feels like I'm being cheated. Is there some kind of test I can do to tell me for sure it's defective? If I need a new bulb I want to get it fixed and get the pain over with but if it's Ok, I'll really be upset to spend that kind of money for nothing.

I can't speak for your dealer - but I take brightness and contrast measurements of incoming projectors for this very reason. So far I have not had to come back to confirm a failing lamp - but I have the data if I need to.

I suspect however it is just the season - August has been a very sunny month around here. Light control that works with grey skies gets defeated with sunny skies.

What is your impression in a dark room at night - is it still a blow your eyes out plasma torch?

Take it to your shop and do a side by side - but they may have replaced the SP7205 with SP7210. The SP7210 is not any brighter as far as I have measured - but then I only have measured one demo!

Thanks KRAS,
I watched it a little tonight and it looks Ok in total darkness but not the "blow your eyes out plasma torch"...

I like your idea to take it in for an A/B test, then I can decide from there.
Thx,

Kras,
I understand you are very well familiar with IF 7205. Please help me out with correct settings using DVD and highdef TV. what exactly perfect or near perfect settings are? for signal going to projector via DVI and component output. Since there is only one DVI input, which I am using for HDTV and component from DVD (Denon 2910) set for 480i and I just let 7205 do the up conversion.

So, here are the settings I am using 66 & 39 for all three colors, 40 for brightness and 45 for contrast, rest is the orignal factory settings. Due to poor video transfer DVD's some time picture looks patchy, overly red flesh tones associated with noise at dark scenes. Is this normal? where as HDTV always looks breath taking, how do I make DVD looks as good as HDTV or at least half way decent.

Are my settings normal? please assist me in this matter.
Thanks
Sraoof

Sraoof,

We had a thread on settings months ago - search the archives. Maybe some other SP7205 members recall when it was - feel free to pop it back up once you find it and I can add any further info to it you need.

The 66/39 is only for your DVI input with Video sources.

Have you used a test pattern DVD? That is what you need to get the basic controls right on component - THX Optimizer on recent THX certified DVD's is free and so are the blue glasses from THX - all the way up to AVIA PRO for $400. There is no normal setting for these basic controls - the controls exist because sources vary. I am sure I covered how to set brightness in that thread.

If you are seeing red push faces on component 480i - the only tradeoff is to reduce the video color saturation. There are tests in AVIA for color decoding - you use the blue filter to balance the blues and whites - then you check to see if there is any red push which may be about 10% - and you trade off your blues for reds to get a balance.

Other than that you cannot make poor sources look good when blown up big!

Not trying to derail your question - but nobody else is going to contribute - since this thread is about one guys dim bulb - not calibration. Seems noone else but glz and myself care about a dim bulb!

I think this is it.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=518334

well, I'm now at 735 hours and it's now so dim even in total darkness it's not much fun to watch. Anyone else see this kind of problem with such low hours? I was hopping it would be usable for the super bowl but at this point it's almost useless... Anyone know the turn around time with Infocus?

Hmm are you sure they did not reset your lamp hours with the demo model to begin with?
There was a recent thread on here from a service tech that ran a multi-projector test that said constant on heat buildup did not impact lamp life contrary to popular belief - however he did not verify the brightness against the original spec. He said all projectors were over 200 lumens at the end of the test - that is all they checked - would have been good to know what the actual numbers on the Infocus - as that is not a good number for Infocus (OK for others!) so surely Infocus was brighter at the end. The test used a well ventiliated clean room to test though - so I still suspect overheating buildup could be a cause in your install.


SuperBowl will be tight - service is in Kentucky not Wilsonville (unless you can pull some local strings at HQ for a swap.....). Plan a week shipping, a week or two turnaround, and a week shipping back. Less if you escalate the shipping and hassle service to get it out - but no guarantees.

well, I'm now at 735 hours and it's now so dim even in total darkness it's not much fun to watch. Anyone else see this kind of problem with such low hours? I was hopping it would be usable for the super bowl but at this point it's almost useless... Anyone know the turn around time with Infocus?

