If you do open up the set, let me know what the sticker says on the tube. I believe it's a word with five letters.
Hmm. Looks like it's actually 9:

O - B - S - E - S - S - I - O - N

Just kidding. :p Seriously though, is monitoring and posting to this forum actually a job for you? Honestly now, I'm not trying to be sarcastic here. You (waltchan/cireaasirefan/other aliases?) seem to start all the "OFFICIAL" threads (for which I am grateful BTW, as it does make it easier to have all relevant info in one place). Also, it appears you jump on any chance at all to bring up the Toshiba/Orion thing, often under an hour (!) after such an opportunity is posted. I can understand if you're unhappy due to a previous bad experience, but doesn't it seem a bit much?

If you're not getting paid somehow, by someone, then I'm very confused as to your motive. Not that a negative reputation may not be deserved by the company (heck, I'm less than thrilled with my set), but your frequency and intensity, particularly on the manufacturing issue, seems a bit over the top.

This isn't intended to be a flame. I'm honestly just curious and quite perplexed.

Actually, this is the new MSRP on the 34HF85. A Best Buy salesman raved about how great the 34HF85 is. This one I have never heard before. He fooled you to buying this because of the low cost. It's up to you if you want to try it or not, but I recommend you to cancel the order and look at the Sony instead.
Is that the reason you keep buying and returning TV sets waltchan---you keep getting fooled by Best Buy salesmen?

Or is it because you really can't afford to buy these sets as a 22 year old student, and when it comes time to actually pay the bill, you can't so you return the TV?

Or is it because you are addicted to buying TVs, so you are in a never ending quest to read and search for TVs but not actually use them?

Or is it because you never really buy these sets at all, and you are playing one huge game on this forum as some kind of diseased obsession?

I have written down all SM settings so I am using caution. Geekgrl posted a zip file some time ago but that cannot be opened anymore.
I managed to get that spreadsheet you're talking about. I also made an updated 30HFX85 version for my own purposes. I've got them hosted on my FTP site (it's only 384kbps upstream, so not zippy, but the files are small):

Toshiba_26HF84.zip (ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_26HF84.zip)
Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip (ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip)

I think it was unecessary for me to make a column for each individual input. From what I've read you'd probably only need one for each type of input (4 total: one for antenna, one for composite/S-Video, one for component, and one for HDMI). But I was being paranoid when I first recorded everything, after reading many posts about people getting themselves into pickles by not keeping careful records first.

Let me know if you have any trouble downloading those. I try to keep my FTP up as close to 100% as possible, but I do have to take the system offline occasionally. So if it doesn't work, try back later. Enjoy!

EDIT: Note that the factory values in the spreadsheet are particular to my set, and may not be correct for other units. Also, from my experience, the geometry settings (00 through 42, and 57) appear to be universal to ALL inputs. White/Black level and color settings (43 through 56) seem to have seperate values for each input type (antenna, composite/S-video, component, and HDMI). I've no idea about 58 and 59 (the "TEST STEREO" and "TEST AUDIO" settings).

Another thing, I found that 39 "R-Y GAIN" was most effective at combating red push. Problem was that the decoder didn't seem consistent across inputs (everything but HDMI had varying degrees of red push) so I had to compromise at around 3 or 4. Also, for me HDMI had horrible green push, yet that wasn't the case on other inputs. If I made HDMI look right, the other inputs were off, and vice versa. So I found the best "R-Y GAIN" and "G-Y GAIN" values for each input and then sort of averaged them (since they're universal settings), then did final tweaks with Color and Tint in the user menu for each input using Avia. It seemed to work out. Good luck! :)

Very sound advice cireaasirefan. Just the kind of insight that a first time poster needed. I bet that the set never gets delivered. I sure wish that folks such as that WaltChan guy, would pay attention to you, and drop their Toshiba infatuation, instead of dropping their tv sets. By the way, have you overlooked starting an official Orion thread?. It seems like you have got the other brands covered.

Yeah, well what do the rest of you think? Are the problems reported here on the Tosh 34hf85 just a small percentage of troubles, or is it really a clunker?

That's what I"m trying to figure out.

Yeah, well what do the rest of you think? Are the problems reported here on the Tosh 34hf85 just a small percentage of troubles, or is it really a clunker?

That's what I"m trying to figure out.

It's a piece of junk that you'd do well to either avoid outright or part ways with ASAP.

Porcupine2 burned through what? 3? 4? of these POS before he got the idea...even though he still tells us if he could somehow combine the things that actually worked from those three sets...somehow he'd have a good TV!

That's like me saying: "I had three Pintos that burned out on the street, but if I could combine those three Pintos together, I might get something that actually works."

Not really strong logic or very confidence inspiring is it?

Didn't think so.

Yeah, well what do the rest of you think? Are the problems reported here on the Tosh 34hf85 just a small percentage of troubles, or is it really a clunker?

That's what I"m trying to figure out.
I think it's very subjective and dependent on your tastes. If you're more demanding about picture quality (which is probably true of most who'd visit these forums) then it appears that these don't often measure up.

OTOH, those who are satisfied with the set don't have much reason to research online about it in forums, etc. It's really a hard thing to say, as the sample of people we have here is a very atypical subset of all those who probably own these televisions. All I know is that I'm going to see if I can get Toshiba to refund me my money. If so, I'll do a lot more research before I make another purchase (you'll see me camped out at my local Video Only with Avia disc and color filters in hand). :D

I managed to get that spreadsheet you're talking about. I also made an updated 30HFX85 version for my own purposes. I've got them hosted on my FTP site (it's only 384kbps upstream, so not zippy, but the files are small):

Toshiba_26HF84.zip (ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_26HF84.zip)
Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip (ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip)


Thanks Spurdy. I was able to get these files.

Unfortunately the params are not the same as the ones I wrote down for the Toshiba 34HFX84. Most of the ID's are different. Looks like the Toshiba and Orion service menus are significantly different. Even how you access the SM is different.

Luckily I was able to locate some other documents that ID'd the four params to adjust overscan for the 34HFX84. HPOS, VPOS, HIT, WID.

I'll still hang onto these for future reference.

I am an earlier purchaser of the 34HF85 (meaning I spent a lot more for it) and even though the white glow on 1080i over the cable STB (Set Top Box) is still there (but has diminished a bit) & the blacks are crushed (meaning less detail in the darker areas) I still say that I really do like the TV overall. And I am very confident that I will like it even more so after the ISF cali. But don't get me wrong; if my entertainment center DID fit the Sony XBR960 I would have bought that without any hesitation. So a slight caveat, there ;)

You may also want to post this and seek more help at highdefforum.com

LOL... Wally, I just read through some of the threads there. It appears you have some "buddies" there also. They have the similar remarks/responses as posted here. That must tell you something...

I just purchased a 34HFX85 four days ago. I don't know if I just got lucky or what, but I'm very happy with it!

I had a few slight geometry issues but was able to correct them with only a minor bit of tweaking in the service menu.

DVDs look absolutely brilliant. My player is a Sony that outputs at 480p, and I've hooked it up via Component. Whether I let the TV scale to 540p or convert to 1080i, it really doesn't seem to make a difference. All I can say is, "Wow!"

As of yet, I don't have any HD programming coming off my satellite dish, so I can't test whether or not I'm going to have the "white glow" issue or any of the other issues with regard to HD content.

I suppose my one and only gripe with this TV at present is that I'm not satisfied with the way SD programming looks. This could be for one of two reasons. Either I'm expecting too much out of SD or I don't have my color/picture settings properly tweaked. I think it may mostly be the first option. I'm coming from nearly a decade of looking at a 27" analog Magnavox. I have no knowledge or basis of comparison as to how SD is supposed to look on an HDTV. I've seen plenty of HD programming on an HDTV, but never SD.

The PQ with regard to SD seems to vary channel by channel (I suppose this is a provider thing?), with some channels being far worse than others. The most noticeable problem with SD is that I often see blocks/patches of color. These are especially prevalent in dark backgrounds that are out of focus. One other thing I've noticed is that when a program fades to black and then fades back into a scene, there are faint grey horizontal lines in the picture while it is black. I'm not quite sure if they're there after the fade in as the lines are faint enough to make it hard to discern them through a moving, colorful picture.

I must reiterate, however, that despite my dissatisfaction with SD programming, I'm very happy with this TV! Given my limited options (cabinet space and budget), I feel as though I've made a great choice.

My next endeavor will be to get a copy of either DVE or Avia and see what I can do. I'm also going to be see about getting an antenna to pick up some local channels OTA that broadcast in HD. I need to do some research on this first though as I have no idea what type of antenna I need or if I'll even be able to get a good enough signal to make it worth my while.

A Best Buy salesman raved about how great the 34HF85 is. This one I have never heard before. He fooled you to buying this because of the low cost.


What a Fool Believes.........

I sit down and I pray.... we Won't Get Fooled Again......

I think it's very subjective and dependent on your tastes. If you're more demanding about picture quality (which is probably true of most who'd visit these forums) then it appears that these don't often measure up.

OTOH, those who are satisfied with the set don't have much reason to research online about it in forums, etc. It's really a hard thing to say, as the sample of people we have here is a very atypical subset of all those who probably own these televisions. All I know is that I'm going to see if I can get Toshiba to refund me my money. If so, I'll do a lot more research before I make another purchase (you'll see me camped out at my local Video Only with Avia disc and color filters in hand). :D
Spurdy,

Do yourself a favor and get the HQV Benchmark DVD (http://www.hqv.com/benchmark.cfm).

This disc will put any tv, or dvd player, through some very, very rough video processing tests. Hook it up with composite cables and it'll test the tv's video processing prowess. I've used this when helping friends shop for new HD sets and it's very telling which sets are doing their job correctly.

It's a great tool.

What a Fool Believes.........

I sit down and I pray.... we Won't Get Fooled Again......

Yeah they fooled me, but only for a day or so.

You know I’m beginning to wonder if I didn’t jump the gun with all this HD stuff. To many problems seem to still abound, and HD broadcasting is not yet there in mass like it will be in a few years. And I’m no hobbyist that has time to troubleshoot things.

I may just “return it” and check back every 6 months or so to see how things are in the HD world.

Now I just hope BB is not going to try and sock me with a restocking fee. (It never left the store.)

Yeah they fooled me, but only for a day or so.


I wasn't referring to you when I used those music quotes......

I wasn't referring to you when I used those music quotes......

No worries Squonk.

A decision like that one is very unlike me though. :confused: I usually research things half to death before I make a move.

This is just a refresher lesson on what happens when you don't.

Even jsn who seems to recomend the Tosh is having some issues. To hell with all that. If I plunk down several hundred bucks or more, I want to be really impressed with it and not face a bunch of problems, otherwise it's buyers remorse. :eek:

No worries Squonk.

A decision like that one is very unlike me though. :confused: I usually research things half to death before I make a move.

This is just a refresher lesson on what happens when you don't.

Even jsn who seems to recomend the Tosh is having some issues. To hell with all that. If I plunk down several hundred bucks or more, I want to be really impressed with it and not face a bunch of problems, otherwise it's buyers remorse. :eek:


Sometimes, you really do get what you pay for. :)

I have some overscan when i am playing my 360 on the 26hf85c and i was wondering how do i get into the service menu to fix this problem

Even jsn who seems to recomend the Tosh is having some issues. To hell with all that. If I plunk down several hundred bucks or more, I want to be really impressed with it and not face a bunch of problems, otherwise it's buyers remorse. :eek:I wouldn't go so far as to say I recommend this TV. I had two major constraints limiting my purchase options. Number one, I needed a TV that would fit in my entertainment center, and I wanted to maximize the trade-off between screen size and what would fit. Number two, I was on a tight budget.

Keeping those two things in mind, I feel as though I've made the right choice. I couldn't find any other 34" widescreens that would fit in my entertainment center. Had I compromised and dropped down to the 30" level (which I didn't want to do), I was still looking at quite a price difference between Toshiba and some of the very nice Sony CRTs.

And ultimately, most importantly of all, it just comes down to personal preference/opinion! What may be satisfactory for one person, might downright suck in the eyes of another. There's no way around this little tidbit of reality. :]

And ultimately, most importantly of all, it just comes down to personal preference/opinion! What may be satisfactory for one person, might downright suck in the eyes of another. There's no way around this little tidbit of reality. :]

yeah just go look at the LCD/plasma forum and how so many people drop a grand or two on generic LCDs and plasmas

rather than compromise on size (and we are talking about 32" and larger LCD or 42" and larger plasmas, not small screens) or simply pay a slight bit more(well in reference to the final mount payed for the display) for better quality

I simply do not understand how size and hang-ability are the first considerations

I have some overscan when i am playing my 360 on the 26hf85c and i was wondering how do i get into the service menu to fix this problem
To enter the service menu:

1) Using the volume control on the front of the TV, reduce the volume to 0 and continue to hold the "Volume down" button.
2) While still holding the "Volume down" button on the front panel, press and hold "9" on the remote control. After a few seconds the service menu will appear.

On the remote use channel up/down to change items, and volume up/down to change values for the current setting. To exit the menu, simply power off the set.

IMPORTANT: Document all service menu values before changing ANYTHING!

Some settings will be particular to your set, and there is no way to return to any sort of factory defaults. All changes are made as soon as you adjust the values.

For overscan, you'll probably want to look mainly at:

02 "H POSI" - horizontal position
04 "H SIZE" - horizontal size
05 "V SIZE" - vertical size
11 "V-CENT" - vertical centering (position)

I leave out "03 V POSI" as that one was problematic for me. Any other setting than "1" seemed to distort the image severely. I used V-CENT instead. Watch out when reducing the overscan. Not all inputs behave the same. For instance, when I first adjusted overscan I was focused on the component and HDMI inputs. When I later switched to the standard tuner, I found that there was a 1" black line on the left side (I had reduced H SIZE too much).

Note: All user menu controls (color, tint, contrast, brightness, sharpness, SVM, etc.) are reset to "out of the box" defaults for all inputs when you enter the service menu. So, if you've made adjustments there you might want to note them first so you can easily set them back again when you're done with the service menu.

Happy tweaking! :)

I simply do not understand how size and hang-ability are the first considerations

I must defer to the ladies on this eternal question: Does quantity trump quality!. ;)

Originally Posted by cireaasirefan
alrite, i give up. i am also under porcupine2, u2psycho, and buttersouthpark. they are my alias account. sorry for lying. go bash at me. weeeeeeee, this is going to be a fun experience.

oh, walter chan is not my real name and never is. it's my nickname people usually call me at school. fool ya. toshiba will never find me.

the truth is out and here it is.

oh, and i also deleted all of my posts. isn't that too bad.

so, what's next with your bashing at me games? i can't wait, man...


http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7274270#post7274270

interesting


Quote:
Originally Posted by kny3twalker
I simply do not understand how size and hang-ability are the first considerations


I must defer to the ladies on this eternal question: Does quantity trump quality!.

LOL

A friend wants to sell me his 34HF81 (Toshiba widescreen CRT) which he bought in 2003, I'm pondering buying the 34HF85 which is new and apparently built by Orion and not Toshiba. Not sure if the HF85 has any more features than the 81 in terms of HDMI outlets etc....
Does anyone out there know which is better?

Thanks!
Hey U2Psycho--haven't heard from you in a while. Did you ever buy that TOSHIBA from a FRIEND? Did you ever get the answers to your questions? Why did you simply stop posting?

.
waltchan self deletion program in progress

waltchan self deletion program in progress

he said it right here, it will never stop

oh, and i also deleted all of my posts. isn't that too bad.

A friend wants to sell me his 34HF81 (Toshiba widescreen CRT) which he bought in 2003, I'm pondering buying the 34HF85 which is new and apparently built by Orion and not Toshiba. Not sure if the HF85 has any more features than the 81 in terms of HDMI outlets etc....
Does anyone out there know which is better?

Thanks!


U2Psycho, when you're down and troubled
And you need a helping hand with a Toshiba TV
And nothing, whoa nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of Waltchan
And soon he will be there
To brighten up even your darkest nights

You just call out waltchan's name,
And you know whereever he is
He'll come running, oh yeah baby
To see U2Psycho again

Winter, spring, summer or fall
All U2Psycho has to do is call
And Waltchan will be there, yeah yeah yeah
You've got a friend

People like cireaasirefan, koratdenkiworld, letterstoher can be so cold
They'll hurt you and desert you
Well they'll take your soul if you let them
Oh yeah, but waltchan won't let them

You just call out his name, and you know wherever he is
He'll come running to help you with a Toshiba TV again
Winter, spring summer or fall
Hey all U2Psycho has to do is call
Lord wc will be there, yes he will

U2Psycho, you've got a friend
You've got a friend.

asking whether you own a Toshiba directview CRT HDTV is on topic, do you own one?

