I have only 350 hours on my H79 and the brightness has been cut down by almost 60%!........making the picture almost unwatchable except in total darkness.....and this is on my Vutec Silverstar screen!......... I was told that a possible problem might be stray voltage coming from the DVI port on the pj causing premature lamp deterioration.......anyone know anything about this and a possible fix? Right now, my H79 is connected to a Geffen DVI switcher. (When I connect the pj to my Denon 4806 to use that as a switcher, the picture strangely gets even a tad dimmer). I really don't want to go through the hassle of shipping my unit off to Optoma...yet I can't fantom the possibility of going through new bulbs every 350 hours. :(

Do you have a bulb to put in and test? If it's the bulb at 350 hours I think you'd have a case for replacement bulb.

Scott

Unfortunately, it's been well over 90 days and I don't think it's covered in this case. I already ordered a new bulb.

Fortunately Optoma treats the H79 as their Cadillac machine. They will hot swap out the H79 for dimming problems like you're reporting for up to 1 year.

Hai,

I can confirm Toms remark, i had a problem with my H78 thats more than a year old and they replaced the machine with a new machine including a new bulb. The old bulb was at 1500h. They even canceled my order for a new bulb since they figured i didn't want 2 bulbs.

Daniel.

So much for the "horrible" Optoma customer service that dealers are always saying is why they dont carry Optoma.

Over a year, this it true also. Sometimes they will stretch the time line a bit for you. So don't fear the 90day bulb policy on the H79.

Just horrible service! Right! :)

My H79's brightness is down about 50% after 366 hours, but it started out at 600 lumens in the Low brightness mode, so I had a lot of light to spare. I'm still getting 12 FtL on my 92" unity gain screen in the Low mode, 17 FtL if I want to switch to the Brite Mode. Unfortunately, I find the fan noise a little annoying in the Brite mode, so I may be looking for a bulb fairly soon as well.

Tom, do you attribute this to a defective projector or to a defective bulb? (Are you going to send your unit to Optoma?.........to me, dimming this much so soon is not reasonable).

Tom, do you attribute this to a defective projector or to a defective bulb?
Neither. It's pretty common for bulbs to lose their initial brightness fairly quickly. I'm assuming that this is NOT a linear curve. If the bulb loses another 50% in the next 366 hrs., then that will be troubling.

If the bulb loses another 50% in the next 366 hrs., then that will be troubling.

You'll be lucky to make it anywhere close to another 366 hours at all IMO. Enjoy your last bit of brightness while it lasts.

PSB, I feel your pain man. The bulb situation with the H79 is beyond unacceptable. You are not alone. There have been many posts and at least one other dedicated thread about this. I know that pj bulbs are unreliable, finicky consumables but it seems the H79 has had much more than its fair share of early bulb failures. Something is not right. I'm purposely leaving my H79 off on nights when I feel like watching just cause I'm worried about the bulb life/cost. My new bulb has 85 hours and the brightness is already down by about 30%. I measured 10% loss at only 14 hours! It's ridiculous!

I finally called Optoma about my original bulb dying at 360 hours (outputting 10 lumens) and was told "Sorry, 90 day warranty on bulbs." I then said that I heard H79's were covered under warranty with the hot swap program for bulb problems within the first year. The tech (George) then told me to fax in my proof of purchase and he'd ask his boss about it. I did that the next day (yesterday) and then called back a few hours later. The boss was supposedly on jury duty but would be back later that day and would call me on my cell. I received no call back as of yet. I will call back tomorrow if I don't hear from them today.

Bottom line: You might get them to do a hot swap if you twist their arm. They will certainly try to put you off if they can. All is not roses with Optoma service, except for guitarman of course! :)

Possibly I'm being impatient and skeptical. I would certainly love to post some good news about Optoma customer support and certainly will should they give me reason to do so.

Brent

Mine's less than a year old, has about 300 hours and is starting to dim. I switched from Eco mode to Bright a few weeks ago and it's better. I'm curious, how exactly do you measure the exact brightness of the bulb, because if there's a problem I certainly want to get the unit replaced before a year's time.

how exactly do you measure the exact brightness of the bulb
You have to purchase an instrument. Probably the cheapest and most accurate would be the AEMC CA813 light meter. It's about $150.00.

I think I rememeber the method for getting lumens. . . . Take a reading at the screen towards the bulb in Lux and divide by 10.79 * screen gain. This gets you FtL. Then multiply FtL by the Square Feet of the screen size and you have lumens.

Anything much below 300 lumens will probably be too dim for most screens. SMPTE recommends 12 FtL as a target brightness.

I finally called Optoma about my original bulb dying at 360 hours (outputting 10 lumens)

10 lumens at 360 hours is clearly a defective bulb. So far, mine seems to show a normal, if slightly accelerated, rate of decline.

Hai,

Let me make a few remarks about my 'happy post' on optoma :

1) Im in europe so support is coming from ThemeScene the europe part. I can only respond to their actions and sofar they have been good. But consider that ThemeScene allways had a 3 year gar. deal on the H7x models unlike the states same with the swapouts.

2) I can only comment on my old blub, it ages about the same way as the projectors ive used before this one. I first ran it for 800 in low mode, then moved to bright mode fully expecting to have to replace it at about 1500. Ive had my share of problems in the past with bulbs so i don't distrust any of your horror stories.

3) I think the H7x is a fine product for the money and support for me has been ok but Tom and me are not on the same page on alot of topics and there are alot of areas where optoma can improve. We now have several optoma people on avs and thats a good step, them using some of our feedback would be a second step all the talk on the H77/H78/H79 didn't result in any change in the software or hardware sofar (for example its silly they all still claim H77 in the software and simple things are not fixed like the 2 output levels, remote and lets not even talk about the fool who figured putting a bright blue light on it was a smart idea).


Daniel.

and lets not even talk about the fool who figured putting a bright blue light on it was a smart idea).


LOL! :p Right! Fortunantly I have my H79 mounted in another room with a hole through the wall for the lens so the blue light is not a problem.

As far as measuring brightness Tom is right about needing a meter. That's what I did although I used a different formula. It's simply:

lux * screen area in meters = lumens

I got 2.7 lux for a 3.7 meter screen (101" wide) = 10 lumens. Not even watchable. To get ft/l multiply the lumens by any screen gain and divide by the area of your screen in sq. ft.

My new bulb only measured 414 lumens new and I'm now only at about 300 lumens at 85 hours. Gee, I guess I got another bad bulb? :confused: My original bulb was probably only putting out 150 lumens from about 200 hours to the time it dumped at about 360 hours.

Brent

I've e-mailed and called Optoma tech support numerous times and so far, no response......this may very well be my first and LAST Optoma product :mad:

BTW, my H79 is now at 362 hours and I'm guessing it's at about 6-7 ft. lumens......it's so dim even in total darkness, I have to crank-up my brightness and contract to maximum to come anywhere close to watchable (no more blacks for me!).....it gives you a headache after about 10 minutes......my last pj, a Sharp Z10000, lasted close to a 1000 hours on the original bulb before even starting to get dim.........I don't know if I have a "lemon" pj or a bulb but this sort of quality control and customer service is simply unacceptable for these pricey machines.

If the story is consistent, then it sounds like the projector is not cooling the bulb properly, thus leading to early failures.

Great projector bad bulb design.
My first bulb gone at 500 Hrs.
My 2nd bulb now flickering at 300....

Yes, they built a great projector but have screwed up on the bulb!
I'm dumping the H/79 as soon as I can. I have a ceiling mount set up
and it is more that a chore to change it constantly! Not to mention
a dollar an hour viewing time considering the bulb costs.....

Next..projector solutions please....Any suggestions?

Great projector bad bulb design.
My first bulb gone at 500 Hrs.
My 2nd bulb now flickering at 300....
What makes you so sure the problem is not related to cooling mechanism? Does this bulb display the same problem with other FPs?

The silence comes at a premium I am sure, Have you ever felt the metal plate on top of the bulb area after an hour? (assuming it is ceiling mounted)

This projector runs VERY hot, in fact every Optoma I have setup runs hot,... very but quiet.

I sure as hell hope this is wrong, because I dumped a Mt700 for this reason, and have no where to go but down from here.

My bulb is flickering here and there after initial startup, but still very bright and punchy at 260ish Anything less than 1000 usable hours from a marketed 3000 is cause to not support Optoma, hell what about the HD81....will that need a bulb every 6 months as well?


I am getting nervous now...?!!?

TJ

great thread.
may have just saved me $3500 :)

i was considering a H78 as an upgrade from a HT1000, but not if there is a good chance i will get less than 1000 hrs from each bulb (in eco mode no less).

issues like this are a deal killer

Good for you....

hopefully manufacturers will be held to specs or at the least rate them accordingly in the very near future, hopefully Optoma techs read this thread..

I mean who are/they we kidding? No one here takes stock in bulb ratings as it is, 3k hours...yeah right?...but more than 500 usable hours on a 3.5k PJ is the LEAST you should expect.

Peak unusable 9k color temp on/off ratios etc.....

I am getting very discouraged in many manufacturers lack of concern over these mis-truths and deception.

If we keep the lies and "perceived value" marketing alive, we only have ourselves to blame.

If Optoma with a clear conscience can deny claims on bulbs in their flagship machines with obvious flaws...they don't deserve our business, even though the PJ puts out an incredible picture for the money.

How can Sim deliver units with similar specs and long bulb life? Don't sell me on the "higher end" component hoopla....a good stable supply voltage and adequate cooling is all that is need to get advertised life out of a lamp.

It is very disappointing....

TJ

Sheesh, how am I supposed to buy an H79 with these kind of results.

You can't use memory or eye you need a light meter. One I tested at 1200hrs went from 15ftc to 8ftc, putting the PJ in bright mode brought it back up to viewable levels. We're talking about drastic light drop, to the point where the image is unviewable at low hour levels. Some have said the image light was gone, here they can hot swap. When Optoma gets the PJ back they'll know if the bulb is shot or just normal level drop similar to what I quoted above. I don't want the masses to get the idea that just a lower tone on the bulb gives them a shot at new free one. ;)

You can't use memory or eye you need a light meter. One I tested at 1200hrs went from 15ftc to 8ftc, putting the PJ in bright mode brought it back up to viewable levels. We're talking about drastic light drop, to the point where the image is unviewable at low hour levels. Some have said the image light was gone, here they can hot swap. When Optoma gets the PJ back they'll know if the bulb is shot or just normal level drop similar to what I quoted above. I don't want the masses to get the idea that just a lower tone on the bulb gives them a shot at new free one. ;)

I agree the point is there is a support problem Tom (maybe you can help?) There are 2 simple facts :

1) too many have shipped to be a real problem, maybe avs can comment on the number of problems with H77/H78/H79. If you get one you should/may expect normal light drops its that simple.

2) too many have shipped to not have bulb problems on these forums, we have seen them on most if not all projectors over time we all pray for a bulb less projector since its
just the weak point of most of the projectors at this point.

so imho don't take a H78dc3 or H79 of your shopping lists because of the bulb problems if you do then watch the support issue that this poster has. Projecrtors will have problems (sadly) its how a company handles them that makes the difference.

Again i on my first bulb (swapped at 1500) i didn't have any weird drops. My new one is already at 85hours (i watch alot and mostly 4 to 5 hour sessions) in a weeks. Since ive wondered about this i will try to get a lux meter today and track it (seems like fun).

Daniel.

My lamp was "out of life" according to Optoma USA tech support. I had about 400 hrs on the lamp. Even though it was almost a month past the 90 day lamp warranty, they took care of me and replaced it with a new one. (Thanks Thomas :D)

My lamp was "out of life" according to Optoma USA tech support. I had about 400 hrs on the lamp. Even though it was almost a month past the 90 day lamp warranty, they took care of me and replaced it with a new one. (Thanks Thomas :D)
Did you ask how long they will keep replacing bulbs for free one after another if they keep dying like this?

I think this post save me money as well! I was ready to buy a H79 any day now! now I have to figure out a replacement with same picture quality or better, low fan db, bulb hour spec about 3000 hrs and same price range!
any suggestions?
todd

oh yeah, good support too.

How about a Panasonic AE900? It would cost less, has the same resolution, I think it is brighter, but I don't know about expected lamp life. I'm considering selling my H-79 and buying one myself...:)

thinking BenQ PE8720, havent heard anything bad yet about it. a bit $$ though

Hai,

As promised i got a lux meter and did some testing, im new at this but the numbers i got are close to the ones Tom and widescreen review posted so can't be that bad :

bulb at 50h
normal mode 430 lumens (101.8 lux * 4.01m2)
bright mode 570 lumens (135 lux * 4.01m2)

screen gain of 1.2 gives me 515 and 684 lumens what results in 11.4 F-fl and 15.1 F-fl

for cr i did them at 1 meter (not sure if that is the best way) and got 3561:1 for normal mode and 3276:1 for bright mode.

So do these numbers make any sense ?, i use alot of hours so ill keep track now every 50h to see what happens.

Daniel.

PS: I think the H79 is nice but the benq is better value at the moment, its late in the game but with its pricedrops very nice. We have no idea how its bulb will be :).

Man thats not good news. I just got My H79 last week. Hopeing to keep it for a few years.
Now I wonder if I should send it back. But mine did come with a spare bulb. It would be ok if it at least got 500 hrs on 1 bulb. Do You guys think its a cooling problem? Maybe I will add some kind of fan to it. Or send it back. It does have a nice picture.

Man thats not good news. I just got My H79 last week. Hopeing to keep it for a few years.
Now I wonder if I should send it back. But mine did come with a spare bulb. It would be ok if it at least got 500 hrs on 1 bulb. Do You guys think its a cooling problem? Maybe I will add some kind of fan to it. Or send it back. It does have a nice picture.

Read the whole thread, imho there are no huge problems with the H77/H78/H79. Its clear some on this thread have a problem with their machines and thats a support issue. The 550 lumens number is very respectable compared to other models, If you worry about support on the bulbs then ask your dealer about it. I for one will be unhappy if this bulb doesn't work as well as my last one (that lasted 1500h before i ordered this one).

Daniel.

You have to purchase an instrument. Probably the cheapest and most accurate would be the AEMC CA813 light meter. It's about $150.00.

I think I rememeber the method for getting lumens. . . . Take a reading at the screen towards the bulb in Lux and divide by 10.79 * screen gain. This gets you FtL. Then multiply FtL by the Square Feet of the screen size and you have lumens.

Anything much below 300 lumens will probably be too dim for most screens. SMPTE recommends 12 FtL as a target brightness.

Not wanting to correct a ISF but its also true that if you pick random theaters you will find that alot of them don't get near the 12 number. Someone tested this (use search) and found anything from 6 to 12 in real cases. How much you like is personal ofcourse and not saying the 12 number is not correct its just not the case that most theaters follow it either.

Daniel.

Thanks for the reply Danielo. 1500 hrs is good news.

Not wanting to correct a ISF but its also true that if you pick random theaters you will find that alot of them don't get near the 12 number. Someone tested this (use search) and found anything from 6 to 12 in real cases. How much you like is personal ofcourse and not saying the 12 number is not correct its just not the case that most theaters follow it either.
You aren't. I made no claims about what theaters actually do and I have no opinion on this. I only quoted--accurately--what SMPTE recommends.

You aren't. I made no claims about what theaters actually do and I have no opinion on this. I only quoted--accurately--what SMPTE recommends.

Sorry didn't mean to aim at you personally, but make a statement on the fact that if you go lower than 12 it doesn't mean its unwatchable and made refererence to numbers in real theaters we all enjoy. As my numbers show i will have a hard time keeping the 12 number on my screen once my bulb ages and knew this before i got it (infact moved from a 2 gain to 1.2 gain screen) its a compomise i made and planned to combat by early bulb replaces.

One of the confusing things is the numbers projector makes give they are so limited and suspect we need real testers (like found on these forums) to get the numbers and people get upset they only get 600 lumens out of a projector that claims 1000.

Daniel.

I think that Optoma needs to rewrite there firmware to get more adequate cooling. I brought this up about 9 months ago. Ever wonder why they offer the extra lamp through a lot of their dealer chains? They know they have a problem, now they need to step up to the plate and fix the lamp problem once and for all. My latest unit {I have had a few H77 swap outs so I think it's the 5th} at 280 hrs has dropped now by half the output. That just is not acceptable to me, and it should not be to anybody else. If you do not bitch to Optoma they will never fix it.

I think they should just recall the whole H76,77,78,79 series projector line and either fix them right or just scrap them and give us all a HD7300 free or a HD81 at a very good discount. Come on Optoma put it in drive and help us.

Dale

the H-79 is one of the quietest projectors on the market...Were you expecting a free lunch? If the projector is quiet, then they either have some sort of sophisticated noiseless cooling system (they don't) or they have somehow figured out how to defeat the laws of physics using ordinary fans (they didn't)...Or they simply run them hotter than they should...;)

Hmm, to minimize the fan noise they slow the fan down making them run hotter putting more stain on the electonics causing breakdowns and unsatisfied customers! what a great concept Optoma has ;) I'd rather have the fan noise and a longer lasting great picture.

Someone with a dimming bulb over 300-400 hrs should pull it and take pics of the reflector assembly.
My Ht1000 and Lt240k had this issue with overheating and bulb failure.

The reflector showed signs of the over temps, I would do it but mine is ceiling mounted in such a way that it would be a PITA, and I have a lot of SNOW removal to contend with before settling in for a double feature this afternoon :)

When I first got the unit I commented on how hot it got, I am no engineer but have had 7+ PJs. What I will say is, if this unit has the adequate volumetric efficiency the metal plate above the bulb assembly (inverted) would not heat soak as much as it does, you can barely hold your hand on it after 1+ hours of use...and that is surface, internals must be 20+ degrees to account for that level of saturation at a min.

