I currently have a Yamaha LPX-510 projector with 1500 hours on the second lamp, having gotten about 3000 hours out of the first one. I'm toying with the idea of buying a third lamp now before they get hard to find and even more expensive than they already are. But I hesitate because my last projector, which was a Vidikron LCD, died at the end of the life of the second lamp. I sent it in for repair and the service company told me that it had irreparable heat damage which is normal for an LCD projector. They said I shouldn't expect an LCD projector to be able to withstand the heat from the lamps for more than two lamp cycles and that after two lamps, I should expect to replace projector. I didn't mind replacing the Vidikron for a higher resolution projector with HDMI inputs but my Yamaha is serving me fine now and I'd rather plan on being able to use the third lamp then replace the projector. So, whaddayathink? Are the later model projectors better able to withstand the heat from the lamps? Anybody on their third or higher lamp?

My experience is that by the second lamp the projector is almost completely depreciated, to the point where the cost of a used projector is comparable to the cost of a new lamp. So I wouldn't buy a third lamp in advance unless you are sure you want to stay with that projector.

Wow - a $5,000 projector only good for two lamp cycles??? I hope they were only trying to sell you a new one, because that's ridiculous! I have an LPX-510 as well, and am just about to go bulb-shopping. Did you find a good place to get one?

BTW, I've noticed that when I watch normal aspect tv with grey bars on each side, I'm seeing a blue fuzzy border around the screen edges. Is this a side effect of the lamp going out? Did you see this on yours?

I don't have that projector so can't comment on the specifics. If you are getting 3000 hours out of each lamp, you probably have years to go before burning through the rest of your lamp hours, unless you leave the projector on more than normal. I find I used my projector about 500 hours a year.

Boy I wish I could get 3000hrs on my PJ. I have a Boxlight HD20(sanyo PLV70 Clone), now on third bulb and will be getting a fourth one soon. Usually get around 1200hrs on a bulb. That's the price of using a light cannon. I'm familiar with the OP's PJ, but the cost of a bulb should not be the same as the value of the PJ.

I have the Epson 500 which is the same projector as I recall. I'm over 1800 hours on the second bulb and it looks great..

My experience is that by the second lamp the projector is almost completely depreciated, to the point where the cost of a used projector is comparable to the cost of a new lamp. So I wouldn't buy a third lamp in advance unless you are sure you want to stay with that projector.


Thanks for your thoughts, PerfKnee. I was hoping the later generation projectors were constructed in a fashion to better withstand the heat from the lamps for the sake of longevity. I do like this Yamaha projector very much. It's mounted nicely, gives a great picture at native 720p and has been trouble free. However, I would be very annoyed if I spent $600 for the third lamp to find out the projector is all burned up inside from the heat of the prior two lamps.

.........Wow - a $5,000 projector only good for two lamp cycles??? I hope they were only trying to sell you a new one.....

The company I sent the Vidikron to for repair was Hi-Rez Services in Massachusetts. They are a long standing, reputable projector repair company and there was never any discussion of my buying anything from them. I do believe what they said was true at the time, which was 6/2004, and they were talking about a projector I purchased in 1998. This was definitely regarding an earlier generation projector. But its on my mind now that I'm thinking about a third lamp for the Yamaha.

......I have an LPX-510 as well, and am just about to go bulb-shopping. Did you find a good place to get one?

I didn't find many places that sell them. I bought the second one from Yamaha for $649 with free shipping and they are still selling it for the same price. A couple of other places online have it and I think this time I can get it for somewhat less considering price, tax and shipping. If you find a good price on one, please let me know. The part number is PJL-520.

.......BTW, I've noticed that when I watch normal aspect tv with grey bars on each side, I'm seeing a blue fuzzy border around the screen edges. Is this a side effect of the lamp going out? Did you see this on yours?

I don't remember seeing this. However, my grey bars sometimes look kind of lavender which might be indicative of a blue issue. You will have lots of notice when its time to change the lamp. The low lamp warning flashes on the screen when you turn the projector on for at least a couple of weeks before it won't fire up any more.