I changed my mind on the MW26G71 combo.


Why did you change your mind? Did you take my advice and decide to steer clear of that all-in-one discount crapola that you usually buy? I am glad to see that my advice is starting to make an impact. You can thank me anytime you'd like, and throw some compliments my way.
Now if we could only get U2Psycho to listen.

Hey,

I bought a Toshiba 26hf84a, and have had it for a little over a year now.
I have a few questions..

1. When using component input, there is a white line at the top of the screen, more noticable during black scenes. Is this fixable?

2. When using my xbox via component, the image is very dark. I need to turn up the brightness into the 40's for it to be comfortably viewed, but this results in the blacks looking like washed purple. Is this fixable?

3. What are the ideal settings for analog TV viewing? I returned my HD box today, and have to use basic cable now.

4. What is calibration? and how is it done?

5. Are there any problems about this TV that I should know about?


Thanks alot, I appreciate any responses.
IK.

U2Psycho, when you're down and troubled
And you need a helping hand with a Toshiba TV
And nothing, whoa nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of Waltchan
And soon he will be there
To brighten up even your darkest nights

You just call out waltchan's name,
And you know whereever he is
He'll come running, oh yeah baby
To see U2Psycho again

Winter, spring, summer or fall
All U2Psycho has to do is call
And Waltchan will be there, yeah yeah yeah
You've got a friend

People like cireaasirefan, koratdenkiworld, letterstoher can be so cold
They'll hurt you and desert you
Well they'll take your soul if you let them
Oh yeah, but waltchan won't let them

You just call out his name, and you know wherever he is
He'll come running to help you with a Toshiba TV again
Winter, spring summer or fall
Hey all U2Psycho has to do is call
Lord wc will be there, yes he will

U2Psycho, you've got a friend
You've got a friend.
hey walt, looks like you've also got a new friend trying to help you with a Toshiba, your ol buddy kny3twalker.......

I will soon when the 26HF66 is released. I already mentioned before that this will be my final CRT purchase. I changed my mind on the MW26G71 combo.
preserved to demonstrate the inherent confusion

> 1. When using component input, there is a white line at the top of the screen, more noticable during black scenes. Is this fixable?

I'll let others answer this question. I never used the HD modes on my 30HF85's since I had no HD sources; that's what this problem relates to.

> 2. When using my xbox via component, the image is very dark. I need to turn up the brightness into the 40's for it to be comfortably viewed, but this results in the blacks looking like washed purple. Is this fixable?

I think so. With the XBox game displaying on the screen, activate the "secret" Service Menu. It is done by turning the volume down to zero, the holding the volume down button on the TV set and the "9" button on the remote at the same time, for one second. Find the "SUB CONT" setting in that menu, I think it is one of the later options if the Tosh 84's are the same as the 85's. Write down the number setting of it before you change it, then increase it. The "brightness" will increase without changing pure black (that's the gamma control setting).

BTW, this will increase the "brightness" of your XBox games but not the "brightness" of your other programs (inputs). That's what you probably want, so that is good.

You shouldn't have to mess with any other settings for this problem. If you do feel like playing with your TV's service menu, make sure you write down any settings on paper before you change them.

hey walt, looks like you've also got a new friend trying to help you with a Toshiba, your ol buddy kny3twalker.......

WOW never thought I would be bashed for trying to be nice and help another out

thanks for the response

I'll be sure to check out that hidden menu .

WOW never thought I would be bashed for trying to be nice and help another out
?? Who's bashing? I think its admirable you're trying to help ol walter out.

Well the "scan lines" are back on my second 30HF85! Oddly they are not noticable when using component cable from my home theater/dvd to the tv. Could the RCA cables be causing this?

We have Direct TV which goes into our TIVO series 2 via RCA, RCA out to the home theater and a yellow RCA out to the TV. It is an older Sanyo home theater and only supports component or S video out for DVDs.

I am going try gold series RCA cables to see if that make a difference. If not I'll put in a service/repair request and if the repair guy can't fix it, try return it to Sears as a lemon. I should have refused to take the second TV in October but the initial price I paid (620USD) was a third of what comparable LCDs were selling for at the time!

Find the "SUB CONT" setting in that menu, I think it is one of the later options if the Tosh 84's are the same as the 85's. Write down the number setting of it before you change it, then increase it. The "brightness" will increase without changing pure black (that's the gamma control setting).
This is quite interesting. I hadn't played with SUB CONT for any of the inputs on my set (my 30HFX85 does indeed have this setting). If it behaves as you describe, I might just be able to fix, or at least somewhat alleviate, the nasty black crush! Thanks for the info! :)

I'll post back when I've given it a try.

HomeAppraiser, I think I saw your old posts a long time ago so I know the problem you are complaining of. They aren't "scan lines"...they are interference patterns of some sort caused by both the cables you are using, as well as incredibly inferior quality cables and components inside the Toshiba 30HF85's themselves.

I have, with great effort, managed to see the exact same interference pattern (20 times less obvious though) on some Sony CRT HDTVs as well so it's not just a Toshiba problem. But the problem is only noticeable and unacceptable on Toshibas.

You can partially alleviate the problem in the following way:

1) The different inputs have different degrees of this problem. You've already noticed it...the component inputs don't have that problem. It's not the cable you use, it's the cables/components inside the TV itself. The worst input by far is Video 3 on the front. That input is completely unusable on ALL Toshiba 30HF85s. The Video 1 and Video 2 composite/S-Video inputs on the back are better but still bad.

2) Use the worst quality RCA cable you have. Fiddle with the positions of the wires and the way they cross with each other and the power cords. Try to make them cross as little as possible and don't create wire loops. You will find I think that with optimal positioning the problem gets lessened greatly (that's what I found). Then, use the best quality RCA cable you have and try to mimic the same cable positions. That will minimize the problem as much as possible.

3) The 30HF85's produced in the Fall 2005 are much worse with regards to this problem than those produced in Spring 2005. Check the label on the back of your TV for this info. But all 30HF85's have this problem significantly, which is unfortunate.

That's all you can do. Sucks, doesn't it? I returned all four of my 30HF85's!! So I have a lot of experience with this TV and know most of it's faults....and I also know the differences to expect from unit to unit, etc. If you have a Spring 2005 unit and do everything possible to reduce the problem I'd say it is acceptable, but still noticeable on dark blue scenes.

Maybe you should return your TV and wait for the Toshiba 30HF66 like I am doing. Maybe it will be better. If not, Toshiba deserves to have some kind of class-action lawsuit filed against it for making such a shoddy "HD"TV.

HomeAppraiser, I think I saw your old posts a long time ago so I know the problem you are complaining of. They aren't "scan lines"...they are interference patterns of some sort caused by both the cables you are using, as well as incredibly inferior quality cables and components inside the Toshiba 30HF85's themselves.

I have, with great effort, managed to see the exact same interference pattern (20 times less obvious though) on some Sony CRT HDTVs as well so it's not just a Toshiba problem. But the problem is only noticeable and unacceptable on Toshibas.

You can partially alleviate the problem in the following way:

1) The different inputs have different degrees of this problem. You've already noticed it...the component inputs don't have that problem. It's not the cable you use, it's the cables/components inside the TV itself. The worst input by far is Video 3 on the front. That input is completely unusable on ALL Toshiba 30HF85s. The Video 1 and Video 2 composite/S-Video inputs on the back are better but still bad.

2) Use the worst quality RCA cable you have. Fiddle with the positions of the wires and the way they cross with each other and the power cords. Try to make them cross as little as possible and don't create wire loops. You will find I think that with optimal positioning the problem gets lessened greatly (that's what I found). Then, use the best quality RCA cable you have and try to mimic the same cable positions. That will minimize the problem as much as possible.

3) The 30HF85's produced in the Fall 2005 are much worse with regards to this problem than those produced in Spring 2005. Check the label on the back of your TV for this info. But all 30HF85's have this problem significantly, which is unfortunate.

That's all you can do. Sucks, doesn't it? I returned all four of my 30HF85's!! So I have a lot of experience with this TV and know most of it's faults....and I also know the differences to expect from unit to unit, etc. If you have a Spring 2005 unit and do everything possible to reduce the problem I'd say it is acceptable, but still noticeable on dark blue scenes.

Maybe you should return your TV and wait for the Toshiba 30HF66 like I am doing. Maybe it will be better. If not, Toshiba deserves to have some kind of class-action lawsuit filed against it for making such a shoddy "HD"TV.

Is there a way in the service menu to correct the overscan of the 1080i and 720p resolutions on the toshiba 30HF85? 480p does not have an overscan problem.

Yes there is. Overscan is the easiest thing to correct. Any TV's Service Menu would allow you to.

I also believe that the overscan/screen size settings on the Toshibas are separate for the different resolutions and screen modes of the TV. So if you want to correct overscan for your HD resolutions, make sure you currently have an HD source showing on your screen when you activate the Service Menu. Make the adjustments, then close the Service Menu.

I believe your other screen modes will be unaffected when you switch back (if you want to adjust them too, simply open the Service Menu when those other screen modes are currently displaying).

Yes there is. Overscan is the easiest thing to correct. Any TV's Service Menu would allow you to.

I also believe that the overscan/screen size settings on the Toshibas are separate for the different resolutions and screen modes of the TV. So if you want to correct overscan for your HD resolutions, make sure you currently have an HD source showing on your screen when you activate the Service Menu. Make the adjustments, then close the Service Menu.

I believe your other screen modes will be unaffected when you switch back (if you want to adjust them too, simply open the Service Menu when those other screen modes are currently displaying).

Ok, but I was told that service menu affects Everything for every input on every resolution for the TV.

Ok, but I was told that service menu affects Everything for every input on every resolution for the TV.
For the geometry-related settings, that's been my experience. For instance, I made geometry and overscan adjustments to optimize full mode over HDMI, and when I was finished and switched back to the tuner, there was an underscan problem (black strip) on the left side. I had pulled overscan down to about 5% all around, when the service manual lists that you should adjust to 7.5% horizontally and 8% vertically.

Also, in the service manual it instructs you to select 1080i and "Full" mode before performing adjustments on each of the geometry-related settings. It doesn't mention repeating the adjustment procedure each input type, as it does with some of the other settings (the BRI CENT and TINT controls, for instance).

Finally, when I change a geometry-related setting while on one input (let's say Video1), exit the service menu, switch to a different input (let's say HDMI), and then enter the service menu, I find that the setting has been changed to the new value for that input as well.

This leads me to believe that the geometry settings are universal, while several of the color/brightness/contrast-related settings store unique values for each input type.

This is quite interesting. I hadn't played with SUB CONT for any of the inputs on my set (my 30HFX85 does indeed have this setting). If it behaves as you describe, I might just be able to fix, or at least somewhat alleviate, the nasty black crush! Thanks for the info! :)

I'll post back when I've given it a try.
I've done alot of work on my 3 year-old Samsung crt hd set and have had a great deal of success mitigating black crush. For me it came down to two settings:

-Gamma
-DC Trans

Gamma will help you get a more accurate white level, which surprisingly can help with black crush. DC Trans helps with "holding" shadow level, preventing black crush. Set it too high and blacks begin to turn a bit grey.

If you can locate settings like these you can really improve the black performance. A calibrator I was corresponding with said that all sets have these settings and most have the same or very close lettering.

Good Luck! ;)

dream431ca, I saw your other post, I'm glad things worked out for you. See, it happened just like I said it would. :)

spurdy, on the Toshibas, some of the Service Menu settings for the different screen modes and/or video inputs are different. I didn't test every possible combination but like you said, I found that many of the color/brightness-related settings vary with the video inputs, and the geometry settings vary with the screen mode (Full, Normal, Theaterwides, etc).

The thing is, the Toshibas are quirky. Changing the Service Menu value for one of these modes sometimes overrides the other modes. In other words one of the modes/inputs is often the "default" in the Toshiba set's mind. Regarding geometry settings, "Full" is indeed the default mode. If you change any geometry-related SM setting while displaying in Full mode, all the other modes get changed to match automatically. But if you change any geometry-related SM setting while in one of the other modes, only that one mode is affected. Therefore, change Full first, then change the others, if you want to customize each mode.

Dealing with this quirk of the Toshibas can be a pain, to make the process faster, you can actually change the Display Mode while still inside the Service Menu. That way you can quickly see what modes and settings override others, and how to get around that problem.

In dream431ca's case, I guess he had to adjust his XBox360 overscan first because that one was in HD "Full" mode. At which point his other screen modes got overwritten cause "Full" is the flagged overriding setting. But afterwards he was able to adjust his PS2 in the SM in the other modes and the result was separate.

If he were to go back and re-adjust his XBox360 overscan once again in "Full" mode his other screen modes (such as for his PS2) would suddenly revert to match his XBox360 and so he would have to manually re-adjust his PS2 modes afterwards as well.

It's kinda annoying, but that is how the Toshibas are. ;) Sometimes that feature is useful I guess. Like when you go through all the other geometry-related options to try to get your screen geometry good, you probably want the same settings for all your modes so you should make those adjustments while in Full. It's mainly the overscan settings that I found helpful to make the effort to adjust separately.

The thing is, the Toshibas are quirky. Changing the Service Menu value for one of these modes sometimes overrides the other modes. In other words one of the modes/inputs is often the "default" in the Toshiba set's mind. Regarding geometry settings, "Full" is indeed the default mode. If you change any geometry-related SM setting while displaying in Full mode, all the other modes get changed to match automatically. But if you change any geometry-related SM setting while in one of the other modes, only that one mode is affected. Therefore, change Full first, then change the others, if you want to customize each mode.
Again, this is very good to know. I've only made changes in full mode before. I may try this out. Hopefully it will allow me to use a 5% overscan for my movies while at the same time keeping my tuner input picture correct. Thanks!

Okay, I'm going to give this a shot here. I need to adjust my geometry as well on my 2 year old 57hx83. On HD material( through my Comcast Motorola 6412 HDDVR hooked up via component) I seem to be zoomed in way too far. It's also off center (judging by pillarboxes on 4:3 material). Is this something I can try myself through the service menu? Should I call the tech since it's still under warranty (3yr extended)? The problem is also noticeable on some XBox 360 gaming as well - also hooked up via component. When I switch from component to DVI on the cable box the problem is a little better but it's still zoomed in too far. When I hit the guide button on the cable remote (where you get the on-screen guide with the smaller picture in the top right that looks right and what I should be seeing. With the local FOX and ABC stations the problem is bad enough that the channel bugs are cut off in the lower right-hand corner.

Okay, I'm going to give this a shot here. I need to adjust my geometry as well on my 2 year old 57hx83. On HD material( through my Comcast Motorola 6412 HDDVR hooked up via component) I seem to be zoomed in way too far. It's also off center (judging by pillarboxes on 4:3 material). Is this something I can try myself through the service menu?

You could start looking for how to's here (http://www.bruzzi.ws/plasma-faq/forumdisplay.php?f=25). Remember to write any service menu values down for you change them.

You could start looking for how to's here (http://www.bruzzi.ws/plasma-faq/forumdisplay.php?f=25). Remember to write any service menu values down for you change them.
Just realized this is the wrong forum as well....whoops! I've gotten into that before but I think the settings I need are in 'designer mode' which apparently I can't get into. Thanks for the links though!

Porcupine2 ,


Thank you so much for sharing that information. I needed to adjust some overscan on my X-Box 360, and that was some of the best advice I've received for this particular TV. I did the necessary adjustments in FULL mode, then went back and changed the other settings accordingly, and it all worked out great.

Nope I don't sorry. My best guess is that it is some wires inside the TV itself (related to the inputs, not the tube) are of super inferior quality therefore are extremely affected by crosstalk electromagnetic radiation from neighboring wires. If true, the only way to fix that would be to open up the TV and find those wires and replace them with better wires. But you would have to figure out which wires are causing the problem and maybe re-solder, etc, not worth it. It could be that wires are not the problem but other things as well, I'm just guessing.

This morning I turned on my TV. I didn't do anything prior.