There is no reason a PJ of this footprint should saturate like that, in my buying I figured the size dictated less "turns" of air and lower fan speed by size. As big as it is is should be cool to the touch. My Mt700?Pe7700 which was a turd :) ran cooler surface and exit temps than this one, slightly louder but acceptable, we all know those PJs have a big bulb problem more lkely related to a poor ballast/supply problem.

But generally you don't post " ok today was a perfect PJ day, no problems, talk to ya later"
The cross section of posts will give a false positive for errors based on that fact.

Maybe a poll is in order to track this, and as this thread has developed I already can say that Optoma lost 12000 in sales because of it. The bottom line does more to motivate a manufacturer than anything else.

if reports on "true" internal UHP lamp pricings are correct, then Optoma is in a position to handle this properly. 12000 vs 300 max if the accounts were reported to have been solved acceptably by Optoma.


Properly struck and cooled the lamps in PJs should have no problems going 1500+ hrs being cconsiderably dimmer at their half-life. Again, look at Sim...why don't more manufacturers take a page from their playbook.

One of the first if not the first qualifications you apply to a PJ purchase is bulb life and life....if you were a vendor, you would think a great reputation would go a long way towards helping move your product.

I realize that the lamps=revenue... but early failures and problems=brand bashing and abandonment. It's a double edged sword...


I still love this picture, but as I have said, I am sick of manufacturers hiding behind the one big caveat of FP...if they were smart they would market and support it better as an industry and their sales would increase, negating the reasoning behind engineered obsolescence...


TJ

Hmm, to minimize the fan noise they slow the fan down making them run hotter putting more stain on the electonics causing breakdowns and unsatisfied customers! what a great concept Optoma has ;) I'd rather have the fan noise and a longer lasting great picture.


Exactly what I am trying to say. I would rather have noisy reliable projector than a quite unreliable one. :)

Dale

Bob I agree with you 100%. I just wished I could go back time and bought a 7210. I would be much more happy right now if I did. It was a very hard decision that day because I was almost bought the Knoll from John but decided to go with the H77 with extra yr warranty and free lamp instead from PP. I guess I F-up didn’t I. Now I sit in my cave watching a poorly light - dull looking screen. Lesson learned. The amount of money I have wrapped up in shipping units back to Optoma would have made up for the price difference between them at the time. :(

By the way do you still have your 7210?

Dale

Imagine that the "hand-picked" bulbs for the H79 have a marketed higher output initially, and they are dimming with that headroom to these levels. What can I expect with my H78dc3 and it's lowly assembly line variety lamp.

#

Surrounding temperature should be less than 55 C
#

Operating voltage : The average operating voltage should deviate from the rayed voltage indicated on the type plate by no more than 3%
Sudden voltage deviations of more than +/- 10% may cause the lamp to go out.
Permanent operation at a voltage above or below the rated supply voltage may lead to changes in the light color and a reduction in the life of the lamp.


Maybe hand picked units that are found to be brighter "burn" hotter or possibly the H79 has the voltage bumped in the regulator circuit to achieve the margin? The select few actually may be out of tolerance causing the higher output initially with a trade off of lifespan, inherent regeneration as speced for UHP bulbs by reducing deposits, etc

Who knows, but my H78DC3 is at 280ish and seems reasonably bright still, a few flickers in a 10min startup cycle have me concerned...but all is well for now.

TJ

If we look at the latest DLP projectors to hit the market, such as the H79, EP8720, HC3000, etc... they're all rated 23-25 db, so this would mean that they all should have lamp-problems? I doubt this is the case.

The H-series from Optoma are popular projectors, so the question really is how many % of the people who bought one, actually have problems? People are now jumping to the BenQ 8720, a very good projector, I'm sure, but how many of us actually have one? Will in a few months, when a lot more people have this projector, we see similar postings as with the H79???

I would like to see a shootout between the H79, HC3000, and the 8720. I hope the guys at avshop.be will do one, as they sell all three of them. In any case, the H79 and 8720 are in the same price-league, so it should be interesting. :D

By the way do you still have your 7210?
No, when I bought the Ruby, a good friend of mine wanted to buy one of my DLPs...He chose the brighter 7210 despite it being quite a bit louder.
If we look at the latest DLP projectors to hit the market, such as the H79, EP8720, HC3000, etc... they're all rated 23-25 db, so this would mean that they all should have lamp-problems? I doubt this is the case.
No, hopefully there isn't a problem either here or with other near silent running projectors. I owned both an InFocus 7210 and Optoma H-79, and in my review I noted that the 7210 is a significantly louder and cooler operating projector, while the Optoma is nearly dead silent but runs much hotter - thus the reason for my "no free lunch" comments. Hopefully the operating temperature, though significantly hotter than the 7210, is still within proper operational limits - I really don't know.
The H-series from Optoma are popular projectors, so the question really is how many % of the people who bought one, actually have problems?
My unit, as warm as it runs, has not exhibited any unnatural brightness loss. Though I did not have the measuring tools when the lamp was new, I measured the H-79 at ~300 lumens at 300 hours, and that is after ISF calibration. I stress the point of it being post calibration because I lost significant brightness right after calibration, though like I said, I don't know how much. Though the brightness of a H-79 might be fine for unity or low gain screens when new, I really feel that it needs to be paired with something like a High Power as the lamp ages. The 7210, which has lost ~45% of its initial brightness after 450 hours despite its cooler operation, is still plenty bright (around 485 lumens if I remember correctly) on a Firehawk.

Personally I think the talk about my bulb is dim is getting a little goofy. I have an HT1000 (1200hrs) that is at 5ftc and it still looks excellent on the Graywolf and ceiling mounted. The 1200 houred H77's are at 10ftc.
jmo

the H-79 is one of the quietest projectors on the market...Were you expecting a free lunch? If the projector is quiet, then they either have some sort of sophisticated noiseless cooling system (they don't) or they have somehow figured out how to defeat the laws of physics using ordinary fans (they didn't)...Or they simply run them hotter than they should...;)
But Optoma claims they have special method called something like cooling tunnel to archieve low noise. According to that they are not just running cooling fans at too low speed.

Obiviously they have made some error in the design. There's a long tube where air goes but there is only one cooling fan in that tunnel beside lamp around in the middle of that tube. I think designs like that should include one fan near intake and another near exhaust to make it work properly.

Guitarman, have you discussed with Optoma if they know anything about bulb problems? If root cause for early bulb failures is bulb itself or inadequate cooling of bulb, will they come up with solution? Obiviously problem is not just dimming, but there are a lot of failing lamps too.

It is good if they will warranty lamps for one year, but i'm sure there are a lot of H7x owners who have planned to keep it for few years but if bulbs last for less than 300-500 hours, bulb cost will be ridiculous in long run. You have spent price of a projector for bulbs in couple of years.

Tom I would bet that the H series would at least have a 30% lamp fail below 600 hrs. That is not good. Lets face the fact that not everybody has $350 to piss away very 6 to 9 months because of a lamp or projector manufactures problems. That is money that could be spent on move DVDs or towards other HT equipment. :D

Remember when NEC had their lamp issues with the HT1000. At least they stepped up to the plate and replaced them. Or Sony with the HS10 at least they made mods for improving the case and lamp ballast to improve it. Optoma seems to be hiding their problem by offering a free replacement lamp with the purchase. Knowing dam well they have an issue. I guess they will swap a H79 the first year for lamp issues. But what about the H77 and H78? We are customers to. :mad: I do think that all manufactures should be held to at least 50% their specs for lamp life warranty. 90 days just is not long enough.

Yes there are other manufactures with lamp issues also. They also need to be held accountable for it. I feel it is not too much to ask for at least 1000 hr and 1 year. And as far as for the idiot that unplugs or just turns off and tries to restrike their lamp right away. They could very easily build a on delay circuit that prevents the lamp from starting up within a selected time the manufacture choose's to program into the feature. That way they know they are not being misused. Some already do have it.

I was at a Ultimate Electronics not to long ago and seen some of their salesman moving RPTVs around by just unplugging them and turning them right back on. I was talking to a Manager at the time. When I seen that I asked him how they spend on lamp replacements every month he said around $4000. :eek: And just think about it, they are selling these as open box specials eventually. After seeing that I will pass on buying any open box HT equipment that uses a lamp from any boutique stores any time soon. :rolleyes:

Dale

Guitarman, have you discussed with Optoma if they know anything about bulb problems? If root cause for early bulb failures is bulb itself or inadequate cooling of bulb, will they come up with solution? Obiviously problem is not just dimming, but there are a lot of failing lamps too.

It is good if they will warranty lamps for one year, but i'm sure there are a lot of H7x owners who have planned to keep it for few years but if bulbs last for less than 300-500 hours, bulb cost will be ridiculous in long run. You have spent price of a projector for bulbs in couple of years.


No discussion about rampant bulb dimming because I think it's just a small amount that think their bulb went out. Like the thread author he said light is so low he can't see an image. I hope we're talking gone bulbs not just a lower light level. Actually I'd like to see a daytime screen shot of the gone bulb. What I'd expect to see is a daylight image gone black. If that's the case they deserve a swap out.

The guy with the 1200hr H77 that went to 8ftc from 15ftc shouldn't expect a swap out. He could go to bright mode to get up to 11ftc and have an adequate image. 3 or 4 hundred hours more he should buy a new bulb.

There is a bright side :) think of the Ruby guys when their bulb wears down to half level and they're wanting the old brightness level back. :(

Well, I don't have a light meter and I perceived my lamp to be a bit dim @ 300 hours in Eco mode so I turned it to bright. But I don't think (in retrospect) that this is bulb failure in my unit as the picture is still very good. Others describe the "bulb failure" as just barely visible in a dark room. I'm nowhere near that. Maybe I'm just ignorant, but so far so good with my (almost) one year old H79. The only problem I have, is occasionally I'll get the warning lights that there is bulb failure. I turn it off, back on and no problem. I think others have described this as well, particularly on units hung upside down ceiling mounted.

SpecialK-MD, I had a similar experience at about the same hours with my original bulb and used the bright mode which reestablished an acceptable picture. That used bulb, with about 450 hours on it, is now a backup.

Dan

I think the problem is more rampant. I have experience first hand the significant drop in light after less than 50 hrs of use as compared with a new lamp. Significant meaning viewable only under light control condition. We have to get together and let Optoma know.

On the other hand, mine is nearing 800 hours and is still enjoyable watchable paired with a 126 inch Carada BW screen.

On the other hand, mine is nearing 800 hours and is still enjoyable watchable paired with a 126 inch Carada BW screen.
Hi, Guy!

What are you measuring for lumens at 800 hours, and did you track the brightness loss with lamp age?

Hi, Guy!

What are you measuring for lumens at 800 hours, and did you track the brightness loss with lamp age?

kind of stupid of me not todo it will my old bulb but ill do it each 50h with my current bulb and post it here .. as a bonus results from 50h and 80h :)


50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L

Daniel.

I wonder if the method of mounting the PJ is adding to the heat build up and thus related to bulb problems. This may be a dumb idea on my part, but it seems possible that that the cooling system was designed and tested for the H79 to be oriented one way and people that are having heat related problems may have it mounted the other way. So having the PJ on top of a book-case may run cooler than having it hang upside down. Or it may be the opposite.

How do the people not having problems have their PJs mounted?

Mine is sitting upright on a shelf rather than inversion mounted. Legs are near max extended to improve airflow below the projector. Runs in normal mode (not high bright).

Haven't measured the output lately. I'm sure it will be scarey low, but it still is bright enough to just tingle the eyes in bright outdoor scenes.

Hai,

Mine is ceiling mode and has been for ages.. my guess is total 2000+ hours. Airflow is good not near the ceiling or backwall.

Daniel.

I've done the same as Guy, with the pj sitting upright on a shelf, maximizing the leg heighth to improve air flow. I'm using eco mode with a new bulb, but as I said before with my original bulb I had to use brite mode after 400 hours or so to get decent brightness with my 2.8 gain (I'm viewing < 5 degrees off pj-screen axis) High Power and an image about 112" wide.

Dan

I've done the same as Guy, with the pj sitting upright on a shelf, maximizing the leg heighth to improve air flow. I'm using eco mode with a new bulb, but as I said before with my original bulb I had to use brite mode after 400 hours or so to get decent brightness with my 2.8 gain (I'm viewing < 5 degrees off pj-screen axis) High Power and an image about 112" wide.

Dan
I did a calibration on an H79 with 500 hours on the bulb, according to the owner. Pre-calibration, a 100 IRE window measured at 7 fL in BriteMode with the Contrast turned up too high. It had a dE of 11 at 100 IRE. White was excessively Green. I had to turn the Green and Blue Gains down considerably to hit D65 at 100 IRE after setting Red Gain to the point of clipping.

Though I didn't measure Post-calibration luminance, 100 IRE was probably only 5 or 6 fL. Thats way too low for only 500 hours on the bulb. (Measured on a 106" D DaLite HCCV 1.1 gain screen.) This would indicate the PJ was somewhere in the vacinity of 150-200 lumens.

I also did a calibration on an H78DC3 at 0 hours of bulb life and then a touchup at 100 hours and was surprised at how much it had dimmed and shifted in spectral signature.

As a side note, the last two bulbs that I have gotten for my Infocus SP7200 have been quite a bit dimmer than the first two were. I have to wonder if there isn't a trend here?

Glenn

Bad bulb design? Bad power supply? Bad fan design? Who knows?.....Whatever the case, it's bad engineering plain and simple.........these projectors are rushed out onto market as soon as a new chip is released without extensive testing..........this is the price we pay as "beta testers." :(

PSB maybe all 3. They do tend to slap them on the market way to quick, and not testing them long enough. :(

I have mine ceiling mounted. I have a Peerless universal mount. But I use 2" steel spacers with longer screws to give it more air.

I will admit my current unit has been better than all others I had swapped out. Yes light output has dropped more then I would prefer, but much better then the last 4.

But now I am gun-shy, and I feel they should be the ones making a attempt to at least follow up with customers that are having problems with there units. Maybe it was a bad batch of lamps. Who knows, I would just like Optoma to tell it to me straight. The way I look at it they are only losing customers by the path they are choosing to take on this issue.

I now expect Mr. Optoma {Tom} to chime in on this, but he has been fairly quite on it too. It is not silly it is a problem Tom. Maybe I am on his ignore list. :D

I guess what I am getting at is Optoma is a very good product. But they should not ignore their customer base they have built up. So many companies are going with the sales approach {sell as much as you can} and forgetting about the follow-up and service approach. In the end the customer has got you where you are today and everyone is crucial no matter how expensive of modal they bought. But they are better then Benq and Sharp, 8700+ and 10000 problems that I had service issues with. What a nightmare they where to deal with. Benq just doe's not have a clue and Sharp for not admiting lamp flicker problems.

Dale

Bad bulb design? Bad power supply? Bad fan design? Who knows?.....Whatever the case, it's bad engineering plain and simple.........these projectors are rushed out onto market as soon as a new chip is released without extensive testing..........this is the price we pay as "beta testers." :(


You still asume that these failures are worse than with other brands and models i don't see any proof. The basic design from the H76 is several years old since the H77 not alot
has changed. If there is really something to it then i would suspect changes to the power
system or a bad batch of bulbs that they started using somewhere in the H79 run.

I fully agree with the last poster its more how they handle it than the problem itself ive not yet owned a av product the last few years that didn't have some problems or needed
some new software support is key. Thats why i posted my first comment in this thread on how they helped me.

What does upset me more and more is the huge gap between claimed output and real output the new HD72 claims 1300lumens but output turns out to be 386 and 500 even less than the H7x line. Benq also comes in way less than what they state. Its not only confusing its hell for people picking screensizes and gains. It seems you have to wait for several testers to have done their job before you can even order a projector and screen.


Daniel.

kind of stupid of me not todo it will my old bulb but ill do it each 50h with my current bulb and post it here .. as a bonus results from 50h and 80h :)


50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L

Daniel.
Aren't those pretty much same numbers what H79 guys measured?
Interesting that H79 is always been quoted much brighter than H77 or H78 DC2 but judging by those numbers, your H78 DC2 has same lumen output as H79.

Aren't those pretty much same numbers what H79 guys measured?
Interesting that H79 is always been quoted much brighter than H77 or H78 DC2 but judging by those numbers, your H78 DC2 has same lumen output as H79.

No the H77 had 100 less but the H78DC2 always had 100 extra too, giving much speculation on how that worked it was probably because of the extra mirror speed that resulted it better control (longer) times on the colorwheel or changes to the powerunit.

The messages H77 got in europe when they announced the upgrade :
-------

17-03-2005 ThemeScene H77 / H78


H78

Brightness: 1000 Lumens

Contrast: 3800:1

The new ThemeScene™ H78 delivers substantial image quality enhancement over its predecessor, the award-winning H77. Newly developed technology by both ThemeScene™ and Texas Instruments ™ enables the H78 to offer stunning picture quality:

1. Colour accuracy has been enhanced on a wider range of signal types

2. PAL and 50Hz High Definition (European High Definition) image quality has been further optimised

3. Grey scale linearity has been improved, especially in the important low light, dark areas of images.

4. Faster Pixel response times have yielded improvement in both Brightness and Contrast Ratios – Brightness has increased from 900 to 1000 Lumens, Contrast has risen from 3500 – 3800:1

These improvements combine to produce an image of unrivalled colour balance, accuracy and motion fluidity resulting in exceptionally natural and cohesive images.