I don't have that projector so can't comment on the specifics. If you are getting 3000 hours out of each lamp, you probably have years to go before burning through the rest of your lamp hours, unless you leave the projector on more than normal. I find I used my projector about 500 hours a year.


Is 500 hours a year normal? I bought this projector in July of 2004 so it looks like I'm logging in about 1600 hours/year.

If two lamp cycles end the life of a Vidikron, then that says lots about a Vidikron...i.e. don't ever buy one.

I am on the fifth lamp cycle of an admittedly old Sony LCD projector (VPL VW10HT) and it continues to deliver as good a picture as it did when new. I get 2000 hours per bulb. I sent it in once for adjustment, just before the warranty ended at three years. Its now 7 years old and still humming. While I will replace it soon, I would never consider a projector that lasts only about 4000 hours.

Boy I wish I could get 3000hrs on my PJ. I have a Boxlight HD20(sanyo PLV70 Clone), now on third bulb and will be getting a fourth one soon. Usually get around 1200hrs on a bulb. That's the price of using a light cannon. I'm familiar with the OP's PJ, but the cost of a bulb should not be the same as the value of the PJ.


Hope that's not an expensive bulb!! My theater has virtually no ambient light so I can get away with 75% power most of the time to get the extra hours on the lamp. To my mind, value is a relative term and a book somewhere equating the depreciated value of my $5,000 projector with the $600 cost of a new bulb doesn't take into account the hassles and uncertainties involved with a new projector installation, especially when the new projector won't be offering much, if anything, in features over the existing one.

I have the Epson 500 which is the same projector as I recall. I'm over 1800 hours on the second bulb and it looks great..


Yeah, I remember reading about the fact that the Yamaha is Epson's design. I wonder if the bulb is the same. I did a quick online check on prices for the Epson 500 lamp and saw it for as much as roughly $200 less then the Yamaha lamp. Myh picture looks good too, at 1500 hours on the second lamp. In fact, I was amazed at how good my picture looked right up until the end on my first lamp.

.....I am on the fifth lamp cycle of an admittedly old Sony LCD projector (VPL VW10HT) and it continues to deliver as good a picture as it did when new. I get 2000 hours per bulb. I sent it in once for adjustment, just before the warranty ended at three years. Its now 7 years old and still humming. While I will replace it soon, I would never consider a projector that lasts only about 4000 hours....


Thanks for the encouraging post - its great to hear from someone who has almost 10,000 hours on an LCD projector!! It would make me very happy if it was just a matter of the Vidikron having a poor design for dissipating the heat from the lamps.

Only if the projector was poorly designed and poorly built. I also own an ancient Sony 10HT. I'm on my fourth lamp; it still works great--none of the blue polarizer stuff I hear about with other LCD projectors.

If you don't want to pay the full price of a new lamp, there are lamp refurbishers you can send your lamp to. They will put a new UHP bulb in the cage--it's about half the price of a new lamp and works equally well.

Eventually, the reflector inside the cage will burn up, so you can't do this over and over again...

It would be interesting to know if the Yamaha and Epson do use the same lamp.
I would not be surprised if they do. My schedule has only allowed me to put on about
200 hrs per year on my Epson 500. This number is increasing with more decent HD sources.
However, I am a little worried that when the bulb goes it will
be very difficult to find a new one. However, I expect to be able to use the
pj for some time to come in my recroom or bedroom. The flexibility that the power zoom
gives would be particularly nice in a bedroom setup so I don't see giving up on this
pj.

I went through at least 4 lamps and 6000 hours on my HS10 before my LCD's went (polarizers) and got the infamous yellow coloration. Since then I've seen this yellow hue on various sports bar projectors (with obivously clueless management). You can replace the polarizers, but by the time it happens the projector has so little resale value and is so obsolete against new even budget projectors that you're really throwing good money after bad.

I still have the VW10HT! Third lamp. 4600 hour on the projector. Still looks great!