The TV started making a loud buzzing noise from inside (not from the speakers) and there was no picture, no sound (apart from the buzzing) and the power light didn't turn on. I tried to turn off the TV, but it wouldn't, so I had to unplug it. I tried plugging it back in, and turning it back on, but no luck.


I don't have an extended warranty, and I bought the TV a year ago.

Plz tell me what is wrong with it, and how/where I can get it fixed. and how much it will cost.
THANKS

IK

It could be that wires are not the problem but other things as well, I'm just guessing.


Nice technical concrete analysis. You and waltchan are made for each other. Guesswork and speculation run rampant.

anyone?

It's probably a power supply issue. But.... it could be something else.

Looks like it's time for a service call or a new TV.

^^ I called futureshop, and they said it would cost $55 for them just to come and look at it.

I really really hope that I can get out of this mess without any problems.


Is it possible that the problem is caused by a power surge? I have the tv plugged into a monster power bar, so maybe it is insured?

Well, I had called Toshiba last week with the results of the first service center to look at the set. They seemed surprised when I reported that the service tech said he'd heard from Toshiba that there was a service bulletin out on the problem. The person I spoke with did some searching through their database and wasn't able to come up with anything on the issue.

I asked about getting my money refunded, as the set wasn't properly displaying HD resolutions over HDMI, which is one of the main reasons I purchased it. He said he'd like a "second opinion" and steered me to a second local authorized service center. These folks were very responsive, and immediately scheduled to have my set picked up and brought into their shop. They picked up the set this morning, after I gave a quick demonstration of the problem. I asked the man doing the pickup if he knew of whether getting a cash refund from Toshiba was possible. He said he'd encountered many instances when TV sets (not specifically Toshiba) were replaced by manufacturers, but wasn't sure about cash refunds.

He sympathized with my situation after I told him how I'd done extensive research and troubleshooting. He acknowledged that sometimes people will go through multiple replacements, and end up calling the service center in a very irate mood when they still have issues. Certainly it's not the service center's fault, I agreed, but rather the manufacturer.

We'll see how this progresses. I was told it may take up to a week for them to get my set on the bench depending on the current workload.

We'll see how this progresses. I was told it may take up to a week for them to get my set on the bench depending on the current workload.

Thanks for the update, spurdy. Let us know how it goes for you.

Yes, please do. I am starting to get a bit nervous about the whole banding light/dark suckfest through HDMI on my TV as well, now that Blu-Ray & HD-DVD are coming out soon (and the only way to get 1080i/p resolution I'm hearing is thru HDMI). Does anyone have this same problem via HDMI from an HDMI equipped DVD player? I'm getting the problem thru my STB & haven't tried a DVD player yet....thanks

Ive got my Toshiba 34inch HDTV today. First off the sound on it is amazing cant complain. But the picture is terrible, its coming pixelled, and some yellow coloring. Ive tried different different settings, sources (dvd upconvertings, HDTV satellite source). How can I enter the service menu for my Toshiba tv, I have tried the volume to zero and press 9, but doesnt work.
Thanks

Return the TV -- the Toshiba sucks. I don't know for sure what you mean by yellow coloring (not descriptive enough) but I suspect you are talking about Y/C Delay which is a significant and known problem on some of the Toshibas.

If you are not satisfied by the image, try to return the set. Toshiba deserves it for producing a crappy quality TV this year.

Return the TV -- the Toshiba sucks. I don't know for sure what you mean by yellow coloring (not descriptive enough) but I suspect you are talking about Y/C Delay which is a significant and known problem on some of the Toshibas.

If you are not satisfied by the image, try to return the set. Toshiba deserves it for producing a crappy quality TV this year.
So why do you keep buying Toshiba TVs, and then complaining about their problems, over and over and over and over...........

I bought and returned all 4 of my units within the span of 2 weeks. Three of them I returned in a day, as they had some kind of obvious defect as soon as the box was opened. That was all several weeks prior to my very first visit to this board, which was months ago.

I did not "keep buying" Toshibas over and over, after I had decided that they were no good. I may be willing to give them one last chance though when the 30HF66 comes out, but I will take a good look at it in the store first (same as I did with the Samsungs) and if it is not up to snuff I won't try it at all.

Also, pretty much all CRTs suck in some way, so the advice I said could apply to any TV maker. If you think their TV sucks, return it, they deserve it.

I can pretty much guarantee if I had bought ANY of the current CRTs I would have complained too, and possibly returned them. Even the Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, etc. And my complaints would have been fully justified as the TV would have deserved it. That is why temporarily I am without an HDTV, as I see nothing worth buying.

The only reason I feel must get an HDTV is that the PS3 will be out soon which I plan on getting, as well as HD-DVDs. I even own some HD-DVD discs already (which I can't play, as I have neither an appropiate player or TV).

I even own some HD-DVD discs already (which I can't play, as I have neither an appropiate player or TV).

What titles?
Where did you buy them? From Japan?

What titles?
Where did you buy them? From Japan?
I'm curious about that too--I didn't think anything has been commercially released yet, since they delayed the roll-out.

I'm curious as well,care to elaborate more?

Can they play in a standard dvd player since i heard they are backwards compatible with DVD?

I'm curious as well,care to elaborate more?

Can they play in a standard dvd player since i heard they are backwards compatible with DVD?

That would be a no. HD-DVD player can read DVDs but not the other way.

Well, yeah, they are Japanese anime cartoons, that's probably why/how this happened. Although I'm not certain, I hear that in Japan the HD-DVD formats have been around for a while so they are probably ahead of us in terms of having some HD discs for sale.

The DVD boxes came with both a "HD-DVD" and a regular DVD. I tried playing the "HD-DVD" in both my computer and DVD player and both gave weird error messages the likes of which I had never seen my players do before. Absolutely nothing was read and no files could be seen.

I'm not 100% sure these are really HD-DVD discs because I haven't bothered to do much research on the subject and the discs themselves look *exactly* like a regular DVD. The packaging claims they are, though. The regular DVDs play just fine.

Do you guys actually want to know the actual title/link to get it? I'm guessing you guys don't care because it is a Japanese cartoon.

I would like to see a picture though of the actual discs would be nice!

Yeah... I'd like to see a link.

Well, yeah, they are Japanese anime cartoons, that's probably why/how this happened. Although I'm not certain, I hear that in Japan the HD-DVD formats have been around for a while so they are probably ahead of us in terms of having some HD discs for sale.

The DVD boxes came with both a "HD-DVD" and a regular DVD. I tried playing the "HD-DVD" in both my computer and DVD player and both gave weird error messages the likes of which I had never seen my players do before. Absolutely nothing was read and no files could be seen.

I'm not 100% sure these are really HD-DVD discs because I haven't bothered to do much research on the subject and the discs themselves look *exactly* like a regular DVD. The packaging claims they are, though. The regular DVDs play just fine.

Do you guys actually want to know the actual title/link to get it? I'm guessing you guys don't care because it is a Japanese cartoon.
Wouldn't you know what you are buying? And why would you buy HD-DVD discs when you know you can't play them yet and you don't even have a hi-def TV? I for one would like to see the actual discs and packaging. I don't believe a word of this.

Same here, it's very fishy that you would have the actual discs yet.

We need proof like a picture of the actual casing and disc otherwise i think he's lieing.

Hrm. I smell a familiar pattern here. Repeat garbage/semi-garbage posts from SurfingMatt27 and squonk. Considering how you guys have been behaving here recently, I see no need to give you guys any information on anything you might want. If you guys think I am lying on this, I couldn't care less.

I dunno about Ratman. I'm suspicious of his intentions also, but he seems to be a somewhat more decent user. If he or someone else asks me in a PM perhaps I may be inclined to tell them in private. It's not a big deal in my opinion though, don't see why you guys are so curious. The discs I'm referring to are not even a new product, I believe the release date was half a year ago. These are based on a Japanese product (although the one I bought has been domestically translated, subtitled, and is Region 1), so the possible existence of HD-DVDs shouldn't be too surprising.

hmm no..

I'm sorry but i don't buy your little story,and neither does the rest of us.

Hrm. I smell a familiar pattern here. Repeat garbage/semi-garbage posts from SurfingMatt27 and squonk. Considering how you guys have been behaving here recently, I see no need to give you guys any information on anything you might want. If you guys think I am lying on this, I couldn't care less.

I dunno about Ratman. I'm suspicious of his intentions also, but he seems to be a somewhat more decent user. If he or someone else asks me in a PM perhaps I may be inclined to tell them in private. It's not a big deal in my opinion though, don't see why you guys are so curious. The discs I'm referring to are not even a new product, I believe the release date was half a year ago. These are based on a Japanese product (although the one I bought has been domestically translated, subtitled, and is Region 1), so the possible existence of HD-DVDs shouldn't be too surprising.
This sounds like the biggest load of BS since the Great Waltchan Cracked Casing Caper. Why don't you just post a picture or 2?

Ratman doesn't believe you either--that's why he asked you to post a link.

Do you guys actually want to know the actual title/link to get it?
Please post the link as offered. Or if you like, PM it to me.

Well, yeah, they are Japanese anime cartoons, that's probably why/how this happened. Although I'm not certain, I hear that in Japan the HD-DVD formats have been around for a while so they are probably ahead of us in terms of having some HD discs for sale.

The DVD boxes came with both a "HD-DVD" and a regular DVD. I tried playing the "HD-DVD" in both my computer and DVD player and both gave weird error messages the likes of which I had never seen my players do before. Absolutely nothing was read and no files could be seen.

I'm not 100% sure these are really HD-DVD discs because I haven't bothered to do much research on the subject and the discs themselves look *exactly* like a regular DVD. The packaging claims they are, though. The regular DVDs play just fine.

Do you guys actually want to know the actual title/link to get it? I'm guessing you guys don't care because it is a Japanese cartoon.

Yes please. I am a big collector of Anime, and would love to be able to purchase some regular DVD versions, combined with HD-DVD versions of the same features, in order to future proof my collection for when HD-DVD players become available. Would you be so kind as to also list the titles of the ones you purchased in HD-DVD format, and what you paid for each,plus any shipping costs you incurred. Thanks in advance for providing this information.

No one on planet Earth owns any HD-DVD hardware or software yet.

oh Walter please please please post the link
I want the newest technology before its even available
oh please

this is BS

oh Walter please please please post the link
I want the newest technology before its even available
oh please

this is BS


While we're waiting for more insanity and stupidity, here's some links that everyone might find edifying.

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8GI0MT80.htm?campaign_id=apn_tech_down&chan=tc

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3143373

http://gear.ign.com/articles/695/695942p1.html


http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=13767&hed=HD-DVD+Delayed+Until+2006

http://www.engadget.com/2006/02/15/hd-dvd-and-blu-ray-delayed-by-aacs-anti-copy-standard/

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=659857

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=659812

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=657577

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=657684

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=659719

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=657193


Getting the picture? :rolleyes:

No one on planet Earth owns any HD-DVD hardware or software yet.

Darn you, you terrible dreambuster. Here I was all excited about being able to purchase future HD-DVD media today, with the added time saving advantage of not being able to view it now. ;)

Darn you, you terrible dreambuster. Here I was all excited about being able to purchase future HD-DVD media today, with the added time saving advantage of not being able to view it now. ;)

Facts are pesky things... ;)

It's blatantly obvious that walter has been spreading FUD and hiding under many aliances lately to trick others.

Walter your a phony, plain and simple!

I think he is confused as to what the newer HD DVD format is. Maybe he can post a picture of the disc or its keepsake packaging...Last time I checked, besides the demo discs, there still was not any media released yet.

No he's pulling our leg Joerod, he would have provided a link or a picture if he had it.I doubt he has it because there are so many things that are not finalized yet.

I think he is confused as to what the newer HD DVD format is. Maybe he can post a picture of the disc or its keepsake packaging...Last time I checked, besides the demo discs, there still was not any media released yet.

Check out his suggestion on the LG 30FS4D thread, posted at 3.09PM yesterday, on how a person could make his screen anti-glare, and you will see that State of Confusion is the land he resides in.

Hey "porcupine2", for someone who has called me names repeatedly, claiming I was flaming waltchan for no reason, and has been so adamant that he's not waltchan and that he is a legit contributor here, your silence is now deafening. Your reputation is at stake. Why not just post the link and/or show some pictures? You have been so dutiful about posting--now's your chance to set the record straight. Don't let this opportunity slip by or you know you will have sealed your fate.

BACK ON TOPIC...


The topic being discussed, which Prickly Porcupine brought up, was his ability to find a HDTV to play his alleged Japanese HD-DVDs. Why are you trying to step in and divert the topic back away from Prickly Porcupine's situation for him?

Walt, you seem up on all the latest Hd-DVD topics--are you playing HD-DVDs on your HDTV (you know--the $400 one you are going to spend $250 on calibrating)?

note--this post was originally a response to cireaasirefan (waltchan) post which he keeps deleting and moving (now at post 591)

The topic being discussed, which Prickly Porcupine brought up, was his ability to find a HDTV to play his alleged Japanese HD-DVDs. Why are you trying to step in and divert the topic back away from Prickly Porcupine's situation for him?

Walt, you seem up on all the latest Hd-DVD topics--are you playing HD-DVDs on your HDTV (you know--the $400 one you are going to spend $250 on calibrating)?
BACK ON TOPIC--anti-waltchan diversion effort

.


waltchan's brain (magnified 100 Trillion times)

BACK TO DISCUSSION...


See posts 588 and 590

I have a 30HF85 purchased as an open box from BB. It was pretty much a mess when I got it, but I was able to clean up the geometry to the point that I am getting an HD picture that is well worth what I paid inspite of a marginal PS.

I did not get an owner manual with the set and Tosh. does not have it on their website, so I have been going by the manual for the H84 which describes the Picture Size control. When I try to change settings the TV tells me it is not available. Also menu options for this function can not be selected.

Can anyone tell me why this is not working.

An online copy of the Toshiba 30HF85 manual can be downloaded from Crutchfield. Here's the link:

http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/Manuals/052/05226HF85.PDF

An online copy of the Toshiba 30HF85 manual can be downloaded from Crutchfield. Here's the link:

http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/Manuals/052/05226HF85.PDF

Thanks, that helped alot. Apparently Picture Size can only be used with 480i/p formats on the H85 as opposed to those in addition to 1080i on the H84. I think I have my STB upconverting everything to 1080i. Looks like I am stuck using the STB Zoom when I want to eliminate pillar boxing with HD sources.

Thanks, that helped alot. Apparently Picture Size can only be used with 480i/p formats on the H85 as opposed to those in addition to 1080i on the H84. I think I have my STB upconverting everything to 1080i. Looks like I am stuck using the STB Zoom when I want to eliminate pillar boxing with HD sources.
No problem. At least I always post something more constructive and helpful than the same five guys here who enjoy posting false accusations on me and posting off-topic things.

Just so you all know...
I was PM'ed the "link" from Porcupine2... it was porn. Thankfully there was a 'warning', I just clicked cancel and closed.

I don't know if this was a "setup" or not, but I don't appreciate that type of URL.
I didn't ask for a "PREVIEW"... I just wanted to see the 'specs' if the DVD (HD-DVD?) in question. Which BTW, may only be Windows HD Media anyway.

I know that PM's are supposed to be 'personal'... but this is a more like revenge to me. Heaven knows what could have been downloaded...

A virus possibly since that's where viruses are common..with porn


I find it ODD that when Walter posts, Fishpoint and Porcupine2 showup at the same exact time.

The similarities are staggering i tell you!

Just so you all know...
I was PM'ed the "link" from Porcupine2... it was porn. Thankfully there was a 'warning', I just clicked cancel and closed.

I don't know if this was a "setup" or not, but I don't appreciate that type of URL.
I didn't ask for a "PREVIEW"... I just wanted to see the 'specs' if the DVD (HD-DVD?) in question. Which BTW, may only be Windows HD Media anyway.

I know that PM's are supposed to be 'personal'... but this is a more like revenge to me. Heaven knows what could have been downloaded...
I'm not surprised, but you're right that could be dangerous and should constitute an abuse of the forum rules. I always suspected that waltchan was a big time wanker.

I always suspected he was full of it..but that's just me:D

I don't know who's who on this forum and posting under an alias... but the mods can check these originating sources and check verify the "posters in question" and put all of this crap to rest. If more than one match to these, it pretty much sums it up.

