I got my TX-42F430S about 2 years ago, about 6 months into its life it started giving me the stuck in standby issues, but unplugging and a few resets later it would come back to life. About 6 months ago it did it for good and weeks of trying to reset it w/o any results, eventually tried the FW updates from this site and the problems only got worse. Before it would still give me the "W" when i did a hard reset but then go straight to standby, after the failed update i don't get anything besides the amber light. Biased on its production date i believe it is the older board that wasn't suppose to be updated.

After 6 months of staring at my failure, i finally bought a new board 2 days ago from ebay, since i saw ppl had success with that. i haven't received my board yet, but now i see ppl are getting them to work with this modded FW within just the past couple of days.

So my question; it says it isn't "really" bricked (even though it's just at worthless at the moment) but if i use the modded FW and it doesn't match the FW from before, then it will in fact brick it. I don't know which FW it had before so should i still try this? at least a few ppl have shown it does in fact work. And what if it is the wrong FW and it does actually brick it, would installing this new board de-brick it? (i.e. is the board the only thing bricked when you bypass the safety stuff allowing the wrong FW to be installed?)

-Thanks

Gixxer331, I also got the amber light by trying a FW that was not for my TX-42F430S. Before this, my latest working FW was the 1.4.2 (usb flashed) and I believe before that it had the original 1.3.

As you see, my TX had a different FW from the modded FW (1.3 and 1.4) but it worked.

In fact, I tried making the FW by myself by following Thunderstorm360 method with the 1.4.2 FW but it did not worked, maybe I did it wrong, I dont know.

It was Ekztal modded FW that saved my TV even after I flashed it with the modded FW made by myself.

And now my girlfriend hide all my USBs so I will not try to mess around again!

Greetings!

I got my TX-42F430S about 2 years ago, about 6 months into its life it started giving me the stuck in standby issues, but unplugging and a few resets later it would come back to life. About 6 months ago it did it for good and weeks of trying to reset it w/o any results, eventually tried the FW updates from this site and the problems only got worse. Before it would still give me the "W" when i did a hard reset but then go straight to standby, after the failed update i don't get anything besides the amber light. Biased on its production date i believe it is the older board that wasn't suppose to be updated.

After 6 months of staring at my failure, i finally bought a new board 2 days ago from ebay, since i saw ppl had success with that. i haven't received my board yet, but now i see ppl are getting them to work with this modded FW within just the past couple of days.

So my question; it says it isn't "really" bricked (even though it's just at worthless at the moment) but if i use the modded FW and it doesn't match the FW from before, then it will in fact brick it. I don't know which FW it had before so should i still try this? at least a few ppl have shown it does in fact work. And what if it is the wrong FW and it does actually brick it, would installing this new board de-brick it? (i.e. is the board the only thing bricked when you bypass the safety stuff allowing the wrong FW to be installed?)

-Thanks


After I 'bricked' my LCD I tried 1.3.0 and 1.4.0 firmwares, both modded to remove compatibiliy checks, prior to making the one I posted above. Even with the checks removed neither would 'flash' my TV. One of them, the light never turned from amber to blue, and the other it turned blue after about 30 seconds and never actually did anything, other than it still being bricked.

I've even tried my modded firmware above with a custom start-up logo. It went through the upgrade process, about 3 minutes, going from amber, to purple, to blue. I tried starting it and it didn't turn on, so I just reflashed again with the working firmware, and it started right up.

So I'm thinking the Westinghouse TX-47F430S and TX-42F430S don't 'brick' as easily as we thought.

Anyways, to answer your question:

If you already have a bricked TX-47F430S or TX-42F430S and have already tried the 'correct' firmware for it without success, I'd recommend you follow thunderstorm360's instructions on the firmware you tried before, and if THAT doesn't work, try the firmware I posted. It can't get any worse from there. Besides you have a mainboard coming in the mail anyways.

The same thing happened to me actually, I ordered a main board of ebay and then said, "what the hell, I might as well mess with the firmware now while I have a chance."


EDIT: I guess I said about the same thing as tokmelo did 1 post up.

Ekztal, how do yo manage to use a custom start-up logo? You got information from sagaratus in the Custom Westinghouse FW post?

Guess i have to buy a new usb ;)....just kidding!

Ekztal, how do yo manage to use a custom start-up logo? You got information from sagaratus in the Custom Westinghouse FW post?

Guess i have to buy a new usb ;)....just kidding!


I messaged him, but he never responded.

What I did was open the mtd0 file in the board_root/images directory of the *.tgz in a hex editor and extracted the 2nd of 2 cramfs images, converted it from big to little endian so it could then be mounted (in linux). Then I could access all the files on there.

Then I took a 1280x720 file and converted it to .YUY? then to .yuyv and replaced the WDELogo.yuyv file and rebuilt a new cramfs image converted to big endian and then copied it into the mtd0 using the hex editor, because I don't know how to make a new mtd0 file, then I replace the mtd with the one in the *.tgz

After all that it didn't work anyways, I think I have to make a new mtd file for it to work right.

I am just not having good luck with this damn thing! So i tried ekztal's firmware and it never started blinking but after about 30 sec's it went to purple. I tried turning it on and nothing happened, still the amber light. Did it one more time just for good measure and still no luck. Then today i got my mother board and it isn't the right one for my tv, at least the ports are in a totally different order. On mine on the right side its VGA then the 4 HDMI ports, then the USB and all the others on the left. this one has all the HDMI on the right along with the USB but the VGA is on the left with the component and coaxial. FML.

BTW the board i need is the 48.3yt01.01a, aka W470PROLX68. The one i got was the more common W421TAFX69 since by reading the later part of the forum that was the one ppl were replacing and fixing their tv's with, not realizing there were different models and designs.

Gixxer331, these are the steps i followed:

1. Remove Tv power cord.
2. Insert usb in tv port.
3. Plug tv power cord.
4. I did not press the on/off button. The update started with a purple LED and did not blink as Westinghouse instructions says.
5. Wait about 3 and half minutes until the LED turn blue.
6. Remove USB.
7. Press on/off button once to turn off tv. The LED goes to amber.
8. I press the on/off button again for 10 seconds and the tv turned on. Some people recomends for this step to remove/plug power cord.

Hope this helps!

Ekztal, i though you already had the custom logo working. Here's a link about this subject. Maybe you already have seen it before. Anyway good luck.

http://www.reddit.com/r/ReverseEngineering/comments/a6l2d/custom_startup_logo_for_my_westinghouse_tv/

Ekztal, i though you already had the custom logo working. Here's a link about this subject. Maybe you already have seen it before. Anyway good luck.

http://www.reddit.com/r/ReverseEngineering/comments/a6l2d/custom_startup_logo_for_my_westinghouse_tv/

Actually cereal1 is me...

Like I said on the reddit forum and in a earlier post here, I got the new logo converted from a .jpg to a .yuyv, rebuilt the mtdblock3 and re-inserted into the mtd0 file. But the firmware bricks my tv when I flash it. I need to read more into MTD, and all that which is a little over my head.

I am just not having good luck with this damn thing! So i tried ekztal's firmware and it never started blinking but after about 30 sec's it went to purple. I tried turning it on and nothing happened, still the amber light. Did it one more time just for good measure and still no luck. Then today i got my mother board and it isn't the right one for my tv, at least the ports are in a totally different order. On mine on the right side its VGA then the 4 HDMI ports, then the USB and all the others on the left. this one has all the HDMI on the right along with the USB but the VGA is on the left with the component and coaxial. FML.



Yeah gixxer, I forgot to mention that the lights won't blick.

The way it went for me was:

It started out a steady AMBER light, and turned to a steady PURPLE light, and then when it was done, it turned to a steady BLUE light.
After it's blue, unplugged the power cord and remove the drive, and replugged the cord and pressed power.

tokmelo instructions works too.

You guys are amazing! I didn't realize it would take as long as it does, so when i did it before i unplugged it too early after a few minutes of being on purple. Following tokmelo instructions by giving it more time and ekztal's FW, i now have a TV again!! Thanks guys!

You guys are amazing! I didn't realize it would take as long as it does, so when i did it before i unplugged it too early after a few minutes of being on purple. Following tokmelo instructions by giving it more time and ekztal's FW, i now have a TV again!! Thanks guys!

That's great news!

I think this is most likely one of the best threads on AVS forum. This shows the true potential of this site. To help others when the manufacture can't. Westinghouse should be ashamed that they have such lousy software writers that bricking a set just by updating firmware with a wrong version could happen. It shouldn't. You have to wonder how many people who don't read this forum, have either trashed a set or paid for repairs that really didn't need to be made. From reading in this forum, there appears to have been quite a few who purchased a new main board to make the repair. Even though I don't own this exact Westy, I do own another model. Just glad to have experts like those here who don't mind sharing with others. Keep up the great work!

I am new so here is my problem. First of I bought the TX-42F430S use and broken. It is the TW-51122-C042A. I turns on when I plug it in. I get the big "W" and then the light turns blue and The screen comes on for a second. Then the screen turns off but the blue light still stays on. I hit the power and the yellow light comes on. I hit the power and the screen and blue light comes back on. Then the screen goes off agian. While the screen is on for the split second I was able to change the input to A/V and pluged in an old VCR and put in a tape of Postman. Now when I power it up it playes the tape for a split second and turns off while the blue light stays on. I can turn it off and on and it plays for about a second. I tried to flash it with SusanII-v1.3.0_20071026.rar but it would not go through the process. It acted like the USB was not even there. Does anyone have any advice.

I am new so here is my problem. First of I bought the TX-42F430S use and broken. It is the TW-51122-C042A. I turns on when I plug it in. I get the big "W" and then the light turns blue and The screen comes on for a second. Then the screen turns off but the blue light still stays on. I hit the power and the yellow light comes on. I hit the power and the screen and blue light comes back on. Then the screen goes off agian. While the screen is on for the split second I was able to change the input to A/V and pluged in an old VCR and put in a tape of Postman. Now when I power it up it playes the tape for a split second and turns off while the blue light stays on. I can turn it off and on and it plays for about a second. I tried to flash it with SusanII-v1.3.0_20071026.rar but it would not go through the process. It acted like the USB was not even there. Does anyone have any advice.

You can try flashing with my firmware I posted, but it sounds like you might have other problems other than the flash.

ekztal, thank you! My TV bricked today and your solution saved me!

You just saved another tv that was headed out to the street after a year of not working. I think you should post your address here so people can send you thank you gifts. If not, at least pm me so I can send you a nice bottle of wine or scotch. You just saved me from going out and spending a lot of money, or ordering a 150$ board I didn't need.

Thanks.

I have a TX-42F430S Part No. TW-51122-C42A that does not 'power on.' The amber light comes on when plugged in and turns blue when the power button is pushed on. The screen does not do anything and remains blank. I do have audio, just no picture. Any ideas as to where to begin fixing it? Could the power supply to the LCD be bad?

Thanks,
Kevin

@Kevin - Not to condescend, but I assume that you see nothing on the screen when you press the menu button, right? Just making sure someone didn't accidently turn the lcd off in the settings by hitting "audio only".

NP, Absolutely nothing is on the screen...I never had the tv on to begin with. If it was possibly turned off, how do you go about turning it back on?

Kevin

NP, Absolutely nothing is on the screen...I never had the tv on to begin with. If it was possibly turned off, how do you go about turning it back on?

Kevin

Turning off audio only mode would only require pressing the power button. I'm sure you've already tried turning the power on and off.

Yes, I have tried that. I was wondering if I could still do the fireware update by someone posting the button order would it problem fix the problem or is the more than a fireware issue.

Kevin

You can still try flashing with the firmware I posted on page 192. If it IS a firmware problem it'll fix it. If not, no loss, no gain.

You can try flashing with my firmware I posted, but it sounds like you might have other problems other than the flash.I did flash your software and it did update but you were right. I have other problems. The sound still works but no picture after that first second. All my caps look good on the power supply but I think I will check them out anyway.

I have posted instructions on how to change your start-up logo on the TVs. It requires dual-booting linux and running some terminal commands. Have a look if you're interested (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17852843)

if anybody has a tx-42f430s or knows where i can find one that only needs a mainboard i have the mainboard and would like to have a tv again

I have avoided flashing my TX-42F430S because of the issues I see people have had doing so. It seems the problems it creates are worse than the ones it fixes. Mine is a 2007 vintage, using 5112-1.3.0 FW. Do I dare flash, or leave well enough alone. The problems seem kindof minor compared to some of the nighmares I read about, my fixes involve unplugging the TV for 15 seconds occasionally to fix the problems, or turning off the DVD player & then turning back on.

I have avoided flashing my TX-42F430S because of the issues I see people have had doing so. It seems the problems it creates are worse than the ones it fixes. Mine is a 2007 vintage, using 5112-1.3.0 FW. Do I dare flash, or leave well enough alone. The problems seem kindof minor compared to some of the nighmares I read about, my fixes involve unplugging the TV for 15 seconds occasionally to fix the problems, or turning off the DVD player & then turning back on.

If it works now and gives you no problems then don't do anything. I have a receiver hooked to mine so only use one HDMI input on the TV that seems to fix any/all of the problems that others describe here since you do not have to change inputs on the TV to anything just leave it on the same HDMI.

If it works now and gives you no problems then don't do anything. I have a receiver hooked to mine so only use one HDMI input on the TV that seems to fix any/all of the problems that others describe here since you do not have to change inputs on the TV to anything just leave it on the same HDMI.

I second that. I use an HDMI switcher on mine which works so-so.

OK, thanks, guess I will let it be, it works so I won't fix it. An attaboy for the talented people helping to unbrick the TV's. I gonna keep this thread bookmarked if mine ever takes a dump, I'll give it go.

Hey guys,

I'm new to this forum and am in need of help with my Westinghouse TX-42F430S!

I haven't really used it for much more than playing my XBOX 360 until recently, when my wife bought me a Panasonic blu-ray player for Christmas. But my Westinghouse wont pickup any audio/video through my Moster 1000 HDMI cable.

I know it's not the blu-ray player because it works perfectly fine on my Toshiba LCD, which is about a year older than my Westinghouse. And I can get the player to work on the Westinghouse if I use component, but I find that pointless with any blu-ray player!

Does the firmware on my TV just need to be updated in order to resolve this problem?

Hey guys,

I'm new to this forum and am in need of help with my Westinghouse TX-42F430S!

I haven't really used it for much more than playing my XBOX 360 until recently, when my wife bought me a Panasonic blu-ray player for Christmas. But my Westinghouse wont pickup any audio/video through my Monster 1000 HDMI cable.

I know it's not the blu-ray player because it works perfectly fine on my Toshiba LCD, which is about a year older than my Westinghouse. And I can get the player to work on the Westinghouse if I use component, but I find that pointless with any blu-ray player!

Does the firmware on my TV just need to be updated in order to resolve this problem?