Existing H77 owners can benefit from these improvements by having their units upgraded to H78 specifications. For a nominal fee of €150, upgrade to H78 specifications, re-calibration and return shipping.
--------

Daniel.

"I now expect Mr. Optoma {Tom} to chime in on this, but he has been fairly quite on it too. It is not silly it is a problem Tom. Maybe I am on his ignore list."

It's boy cried wolf syndrome. Mainly you hear from the small masses that have problems, this is with all the different companies. You hear about exploding bulbs, flickering bulb, Crazed bulbs. I can only accout for the projector I tested 1200hrs and lost near half the brightness - putting it in bright mode brought back a needed brightness level. It would probably run 3,000hrs but at some point more like 1500 to 2000 you'll be best off buying a new bulb.

As promised the numbers at 100h

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L

I also tested it with 'whitepeak' at max and got 675L at 100h, i guess thats how they 'rate' there projectors since thats like a 150L jump over bright mode and was probably
a 300L jump on a new bulb. Can anyone explain if the idea is that you can really use whitepeak over time ?

Daniel.

This is worse than I thought. I had 600 lumens new. At 366 hours I had 302 lumens. Now, at 409 hours I am down to 256 lumens. I am losing a lttle less than 1 lumen of output for every hour used. I'm already below 12 fL.

Very disturbing.

All numbers are in low brightness mode @ D65.

Obiviously there is one extra zero in the lamp life rating. Instead of advertised 2000-3000 hours, it is actually 200-300 hours when lumen output has gone down about 50%. :)

Houston, we got problem...

Anyone noticed their H7x getting noisier after few hundred hours? I think mine is noisier than what it used to be when it was new. I've cleaned filter every 150 hours. Is H7x CW motors fluid bearing type or cheapo ball bearing?

I noticed this when I recently swapped out my unit orginally received in Mar 05.
Thought the H79 was quiet before the swapout but noticed an audible difference
from the old and new (ie. quieter). Other than the bulb being new (brighter) I'm
also noticing less (if any at all) chromatic aberation with the new, what appears
to be a much crisper overall image (its tough to describe) and finally the fan runs
differently than the old one. Used to run full blast on startup and then slowly
come down within a few minutes, it almost seems the new unit spins up and
down with much more finer increments.

Overall, very pleased I took advantage of the 1yr replacement and I got a new
bulb to boot..

I noticed this when I recently swapped out my unit orginally received in Mar 05.
Thought the H79 was quiet before the swapout but noticed an audible difference
from the old and new (ie. quieter). Other than the bulb being new (brighter) I'm
also noticing less (if any at all) chromatic aberation with the new, what appears
to be a much crisper overall image (its tough to describe) and finally the fan runs
differently than the old one. Used to run full blast on startup and then slowly
come down within a few minutes, it almost seems the new unit spins up and
down with much more finer increments.

Overall, very pleased I took advantage of the 1yr replacement and I got a new
bulb to boot..
I've heard too that optics quality vary between units. H79's should have top quality optics, but seems that they aren't always.

Cooling fans on my unit run faster on startup and then after 5 minutes or so they slow down rapidly. I also noticed that cooling fans change speed in very fine increments when unit has been on for some time, or if ambient temp is higher than usual.

Can you please check what is manufacturing date on your replacement unit?
Serial number begins like T81E451.... meaning unit has been manufactured in week 51 year 2004. Is replacement unit newer date than old one?

I've heard too that optics quality vary between units. H79's should have top quality optics, but seems that they aren't always.

Cooling fans on my unit run faster on startup and then after 5 minutes or so they slow down rapidly. I also noticed that cooling fans change speed in very fine increments when unit has been on for some time, or if ambient temp is higher than usual.

Can you please check what is manufacturing date on your replacement unit?
Serial number begins like T81E451.... meaning unit has been manufactured in week 51 year 2004. Is replacement unit newer date than old one?

Here's what I have:

Old: O81L505
New: O81E552

Tom I do not think we are crying wolf at all. But merely fed up with lamps dying so quickly. I agree that most other manufactures have a problem to. And they should also be held accountable as well. If they cannot fix the problem at least sell the lamp for $200 or less. I would be interested in finding out if Sim2 has many lamp fail problems. And what is there average lamp hrs in the real world not just specs. You do not hear many complaints about them.

I would have to say that out of all the projectors I have owned that Infocus and Sharp where the best as far as light output not dropping so quickly.

At this alarming rate I think I would be better off a big flat panel instead. At least they can get closer to their specs then Front projection can. Of coarse if anybody could get up to 60000 hours they are watching to much TV. I think on my PC monitor I have at least 9000 hrs. :D

Dale

Here's what I have:

Old: O81L505
New: O81E552
Seems that your new one is made in week 52 year 2005. You got it this year, right (trying to prove my theory of serial number containing manufacturing date correct)?

Most H77 and H78's i've seen have been made in late 2004. Maybe they have improved things year after of so.

Maybe it would be better to run the PJ in bright mode all the time, that's if we know the fan speed has an effect on bulb brightness. Any engineers have thought that a cooler bulb will stay brighter longer? 250watt bulbs will have to burn hotter than a 180watt bulb. My HT1000 has 1200hrs and outputs 5ftl though, I think it's a much lower watt bulb.

Seems that your new one is made in week 52 year 2005. You got it this year, right (trying to prove my theory of serial number containing manufacturing date correct)?

Most H77 and H78's i've seen have been made in late 2004. Maybe they have improved things year after of so.

This is what I was hoping for, that Optoma made changes over the last year,
with only 1 month left on the hot swap.

Guess time till tell. I do have an Extech meter and was planning on keeping
track of the light output overtime. Right out of the box with 0 hours, I
received about 514 lumens in econo mode. This seems to be consistent with
other reports.

This is what I was hoping for, that Optoma made changes over the last year,
with only 1 month left on the hot swap.

Guess time till tell. I do have an Extech meter and was planning on keeping
track of the light output overtime. Right out of the box with 0 hours, I
received about 514 lumens in econo mode. This seems to be consistent with
other reports.

could you also track bright mode ?

Slowly we are seeing more people tracking bulbs, i think we need more info on multiple projectors on these issues. If we want to force companies a little on these issues we need to get the data ourselfs. This is not a bash on optoma as if they are the only one but it is a bash on their 'claim' it will drop 50% on its lifetime (infact do they even claim that?). Since it will take atleast 3 to 4 years before most of us are bulb free it seems a good idea to build up some data ourselfs ill keep tracking my H78 every 100h and reporting back to add info to the public data i hope more people will to do so. I also see a nice role for the reviewers since they could start providing these numbers on atleast the first 100 to 200h (how hard is that in a good review).

Daniel.

Maybe it would be better to run the PJ in bright mode all the time, that's if we know the fan speed has an effect on bulb brightness. Any engineers have thought that a cooler bulb will stay brighter longer? 250watt bulbs will have to burn hotter than a 180watt bulb. My HT1000 has 1200hrs and outputs 5ftl though, I think it's a much lower watt bulb.


Tom could you post lumens output instead of ftl since that way people can themselfs calc their results based on screen gain and size.

Daniel.

could you also track bright mode ?

Slowly we are seeing more people tracking bulbs, i think we need more info on multiple projectors on these issues. If we want to force companies a little on these issues we need to get the data ourselfs. This is not a bash on optoma as if they are the only one but it is a bash on their 'claim' it will drop 50% on its lifetime (infact do they even claim that?). Since it will take atleast 3 to 4 years before most of us are bulb free it seems a good idea to build up some data ourselfs ill keep tracking my H78 every 100h and reporting back to add info to the public data i hope more people will to do so. I also see a nice role for the reviewers since they could start providing these numbers on atleast the first 100 to 200h (how hard is that in a good review).

Daniel.

No problem.. Here's what I have

0hrs: econo: 514 lumens (14.53ftL) (118 lux)
brite: 659 lumens (18.59ftL) (151 lux)

Here's the math I'm using after reading various threads:

Foot Lamberts = Lux * Screen Gain / 10.56 (front projector)
Lumens = ftL * sqFt of screen

Hi,

at the moment I'm into buying a new projector and I think the H79 has fantastic picture quality, but this thread makes me very, very nervous ... - espcially since many well respected members and reviewers are also affected.

Guenther

I am the one GlennD is referring to. Glenn did an excellent job of calibrating my projector considering what he was working with. He literally spent 8 hours to get it as good as he could. On the other note, the bulb is VERY dim at 513 hours compared to where it was when originally purchased. Glenn, please email me your calibration sheet so I can ask optoma for a new bulb. I don't think there is going to be a problem. jim@numberonefunding.com

BTW, if you are looking for a good calibrator in the south bay, Glenn is the guy.

What does upset me more and more is the huge gap between claimed output and real output the new HD72 claims 1300lumens but output turns out to be 386 and 500 even less than the H7x line.
No offense, but I'm assuming you're pulling those numbers from projectorcentral's review. If so, that's a terrible source for obtaining accurate measurement numbers. When Tom tested the lumen output of the HD72 he came up with 650 in econ mode and 850 in bright mode. Personally, I would trust his measurements any day over PC's!!

No offense, but I'm assuming you're pulling those numbers from projectorcentral's review. If so, that's a terrible source for obtaining accurate measurement numbers. When Tom tested the lumen output of the HD72 he came up with 650 in econ mode and 850 in bright mode. Personally, I would trust his measurements any day over PC's!!

Yes i was, i didn't see Tom's numbers before and even then he seems to make somewhat
confusing comments that its about the same as the H79 but posted numbers a little higher than the H79's ive seen. Over time ive also not been a huge fan of the reviews on that site. But lets put it on 750 to 800 still nowhere near 1300.

What this only proofs is that we need more people taking numbers over the first 200 to 500 hours of each projector if you ask me.

Also i feel somewhat stupid not taking the numbers of my old 1200h bulb since that would have been a good number. At that time i wanted a new bulb but it was not unwatchable like Tom hinted to with his 5 to 6flt numbers. My guess is that alot of people are watching 6 to 10 ftl without knowing it.

On the 'should i get a H79' well imho its still a very good option and i don't see the other brands doing any better (see the thread on both ruby and benq bulbs) its more that we need learn and teach others about these facts of life and take down some of the stories projector and bulb makers are feeding us. One of the myths was/is new to me i was expection the 2000h/3000h time to 50% output to be real but signs are that its not even close probably because of shutting it down every 3 to 4 hours.


Daniel.

Thought I'd also add, the projector I just replaced had 471 hrs and it came in
at:

normal: 318.52 lumens
brite: 440.90 lumens

I've no doubt the people here have real problems with dimming. But realistically, we are only getting information from fewer than 20 people! I am sure there have been many more than 20 H78DC3's and H79's sold and if every single one of them were dimming by as much as half after only 300 hours, I think we would have seen a thread like this one much sooner and with many more people complaining.

I'm not trying to say that the people who have rapidly dimming bulbs are mistaken or anything, but I just wonder if we can really say there is a problem with the entire H7x line given that we really only have a handful of people to go by.

I currently have a Sanyo Z2. I've read about lots of different problems with the Z2 on this board. I have some vertical banding and my bulb is not as bright as when it was new. But the image is still completely watchable - nothing like what some people have reported with their Z2 units. If I were to only go by the people who had posted about problems, I would never buy ANY product.

I now have an opportunity to buy a H78DC3 at a significant discount. A post like this makes me a bit nervous, but then I look at the BenQ PE7700 thread where a very large number of people have complained about dying bulbs. It was noted very early in the product's life and it has affected a great number of people. In that case, I believe more willingly that there is a real problem with the entire PE7700 line.

But I haven't seen anywhere near the same number of complaints with the H78DC3/H79. Could it be that these are simply bad units? Even in this very thread, there are people saying they have over 1000 hours with a completely watchable image. I fully expect the bulb to be dimmer at 1000 hours, but it should still be watchable. If NO ONE could claim a watchable image at 1000 hours, I'd be really worried, but that isn't the case.

I certainly feel sorry for the people who are having troubles, but I'd like more infor before I go writting off the entire H7x line.

Is there any way to get info on the actual number of complaints about bulb dimming/dying that Optoma has had to face? The included spare lamp makes me think there really is a wide spread issue. But then again, the H78DC3 is near the end of its life. I've seen free spare bulbs included with LOTS of projectors when they go on sale or clearance and it was not because of wide spread lamp issues, it was simply an incentive to clear out the remaining stock!

A forum like this is great because we can hear about lots of peoples' experiences with a given product, but to conclude that an entire product line has a major manufacturing issue based on 20 out of hundreds or thousands sold seems a little extreme.

Jon

What I really doubt is that Optoma will offer replacement bulbs to anyone but the most severe, clear-cut, darker than Hades bulbs in the first few hundred hours. Have you people ever called Optoma support? Not the friendliest bunch!

My H79 is at 300 hours and while probably dimmer than new, it still throws a superb picture on econo-mode on a unity-gain 106" screen from 16 feet back.

Hopefully this will remain the case. My other PJ is an old Proxima business LCD which is now used for video games and TV duties. 2200 hours on the bulb and going strong! I don't dream to achieve this kind of numbers on the H79 but I plan to run it on bright mode after the first 500 hours and if I get 1000 good hours out of a bulb I'll be more than happy.

I've no doubt the people here have real problems with dimming. But realistically, we are only getting information from fewer than 20 people! I am sure there have been many more than 20 H78DC3's and H79's sold and if every single one of them were dimming by as much as half after only 300 hours, I think we would have seen a thread like this one much sooner and with many more people complaining.

I think that not so many projector owners are really hanging around these forums, and many of them who do are just browsing these forums without actually posting on these threads.

But still i think we can draw some conclusions here. What are chances that these peoples here posting about dimming problems, would all have got bad batch projector, and those only couple of peoples not having problems have got normal quality projectors?

Hi Jon,

I do hope you are right and it is not a general problem.
But given that out of thousands of owners only about a hundred or so (I guess) are posting here then 20 machines with bad bulbs would be to much for my taste. Maybe we should take a poll? Maybe it's only 5 out of 500?

Guenther

EDIt: Oops, I overlooked the previous posting which states almost the same...

Glenn D did the calibration on my h79. it was very dim when he checked it. it is a 7ftl at 500 hours. He did a nice calibraition on it for what he was working with. Who do I contact at optoma for a new bulb? Also Glenn, can you email the calibration report(s)? jim@numberonefunding.com

Thanks

It would be good to hear from others who aren't experiencing any problems, hence the poll would be a great idea.

It's interesting, in England, on avforums, the consensus by most seems to be that the H79 is better than the SP7210. Whereas, over here it seems many feel it is the reverse.

I'm curious. Does anyone know if Optoma has a semi-official position on this? If a customer reports a lamp with 600 hrs. on it that is unwatchably dim, will they replace the bulb?

My h-78 also seemed to dim far too much after 2-300 hours and I started to get the red/blue flashing light on start up and had to restart the pj 2-3 times....every week or so to the point were at just over 600 hours its barely watchable on a hi power 106" screen...and the red/ blue flashing light thing happens at least every second time you turn it on now.

Had I been using a 0 gain screen, I doubt it would have been bright enough in hi power mode much past 300 hours.

This is not the first thread on this subject either, but I can't remember which thread the other numerous posts are buried in.

This is my third pj, and I never had bulb dimming problems like this after 1100 hours on the other two which were Infocus pj's.

Other than this, this pj is a bargain.

Earz That's what I am unhappy about. Maybe we should get 3 screens when we buy a known projector that the lamp dims quickly. Then switch out to a higher gain screen when it starts getting dim. Start with a HCCV then a High-Power and finish the lamp off with a Silver Star. A person would have over $5000 in screens alone. :D

One good thing at least Optoma seems to be heading in the right direction with the next models being brighter. At least by the specs, I guess we will find out just how bright they will be when they are released and we start calibrating them. That is one thing I like about Infocus SP series they have plenty of brightness to play with. You can always tame it down with a filter or with the Iris with upcoming models.

My current H77 is still doing fine at 300hrs I am crossing my fingers and hope they just got a bad batch of lamps. :)

The only problem I see with a poll would be we would need to vote by total Optoma's owned per voter to make it fair. In which I had 2 that had to be swapped out for because of constant red blinking LED and very low light output. Optoma has always treated me ok though. I do not think people should shy away from the H series because I personally think they are a dam good projector.

I would just like to know what they have found to be the main problem, bad lamp,bad ballast or poor cooling. That is if they have had enough complaints to even look into it. Curious owners would like to know. :D

Dale

Hey Dale, any idea how long I should expect to be waiting without a pj if I send this in for the red blinking led?

I already have two screens, not looking to buy a third ;) :D

I'm curious. Does anyone know if Optoma has a semi-official position on this? If a customer reports a lamp with 600 hrs. on it that is unwatchably dim, will they replace the bulb?

I think this is a important comment, Some of us who have the tools should track new projectors over time to see whats normal and if it does what a brand claims so we can help others make the correct choices picking projectors and screens. I am not in any way negative on the H7x line i am more than happy if the second bulb ages like the first one but i now know i was probably looking at 6 ftl at best. I do think we need more info what is normal so if someone clearly has a problem (like 90% down at 300h) he has some ammo to use against a brand to get it replaced. Sofar to me (in europe) optoma has been great as i already stated at the begin of the thread. For new people if you own a good 5.1 setup you need a dB meter i think we can now say if you own a projector get a lux meter they are about $50 for models that are good enough for this and it removes the guessing.

Daniel.

Earz They usually get them out within 2 days after received. If it is less then 90days old they most likely swap it out. In that case it will go out the following day.