IP Address 71.107.198.125 Host Name pool-71-107-198-125.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.250.197 Host Name pool-71-105-250-197.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.243.90 Host Name pool-71-105-243-90.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.243.131 Host Name pool-71-105-243-131.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.21.75 Host Name pool-71-105-21-75.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 66.126.122.106 Host Name adsl-66-126-122-106.dsl.lsan03.pacbell.net
IP Address 138.23.63.130 Host Name resnet63-130.ucr.edu
IPIP Address 138.23.23.115 Host Name resnet23-115.ucr.edu
Address 138.23.59.11 Host Name resnetlab-nat.ucr.edu
IP Address 138.23.59.11 Host Name resnetlab-nat.ucr.edu

He could have access to multiple computers though or using a proxy server so who knows?

We all do... not the point. These are all from the one individual. Match one of these sources to an alias and voila!

Well Alan could check for us,i'd be interested myself since Porcupine2 seems to have a very distrubing similarity by the way he posts and walter chans.

Here is a message he PM'd me a while back:
Originally Posted by cireaasirefan
Please read this page before you blame on me that I am not being honest. Porcupine2 is a genuine AVS user who also is an active user at highdeforum:

http://www.highdefforum.com/search.php?searchid=313051

I don't have any multiple accounts and am honest the whole time. I deleted all of my posts because I can't take this crap anymore, and I no longer wish to work with them anymore. I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU AGREE EVERYTHING IN WHAT SQUONK AND Q OF BANDITZ SAY. GET A LIFE, ASSSHOLE.

This morning I turned on my TV. I didn't do anything prior.

The TV started making a loud buzzing noise from inside (not from the speakers) and there was no picture, no sound (apart from the buzzing) and the power light didn't turn on. I tried to turn off the TV, but it wouldn't, so I had to unplug it. I tried plugging it back in, and turning it back on, but no luck.


I don't have an extended warranty, and I bought the TV a year ago.

Plz tell me what is wrong with it, and how/where I can get it fixed. and how much it will cost.
THANKS

IK
BACK TO DISCUSSION...

The problem is in the power supply, and either the transformer blew or one of the capacitors wore out. Typically, it costs somewhere between $75 and $150 to repair a television, depending on how serious the problem is.

how about you just leave if you are going to call people names

"I don't have any multiple accounts and am honest the whole time. I deleted all of my posts because ..... "

The above surely explains why surfingmatt is so adamant about all things waltchan. IIRC, many of walt's critics were quick come to his defense against the slurs of mr. dvdsomething. That individual is no longer posting-- at least not under that incarnation.

AVS is a great forum. For the record, I therefore stipulate that I am not now, nor have I ever been, waltchan.

"I don't have any multiple accounts and am honest the whole time. I deleted all of my posts because ..... "

The above surely explains why surfingmatt is so adamant about all things waltchan. IIRC, many of walt's critics were quick come to his defense against the slurs of mr. dvdsomething. That individual is no longer posting-- at least not under that incarnation.

AVS is a great forum. For the record, I therefore stipulate that I am not now, nor have I ever been, waltchan.

Sounds exactly like something Walter Chan would say, sorry i don't buy it.Too many similarites with your attitude and Walters. for a new member you make everyone very suspicious.You even write the same exact style as Walter so your covers blown.

Nice try trying to trick us again Walter :rolleyes:

Well, Ratman, you have now betrayed my trust.

I specified to you in that PM link not to divulge the contents to others, but you did not obey my wish. Therefore I now assume that your intentions on this forum are completely hostile in all regards. I do not believe that you are 50 years old as your profile claims. Your childish reaction to that link I gave you proves it.

I warned you in my PM that the contents of the link I gave was a porno anime DVD. Yet you claim you clicked on that link and got a "warning" window that "the following review is intended for audiences over 18". When you clicked on that link, you already knew it was porn, because I said so very obviously in my PM. That was also the reason I did not want the contents divulged in public. However, you've blatantly betrayed my trust, therefore I no longer have any respect for you.

You are most likely an 18 year old individual with false information in your public profile. Perhaps you are actually the same user as squonk, SurfingMatt27, and the others, who knows....

Originally Posted by fishpoint
"I don't have any multiple accounts and am honest the whole time. I deleted all of my posts because ..... "

Why does this post sound fishy? Maybe because it's exactly the same thing Walter would say!

Coincidence?

Hardly..:rolleyes:

AVS seemed to be a decent forum while I was lurking and trying to simply scavenge what info existed, but right now it's filled with morons and crap posts coming from Ratman, SurfingMatt27, squonk, kny3twalker, justsc, and greenland, who are all most likely the same person.

Right now, this forum is ruined. It's a terrible crap forum.

If you know ANYTHING about anime, you will know that the link I gave to Ratman was completely safe. A 3rd party anime reviewing website that is very well-known. Their internet reviews are used by almost all commercial anime distribution companies in North America.

It's obvious from your recent posts that you guys are not at all interested in learning about the *potential* existence of HD-DVDs in north america, but only interested in causing trouble.

Well, Ratman, you have now betrayed my trust.

I specified to you in that PM link not to divulge the contents to others, but you did not obey my wish. Therefore I now assume that your intentions on this forum are completely hostile in all regards. I do not believe that you are 50 years old as your profile claims. Your childish reaction to that link I gave you proves it.

I warned you in my PM that the contents of the link I gave was a porno anime DVD. Yet you claim you clicked on that link and got a "warning" window that "the following review is intended for audiences over 18". When you clicked on that link, you already knew it was porn, because I said so very obviously in my PM. That was also the reason I did not want the contents divulged in public. However, you've blatantly betrayed my trust, therefore I no longer have any respect for you.

You are most likely an 18 year old individual with false information in your public profile. Perhaps you are actually the same user as squonk, SurfingMatt27, and the others, who knows....

Please.. ROFL...

You are so full of it!!!!

I still don't buy your story of the HD-DVD's too.

And for the record, Ratman you are still prohibited from posting that link in public or PM'ing it to any of these others. Of course, given that we are now completely hostile towards each other I fully expect you to disobey my request.

If you have any morals though, as you "claim" to have, you will realize that it is irresponsible to post such a link in public.

SurfingMatt27, you don't have to. Never once have I asked anyone here to believe me. Ratman politely asked that he was still interested, and that a link be PM'ed to him, which I was kind enough to do. However he has now betrayed my trust, and I now place him in the same boat with the rest of you buffoons.

sorry i don't buy it.Too many similarites with your attitude and Walters. for a new member you make everyone very suspicious.

Well Sybil, how would you know that?

AVS seemed to be a decent forum while I was lurking and trying to simply scavenge what info existed, but right now it's filled with morons and crap posts coming from Ratman, SurfingMatt27, squonk, kny3twalker, justsc, and greenland, who are all most likely the same person.

Right now, this forum is ruined. It's a terrible crap forum.

No ever since you have been here you have been spreading FUD plain and simple. Existing HD-DVD's in the U.S for a while :rolleyes:

How is that possible?

did you pull that out your Ass again like everything else?

For your information Ratman, squonk, kny3twalker, justsc, and greenland are well respected members they have credibility you sir do not!All your credibility went out the window,I'll take their word over yours anyday of the week.

You really have to stop posting under multiple accounts Walter, it's starting to make you look insane,and many members beside us are really questioning your credibility..if there is still a shred of any left?

Well Sybil, how would you know that?

This

Originally Posted by fishpoint
"I don't have any multiple accounts and am honest the whole time. I deleted all of my posts because ..... "

I'm sorry but i don't buy it.. that is exactly the same wording Walter uses when he denies things.

I copied the quote from your post #604

Not to mention your greenlight went off at the same time Porcupine2 posted,so what is it, trying to fool us going under your other name Walt?

You don't fool me !!!

Your actions are pretty obvious, What's next your going to delete your evidence as always right?

Is'nt that your style? denied information, insult people then delete your posts..

Denie..Insult..Delete repeat Denie,Insult, Delete.. repeat Denie information, Insult, Delete.

I forgot post under multiple alias's.

Yup same routine, over and over.

I copied the quote from your post #604

Typical, i'm not surprised.. :rolleyes:

my greenlight is always off

Sure it is.. so you can easily fool people and go under your other Alias's:rolleyes:

You need to cut back on the coffee.

This


I'm sorry but i don't buy it.. that is exactly the same wording Walter uses when he denies things.
This was a PM I received from Porc 2 on March 8th:

-

"the crazy flame war
I tried to respond to you inside the thread but it got deleted as I was posting.

My recent post in which I used a quote of yours then talked about personal insults being flung around these boards, was NOT directed towards you. Sorry if I created any confusion or ambiguity. My post was directed towards squonk and Q of Banditz, and maybe towards some of the other users but to a lesser extent.

I just used your quote to try and make a point. I agree that half of the time waltchan deserves the flames he gets. But the other half of the time he does not, and it's just squonk and Q acting like bastards."

-

This blatant name-calling is juvenile and without honor. Which is in stark contrast to the reasoned, clean & well-written posts by RatMan, and others of us. I believe it's time to report such things to UC Riverside (ucr) so they can know how their systems are being used and the language and porn links being sent out from their own IT assets.

This blatant name-calling is juvenile and without honor.

Amen, brother.

This is getting rediculously out of hand, this name calling is childish and immature,

Fishpoint you have a chance to redeem yourself as well as Porcupine2.. are you the same person yes or no?

I'm getting tired of this ****!!

This is getting rediculously out of hand, this name calling is childish and immature,

Fishpoint you have a chance to redeem yourself as well as Porcupine2.. are you the same person yes or no?

I'm getting tired of this ****!!

No. I am fishpoint, and no one else.

Ok.. i'll take your word for it..

I'm just curoius though why are you following Porcupine2?is there a reason your standing up for him besides laughing with him when he calls us morons?

I don't laugh with him. Nor at him. I do, however, value his posts (no not his retorts, when provoked).

I don't know who's who on this forum and posting under an alias... but the mods can check these originating sources and check verify the "posters in question" and put all of this crap to rest. If more than one match to these, it pretty much sums it up.

IP Address 71.107.198.125 Host Name pool-71-107-198-125.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.250.197 Host Name pool-71-105-250-197.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.243.90 Host Name pool-71-105-243-90.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.243.131 Host Name pool-71-105-243-131.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 71.105.21.75 Host Name pool-71-105-21-75.lsanca.dsl-w.verizon.net
IP Address 66.126.122.106 Host Name adsl-66-126-122-106.dsl.lsan03.pacbell.net
IP Address 138.23.63.130 Host Name resnet63-130.ucr.edu
IPIP Address 138.23.23.115 Host Name resnet23-115.ucr.edu
Address 138.23.59.11 Host Name resnetlab-nat.ucr.edu
IP Address 138.23.59.11 Host Name resnetlab-nat.ucr.edu

Posters can also contact UC Riverside and make them aware of what's coming from their systems.

Here is the link to the UC Riverside Library web site:

http://library.ucr.edu/?view=services/computers/index.html

From there one can access the Computer Labs:

http://www.cnc.ucr.edu/index.php?content=student_services/computer_labs

Then there's a phone and email contact:

-
Student Computing Services
ph.: (951) 827-6495
Email: helpdesk@student.ucr.edu
-

It shouldn't be difficult for the staff to smoke this out.

So you value FUD?....Interesting..

You still did'nt answer why you show up at the same exact time he does.Why do you follow him Fishpoint?

Right now, I am am watching 'nova on my 24" sony. I am new to hdtv. I don't track anyone. (well, today- the past hour, one could say I have been following some of your posts).

Well it still does'nt explain why you are following Porcupine2 for the past 2 days.


Do you get kicks or something watching him taunt us and name call us?

Well, well. Let's leave well enough alone

I'm sorry but you seem too Odd for a new poster the way you act.


So no i'm afraid i can't let it rest because your are being very suspicous with your word use, i have seen it before from another individual.

Well it still does'nt explain why you are following Porcupine2 for the past 2 days.


Do you get kicks or something watching him taunt us and name call us?

It's time that you ended the abuse. Bye for now.

Exactly the same word use Walter would use:rolleyes:

i'll rest my case for now.:cool:

Well, Ratman, you have now betrayed my trust.

I specified to you in that PM link not to divulge the contents to others, but you did not obey my wish. Therefore I now assume that your intentions on this forum are completely hostile in all regards. I do not believe that you are 50 years old as your profile claims. Your childish reaction to that link I gave you proves it.

I warned you in my PM that the contents of the link I gave was a porno anime DVD. Yet you claim you clicked on that link and got a "warning" window that "the following review is intended for audiences over 18". When you clicked on that link, you already knew it was porn, because I said so very obviously in my PM. That was also the reason I did not want the contents divulged in public. However, you've blatantly betrayed my trust, therefore I no longer have any respect for you.

You are most likely an 18 year old individual with false information in your public profile. Perhaps you are actually the same user as squonk, SurfingMatt27, and the others, who knows....
Don't bring me into your sleazy world full of porn and pirate DVDs Mr Prick-ly. You mention my name in a thread one more time where I ahve nothing to do with what's going on and I'll see to it that you never post here again.

AVS seemed to be a decent forum while I was lurking and trying to simply scavenge what info existed, but right now it's filled with morons and crap posts coming from Ratman, SurfingMatt27, squonk, kny3twalker, justsc, and greenland, who are all most likely the same person.

Right now, this forum is ruined. It's a terrible crap forum.
nice try walt. What a complete dope.

Posters can also contact UC Riverside and make them aware of what's coming from their systems.

Here is the link to the UC Riverside Library web site:

http://library.ucr.edu/?view=services/computers/index.html

From there one can access the Computer Labs:

http://www.cnc.ucr.edu/index.php?content=student_services/computer_labs

Then there's a phone and email contact:

-
Student Computing Services
ph.: (951) 827-6495
Email: helpdesk@student.ucr.edu
-

It shouldn't be difficult for the staff to smoke this out.
Interesting that waltchan is from the So Calif area. He must live close to UC Riverside. I may call there and see if he is enrolled as a student there. They might be very interested in knowing what one of their students is doing on university computers.

And so if any of those addresses matches up with a post from Porky2 (Mr Prickly), we then know that also has been a sham and a fraud. I don't know how this can be determined, but you computer experts should have at it. I'm tired of waltchan and his alias' running this forum and when any of us point out his abuses, we get blamed or banned.

Hey waltchan--the noose is tightening--do you feel it? We're getting closer to exposing you once and for all. And thanks to another poster, we have your phone number and email address which you posted on a public internet site. We'll be seeing you.

Interesting that waltchan is from the So Calif area. He must live close to UC Riverside. I may call there and see if he is enrolled as a student there. They might be very interested in knowing what one of their students is doing on university computers.

And so if any of those addresses matches up with a post from Porky2 (Mr Prickly), we then know that also has been a sham and a fraud. I don't know how this can be determined, but you computer experts should have at it. I'm tired of waltchan and his alias' running this forum and when any of us point out his abuses, we get blamed or banned.

Hey waltchan--the noose is tightening--do you feel it? We're getting closer to exposing you once and for all. And thanks to another poster, we have your phone number and email address which you posted on a public internet site. We'll be seeing you.

do it, I hope he gets suspensed from school for this
personally I'm ready to be free of the nuisance named Walter Chan and all his aliases

It would be a huge weight lifted from my chest i tell you that much!

There has been so much FUD lately by him that it's rediculous.

Would it be possible to move this somewhere else? At one point a bit of snippy banter was amusing, but this is getting really ridiculous.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm still interested in actual discussion about televisions, specifically the Toshiba HF(X)85 line the thread is intended for. As I recall, Lennsx was going to get an ISF calibration, and I'll continue to post more on the HDMI light/dark banding issue resolution as I have more information.

What I don't want is for the whole thread to get deleted and lose some useful information contained in earlier posts. I realize a lot of people have a lot of animosity here, but I'd request that you either start a new thread for it, or work it out via private messages.

I'm not sure what motivation there is for using this public forum to bash, flame, or "out" anyone. Of course I only speak for myself, but such behaviour doesn't gain my respect, regardless of what side of the conflict someone is on. IMHO all it does is dilute the thread and make it hard for people who want to discuss the topic to do so. At this point I could care less who's Walt, who's not, who dissed who's mom three months ago, or how many links someone can post proving X actually did Y or is in fact an alter ego of Z.