If you spent more than $20 on the HDMI cable you spent way too much(even at $20 it is a lot) Monster uses child labor in foreign countries to make their cables super cheap(around 49 cents per cable) there quality control in the past use to be very good and they wouldn't let defects get out but now they don't really seem to care as much and more and more people complain about the exact problems you are now. The connection works fine for one device but not for others. Westhinghouse TV's obviously from these threads do have problems but a lot of it can be solved by using a quality made HDMI cable www.monoprice.com for a quality cable and a fair price.

You didn't list your current firmware so it is hard to tell you if it could be a firmware problem at all.

If you have other HDMI cables that would be the first thing to try. Try using different HDMI inputs on the TV maybe one or more of them do not work at all. If you know the 360 works via HDMI on one of the inputs then use that same one.

Nothing else I can think of to try without knowing what your current firmware

I bought the cable for $17 new on Ebay. Cables not working is NOT the issue, because ALL of my HDMI cables work with my 360, and ALL of the HDMI ports on the TV work (already tried that). And I'm not sure how to tell what version of firmware I have installed on the TV... But it was bought at BestBuy in May of 2008, if that helps?

I bought the cable for $17 new on Ebay. Cables not working is NOT the issue, because ALL of my HDMI cables work with my 360, and ALL of the HDMI ports on the TV work (already tried that). And I'm not sure how to tell what version of firmware I have installed on the TV... But it was bought at BestBuy in May of 2008, if that helps?

It's in your Info/Options of the TV somewhere all the way to the right towards the bottom if I remember right.

Yep, found it! It says it was built on Sep. 7th, 2007 and has software version 5112_1.2.0.

Yep, found it! It says it was built on Sep. 7th, 2007 and has software version 5112_1.2.0.

I have heard of some "ghosting" image retention with 1.2.0 and earlier firmwares but don't remember someone saying specifically that 1.2.0 caused HDMI issues.

Don't know if you have tried switching HDMI inputs while you have the BR player plugged in or switching off from HDMI altogether while it is connected then switching back some have reported that fixing HDMI issues like you describe.

If the BR player not working on the TV makes it unusable for you then it might be worth it to try to update the firmware. If the BR player not working isn't a big deal and you can live with it then of course it is safer to just leave it be.

If you go to Westhinghouse's website and input your serial number for your TV(on the back of the TV) then you should be able to download the most up to date firmware for your TV and instructions on how to install it. I would warn you though if it is 1.6.3 firmware then do not use that come back here and find 1.4.2 or 1.3.0 and use one of those. 1.6.3 makes all 1080i/p sources cut in and out and renders the TV useless for everyone that reported trying it on this thread.

Hey guys,
New user, long time lurker

Sorry to interrupt but i have a few major questions about my tx-42F430s. They are listed as follows.

1) I have 1.3 firmware on my tx-42F430s. I checked the WDE site and I am eligible for the updated firmware. Is that firmware only for the Vchip stuff?

2) What is the best firmware available, modded or official, for my tv?

3) Is there a remote code, or firmware which features a RAW remote code, so that I can cycle between video presets? I have three different presets (one for video games, tv/movies, and one for when i want a the back light off). IF there is any way to hit a button to DIRECTLY select an individual preset that is even better than cycling.

4) Finally, I have for several months now, had burn in on my display. Since this is an LCD, technically it is a persistent image. At the top of the screen, where the TV would say 'No Input' those two words and their box provide a ghostly image,overlaying my movies, games, etc. I have left my tv off for over two weeks, unplugged, followed by a 12 hour white image burn in (pure white image across screen), but nothing has changed. I REALLY AM UPSET over this.

**) Bonus: Has anyone figured out pip on the device? By remote code, or firmware?


THANKS EVERYONE I really appreciate the assistance!

I have a 42F430S with the version 1.1 of the firmware. I downloaded several different versions (Susan 1.3, WH 1.42, Mod 1.3, etc.). I also tried with 3 different thumb drives. The Sony thumb drive worked once (light went amber, flashing blue/purple, solid blue) but the TV didn't take the update. The only reason I'm trying to update is to get rid of some Verizon Fios logos (image retention).

I read on this thread that you must update from 1.1 to 1.2 to 1.3, etc. I can't seem to find any downloads for v1.2 - if someone has this can they post it? Is it possible that the firmware didn't take for whatever reason and that I should continue to try even though it wouldn't work a second time when I tried 1.3?

Thanks for the help.

I have heard of some "ghosting" image retention with 1.2.0 and earlier firmwares but don't remember someone saying specifically that 1.2.0 caused HDMI issues.

Don't know if you have tried switching HDMI inputs while you have the BR player plugged in or switching off from HDMI altogether while it is connected then switching back some have reported that fixing HDMI issues like you describe.

If the BR player not working on the TV makes it unusable for you then it might be worth it to try to update the firmware. If the BR player not working isn't a big deal and you can live with it then of course it is safer to just leave it be.

If you go to Westhinghouse's website and input your serial number for your TV(on the back of the TV) then you should be able to download the most up to date firmware for your TV and instructions on how to install it. I would warn you though if it is 1.6.3 firmware then do not use that come back here and find 1.4.2 or 1.3.0 and use one of those. 1.6.3 makes all 1080i/p sources cut in and out and renders the TV useless for everyone that reported trying it on this thread.

I've tried everything imaginable, with no luck. And that includes trying to updating the firmware, but for some reason it doesn't work. I don't know if it's my flash drive or what... But I have it in the FAT32 format and followed the instructions. I even had a service repair guy come out (for free under my extended warranty) and he had never ran into this problem before and was basically useless. :mad:

I'll probably just go to BestBuy and explain the situation to them in person and see what solutions they offer...

I have a 42F430S with the version 1.1 of the firmware. I downloaded several different versions (Susan 1.3, WH 1.42, Mod 1.3, etc.). I also tried with 3 different thumb drives. The Sony thumb drive worked once (light went amber, flashing blue/purple, solid blue) but the TV didn't take the update. The only reason I'm trying to update is to get rid of some Verizon Fios logos (image retention).

I read on this thread that you must update from 1.1 to 1.2 to 1.3, etc. I can't seem to find any downloads for v1.2 - if someone has this can they post it? Is it possible that the firmware didn't take for whatever reason and that I should continue to try even though it wouldn't work a second time when I tried 1.3?

Thanks for the help.

I'd recommend the firmware that I posted (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537), it removes the version checks, so you should be able to go from 1.1 to 1.4.0. If it is not compatible the upgrade wont take.

I'd recommend the firmware that I posted, it removes the version checks, so you should be able to go from 1.1 to 1.4.0. If it is not compatible the upgrade wont take.

I tried it and unfortunately it doesn't take. I did try the one from the WH site directly and it didn't do anything. I'm wondering how long I need to let it sit before it does the upgrade. I may leave it for 15 minutes or so tonight and see what happens.

I tried it and unfortunately it doesn't take. I did try the one from the WH site directly and it didn't do anything. I'm wondering how long I need to let it sit before it does the upgrade. I may leave it for 15 minutes or so tonight and see what happens.

Shouldn't take more than 3 minutes.

Should start up amber for 20-30 seconds from the time you hit the power button, then purple for 3 minutes (the LED won't flash). Then blue when it's done.

Shouldn't take more than 3 minutes.

Should start up amber for 20-30 seconds from the time you hit the power button, then purple for 3 minutes (the LED won't flash). Then blue when it's done.

Yeah, I figured as much. The one time it actually changed from amber to blue it didn't update the firmware (using the susan 1.3 rar).

I left it in all night last night and it didn't do a thing. When I woke up I hit the power button again but it never changed from amber. I guess I'm lucky the TV still works even though it annoys me to no end with the image retention.

Yeah, I figured as much. The one time it actually changed from amber to blue it didn't update the firmware (using the susan 1.3 rar).

I left it in all night last night and it didn't do a thing. When I woke up I hit the power button again but it never changed from amber. I guess I'm lucky the TV still works even though it annoys me to no end with the image retention.

That same thing happened to me when I first used the Susan_II firmware. You said the same thing happens with my firmware? Do you have your TV's Part number? If it's TW-51211-C047A it should work with my firmware.

That same thing happened to me when I first used the Susan_II firmware. You said the same thing happens with my firmware? Do you have your TV's Part number? If it's TW-51211-C047A it should work with my firmware.

I don't have the part number with me, but I think it's a TW-51211-C042A. When I use your firmware, my tv just sits there with the amber light and never changes. I do notice that it powers up the thumb drive briefly (drive lights up for 1 second) after plugging the TV back in but then doesn't do anything. I'll double check tonight to see what my part number is. I'll also try a different thumb drive tonight (the 4th).

I don't have the part number with me, but I think it's a TW-51211-C042A. When I use your firmware, my tv just sits there with the amber light and never changes. I do notice that it powers up the thumb drive briefly (drive lights up for 1 second) after plugging the TV back in but then doesn't do anything. I'll double check tonight to see what my part number is. I'll also try a different thumb drive tonight (the 4th).

I was wrong, the part number is 51122-C042A. I tried the new thumb drive and it didn't work either. What I did notice is that the blue light comes on briefly when I plug the TV back in with the USB drive in - then it immediately goes to amber. I also noticed in your modified tar file that one exit still returns a 1:

if ! ./do_update.sh ; then
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=.;./UartCMDSend 68 16;./UartCMDSend 68 18
exit 1

curious as to if you know what this does...

I was wrong, the part number is 51122-C042A. I tried the new thumb drive and it didn't work either. What I did notice is that the blue light comes on briefly when I plug the TV back in with the USB drive in - then it immediately goes to amber. I also noticed in your modified tar file that one exit still returns a 1:

if ! ./do_update.sh ; then
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=.;./UartCMDSend 68 16;./UartCMDSend 68 18
exit 1

curious as to if you know what this does...

I must have missed that one. It looks like it might check to see if do_update.sh exists, and if it does. Exports files from it?

Hey guys,
New user, long time lurker

Sorry to interrupt but i have a few major questions about my tx-42F430s. They are listed as follows.
1)Is that firmware only for the Vchip stuff?
2) What is the best firmware available, modded or official, for my tv?
3) Is there a remote code so that I can cycle between video presets? IF there is any way to hit a button to DIRECTLY select an individual preset that is even better than cycling.
4) Finally, I have for several months now a persistent image. At the top of the screen where the TV says 'No Input' and their box provide a ghostly image. HELP FIX IT
**) Bonus: Has anyone figured out pip on the device? By remote code, or firmware?
THANKS EVERYONE I really appreciate the assistance!

The above is a condensed version of my post on page 193. Please see the full post. Sorry to bump but i really need help

The above is a condensed version of my post on page 193. Please see the full post. Sorry to bump but i really need help

1)Is that firmware only for the Vchip stuff?

No there is n Vchip stuff that I have ever seen on my TV

2) What is the best firmware available, modded or official, for my tv?

I personally have not tried any of the modded firmware as far as official firmware the best most stable one is 1.3.0

3) Is there a remote code so that I can cycle between video presets? IF there is any way to hit a button to DIRECTLY select an individual preset that is even better than cycling.

Nope sorry there is no way to do this even with a Harmony remote the best you can do is set up a remote to press the desired number of times for you to get to the input you want

4) Finally, I have for several months now a persistent image. At the top of the screen where the TV says 'No Input' and their box provide a ghostly image. HELP FIX IT

Firmware 1.3.0 fixed the ghosting problem

I must have missed that one. It looks like it might check to see if do_update.sh exists, and if it does. Exports files from it?

I changed the exit 1 from that code to exit 0 and still nothing. At this point I'm wondering if my TV is either too old to accept the updates or the USB interface is on the fritz. I may try it again this weekend, but I think I'm pretty much done. I just wish I could find my extended warranty for the TV so I could deal with Best Buy in hopes of getting some exchange.

1)2)3)4)......
Firmware 1.3.0 fixed the ghosting problem

As for #1, i meant is there any other issues adressed other than the vchipstuff which is not visible as it is only future proofing.

#2 What issues are there with 1.4?

#3 DANG IT! Is anyone else able to comment on this? Is there a way to create a firmware with this capability (im almost sure there is, just wondering about space requirements and programming ability)

#4 I am using 1.3, so ... .yeah >_<

Lately my 42" Westy will occasionally switch the screen to the PC input. I will be watching tv or playing xbox and the screen will swap out to the PC input screen. Has anyone had any unusual swapping of the screen? I'm not clear if it's a cable problem, a remote control problem, or a video connector problem. Hopefully I can tight up the connections on all these inputs and the problem will go away. If not, I'll be back.

Thank you:

Jordan

I came across this thread and am VERY grateful to have found it - as many of you already know, Westinghouse's support is HORRIBLE...

With that said - None of the HDMI ports on my TX-47F430S are working, I already updated the firmware (thanks to this thread) from 1.2 to 1.3, but am unable to get it to update to 1.4 - According to customer support, they said I needed to replace my mainboard and was wondering if anyone had any other ideas about this, or fixes that would allow me to avoid this.

Any input is GREATLY appreciated - thanks so much!

This can be as simple as shutting out autosource detection I have found - if you don't mind manually selecting your input.

Thank you Stev. I'll give that a try. I hadn't thought of that, as I usually do a manual selection anyway. But I'll check to see if that setting is used.

Sorry I can't help with your HDMI input problem. I only started using mine recently as I got a Blu-ray player. Everything else is through VGA or DVI or component.

***ATTENTION TO ALL THOSE WITH THE WRONG FLASH -- AMBER NO START - "BRICKED" TVs***


Hello all ! hope you guys can help me !

i have a TX-52F480S that has the failed flash amber light syndrome :)

i have tried to edit the .sh scripts as per thunderstorm360's post but no joy

im using this firmware SusanII_v1.6.3 that i downloaded from the WDE site.

i was wondering if anyone has a previous version of this firmware say like 1.1 or 1.2 and would send me a copy?

i think the original version was 1.1 as this is written on a sticker on one of the chips on the main board...

I came across this thread and am VERY grateful to have found it - as many of you already know, Westinghouse's support is HORRIBLE...

With that said - None of the HDMI ports on my TX-47F430S are working, I already updated the firmware (thanks to this thread) from 1.2 to 1.3, but am unable to get it to update to 1.4 - According to customer support, they said I needed to replace my mainboard and was wondering if anyone had any other ideas about this, or fixes that would allow me to avoid this.

Any input is GREATLY appreciated - thanks so much!
Anyone?? I am really out on an island here...

Anyone?? I am really out on an island here...

Stev,

Did you try the modded Firmware posted by ekztal at http://www.mediafire.com/?w1nnnmzmmrz ? You can see his notes on it 2 pages back in the thread - it's the post with the screenshots. Many seem to have had good luck with it.

That being said, 1.3.0 seems to be the most stable release and you have it on your set already. I do too, and only ONE of my ports works at any given time. I put a cable in port 4 and attached an HDMI splitter to it. Perhaps it would be worth a bit more time with a good source like a dvd or blu-ray player to see if you can get one of the ports working with a factory reset (accessible from the menu) and a restart (hold in power button about 10 sec when you shut it down). Let us know! ;)

Diz

I am in warranty until March. Should I have someone come fix my screen? My HDMI port originally had problems with my ps3 and would go black and not detect anything until i unplugged it. That no longer happens as of now. And the main problem is I have a GTX 285 video card in my pc that is DVI only. I tried to use a DVI to HDMI cord to connect to my TV screen but it constantly blinks a black screen. If this something i can fix with an upgrade? Or should I get someone to come fix it? Or is this a problem that cannot be fixed. When I hit the menu button and go to Settings System info it says Build on: 2008 Mar 5
Software Version 5121_1.6.3
not sure if this is the firmware or what. Any info helps a lot
Thank you

Stealth,

I'd definately try ekztal's firmware at the link I posted above your post. Let us know!

