Hello everyone. I posted a while back about some audio humming and picture quality issues I was experiencing on my HL-T5076. I am on my 3rd TV now. I finally thought I had found one that worked. I had managed to eliminate most of the audio hum, and the picture was great, until this past weekend, when out of the blue, I started getting very narrow top to bottom vertical lines. It almost looks like interference or static.

Now, I have checked and rechecked the cabling, tried the TV with a DVD movie (same problem), swapped out my digital cable box for another. Same problem.

Has anyone else encountered the same thing? I didn't see any other posts here about this, but if I missed one, my apologies.

Tom W.

Add me to the owners list, Took the plunge today at a great price. I compared it against the LED but for what I paid I can go through a bulb or 2 and I liked the picture better.

Hello everyone. I posted a while back about some audio humming and picture quality issues I was experiencing on my HL-T5076. I am on my 3rd TV now. I finally thought I had found one that worked. I had managed to eliminate most of the audio hum, and the picture was great, until this past weekend, when out of the blue, I started getting very narrow top to bottom vertical lines. It almost looks like interference or static.

Now, I have checked and rechecked the cabling, tried the TV with a DVD movie (same problem), swapped out my digital cable box for another. Same problem.

Has anyone else encountered the same thing? I didn't see any other posts here about this, but if I missed one, my apologies.

Tom W.
How did you eliminate the hum? I have it, but use a home theater receiver and speakers for sound, so I was just going to live with it. I don't have the vertical lines, though.

Posted this in another thread accidentally before realizing I have a HL-T ... anyway ...

Came very close to a heart attack tonight ... I recently moved and tonight noticed what I first thought was a 1" black scratch on the screen. I spent about an hour working on it and now believe there is something INSIDE the screen, like a piece of hair. I can see a very brief outline if I shine a bright light at the screen. I'm 85% sure this is not a superficial scratch as I have a few other scuffs that are obviously on the outside.

So how do I go about trying to fix this? It's frustrating because it seems like if I could just get some air blowing back there I could get it off. Can I remove the screen? Do I need to contact a professional?

Thank you very much.

I had the same hum issue along with the lines on my set up it was a floating ground. Not that easy to resolve or explain, mine was related to the coax cable not being grounded properly. If you didn't have it on your last tv it might be because that set did not have a 3 prong plug.

...believe there is something INSIDE the screen, like a piece of hair. I can see a very brief outline if I shine a bright light at the screen. ... Can I remove the screen? Do I need to contact a professional?

On the back there is a porthole you can pop open to see the back of the screen. The problem is that the screen is two pieces and you probably have a hair trapped between them. The screen can be removed and disassembled but is a bit complex. I would call Samsung as this would be covered in the warranty.

On the back there is a porthole you can pop open to see the back of the screen. The problem is that the screen is two pieces and you probably have a hair trapped between them. The screen can be removed and disassembled but is a bit complex. I would call Samsung as this would be covered in the warranty.

Thanks for the reply. I will check to see if I can find this porthole so I can at least get a glimpse at the back of the screen, and maybe just a bit of compressed air to see if I can get the hair to move. If it is in between the screens, then I'll go ahead and call Samsung and beg and plead them to give me warranty service even though my year was up seven days ago :(

I posted a while back about an issue with my 5076s. Everytime the tv was turned off, it would lose all of its picture settings. That meant everytime I turned on the set or switched inputs, I would have to enter in all my calibration settings, VERY ANNOYING. They came out and did a firmware update, that didn't fix it. Yesterday they came out and replaced the mainboard, and it fixed it. I know some other people in this thread had the same issue as me, so thats the fix for it. Samsung didn't know what the problem was, just tried a couple of things, and ended up getting lucky. This isn't necesarrily Samsungs fault, but the tv repair outfit, but it took just over a month and a half to get my set working again.

I've still got the bowing, but I'll be waiting until the 08 models come out to start complaining about that.

I got a 5676s this morning. I ordered the thing without checking this owner's thread (just looked at cnet and best buy reviews). I read through all of this thread during the 4 days I was waiting for this to arrive. After reading all the comments here, I was more than a little nervous when I turned it on.

Luckily I cannot appreciate ANY bowing, not with menus, not with tickers, and not with 2.35:1 movies. Maybe I just got really lucky, or maybe Samsung has stepped it up to correct this problem. Build date on this unit is Jan 2008. I'm sure there may be some bowing as it seems inherent with DLP, but it's too minscule on this set for me to see even when specifically looking for it.

The only flaws I have found are
1. The sound does suck for an expensive TV, but I can use my Onkyo surrounds to remedy that :D
2. With widescreen programming the left side of the screen was 0.2 inches lower than the right. I already fixed this (quite easily) with the screws mentioned several posts up. Got em dead even now! :) If anyone tries this just be aware that tiny increments of turning the single slot screws has a noticeable effect on picture position.

Knock on wood I won't develop any problems down the road. For now count me in as one of what seems to be relatively few satisfied owners.

I'm glad the post about the tilt screws helped! My build date is November, 2007 and my bowing is extremely small, such that I might not have noticed it without test screens and this thread. So, I think Samsung has somehow improved the screen bowing in newer builds, although I'm just speculating. The way my screen looks now I, too, am another "relatively satisfied" owner.

Dumb question. I want to scan for qam channels from my cable provider. Do I hook up the cable to the ant. or cable connection on the side of the tv?

Dumb question. I want to scan for qam channels from my cable provider. Do I hook up the cable to the ant. or cable connection on the side of the tv?

I just have mine hooked up to my HD cable box via hdmi, but I think you want to hook up to cable to try the QAM tuner. Ant is strictly over the air I believe.

Well, after months of research and investigation I purchased a 56 inch samsung dlp. I bought it from Amazon and had it delivered Wednesday. Once I turned it on I immediately noticed 5 or 6 dark spots on the screen that I would describe as smudges. At first I thought they were on the outside, but after some buffing with the trusty wipe provided by samsung they were still there. Can anyone shed some light on what I might be seeing?

Once I turned it on I immediately noticed 5 or 6 dark spots on the screen that I would describe as smudges.
First thing to check is for dirt laying on the lens cover on the bottom. With the set on, pop open the porthole on the back and take a look.

From what I been reading, Blu-Ray isn't going to be the winner. I like HD DVD's features. More of the titles I like are available on HD DVD and not Blu-Ray.

Thanks for the suggestion though. I guess it wouldn't be bad having one of each but, I don't want to get burned owning a system and movies that will be useless in a year.

Well u lose.

Three of the largest smudges are visible when the tv is off. It seems to be between the layers of the screen. I've got a service tech coming Tuesday. Besides the spots I don't think the picture is right. I'm not sure how to describe it but the picture seems to have a texture too it. I wouldn't say it's grainy, but there is a sparkly (is that a word) texture to the picture. I notice it the most in light colors and non hd. It just isn't living up to my expectations.

Welcome to "Silk Screen Effect" (SSE). It is a viewing characteristic of rear projection TVs because of the relatively high screen gain. Some are worse (SSE more apparent) than others. It has been previously discussed in this and other threads. I've had three rear projection TVs: a 2004 50 inch Panasonic DLP; a 2006 52 inch Panasonic LCD (RP); and a 2007 Samsung HL-T6176S, and I don't remember even noticing it in the 50 inch, but it was noticeable in the other two. You gotta love these RPTVs, warts and all!

Welcome to "Silk Screen Effect" (SSE). It is a viewing characteristic of rear projection TVs because of the relatively high screen gain. Some are worse (SSE more apparent) than others. It has been previously discussed in this and other threads. I've had three rear projection TVs: a 2004 50 inch Panasonic DLP; a 2006 52 inch Panasonic LCD (RP); and a 2007 Samsung HL-T6176S, and I don't remember even noticing it in the 50 inch, but it was noticeable in the other two. You gotta love these RPTVs, warts and all!

I've heard of it... I guess I just hadn't seen it with my own eyes. What can be done to minimize this. My brother has a 61 inch and I"ve never noticed it on his tv. :mad:

Turning the sharpness and or Contrast down might help.

Okay, so now amazon has the 5676 for $1200. That seems to me like it's one helluva deal.

The 5687, which I paid $1364 for, is still sitting downstairs, still dead. I'm waiting for Samsung to come take a look at it and fix/replace it, but maybe I should just order the 5676 instead, and have amazon come pick up this DOA set. I mean, I'll save $164, and heck, maybe the 5676 will stay on for longer than 5 minutes. That'd be nice.

What would you do? Wait for Samsung to fix the 5687, or order the 5676?

You'd probably leave Samsung by now and just get a Sony. I want to. I do. But they're so much more money! :(

Just to post an update, Samsung was able to fix my 5687, so I'll be sticking with that one. The option to return it is probably still on the table, but it looks fantastic, so I'm not willing to even consider the idea.

I'm sure the 5676 would've been nice, and hey, I could've saved some dough, but what's done is done, and I'm damn happy. :D

Well, the service guy just left. He says the screen needs to be replaced due to scuff marks on the screen. He says it may be the result of the two pieces rubbing during shipping. Not sure what I'm going to do. I still haven't ruled out returning it. I'm not pleased with the picture quality.

Did a search, but could not really find what kind of bulb life you guys are getting with this set. Would appreciate a few of you telling me what kind of bulb life you are getting. Thanks in advance.

Just got my set, im giving it a few hours to turn on but Im scared as hell to turn the Directtv menu on.

$@!*#@ I cant believe it. I hope its just the shipping but you literally cannot even walk by the TV without the screen shaking. Im calling Vanns right now. I mean my 3 year old walks in the room and the screen shakes. I cant believe how loose the screen is, I dont see anyone else here (or the 87 thread) with this particular problem. Vanns will take it back after 2 weeks of back and forth, I wonder If my local service guy can give a go at it.

This totally sucks

Just talked to my local Samsung tech after putting a call in. He said it sounds like the mirror is broken. I knew about the screen issues from this forum, since that is a gamble itself I am going to call Vanns to exchange it. Uh, what a mess.

I have read up to page 10 on this thread and noticed that it goes to 51 wow. I love the TV but the bowing thing is getting on my nerves every time I use the guide ( quite often I surf with it ). I have had my second tech out and he said the same as the first..... bowing can't be fixed. I didn't pay almost $1700 for a TV that doesn't look good in all aspects......

Tech is going to call Samsung and they will more than likeley replace but has anyone gotten another TV of a different model out of them? I mean if this is an inherent problem with this model shouldn't they replace it with something that works. I read of some horror stories where people are on there 3rd and 4th TV. Has anyone gotten this issue resolved to there likeing? I just don't have time to read thread 11 through 51 to find the resolution.

Thanks to all in advance.

I have seen people get the 87 series (LED) but I am not sure he bowing isnt just as bad. Besides, the viewing angles kill it for me. The new 08 models come out in April the only problem is the price increase. I personally am going to get Vanns to replace it the see I If I can get one with no bowing and in my case a still picture when people are walking but If I have to go through Samsung I will demand the 08 model. Might be better to get the refund and wait 10 months until the 08 model is the same price but I paid $1499 and that will be very hard to refund for a 61".

Hi. I posted last week, regarding my THIRD Samsung HL-T5076S. Well, I returned the third one, because of vertical lines, about 1 inch apart, appearing across the screen. I had a FOURTH 5076 brought in, and, guess what? I had all sorts of smudges right in the middle of the screen, right across the whole thing! I just returned that one.

I went above and beyond the call of duty to try to make these TVs work. I spent countless hours myself fiddling with connections, settings, etc. I had technicians in, I had the cable company in (my connections and signals are fine). This TV has big issues, I dare say. I really wanted things to work out. The TV looks great, but it seems really flimsily made. The picture is fine, when it works, and only if you ignore the lines, smudges and audio buzzing.

I just had a Panasonic PZ77U plasma brought in. It is not yet set up, but in taking it out of the box and setting up the stand, it seems really solid. The manual is better. The remote looks better. Lets hope the picture is better.

This was my first, and last, time I will buy a Samsung. I got a screaming deal on the TV back in November, which is also why I tried to stick with it. I guess one gets what one pays for!

Good luck to all of you who have this TV. I hope you do not have the problems I did.

Tom

Just got off the phone with Samsung and the rep. said he had never heard of the bowing probelm. The rep. I spoke to that scheduled my 1st and 2nd technician said it was a known problem. I told them they need to get there stories straight. Now they are waiting on the paperwork from the tech/service center so they can send me my 2nd TV. Wish me luck.

Does anyone know how the CC extended warranty applies if the TV has been replaced by the manufacture?

My tuner went out last night. It now throws up a strange test pattern that looks like a bunch of colored " marks on the screen. The colors change based on the background.

Time to call service. I suppose I can have them look at the bowing too, but from what all of you have stated, they could probably make it worse so I don't think I will let them touch it unless they are confident they have a solid fix (ie a new screen or something like that).

EDIT: Before I could call service the problem went away. I had tried turning the set on/off before but it was still there. Overnight it corrected itself. Something for us all to watch for.

My replacement 6176 came today with the same issue, my kid who is 3 comes in the room and the picture jumps. If hes running the thing goes nuts. My 50" DLP did not do this. I called Samsung and they now admit to a problem with these models. She said it could be fixed but my trust is shaken, especially with the 2008 models out in a few weeks. The geometry is also off by almost a half inch on one side.