That's weird. I have the lowly 7200.
I just replaced my perfectly bright 2,000 hour bulb with a brand new one purchased from InFocus.
Call me crazy but I didn't notice much of a brightness increase going from old to new.
I'm using a Hi Power screen and it's plenty bright either way.
My new bulb will last another two years and then it'll be time to upgrade to a 1080, 1,000lm, CR>10k:1 <$5k MSRP projector! :D

That's weird. I have the lowly 7200.
I just replaced my perfectly bright 2,000 hour bulb with a brand new one purchased from InFocus.
Call me crazy but I didn't notice much of a brightness increase going from old to new.
I'm using a Hi Power screen and it's plenty bright either way.
My new bulb will last another two years and then it'll be time to upgrade to a 1080, 1,000lm, CR>10k:1 <$5k MSRP projector! :D
I'm using a high gain screen (Stewart Firehawk) screen. My memory says this unit use to be very bright when it was initially installed but it's continued to grow dim over time. I remember opening the unit to clean it some months back when I first noticed the dimming. I removing the bulb and then re-installing it. It seemed much brighter after the bulb removal and re-install but it looked dim again within a week. This cleaning was not necessary, but someone told me to check it and at this point I'm willing to try almost anything to get it bright again...

Andrikos, Why did you replace your old bulb if it was still working and the new bulb isn't brighter?

Andrikos, Why did you replace your old bulb if it was still working and the new bulb isn't brighter?

Good question.
I'm using the 2,000 hour bulb as a reliable replacement in the event of failure of the new bulb.
If the new one fails within the first 90 days, I'll send it back for replacement and still have a backup to hold me over.
I guess I got really lucky with the first one, hopefully the second one will be as good.

I have the 7205 with over 1000 hours on it and it's plenty bright (110" diagonal) with brightness and contrast set at around 48/50 on economy bulb mode.

Any 7200/7205/7210 users start with an ND2 filter which you no longer use? If so, how many hours did you get on the lamp before having to take the filter off?

I have about 250 hours on my 7210 (with ND2 to 120" Firehawk) and can already see the image losing its original pop.

f1restarter , That's what i expected... Have you noticed any notable dimming since new? Even on full power mine looks dark...

I sure hope this dimming is not the norm...

If we can only expect 500 hours of really great performance then it's time to move on to something else...

i should've mentioned, the bulb had about 700 hours on it when i bought it from a local dealer (John) who is also AVS reseller and it was his demo model that he gave me at a great price plus he gave me a brand new bulb for a much lower cost. I have seen the 7205 on a brand new bulb as well so i know it is very bright when new, to know the difference but from what you are describing it really seems to be a problem with the bulb.

Even now my 7205 with over 1000 hours is watchable in some ambient light i.e kitchen light. I have never ever felt the need to turn on the high power mode, even now and the image is being thrown on a bare white wall (yes i know i need a screen!). Im linking some screenshots i took when i bought the 7205. This is with the old bulb and with over 744+ hours at the time.

http://gallery.avsforum.com/showphoto.php/photo/14898/cat/500/ppuser/7466601

Oh yeh, when you get a real screen it will be so bright it will be as KRAS described (a blow your eyes out plasma torch)... :eek:

I can see from your picture with the amount of light coming through the window and no high gain screen, yours looks brighter than mine... :cool:

So now you know the problem is with the bulb. I just need to muster up some cash for the Firehawk which is an ideal combination for the 7205 cinema heaven! ;)

Or you cheap out in the meantime - even DaLite HCCV fabric stretched and stapled/velcroed on artists bars/slats would do more justice than a textured wall! Low $$$! Then you sell it to your buddy (include your DIY time) who is throwing on his wall when you upgrade to a FireHawk!

Thats a good idea, Kras. I have seen the demo of the HCCV and i thought it was closest to the FH although the FH owns it in contrast. I think i could get a 119" pull down HCCV since i doubt the house owner would let me drill holes in the wall.

I have a 7205 with 2026 hours on the bulb, all at low power. When I turned on the projector this morning it told me to replace the bulb. I thought it was supposed to last for 3000 hours in economy mode? Does it monitor anything besides time? The projector is still plenty bright, do I have to replace the bulb?

Thanks,
Jason

The warning is strictly based on time. The warning message is supposed to come on at 2000 hrs. The projector does not keep track of whether you use it in high or low power mode, so the warning is based on high power usage. I don't think you can turn this warning message off. If it is still working fine for you, just keep on watching.

The warning is strictly based on time. The warning message is supposed to come on at 2000 hrs. The projector does not keep track of whether you use it in high or low power mode, so the warning is based on high power usage. I don't think you can turn this warning message off. If it is still working fine for you, just keep on watching.

I assume that is true for 7200 as well (which I have). I just ordered new lamp today as Im closing in on 1400 hours all at low power, but did not want a failure during the Super Bowl party.