Diz

For my 42" I updated the firmware to 1.3 official and left it there. I haven't had one single issue since. Seems to me, a lot of the early HDMI handshake issues have been resolved by a combination of firmware updates and hardware manufacturers sorting out individual handshake issues. PS3's where notorious for not working properly with a lot of sets.

The image retention problem was solved for me with 1.3. Also make, sure you don't use the mode where the TV backlight turns off but not the screen. That is asking for trouble. Wait the extra two seconds for the set to boot.;)

I came across this thread and am VERY grateful to have found it - as many of you already know, Westinghouse's support is HORRIBLE...

With that said - None of the HDMI ports on my TX-47F430S are working, I already updated the firmware (thanks to this thread) from 1.2 to 1.3, but am unable to get it to update to 1.4 - According to customer support, they said I needed to replace my mainboard and was wondering if anyone had any other ideas about this, or fixes that would allow me to avoid this.

Any input is GREATLY appreciated - thanks so much!

My parents TX-47F430S did this exact thing. I was about to upgrade the firmware to see if that would solve this issue but something else worked. I unplugged everything for at least 5min before I was going to attempt the flash so I decided to plug it back in for one last shot and bingo worked fine ever since.

cliffs: unplug everything

ZZ

For my 42" I updated the firmware to 1.3 official and left it there. I haven't had one single issue since. Seems to me, a lot of the early HDMI handshake issues have been resolved by a combination of firmware updates and hardware manufacturers sorting out individual handshake issues. PS3's where notorious for not working properly with a lot of sets.

The image retention problem was solved for me with 1.3. Also make, sure you don't use the mode where the TV backlight turns off but not the screen. That is asking for trouble. Wait the extra two seconds for the set to boot.;)

Hi NotSoCoolJ, I have gone through 1 set already due to the image retention (the 4:3 border and box with no input display). This new set I got from Best Buy through warranty was good but now I have the same issue my system info says: Build date 2007 Sep 7 Software Version: 5112_1.2.0. How can I upgrade my firmware to 3.0? Also, you recommend using E. Saver mode under power settings? I am new to this site, any input would be appreciated. Thanks

You need to update the firmware to 1.3. That firmware is posted somewhere around here. I don't think you can get it any longer from Westinghouse. You could go to the web site and enter your information and see what firmware it gives you.

Do not use e.saver mode! Just wait the extra time for it to boot up. And as always you really should stretch or zoom 4:3 material on these TVs if most of your programming is 4:3. Man you guys scare me. I have had one of these things going for close to 20 hours a day for maybe a year and a half or more. I have not had one single problem......Yet!

It's like a time bomb... Of course, I haven't tried to show it off to anyone. I bet it would go to hell straight away if I did that.:D

Sorry for what may seem like a "this is already answered!" question, but I've been going back back back back through this thread and I'm still confused. After all, there are almost 200 pages! So I'm hoping someone will take pity on me :-)

I have a TX-42F430S running 5110_1.1.0 build on 2007 April 13. Part number TW-51101-L042A. I bought this June 2007. Input is from multiple devices all routed via my Denon receiver which plugs into HDMI1 on the TV.

Now I have two problems with this machine.

The first is the "crash" that appears to be related to HDCP negotiation; this is where the machine refuses to respond to the remote any more, won't negotiate a change in input signal (eg if I switch from 1080i to 1080p source via my receiver) and so on. Requires holding down the power button on the side of the TV for 5 seconds or so to reboot. This isn't a major annoyance.

The second is where the picture may disappear for a second or 2 then come back. Almost as if the TV loses the HDMI signal and renegotiates. This happens with both BluRay 1080p and TiVo 1080i input. It also appears to be getting worse over time (it also used to happen before I got the Denon and put the TiVo direct into the TV, so I know that's not the problem!)

From reading this thread it appears both of these problems are relatively common.

So would a firmware update help me? From the Westinghouse website I can see the 1.4.2 firmware (01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar). I've also found (via this thread) the 1.3.0 firmware (SusanII_v1.3.0_20071026.rar). However I'm not sure if the SusanII file is compatible with my part number. And I'm not sure if there are any gotcha's with the official 1.4.2 firmware (I see 1.6.3 is to be avoided!).

Any guidance on what firmware I should apply, or (indeed) whether firmware updates will help me at all?

Thanks!

I changed the exit 1 from that code to exit 0 and still nothing. At this point I'm wondering if my TV is either too old to accept the updates or the USB interface is on the fritz. I may try it again this weekend, but I think I'm pretty much done. I just wish I could find my extended warranty for the TV so I could deal with Best Buy in hopes of getting some exchange.

You have the same model I have and I have the same problem. Did you ever find a solution?

You have the same model I have and I have the same problem. Did you ever find a solution?

I don't know if this is your problem, but I had problems updating from 1.1 to 1.4 on a normal (unpatched, unbricked) TV. When I used a Sandisk Cruzer micro 2Gb disk formatted as FAT32 then the TV refused to flash from it. However when I used a SanDisk Ultra II 512Mb formatted as FAT then it flashed first time and successfully did the update.

So maybe you could try a smaller flash drive formatted as FAT.

Hmmm... I just so happen to be using a Sandisk Cruzer 2gig - How'd ya know?! <lol> I don't have any smaller readily available. I'll have to dig one up at work on Monday.

I have a 64 meg memory stick formatted as FAT16. The TV powers the stick and seems to function normally (I unplugged all the inputs, so I get a "no source detected" message) with it plugged in, but... does nothing else. I've tried all three files.

If you're seeing "No source detected" then your TV isn't seeing your USB drive and has fully booted into TV mode. It's not even attempting to upgrade.

Hmmm. I'll reformat as FAT32 and try again tonight.

I was able to flash the TV to the 1.3 version. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP! Hopefully, this will clear up the ghosting/persistence problems.

Hey guys, after reading this thread through searches for certain posts for the better part of two hours, I still wanted to make a response and be 100% clear before possibly sending my TV to the graveyard...

Currently I am having the problem many others were with the image persistence of the "No Input Signal" box at the top-center of the screen. I read that firmware version 1.3.0 fixes that, while others were unlucky and did not get it fixed.

My current firmware on my own TV is 1.2.0, dated at 2007, Sep 7. My model is TX-32F430S and Part# is TW-51122-C042A. I went to Westinghouse's site and they only have a link for a firmware of the name "01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2", but low and behold the only part # I was able to select was TW-51121-C042A. I read someone said installing the a piece of firmware that had a wrong part # could brick your set?

All I really want to know is how can I get rid of this No Input Signal box that is persisting. I read you could update the firmware to 1.3.0 to fix it, but I want to get the exact proper way to from 1.2.0 to a newer firmware that fixes this issue.

Edit: I have also read of things like jscreenfix or using a blank white image at full screen and leaving it there for multiple hours fixing image persistence. Any truth to that theory, and would it work in this case?

1)Is that firmware only for the Vchip stuff?

No there is n Vchip stuff that I have ever seen on my TV

2) What is the best firmware available, modded or official, for my tv?

I personally have not tried any of the modded firmware as far as official firmware the best most stable one is 1.3.0

3) Is there a remote code so that I can cycle between video presets? IF there is any way to hit a button to DIRECTLY select an individual preset that is even better than cycling.

Nope sorry there is no way to do this even with a Harmony remote the best you can do is set up a remote to press the desired number of times for you to get to the input you want

4) Finally, I have for several months now a persistent image. At the top of the screen where the TV says 'No Input' and their box provide a ghostly image. HELP FIX IT

Firmware 1.3.0 fixed the ghosting problem
Another option is to use an external hdmi switcher. Saw this switcher on monoprice and has favorable reviews. If you have a harmony remote, the unit is already programmed into the database. From reviews, the switcher is very effective and inexpensive ($30).

linky (http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10110&cs_id=1011002&p_id=4088&seq=1&format=4)

smithmal

My Tx42f430s farted out ~8 months ago, has been sitting in an extra bedroom collecting dust. Had a few power-on glitches when I first owned it that fixed by unplugging the TV. Then it was unplugged during a moved and at the new house was plugged in and got the normal "W" logo and then nothing but an amber light. Since then when powered on all I get is amber light and then a blue light. The "w" logo has never reappeared. Tried the firmware tips on page 192 (thanks for the work even though it didn't help me). Have tried multiple usb drives of various sizes/formatings, have done in install as described. Seems to upload and reboot as described but still get a blank screen once all is said and done. Prior to post on 192 I had purchased a new motherboard which did nothing to help the problem. Even tried flashing it. Of course Westinghouse has ZERO interest in helping. Anyone with TV repair knowledge think it would be reasonable to change out the LCD controller or have any tips on how to test functionality of the parts. Of course I'm out of warranty (died 3 days after westinghouse tried to get me to buy their extended plan). When it died I actually went out and bought a Samsung which is SO much better, so I'm not desperate for TV, but I have almost an obsession of wanting to get this POS working again just out of principle. Any other ideas much appreciated....

I have this TV (the 42") and was having problems with some HDMI handshake issues, so I flashed the new firmware (from v1.2 to v1.4) successfully which fixed my HDMI issues, but then I had a new problem, the ghosting "No input signal" box on the top of the screen. After reading this thread I found a post of firmware v1.3 which was solving many problems for people.

I JUST finished flashing this new firmware and am sorry to report I am STILL having the "no input signal" box ghosting on the top of the screen. Does anyone have any other suggestions for fxing this issue? I am having some family some in town and it's gonna drive me nuts watching programs with everyone here. Thanks in advance.

I'm currently running version 5110_1.1.0 on my TX-47F430S.

Part# TW-51201-L047A
FW# 5110_1.1.0

I haven't had any HDMI issues with anything up until now. I've just connected a Panasonic Bluray player to the TV and I'm getting alot of HDMI dropouts and sound popping.

I have a question for Ekztal. I thought I read earlier that I need to update the FW in order? 1.1 to 1.2 etc.... Is that still the case with the FW you last uploaded? If so, where the heck can I find 1.2 and 1.3? Any information is appreciated.

Thanks,
Bidzer

I went straight from 1.1 to the official 1.4 on my 42F430S with no (major) problems.

I went straight from 1.1 to the official 1.4 on my 42F430S with no (major) problems.

Is this the firmware you used from an earlier post?

TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip

I'm a little hesitant to use this file as I have the 47". I thought I read earlier that this upgrade works on both versions of the TV. I just want to make sure I don't brick my 47". I really don't want to buy another TV right now :eek:

Thanks,
Bidzer

I used the official firmware 1.4.2 downloaded from Westinghouse.

Thanks Thunderstorm360 & Ekztal..... Ekztal Your firmware fixed my bricked 42.:)

Hey guys, i have a fat32 usb drive and im a n00b. what do i name the files for upgrading the firmware (im guessing on the root of the drive).

Thanks,
Jeff

Hey guys, i have a fat32 usb drive and im a n00b. what do i name the files for upgrading the firmware (im guessing on the root of the drive).

Thanks,
Jeff

I actually got it working using a hard drive caddy and an old 40 gig drive. I just wiped out the old partition, recreated a new one as FAT 512MB, loaded the files up and it upgraded in under a minute.

The 4 gig stick i was using wasn't being recognized by the tv. Thanks for your hard work guys! I would be a very sad person with a big paperweight without you!

Hey, everybody.

So I, like many, had all of my HDMI ports except for one go out. I tried an HDMI switcher from Monoprice that didn't work well and returned it. Then, I had a Joytech tri-link switcher that was marginally better, but still buggy. Some of it probably has to do with the 15 foot run of cable from the cable box or blu-ray to the tv. It's pretty good cable, though; 24-26 awg, I believe.

But, lo and behold, there is a switcher that switches automatically (the way my TV used to do), has a remote just in case, and has a button selector on the unit in case you lose the remote (like I did last time). It works flawlessly, has a plug-in IR sensor so that you can hide the tiny unit if you want to, and doesn't even require an AC adaptor, even though it has a place where you can plug in a 5V adaptor you have laying around if you should decide you want to try it for some reason. It amplifies the signal as well. I think that I may have seen someone complain that it is rated to 2.5 gbps, but the picture and sound looked perfect to me. Disclaimer - I just do standard stereo sound. 217 people have given it 4 of 5 stars and you can pick it up for 16.38 including shipping at Amazon. Just search 3 Port Smart HDMI Switch. It is made by Game Infinity. Here is a link if it is allowed here - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015YWKYY

As you can tell, I am kind of excited that other family members can work the TV again, and not just myself...

Hope it helps someone!

Diz :cool:

Hello,

How do I hard reset/factory reset/reset the Westinghouse TX-47F430S. Getting an amber light with no screen display. Weird. worked fine yesterday. Have unplugged all HDMI cables and replugged. still continues.

So the TV appears to be in sleep mode (has amber led on). No screen display. None of the buttons on right side of TV work. Remote doesnt work. I did hold the Power button for 10 seconds. W logo appears. then everything goes back to dead.

Have been considering getting a new TV. Let me know what you think.


Thanks
RD

Hello,

How do I hard reset/factory reset/reset the Westinghouse TX-47F430S. Getting an amber light with no screen display. Weird. worked fine yesterday. Have unplugged all HDMI cables and replugged. still continues.

So the TV appears to be in sleep mode (has amber led on). No screen display. None of the buttons on right side of TV work. Remote doesnt work. I did hold the Power button for 10 seconds. W logo appears. then everything goes back to dead.

Have been considering getting a new TV. Let me know what you think.


Thanks
RD

Hey, you should probably try
ekztal's custom firmware at http://www.mediafire.com/?w1nnnmzmmrz ? You can see his notes on it on page 193 of this thread - it's the post with the screenshots. Although you already have 1.3, I believe, perhaps something in your existing fw got altered somehow and it needs reloaded. I think there was also a post in here somewhere from a guy who had to get into the TV and reset some DRAM or something through use of a serial port, but that is over my head.

Or, maybe your little spider finally chomped on the wrong wire ;)

Dizzie

I hate you ( I was going to buy my 60inch plasma infinia, seriously i was in the car and came back in to try your suggestion)

and I love you (the Westy works again)

Well it works great.

Thanks, for the help. Props to ecztal and the firmware rewriters.

I'm gonna go buy an Ipad 3g now. thanks for saving the TV

Recommend all bricked TVs try the custom firmware. I've had my tv for 29 months. It's a decent picture quality TV, just terrible glitches, problems, etc. Keeping it until the 3Ds become cheaper

I have the original TX-47 firmware. 5110_1.1.0 firmware. I read earlier that you must upgrade in succession 1.1 to 1.2, etc... Is this the case with Ekztal's latest 1.4 firmware? I'm just a little nervous about trying to upgrade and destroying the TV. Any help/comments are greatly appreciated. Sorry if this has been asked by me before but I'm a little nervous about bricking the TV.