The problem seems to be there is just to much give to that screen so the slightest vibration makes it bounce. Does anyone else have the picture bouncing issue?

oh crud ... I was really hoping my new 5676S wouldnt have some of the problems I've read about here ... well I noticed two problems tonight on my recent purchase from conns .. only been out of the box for 3 days and here's what I noticed so far:

- 2 smudges about the size of thumbs on the inside of the middle top part of screen (4 inches below the bevel).
- Bowing ... but not right out of the box which is very odd... I was playing CoD4 on my PS3 tonight for about 2 hours... when I switched back over to HD satellite, and after hitting the guide, the horizonal lines of the menue had severe bowing.. I didnt notice it the first couple of days ... I even looked for it.. So I dont know if gaming had anything to do with it? I hope this is just something it does during the breakin period

aside from those issues, I cant complain about the picture quality - 1080p looks amazing

oh crud ... I was really hoping my new 5676S wouldnt have some of the problems I've read about here ... well I noticed two problems tonight on my recent purchase from conns .. only been out of the box for 3 days and here's what I noticed so far:

- 2 smudges about the size of thumbs on the inside of the middle top part of screen (4 inches below the bevel).
- Bowing ... but not right out of the box which is very odd... I was playing CoD4 on my PS3 tonight for about 2 hours... when I switched back over to HD satellite, and after hitting the guide, the horizonal lines of the menue had severe bowing.. I didnt notice it the first couple of days ... I even looked for it.. So I dont know if gaming had anything to do with it? I hope this is just something it does during the breakin period

aside from those issues, I cant complain about the picture quality - 1080p looks amazing


If you stand in front of it, even a few feet away and jump up does the screen bounce?

Mine does not bounce, BUT I have ceramic floors on a concrete slab. I bet if I was on say the 2nd floor of an apartment it would bounce. The screen moves if you lightly touch the top of the tv.

Lucky me with my very solid floor I guess. I still have no issues with mine and am loving it. I hate that so many others are having problems.

Well I finally think I am getting somewhere with all of this. The deal with the 6176 is the mirror is located at the top of the cabinet. That is true of any Slim line model. Because of this, the thing is going to shake with vibration If the Mirror is loose. This was told to me by a Tier II person at Samsung who said all that has to be done is tighten the mirror.

The tech in my area was told something different, he was told it was DMD board and that really, If it shakes due to the stand its on or whatever then there really isn't anything you can do. It was also interesting how the Samsung tier II guy told me that there would probably be no more slim line models :rolleyes: They also told him the TV cannot hang over the stand at all. Mine hangs over by maybe an inch, just the screen, not the foot of the TV.

The bowing cannot be fixed. its luck of the draw and it cant bow later in time.

This is all starting to sound like a bunch of crap to me.

I just got my HL-T5676 and I love it. The picture looks great and there's no bowing.

Playing my PS3 is incredibly sharp.

ok to the guy who asked about the bouncing... I cant jump up and down on a cement foundation and make it or anything in my house bounce ... I either dont weigh enough or something lol.

Ok about my TV... I'm starting to wonder if buying from conns was a bad idea even though they outsold everyone including the internet (amazon, vanns etc) ... Conns has a rediculous return policy. In order to avoid the 15% restock fee, I have to have their service department come out and inspect it even though I've had it in my house for only 5 days... sigh

On a better note, bowing has improved slightly I guess just by the TV sitting outside of the box for a few days and gravity naturally pulling the horizontal upwards bowing back down to the middle or natural position. Its gotten better but its still not level.
(I know most here have the smiley or downward from the middle bowing, I have just the opposite. This may have been Samsungs attempt at compensating or over compensating the smiley bowing effect.)

However the smudges are still there - because they're inside the screen argh! SO conns will probably want to take the screen off, clean the smudges, then introduce an entirely new set of bowing problems or amplify the existing bowing... great... so I feel right now my only option is to exchange it for another Sammy or just eat a $100 upgrade and get the 57" Mitsu ...

what do you guys think? thanks for all the 100s of posts - great info on this thread

... my kid who is 3 comes in the room and the picture jumps. If hes running the thing goes nuts. The geometry is also off by almost a half inch on one side.
I would check for termites, your floor should not be that weak. The geometry can be fixed, easy if it's off at the bottom, a bit harder if it's off at the top. Bowing is due to screen bulging in or out in the center.

Can anyone post some settings, that where agreed on this thread, to match a DVD/Blu reference RIP. We are trying to tweak a 6176 as close to origional as we can get it.

Thank you in advance...

I second that....I would like to know what anyone has come up with after using a calibration disc such as DVE.

I second that....I would like to know what anyone has come up with after using a calibration disc such as DVE.

I believe most people have said of the ones posted, they are using these....

Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF

I would check for termites, your floor should not be that weak. The geometry can be fixed, easy if it's off at the bottom, a bit harder if it's off at the top. Bowing is due to screen bulging in or out in the center.

Termites? I had 2 of these sets. The room is huge. The problem is the mirror is mounted at the top instead of in the rear. If there is any vibration, the the thing shakes. Tap the top of the screen towards the middle and you will see bounce.

I believe most people have said of the ones posted, they are using these....

Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF

Thanks Will
I'll give these a shot before i buy the DVE: HD Basics disc that comes out next week.

I was looking in the rear port hole and noticed some dust on the mirrors that i would like to clean and was wondering if anyone has removed their screen and how much of a PITA it is to put back in.

I was looking in the rear port hole and noticed some dust on the mirrors that i would like to clean and was wondering if anyone has removed their screen and how much of a PITA it is to put back in.
Just reach in there and knock off the dust with a swifter. If you're determined to take the screen off, remove the lamp door, then the lower back panel and unplug the five light engine wires (squeeze the release tabs). Remove the four screws securing the entire light engine (2 top and 2 bottom), slide it out slowly checking for more wires to disconnect. Disconnect the wires going to the side buttons, LEDs and speakers. Remove the screws along the sides and the eight screws inside securing the screen bottom. Tilt out the screen bottom carefully removing the wires and then unhook the top of the screen and it's off!. Remove the 4 locator knobs from inside the set and reattach them on the screen bottom before putting the screen back on. Good luck.

Have you personally disassembled it? It doesn't look very difficult, I just don't want to mess up the top mirror geometry. I was lucky enough to get one with zero bowing issues.

I got the dust that was on the glass that is accessible through the port hole but the lens underneath looks like it is covered.

I've done it, just take your time and watch those wires. You can slide out the light engine to remove and clean the lens cover. The top mirror remains in place but is easily adjustable after reassembly; loosen the four phillips screws across the top rear and slightly turn the two slotted adjusting cams to raise/lower the left and right image at the bottom of the screen.

Just got my 5076S delivered from Amazon. Got it at $1149 - $100 gift card + free shipping. I came across this thread after purchase but prior to receiving it so my nerves were eating at me. Everything was delivered timely and the delivery team was very careful going into my house, down the stairs, and around the tight corner. After putting it together I nervously turned it on and thankfully, NO BOWING (yet....or hopefully never). The Screen is awesomely bright and colorful!! I took some of the suggestions in this thread on what settings to use and boy are the reds red, and the color popping! I'm hooking up the XBOX360 to it right now and will put in the Transforms HD-DVD once it's all connected.

I will continue viewing this thread as now I am an owner of my first DLP big screen TV.

I was wanting to test a theory, but I have not succeeded in removing the front bezel in order to access the rear of the screen. Of course I am being EXTREMELY careful and ginger about how I handle it, so maybe somethign that needs to snap loose just hasnt been pulled hard enough, but I sure dont want to find out the hard way. Does anyone here know how to remove the screen from the HL-Txx76S sets? I am fairly sure that I have found all the screws. Any help would be appreciated.

Picked up my Hl-T5076 about 3 weeks ago up in scottsdale from a wholesale distritutor.
$955.00 no tax!! Usuing mantraxl previous thread setttings and playing Call of Duty 4 direct HDMI to the TV if absolutely fascinating!! Moives throught the Xbox 360 appear a bit grainy in the black though, also I found that normally these tv's come pre set to "shop" settings. I had to go into my plug and play menu setting s and change it from "shop" mode (which is demo mode, i was adjusting my colrs and tints and after a half hour it would auto reset to factory defualt) to "home" mode. Called Samsung and the me that lil tip.

Does anyone have an updated settings list?

Guys, I am calling now to send back my second set. If Samsung gives you a hard time then just ask them why they dumped the ultra slim cabinet after one year (76 series) The new HL61A650 which replaces the 76 line went back to the slim cab with the mirror back in the rear.

The new HL61A650 which replaces the 76 line went back to the slim cab with the mirror back in the rear.
What's your source for this info?
EDIT: Your right, it's on Samsung's website now. I guess I have two very unique TVs now.

I saw some were satisfied with ISF calibrations, I had heard you had to use an external box to take care of the color decoder, is that true in the recent poster? (the one that said the set was good for calibrating) . And why is tint and saturation engaged in digital modes? Does it turn it all back into analogue? What ISF company did you use?
I have a good geometry set out of box, but horrible decoder that is in the way of all inputs.

Four phillips-head screws are arranged about evenly in rectangular recesses along the upper back of the case. These apparently permit vertical movement of the upper mirror in relation to the chassis and screen. Slightly inside the outer-most phillips screws on either side are two larger single-slotted screws which perform up or down adjustment of each end of the mirror once all the phillips screws are loosened. After the adjustment, the phillips screws should be tightened down. (This TV is so delicate and lightly constructed that I wouldn't suggest tightening anything down too tight for fear of warping something.) I got this information from another post, and have used these adjustments to adjust tilt at the bottom of the screen and minimize vertical bowing, with some indirect improvement in horizontal bowing. Use this information at your own risk, because it takes time and trial-and-effort to get noticeable improvements and can make things worse. I would assume these adjustments were originally made at the factory to be pretty close, so if major changes are needed then probably the factory adjustments changed during shipping or during other rough handling of the TV. (Just like John Madden, I'm stating the obvious!)

God it would be great if someone could make a YouTube video and show everyone how to do this if it is necessary...

I have been looking for 6 months and made my decision.....I just think the picture quality and color is far superior to the others models I have seen (Sony, Toshiba).

I am a former owner of a Toshiba 65H80 (Great TV, but I want something slimmer).

I just purchased a 6176 today (on order to be delivered next week)...i didn't read this forum before the purchase, but have read all 52 pages...my eyes hurt....

Now I am wondering if I screwed up...I got it for $1499....I bought a high quality sturdy stand and my carpet is over a concrete foundation so I dont think bouncing will be a problem.

This is a bad ass forum. Thanks guys for all the comments and great information.

Eric

Ok about my TV... I'm starting to wonder if buying from conns was a bad idea even though they outsold everyone including the internet (amazon, vanns etc) ... Conns has a rediculous return policy. In order to avoid the 15% restock fee, I have to have their service department come out and inspect it even though I've had it in my house for only 5 days... sigh

On a better note, bowing has improved slightly I guess just by the TV sitting outside of the box for a few days and gravity naturally pulling the horizontal upwards bowing back down to the middle or natural position. Its gotten better but its still not level.
(I know most here have the smiley or downward from the middle bowing, I have just the opposite. This may have been Samsungs attempt at compensating or over compensating the smiley bowing effect.)

However the smudges are still there - because they're inside the screen argh! SO conns will probably want to take the screen off, clean the smudges, then introduce an entirely new set of bowing problems or amplify the existing bowing... great... so I feel right now my only option is to exchange it for another Sammy or just eat a $100 upgrade and get the 57" Mitsu ...

what do you guys think? thanks for all the 100s of posts - great info on this thread

I too had the smudges. I had a service tech come out and he said the screen would have to be replaced. I ended up sending it back to Amazon and getting a samsung lcd (LN-T5265F) and I couldn't be happier. I love my brothers older model samsung dlp, but never loved my 5676s. I don't know what the problem is with this model, but the SSE was killing me. So, I crossed over to the dark side of lcd. Please forgive me. ;)

I always do my research before buying high end electronics but in this case the wife and I were in Circuit City and were mesmorized by the awesome picture displayed on the Samsung HLT6176S. We were in the market for a new big screen and they had a great deal so we purchased it right then. Only later did I google results for this TV and find in every forum the same complaints...the dreaded bowing effect. I have to admit I didn't recognize it before I knew about the issue, but after reading all these posts I took a good, hard look and sure enough we have a bit of bowing too, most recognizable along the right edge.

I have to say though it isn't that bad and it appears to have no effect on picture quality during program viewing. It's only really noticeable when displaying the Direct TV menu and only a very slight curve on CNN or ESPN's scroll bars. So my question to the folks who've had this TV awhile, does it get worse over time or does the degree of bowing remain constant? Truthfully I could deal with it because the picture on this TV is head and shoulders above the others we saw. But the wife wants to return the TV right away as she's afraid this is only the beginning of our problems. She has a point. Any thoughts??? Thanks a bunch.

This thread doesn't appear to get the traffic it once did, but I have some additional information that may help others who happen along. Following the advice of an earlier post I used folded business cards to jury rig a fix and it seems to have worked well.

Folding up a business card or some other thin cardboard or paper product is the first step. For the bottom edge of the TV I folded the card into a 4-ply thickness, and for the top I folded it once more making it 6-ply (the bezel is more loose along the top). You will have to adjust the size of your cards and the folds so that they are hidden from view. Insert them between the screen and the plastic bezel frame along the bottom edge about 1/4 way in from the left and right sides (total of 2 along the bottom). Along the top edge I inserted the card dead center. Using your fingernails or a butter knife push the shims into the crevices until they are out of view. These positions worked for me, but you might have to adjust the locations and numbers of shims. This procedure pulled my menus fairly straight and nearly eliminated the bowing effect. It is still slightly perceptible, but nowhere near what it was and mine never bowed that bad to begin with.

I am the first to admit it is pretty lame to have to go through all this. If there were a TV that came even close to the stellar picture this TV produces I would say bag the Samsung and get that one instead. However IMO that TV doesn't exist at this price point. The brilliance, sharpness and clarity of this Samsung is unrivaled by competitors. Again my opinion, but I compared this to all the big boys: Sony, Toshiba, Mitz, JVC and no comparably priced TV came close.

Therefore it is worth it for me to hassle with this issue. However I would still be interested in hearing from long-time owners how the Samsung holds up over time. I'm still within my return window and would welcome any advice. Hope this helps. :D

This thread doesn't appear to get the traffic it once did, but I have some additional information that may help others who happen along. Following the advice of an earlier post I used folded business cards to jury rig a fix and it seems to have worked well.