In fact, here ya go. Here's a thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=660724) for everyone who wants to fight. Have a blast! Now please, for god's sake, let's just talk about TVs.

if you put it in the directview forum, it would have been far more effective

Yes, enough is enough, guys. Please. Please!
I'm now a bit apprehensive to go thru with my ISF calibration because of my HDMI banding issues thru my STB. Again, I would more than appreciate it if anyone wil let me know if this banding issue happens to them thru HDMI with a DVD player as well. If that is the case then I'm not going to spend the $$$ on the ISF cali. It's just too risky to do.

To answer the above poster, yes!!.. it's your tv that has the issue, these tv's suck!! buy a sony or panasonic instead. I hear nothing but problems about Toshiba tv's lately.Don't waste your money on these POS you get what you pay for..a POS.

Again, I would more than appreciate it if anyone wil let me know if this banding issue happens to them thru HDMI with a DVD player as well. If that is the case then I'm not going to spend the $$$ on the ISF cali. It's just too risky to do.
Lennsx,
In my case it is occuring with my DVD player over HDMI. I don't have any other HDMI-capable devices (no STB for me, as I don't watch enough TV programming to justify it, mostly just DVDs).

I'm doing my darnedest to satisfy Toshiba enough with service diagnostics so that they'll refund me. Then I'll be making a mad dash for a 34XBR960n or maybe a 30XS955 (the XBR might break my current AV stand from the weight). I suggested to my wife that perhaps I should go ahead and grab the Sony replacement now, before they've dried up. She was none too thrilled with the idea of buying another gargantuan, expensive CRT before the other one was even returned (or determined whether a refund was even possible)... :p

So, here's to hoping that, A) I can wrest my moolah back from Toshiba, and B) by the time I get it back, there's still a Sony SFP set around for me to buy without having to take out another mortgage or sell a major organ on the black market.

If, however, they can actually fix the HDMI issue, then I'd be willing to live with it, and might go the ISF route. I hope to hear from the service center that has my set later this week.

spurdy, I'm curious what this HDMI banding looks like. If you or anyone else can post a picture, that'd be great. Is it extremely severe (i.e. totally unwatchable) or just a minorly annoying thing?

I was never able to test the HD modes (either 1080i through component or HDMI) back when I had my 30HF85's because I had no HD players/sources to play. But I plan to eventually, and at this point I'm probably still going to end up buying a Toshiba/Insignia/Orion at some point regardless since it seems to be one of the few CRTs with space-saving bottom speakers.

If the HDMI is completely unusable on the 30HF85 (and maybe the 30HF66 when it comes out) that might be a good reason to get the new Insignia 30" (exact same TV without any HDMI input and a cheaper remote).

spurdy, I'm curious what this HDMI banding looks like. If you or anyone else can post a picture, that'd be great. Is it extremely severe (i.e. totally unwatchable) or just a minorly annoying thing?
Well, I'm picky about picture quality, so I find it pretty invasive. Once I get my set back, assuming they're unable to fix it, I'll try to take a picture or short movie clip if I can capture it effectively.

Basically, it looks like a band, usually ranging from about an inch or two tall, running all the way from left to right across the screen. It's as if, within this band, you had manipulated the white level. So the portion within this band seems "shadowed" relative to the rest of the image (there might also be instances where it's brighter, but I can't be sure). The bands appear, from what I have seen, to correspond with high contrast (i.e. very bright relative to the rest of the image, or very dark) portions of the image moving off of the edge (usually the left edge) of the picture. Sometimes I'll get a flurry of these bands during high movement scenes with a lot of this high contrast content. They'll track up or down and merge or break into multiple bands (again, I think this is due to the way something bright moves off of the edge of the screen) quickly, so it's hard to determine.

On my set, the effect at 1080i was very pronounced and noticable. Pretty annoyingly unwatchable in my opinion. At first I thought 720p was free of the problem, but I noticed it does happen at that resolution too, it's just less frequent and less severe when it occurs (the bands seem a bit wider and have less of a contrast difference). Of course, now that I see it, it bugs me to no end.

I'm guessing it's an error in the digital portion of the image processing. It just has the look of being an error in the digital handling, rather than something caused by the analogue circuitry. Still, this is just guessing on my part.

EDIT: I may be wrong, it may be the black level that's being manipulated. Perhaps it's an error in the automatic black level adjustment that many sets do? It might be incorrectly applying the adjustment only to a section of the image containing a big contrast difference, instead of the entire image, as is normally done.

Yes, the same exact banding that spurdy is describing happens on my 34HF85 via my STB thru HDMI. And now my man spurdy tells me that it also happens thru a DVD player. OK, that settles it, no ISF calibration for now. I am a patient man (lucky for Toshiba) AND I have no other qualms with the TV but when I buy a HD-DVD/BLU-RAY/PS3 (don't even get me started on that next-gen competition disgrace) and get HDMI banding with that......nuff said.

Basically, it looks like a band, usually ranging from about an inch or two tall, running all the way from left to right across the screen. It's as if, within this band, you had manipulated the white level. So the portion within this band seems "shadowed" relative to the rest of the image (there might also be instances where it's brighter, but I can't be sure).

I have the same exact problem with my Tosh 30HF84, but this problem shows up on all inputs regardless of the source (HDMI, component, composite, s-video, and even regular coax-cable). I can't return the TV, and I am hesitant to call for a service repair since no one can pin point exactly what's causing this. I seem to recall someone posting (either on this board or another forum) that after they had their HF85 series set calibrated, the banding issue went away, but they did not elaborate on what was done to fix it. This is the only issue I have with the set, and although it doesn't show up 100% of the time (like spurdy says, it depends on a number of factors in the displayed picture) once you notice it, it's highly annoying.

Thanks for the descriptions. I'd still appreciate pics whenever it is possible or convenient, though. It's interesting that Darcy mentions that he (she?) has the same problem on his 30HF84. I recall Nonnie here earlier said that his 30HF84 had no issues with HDMI banding or 1080i white glow through component, but that his 34HF85 did (which he returned).

Just to be clear, I do have what appears to be the "banding" problem, however, there is no white glow at the top of my screen when displaying Hi-Def content using my X-Box 360, or through a HDMI connector.

And, I am a "he". :)

Thanks for the descriptions. I'd still appreciate pics whenever it is possible or convenient, though.
I'll give it my best shot when I get my TV back if they haven't fixed it.

I compared the service manuals for the 30hf84 and 85 and they made quite a few changes to the components. The 30hf84 does not have any of the hdmi banding or glow issues, 1080i is perfect. However, my 30hf84 does have a glitch that occurred in the 30hf83 and I believe the 30hf81. (Horizontal jerk during warmuo over 1080i) It would seem Orion used some of the same components or design in the 30hf84 when they took over production from Toshiba in '04 then made additional changes to cut costs on the hf85 models.

Darcy what is the build date on your 30hf84? Mine is August '04 they began production in June of '04. I also brought a 26hf84 as a present for my brother and that had a build of Sept '04 and was also perfect. I do know they made some changes last spring to the (26hf84a) and added Cableclear option. Maybe they began changing components on later sets?

Guys, I think you should do your best to try and get a refund or credit from Toshiba. When I took a chance on the 34hf85 a couple of weeks ago from Crutchfield with a build date of January '06,and it still had all of the same problems reported, it was pretty obvious that Orion had no intention of fixing the banding or white glow. These issues were first reported last summer and I think a reputable company would have made a mid production design change to address the problems. Don't think you should spend any more money on these sets. Take a look at Ebay, there are plenty of Hf85's for sale. (lot of people have the same idea)

Anyway, I jumped ship on tube tv's and exchanged my 34hf85 for a Tosh 37hl95 LCD. This is a real Toshiba made in Mexico and it shows. Spectacular pq, natural looking colors and gorgeous hi def. I paid considerably more, but I am very happy with it. Plus I didn't get a hernia carrying it down the basement to my family room.

I recently picked up a 26HF85C and overall I've been happy with it except that I feel that the image is a bit too contrasty... I've fixed it a bit. It seems like its more noticable through HDMI than component. Still I'm happy with the picture especially considering the price which was not too much. It is a smaller set so I guess it wasnt going to be that much $$. My DVD player is a new samsung upconverting unit with HDMI. I'm liking that one :)

This TV should hopefully tie me over until I can afford the Hitachi HD plasma I'm after - maybe one more year.

Nonnie,

The build date on my 30HF84 is September '04. I understand that the banding and white glow problems seem to only affect the 85 series, so I guess I'm just unlucky. I'm not sure if the two problems are related in the 85 series, but like I said, I only have the banding problem, however, it's not just through the HDMI connection that I see it. I've had the set since October '05, and aside from this one problem, the set displays a pristine picture. It had a slight bow on the left side of the screen, but I fixed that in the service menu, and now it's as straight as it can get. Too bad about Toshiba not backing their products like they should, but I'll live with it until I can save up for something else.

oh WOW another Toshiba thread, as I understand it the Master himself Walter Chang started this
Hi there! Please direct all Toshiba/Orion/WaltChan flamewars here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=660724). We're trying to keep with substantive discussion. Thanks! :)

Played with the settings in the service menu some more and now I think the TV is perfect (knock wood). The only thing I want to do is bring up the intensity in the red colours just a tad more. I want the 'medium' setting to be a bit warmer but not was warm as 'warm' in the colour warmth settings.

Hey all, I've owned my 30HF85 since last May and have it in the bedroom for XBox 360 and DVD's. My experience with this TV has been mixed because it has all of the trademark problems discussed in this thread including the white glow problem, banding over HDMI, geometry, and poor convergence.

I sent the TV in for a repair under warranty to hopefully fix some of these problems and when it came back the convergence was pretty much good and the geometry was improved. However, the TV now has severe horizontal bowing that causes everything (straight lines, text) to bow down from the top in a slight U shape. I see it really bad while watching 2.35:1 movies that do not take up the entire screen and leave a small black box on the top and bottom of the scrren. The top box will dip down and create a U shape.

I'm really disillusioned at all the problems I seem to be having with this set. Is it to much to ask that if I pay good money for something it will work right? Now, I am at a crossroads with all of this because I'm a little leary to send this back to my authorized repairer for fear that it will come back even more screwed up, but I'm also really not happy with this horizontal bowing that is present, since that seems more annoying to me than any thing else I originally was complaining about. Toshiba customer service is no help because they are very rude each time I talk to them and will simply direct me to the authorized repair shop. The authorized repairers are ok but I'm really wondering if they know what they are doing.

What should I do? Should I send this thing back in for repair a second time or just give up and accept it?

If one was to get their TV Calibrated and a second person used the settings from the first TVs calibration would it be guaranteed to look correct, or is each TV unique?

Sorry if that was a dumb question.

If one was to get their TV Calibrated and a second person used the settings from the first TVs calibration would it be guaranteed to look correct, or is each TV unique?

Sorry if that was a dumb question.

Each TV is somewhat unique.

What should I do? Should I send this thing back in for repair a second time or just give up and accept it?

From what I have read, horizontal bowing can be corrected with magnets. You cannot adjust from the service menu. I assume you did not have the bowing when you first took the set in? The techs did something to cause it. I understand what you are saying, it can drive you crazy when watching letterboxed material. (That is one of the reasons I just grought an LCD)

You have in home service on that set. Have them come back to your house as many times as it takes to have it fixed. Don't let your 1 year warranty run out without it being taken care of. From my experience, if you call Toshiba they will refer you to the closest service center, they do not want to pay additional mileage.

From what I have read, horizontal bowing can be corrected with magnets. You cannot adjust from the service menu. I assume you did not have the bowing when you first took the set in? The techs did something to cause it. I understand what you are saying, it can drive you crazy when watching letterboxed material. (That is one of the reasons I just grought an LCD)

You have in home service on that set. Have them come back to your house as many times as it takes to have it fixed. Don't let your 1 year warranty run out without it being taken care of. From my experience, if you call Toshiba they will refer you to the closest service center, they do not want to pay additional mileage.

You are 100% correct. I originally had sent the TV in to have the convergence (on the red) fixed a bit as well as some slight vertical geometry problems that I could've probably gotten through the service menu.

The tv came back to me and the convergence was entirely fixed but it now has this horizontal bowing that was not there when it was sent in. Vertical geometry is still screwed up too but I have come to accept it as part of the problem with CRT. The horizontal bowing is mainly what is killing me right now and I really would like it fixed.

Unfortunately I do not have at home service on this set and have been dealing exclusively with the service center for my town that Toshiba has sent me to. The people at the service center are nice and will come pick up this hefty display for me but it is just frusturating to have to go through all this again. I'm also questioning if the people at the service center are really that good at fixing this stuff considering this experience I've had.

I guess I'm going to go ahead and call them today and go over my problems. If need be I may over go by there once they get the set to show them in person what is going on with the TV.

The situation is very frusturating to me.

Yes, the same exact banding that spurdy is describing happens on my 34HF85 via my STB thru HDMI. And now my man spurdy tells me that it also happens thru a DVD player. OK, that settles it, no ISF calibration for now. I am a patient man (lucky for Toshiba) AND I have no other qualms with the TV but when I buy a HD-DVD/BLU-RAY/PS3 (don't even get me started on that next-gen competition disgrace) and get HDMI banding with that......nuff said.
I'm curious - why disregard a pro calibration because of this banding problem? It could be that the calibrator may be able to fix the problem, leaving you with a very nice tv, right? You could always be up-front with the calibrator and let him/her know that if the banding problem cannot be fixed that you don't want to go ahead with the calibration.

Just an idea... ;)

I am very sad too. I am currently HDTV-less and don't know what to do. I want a HDTV CRT with bottom speakers, and the only viable options at the moment seem to be Toshiba and the Samsung slimfits, which have some terrible geometry problems including the horizontal bowing you describe here on your modified Toshiba 30HF85.

One thing kind of funny I found with your post is that you in some sense seemed to have transformed your Toshiba into a Samsung. You fixed the convergence and some other issues but now inherited the horizontal bowing that is one of the defining flaws of the Samsungs (especially the Slimfits). :(

I'm currently considering going out to get either the 30HF85, which is only 600 this week at Best Buy, or the Insignia 30" for 525. Those sets suck but at least they are relatively inexpensive now and fit where I want them to. I still think they are inferior sets though, I'm still not happy buying a 30HF85 at 600 dollars. I think the set is worth only 500 dollars, like a similarly sized SDTV might cost, since that seems to be the only thing these sets are qualified to show.

That is true. And I just read today that most studios are going to allow the full resolution of their Blu-Ray/HD-DVD discs thru component (analog) connections as well as thru HDMI.
Hmmm....perhaps a phone call to Mr. ISF calibrator IS indeed in order... ;)
Again, if I do decide to get it done I will give a detailed report of the PQ difference!

I think if you go back through these posts you'll find that Frank Burch had his 34hf85 calibrated and he still has the banding. He has a Samsung Sir-TS160 and I remember that when he uses the screen raster control on the Samsung the banding starts up.

Porcupine, I can't understand why you would go out and buy another one of these crap units. I saw someone selling new 30hf84's recently. Might have been Ebay. At least if you buy that you will get a set that properly displays 1080i, and you'll have the form factor that will work where you want to place it.

I realize this is not the appropriate forum for lcd, but you might want to consider one of these as an option. My 37hl95 is amazing. The Tosh 32hl95 is the same size as the 30hf85, but around a quarter of the depth and much lighter. You should take a look at these at Best Buy, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I have a 30HF85. I have gotten into the service menu. But I can't seem to navigate and move around. I've read a few posts that say to use the channel button to change items and the volume to change values. This is not working. I was able to change values by using the left and right arrow keys next to the round menu button. But how do I change items?? When I tried the channel button it just kinda zapped my screen and it went black. Luckily when I pushed the other channel button my screen came back. But after that I didn't want to tinker anymore. Can someone tell me the correct buttons to press? Please help. Thanks.

I have a 30HF85. I have gotten into the service menu. But I can't seem to navigate and move around. I've read a few posts that say to use the channel button to change items and the volume to change values. This is not working. I was able to change values by using the left and right arrow keys next to the round menu button. But how do I change items?? When I tried the channel button it just kinda zapped my screen and it went black. Luckily when I pushed the other channel button my screen came back. But after that I didn't want to tinker anymore. Can someone tell me the correct buttons to press? Please help. Thanks.
Try using the cursor arrow buttons on the remote, the same buttons you use to navigate the TV's menu.