So does the counter reset when you remove/replace the lamp? Or is the counter specifically associated with the physical lamp. Im inclined to replace the current lamp at 2000 hours (if it doesnt fail before), and keep the current one as a back up. Will the lamp life message reset when I put the old one back in? My understanding is that lamps run significantly over design life are subject to ugly failures that could damage the projector (is that true?)

BTW : I hadnt looked in about a year, and was SHOCKED at how much the price has gone up. WOW.

jc

I assume that is true for 7200 as well (which I have). I just ordered new lamp today as Im closing in on 1400 hours all at low power, but did not want a failure during the Super Bowl party.

So does the counter reset when you remove/replace the lamp? Or is the counter specifically associated with the physical lamp. Im inclined to replace the current lamp at 2000 hours (if it doesnt fail before), and keep the current one as a back up. Will the lamp life message reset when I put the old one back in? My understanding is that lamps run significantly over design life are subject to ugly failures that could damage the projector (is that true?)

BTW : I hadnt looked in about a year, and was SHOCKED at how much the price has gone up. WOW.

jc

To reset the lamp hours:
Press BOTH brightness buttons for 10 seconds. Done.
How much lamps are going for now?

To reset the lamp hours:
Press BOTH brightness buttons for 10 seconds. Done.
How much lamps are going for now?


Awesome... thanks. Hmmm bet that was a RTFM question wasnt it? :D

I found mine for 425 + 19 shipping. That took some hunting. Most places I found were right around 500.

jc

I have a 7205 that I just had to replace the bulb at only 710 hours. The bulb went suddenly dim. Ok when I shut it off one night, incredibly dim the next. After 30mins of confirming all my settings the replace bulb warning came on. I called Infocus service asking what they thought was wrong. They swore the bulb had an early failure and that the replacement warning would also come on if there was a filament or voltage issue across the lamp. I complained for a free bulb replacement, no luck. Went to my dealer, who went to his Infocus rep. Best I could do was a bulb at cost with the 1 year warranty for free. Changed out, and it seems to be working good with 4 hours now on the new bulb. You could see damage on the old bulb when removed, the glass was expanded at the base. Infocus tech guy said that the bulb should be removed every 200hours and the dust around the fans and fins should be blown away to prolong bulb life. I asked him where this was in the owner's manual, of course it isn't.

Personally I think the 90d lamp warranty that is common on all projectors is the bane of this industry. Infocus should include the one year warranty on lamps as standard - even if it cost $50 more on the box (warranties are insurance - the more that buy - the cheaper it gets).

Question is -would the buying public pay more for better warranties? The new Play Big lineup has gone down from 2yrs to 1yr projector warranty in the interest of reducing costs - as projectors are an expensive item to service. I intend to add on the 1yr lamp and projector warranties for any I do - we shall see what people value the most -warranty or price!

The SP7205 is supposed to be maintenance free - but that was certainly required on the SP4805 which was not. I guess it would not hurt to be on the safe side and dust your projector (don't use compressed air - use a car vac w/ nozzle - the tech is wrong - you want to suck not blow!)

Your dealer did do the best he could do - especially considering lamp prices went up recently - and the lamp warranty certainly was not free for them! After all it is not your dealers fault the lamp blew - but it is called eating one in the interest of customer service....

My Toshiba MT800 "Replace Lamp" light went on at around 560 hours, around 9 months after I purchased the unit. Naturally, my bulb was no longer under warranty, so I had to eat the cost on a replacement bulb for a whopping $510 shipped.

Let's see now, my math suggests that if I hold on to the projector for 4 years, I will have to replace the bulb 4 more times. That means I am spending an additional $2,500 on top of what I already spent on the unit when I bought it. My god, even my used car has less maintenance issues over a 5 year period than this "entertainment" product. Where is the entertainment value in spending thousands of dollars on light bulbs, for god's sake. Sorry, but that's a crock of you know what.

And, frankly, the industry knows it, but they don't give a darn as witnessed by their ridiculous 90 day warranty. That is pathetic, to say the least.

And to add pompous insult to injury, retailers are offering $300 to $400 3-year warranties on bulb replacement. Talk about vultures! Everyone knows that these bulbs have a high failure rate, and what do retailers and manufacturers offer as "safe-buy" insurance: buy their wonderful 3 year "your projector lamp is sure to fail' warranty just to make you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside with your $5,000 to $10,000 investment.