Folding up a business card or some other thin cardboard or paper product is the first step. For the bottom edge of the TV I folded the card into a 4-ply thickness, and for the top I folded it once more making it 6-ply (the bezel is more loose along the top). You will have to adjust the size of your cards and the folds so that they are hidden from view. Insert them between the screen and the plastic bezel frame along the bottom edge about 1/4 way in from the left and right sides (total of 2 along the bottom). Along the top edge I inserted the card dead center. Using your fingernails or a butter knife push the shims into the crevices until they are out of view. These positions worked for me, but you might have to adjust the locations and numbers of shims. This procedure pulled my menus fairly straight and nearly eliminated the bowing effect. It is still slightly perceptible, but nowhere near what it was and mine never bowed that bad to begin with.

I am the first to admit it is pretty lame to have to go through all this. If there were a TV that came even close to the stellar picture this TV produces I would say bag the Samsung and get that one instead. However IMO that TV doesn't exist at this price point. The brilliance, sharpness and clarity of this Samsung is unrivaled by competitors. Again my opinion, but I compared this to all the big boys: Sony, Toshiba, Mitz, JVC and no comparably priced TV came close.

Therefore it is worth it for me to hassle with this issue. However I would still be interested in hearing from long-time owners how the Samsung holds up over time. I'm still within my return window and would welcome any advice. Hope this helps. :D

Nice Bump.

Mine is supposed to arrive next week. Can I inquire to the date of the your TV's manufacture?

Eric

Hi Eric:

My manufacture date is Dec/07. I'm jealous; you got yours $500 cheaper than me...grrrr.

Don't know if you've seen these in the stores or not, but the problem seems to stem from Samsung using a cheap case around this TV. The plastic is flimsy and doesn't hold the screen taut, hence a bulge of varying degrees naturally occurs in the middle. The light refracts off that bulge to form this bow effect everyone complains about. That's my laymans explanation anyway. Sticking those cardboard shims in there pulls the screen tight and reduces that bulge I think.

Too bad because they hit a homerun with the picture quality and then packaged it for crap. They could have easily kept the slim design and used a more durable frame. I'll be checking back periodically to see if anyone else has input. Good luck with your new TV. Keep us posted.

I am interested in trying to solidly affix the screen to the top of the bezel, since it is a slightly loose fit, it would then hang straight under its own weight, instead of bowing as it rests on its bottom edge. IF anyone can clue me in on the proper and non-damaging way to remove the front bezel/screen assy from the rest of the cabinet, I would be very grateful.

BTW, I just got around to doing the mirror tilt-adjustment the othe rnight, and it helped a lot. Less bowing and a completely level picture without any wierd shimming. Good stuff

I am interested in trying to solidly affix the screen to the top of the bezel, since it is a slightly loose fit, it would then hang straight under its own weight, instead of bowing as it rests on its bottom edge.
I doubt that will work as the top of the case has no structure to hold any weight. The screen actually sits on a shelf in the bottom and floats within the frame.

Has there been any indication if the bowing problem was addressed in recent builds of this model? I'm sure this is not the case but I just got my 5076S and it has been perfect. My build date is DEC 2007.

Has there been any indication if the bowing problem was addressed in recent builds of this model? I'm sure this is not the case but I just got my 5076S and it has been perfect. My build date is DEC 2007.

I'm not sure if there has been or not. I waiting on Samsung right now to do something on mine. I guess I'll be getting my first replacement, yeah me. I bought mine back at the end of August or beginning of September so I know my build date is before Dec 2007.

Where do you find the build date on the TV anyways? And if Samsung does replace it how does that affect my extended warranty with CC?

Where do you find the build date on the TV anyways? And if Samsung does replace it how does that affect my extended warranty with CC?

The build date is on the sticker on the back. The warranty doesn't change, it remains based on the original purchase. Generally, replacing is treated the same as a repair. Read the fine print to see if it says anything about replacing the set.

:mad:
I need help. I finally got to a higher tier on support from Samsung to get my first set replaced and now all of a sudden they want me to take a freaking picture of how bad the bow is......:mad:

Does anyone have a picture they can PM me or upload to here so I can send it to my service center and they can send it to Samsung.......

I would not be jumping through hoops if I was still within my 30 days believe me.

Thanks in advance folks.

Um, why not do it yourself?

Um, why not do it yourself?

I had a feeling I would get a smart remark first, there are just some people out there that want to try and be funny and not use these boards for there intended purposes. To HELP each other out.

But if you must know:
My digital camera is screwed up and I'm at work and wanted to get the picture to them as fast as possible so they could get it and possible schedule a replacement.

I've already been playing phone tag with these jokers for a while now and it seems like every time I call it's something else.....

I had a feeling I would get a smart remark first, there are just some people out there that want to try and be funny and not use these boards for there intended purposes. To HELP each other out.

But if you must know:
My digital camera is screwed up and I'm at work and wanted to get the picture to them as fast as possible so they could get it and possible schedule a replacement.

I've already been playing phone tag with these jokers for a while now and it seems like every time I call it's something else.....

Not sure why you are attacking the previous poster? I thought his comment was rather tame. By asking for someone to PM you a picture of their set, at best you are misrepresenting your set, at worst you are trying to defraud Samsung. Each and every set is different. Some will have the geometry distortion and some won't. Just relax and borrow a camera if need be. One day won't make a difference.

Now I'm being acused of fraud..... I'm not misrepresenting my set or trying to defraud anyone. I was simply asking for help and I was a little upset because I had just got off the phone with Samsung, posted, and read that remark, but was still upset about my phone call. I didn't mean to come off like I was attacking the previous poster.

Dino your acusations are way off base. I'm just an average guy that bought this TV and want to get what I'm paying for.

Now I'm being acused of fraud..... I'm not misrepresenting my set or trying to defraud anyone. I was simply asking for help and I was a little upset because I had just got off the phone with Samsung, posted, and read that remark, but was still upset about my phone call. I didn't mean to come off like I was attacking the previous poster.

Dino your acusations are way off base. I'm just an average guy that bought this TV and want to get what I'm paying for.

Look, I am not doubting the validity of your claims that your set is bowed. But, you are a new guy here, I have been through LOTS of these situations and seen MANY of these things come and go on avsforum. People here will bend over backwards to help. Just don't ask people to commit fraud. Because as innocent as your intentions may be, misrepresenting your issues to Samsung is fraudulent. Relax, borrow a camera and a tripod if need be. There are more important things in life than going ballistic over a bowed set.

I contacted several different levels of customer support at Samsung and spoke to several different people about the bowing on my 6176 over a period of several days about a month ago. One lower level person told me that this was a known problem and that if I contacted a certain higher level person I could arrange to get a replacement or a refund. So I contacted this higher level person and they said they didn't know anything about this being a "known problem" and that a service call would have to be made to evaluate the bowing and attempt to fix it first. After several discussions with different customer service representatives, I realized that my bowing was less than the 6-7 mm they had arbitrarily established as the defect threshold and that the TV would not be considered in need of repair or adjustment even if the service call were made. So I didn't even bring the serviceman out and I adjusted the tilt screws in the back to minimize both vertical and horizontal bowing. At no time in those discussions did Samsung request a photograph of the bowing. I would think they would prefer an on-site service call over an owner-provided photograph to determine if repair is necessary.

Look, I am not doubting the validity of your claims that your set is bowed. But, you are a new guy here, I have been through LOTS of these situations and seen MANY of these things come and go on avsforum. People here will bend over backwards to help. Just don't ask people to commit fraud. Because as innocent as your intentions may be, misrepresenting your issues to Samsung is fraudulent. Relax, borrow a camera and a tripod if need be. There are more important things in life than going ballistic over a bowed set.

You know now that I've calmed down since yesterday and had my morning coffee ;) I've looked back over the posts and I can see where it would look like I could be dishonest or fraudulent. I want to say that I apologize for getting a little steamed and quick with my comments. I probably should have proof read my initial post before I posted.

I did not mean to sound the way I did, sorry folks.

At no time in those discussions did Samsung request a photograph of the bowing. I would think they would prefer an on-site service call over an owner-provided photograph to determine if repair is necessary.

That is the strange part because the second Tech was out, agreed that it was not correct and notified Samsung and recomended a replacement. Now I call Samsung and they say they want a photograph and nobody at the service center knew about them asking for a photograph. It just seems like I'm doing alot of the leg work where they should be supporting the customer.

My set arrived today... and when the guy moved it to take it off the truck, all I heard was a mountain of broken glass slushing around. The screen seemed to be okay so I guess it was the guts of the thing.

Amazon said they didn't have any more in stock (only thru resellers it appears). I replaced it with with the 2008 61" model and amazon took a little off for the inconvenience.

I don't feel I'm getting quite the great deal as before but maybe the Darklight 4 chip will make it worth while. :)

Looks like our model is a one year only design. The '08 models revert to last year's case design. You will be getting a little better picture quality but a thicker case. Really curious what was broken, the only glass panel is the light engine's lens cover, it's only about 6 x 10.

Just unpacked a new 5076. Great fit, extraordinary picture, no apparent bowing -- and a pea-sized smudge almost dead smack in the middle of the screen. It's not on the outside, and it doesn't seem to be on the inside. But I can't tell what to look for to wipe it away. I saw the post about opening the porthole, but I can't see what would cause the smudge.

If I apply slight pressure to the screen exterior, the smudge moves slightly, so it's something being reflected or projected onto the screen, if that helps.

I want to thank everyone from this thread in regards to identifying the bowing issue. I have now become paranoid with my slight bottom left hand bowing I witnessed while watching Matrix Revolution on HD-DVD.

Okay, I'm just kidding about the remark but I do want to thank this thread for being very informative on the bowing issues along with other issues associated to this model. I have identified a slight bow but no one else can see anything wrong. I'm just paying attention to the amount of bowing that may occur over time before I start to worry.

Does anyone believe the bowing issue continues to grow? Or if what problems you have with bowing is generally found in the beginning of receiving the TV?

Does anyone believe the bowing issue continues to grow? Or if what problems you have with bowing is generally found in the beginning of receiving the TV?
I've had two sets now for about nine months and the bowing has stayed about the same. At first, the bow was distracting when I was searching the guide but now my brain has compensated and I no longer notice. Picture quality is what I focus on and this set delivers. I did put 1/8" felt pads under the front feet to tilt the screen back just a little hoping the screen bulge (cause of the bowing) would correct itself, it hasn't, but did correct the dim screen when standing issue.

Can I take the lack of response to mean that no one knows how to properly remove the screen assy from the cabinet? I can get all but the bottom edge loose and then I get into a worrisome situation where there are no more apparent clips/connectors/screws. I'm fairly certain that I can fix the bowing entirely if I can get into this thing, but I dont want to break it.

Any help is appreciated.

I know that I don't know how to remove the screen assembly. Reliance on the collection of posts in this thread, without more, does not give me enough dependable guidance on how to perform this operation. I think that the tilt adjustments on the back, along with a good firm level surface for the base and maybe some shims (all things you can undo, if necessary) are the only things I have attempted or will attempt. Anything else, with this TV, should be done by a trained service man with a service manual. In addition, although Samsung customer service warned me that the bowing might get worse over time, after making the initial adjustments mentioned above, the bowing does not seem to be getting any worse after 4 months from the purchase date and 5 months from the build date.

Hi guys, found this forum by some luck, I own a HL-t5076s. Love the TV however when attempting to get any type of HD signal off the roof antenna i just can't seem to get it. I know I should easily get some channels, but when I type in "2 - 1" for instance, nothing shows up, I do use that little dash mark to switch between channels correct? I'm at a lost, it works fine on our living room tv but this one in my room refuses to work, so I'd be happy to hear any ideas.

When you do a scan for channels (Auto Program), does it find your local channels?

Well I've had my HL-T6176s for about 21 days now. I wanted the Sony KDS-3000a because of the problems w/the Samsungs but CC no longer had it in stock.

I think the PQ is much better on the Samsung anyway but mine of course had the ol' "smiley face" problem. Other than that I'm pretty happy with it.

Being as obsessive as I am I messed with the screws on the back. What worked best for me was loosen only the inner 2 screws 1st and pushed the screws downward which raised the bottem center up on the display. I used a flathead screwdriver to push the top of the screw down and then tightened it down tight. I then loosened the outer 2 screws and made minor adjustments by doing the exact opposite.(push the screws upward and tighten)

What I found is that the slotted cam adjustment screws either raise or lower all 4 screws at once. Well actually 2 screws at once per side. So when I turned the cam on the left side it only raised or lowered the smiley face on that side.

It may not work the same for everyone but it might help. The tickers, cable guide, menus, and tests patterns look straight as I can see. I was dead set on returning it for another one or the new 2008 Sammys but I might actually keep it now.

Rampart, are you saying you straightened a tilt problem, or the actual bowing at the edges?

Long-time reader, first-time poster, lol.

An associate told me the last two BestBuy HL-T5676s's in Colorado were going for $999.99. He grabbed one. I couldn't resist, so I had them pricematch the one other BB that had this price and snagged the last one. So far looks like we both got good sets with no bowing, woot! Also with that low price, a four-year extended BB warranty was only $200. No-brainer, that's cheaper then a bulb. My first question:

Adjusting screen size with a PC connected at 1080p rez.

1.) Connecting my PC with DVI port for 1920x1080 rez on this set. Used a DVI-HDMI adapter and plugged into HDMI-3 port. Able to get 1920x1080 rez, but the windows desktop is too big, I can't seem to see the outer 1" or so of the desktop (as if it was behind that nice piano-black frame). Of course no Windows taskbar, start-button, etc. If I throw on a PC game, can't see the edges of course.

2.) The (PDF) manual says to go into the PC-mode menu or HomeTheaterPC mode in order to adjust screen-size, but those choices are grayed out when I'm on the HDMI-3 port. I assume they'll free up if I connect to the (DSUB) VGA port? The manual also claims you can get 1920x1080 even with just the VGA port, I want to avoid this (lower quality), but haven't tested it yet. Will the VGA port be adequate or necessary? I also tried the different built-in modes (Just Scan, Wide, etc.), none look good.

3.) Is something wrong with my set? Because my PC is doing a full 1920x1080 rez, isn't the Samsung screen exactly that size? Manufacture date is Nov.2007, Mexico.

Am I reading this wrong? Sorry if it's a dumb question or been answered already, how do I adjust the PC screen size so it's fully viewable? I tried a couple searches here and came up empty.