Thanks,
Bidzer

I have the original TX-47 firmware. 5110_1.1.0 firmware. I read earlier that you must upgrade in succession 1.1 to 1.2, etc... Is this the case with Ekztal's latest 1.4 firmware? I'm just a little nervous about trying to upgrade and destroying the TV. Any help/comments are greatly appreciated. Sorry if this has been asked by me before but I'm a little nervous about bricking the TV.

Thanks,
Bidzer

You don't need to upgrade in succession with the firmware I posted, I've disabled the version checks.

Is this the firmware you used from an earlier post?

TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip

I'm a little hesitant to use this file as I have the 47". I thought I read earlier that this upgrade works on both versions of the TV. I just want to make sure I don't brick my 47". I really don't want to buy another TV right now :eek:

Thanks,
Bidzer

bidzer, I have a 47" tv and it can verify it worked fine for me. Actually I've re-flashed it over a dozen times when I was messing with the start-up logo and it's worked every time.

It's good to hear most of you guys are getting your TV's working!

EDIT: As of 5/4/2010 there have been over 165 downloads of the firmware
I posted! I hope alot of those downloaded helped fix some Westies!

bidzer, I have a 47" tv and it can verify it worked fine for me. Actually I've re-flashed it over a dozen times when I was messing with the start-up logo and it's worked every time.

Ekztal, that's great to hear!! Appreciate all the hard work you've put in. So I just extract all the files to the root of the USB drive and power off/on?

Thanks

Ekztal, that's great to hear!! Appreciate all the hard work you've put in. So I just extract all the files to the root of the USB drive and power off/on?

Thanks

Yup extract the files to the USB

Turn the power off, OFF not standby (or just unplug), then plug in the USB drive to the back of the TV. Then hit plug in the TV, if you unplugged it, and the Power button once.

Then you should see the LED light on the front of the TV turn from amber (after about 30 seconds) to purple to blue if I'm not mistaken. From the time you hit the power button to flashing sequence shouldn't take more than 3-4 minutes.

After it turns blue you can unplug the USB and restart the TV.


If the TV turns on normally you need a different USB drive or you need to reformat your USB drive as FAT32.

Thanks for the info. So the "board_root" directory goes on the USB root or all the files under that directory?

I have a TX42 made in January of 08. With software version 5112_1.4.2. I am getting HDMI flickering on all HDMI ports. it isnt constant. for example I can watch a 2 hour movie and the signal will temporarily drop roughly 15 times for a second or 2 throughout the movie. Enough that it bothers me. Any idea of the best way to fix this? FYI the blu ray player i am using is a ps3. I am currently not going through a receiver.

Thanks,
Ryan

can someone tell me the size bolts I need to mount a wallmount to the TX-47F430S??

I'm testing my memory a little bit here. I want to say either M5 or M8 metric bolts.

can someone tell me the size bolts I need to mount a wallmount to the TX-47F430S??

@bidzer - Yep, extract all files to the USB root.

@rmcdermid - You should try ekztal's custom firmware at http://www.mediafire.com/?w1nnnmzmmrz ? You can see his notes on it on page 193 of this thread - it's the post with the screenshots.

Cheers!

Thanks for the info. So the "board_root" directory goes on the USB root or all the files under that directory?


bidzer,

There is NO NEED to uncompress the tgz files inside the zip. You'll want 2 files in the root directory of the USB drive and they are:

safe-kernel.img1
update_WDE42.tgz

Thanks for the firmware update. My brick is fixed!

An fyi for everyone, I tried flashing my 42F430S with two different Micro Center drives but couldn't get either to work. I found success by using a Kingston Data Traveler drive.

Yup extract the files to the USB

Turn the power off, OFF not standby (or just unplug), then plug in the USB drive to the back of the TV. Then hit plug in the TV, if you unplugged it, and the Power button once.

Then you should see the LED light on the front of the TV turn from amber (after about 30 seconds) to purple to blue if I'm not mistaken. From the time you hit the power button to flashing sequence shouldn't take more than 3-4 minutes.

After it turns blue you can unplug the USB and restart the TV.


If the TV turns on normally you need a different USB drive or you need to reformat your USB drive as FAT32.

I've been reading posts about your custom firmware for a 42" westinghouse tv. Do you think it would work for a 52"? I've downloaded it and i'm planning on testing it out but i'm concerned that it might make matters worse. Has anyone else experience with using this on a 52"?
Thanks.

Well, I jumped the gun and tried the edited firmware on my 52" brick. To be completely honest, I did try the SusanII 1.3 and the 1.6. Neither offered any different results. So I gave Ekzal's edited firmware for the 42" and success. The tv booted up and my ps3 connected with only a small (odd) issue that some games didn't have sound at first. The problem resolves itself during later tests.

So, Thank you, thank you, thank you. This TV has been dead for over a year and has been moved twice with hopes that i would be able to find a replacement controller board which seems to be virtually impossible. I believe that there are other tX-52F480s owners out there than can benefit from this firmware also.

Well, I jumped the gun and tried the edited firmware on my 52" brick. To be completely honest, I did try the SusanII 1.3 and the 1.6. Neither offered any different results. So I gave Ekzal's edited firmware for the 42" and success. The tv booted up and my ps3 connected with only a small (odd) issue that some games didn't have sound at first. The problem resolves itself during later tests.

So, Thank you, thank you, thank you. This TV has been dead for over a year and has been moved twice with hopes that i would be able to find a replacement controller board which seems to be virtually impossible. I believe that there are other tX-52F480s owners out there than can benefit from this firmware also.

Thanks for taking the plunge and trying the firmware out. I'm glad it got your TV working again!

I'll make a note of it on my original firmware post.

westinghouse tx-47f430s just started to act up. what it's doing is it has picture for 10mins then goes out but audio is ok. unplug the tv and it does again 10 mins later the picture would go out but has sound.

any idea?

tia

anyone?

anyone?

I have no idea!

At lest you have a response now, don't give up this thread gets slow at times.

Hello :)

I've a TX47F430S, and I've been having some issues.

1) If I'm using my ps3, often times the tv will "blink" -- image goes out for a second, but then it comes back up. It can happen several times in a short span, or not at all. It's pretty random.

2) I have persistence image retention with the "No Input Detected" and "HDMI "x" " display boxes.

From what I gather here there is a custom firmware upgrade by Ekztal, and it should work on my 47" correct? This will mark the 1st time I upgrade a tv firmware :)

westinghouse tx-47f430s just started to act up. what it's doing is it has picture for 10mins then goes out but audio is ok. unplug the tv and it does again 10 mins later the picture would go out but has sound.

any idea?

tia

Hello :)

I've a TX47F430S, and I've been having some issues.

1) If I'm using my ps3, often times the tv will "blink" -- image goes out for a second, but then it comes back up. It can happen several times in a short span, or not at all. It's pretty random.

2) I have persistence image retention with the "No Input Detected" and "HDMI "x" " display boxes.

From what I gather here there is a custom firmware upgrade by Ekztal, and it should work on my 47" correct? This will mark the 1st time I upgrade a tv firmware :)

Hey, guys. Although Ekztal is too modest to admit it, virtually all problems with this TV (which has a great picture and very poor software) can be solved with Ekztal's custom firmware. You can download it at this link (http://www.mediafire.com/?w1nnnmzmmrz) . You can see his notes regarding the firmware on page 193 of this thread - it's the post with the screenshots. Pass it on! ;)

I actually managed to flash to Ekztal's 1.4.0 version and it looks awesome! I have yet to try it on my ps3 to see if I get the blinking issue still. However, the boxes on the top right and center still have that image persistence issue. So I tried to downgrade to 1.3 (susanII_v1.3.0_20071026.rar) and that just locked my TV up, I thought I bricked it

so I went back to Ekztal's version again lol

I'll be happy if just the blinking alone is fixed though. still, sad about the image persistence :(

I have 5110_1.1.0. My TV freezes when I switch to PC input. Am I better off using the 1.4.0 edited firmware posted here or calling Westinghouse and attempting to get them to email me a link to a firmware download?

I recall there used to be a page on their site, but it seems long gone.

Thanks!

I have 5110_1.1.0. My TV freezes when I switch to PC input. Am I better off using the 1.4.0 edited firmware posted here or calling Westinghouse and attempting to get them to email me a link to a firmware download?

I recall there used to be a page on their site, but it seems long gone.

Thanks!

Don't waste your time with Westinghouse. I called a couple of weeks ago regarding firmware that used to be on their site. Their response, "it was only posted to fix a V-chip issue and not anything else". Since people were bricking their TV's and Westinghouse wasn't willing to support that, they pulled it.

I'm going to try to load 1.4 as my Panasonic BD-60 Bluray player is having HDMI handshake issues every 10-15 mins. I shouldn't be wary about upgrading since a bunch of people have had great success, but I'm just not ready to buy a new TV if something bad happens :-)

Cheers

Well, I've taken the plunge and went ahead with the upgrade. Everything has taken successfully!!! Now I need to test if it has fixed my HDMI handshake issue with my Panasonic BD-60 bluray player. Will update later. Again, thanks for everything!!!

I justed wanted to say thanks for all the thread input and the firmware upgrade.

After working fine for 3 years, my 47" bricked itself yesterday (classic amber light on startup and reboot but no blue light). I found this thread and after a lot of reading (196 pages) I was ready to try Ekztal's firmware. Since the TV was already bricked I did't know what the original firmware version was, but it worked great on the first try.

For the record

Used an empty 1.0 GB UBS drive FAT32
Part #: TW-51201-L047A
SN: 512037170XXXX

Thanks again.

Have a 42" TX-42f430s - owned with no issues for 2+ years now - we turned on the power save mode yesterday and since then it wont turn on, we just get the amber light. No big white W.. no audio.. just black screen with the amber light.

Tried flashing it like 50+ times with 5 different styles of thumb drive with the: "TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted" Firm Ware

I extracted the contents of the ZIP to the root of the USB drives, Formatted in FAT32 first, then tried in FAT

When we initial power up, the usb drive gets read, then we sit at the amber light. I'm assuming that it sees the files but then decides not to act on them.

The instructions seemed pretty straight forward, Please let me know if I'm doing something wrong.

Ive also noticed in earlier reply's that others with the same part# as mine are meeting with little success in flashing their FW as well, but aren't necessarily experiencing the same problem.

Just wanted to report back in. The firmware upgrade has fixed my Bluray player issue and I'm happy as can be!!!! Thanks a ton!!!

Cheers,
Bidzer

Update: Ok did the fw ekztal 1.4 update but it didn't solve my problem. Picture still disappears after 10mins. Power cycle/unplug the tv and re-boots picture works again but few minutes laters same result picture fade out, only audio remains.

Any ideas what could be causing the picture to disappear? What 'board' would be responsible for causing this?

We got picture and audio back, except ONLY through component, (DVR and PS3).
Sometimes the controls will freeze, during this freeze what ever was last on stays watchable you just cant turn off the TV or change the volume or inputs.. soft reset with the power button brings it back. sometimes switching from component input #1 to #2 will cause the unit to lock up.

But most of all, if it is switched to HDMI, we may not get off the amber light for hours.

Westinghouse is useless, BB tech support is sending out a repair man. I'm interested to hear what they have to say about it.

Kinda hoping they end up replacing it with something comparable, I've loved this TV but power save mode causing catastrophic failure coupled with **** support for a known issue, I'm fed up with this brand :)

After watching a fair amount of 4:3 SD content on my TX47F430S, I now have three distinct vertical 'bands' on my screen. Is there any fix out there or is this TV now junk? I though LCD screens were not nearly as susceptable to this problem, and my other TV, a Sharp Aquos 50" LCD which has even more hours on it (with about the same ratio of 4:3 to widescreen viewing) shows absolutely no sign of this problem.

Hola gang, I've tried 3 different USB thumb drives, and my tx-47f430s doesnt want to seem to read any of them. After booting up the tv with all 3 in, 2 over 2 gigs, 1 only 128 megs, it just goes from amber to blue and turns on the tv. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get it to read my drives, or what drive I should use? Thanks in advance!

We have a Westinghouse TX-47F430s HDTV (2.5 years old). We have sound, but no picture through the cable box (Scientific Atlanta 8300HD). The screen displays a pillar-box (standard size) with a gray bar at the top and bottom with no image in between the two bars (screen has light). We can view the cable box guide if we click on it on the remote. The STRANGE thing is that we have both sound and picture when we plug the HDMI cable directly into our DVD player.

We have already tried replacing the HDMI cable and the cable box, but neither one helped.

The TV has done some other strange things over the last 6 months or so --

Shut off on its own several times.
Tiling (mainly on recorded programs)
Sound, but picture freezing
HDMI Ports stopped working (TV displayed - No Input) - Reset the TV to "factory" settings and they worked again

If you have any thoughts on what might be wrong, we would greatly appreciate it.

I've had the TX-42F430s for a couple years and have had no issues. We recently switched to Dish Networks and have one of their VIP722 DVR. When the DVR starts recording something and the TV is not on the HDMI input for the DVR, the tv switches to the DVR. Very annoying when you are watching a DVD and the tv jumps to the DVR on its own. I've searched a bit and cant find a solution. Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!

--Chris

In the settings menu, you can disable "autosource" mode to prevent the HDTV from switching when a source becomes active.

In the settings menu, you can disable "autosource" mode to prevent the HDTV from switching when a source becomes active.

Thank you! It's been driving me nuts.

Update: Replaced the 'master' and 'slave' inverter boards same result no picture has sound.

Placed a fan right on top where the LCD controller board is located...viola! TV runs fine for hours. Seems the heat is causing the failure. The LCD controller board must be affected and worn.

I just ordered a new LCD controller (T-con) hopefully it will resolve my issue.

*sigh*, I've tried five different drives of different capacities and makers with no luck. It'll flash once when I plug it in, with some drives it'll even flash some more, but then will stay solid amber forever, no firmware flashing, nothing happening on screen.

Here's my issue. I have a TX-42F430S running 5112_1.2.0 that, all of the sudden, decided it didn't want to talk to my PS3 anymore. It auto detects the right resolution, 1080P or 480P when I reset it to that, and will auto-tune the correct HDMI input, but I get nothing else.

The Apple TV is fine. I've swapped HDMI cables around, they're all fine. I've run the PS3 in various resolutions on my Hannspree monitor through HDMI, fine. All the HDMI ports on the back respond to the Apple TV correctly, but not the PS3.

My Xbox 360 won't recognize the display as valid for HDCP, so I can't even play DVDs on it, let alone the blu-rays I have.

Do I just need to try more, different flash drives in hopes that one will finally take? Two different PNYs, a Kingston, a microsd card reader, nothing seems to mount on the TV. Is my file structure on the card simply supposed to be safe-kernel.img1 and the tgz?