Dale

Well, I'm waiting for new replacement unit from Optoma...any day now. Got my fingers (and toes) crossed. Whatever the outcome, I'm saving my "pennies" for a Ruby or a Ruby 2 down the road........for all the money I've spent on this crazy hobby the past 3 years, I could've bought a nice used car, or a boat, or some worthwhile stock in Google :)

Are people experiencing dimming problems with their replacement bulbs, too? Or is this a matter of bad bulbs out of the box.

I'm only at 160 hours right now, but I'm concerned about what I'm in for later.

Personally I think the talk about my bulb is dim is getting a little goofy. I have an HT1000 (1200hrs) that is at 5ftc and it still looks excellent on the Graywolf and ceiling mounted. The 1200 houred H77's are at 10ftc.
jmo


I have the HT1100 and the lamp has about 1270 hours on it. To my eyes the picture has dimmed significantly. I know the rating is for 2000 hours but I'm starting to feel like it's almost time to swap out that original lamp with a new replacement. Before going down that road (and I have a replacement sitting in a box ready to go) I have a few questions that perhaps those of you with more experience than I can address.


1. Rated lamp life: How realistic is this number coming from the manufacturer? 2000 hours sounds good but if the picture is dim at 1200 plus hours, getting to 2000 before replacing the lamp would be seriously painful.

2. What are the signs that a lamp is ready to be changed - short of a total failure? I'm running the PJ on "normal" so I'm squeezing every lumin I can out of it. I don't see any flicker issues, it's just a very dull picture.

3. I realize that all PJs have some issue re: lamps. With the HT1100 rated at 2000 hours and lamp replacements at $420 each - how does this compare with other PJs.

4. It's starting to look as though, based on my viewing habits, that I'm going to be going through 2 lamps a year. Although in the first month and during install, more stress (on and off) was the rule vs. now since it's final installation.

I don't have a way to measure the actual brightness of the image but the dim picture I have now is starting to drive me nuts. I'm willing to make a change but the hassle factor, and uncertainty about changing it at 1270 hours vs 2000 has stopped me from making the swap.

So, I am very interested in how others here base their decision on what point to pull a lamp and replace with a new one.

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Earz They usually get them out within 2 days after received. If it is less then 90days old they most likely swap it out. In that case it will go out the following day.

Dale

Thanks for the info Dale, I will give them a call next week.

kind of stupid of me not todo it will my old bulb but ill do it each 50h with my current bulb and post it here .. as a bonus results from 50h and 80h :)


50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L

Daniel.


If I'm reading this information correctly, the H79 is rated at 1,100 lumens, but at 50 hours I'll be down to about 570. Should we expect to lose 1/2 the brightness in 50 hours?

It also means that my future theater (127" diagonal 16:9 screen) will have 11 ftL after 50 hours, well below the 16 I was hoping for.

Last question - will the new H81 have the same bulb?

--SimpleTheater

If I'm reading this information correctly, the H79 is rated at 1,100 lumens, but at 50 hours I'll be down to about 570. Should we expect to lose 1/2 the brightness in 50 hours?
No, it means that 1,100 is marketing speak. From 0 to 50 hrs you are probably just losing 10-30 lumens (in the low end if there is no problem, in the high end if there is).

If I'm reading this information correctly, the H79 is rated at 1,100 lumens, but at 50 hours I'll be down to about 570. Should we expect to lose 1/2 the brightness in 50 hours?
No, it means that 1,100 is marketing speak. From 0 to 50 hrs you are probably just losing 10-45 lumens (in the low end if there is no problem, in the high end if there is).

But still i think we can draw some conclusions here. What are chances that these peoples here posting about dimming problems, would all have got bad batch projector, and those only couple of peoples not having problems have got normal quality projectors?

I think we can all agree on a few conclusions, including those who love their Optoma's (Sims, Knolls, InFocus, Runco, etc) :

1) Bulb life is GREATLY exagerrated. 3000 hours expected life is not going to happen.

2) Lumen output is exagerrated. Right out of the box, no one is saying the H79 is getting 1000 lumen output in bright mode - I think 850 is the closest I've seen anyone report (that's 15% below advertised).

I wouldn't be surprised to see a class action lawsuit brought some time in the future against all projector companies (assuming the information in this thread is accurate).

--SimpleTheater

Lumens are different when you want the PJ tuned for home theater. You could probably get stated specs if you blow the whites out with contrast and white peaking if available. Like the HD72 I'm testing has brilliant color which can blast the white level high to reach it's factory specs.

The HD72 measures 20.45ftc when brand new. I tested it this morning at 100hrs and it measured 17.25ftc. Lumens for these numbers are about 850 vs 750 so it dropped 100lumens in 100hrs. I understand at more mid point hour level the brightness drops at a slower rate. But I'd expect the HD72 to be under 500lumens at 600hrs. These are bright mode measurments, knock off 200lumens when using econo.

The HT1100 user. I tested my HT1000 at 1200hrs and it's at 5ftc which is 2.10lumens. Definitely high power screen for the HT1000 is recommend.

This thread started with a projector that went totally black early on. I figure we all do know that bulbs start dimming from day one, now you're seeing some numbers on how low they can go. I'd say with the H79 you can go to 1200 hours (8ftc) in econo and switch to bright mode for (11ftc). Since brightness falls at a slower point you could squeeze out another 400 or 500hrs before wanting a new bulb. That's not saying you couldn't go longer but I think most would opt to go back to day one levels.

I have not experienced any brightness drop off outside of the normal bulb dimming with my H79 so far. I have around 200 hours on mine.

Bulb life is GREATLY exagerrated. 3000 hours expected life is not going to happen.

I agree.

I finally figured it out. Optoma only sends the good ones to the bay area. That way they don't get a pissed off customer throwing a H series projector through their window or glass door. :rolleyes: Like the old lady in the Discount tire commercial. :D

That would be funny to see someone heave one through Optoma's door. Yelling out I will not buy another dam lamp. :D

Dale

Take a deep breath and repeat after me, 'there's no bulb problems with the H7x series'.
Just keep repeating that until you believe it. :D

Maybe I am asking a stupid thing, but could it be possible that the H79 lamp fade is the tradeoff for the silent operation? If the lamp works at higher temperatures, its life gets shorter. Moreover, because of the heat, reflective coatings in the lamp assembly start to deteriorate, too. I noticed this with my Leica slide projector. Raising the fan voltage a bit helped a lot, although resulted in slightly more noise.

Of course, tampering with the fan voltage of a new projector would void warranty. Maybe Optoma could give some control for the user to which way they'd like to go: less noise, or better cooling and longer lamp life.

Does anyone know how the technology is advancing with LED lamps? What are the problems which prevent from using LED lamps in projectors? (uniformity, convergence?).

Well, I got my replacement H79 back yesterday. I give some props to Optoma for a quick turn-around time (2 days transit). So far so good......the picture is plasma bright---I guess I got so used to the very dim picture on my previous unit. The one major difference I notice is that now there is a subtle fan noise during operation that I did not notice before....maybe a good sign?

Well, I got my replacement H79 back yesterday. I give some props to Optoma for a quick turn-around time (2 days transit). So far so good......the picture is plasma bright---I guess I got so used to the very dim picture on my previous unit. The one major difference I notice is that now there is a subtle fan noise during operation that I did not notice before....maybe a good sign?


PSB did you look and see what firmware was in it yet. Maybe they have change it to C18 and made a fan speed change. :cool: It would be great if they did.

Also it is nice seeing a snappy pic of a new Optoma. That's what sold me on it.

Dale

Take a deep breath and repeat after me, 'there's no bulb problems with the H7x series'.
Just keep repeating that until you believe it. :D

Personally i would repeat there is atleast a problem with the H79 but maybe with all bulb related projectors that are run like this (we know that sim2 for example runs them alot lower). If you read more threads on these topics its clear its a wider problem but almost no trusted data is available.

Nobody including on this thread doubts the numbers we are getting that seem to say 700 at 0 hours and 400 at 500 hours for example.

Daniel.

Well, I got my replacement H79 back yesterday. I give some props to Optoma for a quick turn-around time (2 days transit). So far so good......the picture is plasma bright---I guess I got so used to the very dim picture on my previous unit. The one major difference I notice is that now there is a subtle fan noise during operation that I did not notice before....maybe a good sign?

Could you get a lux meter (about $50) and like others track the output over time. Once we get a avg curve we can alteast see when its really different from other machines.

Personally i don't see how fans have effect on bulbs say it runs 30degrees higher inside how would that effect a bulb at much higher temps anyway. I can see other electronics getting in trouble but not the bulb can someone provide some info on this because i think its a redherring.

Daniel.

I think we can all agree on a few conclusions, including those who love their Optoma's (Sims, Knolls, InFocus, Runco, etc) :

1) Bulb life is GREATLY exagerrated. 3000 hours expected life is not going to happen.

2) Lumen output is exagerrated. Right out of the box, no one is saying the H79 is getting 1000 lumen output in bright mode - I think 850 is the closest I've seen anyone report (that's 15% below advertised).

--SimpleTheater

I think we can guess on most projectors the starting number at D65 is atleast 25% lower than the output given. Then i think the 50% down point is much closer to 50% of the given time. The way they do this is the ansi number can be 'reached' by putting the projector in ultra bright mode (whitepeaking etc etc) and not anywhere near a mode ready for use. The bulb hour time is probably with a bulb that never shuts down and ran in 1 go not with sessions of 2 to 4 hours (each fireup takes about
30min of a bulb thats about 500h on a 2000h bulb. Last point is that we think linear and they use that fact but its far from linear so best of the bulb is in the first 200h something that we don't expect on a 2000h bulb.

Don't want to go into your law part but you can see how they atleast for us cover their asses.

Daniel.

Bulb life is shortened if your house loses power suddenly.
Bulb life is shortened if there are A/C fluctuations, high voltages (mine is as high as 126.0 volts) and even A/C RFI issues.

My solution was to install a Tripp-Lite SU1000XL true double conversion power generator for the video power ONLY. (Do not use for audio). I still use a regular power condition after this conversion to isolate the display, Satellite and Dvd player from each other. The audio is feed from fiber-optic cables link so there is complete isolation between the audio and video.

But if the bulb is bad, the bulb is bad. At least I think so. Good luck!

Hai,

As promised some results :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L

As you can see its clearly 'slowing down' the 50 to 100 has a loss of 50ish and 100 to 150 will be at 25ish loss.

The reason for this post was more that i just visited a friend who has a simple infocus X1 projector the image looked ok to me (atleast he was still happy with it) the results shocked me a little it gave 28lux or about 100 lumens at 650hours on the bulb thats less than 3 ftl. Take the numbers as you will ill go back tonight and check the image.

so X1 at 650h at about 100 ! lumens in video more (the good news if that 300 ansi led projectors now sound very workable since they atleast won't drop output alot.

Daniel.

Funny you should meention it - I decided to check mine today, and found that I was getting around 5ft lamberts on my 8ft wide 2.35:1 screen (1.35 gain) with an fl-day filter in place. It certainly seemed watchable to me and not dim. I've taken the filters off now, and I'm getting 9.5ft lamberts in eco mode, and 11.5 in hi lamp mode. I do notice some image noise now though, so for me in a light controlled room with dark walls, 10ft lamberts or less is preferable.

If I can dig out the lumen numbers I'll post them, but this is at 330 hours on the lamp. I'll have to see how that all compares with the figures I have at 160 hours on a 7ft wide 16:9 screen when I had it upgraded from H77 to H78. I seem to remember getting around 100 lux at the screen at that time, and then when I went to 2.35:1, I was getting the same figure on the 6ft wide 16:9 image - this was possibly about 100 hours later though. I'll try to remember to see what I'm getting as 16:9 now next time I fire it up.

Gary

Hai,

As promised some results :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L

As you can see its clearly 'slowing down' the 50 to 100 has a loss of 50ish and 100 to 150 will be at 25ish loss.

The reason for this post was more that i just visited a friend who has a simple infocus X1 projector the image looked ok to me (atleast he was still happy with it) the results shocked me a little it gave 28lux or about 100 lumens at 650hours on the bulb thats less than 3 ftl. Take the numbers as you will ill go back tonight and check the image.

so X1 at 650h at about 100 ! lumens in video more (the good news if that 300 ansi led projectors now sound very workable since they atleast won't drop output alot.

Daniel.

Well done, my test showed 100lumens lost after 100hrs on a new bulb. A 1200 bulb went down by half the amount. Most likely everybody will see similar results. Gary brought up a point at 5ftl he thought the image still looked good. Like with my HT1000 which I'm viewing right now, it's at 5ftl on a HP screen at maybe half the gain, the image looks bright and still pretty good at 1200hrs.

I think mainly one s/b worried about light chamber failure and a very grayed out picture. Not just typical bulbs wearing out.

What are the RPTV guys going to do? :)

Is it possible that this could be a dirty color wheel problem? I know people who had the HT1100 and X1 said after they cleaned their color wheel the picture was much better; although some people said it didn't change their picture all that much.

Chris

Is it possible that this could be a dirty color wheel problem? I know people who had the HT1100 and X1 said after they cleaned their color wheel the picture was much better; although some people said it didn't change their picture all that much.

Chris

Hadn't thought of that. Thanks, I'll take a look.

Is it possible that this could be a dirty color wheel problem? I know people who had the HT1100 and X1 said after they cleaned their color wheel the picture was much better; although some people said it didn't change their picture all that much.

Chris


Well possibly ive cleaned the colorwheel of a infocus projector myself and indeed it helps. This one was on its second bulb so who knows. But that was not the reason i posted the information more i posted it as a extra data fact and to show that (for me) even 3ftl is watchable. I for one would not be supprised many are watching at 8 to 10 ftl without knowing it. I would urge all projector owners to get a lux meter its the only way to know (also if you clean the colorwheel) what happend. Having a 28lux and a 110 lux screen side by side doesn't match with the image.

fact are good we need more of them, so if you can get a $50 lux meter and join the party.

Daniel.

I think mainly one s/b worried about light chamber failure and a very grayed out picture. Not just typical bulbs wearing out.


One of the reasons for creating a checked curve for each projector is to provide real information at 0,x,x,x,x,endpoint numbers for new users and
as a tool for finding real problems with bulbs or projectors. This is one area where we can help other owners of projectors make good calls on picking sizes/gains etc etc.


Daniel.

Well possibly ive cleaned the colorwheel of a infocus projector myself and indeed it helps. This one was on its second bulb so who knows. But that was not the reason i posted the information more i posted it as a extra data fact and to show that (for me) even 3ftl is watchable. I for one would not be supprised many are watching at 8 to 10 ftl without knowing it. I would urge all projector owners to get a lux meter its the only way to know (also if you clean the colorwheel) what happend. Having a 28lux and a 110 lux screen side by side doesn't match with the image.

fact are good we need more of them, so if you can get a $50 lux meter and join the party.

Daniel.

Not that I'm eager to "crack" open my H79, but how would one go about cleaning
the colorwheel? :confused:

Not that I'm eager to "crack" open my H79, but how would one go about cleaning
the colorwheel? :confused:

whooo don't do that !!! i was reacting on the comment on the infocus X1 not the optoma !. It was also not my comment hehe. fact is that last year alot of people cleaned the colorwheels on several brands and that resulted in regained output but it has nothing todo with our current quest for facts on bulbs.

Daniel.

I think the colorwheel is in a sealed path, there should be no dust issues with it.
Wrong. Optoma H7x color wheel is in front of the bulb. If you remove bulb you can see bare color wheel there. There's not even window in front of the color wheel to protect it, like cheaper Optoma H30 model has.


Good catch Scottyb :o

I would think the color wheel has to be in front of the bulb:) :)

I really don't think the color wheel has anything to do with the problem we are talking about here.

This thread is supposed to be about H7x owners who, at less than 500 hours, are either getting an image that is so dim it's unwatchable (I had 10 lumens at 360 hours) or people who are noticing or measuring that their bulb is near or already at 50% of new brightness (basically end of life) at less than 500 hours.

When I put my new replacement bulb in the image was just as bright if not brighter than it was with my original bulb that went bad when it was new. The color wheel is fine. The question is, why are the bulbs going bad and is it just bad luck with a few of us or is there really a problem due to cooling or something? As guitarman has pointed out, we should not be complaining about losing 100 to 150 lumens in the first 200 hours. I agree that is normal as long as it doesn't keep losing another 100 to 150 between 200 hours and 500 hours.

As an update to my situation, after 2 weeks of calling Optoma support and getting the run around (I had to call at least 6 times and fax in my proof of purchase twice) they have issued me an RMA number and said that they are shipping me a new unit for swap out. I will believe it when I see it however as that was last Friday and I still don't have the new pj yet. I'll have to call again this Friday if I don't see it by then. After reading about MichaelZ's problem trying to get a good one I think I'm just tempted to take the bulb out of the pj they send me and then send it back with my old bulb. Mine has worked great except for the bulb going out. I don't need to get a faulty pj as a swap out unit. I Probably just had a bad bulb but not knowing is the worst part.

I've got an AEMC CA813 light meter coming per TomHuffman's recommendation earlier in this thread and via PM (Thanks Tom!) and I will be tracking the lumens from 0 hours on and posting results here like danielo. My replacement bulb on my present H79 seems that it has leveled out with 114 hours. I need to take measurements but it looks like it lost between 20 to 30% from new already which is fine if it just holds that for awhile or just has a much much slower loss to 50% between now and say 1500 hours, which I'd be fine with. Nobody should ever expect to get 3000 with one of these.

Brent

I forgot that this has happened with many bulbs on the same projector which would rule out the color wheel.

My H77 is at 150 there has been a drop off in lumen, but I don't have any light meters to measure :(. Seems normal lumen dropoff...so far, hopefully won't get too much worse.