Rampart, are you saying you straightened a tilt problem, or the actual bowing at the edges?

When the tv was set to 4:3 mode the black bars on the side got larger toward the top. Also the center bottom of the screen had a sag to it "aka the smiley face. When facing the tv both problems were worse on the right side. So both vertical and horizontal. The vertical was hardly off on the left but the right was bad.

When I loosened all 4 screws and tried the cam adjustment on the right side I was able to lower the right corner but it also seemed to make the top corner move inward toward the center of the screen making things worse vertically. That's when I started messing with the inside screw 1st and then the outside until I was satisfied. The inside screw brought the bottom center up and the top corner outward enough so that when I adjusted the outer screw to bring the bottom corner down a tad it brought the top corner in enough to take away the slant on the right side.

I'll try to post a pic of the end result.

Okay so I have had the 6176 for about a year now and the picture is awesome, no bowing effect or any picture issues but every once in a while it will make a loud popping or cracking sound. Has anyone else had this issue? What is causing that? Thanks

Okay so I have had the 6176 for about a year now and the picture is awesome, no bowing effect or any picture issues but every once in a while it will make a loud popping or cracking sound. Has anyone else had this issue? What is causing that? Thanks

I had that happen, but only in the first month or two. I guess it was the case flexing due to the heat. Is the tv in a confined space?

I have had my HLT-6176s since December and it still makes those random bangs, creaks, pops or whatever after it has been on for an hour or two. I read this elsewhere and it seems pretty clear to me that these noises are mechanical in nature and come from the release of uneven heat-produced stresses from the cabinet and/or chassis. My TV is two feet in front of a wall with plenty of space all around it in a room that has been about 60-65 degrees all winter. It's just another peculiar quirk, along with the bowing and the flimsy case, that makes fodder for this continuing discussion thread. My friends were over last night watching "No Country For Old Men" when the TV made a noticeable "bang" sound. One of them said "What's that?" and I laughed and said "It just does that sometimes when it gets warm."

Long-time reader, first-time poster, lol.

An associate told me the last two BestBuy HL-T5676s's in Colorado were going for $999.99. He grabbed one. I couldn't resist, so I had them pricematch the one other BB that had this price and snagged the last one. So far looks like we both got good sets with no bowing, woot! Also with that low price, a four-year extended BB warranty was only $200. No-brainer, that's cheaper then a bulb. My first question:

Adjusting screen size with a PC connected at 1080p rez.

1.) Connecting my PC with DVI port for 1920x1080 rez on this set. Used a DVI-HDMI adapter and plugged into HDMI-3 port. Able to get 1920x1080 rez, but the windows desktop is too big, I can't seem to see the outer 1" or so of the desktop (as if it was behind that nice piano-black frame). Of course no Windows taskbar, start-button, etc. If I throw on a PC game, can't see the edges of course.

2.) The (PDF) manual says to go into the PC-mode menu or HomeTheaterPC mode in order to adjust screen-size, but those choices are grayed out when I'm on the HDMI-3 port. I assume they'll free up if I connect to the (DSUB) VGA port? The manual also claims you can get 1920x1080 even with just the VGA port, I want to avoid this (lower quality), but haven't tested it yet. Will the VGA port be adequate or necessary? I also tried the different built-in modes (Just Scan, Wide, etc.), none look good.

3.) Is something wrong with my set? Because my PC is doing a full 1920x1080 rez, isn't the Samsung screen exactly that size? Manufacture date is Nov.2007, Mexico.

Am I reading this wrong? Sorry if it's a dumb question or been answered already, how do I adjust the PC screen size so it's fully viewable? I tried a couple searches here and came up empty.
Ghosty,

Rename the HDMI3 to "PC" and the Home Theater options should light up in the menu. Then, the PSIZE button will give you more options to resize the screen. I have my PC hooked up to HDMI3 via a DVI-HDMI connector, and I get 1 to 1 pixel mapping, and my computer desktop fills the screen exactly. Works pretty good.

Hello AVS Forum... WOW I love this site!!! The AVS community has always been so detailed and forthright with info and specs. I come to you now as a member looking for your guidance. I have been looking at the Samsung HL T5676S for a few days. At buy.com it's $1163.99 and I got a local store to price match. After reading several pages on the forum, I am somewhat worried about the bowing and curving. I have Analog Comcast no STB, I watch my HDTV via Philips STB OTA antenna, and one of the primary functions of my TV is as my Dell Laptops external monitor. I have my Laptop connected to my TV via a DVI to HDMI cable. It sounds as if the bowing is noticeable on lists and menus predominately, so my question to the community is this. Knowing that 60% of the TV's role in my entertainment center is as a monitor, is the bowing and curving going to be a factor? Should I steer clear of this unit or should I have someone adjust the mirrors if mine comes out of the box bowing and curving. I am being offered a 4yr warr for $140.00 that will cover In-Home service and bulbs, so I feel like I may have some recourse to get this unit functioning correctly if needed. As always thanks for any and all input.

cybrslug

Rename the HDMI3 to "PC" and the Home Theater options should light up in the menu.
Wow, wth? That's a totally bizarre design, imo. I just tested out a long VGA cable with no adapters, going to the PC-port and wa-la, it works! 1920x1080 1:1 and you can resize it perfectly. After all that effort I realized that I really don't like playing PC videogames on that huge a screen, it's a pain! :D Thanks for the solution though!

Hello AVS Forum... WOW I love this site!!! The AVS community has always been so detailed and forthright with info and specs. I come to you now as a member looking for your guidance. I have been looking at the Samsung HL T5676S for a few days. At buy.com it's $1163.99 and I got a local store to price match. After reading several pages on the forum, I am somewhat worried about the bowing and curving. I have Analog Comcast no STB, I watch my HDTV via Philips STB OTA antenna, and one of the primary functions of my TV is as my Dell Laptops external monitor. I have my Laptop connected to my TV via a DVI to HDMI cable. It sounds as if the bowing is noticeable on lists and menus predominately, so my question to the community is this. Knowing that 60% of the TV's role in my entertainment center is as a monitor, is the bowing and curving going to be a factor? Should I steer clear of this unit or should I have someone adjust the mirrors if mine comes out of the box bowing and curving. I am being offered a 4yr warr for $140.00 that will cover In-Home service and bulbs, so I feel like I may have some recourse to get this unit functioning correctly if needed. As always thanks for any and all input.

cybrslug

Bowing is a major factor to consider with this set. Anytime you have straight horizontal lines running across the screen, you'll notice them if you get a set that has bowing. Given that you'll be using it as a computer monitor, I'd be concerned about the bowing.

Aside from that, it's a great set. Great PQ. And that's a good deal on the warranty. The problem is that there is NO FIX for the bowing. The only option is to either swap the set at the store, or with samsung. Some have had luck with samsung. But I've heard reports of them refusing to replace it as the bowing was 'within specification,' and they had to fight very hard to get it replaced. I know the size and PQ is very tempting for the price. But if I had to do it again, I would have picked another set. The 2008 Samsungs are trickling into stores, but they seem to have problems as well.

Picking a TV isn't as easy as it used to be, huh?

Help! Driving me nuts!

I have only 2 devices hooked up to my TV
1. HDMI DTV
2. Components Xbox

When you switch using the "TV INPUT" button on the remote, it goes:

HDMI - Cable - Xbox

I want to skip Cable!!!! It's just white noise.. How can I only have the 2 inputs??

Ghosty,

Rename the HDMI3 to "PC" and the Home Theater options should light up in the menu. Then, the PSIZE button will give you more options to resize the screen. I have my PC hooked up to HDMI3 via a DVI-HDMI connector, and I get 1 to 1 pixel mapping, and my computer desktop fills the screen exactly. Works pretty good.

Thank you very much for this, I've been wondering how to make my desktop go "full screen" since moving to a DVI-HDMI cable. This worked perfectly for me.

I want to skip Cable!!!! It's just white noise.. How can I only have the 2 inputs??
Make sure nothing is hooked to the cable input, switch to cable and bring up the channel list and delete all (yellow button). See if that does it.

Since I'm on my 2nd 6176 unit from Vanns (via The Big River) with the crooked image and bowing issue, does it make sense for me to upgrade to the 6187 LED DLP model? Does this have the same bowing issues?

Make sure nothing is hooked to the cable input, switch to cable and bring up the channel list and delete all (yellow button). See if that does it.

Nothing is hooked up, I tried the channel delete the only chan it shows is 3, but you can delete it but it still stays there..

I did a little test, I disconnected my DTV DVR and went thru the inputs, sure enough it skips the HDMI where my DVR is and goes directly to Cable then my Xbox, so that part works, but I need it to skip cable.. this is driving me nuts...

nothing works..

Anyone else have this problem???

audiophile42 Thanks for the Info.

Like you said buying a TV is not as easy an more. Saw an HL T5087S on Buy.com Today for $1,119.99 free shipping, so I am on the forums today for more research.

Thnxs Again

Now my tv is buzzing when it turns on.. I have Samsung coming out to look at it...

And Samsung can't not explain to me why I have to switch thru Cable when I don't use that input.

So my 6176 was delivered in immaculate shape....got it set up, turned it on....and the damn thing was smiling at me the bowing was so bad....I tried all the fixes that people have suggested to no avail....

I decided that after what I have seen you guys go through it was simply not worth the time and effort. If I spend that kind of money on a TV I expect to not have to do anything to it.

I returned it and went back to Toshiba. Got a 52LX177 1080P LCD TV and it is absolutely amazing. No issues, perfect geometry, perfect color.

I am so glad I read the forum. You guys are the best.

Eric

Well this is what I get for not reading this thread before buying this Samsung TV from The Big River. This is actually my second one from them replacing the first one that had even worse bowing. This one's being picked up tomorrow afternoon for a refund. I'll probably go with the new 60" Mitsubishi DLPs coming out later this month.
http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i27/tat2boy00/Samsung6176SImageBowing.jpg

I have had my HLT5087S for about 6 months now. I just noticed the other night when watching the hockey game in HD that when I am standing looking down at the TV and the picture is predominately white, there is a "point" in the middle of the screen that is MUCH brighter then the rest. The brightness then moves up in the shape of a "V" for about 6 inches.

I don't notice the difference when I am sitting watching at normal eye level. I just wanted to make sure this isn't something wrong. I have a few months on the warranty and want to get it fixed before it runs out.

Thanks in advance

sorry if its been discussed before, but I searched w/ no luck…

does the hl-t5076s run at 60hz or 120hz?
anytime I push the info button on my tv, it says its running at 60hz…
im using an HD brighthouse cable box with 1.3a hdmi cables connecting the tv to it.
thx!

The TV always runs at 1080p, 120 hz. All inputs are up-converted to this format. The info display tells you what kind of signal the TV is receiving. It will add an "i" for an interlaced signal and nothing for progressive. You will never see 120hz in the info banner as no devices or broadcasts output that.

I don't think the 87 series has as many bowing/geometry problems as the 76 series; maybe it has to do with the "UltraSlim" (~12" deep) cabinet on the 76 vs. the "Slim" (~15" deep) cabinet on the 87, or maybe it's just because the 87 is newer and they got more of the problems ironed out. I have a 5687 and there are no bowing/geometry issues (although I did return my first one because of some minor screen defects and a very mild halo/hotspot; my replacement is perfect! :))

Hope that helps - good luck!

Since I'm on my 2nd 6176 unit from Vanns (via The Big River) with the crooked image and bowing issue, does it make sense for me to upgrade to the 6187 LED DLP model? Does this have the same bowing issues?

My HLT-5676S just started flickering yesterday. At first it was only noticable on the computer input, but now it has gotten worse and is noticable on every input. It appears to go away for a few seconds, and then comes back for a few minutes. The flickering kind of reminds me of a strobe light, if that makes since.

This set is just about three months old. It is still under warranty. Before I call on the warranty, any ideas?

The only problem we have had with our HLT-5676S is some height problems that can't be fixed with the position control on the remote via the on-screen menu. It's not a major problem so I have not been in a big rush to have someone look at it.

I noticed that there was a new firmware version for my model on Samsung's website so I flashed it. It went well once I figured out the USB drive had to be formatted in FAT32 and not NTFS. I have not had much time to really play with the set to see what if anything was really changed but I did have to reset my customized settings as the flash reset everything back to factory original.

Considering we got this set at a very good discount price, even when you add in the 3 year extended warranty we bought, this is a really nice unit and when calibrated turns out absolutely gorgeous pictures. HD astronomy programs such as Cosmos or The Universe are completely different programs when watched in HD than their SD equivalents.

If Samsung would get rid of the geometry problems this set would be 100% across the board.

I noticed that there was a new firmware version for my model on Samsung's website so I flashed it. It went well once I figured out the USB drive had to be formatted in FAT32 and not NTFS.

Great news, the firmware must have been posted recently, no one else has mentioned it. I'm upgrading my two sets now. Have fun enjoying your new set. The bottom edge of the screen image can be raised/lowered/leveled with adjusting screws on the back if that's your height problem.

The bottom edge of the screen image can be raised/lowered/leveled with adjusting screws on the back if that's your height problem.

Since we have a three year maintenance contract with Sears on the Samsung, we're going to just let them handle it. As a matter of fact, they should of had a tech come out to do an install of the home theater and setup the TV at the same time but due to a scheduling error that never happened. We did the work ourselves and got credit off our bill instead.

Now as for the problems we had with Dish coming out to do the upgrade to the 722 sat receiver and the extra equipment needed for HD and the 722, that was another major headache.

My HLT-5676S just started flickering yesterday. At first it was only noticable on the computer input, but now it has gotten worse and is noticable on every input. It appears to go away for a few seconds, and then comes back for a few minutes. The flickering kind of reminds me of a strobe light, if that makes since.

This set is just about three months old. It is still under warranty. Before I call on the warranty, any ideas?

Anybody?

mine is flickering, busy with other stuff be back later.
very loud bangs too, since new
as far as i see in manual, bulb has one year warranty now, so sitting it out. It comes and goes, at end of warranty if not dead,(me or the bulb) i'll call for help and get new bulb.