Hope that's not an expensive bulb!! My theater has virtually no ambient light so I can get away with 75% power most of the time to get the extra hours on the lamp. To my mind, value is a relative term and a book somewhere equating the depreciated value of my $5,000 projector with the $600 cost of a new bulb doesn't take into account the hassles and uncertainties involved with a new projector installation, especially when the new projector won't be offering much, if anything, in features over the existing one.

The cost of the bulb for my PJ runs around $375. About a buck a day for the pleasure.

I'm at the end of the lamp 4 cycle on my 7 year old Sony VPL-VW10HT - I've been ignoring (resetting) the "Please Replace Lamp" reminder...flipping between Epson(s) 1080's and the RS1.....gittin' sucked into the JVC postings, little more than I anticipated spending but I can't ignore the performance kudos.

:( I currently have a Yamaha LPX-510 projector with 1500 hours on the second lamp, having gotten about 3000 hours out of the first one.

Hi Loquitor,
I think we corresponded on these pages a long time ago regarding the Yamaha LPX-510. I purchased mine in 6/08/04. The picture has been most satisfying on DVDs and HDTV content.

My news is not as good as the posters here. When I came home from business last Friday I went to turn on the 510 and it would not light up. I got the flashing red power light and flashing red lamp/cover light. Naturally I removed the bulb and reinstalled it and same thing happened. When I leave for extended periods of time I power off all my equipment (unplug the LPX-510).

I have maybe 800 hours on the bulb in a ceiling installation, basement, temperature and humidity controlled (projector filter cleaned regularly). Lamp output is always @75% on a 100" diagonal screen. I never turn it on unless it will be operated for 2 hours or more.

Needless to say this is very disappointing. The 3000 hour bulb life at 75% power was one of the features which influenced my purchase of the LPX-510.

The lowest price I can currently find for a bulb is $504 not including shipping. Based upon my experience with the first bulb I'm not sure I will replace it. Today it would be more cost effective to buy a new projector from another manufacturer.

Naturally I will have to take the hit in the pocketbook.

Sincerely,
Martin

Is 500 hours a year normal? I bought this projector in July of 2004 so it looks like I'm logging in about 1600 hours/year.


That's about what we do too. I must be on my 5th or 6th bulb.

I'm pleasantly surprised to see two others in this thread that have the Sony 10HT and still going strong. All three of us have certainly got our money's worth out of that projector.

I too am looking at the RS1 as a replacement, in the hope that I can get another 7+ years out of that projector. Have you had a chance to see one in person? I'm concerned about the light output compared to the 10HT, as I have indicated on another thread. I have a large screen (10 ft wide 16:9), and while the RS1 is considered relatively bright at 700 true tested lumens, I wonder what the real light output is of the 10HT. Its rated at 1000 lumens, and I certainly wouldn't want to replace it with a dimmer projector.

I've decided to order the RS-1 and I asked my dealer about the brightness comparison between the VPL-VW10HT (1000 Lumens) and the RS-1. He said the RS-1 would be as bright (my mounting distance from the screen won't change)and the 1000 Lumen was determined using an "older" projector technology; didn't elaborate but I trust him, same dealer my 10HT came from.

Stratojak,

I'm sure you'll be happy with your RS-1. Please let us know how you find the brightness compared to your 10HT when the RS-1 arrives.

I went through at least 4 lamps and 6000 hours on my HS10 before my LCD's went (polarizers) and got the infamous yellow coloration. Since then I've seen this yellow hue on various sports bar projectors (with obivously clueless management). You can replace the polarizers, but by the time it happens the projector has so little resale value and is so obsolete against new even budget projectors that you're really throwing good money after bad.

I'm glad I changed out my blue polarizers on the HS-10 as I have over 20,000 hours on it and still looks like new. It seems the replacement polarizer does not degrade like the original one. I can hold out until the 3rd gen 1080p units arrive.

8 Bulbs total. I don't buy the Sony bulbs anymore, I get the bare bulb assembly and screw it onto the old Sony bulb holder for much less.

I don't buy the Sony bulbs anymore, I get the bare bulb assembly and screw it onto the old Sony bulb holder for much less.