I tried. I was able to use the left and right arrows to adjust the values. So I figured the up/down arrows would toggle items. Didn't work. Got the same effect as with the channel buttons. TV picture zapped to a black screen. I'm just trying to get in there to adjust my overscan.

Nonnie, I know what you mean. I must sound insane, having gone through 4 of these long ago (albeit I didn't know anything about HDTVs at the time, and I blasted through all 4 of them in two weeks).

I've been checking Ebay since my quest to get a functional HDTV began, but hadn't seen any 30HF84s last I checked (which was long ago). I should check again, but even on Ebay most sellers won't ship CRTs to Hawaii, where I live.

I've been doing TV-hunting for 30HF84s and 30HF83s in real life, to no avail.

I actually despise LCD mainly because of the refresh rate issues with them. But you make a really good point, considering my space issues (wanting bottom speakers) I should still consider LCD. I actually have been going around looking at LCDs very carefully, but the refresh rate issues are something I personally REALLY have a hard time living with. It's not so bad for films/shows on the good quality LCDs, but I've noticed it's still not that great on 60 frame/second videogames (I was playing DOA4 in toystores, I think they had it on a Sony 26" Bravia but I could be mistaken). Other members of my family have also been urging me to just get an LCD.

Then again, there is something I don't like about CRT HDTVs either. The 32 kHz noise they make from the flyback transformer is painful to me. It gives me vertigo, destroys my hearing and makes me go deaf. :~~(

Maybe some years down the road I will get an LCD, especially if they can get the refresh rates down below 4 ms. I appreciate your suggestion.

Anyways, I'm going to go watch TV now! I actually did get a 5th 30HF85 yesterday, lol, for 600 dollars. I'm nuts. ;) I'm sure this one also has white glow and HDMI banding but I can't test those features for now since I have no HD sources. The reason I returned all 4 of my previous units were due to other quality problems. I'm kind of shocked, this 5th unit I got is nearly perfect. It's a November 2005 build and it's quite different from all 4 units I had previously. I think I was just super unlucky before (2 of my previous units had actual busted screen "pixels" among many other deficiencies, they were that bad), now all my bad luck went in reverse and I got an amazing unit other than the HD flaws (which may annoy me someday, I dunno, I think I saw the white glow in some Sears displays and it didn't look so severe to me). This unit does have a weird geometry problem none of my other units had, kind of like what Keith just described actually except probably not nearly as severe.

Focus on this set is excellent, no vertical bloom at all. RGB convergence is nearly perfect everywhere. Y/C Delay convergence is nearly perfect on all inputs, and no 480i desynch problems through component.

I tried. I was able to use the left and right arrows to adjust the values. So I figured the up/down arrows would toggle items. Didn't work. Got the same effect as with the channel buttons. TV picture zapped to a black screen. I'm just trying to get in there to adjust my overscan.
Use the right/left cursor arrow buttons to change each category and up/down cursor arrow buttons to change each values.

I tried. I was able to use the left and right arrows to adjust the values. So I figured the up/down arrows would toggle items. Didn't work. Got the same effect as with the channel buttons. TV picture zapped to a black screen. I'm just trying to get in there to adjust my overscan.
Veroviper,

I believe the "zap to a black screen" you describe is item 01 in the service menu. It scared me too when I first tried it on my 30HFX85. It just displays a test mode in the form of a single scan line in the center of the screen (for what exact adjustment purpose I'm not entirely clear). If you keep pressing the channel button, you'll go past it to the rest of the service menu items (most geometry settings are between 02 and 23, with fairly intuitive names). Or, you can wrap around the other direction, going from 00 to 59 and then on down.

Happy tweaking! (just do document everything first)

The reason I returned all 4 of my previous units were due to other quality problems. I'm kind of shocked, this 5th unit I got is nearly perfect. It's a November 2005 build and it's quite different from all 4 units I had previously.
...
Focus on this set is excellent, no vertical bloom at all. RGB convergence is nearly perfect everywhere. Y/C Delay convergence is nearly perfect on all inputs, and no 480i desynch problems through component.
I think my set is a late 2005 build as well (perhaps even December? I can't recall exactly right now). It has similarly good geometry, focus, and convergence. Perhaps they finally started getting a few things ironed out later on in the production run? I just wish correct HD display had been one of them. :(

Thanks Spurdy. I'll give it a go tonight. I'm sure that was it. I appreciate the help. And yes I will definitely write down the existing values first.

I've looked through this post a bit but couldn't find it. Which items in the service menu adjust reds or greens on the TV? I've got my colors set pretty good but I'd like to reduce the red a bit and the green a bit? Thanks for any help.

I've looked through this post a bit but couldn't find it. Which items in the service menu adjust reds or greens on the TV? I've got my colors set pretty good but I'd like to reduce the red a bit and the green a bit? Thanks for any help.
Look for the codes that say Red Bias, Green Bias, and Blue Bias. There are three bias modes available for each color temperature setting. For example, Red Bias is for normal color temperature, Red Bias (C) is for cool color temperature, and Red Bias (W) is for warm color temperature.

OK. I see. I see a set with W at the end(warm I take it), a set with C(cool) at the end, and one set that has no letter on the end. Just says, R BIAS, etc. Are these for medium?

OK. I see. I see a set with W at the end(warm I take it), a set with C(cool) at the end, and one set that has no letter on the end. Just says, R BIAS, etc. Are these for medium?
Yes.

OK thanks for the help. Also, just wanted to make sure these are the items I want to mess with to adjust specific color levels?? This is my first HDTV, so I'm a bit of a newbie. Also if anyone knows of a list telling me what all the abbreviations mean I would love to know. I found a good spreadsheet with all the abbrev. and factory pre-sets but I'd love a list telling me what they all are.

Oh, and one last question. What is a good starting contrast level in the user menus before I start tinkering with stuff in the service menu?

Oh, and one last question. What is a good starting contrast level in the user menus before I start tinkering with stuff in the service menu?
When you enter the service menu, all user menu controls will be reset to factory defaults. So, it's kind of a moot point. When you adjust things like contrast min/max/cent, brightness min/max/cent, Tint, etc, the display will show the changes for the control you're adjusting. So, get everything set as looks best, then do fine tuning afterwards with the user controls if necessary.

BTW: for toning down the red push I actually used R-Y GAIN (control 39). I'm not sure if this is wrong, but it seemed to work quite effectively. The only problem was that it seemed to be a universal control (though I didn't do extensive testing on that), and the color decoding for composite, component, and HDMI were significantly different. So, I had to live with a good "average" of the optimal values for each input.

Does anyone know more specifically what the difference is between adjusting red using R.BIAS versus R-Y GAIN?

Thanks for the info. I'll tinker with both tonight. I just need to worry about settings for component. I'm not putting out the money for an HDMI cable after hearing how crappy it works on this TV. I only use 2 items on the set, my comcast HD box and my XBOX 360. Both are fine so long as run in 720p(say hello to the white glow at 1080i settings) The set does quite a respectable job displaying games and dvd's from my 360. Cable is a little more hit or miss, seems to vary from channel to channel oddly enough. I bought this TV a little over a month ago. I believe somebody posted that they seemed to iron some issues out in later models. I can honestly say that for the money I spent I'm pretty pleased. Decent entry level HD set.

I contacted my service center and my 30HF85 is going back in for repair (to fix my horizontal bowing After the last repair), hopefully next week. God Knows how long they will have it, last time it took them a month or so.

Does anyone know if there is a service menu adjustment for this horizontal bowing? or if this is something that they could only correct by opening up the set and tinkering inside with it?

I contacted my service center and my 30HF85 is going back in for repair (to fix my horizontal bowing After the last repair), hopefully next week. God Knows how long they will have it, last time it took them a month or so.

Does anyone know if there is a service menu adjustment for this horizontal bowing? or if this is something that they could only correct by opening up the set and tinkering inside with it?
Yikes! I'm bitting my nails now about my own set. It'll likely be in the shop for a while longer. I hope it doesn't come back with any similar degradations.

When you say "horizontal bowing" do you mean that the picture arches or sags in the middle? I'd call that vertical bowing (since it bows in the vertical direction), but that's just semantics I guess. From what I've seen there aren't any service menu settings to manipulate the geometry that way, and from that I conclude that hardware adjustment would be necessary.

I called the technician a few days ago. He said he was able to replicate the issue and has some ideas about what might be wrong. He's waiting for further info from Toshiba. Although he suspects it might take replacing some hardware, he said it might also be curable with a firmware update (supporting my suspicion that it's a digital processing artefact).

I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that firmware might solve it. Now *that* would be pretty cool. Regardless, if any fix is found I'll be sure to grill the tech for specifics on what it was so that I can pass it on to folks here.

Yikes! I'm bitting my nails now about my own set. It'll likely be in the shop for a while longer. I hope it doesn't come back with any similar degradations.

When you say "horizontal bowing" do you mean that the picture arches or sags in the middle? I'd call that vertical bowing (since it bows in the vertical direction), but that's just semantics I guess. From what I've seen there aren't any service menu settings to manipulate the geometry that way, and from that I conclude that hardware adjustment would be necessary.

When I say "Horizontal Bowing" I mean that everything bows on the screen (i.e., letter box bars slope down, news tickers slope down, TiVo menus, etc.) or something similar to this :

http://wrongcrowd.com/pics/forum/geometry.gif

The problem is very frusturating on every source from XBox360 to Standard television but particulary on DVD where I still have letterboxes and can see it. This problem also comes into play with televsion shows that are letter boxed, if I use the TW2 mode to get rid of these letterboxes I still see a small sliver of black from the sagged down portion that won't go away.

I had originally sent the TV in for convergence fixes and some slight geometry distorion that was present in pillarbox (natural mode) and when I got it back, convergence was great but this new problem I'm describing had begun.

The repair tech today was giving me a hard time about this and basically told me that he thought I was abusing my warranty (which I'm not, my concerns are quite valid) and that he thought my TV was perfect.

Very frusturating! hopefully this next repair trip is worthwhile. Any tips or ideas on what else I could do?

OK. I see. I see a set with W at the end(warm I take it), a set with C(cool) at the end, and one set that has no letter on the end. Just says, R BIAS, etc. Are these for medium?Doh! So *that's* what the (W), and (C) stand for. That makes total sense, thanks for making me realize that veroviper lol.

Hey veroviper, can you do me a favor? Have you touched the various settings in the Service Menu that affect Contrast, Brightness, and Color? They are the latest settings, and are labeled as "Max Contrast" "Min Contrast" "Default Contrast" "Max Brightness" "Min Brightness" "Default Brightness" "Max Color" "Min Color" "Default Color" or something similar. Also I'm interested in the settings for "Sub Cont".

If you haven't touched those yet, can you tell me what your default settings are? Also, change your screen modes between the AV connections (Composite/S-Video), the Component connections, the HDMI connections, and the ANT (coax) connection, and tell me the defaults for those too. I did write my initial settings down for the AV connections, but not for the others. Then I found out afterwards that if you change the settings for the AV connections or the coax connection, they will overwrite your composite and HDMI settings automatically and you lose them and must be re-set afterwards. Usually all those settings are similar but not exactly the same, for the different inputs. I'm curious what my original values were. (I have some of the above written down for more than one input, but not all, as I overwrote some of them before I had a chance to check).

Does anyone know more specifically what the difference is between adjusting red using R.BIAS versus R-Y GAIN?I only played with these a little (haven't touched them on my current set, but tinkered a little with previous sets), so I'll just be guessing here:

I think both settings can be used to adjust red levels in a sense but they do it in slightly different ways.

R.BIAS, G.BIAS, and B.BIAS modify Red/Green/Blue intensity levels. So if you were to set R.BIAS to 0 (I dunno if the Toshibas go that far, or if their "0" really is a 0) I think maybe it would be as if all the red stripes/pixels on your TV set broke. You would get a pure green/blue image. White stuff will now be cyan. Red stuff will be black. Blue stuff will be blue and green stuff will be green.

R-Y GAIN probably stands for Red-Luminance Gain. Luminance is brightness (white-level) information only...Red is the amount of shifting of red stuffs away from white (the default). So if you were to set R-Y GAIN to 0 (again, I dunno if the Toshibas go that far or if their "0" really is a 0) I think the effect might be a little different from R.BIAS. White stuff will stay white, but red stuff will also be white. I'm not sure what will happen to blue stuff and green stuff. I think blue stuff might be magenta, and green stuff will be yellow.

Just guessing. :) I haven't played with these controls much because as I've said elsewhere, I'm personally not very concerned with precise color calibration. I just use Cool cause I think it looks pretty good. :) If it's a little too blue or a little too red I don't care much.

Alright folks, I need some help. I have a older unit, Toshiba 51H85 I believe. I think I read that trying to check the convergence board and resoldering the connections might help. I opened the TV up and I don't see a convergence board...at least I don't know what it looks like. I see one main board where everything seems to plug into and 2 board per CRT and the input panel. What is my problem exactly?

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0008.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0007.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0006.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0005.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0004.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0002.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0001.jpg

Now check THAT out. Thing is, it pops into perfect working order now and then. It'll just start working fine and then this mush. What should I do? Scrap it? Call a tech and spend $400 to fix it? Is it even worth it?

If I could fix it myself, I certainly would. Resolder the connections? No problem. But where? I tried looking for a service manual but apparently, this model just doesn't exist anymore or something. Thanks people.

Alright folks, I need some help. I have a older unit, Toshiba 51H85 I believe. I think I read that trying to check the convergence board and resoldering the connections might help. I opened the TV up and I don't see a convergence board...at least I don't know what it looks like. I see one main board where everything seems to plug into and 2 board per CRT and the input panel. What is my problem exactly?

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0008.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0007.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0006.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0005.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0004.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0002.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b88/magikalfly/tvprob/IMG_0001.jpg

Now check THAT out. Thing is, it pops into perfect working order now and then. It'll just start working fine and then this mush. What should I do? Scrap it? Call a tech and spend $400 to fix it? Is it even worth it?

If I could fix it myself, I certainly would. Resolder the connections? No problem. But where? I tried looking for a service manual but apparently, this model just doesn't exist anymore or something. Thanks people.
Hi, wrong forum. Please post at the Rear Projection TV area at:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=63

This forum is for CRT tube TVs only.

Porcupine, the factory settings are as follows: Max Contrast=80, Min Contrast=50, SUB Cont=14, Min Color=0, Max Color=110, Min Bright=50, Max Bright=240. Personally I'm not tinkering with anything but the position for overscan and red level until I get my DVE DVD. Then I plan to go in and optimize all the colors and anything else that may need so. I took the red bias from 60 down to 50. Gonna go with that for a while and see how I like it.

Well, got the red bias down to 50. Coupled with these settings on the user menu: Bright. 30, Contrast 38, Color 18, Tint -8, Sharpness 25, Color Temp Med. and SVM off. I must say, my HD channels are looking pretty darn good now. Definitely getting closer to the type of picture I envisioned when buying an HDTV. Now I'm gonna see how they look on my 360 and if I need to tweak anything there. Also, like most people with this set I'm finding I have to output stuff in 720p from my HD sources. 1080i gives me the dreaded white haze at the top and quite a noticeable bit of flickering on my HD channels. Taking my sources down to 720p takes care of those problems, and I honestly only notice a very small drop off in PQ.

Just a question (probably a stupid one), is there a way to turn off upconverting on the HDTV? You know the white line on the 30HF85, I've found the problem, and I'm sure it could be upconverting. The TV upconverts everything to 1080i, so for example when I have my Xbox360 on 1080i you see the white line. It also has to do with resolution. I know what is causing the white line, it's just hard to explain. I can see it on my Xbox360 with only one way. Turn up the brightness of the TV to around 24, then put in an Original XBOX game that is not compatable with the the X360. When you recieve the error message you'll see what is causing the white line.

Also, does anyone know Toshiba's e-mail for technial Troubleshooting. I can't find it.

Thanks.

vero, thanks for those settings, but I was actually most interested in the "Default Contrast", "Default Brightness", and "Default Color" settings in the Service Menu. They are right next to the "Min Contrast" "Max Contrast" etc settings. I may have gotten the name wrong, I forget. Can you tell me those settings?

dream431, is the 1080i white line problem you are talking about the same problem as the 1080i white glow problem?

Have you touched the various settings in the Service Menu that affect Contrast, Brightness, and Color? They are the latest settings, and are labeled as "Max Contrast" "Min Contrast" "Default Contrast" "Max Brightness" "Min Brightness" "Default Brightness" "Max Color" "Min Color" "Default Color" or something similar. Also I'm interested in the settings for "Sub Cont".