I have removed and reinserted the bulb, and since doing that the flickering has stopped. Mine just made a loud bang as I sit writing this. :p

Well this is what I get for not reading this thread before buying this Samsung TV from The Big River. This is actually my second one from them replacing the first one that had even worse bowing. This one's being picked up tomorrow afternoon for a refund. I'll probably go with the new 60" Mitsubishi DLPs coming out later this month.
http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i27/tat2boy00/Samsung6176SImageBowing.jpg

Holy cow I thought my bowing was bad! Same here.. wish I would have read about the bowing problem before I bought it.

Update:
Conns finally made it out to my house after nearly 2 months to replace my screen. It had the infamous smudges manfactured between the layers of the screen. Now the screen has a very light streak in a different location and the bowing is, no kidding, 2 times worse than it was before. Before the bowing in the center of the screen was only visible on the Directv menue or on ESPN news. Now the distortion is obvious enough to see in the picture - ARRRRGGGH!!

So now Conns (the pricks that they are about refunding me my money) will make ANOTHER attempt to replace my screen which means I'll probably have to endure another missing screen from their inventory (which originally set me back 6 weeks total including the 3 week delay on scheduling the repair).

Lessons learned:
1.) Conns had the best price hands down, beat anyone online. But if something breaks within the first few days or if its defective out of the box? Good luck getting your money back. They are adamant about first repairing it before replacing even if you're not satisfied with your junk purchase. Will not purchase from them again.
2.) ALWAYS check the avs forums for product feedback before you purchase!

Quite a while back I was having the bowing issue with my 50" set. At the time I did not have a digital camera that worked to take the picture that Samsung required and asked this board if someone had a pic of there bowing set. I was then accused of lieing to Samsung etc....

Well when I went to take a picture, after moving the TV for the D* installer to do his job, there was no considerable bowing and my issue with this set is over for the most part.

Has anyone else moved there set and noticed the bowing getting worse or better?

Well circuit city dropped off a 61A750, we hooked it up and checked the geomerty, which was good accept for a slight hour glass. I also had at teh top in the black bars a very annoying reflection. The picture was no where near as good as my 6176S that they were going to replace. I tried standard cable, hifh def cable, std DVD and BLURAY, the 6176S had a better picture, the 750 was very grainy, the firedog guys played with the color and we could not get it even close. The blacks are not as good and fast movement seemed blured and not smooth.

So i ended up keeping my 6176S and amgoing to see if I can get the slight tilt fixed, the bow I do not notice unless there is a grid and mine is not that bad anyway.

Last week I bought a HL-T5076S store demo at Circuit City and it's been amazing so far. A little bowing but nothing like some described here. I had some friends over Sunday to watch the Indy 500 and some golf and they were blown away by this set. I finally figured how to get it out of Shop Mode and with very little tweaking the PQ is now excellent.

And in a world of $2500 50" 1080p plasmas and LCDs the guys thought I was lying when I told them how cheap I got the Sammy for. It was cheaper than many open boxes because it was missing the remote and manual plus was pretty scuffed up (but the screen was fine). It's an old unit from April 2007 so probably has a lot of hours on it as a store display unit. I have a feeling my buddys will be looking at RPTVs more, in the store they don't always impress next to flat panels but they sure come to life when you get them away from the bright lights. I know my son in law is convinced after today. He'd been leaning toward a top tier 42" 720 plasma but now won't settle for less than 50" and 1080p and with RPTV he can get that at about the same price as the plasma.

My wife loves it too. She was leery of buying a demo unit but wouldn't give up this set now. We did go for the 2-year extended warranty since they say one bulb replacement is included.

Well with so many negative reviews I thought I'd add a positive one. So far so good. Thanks Samsung for making such a great HDTV! I'm sure this year's models are even better. I hope DLP doesn't go extinct for a long time and is an option when we're looking at new sets years down the road.

Edit:
Now to find my DVD of "Alien", I understand that some THX certified films have calibration options on their menus so need to look at that...

Well the HL-T5076S store demo went back to Circuit City. Worked ok but had so many hours on it that the bulb surely had reached half life. With a set like that you'd have to get an extended warranty thus bringing the price up to $1100 for the 2-year or $1300 for the 4-year. Instead a brand new 56" Samsung HL-56A650 DLP that Best Buy has on sale this week for $1399 made more sense so I bought it. Might as well put the extra money toward a brand new 2008 model plus I wanted to move up to 56 inches. It has Samsung's 1-year in home parts and labor warranty so I may not go for the extended warranty, anyway there's a month to decide on that.

I just couldn't ignore that the 2008 model has many significant enhancements over last year's model: USB 2.0 instead of 1.1, simplified mirror system, a much improved remote control, improved menu, better analog and digital tuners and a much stronger and deeper chassis that lessens geometry issues caused by last year's ultraslim case. That plus the larger size and not having all those hours of use made this a great upgrade.

For about a day I had both TVs so could see the differences side by side. The new TV made the old one look dim and small. I tuned in stations with both sets and noticed the new tuners were much better, a weak digital station that gave 4 bars of signal in the old set had 6 bars on the new one. And the tuner was much faster locking in to a station, the old set took about 4 seconds and the new one maybe 2. Everything about the PQ of the new set was better, no doubt mainly because it has a brand new lamp. I was glad to have both sets for a while to see first hand what we were getting for the extra money and to show my wife as well. She wasn't about to let the 56" screen go back! This is not a knock on the HL-T5076S 2007 model, being a store demo unit it just had too many hours on it.

I must say Circuit City was very good about taking back their demo unit. Their "no hassle" 30-day return policy was just that. Took about 5 minutes to get the refund. Hopefully they'll find a new home for it.

Wow this thread realy died anyone have anything to say about this tv?

Okay, I'm into my second month with one and extremely pleased. I had to have a repairman replace the screen--there was a dime sized-smudge in its center, apparently between the two pieces of the screen. Otherwise, there is a slight "hump" of about 1/8 inch in the lower left, imperceptible unless there is a ticker running cross-screen, unnoticeable during movies, other sports, etc. Image quality is excellent, as is the size and polish of the cabinet; it's not, however, sturdy, as others have noted.

I am watching mostly D*HD movies and sports (French Open tennis). Only a little OTA.

I was not able to get the "wiselink" function to works with a USB card reader and an SD card of photos, though. I am not sure why.

Well just got off the phone with Samsung again and it looks like they are going to replace my unit finally. They are replacing it with the HL50A650. Does anybody know if it's better then the 5076? I saw what Quentin had posted so I assume it's a better TV then the older model. But I was wondering if anyone else had input?

I've been a happy owner of a 5076S, with (knock on wood) no bowing issues whatsoever. I have lived with a mushroom shaped smudge, that only shows on a black screen, since I've gotten the set a few months back. Is this something I can fix myself? It doesn't appear to be on the screen, since it only shows up when there is nothing else on the screen - full white shows no smudge.

I figure I should call Samsung, but I thought I'd ask here first!

I've been a happy owner of a 5076S, with (knock on wood) no bowing issues whatsoever. I have lived with a mushroom shaped smudge, that only shows on a black screen, since I've gotten the set a few months back. Is this something I can fix myself? It doesn't appear to be on the screen, since it only shows up when there is nothing else on the screen - full white shows no smudge.

I figure I should call Samsung, but I thought I'd ask here first!I tried opening the small port on the back of the tv to wipe the smudge off from the inside. But it did not wipe off. The smudge was apparently between two screens that fit together, and could not be reached from outside or in.

It seemed no small trick for the repairman to replace the screen. It took him a couple of hours and phone calls, and he had to disassemble most of the unit (and needed my help to move it). The process made me nervous, as it seemed to invite at least as much possibility for smudging as it would correct, but I'm happy with the result.

Well just got off the phone with Samsung again and it looks like they are going to replace my unit finally. They are replacing it with the HL50A650. Does anybody know if it's better then the 5076? I saw what Quentin had posted so I assume it's a better TV then the older model. But I was wondering if anyone else had input?

Hopefully you'll get more replies on this but I'd say go for it. Unless you really need the UltraSlim 11" chassis I think you'll be very happy with the 2008 model. Other than improved geometric distortion in the 2008 I'd say PQ would be about the same. And you'll get the faster more sensitive ATSC tuner and USB2.0. You will lose one coax input though, bad if you want separate cable and air hookups. Otherwise there's not that much difference except for the stronger 2008 chassis that's more like the 2007/2008 LED models.

Hopefully you'll get more replies on this but I'd say go for it. Unless you really need the UltraSlim 11" chassis I think you'll be very happy with the 2008 model. Other than improved geometric distortion in the 2008 I'd say PQ would be about the same. And you'll get the faster more sensitive ATSC tuner and USB2.0. You will lose one coax input though, bad if you want separate cable and air hookups. Otherwise there's not that much difference except for the stronger 2008 chassis that's more like the 2007/2008 LED models.

Thanks for the reply Quenitn. Yeah the "Swappin Service" is suposed to call me in the next couple weeks. As long as the picture quality is just as good I shouldn't have any complaints.

Has anyone updated there firmware?
how do I check what version I have and what verison is the newest?
Are you suppose to update? I am not haveing anyproblems that I know of.

Also I swapped my tv for a 61 a 750 The picture is no where near as good as the 6176s so I had them leave my 6176s and take back the 750,

Has anyone updated there firmware?
how do I check what version I have and what verison is the newest?
I updated my two sets, version 1024 is available on Samsung's website. Haven't noticed any difference from the previous version.

To check your firmware version, go to the menu, select 'Setup', cursor up to 'Function Help', press 'Enter', make sure 'On' is hi-lighted and press the remote's 'Info' button. The first 4 digit number is your firmware version.

What about updateing the firm ware? should I?
Also My TV is ok accept that it leans in at the top on both sides (narrow at the top) is this fixable? thanks

Re: Joe G... I still love mine and Ive tweaked the screen to almost smile free status witht he upper mirror adjustment, and I have an idea on how to put the finishing touch on that via other means. I understand that the newer models are better geometrically, but I am mighty happy with mine. :)

Would you be able to post pics of before and after? and a detailed review on how to do the adjustments? That would be real helpful, I would like to make sure we are trying to adjust the same thing. Thanks alot

The upper mirror adjustment has made my HL-T6176S almost perfect. Beware, if you vertically compress the picture too much (by moving both ends of the mirror upward, I think) to reduce overscan you get increased vertical bowing. I got mine in December 2007 and the geometry has not deteriorated over time. All I have is a slight rise in horizontal lines in the lower right corner. Mantraxl, what are the "other means" to which you refer?

Anyone have indepth details on how to do the adjustments, Any before after pics?

I've got this TV, had it since February 2008. Over the past 3 weeks it's started flicker intermittently. By flicker I mean, it's a lot like a computer monitor set to the wrong refresh rate. Sometimes the only thing that gets rid of the flicker is to switch the TV off and back on again in a minute. I have also discovered that unplugging the HDMI cable and plugging it back in makes it go away (sometimes, but not every time) and also switching inputs can sometimes make it go away.

It happens on any input, HDMI, internal tuner, or component, and with many devices (xbox 360, wii, directv HD DVR). It can happen anywhere between 10 minutes to 3 hours after the TV was switched on.

I have had a samsung tech out to look at it but as luck would have it it did not flicker that day or the day before at all. They replaced the video processing board anyway, and the tv went flicker free for 2 days after that before they came back in full force.

The TV is not enclosed in a cabinet, so airflow should not be a problem. It does seem to happen less when the air conditioning is on, but really, during those couple days it didn't flicker at all the AC was rarely on, and it was pretty hot out. I am simply stumped as to what could be going on.

(just to chime in on the bowing issue, i do have a slight bow that is only noticeable in my DirecTV guide.)

I have had no other problems with this TV and would love to get this fixed.

Any ideas? (I am going to have the techs come out again and look, but it takes almost a week for that)

Ok so I think my problems are close to being finally over with my samsung 5676S. My first posts were on pages 52 and 54 of this thread. I had the smudges on the screen in different parts and horrific upwards bowing in the center of the screen.

My problems started way back in April and the TV has seen 2 new screens and now needs a 4th screen since them....same problems. So I guess Samsung issued a Return Authorization Number (Thank you Samsung!!!) to Conns and myself to return my television. Unfortunately Conns works at a snails pace. So no telling how long this process will take or what TV I'll end up with since I dont think they sell the 5676s anymore.

Best of luck to those still dealing with all of these issues.. and congrats to those who purchased one and were lucky enough to not have any defects. Aside from all the bagage, the tv does have a nice bezel and amazing color.

Anyone have before and after pics of there fixes and instructions on how you did it thanks.

I bought my HT-L5076s about a month ago and was pretty pleased with it. I have noticed that my picture is tilted slightly to the left. Samsung is sending a tech out to fix it but I also had another issue. I was watching Oceans Thirteen and their are alot of red lights in that movie. On my tv when something or someone is near the red lights it seems that the color bleeds over the object next to it. It seems like its so bright that is over powers anything around in the picture. Does anyone know of any fix for this? I've done the DVE calibration, but that didn't work.

Thanks

I've got this TV, had it since February 2008. Over the past 3 weeks it's started flicker intermittently. By flicker I mean, it's a lot like a computer monitor set to the wrong refresh rate. Sometimes the only thing that gets rid of the flicker is to switch the TV off and back on again in a minute. I have also discovered that unplugging the HDMI cable and plugging it back in makes it go away (sometimes, but not every time) and also switching inputs can sometimes make it go away.

It happens on any input, HDMI, internal tuner, or component, and with many devices (xbox 360, wii, directv HD DVR). It can happen anywhere between 10 minutes to 3 hours after the TV was switched on.

I have had a samsung tech out to look at it but as luck would have it it did not flicker that day or the day before at all. They replaced the video processing board anyway, and the tv went flicker free for 2 days after that before they came back in full force.

The TV is not enclosed in a cabinet, so airflow should not be a problem. It does seem to happen less when the air conditioning is on, but really, during those couple days it didn't flicker at all the AC was rarely on, and it was pretty hot out. I am simply stumped as to what could be going on.