Chris

whooo don't do that !!! i was reacting on the comment on the infocus X1 not the optoma !. It was also not my comment hehe. fact is that last year alot of people cleaned the colorwheels on several brands and that resulted in regained output but it has nothing todo with our current quest for facts on bulbs.

Daniel.

Gotcha!! :D

I won't be crackin' open my unit...
I seriously doubt the bulb brightness thing has anything to do with a
dirty colorwheel. That's not to say it couldn't happen later on down the
road. :eek:

Gotcha!! :D

I won't be crackin' open my unit...
I seriously doubt the bulb brightness thing has anything to do with a
dirty colorwheel. That's not to say it couldn't happen later on down the
road. :eek:

Good, well i think the jury is still out on that one projectors on their second bulb or more
(say 2000+ hours) i would not be so sure. Use search to find some results of people who did a colorwheel cleanup. But that is not the issue at hand and i am also working with a new unit so thats not a problem. I do feel that colorwheel becoming dirty is also a dirty secret.

So it seems that 150hours is where the H7x bulb becomes more stable :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L

As pointed out if you are at 50 lumens at 200h than something is clearly wrong :). As far as i can tell this is a pretty normal curve.

Daniel.

for (less than) the price of one H8/79 bulb i can get a 4 year Mack warranty and 3 year bulb warranty (covers 2 bulbs).

any reason NOT to strongly consider this? I have a week or so to decide. all advice welcome. (i expect to keep the H78DC3 operational for 2-3 years as my primary PJ)

What's a Mack warranty? and how strong is the company that backs it? Any fine print to be aware of? Otherwise it seems like a good deal, especially with the bulb deal going on.
Try to get details on the bulb part of the warranty, dimming etc...

Scott

What's a Mack warranty? and how strong is the company that backs it? Any fine print to be aware of? Otherwise it seems like a good deal, especially with the bulb deal going on.
Try to get details on the bulb part of the warranty, dimming etc...

Scott
Thanks that is sorta why i asked :) .... Mack is driving distance here and get good word of mouth overall (they started with camera repair) but i will phone them... figured people here would have considered them? (or do we as a whole UPGRADE before warranty ends ... or even before changing bulbs )

http://www.mackcam.com/warranties/3yearbulb.html
3 Year Bulb Warranty
This 3 year bulb warranty starts from the date of purchase of your television/video projector. This warranty must be purchased in conjuction with a Mack television/video projector warranty. This warranty applies only to DPL, LCDS, LCD or Plasma Displays and video projectors and allows the owner 2 bulb replacements for the period of the warranty. This warranty is only valid in the USA and MUST be purchased in conjunction with a Mack TV or Video Projector Warranty.)

3 yr. bulb warranty
http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=MKTVBULB
+
2-yr extended (or you can buy a 4)
http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=MKPROJ2YRGR

OK, i just spoke to a rep (Linda) at Mack. The 2 or 4 year "Pro Video Warranty" is the one which covers multimedia projectors ie H78DC3). Resellers call it different things so watch the "up to $5000" wording.

AT THE SAME TIME you buy the extended warranty you can also purchase the "3 year bulb warranty". Must be purchased together (but not necessarily from your PJ vendor).

The bulb warranty covers 2 bulbs over 3 years. She said there is no need to send bulbs back... you generally phone them and typically you order the bulb wherever and get reimbursed. I asked if it covers dimming bulbs or if it must "pop"... how does it work specifically and she said all she needs to know is if the bulb is "not working" and she doesn't want anything back in the mail (as expected with legitimate insurers).

Anyways i'll wait for a few replies/comments before ordering these next week... seems like a no-brainer (would help resale as these are transferrable too). :)

A dim bulb is still working, just not working well. I've had too many disputes about the fine meaning of language to not be cautious.

i'll wait for a few replies/comments before ordering these next week... seems like a no-brainer (would help resale as these are transferrable too). :)

I have that policy and am just starting to work it. My lamp has dimmed enough that I'm calling it ready to be replaced. I just need to finalize the claim by submitting some documents that they should have had on file but don't. I spoke with my dealer today and they assured me that they will lean on the insurance
company if there are any issues.

This is a great deal. It's really a no-brainer. Replacement lamps for my NEC HT1100 go for $420 and the policy cost me $129 for three years and two lamps. A no brainer all the way!

Hai,

here we go again bulb at 183 hours :

So it seems that 150hours is where the H7x bulb becomes more stable :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L

And yes i myself also noticed im going up a little, no idea what that is all about maybe its having a good day. One thing i noticed is that the output is not the same over the whole area the lowerpart of the screen is higher than the higherpart. Can someone explain this ?

*** fixed the numbers

Anyway seems that H7x bulbs become 'stable' at about 200h's. Will cont. tracking it every xx hours and posting the results unless someone gets bored with these.

Daniel.

Lens shift maybe?

That might cause a difference in brightness uniformity moreso than if the lens was centered.

I think most digital pjs have some brightness drop off across the screen anyway (my H78 was about 7% from center to edge). How much are you getting?

Gary

Lens shift maybe?

That might cause a difference in brightness uniformity moreso than if the lens was centered.

I think most digital pjs have some brightness drop off across the screen anyway (my H78 was about 7% from center to edge). How much are you getting?

Gary

Well i aint a expert in this area just a fool with a tool :) but ill try to do some more spots tonight upto now i took them dead center only. My quick guess is that they are indeed within the 7% range. My projector is in ceiling more about 5% above the screen. In 2.35 more i shift it down. I would expect (no idea why) the middle to be brightest guess not.

Post the results in a few hours once i get my friday night watching going...

Daniel.

Some more bulb numbers. I hv an HT1000 with 1200hours on the bulb it measures 5ftc. Just put in a brand new bulb and it measures 9ftc. So about half the brightness, this measures closely to the H77 I tested. Half the brightness at the 1200 hour mark which probably holds pretty steady for quite a few hours past the 1200 hr mark. Moral of the story is you're better off with a somewhat higher start level because the H77 was at 9ftc after 1200hrs while the HT1000 starts out at that number.

Hai,

I updated the numbers since indeed there is a big difference based on lensshift.

numbers all in lux.

top : 82 / 111
middle: 85 / 117
low: 90 / 123

Also if you use lenshift to the max the lower corners drop alot more into the 70 , 90 , 70 range. Maximum whitepeak is 144

Ill make sure i pick the point i put the eye the same each time.

Daniel.

OK. It only took a month and several phone calls to Optoma in what felt like the biggest run around I've ever gotten (really bad service) but I finally received my hot swap H79. This should be a great thing, but it is not.

With my brand new CA813 light meter, this supposedly brand new unit with brand new bulb is only putting out 338 lumens :confused: :mad: Amazingly, that's exactly what I'm getting on my original H79 with the replacement bulb I bought for it which is currently at 150 hours! That same replacement bulb when new put out 460 lumens which is much more consistent with readings people are getting here for a brand new H79 bulb and is actually a bit low considering reports of between 500 and 600 lumens. Although I didn't have a meter when I first got my H79 almost a year ago its brightness was on par with this too. Both new and replacement bulbs in my original H79 were MUCH brighter when new than this bulb in the hot swap projector! Almost too bright!

As I suspected, and have now measured, the replacement bulb I bought for my original H79 when it's original lamp went out at 360 hours has lost between 26 and 27% of it's brightness in just 150 hours, from 460 to 338 lumens. That seems a bit fast but possibly not totally abnormal as long as it has leveled out (and I think it has) then that's fine and the brightness is still good, although on the edge. BUT, if I'm starting out with a bulb that's only 338 lumens new we all know that in about 150 hours I'll probably be down about 25% or around 250 lumens. This will not be acceptable for me and I'd be forced to go to brite mode pre-maturely.

Did Optoma send me a refurb unit or a unit with a used bulb? Is there really that much manufacturing tolerance in these bulbs that one person gets a unit that puts out between 500 and 600 lumens and the next guy only gets one that puts out 340? The bulb looks new but it also looks like my replacement bulb with 150 hours. They both look brand new. There's probably nothing wrong with my original H79 and the hot swap was mainly just a means to get a new bulb, a good bright new bulb. So what gives?

BTW, I did take the bulb out of the hot swap pj and put it in my original pj to see if maybe the hot swap bulb was fine but its power supply was bad/low. The new bulb was actually dimmer in my original pj so that's not the problem.

Another observation I made is that the brightness uniformity on my original pj is terrible compared to the hot swap pj. However, the lowest reading (almost) I got on my original pj was from the spot I've been using to take measurements from (the original 460 and current 338 numbers from the middle of the screen). Many places on the screen are much much brighter and the bottom left corner actually reads almost the original 460 lumens. I guess it's better to have better uniformity but in this case the bad uniformity on my original pj is actually giving me a punchier image in many scenes. I didn't notice this 'till last night and would have been taking multiple readings and averaging had I realized it was that bad. The non-uniformity is as much as 25% from lowest to highest lux readings!

One more thing: on the hot swap pj I was using the INHD test patterns and on the circle with the gray ramps 0 to 100 IRE the whole upper portion of the screen was purple. In the menu I changed the setting from table mount to ceiling and the purple flipped with the signal. I put in AVIA and looked at the ramps there. No problem. I went back to the INHD test and the purple area was also gone. Only happened once so not sure what to make of that.

So do I go through all the hassle of trying to get Optoma to send me another hot swap pj, another bulb for this hot swap pj, or just send the hot swap back and ask for a new bulb instead which I thought of doing in the first place? What a hassle! I guess I should just tell myself the bulb that died wasn’t brand new when it died so just be happy Optoma did anything for me and send back my original H79 with the bulb that died. That's hard to do though. Still feels like I'm getting shafted.

Any thoughts appreciated.

Brent

Hai,

If you ask me they gave you a old bulb, sorry support is so bad in the usa. Again support in europe seems great. At 150 hours you get about 350L in number and 500L in bright mode. as you can see. I also added a new one for you.

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L

Notice that from 50 to 100 it lost 50L and from 100 to 208 it lost 29L clearly slowing down as expected. imho :

at 400h we should be at 320L and 450L,
at 800h we should be at 290L and 420L
at 1600h we should be at 260L and 390L
at 3000h we should be at 230L and 360L

If that happens it will indeed be about 50% loss over bulb live. All guessing but 208h seems to be on track.

Daniel.

to followup on my extended bulb warranty discussion i wound up with this for the H78DC3...

Mack Type 1075 "in home 3 year TV under $3700"
Mack Type 1065 "3 year bulb warranty" (covers 2 bulbs)

These are VERY confusing as each retailer shows different things and price coverage. They have been responsive to questions via phone and email. I have everything documented and in writing. You need to purchase the warranty within 30 days of buying the PJ but i let that lapse a little and they said no problem.

The Optoma now has a 5 year transferrable warranty with 2 new bulbs over the first 3 years about the cost of a bulb. Cost was a bit less than a quick froogle of H77 bulb prices.

Hope this helps those of you fretting "bulb issues" (if they're legitimate, isolated or widespread i'll gladly stay out of that conversation and not care).

Add my H78 to the list of projectors with dead bulbs. My four month old projector has 450 hours on the bulb and it can barely produce enough light to read the menu in a completely dark room.

My first foray into Optoma customer support has not been much fun either. After waiting in the queue for a few minutes you get rewarded by being allowed to leave a message. But wait! You can hit zero and talk to an operator. Only problem is that all she can do is put you back in the queue where you can burn another few minutes of a long distance call waiting to talk to a machine again. I tried this three times.

The ironic thing is that I dumped my Barco 808s after owning it for four years, partly because I was afraid that the old thing would one day die on me.

Is there anyone out there who has more than 500 hours on one of these things and still have a good bulb?

Add my H78 to the list of projectors with dead bulbs. My four month old projector has 450 hours on the bulb and it can barely produce enough light to read the menu in a completely dark room.

My first foray into Optoma customer support has not been much fun either. After waiting in the queue for a few minutes you get rewarded by being allowed to leave a message. But wait! You can hit zero and talk to an operator. Only problem is that all she can do is put you back in the queue where you can burn another few minutes of a long distance call waiting to talk to a machine again. I tried this three times.

The ironic thing is that I dumped my Barco 808s after owning it for four years, partly because I was afraid that the old thing would one day die on me.

Is there anyone out there who has more than 500 hours on one of these things and still have a good bulb?

Please read the thread a little, yes lots of people have used these projectors until the full bulb time. I put about 1500h to my first bulb and then optoma (europe) replaced my projector+newbulb for free. I feel for your bad luck its under 500h and i would demand a new bulb it broke down and that can happen its the reaction of optoma usa that bugs us in not stepping upto the plate and covering these in a easy way. Bulbs blow and go bad its fact of projector life. Its how a company handles them than make then stand out or not.

Daniel.

How do You take readings with a lux meter. I have one but dont know how to use it. How far away from projector. What do You project on to screen ect.

Please read the thread a little, yes lots of people have used these projectors until the full bulb time. I put about 1500h to my first bulb and then optoma (europe) replaced my projector+newbulb for free. I feel for your bad luck its under 500h and i would demand a new bulb it broke down and that can happen its the reaction of optoma usa that bugs us in not stepping upto the plate and covering these in a easy way. Bulbs blow and go bad its fact of projector life. Its how a company handles them than make then stand out or not.
Daniel.

Just got off the phone with Raymond Mar, a manager at Optoma customer support. According to him, time on the bulb is irrelevant. My projector is more than 90 days old so I'm out of luck. Oh, by the way, lamps are back ordered. Coincidence?

Just got off the phone with Raymond Mar, a manager at Optoma customer support. According to him, time on the bulb is irrelevant. My projector is more than 90 days old so I'm out of luck. Oh, by the way, lamps are back ordered. Coincidence?

Like i stated before i think this is bad support from optoma usa, I thnk they have lost a future sale. He should have atleast made you a good offer on a new bulb. What i don't get (read a few pages back Tom explaining that they now have a 1 year deal on the bulb).

Sorry about the loss, blowing bulbs is allways projector users fear of the day :(

ToddBelott: Just put a white image on (for example from a test signal or from a pc) and hold the meter at the screen (middle) facing the projector. I should then give you numbers in the 40 to 150 lux range.

Daniel.



Daniel.

Please read the thread a little, yes lots of people have used these projectors until the full bulb time.

"Lots" and "until full bulb time" are both exaggerations.

I did re-read the entire thread and the only person close to the 1500 hours you posted is guitarman who was at end of life (down 50%) at 1200 hours. Guy Kuo chimed in and said that his brightness was fine at 800 hours. That's it.

I've tried repeatedly in different threads to get people to post who have over 500 hours and only normal bulb dimming. That's the only way to really asses if there's a problem or not. I can only recall 2 or 3 others besides you, guitarman and Guy Kuo who have done so in other threads. I've seen several posts from people saying everything is fine with their bulb but they are reporting with less than 300 hours. Possibly they're going to stay fine and possibly not.

We need a poll. I think I'll start one.

Brent

you gotta realize the squeeky wheel gets the oil.

i'd imagine many H79 owners are happily watchin' movies not here 24/7 (if the owners come back at all after purchasing).

i know if i wasn't online alot and didn't ahve a problem i would ignore this forum area overall. ignorance is bliss.

i hope my bulb hangs in there but i have a spare sittin' on my office desk and a 2 bulb warranty over 3 years to to cover myself to some degree :)

Actually, most people won't get the full life out of their bulbs even if there isn't anything wrong with the bulb. Why? Because many of us are running our projectors on screens that in reality are too big for the lumens these projectors put out. Some of us ( like myself ) know it, and some do not. There are 2 ways around this problem - change bulbs more often ( I only put 200 hours in a year on my H79 - I can afford to sh*%can the bulb after 400 hours and 2 years and stick a new one in as far as I'm concerned ) or I can buy a 3 chip projector ( that doesn't seem nearly as cost effective - and what if that even more expensive bulb dies early ? )!!!

Just had to change my bulb at 996 hours. Projector started to shut itself off after running only a few minutes. Filter was clean. The optical chamber looked clean as well. Put in a new bulb and it works fine again. Wow, way brighter too. Definitely was down to half the original lumens, but that's pretty much what I expect at 1,000 hours even if the manufacturer rates otherwise. I'd budget accordingly and keep a spare on hand.

I'd have loved to get 1300 hours before swapping out, but it was still a lot easier than the old days of retubing a CRT. Ten minutes and it was working like brand new again. No more 12 hours long setups to get an acceptable picture - nice.

Actually, most people won't get the full life out of their bulbs even if there isn't anything wrong with the bulb. Why? Because many of us are running our projectors on screens that in reality are too big for the lumens these projectors put out. Some of us ( like myself ) know it, and some do not. There are 2 ways around this problem - change bulbs more often ( I only put 200 hours in a year on my H79 - I can afford to sh*%can the bulb after 400 hours and 2 years and stick a new one in as far as I'm concerned ) or I can buy a 3 chip projector ( that doesn't seem nearly as cost effective - and what if that even more expensive bulb dies early ? )!!!

Only 200hrs per yr??? WOW!! I'm up to 200 hrs in a couple of months...

I have 2 projectors, and a life - wine tasting, rock climbing, target shooting - and there aren't that many movies or shows in High Def worth watching. However, when I do watch my projector, I really enjoy it!!

"Lots" and "until full bulb time" are both exaggerations.

I did re-read the entire thread and the only person close to the 1500 hours you posted is guitarman who was at end of life (down 50%) at 1200 hours. Guy Kuo chimed in and said that his brightness was fine at 800 hours. That's it.