If you haven't touched those yet, can you tell me what your default settings are? Also, change your screen modes between the AV connections (Composite/S-Video), the Component connections, the HDMI connections, and the ANT (coax) connection, and tell me the defaults for those too.
I created a spreadsheet (actually, based it off of one I found on some forum that was for the 30HF84, but the service menu controls were the same), and entered my defaults for each input type.

You can download the file (ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip) from my FTP site.

Here's the URL in text if that doesn't work:
ftp://mordor.dnsalias.net/pub/Toshiba_30HF(X)85.zip

vero, thanks for those settings, but I was actually most interested in the "Default Contrast", "Default Brightness", and "Default Color" settings in the Service Menu. They are right next to the "Min Contrast" "Max Contrast" etc settings. I may have gotten the name wrong, I forget. Can you tell me those settings?

dream431, is the 1080i white line problem you are talking about the same problem as the 1080i white glow problem?

yes, the same thing as the white glow. I just call it the white line.

Just a question (probably a stupid one), is there a way to turn off upconverting on the HDTV? You know the white line on the 30HF85, I've found the problem, and I'm sure it could be upconverting. The TV upconverts everything to 1080i, so for example when I have my Xbox360 on 1080i you see the white line. It also has to do with resolution. I know what is causing the white line, it's just hard to explain. I can see it on my Xbox360 with only one way. Turn up the brightness of the TV to around 24, then put in an Original XBOX game that is not compatable with the the X360. When you recieve the error message you'll see what is causing the white line.

Also, does anyone know Toshiba's e-mail for technial Troubleshooting. I can't find it.

Thanks.
Did you hook up your Xbox360 through HDMI input or component input? I think you can switch the upconversion by selecting 540p in the menu.

Did you hook up your Xbox360 through HDMI input or component input? I think you can switch the upconversion by selecting 540p in the menu.
From what I've read, and from my personal experience, the only situation in which the 1080i/540p control makes a difference is when you feed the TV a 480p signal. For all other incoming signal resolutions (480i, 720p, 1080i) the set internally upconverts and displays in 1080i.

You can tell when the 1080i/540p control actually has an effect, as the picture will blank out very briefly while the set changes from interlaced to progressive mode or vice versa (and the 540p mode will be more stable with less flicker, but the difference may be hard for some to see). If nothing happens when you change it (there's no brief blanking of the picture), then it means your current incoming signal isn't 480p, and the control won't change anything.

For all other incoming signal resolutions (480i, 720p, 1080i) the set internally upconverts and displays in 1080i.

You can tell when the 1080i/540p control actually has an effect, as the picture will blank out very briefly while the set changes from interlaced to progressive mode or vice versa (and the 540p mode will be more stable with less flicker, but the difference may be hard for some to see).Yup that's right except for one thing. 480i signals end up getting displayed in 540p no matter what (not 1080i, and as you said the 540p/1080i control will have no effect in this case as well). The manuals are wrong when they say 480i is dispayed as 1080i. :) I'm 100% sure, my eyes don't deceive me. :)

Thanks a lot for your Service Menu default settings, spurdy! I pretty much had my settings about the same (even though I lost some of my defaults by changing the Composite/S-Video settings, which overwrites into the Component/HDMI settings). I had eyeballed my Component settings back into place afterwards (no calibration discs, just putting up the same image and trying to make it look exactly the same via whether through S-Video or Component) and got it about right. Our default S-Video settings weren't exactly the same to begin with, as expected they were 1 or 2 values off because TVs aren't exactly alike. But I was able to easily figure out where my default Component settings would have been from your values, thanks. :)

Actually in the end I went with my eyeballed values rather than my (converted) versions of your values, I think my eyeballs are better than the eyeballs of the Toshiba factory people. :) But they were really close to each other, only 1 or 2 numbers off.

I find that both composite inputs have the "grainy" look to them, most noticeably with DVD's. Is this something that can be fixed through service menu adjustment or only through repair? Also, I have read here about the white glow at the top of the screen in 1080i, but mine is more bluish than white, I assume it's the same thing. I've abandoned the use of HDMI input as it gets the banding as well. Any way I can avoid repairs on this set or am I out of luck? Thanks!

-- Rich

I find that both composite inputs have the "grainy" look to them, most noticeably with DVD's. Is this something that can be fixed through service menu adjustment or only through repair? Also, I have read here about the white glow at the top of the screen in 1080i, but mine is more bluish than white, I assume it's the same thing. I've abandoned the use of HDMI input as it gets the banding as well. Any way I can avoid repairs on this set or am I out of luck? Thanks!I noticed a lot of grain on my set as well (via component and HDMI, I haven't tested much with composite). When I went back to the store where I purchased it and tested their floor model, I became reasonably convinced that it was mostly due to the natural grain present in film being uncovered by the high resolution picture. The salesperson saw what I was talking about and we tried "Shrek 2" (instead of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" that I had brought for testing, and which seems to have had an artifical film grain effect added to appear more realistic). "Shrek 2" looked great, and I didn't notice much grain at all.

I agree that there may be something amiss in the Toshiba's digital processing stages within the set itself, and those may be uncorrectable without some sort of repair, if at all. I've got my set in for warranty service right now (with my main issue being the HDMI banding), and I encourage you try the same if you're still within warranty and aren't able to be happy with the set otherwise.

I agree with the grain issue. I noticed a bit on my LotR DVDs but my jaw was kept at a drop last night during the Gators/UCLA game and even more so during HDnet's "Nothing But Trailers" showing the new Pixar movie CARS. Incredible is the word.

I noticed a lot of grain on my set as well (via component and HDMI, I haven't tested much with composite). When I went back to the store where I purchased it and tested their floor model, I became reasonably convinced that it was mostly due to the natural grain present in film being uncovered by the high resolution picture. The salesperson saw what I was talking about and we tried "Shrek 2" (instead of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" that I had brought for testing, and which seems to have had an artifical film grain effect added to appear more realistic). "Shrek 2" looked great, and I didn't notice much grain at all.

I agree that there may be something amiss in the Toshiba's digital processing stages within the set itself, and those may be uncorrectable without some sort of repair, if at all. I've got my set in for warranty service right now (with my main issue being the HDMI banding), and I encourage you try the same if you're still within warranty and aren't able to be happy with the set otherwise.

I have my set going in to repair some of these issues as well including the HDMI banding and the white glow with 720p and 1080i over component. My set is still under warranty which is good. The repair man seems to believe it is all in my head though. :rolleyes:

I have my set going in to repair some of these issues as well including the HDMI banding and the white glow with 720p and 1080i over component. My set is still under warranty which is good. The repair man seems to believe it is all in my head though. :rolleyes:

When you get your set back, please tell us in this thread if you notice a difference or not.

When you get your set back, please tell us in this thread if you notice a difference or not.

will do!

On another note does anyone else feel as though their 30HF85 seems to put off a lot of static electricity? mine seems to have a lot of static electricity coming off of the screen in comparison to the other Tv's in the house but I can't tell if that is just my imagination.

I recently purchased the 34hfx85 (3 days ago). I have been having a problem that I have not seen mentioned here (I've read a lot of the posts in this thread, so if it has, I apologize). On many of the SD channels (not all of them), there are two black vertical lines b/w the picture and the side bars (on 4:3). I have the side bars set to "Medium", and that is why I can see these lines. The black line on the left is about a half inch thick and the one on the right is about 1/4 inch thick. This only occurs on about 10 to 15 SD channels. If I zoom to full screen, then the black lines no longer appear. So, I'm just wondering what you guys think about this. Is this something wrong with the television, or could this be something wrong on the Cable Co.'s end?

I've called my salesman, but he was out of the office. Of course, the first thing out of the mouth of the guy I was talking to was that this is probably being caused by my cable reception. However, my in-laws live right down the road, and they have not had any problems with their Panasonic wide-screen HDTV.

Any ideas about this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks...

P.S. As others have stated, I have not been very impressed with the PQ of this television, either. :(

Keith, it's strange, but I feel my current 30HF85 (November 2005 build) gives off NO static electricity. The screen has remained dust and lint free since I turned it on, and I don't feel the hairs on my arm stand up if I get really near the screen. But my previous couple returned 30HF85 (March 2005 builds) I thought had a lot of static electricity on the screens. I kept having to wipe the screens with a towel every day because of dust and lint build-up.

Weird. Maybe I just imagined it. Hey, maybe you should check the build date of your set, it's on the back. Wait, it must be one of the March 2005 builds because I recall you said you got your set a while back.

Keith, it's strange, but I feel my current 30HF85 (November 2005 build) gives off NO static electricity. The screen has remained dust and lint free since I turned it on, and I don't feel the hairs on my arm stand up if I get really near the screen. But my previous couple returned 30HF85 (March 2005 builds) I thought had a lot of static electricity on the screens. I kept having to wipe the screens with a towel every day because of dust and lint build-up.

Weird. Maybe I just imagined it. Hey, maybe you should check the build date of your set, it's on the back. Wait, it must be one of the March 2005 builds because I recall you said you got your set a while back.

I believe my TV is a March 2005 build. The screen does seem to put out a lot of stactic electricity as you say, since I have noticed that my screen seems to collect dust real easy and I can feel the electricity when I come near it. I can also hear the screen crackling with static elctricity when I turn it and off. Like I say though I can't tell if this is all in my imagination or not but it does seem to put out far more static than the other tV's in my home (including another smaller Toshiba).

Does anyone think that this static electricty thing could be the cause of some of the problems on this TV? perhaps the TV's power supply is faulty?

The power supply on the later Fall 2005 30HF85s are more faulty than the ones on the March 2005 builds. My current Fall unit has terrible power supply problems that cause screen geometry to balloon outwards during dark scenes (tube geometry problems remain constant regardless of whether a scene is dark or light). On my first/oldest Fall unit the known phenomena of image black-out during explosions or bright scenes occured once (and only once), yet another power supply problem.

I've never had any significant power supply problems with the March 2005 units. Perhaps their power supply is better, and that is the reason they give off more static electricity? I don't think the power supply has anything to do with the other problems of the 30HF85s though.

Another difference I feel between the Fall and Spring 2005 30HF85's is that I think the protective glass screens are made of different material. Not only was the static electricity given off different, but I think the Spring 2005 units seemed to have more of an anti-glare coating than my Fall units. The screen on my current unit is pretty reflective. This I strongly suspect is my imagination however. I never had two 30HF85s side by side to compare, and human memory is very fallible.

I would say that the static electricity differences are probably real though, as the two of us have combined to notice and agree on this. It would be interesting to try to find out the reason and/or components behind the differences.

On my first/oldest Fall unit the known phenomena of image black-out during explosions or bright scenes occured once (and only once), yet another power supply problem.

What were you watching when you experienced this blackout? Were you using a dvd or other device through component video? How was it hooked up? Direct connection or through a switchbox?

It was a DVD player playing an anime and some robot made a giant tornado explosion that fills the screen with flashing white light. Since this was several months ago I am not 100% sure what kind of connections I was using but I believe it was through the Component Video inputs, in 480p mode (note: that's not what I use now, I use S-Video in 480i for my DVD player since the quality is better for various reasons). Direct connection, no switchboxes or receivers in the way.

The screen immediately cut to black as the explosion was starting, and stayed that way for several seconds, then came back on. I then replayed that four/five second scene again and again ten times but not once did the problem ever re-occur.

The power supply on the later Fall 2005 30HF85s are more faulty than the ones on the March 2005 builds. My current Fall unit has terrible power supply problems that cause screen geometry to balloon outwards during dark scenes (tube geometry problems remain constant regardless of whether a scene is dark or light). On my first/oldest Fall unit the known phenomena of image black-out during explosions or bright scenes occured once (and only once), yet another power supply problem.

I've never had any significant power supply problems with the March 2005 units. Perhaps their power supply is better, and that is the reason they give off more static electricity? I don't think the power supply has anything to do with the other problems of the 30HF85s though.

Another difference I feel between the Fall and Spring 2005 30HF85's is that I think the protective glass screens are made of different material. Not only was the static electricity given off different, but I think the Spring 2005 units seemed to have more of an anti-glare coating than my Fall units. The screen on my current unit is pretty reflective. This I strongly suspect is my imagination however. I never had two 30HF85s side by side to compare, and human memory is very fallible.

I would say that the static electricity differences are probably real though, as the two of us have combined to notice and agree on this. It would be interesting to try to find out the reason and/or components behind the differences.

that's interesting, thanks for that info. Judging by what you say it sounds as though my geometry problems are more related to the tube itself.

Does anyone happen to have a pic of the color banding over HDMI? I would like to send a pic of the color banding along with my notes/problems to the repair shop with the TV. Also has anyone found a solution to this?

FWIW, I talked to Toshiba today concerning my problems with the television and the fact that I'm not happy with the repair shop that is servicing my TV. Toshiba has directed me to another repair shop nearby where I live. I'm going to be contacting them on Monday as they are closed down for the week because of some company cruise.

The screen immediately cut to black as the explosion was starting, and stayed that way for several seconds, then came back on. I then replayed that four/five second scene again and again ten times but not once did the problem ever re-occur.

This is actually due to a problem with the dc restoration circuitry on the Orioshiba. The 30hf84 suffers from this also. It drove me nuts. My Samsung HD receiver and my dvd player would constantly do this. I finally figured out it was because I was driving the signal through the internal component switch in my Kenwood receiver. If I did a direct connect, everything worked fine. I contacted Video-Storm and purchased a distribution amplifier with dc level restoration. They knew exactly what the problem was, I posted all the info in the 30HF84 thread. (Which I can't find, search is not working)

Here is an excerpt from the Video Storm web site:

DC restoration
All video signals are defined as AC only, with the signal power residing entirely above 60Hz. However, before the signal can be displayed a DC level (< 60 Hz) must be added back in so the monitor can bring the signal within the voltage range of it's input circuits. It is the job of the receiving equipment to perform this task of "DC restoration". Most video displays have properly designed DC restoration circuits, but there are some which do not work fast enough. When this circuit fails, the display will lose sync during some scene transitions.

The Orioshiba is notoriously slow on this.

The power supply on the later Fall 2005 30HF85s are more faulty than the ones on the March 2005 builds. My current Fall unit has terrible power supply problems that cause screen geometry to balloon outwards during dark scenes (tube geometry problems remain constant regardless of whether a scene is dark or light). On my first/oldest Fall unit the known phenomena of image black-out during explosions or bright scenes occured once (and only once), yet another power supply problem.
I wouldn't call the power supply faulty or defective. Orion, probably, has decided to cut costs on production.

Does anyone have a pic of the color banding over HDMI? I'd like to send it in with my TV next week when it goes back in for repair.

Nonnie, is the television's DC restoration circuitry located within the power supply? I just want to know if it is still technically okay for me to call this problem a "power supply issue" or do I have to start calling it something else.

BTW, I'm sad, I discovered a broken "pixel" in the shadow mask of my current 30HF85 yesterday. Oh well. I've seen one broken screen pixel on all of my last three units, so I guess it is normal. I didn't notice any on my first two units, but there could have been some that I failed to notice (I only had those units for one day each).

Do all of you other Toshiba owners have a broken screen pixel too? On my last three units it has always been a single blue pixel, so put up a "blue screen" to see it best. It will appear as a tiny bright blue-white speck on your screen. Since it is so small though, even if you have one and put up a blue screen, you won't even see it unless you look straight exactly where the spot is. So you have to sorta sit there and scan your eyes all over your blue screen for about 5 minutes to look everywhere. Once you find it though it will be easier to find again since you will know where to look. :)

The broken blue pixel was always located on the left half of the screen at relatively center height on all 3 of my units, in slightly different positions on each unit though.

In actual viewing situations, the messed up pixel is only noticeable if a blue object is located on it, and you are looking right at it, so it is almost never noticeable. The only thing that worries me is the possibility that it will get worse over time...? I didn't even notice this latest one for two weeks. It could be that it only "broke" yesterday...

Nonnie, is the television's DC restoration circuitry located within the power supply? I just want to know if it is still technically okay for me to call this problem a "power supply issue" or do I have to start calling it something else.