(just to chime in on the bowing issue, i do have a slight bow that is only noticeable in my DirecTV guide.)

I have had no other problems with this TV and would love to get this fixed.

Any ideas? (I am going to have the techs come out again and look, but it takes almost a week for that)
Quoting myself, how lovely...

The techs came back out and replaced the dpcb board, bulb and ballast and it hasn't flickered in 24 hours. They did a bunch of tests trying to trigger the flicker but they just couldn't get it. Here's hoping they fixed it. They said if this doesn't fix it they are going to replace the entire projection unit.

edit: The flicker is back and worse than ever. Calling them back out to figure this out.

Ive had the 76 for a few months. I purchased it at CC as an opened item for 1k, so ive been happy with the set, but the bowing had started to annoy me, especially while playing video games. I cant read subtitles in games and the game in the included pics really showed me how bad the bowing had become. Its 5:40am here and I just "fixed" the bastard. I hope this helps some of you.

This is the before pic. Notice how you can only see the character from the waist up and no floor.

http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/364/bowedpicsp3.th.jpg (http://img238.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bowedpicsp3.jpg)

This is the after pic. There is an ever so slight bulge and the top of the tv, but its really minor.I really hope this helps some of you guys considering how much this forum has helped me.

http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/189/unbowedyn8.th.jpg (http://img242.imageshack.us/my.php?image=unbowedyn8.jpg)

I actually just folded up the first rigid piece of paper I could find (box of zinc lozenges :) to the desired thickness, probably 1/2inch thick(ymmv.) Then stuck it in there while pulling up on the bezel. It took me a couple of tries to get the right thickness, but it was surprisingly easy and its made quite an amazing difference. Time for me to go to bed. Im babbling.

ALLBIZNIZ Did you put it between teh screen and the bezel in the center or between the bezel and the case in the rear center ( Up top) thanks

Between the screen and bezel.

I was cleaning the tv and notice my screen bow more than normal and got my brain a thinking. I notice when i press down on the top of the tv a few inches from the frame the bow would get worse. If I would life up on the frame to releave some weight the bowing was nearly gone. I have attach pics to show what i'm talking about. The first is my normal bowing issue, the second me applying pressure to the back of the tv, and the third is me lifting on the frame. Lift the middle almost creates a wave effect, may look better with more time spent tuning. I just don't know how to make permanent.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117459&d=1219361507
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117460&d=1219361507
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117461&d=1219361507

AllBizNiz,
Just read your post. How did you get into the frame?

Ok, here`s my fat ass lifting the bezel. That takes downward pressure off of the screen and lets it raise up on its own. When the screen is at the desired position, put the wedge between the screen and bezel. That causes the screen to stay put. It probably took me a minute. I would use a game or other static image to guide you into the correct screen height.

(http://img291.imageshack.us/my.php?image=liftupzf9.jpg)

Here is an example of what I used as a wedge. Yes a simple piece of cardboard. Its crude, but effective. Its barely visible.

[IMG]http://img381.imageshack.us/img381/1676/wedgedj4.th.jpg (http://img381.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wedgedj4.jpg)

I took out all the screws on the side of the tv. You can then pull the bezel and screen away from the frame. There are a couple screws on the bottom, so it will not fall completly off. Pulling it off just far enough to get my fingers onto the middle screw brace. I taped about 1/4in of small washers to the brace. It causes a different pressure on the screen allows you to somewhat tune the bow down. Depending on how tight you tighten the other screws the effect of the bow will change. I think it looks better; but my eyes may be playing tricks on me by now.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117631&stc=1&d=1219525395

When I what 4.3 programs I have black boxes on the side of my tv, the left side is pretty straight up and down, maybe slighty tilted in at the top may be. The right side is about a 1/4 inch further in at teh top. now my tilt on teh right side seems to follow that the the straight lines all the way to teh right bend upward more as they go up, it seems to me that if I can get the top of teh image to tilt out ( staright up and down like the left side ) I should be good to go. I heard this was possiable any ideas? thanks

Has anyone encountered this problem. Best way I can descibe it is cloud like spots. Mainly noticable while watching dark movies and when TV is off. I have had the screen replaced once and they are sent someone out again but hes never seen this before.



http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/5883/samsungjx5.jpg

I was cleaning the TV and notice my screen bow more than normal and got my brain a thinking. I notice when i press down on the top of the TV a few inches from the frame the bow would get worse. If I would life up on the frame to relieve some weight the bowing was nearly gone. I have attach pics to show what i'm talking about. The first is my normal bowing issue, the second me applying pressure to the back of the TV, and the third is me lifting on the frame. Lift the middle almost creates a wave effect, may look better with more time spent tuning. I just don't know how to make permanent.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117459&d=1219361507
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117460&d=1219361507
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=117461&d=1219361507

Has anyone encountered this problem. Best way I can describe it is cloud like spots. Mainly noticeable while watching dark movies and when TV is off. I have had the screen replaced once and they are sent someone out again but hes never seen this before.



http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/5883/samsungjx5.jpg


I had both of your problems with mine! Hard Maro as light as it may seem that Wii bar that is on top of the set is probably causing some of the bowing, I know your like What ever its to light to do anything, I had my PS EYE on mine for a few weeks and started noticing a little bow. also if and when you dust the TV DO NOT press down when wiping (Swiffer duster works best). You can access the service menu and go to the checkered or vertical/horizontal line display to check the line of the TV as well.(This helps ALOT when twisting or tweaking the TV)
When the repair guy replaced the screen on mine (same issue as SMH above) (This is where the 2 screens have a slight "wave" in then or in between then that causes the spot affect you are seeing) he had to take the TV apart and he showed me the very thin bar that runs along the top of the TV that hold the 2 screens in place and also acts like a VERY THIN & SMALL support to keep the screens from bowing can be (BENT UP) to compensate for a bowing screen. Also he showed me how you can "TWIST the screen to fix an uneven viewing area. I have pics of my TV before-during-& after the whole process. I am on my 3rd TV and 2nd replacement screen. EVERYTHING IS PERFECT NOW!!! KNOCK on WOOD TV Tray!!LOL!!!DAMN now the dogs are barking!!!!!!!
I will post up some pictures and a full write up of my experience later.

I wonder if anyone can help me with this.

I have a HL-T5076 which works great except when I switch to the PC input. I get these wide shadow bands that scroll up and down the screen. It looks terrible when watching a movie. The PC is connected via VGA cable to a zd8000 HP media center.

Thanks for any help.

FWIW - I've had my HL-T5076S since the day after Thanksgiving '07 and it's treated me just fine. No bowing problems to report here AFAIK...

On the right side of the screen there is a line about 3/8" from the edge and in that gap to the right edge the picture is stretched. It is very apparent when watching animated shows. What could cause this? I have searched the thread for this but havent seen this issue. Has had this issue since i bought it in july of 07. 6176 btw.

Just to keep you guys up to date. I had a repairman over to fix an issue with the tv turning off by itself (he changed the bulb and its fine.) While he was at that, I told him about the bowing issue. He proceeded to adjust a screw on the lower right hand section of the TV (facing the back,) and adjusted the screen orientation via a part of the hidden menu. Now its almost perfect. So, there is a solution. You just have to find someone that knows wtf theyre doing. Good luck...

allbiz more details please? contact number for the guy?

He was just some repairman for circuit city down here in miami. The guy hadnt even heard of software like avia and dve to calibrate sets, so im sure there must be a bunch of guys that know how to fix this problem. BTW, the code for the hidden menu is: mute 1 8 2 power

My HLT5676 has started resetting all settings to factory default while the set is on (instant dynamic mode, yikes). Instant change, no power interrupt or anything. I'll change everything back (movie mode, 0 sharpness, etc) and in ~15minutes it goes right back to default. Any ideas? Thanks

Sounds like you bought a floor demo that's in shop mode. After 15 minutes it resets to torch mode so customer settings in the store don't stick.

Go into the Plug&Play menu and set it to Home Mode.

Sounds like you bought a floor demo that's in shop mode. After 15 minutes it resets to torch mode so customer settings in the store don't stick.

Go into the Plug&Play menu and set it to Home Mode.

That solved the problem -- thanks. Dunno how it got into shop mode; it isn't a floor demo. I suspect curious children's fingers and coincidence. BTW, I've had my set since June '07 and still love the picture.

Does anyone know if Samsung ever released a software upgrade for this tv? I see there is an option in the menu Owned this for a year now and its doing great (knock on wood)

Does anyone know if Samsung ever released a software upgrade for this tv? I see there is an option in the menu Owned this for a year now and its doing great (knock on wood)

Yes, read post #1626.

Thanks so much! I'll update it tomorrow. :D

So I updated the firmware to the latest. One thing I noticed (maybe I just missed it before) is that using MOVIE mode in the picture settings put the Gamma (in the sub-menu Detailed Settings under Picture settings) to -3. Now I can't remember if my old settings had the gamma at -3 or not.

What is the recommended approach? I want to keep it on Movie Mode, but don' know if Gamma should be at -3 or at 0. I use the following settings:

Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF

6176S I have in the lower left corner a orange color mark tthat shows up on dark sceens it is probably 1 to 2 inch tall and 4 5 inch long, it is not even in size, what could it be? thanks and what would fix it?

P.S I have also tried pulling on the screen and utting presure in diffrent spots, it still does not help with bowing.

When I what 4.3 programs I have black boxes on the side of my tv, the left side is pretty straight up and down, maybe slighty tilted in at the top may be. The right side is about a 1/4 inch further in at teh top. now my tilt on teh right side seems to follow that the the straight lines all the way to teh right bend upward more as they go up, it seems to me that if I can get the top of teh image to tilt out ( staright up and down like the left side ) I should be good to go. I heard this was possiable any ideas? thanks

I found a person locally who is asking $650 for this tv. It is a year old and in excellent condition. Is this a good deal?

Correction: He was originally asking for $850, but I talked him down to $650. He is moving into a smaller apartment and the tv will not fit in the new place.

I would say so,I love my tv, it does have a few problems with geometery but if you don't look for it you probably will not see it.

I currrently have a 52 inch RCA (the older 1080i), so I am considering buying this one for the 1080p at least. I was just curious if it was a good deal or not.
Thanks!

Alright, I went into the service menu looking for the R-offset, R-gain, etc.....

Only to NOT be able to find it. I do have a C-5 Colorimeter and my friends set needs to have the R-gain adjusted.

I have found every other menu but not these!!! I used the guide in this forum, but can't find the FBE2 or the White Balance submenus! Arrgh!

Anyone have any suggestions?

Does this tv do 24P?

Does this tv do 24P?
Yes it does, at least with my Dish Network HD DVR. Pressing info shows 1920x1080 @24hz while the movie is playing.

Wehn ever I press info I will get 1920 BY 1080 60HZ?


Also ther ehas to be a way to straighten this tv out, if I pull up or push down on the frame it does not correct my problem, my tv if there are black bars on teh side tilts in at teh top, you can see it tilt in as you go up from the bottom, the bow to my tv follows this the left side is not as bad as the right, it almost seems as if teh top of the picture needs to move outward and straightn everything up. Any ideas? thanks

Wehn ever I press info I will get 1920 BY 1080 60HZ?
You have to select a 1080p movie to get the 24hz, progressive version. Dish has one each month on channel 501.

All bluray movies are 1080 P aren't they? I have tried it with them and still nothing?

Samsungs don't show the p, only the i is shown when you press info so you ARE getting 1080p if you don't see an i. Your Bluray disk and player must be 24hz capable too, and you must use an HDMI cable. The TV definitely does do 1080p 24 so the issue is your player or disk.

I am useing HDMI and the player is the new Panny DMP BD 55

Alright, I went into the service menu looking for the R-offset, R-gain, etc.....

Only to NOT be able to find it. I do have a C-5 Colorimeter and my friends set needs to have the R-gain adjusted.

I have found every other menu but not these!!! I used the guide in this forum, but can't find the FBE2 or the White Balance submenus! Arrgh!

Anyone have any suggestions?
This set uses a chipset generated pattern to be used with a colorimeter. A tristimulus device is shyed away from by some, but if you are careful, you can always retrace your steps.
The set can be put into rgbcy and test patterns from the chip driver itself, bypassing all processing.
Then later you can set up the equiv of gains, cuts, wb, gamma for each resolution.
The Samsung service manual has the basics, or a good ISF guy can do the job.

I have a diffrent problem with mine that the smiling...

Mine as a shift from bottom to top so when you watch letterbox items and programs that just fit the screen there is about a 1 inch black bar at the bottom of the TV...any way to adjust this problem..

This set uses a chipset generated pattern to be used with a colorimeter. A tristimulus device is shyed away from by some, but if you are careful, you can always retrace your steps.
The set can be put into rgbcy and test patterns from the chip driver itself, bypassing all processing.
Then later you can set up the equiv of gains, cuts, wb, gamma for each resolution.
The Samsung service manual has the basics, or a good ISF guy can do the job.

Thanks for the response. The problem isn't the correct equipment or finding the patterns in the menu, the issue is not finding the RGB-gains and offsets in the submenus. I went through ALL of the submenus and can't seem to find the "whitebalance" submenu.

Thanks for the response!

Dave

Thanks for the response. The problem isn't the correct equipment or finding the patterns in the menu, the issue is not finding the RGB-gains and offsets in the submenus. I went through ALL of the submenus and can't seem to find the "whitebalance" submenu.

Thanks for the response!

Dave
Here is in a nutshell what I was trying to explain. I'm better at showing than typing, so I'll probably not tell you everything you need to know . Just keep asking. I'll check here more often, don't know why I didn't see your reply in my email. Something to look into later.