I'm no expert by any means, and I'm going from memory, but here are a couple things to try.

Hard reset: Turn on display, press-and-hold the power button for 15 seconds or so. This apparently does a hard reset. IIRC, the set initially turns off, but then the W Westinghouse logo comes on. I have two displays and one decides every once in awhile to not display the one input (from a AV receiver/amp). I used to have to leave the power unplugged for several hours to get it unstuck. I searched on google, and there was speculation that the display keeps a set of HDCP keys, and when the set is full it won't show any input. If you ping me, I'll dig up some links.

Upgrade: The flash drive needs to have an archive at the top level directory. There may be naming requirements. It has been a long time since I've upgraded. Again, google was my friend then too.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=15131248#post15131248
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12780825#post12780825. *

Sent from my iPad

A big thank you to Ekztal and his firmware and instructions.

I unbricked our TX-47F430S. If you look at page 188 you will see I was talking about it back in 2009.

I dont know what made me decide to come back here and read again, and voila there was a solution.

I downloaded the firmware from here:
TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip (http://www.mediafire.com/?w1nnnmzmmrz)

I formatted a 512MB USB Stick with FAT (FAT16)

I followed these instructions EXACTLY!!!!
1. Remove Tv power cord.
2. Insert usb in tv port.
3. Plug tv power cord.
4. I did not press the on/off button. The update started with a purple LED and did not blink as Westinghouse instructions says.
5. Wait about 3 and half minutes until the LED turn blue.
6. Remove USB.
7. Press on/off button once to turn off tv. The LED goes to amber.
8. I press the on/off button again for 10 seconds and the tv turned on. Some people recommends for this step to remove/plug power cord.

Just follow those instructions dont do anything extra or funky, and be patient, mine did the same thing it went from Purple LED to Blue LED in about 3-4 Minutes.

Now we have a working TV again and I get to look like a hero at work. :)

Thanks Again to Ekztal and this forum.:D

I have been reading through all of the pages to try to flash a stable firmware and i seem to be having some trouble doing so. I have a Westinghouse TX 42F430S and i downloaded Ekztal custom firmware. However the TV does not take it. So i went and downloaded SusanII_v1.3.0_20071026 and the TV flashed it... or so i thought. The steps i took were:
1. Unplug TV
2. Plug in USB with the files on the root directory
3. Plug TV back in and waited for the light to change from amber to a flashing purple light and then blue.
4. Unplugged power from TV and removed USB
5. Went into menu after TV was powered on and it stills shows version 1.6.3

Is there something that im doing wrong?

HDMI issues. I have a two year old Westinghouse 42" HDTV model 42F430S. It came with firmware update 1.3. I bought a Samsung BD-C5500 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player mainly to stream Netflix to my Westinghouse. HDCP issues resulted. I returned it and bought a Panasonic Blu-ray Model BD-655P-K from Costco, which works well.

I decided to buy a different model DVD, rather than try to upload the new Westy firmware 1.4 found on this thread, in small part because the Westy CSR said my firmware version 1.3 was the most up to date, the Panny cost a bit less, my Westy has worked well , and I am adverse to risk this close to football season. Not much help from Westy.

No issues with the Panny, works great streaming Netflix and otherwise.

HDCP issues (I am a novice). Samsung model required entering Netflix activation codes repeatedly. Rarely would it stream Netflix via an HDMI connection-- giving just the "no signal" display. I used the Component Video (Y-Pr-Pb) connection to stream Netflix and then I always had to unplug the Samsung and restart. The normal Samsung DVD firmware update did not fix it nor could Samsung CSR fix it, except blame my Westy, which was probably fair...... based on what I have read here. I do not fault the Samsung model, which, when it worked via component cables and after resetting each time seemed to display an excellent picture.

So basically I bought a different model Blu Ray to avoid HDCP/HDMI issues and kicked the Westy HDMI problem down the road. I do wish Westinghouse would officially fix the problem, rather than make us rely on the good will and great ingenuity of the folks on this board.

My panel has the issue where HDMI doesn't work. Tried the reset and everything. I checked my firmware. It says I have 5112_1.6.3. Built Mar 5 2008. Can't install 1.4(modified). Model TX-42F430S. Part: TW-51123-C042A.
Strange, no?

Edit: Here's a pic. http://db.tt/D5tcNM
Edit 2: Tried several different drives, all fat16 then 32. Two things happen:
- either nothing happens upon plugging in the TV (orange) -> i then press the power button and still nothing happens (orange)
- or nothing happens upon plugging in the TV (orange) -> power button turns the TV on, goes to blue. FW version still 1.6.3.
Bummer

@audibleBLiNK I'm having the samething happen to my TV. I contacted westinghouse and they said they are going to send me the link to there official firmware of 1.3.0 and i hope that will fix my damn TV.

Help!

I've lived with this TV for almost 3 years with the "No Input Signal" box burnt into everything I have watched. Wanted to update the firmware to maybe help this. It is currently running v1.2 that came with the set.

I have tried 3 USB sticks

Transcend 8G
Adata MyFlash 1G
Lexan Media Jump Drive 64M

The Lexan is evidently not seen as after replugging in the set the light goes quickly to blue and starts up.

With the other 2 drives, the light stays amber forever. Unplugging the set and replugging does bring me back to where I started.

All 3 sticks show a brief flicker of the activity LED about 4 seconds after plugging in.

Any ideas? Does somethign need "enabled" in order to flash new firmware. Are some sets just not flashable, or is it I just have 3 unlucky flash drives?

Spektre

edit: the "forever amber" light is also seen with an SD card in some cheapo USB - SD card reader.

edit: Went out today and got two more flash drives. A 1M Dane-Elec and a 8M SanDisk Cruzer. Both have the same forever amber problem. I have to conclude that unfortunately Ekztal's firmware is not comptible with my set. Anyone have any links to the official Westinghouse firmwre links?

(At least my TV still "works" as it doesn't appear this firmware "took" at all.

I have an idea to put to prove whether the issue is USB stick or firmware related.

Would anyone who had successfully flashed Ekztal's firmware on the 42F430S please lend me your USB stick? I can pay for shipping both ways OR I could simply paypal it from you. (If you are in the Columbus, OH area I could just pick it up).

If it worked on yours, yet fails on mine then there is an incompatibility issue unrelated to the USB drive.

Thanks.

Spektre

It's been a couple years since I upgraded, and I'm going from memory, but I recall that the issues almost always were with the contents and naming of the files on the flash drive. IIRC, the file at the top level should be an archive file, not unpacked. I recommend rechecking the instructions. I can look up that info, if you want and can tolerate a delay until I get to it.

Well just a quick update...After a few particularly unhelpful calls to Westinghouse I scrolled back through the thread to find a "Susan..." 1.3 version of the firmware and lo' and behold...that firmware worked.

Didn't fix the "No Input Signal" persistance problem, but it upgrade the set to 1.3. Something is in the script/firmwar of the 1.40 editted version that did not allow updating on my set.

Spektre

Help!

I've lived with this TV for almost 3 years with the "No Input Signal" box burnt into everything I have watched. Wanted to update the firmware to maybe help this. It is currently running v1.2 that came with the set.

I have tried 3 USB sticks

Transcend 8G
Adata MyFlash 1G
Lexan Media Jump Drive 64M

The Lexan is evidently not seen as after replugging in the set the light goes quickly to blue and starts up.

With the other 2 drives, the light stays amber forever. Unplugging the set and replugging does bring me back to where I started.

All 3 sticks show a brief flicker of the activity LED about 4 seconds after plugging in.

Any ideas? Does somethign need "enabled" in order to flash new firmware. Are some sets just not flashable, or is it I just have 3 unlucky flash drives?

Spektre

edit: the "forever amber" light is also seen with an SD card in some cheapo USB - SD card reader.

edit: Went out today and got two more flash drives. A 1M Dane-Elec and a 8M SanDisk Cruzer. Both have the same forever amber problem. I have to conclude that unfortunately Ekztal's firmware is not comptible with my set. Anyone have any links to the official Westinghouse firmwre links?

(At least my TV still "works" as it doesn't appear this firmware "took" at all.

Well, got my tv back by holding down the power button for 10 s to reboot. Appears I have 1.3 firmware. Should I stick to this or should I upgrade? Much appreciate if someone can post the link for the firmware which is the best one to have. thnx

I have an idea to put to prove whether the issue is USB stick or firmware related.

Would anyone who had successfully flashed Ekztal's firmware on the 42F430S please lend me your USB stick? I can pay for shipping both ways OR I could simply paypal it from you. (If you are in the Columbus, OH area I could just pick it up).

If it worked on yours, yet fails on mine then there is an incompatibility issue unrelated to the USB drive.

Thanks.

Spektre

I flashed my TV's firmware using THIS (http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0281032) flash drive.

I didn't reformat or anything, just put the files on there.

much appreciated if someone can link me to the TX-47F430S firmware as not on westy site anymore ;(. thnx

I got ekztal's firmware to take ... but unfortunately the ghosting is still there (the problem mentioned in Spektre99's post about No Input box in everything).

I guess I'm just stuck with this issue eh? I've tried everything from calling Westinghouse to leaving a white screen on the system for an hour to updating firmware to leaving the set unplugged for an hour. Seems I'm just stuck with it.

The weird part is, is that when the set is first turned on the outlines are NOT there, it's only when I go into something like a movie (VGA/Component) and it shows up.

It's really distracting and honestly, I will probably never buy another Westinghouse product again.

Hello,

Longtime lurker, first time poster. My TX-47F430S has been acting up again recently. I'm having issues with distortion on the component inputs. I wouldn't have noticed since I usually use the HDMI inputs, but I recently bought a panasonic bluray player which does not seem to work over the HDMI port (which works fine on other televisions i've tried it on).

I get like a blue snow effect, and a dark fuzzy black bar across the upper 10% of the screen sometimes.

I was going to try and see if American Express would help me out with either getting it repaired or replacing it since it falls under their coverage period, but I can't find my copy of the manufacturer's warranty which they require as documentation. I'm not sure if its personalized to the unit or not, but if it isn't and anyone has it handy, can you please send it to me, or link it?


Thanks

9/08/10: Found my copy

I got ekztal's firmware to take ... but unfortunately the ghosting is still there (the problem mentioned in Spektre99's post about No Input box in everything).

I guess I'm just stuck with this issue eh? I've tried everything from calling Westinghouse to leaving a white screen on the system for an hour to updating firmware to leaving the set unplugged for an hour. Seems I'm just stuck with it.

The weird part is, is that when the set is first turned on the outlines are NOT there, it's only when I go into something like a movie (VGA/Component) and it shows up.

It's really distracting and honestly, I will probably never buy another Westinghouse product again.

Same here Pirahna.

Knowing what I know about LCD technology, this just seems VERY improbable to be a ghosting or burn in issue. It is almost surely a faulty software issue. I have the same as you...it is not present until going into displaying actual video. I ran a pure white screen on it for a week once with no change. So, since it was so distracting I ran a pure black screen with just a white box covering the "No Input found" area. Also no change and no other burn in. If THAT did not burn it in, I seriously doubt the No Input Found indicator did.

Vintage 2007 TX-42F430S. Using component cables off regular DVD player (set to 430I), the picture is jumpy. This same issue happened a few years ago, I changed cables and problem resolved. Now, tried 3 sets of cables AND another DVD player with same bad results. I'm stumped. Any ideas? Thanks!

I have always had problems with this Westinghouse (WH) TX-47F430S TV and Westinghouse will not provide any support. I first had problems with the selection of HDMI. It would get stuck on one input and not let go or not be able to find any connected devices. WH customer support told me to unplug the TV and plug it back in, that worked, but I didn't know it would become a ritual a couple of times a week. WH customer support said they could not do anything if rebooting the TV in this way worked.

Okay...now that I am out of warranty, the screen went black and the unplugging ritual does nothing...sill a black screen. Called WH customer support and was told since it is out of warranty I need to take it to a repair shop. I had read here that some people had their "bricked" TVs start working after installing a firmware update. I asked WH customer support why I cannot find the update on their website. I was told they were no longer supporting this discontinued TV!!! I ask them to send me the most recent firmware update and was told they don't have any. I then asked them which repair shop in my area fixed Westinghouse TVs and I was told they don't have/recommend any repair facilities. I asked how I would go about ordering parts, if I could determine what needed to be replaced and I was told that they do not sell repair parts and could not refer me to anyone who does. I know from other peoples on-line posts that this model was still being sold in 2009...so that means that WH is not supporting a TV that was sold less than 18 months ago.

They put warning labels on cigarette packages, I think Westinghouse should be required to put a warning on their boxes that the contents will not be supported or be able to be fixed in 1 year to 18 months after you purchase it.

SHAME ON WESTINGHOUSE... taking a good established brand and destroying its reputation...just for quick bucks.

I have tried all of the firmware offerings on this thread...thanks guys for your insights. Here is the result in my case, starts orange, it blinks purple for a long time and then becomes blue. Still has a black screen. I am not sure if it makes sense to start buying parts on eBay and replacing each part until it works, since it may be a firmware problem.

Any help will be appreciated.

You might want to try a reset, instead of power-cycling. Reset appears to have a different impact. I have times when nothing else works. To reset, start with display off, then press-and-hold the power button for 15 seconds. The W logo should eventually be displayed.
Also, for me short power-off periods would not resolve problems, but long ones would. Long means overnight or at least a few hours.

I think most of the problems come from hdcp (the copy protection on hdmi), so I blame Westinghouse less than the content guys who forced hdcp upon us. I say this because my other equipment sometimes also misbehaves.

Has anyone heard anything about the ghosting issues if there's new solutions?

I updated the firmware and it's still happening. Sometimes it makes me wonder if I should get a new lcd panel or something, hahaha

I guess I should just buy a new tv if it comes to that though >_<

I was having difficulties finding the firmware updates on the site. How did you get them?

My problem is that the TV and my new BluRay player do not seem to get along very well. It takes about 2-3 minutes of flickering to get the video signal stabilized (I strongly suspect HDMI/HDCP issues) and I've noticed when streaming netflix from the blu-ray player that after about 10 minutes, the audio starts to get crackles, pops, etc and that cycling the HDMI inputs fixes the issue.

Hello,
I have read the many, many pages here and am now to the point where I need to ask what I try next. I acquired a TX-47f430S non working. I flashed the USB nothing; amber light still lit will go blue with remote or power button after sitting for a minute or two but nothing on screen (if the lights are off you can see a minor screen flash when pressing power button.) I replaced the main board with new (no change) I replaced the power board (no change) I now have a new power board and main board and it still behaves the same. The only boards left are the LCD Controller and the two inverter boards. Any suggestions? Ohh...and no sound either.

I've found some firmware updates but the TV seems unable to recognize them (i.e. it just hangs out in amber mode till I eventually give up and remove the thumb drive).

I've tried a few different formats, leaving the files zip'd, and extracting them.

Any suggestions?

I've found some firmware updates but the TV seems unable to recognize them (i.e. it just hangs out in amber mode till I eventually give up and remove the thumb drive).

I've tried a few different formats, leaving the files zip'd, and extracting them.

