Hi there. I got a free 55" Phillips HDTV Projection TV, its like 5 years old and the owner said the TV had a rough life and it felt on the floor a couple times. So the picture need alignment.

I can tell the Blue and Green projectors need to be aligned because I can see they are offset but the red projector need alignment and something else, the picture projected from the red one its curved. I mean I looked into the green and blue projectors and the straight lines look straight but on the red they look curved, and the projection is curved and well.

I see each projector haves 4 screws with springs, I asume those are there for alignment, am I right?? I also can see the manual focus and the electrical focus adjustments, I think I can deal with those.

But what about the red??? Does it have another adjustment?? Is it damaged?? Is is expensive to fix or should I call a technician and have him fix the whole thing??

Thanks a lot.

The "curved" red sounds like a convergence IC failure---the most common issue with CRT RPTV. And a generally easy fix.

Would strongly recommend getting a service tech out to check it out/fix it. Won't be cheap (ballpark figure for a conv IC fix can be around $400). Although an out of warranty service call won't be cheap, consider the fact that the TV was free to you. Repair charges would still likely be cheaper than buying a new 55" HDTV.

Another thing to look for is potential phosphor "burn-in". Even with the conv all wacky, try displaying an all-white or other bright, solid color image on screen to see if you find any "burned-in" images/patterns---most common would be from SD/4:3 black sidebars. If the prev. owner kept the set out of "torch mode" (contrast below 50) and varied the programming being displayed (no constant fixed images for HOURS on end over the years), you'll likely be OK.

The 4 screws you mention are likely the ones holding the lens assemblies in place. Wouldn't mess with those--at least for the issue you describe. They would come up if you were to do a deep optics cleaning and needed to remove each lens to clean under them. If a service call is in your future, check to see if the tech can get the lenses/mirror dust-free for you. Should'nt be an extra fee for this if the tech's already poking around inside the TV.

CRT's are serious dust magnets. Depending on it's environemt, a CRT RPTV will benefit from an optics cleaning bi-annually or even annually. You'd be surprised how much improvement in PQ you get from simply cleaning away what could be a 5 yr old layer of dust from the optics and mirror.

When it comes to CRT RPTV advice, you want to hit up ISF calibrator/tech Mr Bob here on the AVS Forum. May want to post your concerns/questions on his "Don't Dump Your CRT RPTV" thread.

Good luck.

Hey thanks for the quick answer.

Well, I cant tell there are no burn spots on any of the three screens. I used pluged an old atari 2600 (since the lines on ataris are big and straight ;) ) and I can tell the three of them are fine.

How do I align the green and blue?? Is it on the menu or something??

I'd definettly like to have a technician checking it for me, but still If I can fix it for free thats an extra $400 for me ;)

Whats that "convergence IC failure" is it like easy for me to fix or easy for a tech?? By easy it means cheap?? IF I can fix the most of the problems and just have a tech doing a tune up for cheaper would be better. I can say Im skilled and I can do everything with the right guide, I just need somebody to tell me what to adjust and ill figure it out. But if it is way too complicated ill have somebody esle doing it.

Thanks a lot.

If the set is free of burn-in, then "free" is a smokin' deal. Other than the IC failure stuff (which is common in ALL CRT RPTVs), these types of sets can be--when "proper care and feeding" is provided---the longest lived of ALL HDTV techs. CRT is proven technology, even if it is a "dinosaur". Been around since the dawn of TV itself. Not uncommon for CRT RPTVs to provide 10 yrs or more of reliable service.

Conv IC failure, as I stated before, is the most common service issue with these types of TVs. Essentially (keep in mind, I am not a tech) the integrated circuits that control the voltage that handles the convergence of the 3 CRT guns are always under an extreme amount of pressure/heat/voltage. Eventually one or more WILL fail. Outside of user abuse, this is pretty much it for CRT RPTV-exclusive service problems. Stuff like blown power supplies and what not--those can happen on ANY type of TV. Convergence can and very well might drift over time, but I would not consider this a service issue. Esp. since it can be accessed and work performed by the user.

If you do some searching on this thread, you will find many here (as well as over @ the Keohi HDTV Forums) who have done IC replacement themselves for CONSIDERABLY less than a service call. If you are handy with a soldering pencil and have some knowledge of electronics, the repair can be DIY'ed. And is vastly less expensive than a service call.

The fact that Marantz, Magnavox and Philips CRT RPTVs are all under the Philips umbrella may help you in your info quest.

As far as manual convergence, I don't know how to do/access this on this particular set. Typically, this is a service level procedure, but can be accessed by the user if you know how to get to it. However many sets do have a "user" version of manual conv adjustment, but user ones generally only allow the adj of red and blue. Green is usually off-limits to the casual user (mainly due to green being used as the template--or "skeleton", if you will--for conv and geometry). Almost all have some sort of "auto convergence" (Hitachi, for example, calls their version "Magic Focus"). Generally this automatically lines up convergence at several points on screen (usually 9 or so) while manual conv can be aligned at many more points. Modern Hitachi CRT RPTVs can get conv adjusted across 117 different points on screen.

May want to do a search either here, @ Keohi or just via Google/Ask.com regarding how to access the manual convergence option. Or, as I often recommend, shoot an email to Mr Bob or simply post your questions on his CRT RPTV thread. He not only travels all over the place for service/calibrations, but also does phone consults for reasonable fees. Helpful (and cheaper than a local service call) if you do plan on any DIY work.


Mr Bob's "Don't Dump Your CRT RPTV" Thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=695922)