Anyway in the SM, you get into a mode which runs the DMD chip, and its driver chip. It has it's own test patterns built in, so it if AFTER any TV or video processing from the TV. You get it to display full screens of RGBCYW and record the x,y and luminace cdm2 readings on your colorimeter.
You record all these readings, then punch in these readings. Rinse, repeat. (Usually just to check for typo error).
Now When you display the colors with the built in test patterns, your colorimeter should be perfect.
You permanently store these corrections and go from there. Later if a color wheel is replaced, bulb, etc, you would do the same thing, and your "in TV circuit" settings for each resolution, 'should' be ok.
Now you get to the array of independent settings which will be dependent on (mostly) the resolution mode and/or input, i.e. 1080, 720, 480, s-video, component etc. There is also the 'spread' functions which will overwrite this info to other areas you may not be aware of.
I don't have time to begin to look all this up at the moment, but there are many dependencies, as do s-video first, as component is an offset of that etc. (An example, I don't have notes here).
I have a very well worn lamp in this set as I use it for a PC display plus TV, so it is noticeably dimmer than new.
I will soon, maybe over new year's do the above light engine calibration with the old lamp. (I've done it on and off to tweak in for new input toy or HDPC box etc). Now I will tweak to the old bulb, put in the new bulb, and I expect considerable change in WB and Luminace levels. Will print out the errors.
I will then do the engine tweak again, with a blastingly bright new lamp, and I should have correct settings again for all my inputs.
Later after as lamp burns in, I will expect change, then I will rinse, repeat.
Playing in the SM is thermonuclear destruction if you are not careful.
I picked a DLP just because of its renew ability, but am dismayed at the extreme levels of deposits from cooking and likely the wood stove too, inside the light engine. My scanner on another floor shows the cooking fumes under the glass. I can not imagine a dlp in a smoker's environment or a bar. I may disassemble the engine to clean the internal optics if I feel like punishing myself some snowy night. (And maybe find out what goes 'bang' pop, tick). I thought pops and ticks went out with vinyl.

Thanks man! That is quite the response. I guess I am not clear on my question. I can get the internal chips patterns up no problem. I can calibrate my cholorimeter no problem.

I can't find the R-gain, G-gain, B-gain, R-offset, G-offset and B-offset in the submenus. I can't seem to find the "whitebalance" submenu that these are listed under. I went through all of the submenus and can't find where to adjust the RGB levels using the cholorimeter.

red is way high on this set and would like to get it corrected.

Thanks for your help and patience!

Dave

I'm having an issue with my 5076. I tried searching this thread and didnt come up with any results. My problem is I'm getting a pulsing image that is very noticeable on lighter scenes. It isnt the video cutting out but a pulse in the brightness. I dont know how else to explain what is going on. What should I do to fix this problem?

I just bought a samsung hlt6176s used for $650. It had a small amount of bowing but I didn't really notice it until I started reading this thread, then it started to drive me crazy. I tried sticking folded up pieces of a business card between the screen and bezel like suggested earier in this thread and it straigtened it right out.

The question I have now is that I used the Avia disk to calibrate my set. I came up with these settings, don't they seem a little off? I did the calibration about 6 times and I came up with the same settings everytime.

Movie
Contrast:100
Brightness:33
Sharpness:30
Color:48
Tint: G-47 R-53
Color Tone:Normal

After calibrating I turned dynamic Contrast on and that seemed to make my picture even better.

I just bought a samsung hlt6176s used for $650. It had a small amount of bowing but I didn't really notice it until I started reading this thread, then it started to drive me crazy. I tried sticking folded up pieces of a business card between the screen and bezel like suggested earier in this thread and it straigtened it right out.

The question I have now is that I used the Avia disk to calibrate my set. I came up with these settings, don't they seem a little off? I did the calibration about 6 times and I came up with the same settings everytime.

Movie
Contrast:100
Brightness:33
Sharpness:30
Color:48
Tint: G-47 R-53
Color Tone:Normal

After calibrating I turned dynamic Contrast on and that seemed to make my picture even better.
Wow that contrast is high! Here's what I use:
Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF


Admitidly, my settings are litle dark. I was playing with it a bit and Samsung's defualt "Movie Mode" is Contrast 90 Brightness 45, which seems closer to what you calibrated. Note that Gamma is -3 in the Detailed Settings Menu with Movie Mode.

Wow that contrast is high! Here's what I use:
Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF


Admitidly, my settings are litle dark. I was playing with it a bit and Samsung's defualt "Movie Mode" is Contrast 90 Brightness 45, which seems closer to what you calibrated. Note that Gamma is -3 in the Detailed Settings Menu with Movie Mode.

I set my Gamma to 0. But adjusting it to -3 and running the Calibration I still get 100 contrast.

How do I get the right contrast setting then? The Avia DVD told me to turn my contrast up so that it is as high as it can go before the top two boxes start to bleed together. I turned it up to 100% and I could still see a clear line between the two boxes.

So what am I doing wrong? My Contrast and brightness seems to be different than what most people have calibrated. Other than that my setting are very close to others on this thread.

One other thing, What color settings are you guys running? I am running Normal.

One other thing, What color settings are you guys running? I am running Normal.

Yep Normal. After reading your posts I went back and played with the settings. I know many feel that high contrast is needed with Sammy DLPs. I have the 5676S, and after my testing the contrast setting of 27 seems spot on for games, movies and HDTV. I did up the contrast to 60 - 70 - 80 and even 90 (as suggested by the default sammy "movie" mode but in all cases it's just too bright.

So after fussing for days I settled back where I started:
Movie
Contrast:27
Brightness:51
Sharpness:0
Color:65
Tint: G-55 R-45
Color Tone:Normal
Everything else OFF

Hope that helps. :) Of course, if you sit in a bright room this may not apply.

Hey I need some help with this TV, HLT 6176s

I was playing xbox and screen went out. The lamp light came on and then all leds are now lit on the front of TV. I ordered a rpl lamp from DLPsource.com and just replaced it and it still isn't working. From looking at the rpl lamp and old oem lamp there seem to be some differences.

Where is everyone getting their rpl lamps from. This TV is less than 2 years old...

I got mine here...

http://www.discount-merchant.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=BP96-01795A&Search.x=14&Search.y=10

Hi all,

After a little Google, it seems that I have found some who are having the same problem that I do with my Samsung HL-T5076. I also hear a loud popping sound that comes from my set at any given time, it doesn't matter if I have the set active or if it's turned off. I never have the volume up on the TV itself (always running 5.1). The only idea that I have is that it may be some switch that cuts on and it rattles the entire case. The sound sound's like plastic popping or breaking.

I purchased this set in Feb 08 and my warranty is about to run out and I would like to know if this horrible sound, that ruins movie experiences, my quiet time, and gaming is covered under the warranty?

I hope someone can help me out because I know some of the post in this thread are a little aged.

BTW: Picture is fantastic!

Pretty much everyone has reported the same problem. It's caused by the cabinet heating up and the expanding plastic pieces moving against each other. A partial solution is to slightly loosen all the back screws around the lamp area.

I take it by partial solution, you mean that this malfunction is not covered by the Samsung warranty. I see.

Not that I am looking for a walk though but, can anyone point in the right direction so I can attempt this mod. The knock is somewhat annoying and after the 11 months that we have had it, I don't think I can take it anymore.

Thanks for all the help thus far.

It's a simple mod, just go to the back of the tv and loosen every screw you can find. I didn't leave mine totally loose but ran them back down to where they just touched. A better fix would be to put some thin felt material between the back panel and the back cover at each screw and just snug the screws in.

2 ?

1 Does this TV upconvert? and how do I know if it is ?

and I have aorange spot on the lower left corner, it is noticeable during dark scenes. Thanks

Yes it upconverts, hook up a DVD player via HDMI and see if it looks better than SD/480i

Did anyone ever discover a solution to the sagging problem? I have a Samsung HL-T5676S and the image is bowed a little and the bottom of the image is cut off.

Before anyone says it, it's not a zoom problem. I first noticed it when I was playing Guitar Hero World Tour on my Xbox 360 because the information at the bottom of the screen was cut off. I tried switching to every possible picture size, every input, every menu setting and nothing seems to help. I can barely see the volume bar and I can't see the sleep timer. If anyone were to think it was something to do with any device attached to an input, why would the volume display be cut off. That's something the TV would put in the same place no matter what's going on. I would say it's about 1/15th of the image that is being cut off at the bottom. It's exactly like a projector that needs the keystone and image placement adjusted.

Any ideas on adjusting the mirrors or anything like that?

Thanks!

It's easy to adjust the mirror that affects the bottom of the picture. Loosen the four philips screws along the top rear of the set, then adjust the left and right slotted posts next to the screws to raise or lower the left and right bottom edges of the picture. Finally, tighten the four screws.

It's easy to adjust the mirror that affects the bottom of the picture. Loosen the four philips screws along the top rear of the set, then adjust the left and right slotted posts next to the screws to raise or lower the left and right bottom edges of the picture. Finally, tighten the four screws.

HOLY CRAP! I've been living with this problem for months now! You're amazing! Thank you so much! Now I just have to figure out what to do about the slight bow in the middle. I've heard of people putting folded up paper in the front behind Samsung logo.

I have a tech comeing this week is there anything i can suggest to get the trapazoid affect (narrow at the top on 4.3 images) to go away? He said there may be adjustments in the menu. Thanks

I started having a problem with my HL-T6176s this week. While watching a movie it began to flash colors and make a high pitched noise. I turned it off and eventually the noise stopped, I turned it back on and was able to finish the last 20 or so minutes of the movie.

Today while playing Rock Band the same thing happened, does this mean my bulb or color wheel or what?

TIA!

A high pitched noise usually indicates a color wheel problem, but it could also be one of the cooling fans. When my color wheel when bad on my HLN617 it almost sounded like a circular saw cutting wood.

A high pitched noise usually indicates a color wheel problem, but it could also be one of the cooling fans. When my color wheel when bad on my HLN617 it almost sounded like a circular saw cutting wood.

So, it doesn't happen all the time, I guess I will wait for it to die. Yesterday while watching another movie I could see that the brightness was jumping around alot very quickly. I can still watch even when the colors are flashing but of course it looks terrible.

Should I wait for it to die to determine the actual problem? To me it seems like it would be the color wheel since I have the high pitched noise symptom, along with flashing colors, but I don't want to jump in and buy a replacement part that isn't the problem :(

Blubs when tthey die do not make any noise. My color wheel noise was intermittent. Colors flashing sounds like you color wheel is going out of sync.

Well the tech came today, I can't beleive I waited so long, he adjusted the screws on the upper part of teh Tv in the rear, while doing so he pulled up a service menu with lines on it and made it pretty close to haveing the same amount of line showing on each side.

The TV now has even black bars on both sides and the tv does not appear to have crooked lines while watching shows with tickers/espn and what have you, geometery appears to be about perfect.

I will keep you informed as I watch more.

How do I pull up the service menu?

How Do I check the lamp life?

I noticed in the service menu it says lamp type phillips, if I replace the bulb with a diffrent brand do I need to change that? thanks

Well the tech came today, I can't beleive I waited so long, he adjusted the screws on the upper part of teh Tv in the rear, while doing so he pulled up a service menu with lines on it and made it pretty close to haveing the same amount of line showing on each side.

The TV now has even black bars on both sides and the tv does not appear to have crooked lines while watching shows with tickers/espn and what have you, geometery appears to be about perfect.

I will keep you informed as I watch more.

How do I pull up the service menu?

How Do I check the lamp life?

I noticed in the service menu it says lamp type phillips, if I replace the bulb with a diffrent brand do I need to change that? thanks


service menu = (while power is off)mute 1 8 2 power

I am not at home right now to see where the watt hours are located ... just be careful when your in there, the potential to screw something up is huge

The lamp brand should be automatically detected

On my screen along the bottom i have a bright spot looks orangeish in color, it is mostly noticable on the left lower corner, only realy noticed in dark scenes? what is it? can it be fixed?

On my screen along the bottom i have a bright spot looks orangeish in color, it is mostly noticable on the left lower corner, only realy noticed in dark scenes? what is it? can it be fixed?

it is probably dirt/dust on the inside of the screen ... not very common but it happens especially if the inside of the screen was touched during manufacturing with an ungloved hand over time the dust will be attracted to the oily hand spot and eventually look burnt/browned. May need to clean it yourself or have a tech come out.

Do you have to take it apart to clean it? can I get to it from aport? it is most noticable on the lower left corner.

Pop off the back porthole cover while the set is on and you can see if anything is laying on the bottom lens cover. Not much you can do with the screen without taking it off and apart.

the circle port in the rear middle? I tried but it is on there and I don't want to break it.

Just pry one of the edges, it'll come right off. It's there to check out the back of the screen and get dust accumulations out. You won't break it.

Hello! I have owned a 5676S since March of last year. Originally, this TV has this ridiculous flickering problem that was terrible, I read somewhere on here that someone managed to fix their flicker problem by changing one thing in the service menu (not sure what but it was a lamp setting), so I did the same and the flicker died down, then I reverted everything back to factory. After that I had an issue where my screen would show 9 vertical bars a little over an inch in width from top to bottom, and the image produced within those bars was significantly blurry compared to everything outside them. I mainly noticed this through HDMI on my PS3, but have confirmed that my DVD player does the same thing through component.

I finally decided, since my warranty is coming to an end I need to figure this out. So I request repair via Samsung website. Repair guy comes tomorrow.

Just playing around, I plug the PS3 from HDMI 2, into HDMI 1 and the problem is gone, I thought! I go buy Boondock Saints on Blu Ray and in the middle of the movie and the rest of the night the bars came back! (The bars are harder to see during a movie). After that, the service place calls to set a day/time which again is tomorrow. ...The bars are now gone again...

How am I going to explain myself when the problem that is there 90% of the time is mysteriously repairing itself more and more as the time nears for a service guy to come? I'm trying to watch the screen so I can get photographic evidence until then!

Suggestions?

i left the tv off for awhile, turned it back on and the blurred lines were back. i managed to get a few pics on my iphone just incase fate puts me in a weird position.

How am I going to explain myself when the problem that is there 90% of the time is mysteriously repairing itself more and more as the time nears for a service guy to come?