Any suggestions?

Are you sure you're using the right thumbdrive type? Those tvs are REALLY finicky about what it accepts so it can go through. I used a sandisk 512mb... also make sure it's formatted fat16.

As for me, I still can't get the stupid image retention / burn in off my tv. ugh.

I get an amber light then hit the power button and get my blue light. That is all I get. No video or audio. No menus nothing. I hear something squeal when I plug it in. I also see an amber light on the processor board. Can someone help with this?

So I purchased my Westy TX-47F430S in April of 2008, refurbished. Firmware 5112_1.6.3 Mar 5 2008. Worked great, no problems for 2.5 years. Flawless performance with my blu-ray player through HDMI and computer through the PC VGA input.

Everything's great....until last week when I connected my wife's computer to the TV through her graphics card's HDMI-out. As I did with my computer, I made sure to set her computer's graphics card to broadcast in the TV's resolution. The TV began to flicker wildly with the sound cutting in and out. For the moments the picture was on screen, the signal would split into magenta and green. The television now does the same thing with my computer connection through the PC-input jack!

It worked flawless for 2.5 years until I plugged in the one HDMI from her computer. It still works 100% with blu-ray player. Tried all available HDMI ports. Suggestions to make it work again on a signal from a PC? To reiterate, it flickers on HDMI from a PC and also the dedicated PC VGA-input. Same results using two separate computers.

Ok, my turn.
Purchased two Westys in 2008, 42" & 47", TX-42F430S& TX-47F430S.
(Posting from work, so not sure what hardware / firmware - can get that later)

Both worked great until Nov 2010, the 47" develops the "amber - no blue LED" symptom. 42" still working great.

It powers on, amber led, WHITE "W" boot logo on screen for a few seconds, then screen goes out, and amber LED stays on. I try multiple 10 second reboots, unplugged for days, etc...nothing.

I have a 5 year PP, so I get a tech out, and he diagnoses a dead panel/inverter.
Tells me 2 days later he can't get the part, so it cant be fixed.
Warranty people have me buy a new TV and send me a check for the original purchase price.

I ask them what to do with the old one, and they say keept it, trash it, do anything I want. So then I decide to try and fix it since I doubted the panel or inverter were bad, and it couldn't hurt to try.

After a few days of searching, I found ekztal awesome post here with the v1.4.0 edited firmware.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537


I try it last night.
sandisk 4gb cruzer, format to Fat32, drop the zip file AND the un-zipped files as well on the root directory and flash in the following manner:

1. With the power cord removed from the back of your Westinghouse TV, insert the USB thumb drive into the service port.

2. Plug the power cord into both the back of the TV and the wall outlet.

3. The Power LED indicator starts out amber; after 20-30 seconds, it turned purple-ish with slight flickering; I check back five minutes later and it is solid blue.

6. Once the Power LED turns blue, I unplug the set, remove the flash drive, and plug it back in and turn it on.

BAAM! The TV comes on with the new boot logo and fires up with a picture from the TV tuner (connected to cable) a few seconds later.

All is great, EXCEPT I HAVE NO SOUND. I check and double check all the audio settings, check multiple inputs and sources, and still no sound.

I tried to re-flash it was stuck on yellow again. I'll try more re-flashes after work.

My main question is, does anyone know what happened to the sound, and can I get it back? Anyone else have this issue?

Second issue is tracking down all the firmware is a pain, so I uploaded all the ones I could find, and have linked them below. Please search the thread with the file names to see if you should use them.


Link to 42 LPL LX v1.2.0.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?5913rntvr6q3rel)

Link to TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip (http://www.mediafire.com/?xrldun5sqmvlaec)

Link to SusanII_v1.3.0_20071026.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?sd6eitdbnb6qt8n)

Link to SusanII_v1.6.3.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?7oba9wtz4dlleq2)

link to 01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?d45atica4elz0kh)firmware.

Hopefully this post makes it easier for anyone else to find info on the TVs and tracking down firmware.

If I can get set up and running again, I'll be so happy that i need to buy someone a beer or make a donation here :)

Even if I cant get the sound back I'll be happy :)

Please post any info that may help me and thanks in advance.

EDIT: I added the new firmware I found, and I STILL HAVE NO SOUND. Any Ideas?

Ekztal's 1.4.0 just unbricked my 42F430S. As others have mentioned, the TV was finicky about reading thumb drives.

I tried the SusanII_v1.3.0 file and the Ekztal's 1.4.0 using three different drives before having success with Ekztal's 1.4.0 on a Lexar 4GB drive.

However, the lighting pattern others reported never happened. The light on the front remained amber -- never blinked or turned purple -- before turning blue.

I actually thought it had, yet again, not worked.

After I plugged in the winning combination of Ekztal's 1.4.0 / Lexar 4GB, the drive's light lit for just a moment, then turned off, lit again for a second, then turned off. I suspected that meant that, for whatever reason, no data was being transferred. I left it going while returning to my computer to look for other options. When I returned 20 minutes later, the blue light was on. I then unplugged the TV. The blue light turned amber, then went out. I unplugged the drive from the service port, then turned it on.

My 42F430S has had a few problems over the last few years. Each time, I unplugged it for a minute, then it turned back on.

Last night, it just shut off without warning. Nothing worked to revive it until the steps described here.

Thank you everyone for taking the time to post solutions. You all saved me the more than $1,000 I would have spent getting a new TV.

Ekztal's 1.4.0 just unbricked my 42F430S. As others have mentioned, the TV was finicky about reading thumb drives.

I tried the SusanII_v1.3.0 file and the Ekztal's 1.4.0 using three different drives before having success with Ekztal's 1.4.0 on a Lexar 4GB drive.

However, the lighting pattern others reported never happened. The light on the front remained amber -- never blinked or turned purple -- before turning blue.

I actually thought it had, yet again, not worked.

After I plugged in the winning combination of Ekztal's 1.4.0 / Lexar 4GB, the drive's light lit for just a moment, then turned off, lit again for a second, then turned off. I suspected that meant that, for whatever reason, no data was being transferred. I left it going while returning to my computer to look for other options. When I returned 20 minutes later, the blue light was on. I then unplugged the TV. The blue light turned amber, then went out. I unplugged the drive from the service port, then turned it on.

My 42F430S has had a few problems over the last few years. Each time, I unplugged it for a minute, then it turned back on.

Last night, it just shut off without warning. Nothing worked to revive it until the steps described here.

Thank you everyone for taking the time to post solutions. You all saved me the more than $1,000 I would have spent getting a new TV.

That is good to hear........2011 and the thread is still helping people, so let me give back some more. I found the old WD V-chip firmware site link.

http://legacywd.com/firmware.aspx

I put in my serial number and got back this info:

Model # TX-47F430S
Part # TW-51211-C047A


I was then able to download this 01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?d45atica4elz0kh)firmware.

I now make it available to everyone else, and added it to my earlier post so that all the firmware I have been able to find is in one post.

The only firmware that will successfully flash for me are these two:
TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip
01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar

Both work fine, but I get no sound from my internal speakers, only external.
At this point, I am thinking maybe a power surge fried my internal sound amp, and scrambled my firmware, and flashing can only fix the software part of course.

Any ideas?

I've got TW51212-C047A. I finally got 1.3 to take, but couldn't get the edited version of 1.4 to take. Will this official one work for my set even those our Part # are off? It's the same model

@Dposcorp
At the risk of stating something obvious, there are parameters in the Audio settings menu that could cause the symptoms you report. Good Luck!

(I have two of these displays. One occasionally loses video which I used to restore by leaving the display AC cord unplugged overnight, but I now fix by pressing the power button for 15 seconds [I can't recall whether I'm turning the display on or off, but it doesn't hurt to try the other if the first attempt doesn't work]. The second display has never done this. The second display has a Mac Mini connected to it, and it will occasionally lose the Red component or display snow after an input switch. I resolve by either changing display settings on the computer (and then back) or by unplugging the HDMI cable. Otherwise, I'm very happy with the displays!)

I've got TW51212-C047A. I finally got 1.3 to take, but couldn't get the edited version of 1.4 to take. Will this official one work for my set even those our Part # are off? It's the same model

I don't know to be honest. My set was bricked; totally dead, so I had nothing to lose.
Is your set alive or bricked?

The edited 1.4 worked for me on the first try, and worked for a lot of other people, so it may be your flash drive.

Make sure you have a flash drive that will work. I have a 1GB Kingston and a 4GB sandisk. Both are USB 2.0 and were formatted FAT32 (full format, not quick). Both worked for me.

I have a 128MB USB 1.0 flash drive that did not work.



@Dposcorp
At the risk of stating something obvious, there are parameters in the Audio settings menu that could cause the symptoms you report. Good Luck!

(I have two of these displays. One occasionally loses video which I used to restore by leaving the display AC cord unplugged overnight, but I now fix by pressing the power button for 15 seconds [I can't recall whether I'm turning the display on or off, but it doesn't hurt to try the other if the first attempt doesn't work]. The second display has never done this. The second display has a Mac Mini connected to it, and it will occasionally lose the Red component or display snow after an input switch. I resolve by either changing display settings on the computer (and then back) or by unplugging the HDMI cable. Otherwise, I'm very happy with the displays!)

Thanks for the advice; it is obvious, but doesn't hurt to be sure.
I have a TX-42F430S and TX-47F430S, and have had both for 2 1/2 years, so I know the menus very well.

I triple and quadruple checked the audio menu, and tried the two firmwares that worked for me, and still no audio. The menus are not that complicated, and audio can either be internal, external, or mixed. I also tried multiple sources and get no sound at all, not even a static or clicking when I connect something. Also, when I connect external speakers, the sound is fixed, and the volume control has no effect. This leads me to believe the amp in the tv is fried. Anyone ever fix a amp problem in one of these sets?

The 1.3 firmware took using the same flash drive.. It's alive, but having HDMI handshake issues on my panasonic blu ray. I was on 1.2 when I bought. The HDMI works perfectly on everything else. I was thinking 1.4 was only for the 42. I noticed that the file names are a bit different on the official 1.3 than they were on the 1.4 edited and non edited.

The 1.3 firmware took using the same flash drive.. It's alive, but having HDMI handshake issues on my panasonic blu ray. I was on 1.2 when I bought. The HDMI works perfectly on everything else. I was thinking 1.4 was only for the 42. I noticed that the file names are a bit different on the official 1.3 than they were on the 1.4 edited and non edited.

If everything else works great with HDMI, you may want to leave it alone, but that is your call. As far as the firmware names, they are all as I found them throughtout this 200 page thread, except for the one I downloaded from WD myself, 01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar. This is exactly how it downloads.

You can go to http://legacywd.com/firmware.aspx and enter your serial number and see if you have the same link and firmware name.

If you get a different firmware, that I haven't linked above, please share it with us.

Part # TW-51121-C042A
Serial # 51123xxxxxx
Model # TX-42F430S

It was working fine Tuesday morning at 1AM when I went to bed. Then I turned it off. It has energy saver on, and it is set to not power on when power is restored. However, when we tried to turn the tv on Tuesday night, the orange light appeared, the W logo appeared, and then it was a black screen w/ the orange light. We've power cycled several times, and get the orange light back on as soon as we restore power [even though it's been unplugged for hours]. It does not do anything until we hit the power button, when its shows the logo, and shows the black screen w/ orange light again.

I want to try using the custom firmware posted above, as I heard good things about it... but I can't seem to find the USB drive on the side of my TV. All pictures I've seen say it's supposed to be under the HDMI cables. Can anyone help me?

Part # TW-51121-C042A
Serial # 51123xxxxxx
Model # TX-42F430S

It was working fine Tuesday morning at 1AM when I went to bed. Then I turned it off. It has energy saver on, and it is set to not power on when power is restored. However, when we tried to turn the tv on Tuesday night, the orange light appeared, the W logo appeared, and then it was a black screen w/ the orange light. We've power cycled several times, and get the orange light back on as soon as we restore power [even though it's been unplugged for hours]. It does not do anything until we hit the power button, when its shows the logo, and shows the black screen w/ orange light again.

I want to try using the custom firmware posted above, as I heard good things about it... but I can't seem to find the USB drive on the side of my TV. All pictures I've seen say it's supposed to be under the HDMI cables. Can anyone help me?

It is not on HDMI side (right side if standing in front of the screen), but on the left side under the analog inputs. It is labled "service port."

Here are some pics I found online:

http://news.tigerdirect.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/side-by-side-connections-westinghouse.jpg

http://hdtvratings.weebly.com/uploads/1/4/0/4/140470/3055509.gif

http://www.pacificgeek.com/productimages/xl/TX-42F430S-R-3.jpg

Let us know us know how it works. I had the EXACT same symptoms as you (many of us had them). The custom firmware got mine working again, but I still have no sound

Alright.
I found the port, buried underneath some very blended in thick tape-type cover.
My problem now is... I can't find my flash drive :O
The only things I have access to is my phone, which can be mounted...
...my psp...
...my external hard drive...
...and one or two flash drives that require special software to install to run...

Anyone know a cheap/easy way around this dilemma, as I don't have the money to spend to get a flash drive? I tried the external HD, which gets power, and lights flash briefly, but then remain solid, not doing anything, while the tv shows logo, and then goes back to black w/ orange light.

PSP it ignores.

Didn't try phone or flash drives w/ special software...



It's depressing being unable to get this fixed easily, as it means we can't watch our programming in our bedroom like we'd like... Or play games... or anything of the sort... =( =(

It took some time before I realize it was working [since I was behind the TV, and couldn't see the front]. I realized the light was purple, and said hey, let's leave it alone. It became blue finally, so I took out the USB, and reset the power. Then it booted up just fine!


Thanks so much! You brought new life to a tv that I was worried was going to just sit there, useless.

It took some time before I realize it was working [since I was behind the TV, and couldn't see the front]. I realized the light was purple, and said hey, let's leave it alone. It became blue finally, so I took out the USB, and reset the power. Then it booted up just fine!


Thanks so much! You brought new life to a tv that I was worried was going to just sit there, useless.

Did you go to the WD site and plug in your serial number?
Which firmware did you use?

writing to confirm that Ekztal's 1.4.0 just fixed a year bricked TX-42F430S
hard to believe
PNY 1 gig flash drive formated FAT 32
files extracted to drive AND zip file on drive
lights did as described

The TV froze a year ago doing a channel scan and never came back on
The guy it belonged to moved out, and i decided to give it one last shot before garbage day.

I tried fixing it a year ago to no avail
Thank you all for your help

I'm glad my firmware (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537) fixed your problem!!

I love to hear I've helped people out.

I'm glad my firmware (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537) fixed your problem!!

I love to hear I've helped people out.


I'l like to give you a personal thank you ekztal.
Your firmware brought my TV back to life, but after multiple flashes I still have no sound. Wondering if u ran into that at all with a flash, or do you think it may be a hardware issue, like I suspect?

Unfortunately, the TV worked great for a week.

However, now I have the same issue. It shows the logo, and then stays blank w/ the orange light.

I can't seem to power cycle the TV to restore the power.