I've tried repeatedly in different threads to get people to post who have over 500 hours and only normal bulb dimming. That's the only way to really asses if there's a problem or not. I can only recall 2 or 3 others besides you, guitarman and Guy Kuo who have done so in other threads. I've seen several posts from people saying everything is fine with their bulb but they are reporting with less than 300 hours. Possibly they're going to stay fine and possibly not.

We need a poll. I think I'll start one.

Brent

Ok some of your comments might be correct, i expect alot of the people with no problems not to be on this thread. If you ask me the only way to get real numbers
is to get one of the resellers of these projectors to give you a return rate. I am more than willing to accept (and ill try to make a few calls) private messages with this info :).

I think you are correct but also the resellers are not without any blame if there is a higher than normal return rates on these optoma's please tell us.

I am only trying to help by posting these hour numbers and calming people down who will remove the H78/H79 of their shortlist because i am not convinced the problem is worse than on other projectors what i do feel is worse is the way they are handing it. But as you stated i have no proof either way only optoma and big resellers can give us these numbers asking a online forum is useless in the extreem.

Daniel.

Hai,

More numbers, seems to be starting its stable period :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L

Daniel.

Just had to change my bulb at 996 hours. Projector started to shut itself off after running only a few minutes. Filter was clean. The optical chamber looked clean as well. Put in a new bulb and it works fine again. Wow, way brighter too. Definitely was down to half the original lumens, but that's pretty much what I expect at 1,000 hours even if the manufacturer rates otherwise. I'd budget accordingly and keep a spare on hand.

I'd have loved to get 1300 hours before swapping out, but it was still a lot easier than the old days of retubing a CRT. Ten minutes and it was working like brand new again. No more 12 hours long setups to get an acceptable picture - nice.

Yep at about 1,000 or 1200hrs these bulbs go to half life or it you like bright, end of life. Looking at my HT1000 at 5ft candles it still procuced a decent image. I bought a new bulb anyway.

I had what seemed like too much lumen output loss at 300 hours like the others, but I have also had the failure to start with the blinking blue/red flashing lights since around or before 300hours.
My 78 has gone from this happening far more frequently, to shutting off mid movie, sometimes after 1.5 hours, sometimes after 20 minutes, but it always fires up the next time and works fine up to that point.

Anyone care to guess what might be going on here, because its obviously not the bulb burning out?

I emailed customer service like it says to do on there web site and the toll free number I called said to do the same thing.
Is everybody getting ahold of customer service via email with return call in 24/48hours...or are you some how calling direct?

Thanks Greg

Yep at about 1,000 or 1200hrs these bulbs go to half life or it you like bright, end of life. Looking at my HT1000 at 5ft candles it still procuced a decent image. I bought a new bulb anyway.

So what you are saying is that it will be 50% at 1000hours instead of 50% at 3000hours. Now tell me one reason why most people on this forum should not be upset ?. Ill keep tracking my bulb to see if it indeeds turns out this way but the amount of 'bad' specs on projectors is getting silly next thing you know they even start lying about the size of the box.

Daniel.

Is everybody getting ahold of customer service via email with return call in 24/48hours...or are you some how calling direct?

I've emailed them twice in the past three months concerning pre-sales questions. Both times I got the standard "We'll respond in 24-48 hours email" sent by their computer server. Both times I have NEVER gotten a response to my questions.

If anyone from Optoma is reading this thread - your Customer Service is the WORST!

--SimpleTheater

Hai,

More numbers, seems to be starting its stable period :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L

Daniel.

Just surpassed 100hrs on my replacement H79. Here's how its tracking. Notice
the big jump after a D65 calibration.

Hai,

Here we go again for 300h

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L
300 normal=338L, bright=456L

Daniel.

I thought I'd email the service link on optoma's website. I got a response that the lamp probably needs to be replaced. He didn't really answer my question about why it always starts up immediately after a failed attempt. If the bulb really was bad, it shouldn't start up again. Below is their response, followed by my inquiry:

---------------------------------------------------

Hello,
Unfortunately It sounds like the lamp needs to be replaced The cost of a new lamp is $399.99 I can offer you a discounted price of $328.00 to order please call XXX XXX-XXXX.

Best Regards,

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: FerretHunter17
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2006 5:36 AM
To: services@optoma.com
Subject: H79 Problem

Hi there,
I purchased an H79 roughly one year ago. Over the last 4-5 months, the projector sometimes does not start up. It seems to try to turn the bulb on, but eventually fails with a flashing blue light and the red lamp light. If I power the projector down and start it up again, it always starts up normally. This problem concerns me as I am a member of avsforum and it seems a lot of people are reporting this happening and even their bulbs losing any and all useful brightness at around 300 hrs. My bulb is currently at about 550 hrs.


Could you tell me what might be causing this? Where do I take the projector to get it looked at?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I thought I'd email the service link on optoma's website. I got a response that the lamp probably needs to be replaced. He didn't really answer my question about why it always starts up immediately after a failed attempt. If the bulb really was bad, it shouldn't start up again. Below is their response, followed by my inquiry:

---------------------------------------------------

Hello,
Unfortunately It sounds like the lamp needs to be replaced The cost of a new lamp is $399.99 I can offer you a discounted price of $328.00 to order please call XXX XXX-XXXX.

Best Regards,

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: FerretHunter17
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2006 5:36 AM
To: services@optoma.com
Subject: H79 Problem

Hi there,
I purchased an H79 roughly one year ago. Over the last 4-5 months, the projector sometimes does not start up. It seems to try to turn the bulb on, but eventually fails with a flashing blue light and the red lamp light. If I power the projector down and start it up again, it always starts up normally. This problem concerns me as I am a member of avsforum and it seems a lot of people are reporting this happening and even their bulbs losing any and all useful brightness at around 300 hrs. My bulb is currently at about 550 hrs.


Could you tell me what might be causing this? Where do I take the projector to get it looked at?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unfortunately, all the early lumen loss as well as blinking warning lights and early bulb life are considered "within spec"....according to Optomas version of sweeping this problem under the rug ;)

I thought I'd email the service link on optoma's website. I got a response that the lamp probably needs to be replaced. He didn't really answer my question about why it always starts up immediately after a failed attempt. If the bulb really was bad, it shouldn't start up again. Below is their response, followed by my inquiry:

---------------------------------------------------

Hello,
Unfortunately It sounds like the lamp needs to be replaced The cost of a new lamp is $399.99 I can offer you a discounted price of $328.00 to order please call XXX XXX-XXXX.

Best Regards,

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: FerretHunter17
Sent: Monday, April 10, 2006 5:36 AM
To: services@optoma.com
Subject: H79 Problem

Hi there,
I purchased an H79 roughly one year ago. Over the last 4-5 months, the projector sometimes does not start up. It seems to try to turn the bulb on, but eventually fails with a flashing blue light and the red lamp light. If I power the projector down and start it up again, it always starts up normally. This problem concerns me as I am a member of avsforum and it seems a lot of people are reporting this happening and even their bulbs losing any and all useful brightness at around 300 hrs. My bulb is currently at about 550 hrs.


Could you tell me what might be causing this? Where do I take the projector to get it looked at?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The reply looks like it's standard knowledge with Techs or repair places.

Blinking lights/failed bulb strike first possible remedy is the bulb is bad. Second possible remedy is the ballast is bad.

I'm learning this because I'm going through it as we speak with my NEC HT1000. I called their tech area. They asked the bulb hours (1200hrs) response was get a new bulb. I got the bulb but the PJ did the same thing. Bulb error light and failed strikes, but it would start up.

Off to the local authorized NEC repair area and the tech first asked how olds the bulb. Says since I have a new bulb it's most likely the ballast. Which they checked is the problem and ordered a new one from NEC. Cost of the repair $545, $245 for the part $300 labor.

I probably could have kept using the NEC with the miss strikes. But you can see in the lens that there's light but it just doesn't go fully on. This would have to wear the bulb down early. The tech agreed.

Is it the same way with the H7x's bulb dimmings? Are members getting allot of failed strikes? Do you see some light in the lens during the failed strike? This could be the reason the bulb excelerates to losing it's light before it's time.

Is it the same way with the H7x's bulb dimmings? Are members getting allot of failed strikes? Do you see some light in the lens during the failed strike? This could be the reason the bulb excelerates to losing it's light before it's time.
That's a good question. I think I only had one failed strike on my bulb that went out at 360 hours. So if that is part of the problem it's not for everybody.

If I power the projector down and start it up again, it always starts up normally.
I wonder if you cycle the power BEFORE the first attempt every time you want to turn the pj on if this would eliminate or reduce the amount of failures. Curious. Worth a try?

Brent

I got my first non strike at under 300 hours....and then it was at least 50 hours until the next, and then 30, 20, 15,10 ect ect until it finally would do it about every time you tuned it on...and if you powered down and up again, it would usually restrike on the second attemp.
There was zero light when the pj would not restrike, and normal amount (factoring in the early lumen loss of course) of light after powering down and restriking.

About to start my second bulb today.

I talked to a guy at Optoma Canada. He suggested I send the projector in for them to take a look at. I emphasized the fact that the bulb would always turn on when starting up after a failed attempt, so it can't be the bulb. If the bulb were no good, why would it start up on subsequent attempts?

Had I gotten off my ass and called them last month (before my first year of ownership was up), he said they would have just swapped it out for a new one. Oh well.

I'll probably send mine in on Tuesday. It's worth a shot I guess. What's the worst that can happen? Optoma Canada hasn't failed me so far. And they seemed very eager to help me.

I've had really good success with Optoma Canada. Seem to have much better service than the US division. Maybe Guitarman needs to get his friends at Optoma US to dummy up and get some customer service.

I talked to a guy at Optoma Canada. He suggested I send the projector in for them to take a look at. I emphasized the fact that the bulb would always turn on when starting up after a failed attempt, so it can't be the bulb. If the bulb were no good, why would it start up on subsequent attempts?

Had I gotten off my ass and called them last month (before my first year of ownership was up), he said they would have just swapped it out for a new one. Oh well.

I'll probably send mine in on Tuesday. It's worth a shot I guess. What's the worst that can happen? Optoma Canada hasn't failed me so far. And they seemed very eager to help me.

If it were Optoma in the U.S., I would say don't bother, because I just went through that scenario were they had me send it in....and they sent it back saying it met spec...buy a bulb.
From what I have read Optoma Canada seems a little more on the up and up.

I talked to a guy at Optoma Canada. He suggested I send the projector in for them to take a look at. I emphasized the fact that the bulb would always turn on when starting up after a failed attempt, so it can't be the bulb. If the bulb were no good, why would it start up on subsequent attempts?

Had I gotten off my ass and called them last month (before my first year of ownership was up), he said they would have just swapped it out for a new one. Oh well.

I'll probably send mine in on Tuesday. It's worth a shot I guess. What's the worst that can happen? Optoma Canada hasn't failed me so far. And they seemed very eager to help me.

I had a month to go on my original H79 and got it swapped out for a new one. I'd
have to agree, Optoma Canada has treated me very well. Just a heads up to
CDN owners swapping units out.. Optoma charges the full value in $USD and
when they receive the old one, refund your CCard in $USD. The exchange on
5K can easily be in the $200-300 range.. so watch out for that. In my case I was
able to work it out with Optoma.. Just make sure you ask whether they'll be
charging in $CDN.

Incidently I had it swapped out to address the blinking red light on startup. My
new one hasn't done it once...

Thank you Optoma Canada!

I sent my H79 in on Tuesday. I called today for an update and was told that they have swapped the unit out for a brand new one and they sent it out yesterday. I got home and there it was. They sent it to me in the same old box I dropped off at their office, but the new unit was inside. It smelt new. It was packaged inside as if new. I took a good look at it. Seems to be new.

Weird thing though. When I went to put the ceiling mount bracket on, the screws were very tight. I had to use a socket wrench to tighten it. On the defective unit, I was able to just hand tighten the screws.

I fired it up and checked the bulb hours. They showed up as 9 hours. I can't remember if my original unit was also like that or if it started at 0 hours. Pretty odd that the bulb counter started at 9. The brightness seemed to be on par with the brightness of the unit I sent in, and I didn't really think that one was much dimmer than when I first got it. It had well over 500 hours on it.

The s-video connector looks a bit worn, but I don't use that connection. In fact, the component connectors looked "used". I don't know if this unit is a refurb, or a brand new unit. The serial number is much higher than my first one. I was told it is brand new.

Does anyone know the meaning of the characters in the serial number? In other words, how does one read it? Is the manufacture date encoded in that?

Is there a way I can check the number of real hours on the unit?

Assuming this is a brand new unit (and I don't really have a good reason to suspect otherwise), Optoma went above the call of duty by swapping my old one with a new one, 13 months after I first bought it. They seem to go out of their way in making me happy whenever I have had to deal with them.

I'll be monitoring it though for any signs of the start up problem.

Too bad I didn't write down all my settings. Now, I'll have to calibrate this new unit some day.

Thank you Optoma Canada!

I sent my H79 in on Tuesday. I called today for an update and was told that they have swapped the unit out for a brand new one and they sent it out yesterday. I got home and there it was. They sent it to me in the same old box I dropped off at their office, but the new unit was inside. It smelt new. It was packaged inside as if new. I took a good look at it. Seems to be new.

Weird thing though. When I went to put the ceiling mount bracket on, the screws were very tight. I had to use a socket wrench to tighten it. On the defective unit, I was able to just hand tighten the screws.

I fired it up and checked the bulb hours. They showed up as 9 hours. I can't remember if my original unit was also like that or if it started at 0 hours. Pretty odd that the bulb counter started at 9. The brightness seemed to be on par with the brightness of the unit I sent in, and I didn't really think that one was much dimmer than when I first got it. It had well over 500 hours on it.

The s-video connector looks a bit worn, but I don't use that connection. In fact, the component connectors looked "used". I don't know if this unit is a refurb, or a brand new unit. The serial number is much higher than my first one. I was told it is brand new.

Does anyone know the meaning of the characters in the serial number? In other words, how does one read it? Is the manufacture date encoded in that?

Is there a way I can check the number of real hours on the unit?

Assuming this is a brand new unit (and I don't really have a good reason to suspect otherwise), Optoma went above the call of duty by swapping my old one with a new one, 13 months after I first bought it. They seem to go out of their way in making me happy whenever I have had to deal with them.

I'll be monitoring it though for any signs of the start up problem.

Too bad I didn't write down all my settings. Now, I'll have to calibrate this new unit some day.

The last few numbers indicate production numbers so for example 530 means 2005 week 30. But changes are this unit has been upgraded at somepoint or can have been
kept aside for swaps. I had the same thing happen to me a while back where they also replaced a >1 year unit with a 'new' one. No problem but changes are its been sitting somewhere for a while and might have been used for a demo. What would be smart is that you get a light meter !! (about $50) and see what the output is thats a good way to see if the bulb is indeed new. So europe and canada support seem to be great its the usa that is the problem... you have to wonder about this....

Daniel.

PS: ill probably post new numbers on my bulb tonight should be around 350hours now.

The serial number of my first H79 starts out as 081L505. From what I've researched here, that means it was manufactured in the 5th week of 2005. This makes sense since I bought it in early May of 2005.

The "new" unit has a serial number starting with 081E522. So it was made in the 22nd week of last year. Has it really been sitting around "new" for 11 months or so? Should I bring this up with Optoma?

Does anyone know if its' possible to check the total number of hours on the projector?

The "new" unit has a serial number starting with 081E522. So it was made in the 22nd week of last year. Has it really been sitting around "new" for 11 months or so? Should I bring this up with Optoma?

Does anyone know if its' possible to check the total number of hours on the projector?
Service menu shows total hours, but i know service can set all counters to zero if they want. You'll find instructions how to enter service menu in H7x threads.

If your pj has worn looking connectors it is probably refurb or if it really has only 9 hours total it may have been a demo unit. If it is refurb it may have a lot of new parts inside so it may be very close to new. I believe Optoma has right to choose if they give refurb or new unit unless your original projector wasn't only couple weeks old. Was it packed in thin foam wrapping inside transparent plastic bag, or only pink plastic bag?

Pink plastic bag.

Pink plastic bag.
It's most likely refurb. Original factory packing is thin white foam wrapping inside transparent plastic bag.

The serial number of my first H79 starts out as 081L505.

The "new" unit has a serial number starting with 081E522. So it was made in the 22nd week of last year. Has it really been sitting around "new" for 11 months or so? Should I bring this up with Optoma?


My first unit's serial number was also 081L505. Interesting. My hot swap serial number started with O81L517 so if we're right about the date code that's only 12 weeks newer and I also wondered how that could be if the hot swap was new, which is what I was told. My hot swap came in a pink bag also. My hour counter was at 0hrs but the bulb was dimmer than the replacement bulb I had purchased that had 150 hours on it! 150 hour bulb was giving me a reading of 74 lux and the supposably "brand new" bulb in the hot swap only gave 72 lux. That 74 lux from the 150 hour bulb was already down 25% from new. I'm pretty sure I got a refurb unit.

Sure, ask Optoma about it. I'm curious as to their answer. Please let us know if you do.

Brent

Sure, ask Optoma about it. I'm curious as to their answer. Please let us know if you do.

Brent

I also only had 'weeks' between the replacement and the first buy projector and also came in a pink bag. So this is normal i guess they are made in batches maybe keep units apart for this. I am sure i got a new bulb and it was the reason i posted the comment that he should check using a lux meter.

Daniel.

I sent an e-mail to Optoma Canada about my concerns regarding the replacment unit and they called back within the hour. Every one of my concerns was addressed and I have been assured that the unit is brand new. What happened is they opened it and tested it out to make sure it was ok. That's why the connectors looked used and the projector was in a pink plastic sheet instead of the foam wrapping.