I am seriously considering not purchasing any more front projectors as the chance of getting lemon bulbs and/or projectors is alarmingly high. It's one thing if that is the case, and dealers and manufacturers are willing to go to bat for you because of what is seen as "widespread" reality in the industry. But it is altogether irresponsible for an industry to purport in its advertising that a bulb on eco-mode should on average get around 2,000-3,000 hours, when in reality the failure rate on these bulbs to get to even half that number is through the roof.

How can these companies not get sued for false advertising? I am positive there are hundreds, if not thousands of projector owners worldwide that have gotten much less out of their product than the advertising purported.

Projector owners must be really rich--or really wowed--by the technology to shell out hundreds of dollars at a time to support a product that does not live up to its claim.

I might re-enter the fray once companies start offering at least 1 year policies on bulbs and units. Anything short of that is a rip off!

The first bulb on my Infocus 7205 went out after only 1,100 hours (brightness progressively got dimmer and I eventually got the “Replace Lamp” message).

After calling Infocus and raising a stink I was offered a new bulb at half price and the 12 month lamp warranty for $75 more. I took both.

Today after only 73 hours of use on the new bulb the “replace lamp” message is back again. If I turn the projector completely off for a while and turn it back on the message isn’t displayed at first but does come back after about ten minutes or so. The brightness seems to be fine with no degradation since the bulb was brand new (installed about two months ago).

Can something be wrong with the projector that may be killing the bulbs, is that possible? Should I press IF to completely replace my projector?

Thanks,

DOM

I'm so disappointed with this hole lamp issue. I wish I could just return the thing and buy another brand or maybe spend my money on something of real value. Seems ridicules to spend so much money and then have this kind of problem. This is like buying an ink-jet printer then having to get a new cartridge in the first month of use. I feel like I paid the price for a Laser printer to get the best quality but got an ink-jet printer in the box...

My 2 cents...

Good question.
I'm using the 2,000 hour bulb as a reliable replacement in the event of failure of the new bulb.
If the new one fails within the first 90 days, I'll send it back for replacement and still have a backup to hold me over.
I guess I got really lucky with the first one, hopefully the second one will be as good.


Just did same with my 7200... orignal lamp was at 2068, just replaced it in time for football season. I did notice a pretty dramatic difference in brightness and pop, but the old lamp was CLEARLY still watchable, seemed like it took a little longer to warm up to a bright picture, but maybe that was my imagination.

In any case, Ive carefully stored the 2068 hour lamp as my emergency backup. Ill probably run this one until it quits, then Ill buy a new lamp (or a new projector).

jc

I have great news. After lots and lots of talking to Infocus CS people about bulbs and lots of talking to my local dealer then the local infocus rep, they have decided to replace my bulb for free... Although it took a very long time they are coming through and I'll have a new bulb in a week or so. I think I'll buy the warranty this time so I won't have to go through all this again... Thanks for all the support...

There is a much longer story to all this if anyone is interested but the end result is really all that matters...

My Projector is back with the new bulb and I have to say it looks great. It took a while but I have to give it to Infocus and my local dealer Projectus (more precise, Nate Purscelley).

I spent hours on the phone with Infocus CS and got nowhere but Nate did not give up. He made it clear to the Infocus rep this problem was not going away and they needed to take action. They responded and the result is a totally tuned up projector, a brand new bulb, A very very good picture (I think the best it's ever looked) and most importantly a very happy customer.

A big THANK YOU to all connected with this... I would recommend this product, this manufacture and the people at Projectus... They truly stand behind there products and what they sell... :D

I too have a bulb that failed at about 900 hours on Infocus 7205--there really is some
false advertising going on here about the life of the bulbs!

I'm on my third bulb counting the original. Most I got out of the first was around 1700hrs. The second went out around 1450 hrs! The price of the replacement bulbs is driving me to consider dumping the Infocus! The problem is whatever I replace it with is going to require a replacement bulb also! :eek:

Sadly, looks like my 7200 is going down again. In July, I had the entire color engine replaced at a hefty cost. I chose to do this becuase about 500 hrs prior to the failure of the color wheel I had put a new lamp in the PJ. Figured the cost of the new color wheel was justified to get the full life out of the new lamp.

Bad call.

This morning, the PJ came up looking dim with a REPLACE LAMP message that I cant shut off.

So now I have a good PJ, but a bum lamp?

This is getting WICKED expensive.

The lamp is well out of its 90 day warranty (purchased last year). I think I picked up another 90 days of warranty after the color engine was replaced, but that probably is now technically expired (early July).

Is there any way to turn off the REPLACE LAMP message and try to watch this lamp until its too dark to enjoy (not there YET)?

Thanks in advance...

jc