I might just eventually re-flash it, but I need to find a flash drive of my own...

Just figured I'd mention that.

Unfortunately, the TV worked great for a week.

However, now I have the same issue. It shows the logo, and then stays blank w/ the orange light.

I can't seem to power cycle the TV to restore the power.

I might just eventually re-flash it, but I need to find a flash drive of my own...

Just figured I'd mention that.

Thanks for the update. check your serial # on the site I linked, and see what firmware is offered to you. It may be something different then what I have linked. Then you can contribute it to the thread :)

Do you have the 47" ?

i have the TX-42F430S. was working fine now the tv Powers on and shows the a big white Westinghouse logo than goes black,any suggestion.
thanks

i have the TX-42F430S. was working fine now the tv Powers on and shows the a big white Westinghouse logo than goes black,any suggestion.
thanks

i was read the thread few page back and find a guy name "EKZTAL" who came with the firmware that make happy a lot of people who post a thread about westinghouse lcd tv and got they tv back on track, let say make our wishes come true . like me .
thanks
EKZTAL got bless you
good luck on you work

Do you have the 47" ?

I have the 42" & 47".

i have the TX-42F430S. was working fine now the tv Powers on and shows the a big white Westinghouse logo than goes black,any suggestion.
thanks

You should try to reflash it with edited firmware and see if u can bring it back to life. Lots of people (including me) had the same exact symptoms and were able to bring it back to life.

Look at my post here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=19820830#post19820830

This is the firmware that helped the most people.

http://www.mediafire.com/?xrldun5sqmvlaec

The above file was made by ekztal in this thread here, and he gets all the credit.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537

I have the 42" & 47".



You should try to reflash it with edited firmware and see if u can bring it back to life. Lots of people (including me) had the same exact symptoms and were able to bring it back to life.

Look at my post here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=19820830#post19820830

This is the firmware that helped the most people.

http://www.mediafire.com/?xrldun5sqmvlaec

The above file was made by ekztal in this thread here, and he gets all the credit.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=17685537#post17685537

I just wanted to note here that my firmware has been downloaded almost 900 times since I posted it! I hope it's helped just about as many people.

Also, this thread is the first result when searching for "westinghouse tx-47f430s firmware" or "westinghouse tx-42f430s firmware" !!

Hello I have the Westinghouse TX-47430s and I have had multiple problems. One day before my warranty was up my HDMI ports completely died. I had it repaired under warranty and when it came back the tv squeaked as if the base was not connected correctly. A white line was across the top millimeter of the screen and there was a dark line down the center that was very noticeable in dark scenes. Since I was out of warranty I have been just dealing with it. Today i was using my pc connected to it and had work so I shut it off. I came home 10 hours later and tried to turn it on and had no response other then the amber light turn blue. I switched to cable tv and I can hear the audio fine but there is still no audio. This is consistent on HDMI Component and VGA. not sure if I should throw away the tv or not. I put the custom firmware on a jump drive and unplugged all devices as well as the tv. I then plugged in to the usb port then the power cable then hit power. About 10 or 15 seconds later it went straight to blue. i waited a while. maybe 3 mins or so and nothing changed so I unplugged the usb drive and hit the power cable. Nothing changed. I tried the firmware install a second time and when I hit the power button the tv turned on with no video and was in the same condition.

i just wanted to note here that my firmware has been downloaded almost 900 times since i posted it! I hope it's helped just about as many people.

Also, this thread is the first result when searching for "westinghouse tx-47f430s firmware" or "westinghouse tx-42f430s firmware" !!

thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!dude man your a life saver thanks for fixing my tv like other ill buy u dinner and a beer if your around boston email me!!

I went out and bought a non-working Westinghouse 42" LCD TV (Model TX42F430S) the other day for $90 in hopes of repairing it and having a nice big TV to watch. I've had absolutely no luck in repairing it.

Here's what this one is doing: First, he power light will come on when you plug it in. Shortly thereafter, the screen will light and a big "W" Westinghouse logo sits in the middle of a black background in a nice bright, crispy white color.

Then, within <=5 seconds, the W dims a little bit... to a not quite as bright, crispy white color. The power light is amber. The TV stays like this for about 5 seconds, then the backlight goes off for about 5 seconds while the power light stays lit in the same amber color.

Then, the screen comes back on, the power light turns blue/purple and the W logo appears in an even more dimmed white color. You can then see some of the screen mesh texture on the white of the W. As it sits there, over a period of about 4 or 5 minutes the W slowly fades to black, becoming a ratty and textured gray color just before it goes away entirely. The backlight stays fully lit and never goes out. You can turn the power off by pressing the power button and then turn it right back on again, but the W never comes back. You have to either unplug the TV or hold down the power button for a hard reset to get it to reboot. When it does, the power light comes back on and it acts the exact same way all over again (with the W displayed again)

No control buttons work other than the Power button. No video inputs seem affect it.

I have read on the Net and in this thread about the "Power Save Mode" glitch, but this doesn't seem to follow the exact same pattern as others with that problem describe. The TV coming back on with a fading W logo has never been mentioned anywhere on the net.

Nonetheless, I did try flashing the mainboard but it didn't fix the problem. It did, however, change the power light. It used to go off and not come back on again at all when the screen would reappear with the fading W. Now it comes back on as a blue/purple light while the W fades. But unfortunately the unit is still unresponsive and has the exact same problem.

I decided to order a replacement mainboard. I installed it and it did the exact same thing with the new mainbolard! So I tried flashing the new mainboard - still no change.

Then I replaced every single electrolytic capacitor on the power board with brand new Panasonic FM/FC series LOW ESR caps. Still no change; It does the exact same thing.

Now I am wondering if this mainboard is able to sense when something is out of tolerance, or otherwise amiss, with either of the inverter boards or the display driver board, and causes it to do this as some sort of "service code" or something. The backlight is even and smooth across the screen, doesn't flicker or anything and the W logo is clean with no color or distortion. So if there is a problem with either of the inverter boards or the display driver board, it's not readilly apparent by looking at the screen

I am at my wit's end with this man thing! Does anyone know anything about this?? I'd really appreciate the input! Thanks.

SK

Does it produce any sound?

I would have to say no, as it never gets to a point where it "does" anything... other than display a white W that fades extremely slowly.

help?
Ive got the 42" and have the amber light of death. When I plug the power cord into the tv the blue light comes on for a split second and then the amber light of death shines brightly, no screan anything. I was exiting out of a game to go back to the main XMU (ps3), the screen flashed white with snowy speckles for jsut a second and then NAD. I switched over to cable tv and it was okay, could not get back to the hdmi screen, so I did the usual unplug-plug hdmi and it came back with no sound. I then turned off the tv, unplugged it from the back, counted to ten and BOOM, absoulutly nothing but the quick blue light, then the amber light of death. I have read, and tried every upgrade, and 5 diffrent thum drives, and memory cards with any combo of firmware i could come up with. I now suspect that the board is toast, and may need a new one. is there ANYONE that has had this happen, I mean, i read that most people at least get the "Big W" (movie ref), but my screen doesnt even do that. any help would help.

TW51123 C042a
TX-42F430S

another thing, the two little leds on the board are also lit, the heat sinc also on the board does get warm also. I have the whole back of the tv open and exposed so I cold see part #'s and such.

Help please before my head explodes....

**update to my overall question, which seems to be a reformulated repeat of the same problem. Can I reset the bios, or orginal firmware back to nothing or zero, or blank so I can just start all over? maybe remove the jumpers I see on the board? there are three. Dang I wish I had the right plug or equipment to plug into that little port on the board in the upper right area.

I even went out a bought two more flash drives and started all over again. But the amber light of death mocks me !!!

help?
Ive got the 42" and have the amber light of death. When I plug the power cord into the tv the blue light comes on for a split second and then the amber light of death shines brightly, no screan anything. I was exiting out of a game to go back to the main XMU (ps3), the screen flashed white with snowy speckles for jsut a second and then NAD. I switched over to cable tv and it was okay, could not get back to the hdmi screen, so I did the usual unplug-plug hdmi and it came back with no sound. I then turned off the tv, unplugged it from the back, counted to ten and BOOM, absoulutly nothing but the quick blue light, then the amber light of death. I have read, and tried every upgrade, and 5 diffrent thum drives, and memory cards with any combo of firmware i could come up with. I now suspect that the board is toast, and may need a new one. is there ANYONE that has had this happen, I mean, i read that most people at least get the "Big W" (movie ref), but my screen doesnt even do that. any help would help.

TW51123 C042a
TX-42F430S

another thing, the two little leds on the board are also lit, the heat sinc also on the board does get warm also. I have the whole back of the tv open and exposed so I cold see part #'s and such.

Help please before my head explodes....

**update to my overall question, which seems to be a reformulated repeat of the same problem. Can I reset the bios, or orginal firmware back to nothing or zero, or blank so I can just start all over? maybe remove the jumpers I see on the board? there are three. Dang I wish I had the right plug or equipment to plug into that little port on the board in the upper right area.

I even went out a bought two more flash drives and started all over again. But the amber light of death mocks me !!!


I have an extra mainboard that I bought to fix my TV. In the time it took to get to my house I had figured out some custom firmware that fixed my problem. If you still have your problem and the custom firmware I posted doesn't work, I can send you the board for free if you're interested.

I am writting in as another person with the amber LED of death. I have tried the following Flash drives (Lexar 4GB, Lexar 2GB, Kinston 8GB Secure, 2gb Unknown Brand). All drives formatted the slow way to FAT 32. The only Flash drive which shows a hint of promise is trhe 2GB unknown one. Depending which firmware i have on it, it will either flash for 2-3 seconds or indefinetly. The others do not even blink once. I have tried the following firmwares with no luck. (01_osd_fw_v1.4.2.rar, 42 LPL LX v1.2.0.rar, SusanII_v1.3.0_20071026.rar, SusanII_v1.6.3.rar, TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip). Does anyone think it could be the flash drive. I have tried some other random ones from friends to see if i could have any luck. I also popped the cover looking for bubbling Caps, burnt fuse, etc... nothing.

Does anyone have a working flash drive i could buy or a line on a board?

Thanks.

Link to 42 LPL LX v1.2.0.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?5913rntvr6q3rel)

Link to TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip (http://www.mediafire.com/?xrldun5sqmvlaec)

Link to SusanII_v1.3.0_20071026.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?sd6eitdbnb6qt8n)

Link to SusanII_v1.6.3.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?7oba9wtz4dlleq2)

link to 01_OSD_FW_V1.4.2.rar (http://www.mediafire.com/?d45atica4elz0kh)firmware.

Hopefully this post makes it easier for anyone else to find info on the TVs and tracking down firmware.I've had 1.2 on my tv since I bought it and lately I've had some serious 'signal not found' problems when I'm trying to switch between hdmi sources. So, I updated to 1.6.3 and found that all my hdmi ports now are showing as 'signal not found', so I can never use it for any hdmi sources. I've tried a working Apple tv, Dish Network satellite box, a Panasonic blu-ray player and a MacBook Pro. None of them work. I've unplugged and reset several times with no luck.

So, I flashed to 1.3 since I've heard this version works a bit better. Unfortunately the results are the same.

Right now I've got the tv unplugged for the next few hours but I'd love any tips or suggestions you might have on what to do next.

Thanks!

I've had 1.2 on my tv since I bought it and lately I've had some serious 'signal not found' problems when I'm trying to switch between hdmi sources. So, I updated to 1.6.3 and found that all my hdmi ports now are showing as 'signal not found', so I can never use it for any hdmi sources. I've tried a working Apple tv, Dish Network satellite box, a Panasonic blu-ray player and a MacBook Pro. None of them work. I've unplugged and reset several times with no luck.

So, I flashed to 1.3 since I've heard this version works a bit better. Unfortunately the results are the same.

Right now I've got the tv unplugged for the next few hours but I'd love any tips or suggestions you might have on what to do next.

Thanks!Well, good news! After further messing around in this thread I tried disconnecting all the hdmi cables and leaving it unplugged for about 5 minutes. That seemed to do the trick and I'm back up and running. I appreciate everyone who posted earlier in this thread, it helped a lot.

I just wanted to note here that my firmware has been downloaded almost 900 times since I posted it! I hope it's helped just about as many people.

Also, this thread is the first result when searching for "westinghouse tx-47f430s firmware" or "westinghouse tx-42f430s firmware" !!

Hi - I haven't been able to get SPDIF sound to output to my speaker. I updated to the firmware you provided, but without reading 100 pages of forum thread, is that a common issue?

I'm not saying it was your firmware, by any means (just saying it to ensure that you know it); I just recently got a new stereo system and the Stereo out works fine; but when I try to run an optical cable between my TV and the speakers, nothing.

Thank you for any information or help; it is greatly appreciated. Sound does come from the speaker, so long as I'm doing "Stereo" out.

Thanks once more!

Just a note to Dposcorp and anyone else having sound problems on the 42" Westinghouse. I had my right and left speakers cease to work one day. Only the subwoofer would output audio, which meant I had to crank up the volume for very poor sound. When I disabled the subwoofer, there was no audio at all. I tried jumping between inputs and noticed a little static click in the speakers, so I went into the TV's menu and toggled the in-menu "Mute" option on and off very quickly. After a few seconds the speakers came back to life! It just needed a little extra current to restore a connection and now it's been working fine for nearly a week.

I'm not technical-minded enough to know if this trick bridged a bad circuit connection, or re-melted a solder, or what.

Hope this helps someone else trying to keep their Westinghouse alive and functioning for as long as possible.

ok what am i doing wrong here ??
Ekstal i downloaded your files put them on brand new flash drive after extracting em from the zip.
unplug power insert drive plug power back in and the tv does not do anything
no blink to indicate start of the flash
no purple led ..
the part nr on the back is known to work with your flash according to you and others

TX-47F430S the model nr is TW-51212-C047A

please advise ?

ok what am i doing wrong here ??
Ekstal i downloaded your files put them on brand new flash drive after extracting em from the zip.
unplug power insert drive plug power back in and the tv does not do anything
no blink to indicate start of the flash
no purple led ..
the part nr on the back is known to work with your flash according to you and others

TX-47F430S the model nr is TW-51212-C047A

please advise ?

im having the exact same problem with the tx-42f430s, please help!

im about to wait on ebay for a deal on a new board if you think that will work, or if you want to get experimental i'll pull my chip and send it to you and you can try to flash it! :)

Heres what's happening to me. Two nights ago, I tried switching from my satellite to my PS3 to watch a movie. The screen froze while detecting the source. I couldn't do anything so I unplugged the tv. Plugged it back in and it started up fine. So I shut it off and went to the bedroom to watch the movie. Got up the next day to watch some tv before I went to work and nothing. I unplugged the tv and plugged it back in and still nothing. I don't even get the W. The light just stays amber. So I tried downloading Ekztals firmware, but I'm not sure if I'm doing it correctly. I did re-format my USB drive. I extracted the files, but I'm thinking that that is what I did wrong. I had a little option to extract files, so that's what I did. I plugged in the USB into the tv and it seemed to have a hard time reading it. The light on my flash drive blinked about 10 times before it stayed lit solid. But nothing happened. The light stayed amber. I don't want to buy a new tv so any help would be appreciated. Now after all of that, I believe I just put the same stuff as the previous two posters. The Model Number is TX-42F430S. Thank you all.