It did smell brand new when I hooked it up yesterday. I have no reason to question the Optoma rep's responses. He was very prompt and courteous. I will however check out the service menu to ensure the hours are the same as the bulb hours. But it isn't a priority.

He did confirm my understanding of the serial number encoding regarding manufacturing date.

I consider this case closed with Optoma and am a very happy customer.

Hai,

Good news, do get a lux meter and track output its a fun game :)

There are my new numbers at 350h

Here we go again for 300h

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L
300 normal=338L, bright=456L
350 normal=329L, bright=431L

so 50 to 100 went down 50L
100 to 200 went down 27L
200 to 350 went down 23L

quick guess seems to me 25L loss to get to 800h and 50L to get 1600h, 75L more
to get to 3000 for total loss of about 200L or close to 50% .... this seems a little optimistic :).

total loss at 350h is now 100L, My screen now is at 9lambert for low and 12 for highmode. Hope the numbers of this imho normal and correct working bulb (we still hate bulbs) will help somebody in some way.

Daniel.

I sent an e-mail to Optoma Canada about my concerns regarding the replacment unit and they called back within the hour. Every one of my concerns was addressed and I have been assured that the unit is brand new. What happened is they opened it and tested it out to make sure it was ok. That's why the connectors looked used and the projector was in a pink plastic sheet instead of the foam wrapping.

It did smell brand new when I hooked it up yesterday. I have no reason to question the Optoma rep's responses. He was very prompt and courteous. I will however check out the service menu to ensure the hours are the same as the bulb hours. But it isn't a priority.

He did confirm my understanding of the serial number encoding regarding manufacturing date.

I consider this case closed with Optoma and am a very happy customer.
Nice to hear that your problem is solved.

My experience with Optoma service has also been good. I had problems with my pj and i had to send it in. They fixed it and sent it back in my original box but it was in pink plastic bag instead of original foam wrapping + transparent plastic bag where i packed it in. But there was a new problem with it and they agreed to replace it with a brand new projector, which they test before sending me as soon as they received broken one.

New one came in its original box (not in the same box i sent mine in) wrapped in white foam inside transparent plastic bag (just like my first one was when i purchased it). The box and the projector had same serial number in the stickers. New projector's lamp and total hour counter in the service menu both showed 1 hour. Connectors looked like new. Also there was all new accessories with the new projector. I returned original accessories with broken projector as they requested.

Well, I'm not sure if I'm also experiencing the premature bulb issue or its the power of suggestions but.......

I had my H79 ISF'ed yesterday by Chuck Williams and he measured 6.5 ft/l on my 120" studiotek 130 screen. This equates to about 213 lumens. He then turned the bulb to high power mode and we got 8 ft/l which is about 262.

Now, this sounds like premature bulb dimming. In fact, there is no punch to the image in low power mode. I've got about 180 hours on the bulb. He used the EyeOne to calibrate with colorfacts pro (I believe).

Does this sound like the bulb dimming problems to others? Short of buying a light meter, is there anything else I can do before putting in a call to Optima?

Does this sound like the bulb dimming problems to others? Short of buying a light meter, is there anything else I can do before putting in a call to Optima?It matches my experience with two bulbs so far - there's been sufficient dimming now on bulb number two after about 200 hours to require britemode for acceptable brightness and I'm using a High Power screen viewing on axis with near 2.8 gain (admittedly with a big image at 110" wide.) You could call Optoma and maybe get a bulb for a discount that basically equals what you could get by froogling. I'm considering getting a low amp cooling fan per ideas in the threads about H79 cooling to hopefully slow down this dimming process with my third bulb now on the way.

Dan

Hmm, I was hoping to be use an H79 with a 1.4 gain 125" wide screen in a CIH 2.35 setup. Now I think maybe I need to find a different projector. It doesn't sound like this one can power a screen that large for very long.

Is anyone using a screen that large with this pj with acceptable brightness?

Projector is overhead, well ventilated, with a UPS.

I'm not a happy Optoma customer any longer.
My 1st bulb with my H/79 lasted 500 hours.
Now the 2nd replacement bulb is getting very dim at 488 Hours.
At $400.00 per bulb and none available this has become
unacceptable!

Hmmmm.. thinking about the Ruby its come down in price
but at $1000.00 for a new bulb at only 800 Lumens I'm
going to wait and see? I will bet the Ruby II has a much
less expensive bulb?

I just ordered a Sanyo PLZ-4 with a spare bulb for less than
half of what the Optoma H/79 cost me originally!

To bad Optoma screwed up here because, when the H/79 has a fresh
new bulb the picture is just excellent!

Well, I'm not sure if I'm also experiencing the premature bulb issue or its the power of suggestions but.......

I had my H79 ISF'ed yesterday by Chuck Williams and he measured 6.5 ft/l on my 120" studiotek 130 screen. This equates to about 213 lumens. He then turned the bulb to high power mode and we got 8 ft/l which is about 262.

Now, this sounds like premature bulb dimming. In fact, there is no punch to the image in low power mode. I've got about 180 hours on the bulb. He used the EyeOne to calibrate with colorfacts pro (I believe).

Does this sound like the bulb dimming problems to others? Short of buying a light meter, is there anything else I can do before putting in a call to Optima?

Well you have seen my numbers, i am at 350hours and at 9 and 12 so yes this does mean your seems to be way lower than mine already.

Daniel.

Well you have seen my numbers, i am at 350hours and at 9 and 12 so yes this does mean your seems to be way lower than mine already.

Daniel.

Yes, I've seen your numbers. Thank you for posting it, BTW. I'm still not sure that anything is wrong through (or having a hard time accepting it). I have not had any mis-strikes on the bulb or orange flashing lights on the projector. When I asked the calibator about it, he said it seemed pretty normal and that he just calibrated a HD72 and got about 12 ft/l on high power, but that was on a smaller screen (he didnt have the numbers). This makes me wonder if the brightness he was measuring is accurate.

I just cant believe I've got this problem. I've throught I've had a dim image while watching the Sopronos and a couple of movies (before calibration and getting measurements), but thought it might be the source material. The image just lacked "pop" to it. I'm thinking I might buy a new bulb and see what that does, but what bothers me is there are no inexpensive alternatives to conslusively determining if I have the problem. I could spring for $150 for a light meter or I could spring for $340 for a new bulb. Furthermore, no one is really sure what the cause of the problem is (there are plenty of theories). So replacing the bulb could be a VERY short term fix till it happens again.

I guess I will wait a little while and see what happens with the projector. If it is problematic I can expect bright mode to dim to the point of becoming noticable pretty soon. I'm not ready to call optima yet becasue I dont want to start pestering them if there isnt an issue with my H79.

Yes, I've seen your numbers. Thank you for posting it, BTW. I'm still not sure that anything is wrong through (or having a hard time accepting it). I have not had any mis-strikes on the bulb or orange flashing lights on the projector. When I asked the calibator about it, he said it seemed pretty normal and that he just calibrated a HD72 and got about 12 ft/l on high power, but that was on a smaller screen (he didnt have the numbers). This makes me wonder if the brightness he was measuring is accurate.

I just cant believe I've got this problem. I've throught I've had a dim image while watching the Sopronos and a couple of movies (before calibration and getting measurements), but thought it might be the source material. The image just lacked "pop" to it. I'm thinking I might buy a new bulb and see what that does, but what bothers me is there are no inexpensive alternatives to conslusively determining if I have the problem. I could spring for $150 for a light meter or I could spring for $340 for a new bulb. Furthermore, no one is really sure what the cause of the problem is (there are plenty of theories). So replacing the bulb could be a VERY short term fix till it happens again.

I guess I will wait a little while and see what happens with the projector. If it is problematic I can expect bright mode to dim to the point of becoming noticable pretty soon. I'm not ready to call optima yet becasue I dont want to start pestering them if there isnt an issue with my H79.


A light meter should be about $50 not $150, also that way you can check your new bulb if needed. I agree you should wait a few 100's to see what happens. Also im not using a small screen its 107" wide 1.2 gain.

Daniel.

Found a light meter for $50 and made the purchase. I'll post the results when I get it.

"Chuck Williams and he measured 6.5 ft/l on my 120" studiotek 130 screen

When I asked the calibator about it, he said it seemed pretty normal and that he just calibrated a HD72 and got about 12 ft/l on high power, but that was on a smaller screen (he didnt have the numbers). This makes me wonder if the brightness he was measuring is accurate."

He s/b measuring the light with the meter at the screen facing the projector. Did he use a light meter or the colorfacts Eyeone meter? Plus he should calculate the 1.3 gain onto the first measurement. Anyway this is what you do when you get the meter.

He was measuring off the screen so he was not calibrating off the projector. He was using the colorfacts Eyeone meter. Can this introduce a large error in the measurements taken? Enough so that his measurments would be off by 40%? I get the 40% by using Daniel's lumen numbers at 185 hours (355) and dividing by my screen dimensions (approx 43 sq feet). Works out that I should be getting about 10.7 ft/l in low power mode (screen gain of 1.3) as opposed to the 6.5 that was getting measured). While not an exact science by any means, it does give some idea of where the difference might be.

I will measure the light as you described with the meter facing the projector at the screen. I assume this reading (in lux) then gets multipled by the number of sq meters of the screen and the screen gain to get lumens, correct?

I think that will work.

I figure the american way with Ft-candles. I use a 92"X52" or 398sq ft surface screen.

The HD72 got 20.50ftc in bright mode, 20.50ftc X 398sqft = 815lumens. Pretty darn high.

I think I got 17.75ftc in bright mode on the H79 and 15.85 in econo.

Econ on the H79 15.85X398sqft = 630lumens

Also 12Ftl is considered ideal. So the 620lumens on a 1.0 gain screen is a little high.

620lumens divided by 398sqft is15.8ftl

I think the trend is most people are happier with higher than reference Ftl's.

I have a quick question. It seems most of the problems are with H79's. I own an H77 and haven't read any comments about that unit and not as many on the H78. Any ideas?
Not as many sold? H77 owners don't frequent here? Just curious more than anything as my hours grow on my projector.
This may support the "bad batch of bulbs" theory.

Scott

Scott If I remember right I got 13.85ftc in econo on the H77.

13.85X398 = 551lumens
551lumens divided by 398sqft = 13.8ftl

Really not too bad and very close to reference 12ftl on a 1.0 gain screen.

You're right not many complaints about the H77 bulbs.

I have a quick question. It seems most of the problems are with H79's. I own an H77 and haven't read any comments about that unit and not as many on the H78. Any ideas?
Not as many sold? H77 owners don't frequent here? Just curious more than anything as my hours grow on my projector.
This may support the "bad batch of bulbs" theory.

Scott

Well, the H77 had a lower factory lumen rating than the H79, so they probably had different lamps....

...and maybe with a less-hot lamp in the H77, it doesn’t experience overheating problems that many of the H78/79 owners are reporting in the other threads.

In fact, some are now jury rigging extra fans around the case to help cool the lamp better on the H78/79's and have actually reported improvements with overheating problems, which seem to support a design flaw with the H78/79...at least with the lamps that they are currently using.

Fleaman

Scott I guess I don't count on H77 lamp problems huh. ;)

Dale

The H77 and H78, H79 use the same bulb (250watt UHP). It's the DC3 and H79 protocal that brought up the lumens. Actually the upgrade to the H77 brings up the lumens a little. I think people tested their same unit after the upgrade and it produced 100 more lumens.

Hai,

THe H77,H78,H78DC3 and H79 all use the same bulb and are driven the same. If there is a higher fallout on the H79 the most likely reason if you ask me is a bad batch of bulbs when they started shipping. The overheating problems that you seem to be able to fix with extra fans could work on other parts of the projector but i personally don't think it
has any effect on if you will have a fast dimming or blowup bulb. Fact is most have had problems with the projector shutting down while the bulb seems to be ok on a restart.

Daniel.

I did notice that the bulbs for the H78DC3 and H79 had a "D" at the end of the part number while the H77 had a "E". Everything about the specifications looked the same to me, but there was that difference. I'm sure someone more knowedgeable would know why.

"D" is for Die

"E" is for Everlasting

:) :)

The H77 and H78, H79 use the same bulb (250watt UHP). It's the DC3 and H79 protocal that brought up the lumens. Actually the upgrade to the H77 brings up the lumens a little. I think people tested their same unit after the upgrade and it produced 100 more lumens.
Is Optoma still using Philips bulbs in H78DC3 and H79 like they did in H77?
Maybe change in the bulb provider could explain problems.

Bulb life is shortened if your house loses power suddenly.
Bulb life is shortened if there are A/C fluctuations, high voltages (mine is as high as 126.0 volts) and even A/C RFI issues.

My solution was to install a Tripp-Lite SU1000XL true double conversion power generator for the video power ONLY. (Do not use for audio). I still use a regular power condition after this conversion to isolate the display, Satellite and Dvd player from each other. The audio is feed from fiber-optic cables link so there is complete isolation between the audio and video.

But if the bulb is bad, the bulb is bad. At least I think so. Good luck!

Reincarnate:

Since you took all these precautions are you satisfied that your projector's lamp life has been preserved?

Phillips makes the bulb design for the H7x. Along time ago in the bulb threads Tzugilin came out and said they work hard with the bulb designer to keep QC up. They should beat up on Phillips some more.

Phillips makes the bulb design for the H7x. Along time ago in the bulb threads Tzugilin came out and said they work hard with the bulb designer to keep QC up. They should beat up on Phillips some more.
Did Tsunglin mean that they are working on solution for H7x bulb problem, or just for future models?

I will measure the light as you described with the meter facing the projector at the screen. I assume this reading (in lux) then gets multipled by the number of sq meters of the screen and the screen gain to get lumens, correct?

How did it work out ?, If you want i can send you a spreetsheet with the calc's it also has my results.

Daniel.

Did Tsunglin mean that they are working on solution for H7x bulb problem, or just for future models?

I doubt they are working Hard on a solution for a discontinued projector.

Fleaman

Yeah listen to the wisdom of the Flea. I know I should count my blessings that mine lasted to about a 1000 hours.

If the planned work arounds some folks are doing with inserted fans works, will eventually hit that route. I see no other pending work for the discontinued model. Shame.

I did notice that the bulbs for the H78DC3 and H79 had a "D" at the end of the part number while the H77 had a "E". Everything about the specifications looked the same to me, but there was that difference. I'm sure someone more knowedgeable would know why.

Interesting...as they are sending me a bulb for my H-78 that failed to strike after 45 hours on its second bulb....with E in the part number thats due tommorow....maybe its from there private stash or something ;)

I got my light meter today and have some interesting results. First of all, I called Optoma yesterday to ask them about the situation and explain what I was seeing. When they found out I had an H79 and that I had felt I had lost significant brightness they immediately offered to replace my unit. I hadnt prompted them, but was calling to ask some questions about what I was seeing. Having been asked, though, I wasnt going to turn them down. They charged a new one to my credit card and one-day'ed it to me (to be credited when I ship the old one back). When I got home from work today there was a new H79 waiting for me. I just wanted to mention this because thre were a lot of people mentioning customer service problems in the US with Opoma. I had no such issues.

So with light sensor in hand I was ready to take measurements on my old projector. The results were (with approximately 190 hours):

low power: 42 lux 166 lumens and just over 5 ft/l (for screen size and gain)
high power: 57 lux 225 lumens and 6.8 ft/l

I was suprised that using a light meter resulted in lower numbers than my calibrator got off the screen (he got about 8 ft/l in high power mode). Of course, I dont think I'm using a very high quality light meter.

At this point I changed out the projectors and configured the new one with my old ones settings to try and get a close comparision. The new projector resulted in:

low power: 101 lux 400 lumens and approzimately 12 ft/l
high power: 127 lux 503 lumens and appoximately 15.3 ft/l

Over 50% brightness lost in less than 200 hours. One odd thing about the old projector (I havent looked for it on the new one) was that there was a portion of the top of the projector that "lit up" when the lamp was on. In other words there was some light leaking thought the top of the projector through the white casing. It was about .25 inches by 2 inches. Not knowing I thought it was normal. Obviously, there was a problem with the old projector/bulb. Having seen the new one up and running I can say that its very obvious.

I'll keep an eye on the projector and see how it goes. I'm curious why my numbers are still lower than Daniel's with the new projector. Mine is ceiling mounted and has a pretty big lens shift on it. Perhaps thats the difference.....

Anyways, thanks for the help everyone! I just hope the new projector works out.

Interesting...as they are sending me a bulb for my H-78 that failed to strike after 45 hours on its second bulb....with E in the part number thats due tommorow....maybe its from there private stash or something ;)


Actually Earz, I think I got it backwards. I went back and looked again and the H78/79 bulbs I've seen online have an "E" and the H77 had a "D". Sorry for the mix up. I have no idea what it means..maybe nothing...

I'll keep an eye on the projector and see how it goes. I'm curious why my numbers are still lower than Daniel's with the new projector. Mine is ceiling mounted and has a pretty big lens shift on it. Perhaps thats the difference.....

Anyways, thanks for the help everyone! I just hope the new projector works out.

Good to see we atleast found the problem, What i do is put a white screen on a htpc and project that on the screen. I also use alot of lens shift / ceiling mode i doubt that is the problem but for fun try to take readings on different placed of the screen you will see that the numbers change. I allways take them in the middle of the screen for that reason. Also there is a option called whitepeaking that PAL projectors default have on 1. This also effects output alot.

Also good to see not all optoma usa support is bad and this reaction was more inline with i atleast have seen in europe.

Daniel.

Actually Earz, I think I got it backwards. I went back and looked again and the H78/79 bulbs I've seen online have an "E" and the H77 had a "D". Sorry for the mix up. I have no idea what it means..maybe nothing...