Hi Scamman,
How did/do get the part# for the bare bulb? Is there any special or tricky assembly procedures?

I am concerned if I was to do this to my projector there will be problems with brightness uniformity, color bi-fringence or whatever. Bulb alignment worries me.

I have the Yamaha LPX-510.

Sincerely,
Martin

I have a Sony HS-20 with 5,100 hours on it, no problems. Took out the first bulb after 2,000 hrs, still good, waiting for second bulb to burn out it has 3,100 hours. When second one goes out I'll buy another bulb.

... Yamaha LPX-510... .. I purchased mine in 6/08/04. The picture has been most satisfying on DVDs and HDTV content.

When I came home from business last Friday I went to turn on the 510 and it would not light up. I got the flashing red power light and flashing red lamp/cover light. Naturally I removed the bulb and reinstalled it and same thing happened.


Hi Martin:

I had the exact same problem and error message on March 30 which is remarkable considering how our projectors are virtually the same age, though I have a lot more hours on mine than you do. Unscreweing and rescrewing on the lamp cover resolved the problem, which was a suggestion in the manual for this warning. Did you try that? This was the only time I've ever had a warning message on the projector except for the low lamp warning on my first lamp. I figured there must have been some very slight vibration somewhere which caused something to move slightly over the years. I have not had the warning since and its been operating fine.

When I do replace this projector I will definitely lean toward a SONY since they appear to have the lamp heat dissipation issue well resolved.

Hi Martin:

Unscrewing and rescrewing on the lamp cover resolved the problem, which was a suggestion in the manual for this warning. Did you try that?

Hi Loquitur,
Instinctively I removed and replaced the lamp cover as that worked previously. I also removed the bulb and replaced it several times. No go!

Yamaha has been very "not-my-problem" regarding my case and the ~800 hours the bulb has lasted. Their attitude is the bulb was only covered for 6 months under warranty and that's it! That may be fine for heavy users because the bulb would have burned out in that time and it would have been replaced but, in my case I'm screwed.

Yamaha even had the nerve to say "collect a bulb from the retailer (Tweeter) because they hyped the bulb life". Yamaha's advertising, cut sheets and virtually every review quote 3000 hours bulb life in econo mode (75% light output). From day one I only needed 75% light output.

If we had an airbag in a car which did not deploy during an accident there would be lawsuits immediately. This is not a situation where the paint chipped off the case, we have major component failure.

I am attempting to get just the bulb from a vendor(s) and rebuild the bulb assembly. The LPX-510 bulb is very common (200w UHP1.0, aka PJL520). This looks doable at a cost about half of current market value ($225).

Philips calls the bulb "propriatory" (bull#!%&) and Yamaha will not provide specs or substitute part numbers.

See my problem is no matter how much I paid for the LPX-510 it is now "old". Replacement cost in like kind for a new projector is ~$1,500. New projector bulbs are cheaper and then there's 1080P resolution.

Sincerely,
Martin

Hi Scamman,
How did/do get the part# for the bare bulb?
Is there any special or tricky assembly procedures?

I spent $600 for a new bulb for my LPX-510, thinking my 'blue fringes', 'brown splotches' on the screen, and a grey-scale pattern that more blue and yellow were indicative of a bulb going out. Well, the new lamp made no difference, not even in brightness. I took it to my retailer for service, and he said he couldn't duplicate the problem (must be blind). He also said that if there was a problem, th eentire light engine has to be replaced because it is a module, and it would cost $1,700!

This has me pretty upset, since the LPX-510 cost over $5000 and I've put les than 3000 hours on it. If anyone has any advice about this, I'm all ears!

Contact Yamaha service parts and see if they'll sell you just a blue polarizer. Often it's a part you can replace yourself.

My first projector was a Panasonic LCD, and I replaced the blue polarizer after a bit over 3000 hours. Then I realized the black level was high because the blue panel was also degraded. Do a search on "blue polarizer" and you'll see that a lot of people experience the problem at varying hours.