Don't think it has anything to do with power supply. I found my original post with the response from Video-Storm you can check it out here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=567549&highlight=dc+restoration

Does anybody know if the new HF66 exhibits any of the problems found in the HF85? I just ordered a new Toshiba 26HF66 as well as a new Toshiba D-VR5 HDMI DVD recorder/VCR combo from savingslot.com and will receive them next week. I'm probably the first person in this country to try them. Both are made by Orion. They may not have the best performance, but it is important for me to have the latest and newest models in my home.

Hello everyone. I have been clicking through all these posts for a while now and just want to chime in.

I just returned my 30hf85 to Best Buy and my 34HF85 should be arriving from Crutfield any minute now. I just could not beat the price of the set with a 5 year warranty.

My 30hf85 had the white bar at the top with component cables and the flickering horizontal lines with HDMI. I solved the flickering by switching my cable box(scientific atlanta 8300 hd/dvr) to 720p and the picture looked fantastic.

I dont understand this. It has to be a firmware problem. But thats my computer brain talking.

So, are there ANY 34HF85's out there displaying a 1080i signal properly? Should I keep having Crutfield exchange it untill I get one that does?

Thanks everyone for all your insight.

I just got the 34HF85 set up. It says its assembled in the USA, January 2006, not made in Thailand, November 2005 like the 30HF85 I returned.

Any white glow issues in 1080i and/or HDMI banding??

I just ordered the Toshibs 30HF85 off of NewEgg for $529 plus $70 shipping. I know NewEgg is trustworthy, but is this set a lemon?

I originally went for the Samsung SlimFit "79" but the model was a lemon right out of the box.

What's the best 16x9 HD set for $600-700 for an XBox 360?

I suppose no set at that price does 720p native? I thought the Samsung SlimFit's do (maybe they do) but I got one and it was a lemon and I sent it back. I went for the Toshiba because my parents bought one 3 years ago and the tube is amazing.

Now I'm worried I'm gonna get one that is not up to par.

I hope someone replies in time in case I need to cancel my order.

Thanks!

I just ordered the Toshibs 30HF85 off of NewEgg for $529 plus $70 shipping. I know NewEgg is trustworthy, but is this set a lemon?

I originally went for the Samsung SlimFit "79" but the model was a lemon right out of the box.

What's the best 16x9 HD set for $600-700 for an XBox 360?

I suppose no set at that price does 720p native? I thought the Samsung SlimFit's do (maybe they do) but I got one and it was a lemon and I sent it back. I went for the Toshiba because my parents bought one 3 years ago and the tube is amazing.

Now I'm worried I'm gonna get one that is not up to par.

I hope someone replies in time in case I need to cancel my order.

Thanks!

Actually, the 30hf85 worked great with the cable box in 720p, DVD's, and my Xbox. I wanted a bigger set.

I have not tried 1080i with component yet but there is "slight" horizontal flickering in moving objects with HDMI in 1080i. Crutchfield seems to think it is the interlacing and I have sensitive eyes(comments?). I set my STB to 720p and everything looks fantastic. Im just waiting for my Avia disc.

What do you guys think?

I'm still working on getting my 30hf85 in the shop to correct my bowing problem and address the white haze over component/banding over HDMI.

Today I made my first real progress on it and hope to at least have someone looking at it sometime tommorow or the next day (The wheels of warranty repair grind slowly).

Anyways.... I've been really playing with the set lately and seem to be having all of the problems described in this thread with component and HDMI inputs. After some tinkering and serious XBox 360 gaming I have determined that my November 2005 30HF85 cannot display a 720p or 1080i signal properly (over component or HDMI) without a stupid white haze or banding in the picture.

On top of that, my convergence and geometry is suddenly worse than ever and seriously makes me want to puke every time I turn on the damn TV. I hold some hope that this TV is fixable, but at this point I really don't know. Everytime I turn it on now I just want to puke.

I'm another purchaser bitten by the degradation of Toshiba's current 34" HD set. I've been a Consumer Reports subscriber for many years and when my son decided to buy an HD set a couple of years ago, I recommended he buy the HF84 based on CR test results. When I decided it was time for me to upgrade last summer, Toshiba had just introduced the HF85 and there was very little feedback. But with external dimensions the competition couldn 't match (a perfect fit for my custom built entertainment centre) I proceeded on blind faith. Oh well, white glow and banding on HDMI along with terrible focus even on 480 sent the first one back...all 160lbs of it. Then came the second one. Focus was better but white glow on component and HDMI and banding on HDMI was still there. I have two seperate HD digital sources and four component video sources so trouble shooting wasn't too big a problem. Of course factory settings are a joke and black crush was unbelievable so out came AVIA. I can help the crush a bit and improve the colour a bunch but it still doesn't hold a candle to my son's HF 84. I had a chance to get one of the last HF84's from another retailer but shoulda coulda woulda doesn't count. Now I'm into a warranty situation and from what I've seen here, they can't fix it. Time to put Toshiba on notice...fix it or refund my money.

I'm another purchaser bitten by the degradation of Toshiba's current 34" HD set. I've been a Consumer Reports subscriber for many years and when my son decided to buy an HD set a couple of years ago, I recommended he buy the HF84 based on CR test results. When I decided it was time for me to upgrade last summer, Toshiba had just introduced the HF85 and there was very little feedback. But with external dimensions the competition couldn 't match (a perfect fit for my custom built entertainment centre) I proceeded on blind faith. Oh well, white glow and banding on HDMI along with terrible focus even on 480 sent the first one back...all 160lbs of it. Then came the second one. Focus was better but white glow on component and HDMI and banding on HDMI was still there. I have two seperate HD digital sources and four component video sources so trouble shooting wasn't too big a problem. Of course factory settings are a joke and black crush was unbelievable so out came AVIA. I can help the crush a bit and improve the colour a bunch but it still doesn't hold a candle to my son's HF 84. I had a chance to get one of the last HF84's from another retailer but shoulda coulda woulda doesn't count. Now I'm into a warranty situation and from what I've seen here, they can't fix it. Time to put Toshiba on notice...fix it or refund my money.

I'm in a similar position with my 30HF85. I'm going to wait and see what this second service center says/does and if they tell me that they can't fix my problems with the set I'm going to be notifying Toshiba that I would like a refund.

Where and when were your sets built?

If you guys can't get a refund from Toshiba, see if they would be open to the possibility of a credit toward another Toshiba set. Their LCD's are phenomenal. Vibrant, crisp pq in HD, doesn't even need to be callibrated. SD looks great too. I have the 37HL95 and I am very happy with it. Has very good reviews. If size is an issue, the 32hl95 and 37hl95 are roughly the same dimensions as the 30hf85 and 34hf85 without the depth and weight. I thought my 30hf84 had a great picture (don't have the glow or banding) but it cannot hold a candle to my 37hl95.

And most importantly, designed and built by Toshiba. (not Orioshiba)

My HF85 says "assembled in the USA" but I'll bet the components aren't. I had to wait for it to arrive in July last year so probably assembled spring 05.

Where and when were your sets built?

I bought my 30HF85 in May of 2005 so it is probably either a November or March build. I don't know where it was built though.

Build date is on the back of the set, Month and Year.

I also cannot find the difference between the 34hf85 and the 34hfx85.

I also cannot find the difference between the 34hf85 and the 34hfx85.

Pretty sure it is the ATSC tuner.

Black bezel and enhanced remote. That is the only difference.

They have some nerve charging $100 plus for the slight difference between these two units.

I also noticed that the fx has a total of 20 watts for the speakers. That might be for a sub? Not that I care about that since I would not use the sets speakers anyway.

Thanks for your input.

Keith if you bought your 30HF85 around May 2005 it has to be a March 2005 build. The November 2005 units were not yet built at that time, obviously!! ^_^

Sorry to hear that your convergence which was fixed has now gone back to being crap.... -_-;

BTW, I found that the V.SYMM setting in the Service Menu did have a big impact on my unit's poor horizontal bowing geometry. It couldn't fix it completely but when I learned to use this control properly it reduced the horizontal bending by about a factor of three, a HUGE improvement. I still dunno what this setting really does, but it is the only setting that has the potential to straighten out bent horizontal lines. Values range from 0 to 255, default is 128. However, the different numerical values you can give to it do weird things. They will be subtle and hard to notice so try to put up a good test pattern or menu when playing with V.SYMM. The way your screen looks will tend to cycle as you change V.SYMM. For example at 150 looks the same as at 180, and at 210, etc. I currently have my set at 140 and the difference was great.

I still have various weird horizontal geometry problems but they are better than before. My current unit developed a new problem though which is annoying me. I know it's a defect because none of my previous units had this problem, and this problem only suddenly appeared after 2 weeks of viewing the TV. It's a dark horizontal region/band at the bottom of my screen in which the image is darker than normal. Looks like burn-in, but it's not (tested in various ways). My RGB convergence is still dead-on though, couldn't be more perfect, the best thing about this set.

A lot of people complain about the 1080i white glow and HDMI banding (which I've not yet seen since I haven't put up any HD signals) but I find that these sets have general quality problems that affect everything which to me would be of greater concern (RGB convergence, geometry, YC Delay, other stupid defects etc).

Regarding white glow, some people complain about the white glow the 4:3 sidebars inflict but those don't bother me in the slightest. In case people didn't notice, EVERYTHING glows on the Toshibas (and probably all CRT HDTVs to some extent). Put up some bright white text over a black background and there will be a slight white haze around them. The electron gun sort of bleeds electrons all over from where it is trying to shoot so there is a very very very slight haze around all stuffs.

My HF85 says "assembled in the USA" but I'll bet the components aren't. I had to wait for it to arrive in July last year so probably assembled spring 05.
From what I read in this thread, it is assembled in the USA by Orion America in Princeton, Indiana with parts and components manufactured in Thailand and elsewhere.

Keith if you bought your 30HF85 around May 2005 it has to be a March 2005 build. The November 2005 units were not yet built at that time, obviously!! ^_^

Sorry to hear that your convergence which was fixed has now gone back to being crap.... -_-;

BTW, I found that the V.SYMM setting in the Service Menu did have a big impact on my unit's poor horizontal bowing geometry. It couldn't fix it completely but when I learned to use this control properly it reduced the horizontal bending by about a factor of three, a HUGE improvement. I still dunno what this setting really does, but it is the only setting that has the potential to straighten out bent horizontal lines. Values range from 0 to 255, default is 128. However, the different numerical values you can give to it do weird things. They will be subtle and hard to notice so try to put up a good test pattern or menu when playing with V.SYMM. The way your screen looks will tend to cycle as you change V.SYMM. For example at 150 looks the same as at 180, and at 210, etc. I currently have my set at 140 and the difference was great.

I still have various weird horizontal geometry problems but they are better than before. My current unit developed a new problem though which is annoying me. I know it's a defect because none of my previous units had this problem, and this problem only suddenly appeared after 2 weeks of viewing the TV. It's a dark horizontal region/band at the bottom of my screen in which the image is darker than normal. Looks like burn-in, but it's not (tested in various ways). My RGB convergence is still dead-on though, couldn't be more perfect, the best thing about this set.

A lot of people complain about the 1080i white glow and HDMI banding (which I've not yet seen since I haven't put up any HD signals) but I find that these sets have general quality problems that affect everything which to me would be of greater concern (RGB convergence, geometry, YC Delay, other stupid defects etc).

Regarding white glow, some people complain about the white glow the 4:3 sidebars inflict but those don't bother me in the slightest. In case people didn't notice, EVERYTHING glows on the Toshibas (and probably all CRT HDTVs to some extent). Put up some bright white text over a black background and there will be a slight white haze around them. The electron gun sort of bleeds electrons all over from where it is trying to shoot so there is a very very very slight haze around all stuffs.

I played around with the Vsymm adjustment but that didn't seem to help me much. The more I notice the bowing, the more I think it bows more on the right side of the screen which may be kind of a tough problem to fix.

I've also noticed a dark spot on the right side of my screen that curves and makes a crescent shape from top to bottom of the screen. It is only noticeable on black screens and dark images but it is definently not burn-in.

Above all, the problems that this High def set has with actually displaying high def (i.e., banding over HDMI, and white glow in 1080i) are most disparaging. I've also noticed banding over component in 1080i. As I said, this is most troubling since the set is a HDTV but can't even seem to display HD properly.

The white glow off of pillarbox bars is also quite annoying and I'm not quite sure that this isn't just another defect with this television. I too have noticed a haze around lettering and other things.

Hey all. I just called the service center that has my set. The tech was very pleasant and helpful. He said that Toshiba had recommended that the EEPROM (the flash memory chip that holds the firmware code for the set) be replaced, so that's currently on order. He just placed the order last Thursday, so he doesn't have a confirmation back yet from Toshiba with the estimated arrival date. As soon as he gets that he'll let me know.

I then tried to dig and get more information. He said that in discussion about the symptoms and troubleshooting with Toshiba they suspected the EEPROM might have been either incorrectly or incompletely written, and that was causing the issues in processing the HDMI data. He said Toshiba hadn't reported any update or new version of the firmware beyond what my set already had (OEC7118A_032), so they're sending a new chip which I assume will be double-checked and verified correctly and completely written.

As always, I'll continue to post updates as I know more.

Is the 1080i white glow through component more, less, or equally noticeable to the white glow that comes from the 4:3 pillarboxes? That level of glowing doesn't bother me one bit.

I called the regional service centre for Toshiba today and spoke to one of their techs. He said they've had several of the 34HF85's in with the same problems I described ie white glow and banding on HDMI inputs. He claimed they successfully repaired the banding problem with a "digital board" replacement. The white glow is apparently "a CRT issue" which is also repairable. He suggested I deal with it before the warranty expires. He tells me it will take at least two weeks or longer so I'll have to find a replacement before I call them to pick it up. I'll keep you posted.

Can someone possibly tell me the exact way to tell if my set is doing this banding and white glow stuff. I can test Hd over component via my PS2 and GT4 (there is a white glow on top loading screen, I thought it was suppose to look like that, is that the white glow??? Everything seems normal during gameplay...) and I can test for banding via PC-DVI-HDMI. I don't know what this looks like, so could someone explain. I love this set, but if these are really problems, I want them fixed before warranty runs out! Thanks!

Ok, here is what it looks like, is this normal in the loading screens of gt4 on 1080i?

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/503/cam1306ji.th.jpg (http://img127.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cam1306ji.jpg)

Edit: 26hf85 BTW July 2005 Build, in Asia...

i have the 26hf85 and loading screens on my xbox and dark content on my time warner HD STB look like that. This is my 2nd one by the way.

Thank god i found this forum as i was going crazy with these tv's!

i will be taking this one back too and getting something else... too bad i really liked it

*can anybody suggest a sutable replacement?*

Ok, here is what it looks like, is this normal in the loading screens of gt4 on 1080i?

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/503/cam1306ji.th.jpg (http://img127.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cam1306ji.jpg)

Edit: 26hf85 BTW July 2005 Build, in Asia...

That is exactly what my 30hf85 looks like at 1080i.

Can someone possibly tell me the exact way to tell if my set is doing this banding and white glow stuff. I can test Hd over component via my PS2 and GT4 (there is a white glow on top loading screen, I thought it was suppose to look like that, is that the white glow??? Everything seems normal during gameplay...) and I can test for banding via PC-DVI-HDMI. I don't know what this looks like, so could someone explain. I love this set, but if these are really problems, I want them fixed before warranty runs out! Thanks!
Looks like you've confirmed the white glow already. As far as the HDMI banding, as my set's in the shop I can't take a picture. However, I posted a text description of the problem in this post. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7383882&&#post7383882)

Since you're using a PC, I'd just ensure you're sending 1080i to the set, then play a movie full screen and watch carefully. I'm not sure if, using a PC like that, you will be sending a true 1080i HDMI-compliant signal in that setup (this is outside the bounds of my current knowledge). To be totally sure I'd probably get some sort of native HDMI source that can output 1080i. Otherwise there might be still be some conversion going on in the set itself that could sidestep/hide the problem.

On the other hand, if you don't see the issue with your DVI->HDMI PC setup, and don't plan to use any other HDMI devices in the future, maybe it doesn't matter.

Well the problem is I don't have any other HDMI or DVI devices, if I throw 1920x1080 with no under/over scan at it I'm assuming no conversion will be taking place...

Edit: And I think I kinda know what you're talking about by banding now, I've noticed it on my PC screen, when I move the mouse in some place there is a band that looks different all the way across the screen, but hey, this monitor was free, if it does it on my new HDTV... Thats a different story... :)