This changes things, I guess D could stand for dependable, and E for erratic then ;)

Hai,

Numbers for upto 400h

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L
300 normal=338L, bright=456L
350 normal=329L, bright=431L
400 normal=308L, bright=405L

It seems to have stopt slowing down and is now getting dimmer about .5 ansi per hour well what can i say ... see you in 50hours :)

Daniel.

Anybody want to bet that by 500hrs it will be under 250 in eco mode. :D

Dale

Anybody want to bet that by 500hrs it will be under 250 in eco mode. :D

Dale

Ill take that bet.... or is it like allways the small letters that will get me on this one (anyone involved with the.... is excluded from entering).

Daniel.

Ill take that bet.... or is it like allways the small letters that will get me on this one (anyone involved with the.... is excluded from entering).

Daniel.


Daniel sure I am willing to bet you. Would a case of your or my favorite beer be ok? But I'll probably just send you the money so you can go buy it yourself if I lose. The shipping would cost much more then the price of the beer itself. :)

Also just to let other members know I am only betting with Daniel and two other people. I could not afford to buy 100s of cases of beer if I did lose. Nothing against you personally Daniel but this would be a first for me wishing a lamp would fail. :D I was hoping Tom would pop up and take me up on it, but I probably on his ignore list. :)

Dale

Daniel sure I am willing to bet you. Would a case of your or my favorite beer be ok? But I'll probably just send you the money so you can go buy it yourself if I lose. The shipping would cost much more then the price of the beer itself. :)

Also just to let other members know I am only betting with Daniel and two other people. I could not afford to buy 100s of cases of beer if I did lose. Nothing against you personally Daniel but this would be a first for me wishing a lamp would fail. :D I was hoping Tom would pop up a take me up on it, but I probably on his ignore list. :)

Dale

Hold on you supposed to back down.. Now you probably jinxed my bulb.... moderator moderator is that allowed ?

Daniel.

PS: in weird Dutch humor i would probably ask for a case of heineken.

PS2 : thats from my country and we export it for a reason...

Daniel if it involves beer I think Alan will be ok with it. :D It just a friendly bet anyway.

Dale

P.S. mine is Bud light.

This might apply more to H77 than H79, but anyway. There are 2 different lamps for the H7x series: BL-FU250F and BL-FU250E. Interesting enough some internetsites states BL-FU250F is the replacement lamp for the H77 and other claims BL-FU250E. I just replaced my lamp and there was clearly a design difference. I wonder if the dimming problem is with one type and not the other?

P.S. mine is Bud light.
You see, now you have lost all credibility :D

I just want to chime in with another kudos to Optoma Canada.

I originally purchased the H31 13 months ago and within a couple of weeks it had to be sent into Optoma due to the famous (infamous?) PC syncing issue and tearing. They kept the unit that I bought and sent me a brand new one which didn't work any better so that unit went in and they sent me an H57 :) as a loaner while they were troubleshooting the second H31.

While they were working with me to try to reproduce the problems I was experiencing with the H31, they offered to either continue trying to resolve my problems and allow me to use the H57 loaner continuously, or I could upgrade to the H57 for a VERY fair amount of money.

By this time I had fallen in love with the gorgeous images that this H57 puts out and I was hoping somehow that I could keep it. However, the unit they allowed me to use was a demo and I agreed to upgrade at the price agreed upon on the condition that I would receive a brand new H57. Optoma Canada agreed to this and even allowed me to begin my warranty from scratch once I received the brand new H57. At that time, they were in very hot demand and were backordered so I didn't receive my unit until about the middle of June.

Now I'm experiencing HDMI/DVI handshaking issues with anything I hook up to it and the projector is going in for service. I'm certain that they'll either be able to repair the problem or upgrade me again. I don't think there are any more H57s to be had as they're out of production and have been for a while.

As for lamp issues, this H57 is one bright as the sun projector let me tell you. I have close to 450 hours on the one and only lamp it's ever had and I'm using an ND2 filter on it because it's almost impossible to calibrate with AVIA without it due to the brightness and this is in low lamp mode.

I'm using a High Power screen from Da-lite because I prefer images that pop although I also have paired this projector up with HCMW and it was fine but not enough punch for me personally.

Wayne

Did you ask how long they will keep replacing bulbs for free one after another if they keep dying like this?
Very good question, my lpx500 kept blowing bulbs at silly hours.the first lamp went at around 1700 hours and i was happy with that(well satisfied anyway) and the 2nd was at 506 and i wrote a letter to yamaha and within 4 days had a phone call and they said they would replace the lamp. Then that replacement went at 57 hours and i was asking for a replacement projector. Note that the 506 hours was out of warranty and so is my projector. Note, that i also took my lamp in to a local electronics company to get it verified that the lamp had blown on its own and had not been droped for example. (506 hour bulb). We all know that this is a common problem with projectors and bulbs, so i say this, if we want to get the after sales service from these companies we should go about this delicate problem through the proper channels and believe me guys, it takes time before things start happening, but it happens in the end. By penning a polite letter to a manager often gets a good response. Try not to talk to techs to much as you are fighting for the cost of replacement. I have currently had a vsx-ax10 replaced by pioneer at no cost and now my projector. All up i have gotten every cent back that i have spent by getting a new unit from these companies with a well written letter and a lot of waiting. Now i am waiting for my DPX-830 to arrive in australia and boy am i happy. Oh , and buy at specialist stores only, that helps in getting a replacement. Just some advice that DOES work. Regards Grassy :) :) :D

Just wanted to chime in about my H77. I'm have a 196hrs on my first bulb and now it's unwatchable. I popped in my spare bulb and it was so bright that I had to tone it down. I only use the high mode about 25% of the time and I've heard numberous people getting over the 1000hr mark. Is the something I can do about this so that my spare bulb last longer than 200 hours? I let it cool down, I don't leave it on for than a 3 or 4 hour movie, I don't abuse it, what with the Optoma bulbs?

Look for a buldge at the bottom of the filament, or crazing on the silver mirrored part. If you have these at 195hrs and talk to Optoma about how you learned this means defective I think you have a good shot at a replacement.

The main thing with these machines is don't turn them right back on after just turning it off. Don't bump them around when on, be very cool when re-aligning the video to the screen when they're on.

I have just reached 600 hours on my H77's bulb, and it has dimmed enough that I need to keep it in bright mode all the time now. I will probably be placing my new bulb in it at around 700-750 hours.

Just wanted to chime in about my H77. I'm have a 196hrs on my first bulb and now it's unwatchable. I popped in my spare bulb and it was so bright that I had to tone it down. I only use the high mode about 25% of the time and I've heard numberous people getting over the 1000hr mark. Is the something I can do about this so that my spare bulb last longer than 200 hours? I let it cool down, I don't leave it on for than a 3 or 4 hour movie, I don't abuse it, what with the Optoma bulbs?

imho get a lightmeter and get the facts if they are far of the numbers ive posted contact optoma.

Daniel.

crazing on the silver mirrored part. If you have these at 195hrs and talk to Optoma about how you learned this means defective I think you have a good shot at a replacement.

I definitely have crazing on the silver mirrored part... The silver is flaking off and it looks like that Ralph Lauren crackle paint. :( The product number on the side is 432071532. As far as a light meter goes, trust me, it's dim... The menu screen was so dim that I couldn't read the red lettering on the yellow menu background. Also, you can see a buldge at the 11 o'clock filament. The pictures speak for themselves...

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907053IMG3018.JPG

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907054IMG3019.JPG

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907055IMG3020.JPG

What should I do?

I definitely have crazing on the silver mirrored part... The silver is flaking off and it looks like that Ralph Lauren crackle paint. :( The product number on the side is 432071532. As far as a light meter goes, trust me, it's dim... The menu screen was so dim that I couldn't read the red lettering on the yellow menu background. Also, you can see a buldge at the 11 o'clock filament. The pictures speak for themselves...


show/mail these to optoma, something is wrong. The whole point about the light meter is to know what is happening. I don't get why (not aimed at you) $400 to $1000 bulbs but use the eye instead of a cheap $50 tool to get the facts reminds me of people who set dB speakers levels by ear. Facts just make you stand stronger if there are problems that are not as clear as your problem.

Daniel.

Hai,

here are the numbers for 480hours :

50 normal=429L, bright=569L
80 normal=414L, bright=540L
100 normal=379L, bright=523L
144 normal=362L, bright=506L
157 normal=358L, bright=502L
185 normal=355L, bright=494L
208 normal=350L, bright=485L
240 normal=350L, bright=481L
300 normal=338L, bright=456L
350 normal=329L, bright=431L
400 normal=308L, bright=405L
480 normal=295L, bright=395L

Seems someone will be loosing a bet, sorry i forgot about the 450 point, will try to aim for that 500h this time. but it seems we will fall back from about 450L to 275L in the first 500h.

Daniel.

Yes Daniel it does look like your lamp is going to make it. :D And hopefully you will not have to replace the lamp anytime soon. PM me with an address.

Dale

Yes Daniel it does look like your lamp is going to make it. :D And hopefully you will not have to replace the lamp anytime soon. PM me with an address.

Dale

Nah its to much work, lets remember the bet for next time, one thing that is clear to me is that i for one can't wait until we will get LED's feeding our dmd's since bulbs suck. Also im somewhat pondering what todo within a few hunderd hours since i plan to goto brightmode and this will have its effect on my numbers.

Greetings,

Daniel.

one thing that is clear to me is that i for one can't wait until we will get LED's feeding our dmd's since bulbs suck. Also im somewhat pondering what todo within a few hunderd hours since i plan to goto brightmode and this will have its effect on my numbers.
High-output LEDs burn out fast, as with bulbs, so don't get your hopes up soon. It will be quite a while before LEDs of such brightness will be economically-competitive, and last as long as bulbs.

When you go into high-bright, it will be because you need to have a watchable image. This will be the case also with everyone else though, and so will be directly comparable. As to proof of the problem for Optoma, I doubt it will do much good, as they already know that they are buying econo-bulbs, and surely expected this syndrome. This is obvious because Philips also makes 10,000 hour bulbs, and so knows how to do this. There is no recourse with a class-action lawsuit, as class-actions were all but outlawed by Reporklicans last year. This resulted in a massive shift of business risk from corporations, to consumers, and we will see more examples of the low-quality parts problem in the near future as a result. How else could they get away with so massively misrepresenting bulb life? No public-interest protection any more. I'm just sayin' the truth. It is very doable to replace the bulb envelope with one of higher quality, but it takes some mechanical skill, access to the envelopes in low volume, and a special heat-resistant compound. Maybe some enterprising individual would like to take this on.

As to proof of the problem for Optoma, I doubt it will do much good, as they already know that they are buying econo-bulbs, and surely expected this syndrome. This is obvious because Philips also makes 10,000 hour bulbs, and so knows how to do this. There is no recourse with a class-action lawsuit, as class-actions were all but outlawed by Reporklicans last year. This resulted in a massive shift of business risk from corporations, to consumers, and we will see more examples of the low-quality parts problem in the near future as a result. How else could they get away with so massively misrepresenting bulb life? No public-interest protection any more. I'm just sayin' the truth.
It is sad that Optoma doesn't realize that blaming bulb maker and not taking responsibility of bulb problem will turn against them. Bad word gets around much quicker than wider than a good word. If they have any business intelligence they would handle this in a proper way and they could turn a little loss to a large profit in the near future by getting loyal customers. Now they get a lot of previous Optoma owners who will never buy from them again. This is definitely my last Optoma product, unless of course they decide to treat their old customers with bulb problems in a proper way. Proper way would be that they announce there's a bulb problem and set up a channel where customers can get help.

But that would raise all sorts of pesky questions, like why did they make this decision in the first place? And who made the decision? And when does the liability stop?

Standard procedure is to handle it on the Q-T, for noisy places like this.

FWIW, this is part of a bigger trend to shift business risk from corporations, to customers. Let me explain how: Customers are looking for a projector that will last, with a given level of performance, and will pay a given amount for it. Optoma produces a projector which fits the criteria for a swathe of customers, and states its performance as having given metrics. Customers do a cost-benefit analysis and many decide to buy it. Some even go in to this knowing to expect only half of the represented bulb life.

Well uh oh, the bulb only lasts 1/10th as long as represented. And whups, the bulb is out of warranty, and suddenly the cost-benefit calculation is out the window because performance was egregiously misrepresented. (In fairness, other manufacturers also misrepresent their performance, although not to this degree, and anyway just because others do it, does not make it right) So the customer looks to Optoma, but is rebuffed. A small percentage will not accept this and will persist in being a PITA until satisfied, but the majority will give in to no TV, and buy a bulb.

As a bonus, competition is precluded, as these projectors have a custom bulb... and also it is not possible to buy the envelope in reasonably small quantities.

So, in using econo-bulbs which come nowhere near the represented metrics, and making sure there's a short fuse on warranty, costs and risks are shifted to the customer from the corporation. This is intentional, and the economics work; all manufacturers doing it to a degree, although this is an extreme case. The difference today is, we have no recourse, as the laws have actually been changed. The shifting of risk is complete, without anybody realizing it.

Have a nice day! :D

Yep. And it totally sucks! I have been thinking about buying a FP, but after reading this and many other threads about the lamp half-life rating actually being around 1/10 of the manufactures claim, I probably won't now. :mad:

I definitely have crazing on the silver mirrored part... The silver is flaking off and it looks like that Ralph Lauren crackle paint. :( The product number on the side is 432071532. As far as a light meter goes, trust me, it's dim... The menu screen was so dim that I couldn't read the red lettering on the yellow menu background. Also, you can see a buldge at the 11 o'clock filament. The pictures speak for themselves...

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907053IMG3018.JPG

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907054IMG3019.JPG

http://216.77.188.54/coDataImages/p/Groups/252/252396/folders/189466/1907055IMG3020.JPG

What should I do?

I'd talk to a customer service mgr. Get his email and send him the pictures. The blob at the bottom of the filament is what causes it to go dim. Showing him hard proof should make it easier for him to make a decision. Optoma should try and get Phillips to reimburse them for the defective bulbs, if that happens then everybody could get fixed up.

Yes guitarman, everyone should be taken care of if they get this 'balloon bulb syndrome'. But this happened to me, and when I contacted Optoma they informed me that my bulb is out of warranty. I had owned the H78DC3 for five months, and had 600 hours.

When I demonstrated that I knew this happened because the fan is set way too slow, so there's heat buildup to the point where the quartz melts --and thus it is a design flaw-- they informed me that they do not have this problem defined as one for which they will replace the bulb. What he was really telling me was, if I had had a lamp fault light instead, they would replace it. But since I didn't, they wouldn't.

I was forced to fight my way up the chain of command, until they finally replaced my bulb after several weeks. (BTW, I recommend avoiding Optoma manager Ralph Merim in this process, as he is part of the problem) Most people would not stand for a barely visible TV image this long --and when I say 'barely visible' I mean the DishNetwork guide is hardly readable-- but I am a hard-a55 and so persevered.

Back when you were defending Optoma for this, I'm the one who asked people here, "Who are you going to believe? Guitarman, or your own lying eyes?" Maybe you understand why, now.

As I mentioned in an earlier thread with pictures, all it would take is a firmware change to speed up the fan. But rather than take responsibility, they leave us to fend for ourselves, because the economics work for the short- and long-term. Let me make clear though, that I have dissembled the H78/9, and it is a well-built machine inside, and is a very good value. It just needs a higher-quality bulb, and an add-on fan.

"Back when you were defending Optoma for this, I'm the one who asked people here, "Who are you going to believe? Guitarman, or your own lying eyes?" Maybe you understand why, now."

I never defended anything, I said one thing. People should know how much the bulb is dimmed by using a light meter. You can see my point, how could they Optoma not worry about anybody who thinks yeah my bulb isn't bright like before and not knowing this was normal wear. That's the only question I brought out. Know I got a club of the uninformed making me out to be the bad guy.

This stuff bugs me so much I probably will end doing reviews here. I don't need the agrevation in my life.

My h78dc3 started getting alot dimmer at about 350 hours. It now has 560 and is about too dark to use. I've e-mailed Optima but Im betting that I will get no help. The unit is 9 months old. Are they swaping any of the h78's ?

This stuff bugs me so much I probably will end doing reviews here. I don't need the agrevation (sic) in my life.
Hey man, until you realize that people only want honesty, in these historically-corrupt political times, no one can really give a flying sh*t what you decide.

Hey man, until you realize that people only want honesty, in these historically-corrupt political times, no one can really give a flying sh*t what you decide.

Well i do, i am posting my numbers everytime not to start a 'fight' everytime. I really hope Tom stays reviewing projectors (of any brand) and provide feedback where he can. Also i don't see anything that he disagrees with. If there is a real problem they should help. We think these numbers and people who think they have problems getting the facts (pictures, lumens results) make your claim stronger.

I am in europe and sofar Optoma stood by their product for me, i read the comments on this thread with interest and tried to help by providing what i can.

Thats all what we can do we are not Optoma or any other brand we can only try to help eachother where we can.

Daniel.

My h78dc3 started getting alot dimmer at about 350 hours. It now has 560 and is about too dark to use. I've e-mailed Optima but Im betting that I will get no help. The unit is 9 months old. Are they swaping any of the h78's ?

really get a lightmeter, take the numbers. if they are really different then the numbers found in this thread remove the bulb and take pictures. Make a stronger case....

Daniel.

Hey man, until you realize that people only want honesty, in these historically-corrupt political times, no one can really give a flying sh*t what you decide.

Don't you think this is being a little to harsh with Tom.

Dale