EDIT: Ok...I have a friend who also has this tv with the same model number. So I told him about the FW update. He downloaded the firmware and his worked fine so I went and borrowed his flash drive. I get home, plug it into my tv and it doesn't read the flash drive. I have no idea what to do now.

Thanks Ekztal, from my friend who just breathed a second life into his TV set because of your post. He is way too lazy and inconsiderate to say thank you, but I wanted to make sure you got your just dues. You've saved people thousands of dollars by saving so many TVs! Way to go! You are the kind of person that makes the Internet great!

[QUOTE=ekztal;17685537]This firmware file was edited using the method described by thunderstorm360 to flash a 'bricked' TV. My TV is a TX-47F430S, and my part # is TW-51211-C047A. My old Firmware version was 1.3.0, now it's 1.4.0 It won't check if you have the correct TV or Firmware before trying to update. It also combines parts of the update_WDE32.tgz and update_LCD1080CX.tgz firmware files. It has been verified by multiple people that it does indeed work perfectly. It also added named input labels:

Cable
PS3
Wii
Xbox

As of [Jan 3rd, 2010] it has a new start-up logo.

UPDATE [June 7th, 2010]: It has been confirmed that this firmware will work on the following Westinghouse TVs:

TX-42F430S
TX-47F430S
TX-52F480S

The firmware flash totally helped me out on my formerly useless 42" Westinghouse, many many many thanks and respect to ekztal for the fix... you make the internet a better place...

I am fuzzydunlop's friend and he will not stop reigning shame down upon me, but I can't argue with his rationale... this saved me, and many others, and deserves proper thanks... huzzah!

The modified firmware saved my TX42! Same amber LED symptom, thought I was hosed.

Best Buy replaced $500+ worth of parts last year to fix the issue:

Repair Description:
Replaced main and power supply boards

Warranty:
SKU #/Part #
Description
Line Status
Services
Products
Parts
Discount
Total Price
8702399 GEEK SQUAD 30 HT GEEK SQUAD I Complete $150.00 $0.00 $150.00
1688-2010-01-30-903-4536
8702585 GEEK SQUAD 15 HT GEEK SQUAD I Complete $35.00 $0.00 $35.00
1688-2010-01-30-903-4536
8702745 GEEK SQUAD 60 HT GEEK SQUAD I Complete $140.00 $0.00 $140.00
1688-2010-01-30-903-4536
TV PRINTED CIRCUIT B POWER SUPPLY USED $112.49 $0.00 $112.49
1688-2010-01-30-903-4536
91.3YV10.001G MAIN PCB USED $404.49 $0.00 $404.49
1688-2010-01-30-903-4536
Repair Total:

Services
Products
Parts
Discount
Total Price
Repair Total
$325.00 $0.00 $516.98 $0.00 $841.98

The same thing happened again and the extended warranty was expired. I thought I was hosed until I did some reading on this thread. Worked like a champ! Thanks all!

what will be the best firmware to get burn in out my tv
i have westinghouse 47 software version 5112_1.4.2
please respond thank u

Okay guys I'm at the end of my rope...last night I lost my HDMI on my TX-42F430S and did the hard reset by holding the power button in. When I tried to get the TV to come back up, there was nothing...just an amber light on the TV. There was a very high pitch noise from the TV itself while it was plugged in, but nothing but the amber light.

I downloaded the firmware from page 192, put it on a formatted FAT thumb drive, put it in the USB port on the TV, plugged in the TV, waited...nothing. The USB thumb drive light came on, but nothing else...sat for ten minutes waiting.

I got this TV four years ago and all I can say is that I wish I had purchased something else.

Any suggestions on how to make this beast work again?

Okay different situation...I get the firmware uploaded (goes from amber to flashing purple to solid blue)...I unplug the TV, take out the USB drive, then restart the TV...is an amber light again, nothing I do makes it power on.

I've done the above cycle numerous times on the factory restore firmware that Westinghouse told me to download.

When I try Ekztal's firmware the USB drive flashes once or twice and then does nothing....

Little help?

Come on people I'm about to ditch this tv no one has any suggestions??

Sorry Cyberslammer, I don't have any advice for you. Hopefully, you find a solution.

I really only posted to say how lucky I feel that mine has been running for 4 years without issue as of this week. It's merely a muted display fed from the AVR, so the tuner and speakers are practically unused. It's really a shame that we have become conditioned to the fact that we feel lucky to get 4 years out of a $1300+ purchase. Seems like the console CRT that I grew up with was on the order of 25 years old when it finally got replaced...

Sorry Cyberslammer, I don't have any advice for you. Hopefully, you find a solution.


Thanks. I'm a little disappointed by the responses to my question (or lack of) considering it's been a few days since I posted and others were helped immediately. I am going to take the TV to a local shop, they'll charge $75 for the diagnostic to find out what's wrong with it....

Tossed it out..the main board was fried and the repair cost was $100 less than a new one.

Westinghouse makes garbage...will never own one again.

I have an extra mainboard that I bought to fix my TV. In the time it took to get to my house I had figured out some custom firmware that fixed my problem. If you still have your problem and the custom firmware I posted doesn't work, I can send you the board for free if you're interested.

Hi there,

I just popped back in here to check on this thread and saw your response from May. IDo you still have the mainboard you referenced above? If so, would you be so kind as to send it to me?

Feel free to PM me.

Thanks!
SK

Well I'm surprised this thread still lives, after opening up my 47" TX after I had strange green shades throughout the screen and putting it back together 2 years ago its been running fine since, Its now past 4 years of heavy use as well on my end. Been wanting to upgrade though lately with all these bigger 55" to 60" LED TVs out there for a decent price.:)

Okay guys I'm at the end of my rope...last night I lost my HDMI on my TX-42F430S and did the hard reset by holding the power button in. When I tried to get the TV to come back up, there was nothing...just an amber light on the TV. There was a very high pitch noise from the TV itself while it was plugged in, but nothing but the amber light.

I downloaded the firmware from page 192, put it on a formatted FAT thumb drive, put it in the USB port on the TV, plugged in the TV, waited...nothing. The USB thumb drive light came on, but nothing else...sat for ten minutes waiting.

I got this TV four years ago and all I can say is that I wish I had purchased something else.

Any suggestions on how to make this beast work again?

Changing the firmware on your TV will not repair it if it just up and died on its own, the firmware fix here only fixes TV's that people that were bricked from a failed firmware upgrade. If yours just up and died I would consider it junk at this point with the prices of that size LED TV out there now. Throw it to the curb, 4 years on a lot of these LCD's seems to be about average. I'm not defending the Westinghouse brand either as I cant say I was totally happy with the 47" I have still with the issues I had after 2 years and a pop in the sound from time to time but its still going.

Greetings all,

I have a TX-47F430S (Part # TW-51211-C047A) that has a Software Version 5121_1.3.0 Build on 2007 June 26.
This unit was unplugged for a week to get rid of some of the 4:3 burn in to the screen on the right-side of 4:3 (standard def.) frame. I've done this previously and plugged it in without any ill effects, but this time it blinked blue, then went to amber. it's stuck on amber light (E Saver) lock up.

I've downloaded ekztal's TX-42F430S - v1.4.0 - editted.zip and followed thunderstorm360, Carsfanatic and ekztal's instructions:
Format a USB stick to FAT32
Copy unpacked safe-kernel.img1 and update_WDE42.tgz to the root of the USB drive
Plugged the stick into the unit's USB port
Plugged the unit in. it blinks blue then goes to amber.
The W appears, goes away and nothing happens for 10+ minutes. Amber light.
Then I press and hold the Power On button on the side of the unit for 10 seconds and when released, get the W, the USB stick blinks, and nothing happens again.

Then I reformat the drive, unpack the files again (this time adding the board_root directory to the stick as well) and go through the steps above. Still an amber light.

It appears as if the USB is only accessed on startup. Its LED doesn't blink after that. On a computer, the USB's LED blinks when it's being accessed. but not on the TX-47. Shouldn't it be blinking if it's loading?

What am I missing???

— BTW, I've saved the nearly 200 pages of this forum in PDF form. I can upload them for easier, and off-line, reading and searching if anyone would find it useful. Just let me know and I'll post URLs if I'm able (within forum rules...).
Regards and thanks for all your help and efforts.
plonked

This TX-47F430S unit was fixed with the software listed in the previous post. The hang up in the earlier attempts to fix it was the formatting of the USB drive. Not until I formatted the drive on a third machine did the formatting complete successfully. Two computers failed me before I got to the third...

Thanks again to all the people on this forum, especially those who kept and updated the firmware that Westinghouse will no longer distribute (let alone support).
plonked

I have this tv and before I flashed the custom firmware to it. The tv would come on and get to the WestingHouse logo and stay there with no button control via remote nor manualy. The tv doesnt shut off it stays on.So I flashed the custom firmware and still same thing. Then I tried updateing the firmware to 1.42.Now it gets stuck with a big W as the logo and still stays on. Im willing to try just about anything as I have time on my hands. This happen when I went out of toen and decided to unplug the tv while we was gone.When we got back this is what happen.I have also tried to hold the powe button for 10 secs same thing. Any help would be nice thank you

A while back my PS3 randomly stopped working with my Westinghouse TX-42F430S. I've tried all the different HDMI inputs, with no luck. I sent the PS3 in for repair, and it works fine now. It still doesn't work with the TV. I tried it with my PC monitor, and it worked fine there. I was thinking about updating the firmware on my TV, to see if it would resolve the issue. However, it seems like a lot of people here are running into issues updating their firmwares. I've done it once in the past WAY back when, and it was fine.

My current firmware info is:
build-on: 2007 Oct 25
Software Version: 5112_1.3.0

1 - What's the latest firmware (or recommended firmware for this set)?
2 - Is there a way to backup my current firmware if I encounter issues?
3 - Anything to be aware of other than follow the proper procedure etc?

Thanks so much for the info!

EDIT: Got the firmware upgraded.

My image retention problem persists... Has anyone upgraded the firmware and had this problem resolved? Or is there perhaps another method I can use to try and fix it?

I have this tv and before I flashed the custom firmware to it. The tv would come on and get to the WestingHouse logo and stay there with no button control via remote nor manualy. The tv doesnt shut off it stays on.So I flashed the custom firmware and still same thing. Then I tried updateing the firmware to 1.42.Now it gets stuck with a big W as the logo and still stays on. Im willing to try just about anything as I have time on my hands. This happen when I went out of toen and decided to unplug the tv while we was gone.When we got back this is what happen.I have also tried to hold the powe button for 10 secs same thing. Any help would be nice thank you

Hey there - I had a similar problem with my TV, except on mine the W logo would gradually fade to black over a period of about 5 minutes. It turned out that it was a bad T-CONN board. That is the little board that controls the digital output to the LCD panel. What it was doing was freezing whatever image came through the T-CONN first on power-up, which in the case of this TV is the W logo every time.

I was able to troubleshoot it by powering up the TV with the T-CONN connected, then selecting the MENU button on the remote (which obviously won't change the screen). Then I would unplug the T-CONN board from the mainboard, then plug it back in. When it reconnected, it displayed a black screen with the menu on it, along with a NO SIGNAL notification at top/center, and would of course freeze that onto the screen.

I messed around with this thing for almost 9 months, posting in all kinds of forums and talking to all kinds of techs, before I finally figured it out myself in the manner described above.

If you are not knowledgable about how to safely go about working on live television circuits, I highly recommend having a tech do it. If it turns out to be the T-CONN, there are often several going for like $14.99 on ebay. I won mine in an auction for $8.99/free shipping and now I'm using mine as my computer monitor. :-)

Good luck!

BEWARE: HIGH VOLTAGES ARE PRESENT INSIDE THE CASE AND CAN KILL YOU. BE CAREFUL!!

SK

I remember when this thread started but can't say I've read all 6000 posts. :-)

I've never flashed my TX47 and still have firmware 5110_1.1.0 with a build date of April 13, 2007. Other then the fun of hacking ( Wii label, Custom Boot Screen ) is there anything fixed in later versions of the firmware that I should concern myself with?

I originally tried updating my Westinghouse because the audio would always cut in and out while watching PS3 or Cable through my HDMI inputs. But all I did was brick my TV and I came up with the 'hacked' firmware that installs itself by ignoring the safety checks.

The only thing the update adds is some Smart Chip stuff for the rating system. If it's working fine you should just leave it alone.

However, if you want, you can edit the Startup logo, I think I saved the steps I used if you want to do that. It can only be a grayscale image, but I think they look okay.

ekztal, did your 'hacked' firmware update solve the audio problems? My TV has the same issue. In addition my blu-ray player will only work on HDMI input #4. All other HDMI inputs results in device not capable of playing protected media error! Trying to decide if I should do the update. In addition, if I do the update, will I need to reset my color/picture setting?

Westinghouse 42" LCD here -- I'd have to look up the model number, but I'm pretty sure it's one that's supposed to be compatible with ekztal's custom firmware.
TW-51122-C042A
42F430S

Turned it on this morning, it was on input HDMI2. I changed it to HDMI4 (to use PS3) and noticed the screen was doing some weird glittering thing (black with flecks of light sparkling here and there). I tried doing a reset (hold power button until it goes off and comes back up with the W logo) and that put it in the "I'm showing a standby light but won't turn on" mode I see mentioned a lot in this thread.

I grabbed ekztal's FW and extracted to the root of a fat32 formatted flash drive. Zip contents and zip file itself. Plugged it into service port. I do not see the light changing from orange to anything after I reconnected the power cable to turn it on. What am I doing wrong here? Is there anything I can do to try to fix this before I go out tomorrow to buy a new LCD?

Any help before I take the mounting brackets off and dump it at bestbuy to be recycled would be helpful.

Bought a wall mount and mounted my Westinghouse tv (TX-47F430s). Once I finished I went to plug in the tv and had some sort of power surge.

After I flipped the switch on the breaker box I noticed the LED on the front of the TV was purple when its normally orange and the tv wouldnt turn on.

I Unplugged everything and waited until the next day to try and turn it back on and still got nothing.

The LED lights on the front of the tv flicker between orange and purple. There were also two green lights flickering on the main board. One of the green lights is next to the connection on the main board for the side panel controls. This green LED light flickers in unison with the LED light in front.

The smaller green light is on the main board too and it has LED2 writen next to it in small white letters.This light flickers in unison with a soft beeping sound the tv makes.

Ive dissembled the back so I could get a look at the power supply board and the main board. Nothing looked to be damaged. There were no bulging capicators, no burns, and the fuse was covered in some sort of glue so i couldnt see thru the glass.

Ill change the fuse but other than that I dont know what to do. If anyone knows what the problem could be or has any educated guesses to the potential problem I would appreciate it.

Trying to save $ so dont want to take it to a repair man so any ideas would be great.

Thanks