Same thing as when you take a crying, feverish baby / canine to the doctor / vet - once they get in there, the problem is gone.

ok! luckily the service guy was able to see the problem, although it kind of was different for him. he only got to see the issue on ONE source (hdmi1+2) but when we switched sources to say cable or component, the issue wouldnt be present and would also fix the issue with the source originally mentioned.

to clarify further, the blur lines only seemed to be present if the TV source was the ps3 hdmi (plugged in any of the 3 ports) when first turned on from the off position lol. i hope that makes sense. and it would disappear as soon as a the input source was changed, and still be gone when going to the original screwy source.

lol. wow. im sorry.

anyhow, the guy had no idea what the problem is and was going to call samsung techs about it, then will let me know if they know of the problem. i tried telling him multiple times that it happens on my component input to, but its alot harder to notice in standard definition on the dvd player i use, so hopefully he keeps that in mind if he tries to say it's the ps3's issue. i tried a different ps3 + hdmi with the SAME results..

pics, if you need me to point out the issue let me know, ill highlight it. sorry for low quality. can try and get high res later if wanted

5676s



note the white lines on menu seem checkered almost.
note towards the bottom of the screen in the grass (due to weird angle) you can see the bars.
also follow lines up to the crowds in seats. the people within those bars are significantly softer/less defined than everything outside

Just wait until the three lights on the front blink or replace before? Still have a great bright picture after 1 year and 4 months.

Have you checked to see if your neighbor has a ham radio, or if you have a computer or other source of electronic interference that could be intermittent?

Have you checked to see if your neighbor has a ham radio, or if you have a computer or other source of electronic interference that could be intermittent?

I have not! Good idea! I'll check into that in the morning!

Ok, tech called samsung. samsung claims there are handshake problems with PS3, not at all remembering i said ALL inputs do this (it just didnt for him) so he says to just deal with it, and cycle sources to make it remove...

well, that only worked when he was here... the problem is still there after cycling through. and makes anything high def.. not worth watching... i feel ripped off..

im going to write a letter to someone more important

Let me vent a little for some stress relief:

I have an HL-T6176s that has the bowing at the bottom of the image. So far I had resigned myself to "just live with it". It is annoying while watching channels with tickers at the bottom. (CNBC, CNN, etc...) Started to notice it more lately on my consoles (Xbox360 HDMI and PS3) Also, when the status bar of my DVR pops up it is noticeably skewed. (Smiley faced).

I had a tech over to fix a problem with a Mitsubishi DLP set that I have. (Turned out to be a bad light engine, actually still is....darned backordered light engines). I was talking to the guy and brought up my 6176s and how I was just going to live with it. The guy immediately says..."Oh you mean the slimline Samsungs with the black support bars that run vertically up the back?" To which I replied yes.
He tells me "You have to call Samsung and have them swap it. They know about this problem and have no fix that works 100%". He goes on to tell me that they've tried fixes but none of them fix it completely. To top it off this guy was the nicest service guy I have ever dealt with.

So I end up calling Samsung and they set up an appointment with a service company. My set was just out of warranty, but they told me it didn't matter because of the known geometry problems with these sets. Wow, that's cool.

The service company calls me. The manager on the phone hears the model and says "oh those have design flaws and can't be fixed, but we'll come out to verify".

So far everything is going well. So well in fact that I decide to leave my wife home alone for the service call.

The tech from this service company shows up. My wife shows him the DVR status bar which is noticeably curved. He says that this doesn't mean anything. My wife calls me within 2 minutes to tell me that the guy is being very nasty because she can't find the original remote and without it he can't do anything. All the while I am listening to this guy just berate my wife and my head is getting ready to explode.
I tell her that the Logitech Harmony remote that we have is the same thing. He gets even more belligerent when she tells him this and he says well I can't do anything so I have to go. She asks what button combo he needs to press on the original remote. He tells her and she hits those buttons on the Logitech and voila....the service menu pops up.
He then takes the remote and brings up the test patterns and leaves it on the large checkerboard pattern. He says "Looks good to me". I am telling my wife that he needs to put it on the grid pattern. Well, he refuses and goes on to say that the set looks fine. I ask to speak to him and the guy says "I've got nothing to say to him". He goes on to say that these sets are perfect and that there aren't any problems with them. My wife calmly explained that's not what Samsung says and not what your manager said. He is just getting nastier and nastier.
So I just tell her to get him out of the house. I was actually worried because of how he was now yelling at her and she was with my 18 month old alone in the house with this lunatic. As she walks him out he slams the front door in her face (I could hear it on the phone...grrr!!!!).
To top it off, we had to leave the windows open in our bedroom (that is where this set is) to have the stench of cigarettes leave.

I called the manager to complain...he was apologetic and said he would call Samsung. Afterwards he gives me the number to call. Eventually I get a case number and am told to call Executive Customer Relations (or something like that) and they will try to offer me a solution (usually either a refund or replacement)

Anyways I came home and brought up the grid pattern.
The second to last line at bottom of the test pattern (using the left side of the screen as the baseline) goes as follows:
at about the midway point the line drops about 1/4" from where it is on the left side. Towards the right, the line ends up 3/16" above the left. So in total the line has a 7/16" swing from left to right.

I also checked 2 other sets that I have since the nasty tech was saying that all DLP's have imperfect geometry. I put up a test pattern on my Mitsu (WD-73734) and on another Samsung (HL-T7288) and they are spot on perfect.


Thanks for letting me vent. Hopefully this ECR dept won't hassle me too much.

/\ let us know how that goes...

I too have some bowing and although i have learned to live with it some times it bugs me a lot. I bought the tv for only 750 a couple of years ago ( the 50in version) which was a great deal. My question is, i have the extended best buy warranty and was wondering if i can complain about the bowing through them.

Samsung obviously does not care and will not trade the tv but do you guys think best buy will? I can live with this but i will rather not have if i can. Also would not mind getting a new model.

/\ let us know how that goes...
I called Samsung today and basically got nowhere. Neither good nor bad. They called the service company to verify and the service company changed their story to:
"It is within tolerance".
I informed Samsung that this was a bald faced lie because they never checked. The knuckledragger they sent, put up the large checkerboard test pattern and looked at it (all the while yelling at my wife) and said it is within spec. They never measured nor did they put up the grid pattern. (The pattern which clearly shows the geometry problem) He also would have seen that their was keystoning, something which I would consider an easy fix. (Not sure if it would make the bottom any better)
Samsung noted the issues with the repair company and will send out a different company. This time I will stay home and will have a tape measure ready at my disposal.

Does anyone know what Samsung considers "in spec". Also, if for example 5/16" is within tolerance, what does that mean? Measured from where to where? I am assuming the highest and lowest points? I only measured The 2 sides and the center. It actually travels up/down a bit. (ie it isn't just a U shape)

So I will see what this new company says.

Another annoying thing is that when you go into the service menu, even just to put up a test pattern, it erases all of your settings. GRRRR!!!! I thought I had put them all back the last time in the service menu. I was watching TV late at night in bed. I go to shut the set down and it gives that stupid shutdown the TV sound. It scared the heck out of my wife who was deep asleep.

Well,
the other service company called. (That was fast)
I talked to the guy. He looks up the service bulletins and says "Yup here it is: Geometry problems with 76 series DLP's"
So far so good. He says that the fix according to the service bulletin is pretty involved. He tells me it pretty much involves taking everything apart and putting it back together. I am ok with this if it fixes the problem. I am not of the ilk that they must replace my set (though I wouldn't complain if they swapped it). I just want a set with straight lines. I would think that the labor costs for Samsung to possibly fix this might be pretty high. I say possibly because the other tech (the nice one) told me that there is no fix that works 100%.

Here are the pics I sent to the new service facility.
This was from a broadcast that I paused. To verify it wasn't the broadcast, I checked 3 other sets in my house. (Hitachi 42" plasma, Sony 46"LCD and Samsung HL-T7288w) and the line I am showing in the pics was perfectly horizontal on all of those sets.

And a pic of the service menu test pattern. It actually looks worse in person than the pic.

wow dino, yours is pretty bad too but better than mine. Mine the square in the bottom starts out at full size and ends up at nothings. its really really bad. I am probalby going to call best buy and see what they can do. I have the warranty and usually they will just give u a new one, cuz it probably would cost them alot to fix... and there would be no fix. If they do not fix it i will probably call samsung too.

I will be at home too cuz i dont want them here alot with my girlfriend. Acoording to her there is no problem at all!

I will snap pictures of mine soon to show it here/


please keep us updated. I would also love to know what they consider within tolerance.


EDIT: So i got the grid on the tv and took some pictures. it looks a lot worse than when i last checked (when i bought it a year ago). I got it open box for 750 bucks which was an amazing price. I knew it had geo issues but for that price it was ok (they were also not as bad). I also bought insurance, something i do not usually do but for 200 bucks i was protected for 4 years, specially being open box, and Best buy will replace a lamp which costs almost that. So i will be calling them this coming week and will try to get a new one without this problem.

Here are the pics:

http://i43.tinypic.com/2cmx9xs.jpg

Tilted bottom part of screen is an easy fix, see post #1693.

Tilted bottom part of screen is an easy fix, see post #1693.


I had seen that early and i am glad you brought it up. It definitely helped a lot! I am actually pretty happy right now. It is decent. I do not care about 4:3 because I do not care hour cable tv looks. Most of the stuff i watch there is crap and I do not care. What I care about is movies that are 2:35 and have the bars. I really bugs me if those bars are straight and they are definetly much better now. Before i could see it and now i really have to look for it.

I am still thinking about calling best buy but after reading all these horror stories about extended warranties i think i will wait to go through that when the lamp burns or the tv does break.

DinoT, do keep us updated. I really want to know what samsung is going to do about this.

Hey, I'm thinking about purchasing the HL-T5076S from buddy for around $600. The warranty is until 2011 and can be transferred into my name. The only thing is I live on the second story, and I'm unsure of how we will get it up here; I don't want to cause any stress and cause the infamous bowing problem - which I does not have currently. Can you pick the tv up from the sides and tilt 45 degrees it to walk it up the stairs?

The set can take it, it bounced around inside a tractor trailer for hours going to the distributor and again to the dealer. I brought mine home laying on it's back inside my wagon and it's fine.

It's easy to adjust the mirror that affects the bottom of the picture. Loosen the four philips screws along the top rear of the set, then adjust the left and right slotted posts next to the screws to raise or lower the left and right bottom edges of the picture. Finally, tighten the four screws.
Can anyone suggest in a little more detail just what it means to "adjust the left and right slotted posts" in the message above? Sorry to be dense, but I can't quite follow what that means.

Hey guys a couple of things. My poor hlt 5076 has really taken a beating from my kids recently. Today I was watching and hit the volume and it just turned off. It keep turning off and on by it self and the lamp light is blinking and then the standby light. It will finally turn off and then all three lights will blink. I've had this set since sept of 07 so maybe its just the lamp needing replacement. Also, My kids kit the screen with pledge and then water and what happened is the it all seeped into the bottom of the screen and then up in between the screens causing this oily shadow to apear. I was able to get rid of most of it by carfully using a hair dryer to blow it towards the bottom of the screen and it was fine. The other day the 3 yo spayed water on the screen and it brought all of it back again only this time it left these smudge marks on the bottom the screen that wont go away I tried to take the screen off by taking all the screws out around the edge of the screen but that jst loosens the bezle a little bit and I dont want to force it. It's clearly being held on by something else. I just want to try and wipe between the screens to see if I can get it clean. But right now I'd settle for the thing working again.

Edit: I took the lamp out to inspect it. Looks fine but I really dont know if you can tell if it's bad or not just by looking at it. I put the lamp back in and plugged the set back in. Now it turns on and then shuts off right away and just the lamp and standby lights are flashing. IT's been great up to this point. No problems after I had the tech come out to initially adjust the upper mirror. Now if I could only just get this damn screen off.

Edit again: Well I got the screen off. You basically have to take the whole set apart. You have to remove the two sets of metal support brackets, the bottom plastic cover on the back, the light engine and the input panel thingie so you can get at the 9 additional screws holding the bottom of the bezel down. I need to get a new screen. The stuff wouldn't come off.

Edit: Found a lamp in town(woot woot) for 99.98 plus tax. Back in the game now baby.

Can anyone suggest in a little more detail just what it means to "adjust the left and right slotted posts" in the message above? Sorry to be dense, but I can't quite follow what that means.
By "adjust", I mean to slightly turn the slotted posts with a screwdriver.

I'm thinking about getting a Blu-ray player for my hlt6176s. Will I notice much of a differance between the 1080i my dish network receiver puts out and a 1080P Blu-Ray disc on my set?

I'm thinking about getting a Blu-ray player for my hlt6176s. Will I notice much of a differance between the 1080i my dish network receiver puts out and a 1080P Blu-Ray disc on my set?

A very nice difference..

Imo Night & Day

Okay I need to vent as well, I own a 6176sx DLP bought in October of 2007 from Best Buy with a 3 year extended warranty. The issues I have had are as follows:

Top of image is not level, the image drops almost a full centimeter when moving from left to right.

Bottom of image not level either, I have not tried the fix listed in the thread.

While the set was still under manufacturer's warranty I had them send a tech out to deal with the tilted image. The tech looked at it, said it was an alignment/geometry problem and that he would have to manually adjust the image, well he did this by adjusting the DMD until it was level. This worked until I played some playstation games on my PS3 and noticed the ENTIRE image was shifted to the right by almost an inch and a half! I was able to fix this by adjusting the image in the service menu, but the horizontal alignment problem came back!

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but with this service bulletin they are willing to fix OR replace the set? Would it be better to just go through Best Buy as my original warranty expired in Oct? I love the set, the picture is awesome, but if I could get a newer model at not cost I wouldn't pass that up either. Could someone please advise on the proper steps to take? Call Samsung or contact Best Buys warranty company? Thanks in advance!

so anyone???

I am with you on the BBY or warranty company. I have a ghosting problem and repair company said" we have to exhaust all repair possibilities before submitting for replacement"! Bull, I paid $1500 for the TV and another$ 250 for a 4 year warranty..... $1750 bucks only 18 months ago and the TV is looking like a 20 yr old worn out set.The repair company said they would have to take set in to shop and look at it. They sent a tech out and he said" non-repairable". I am disgusted with all of it. I am calling warranty company myself today.

My ghostly set. A HL-T5076S. Anyone else with this problem?

O wow that looks odd

Well,
the other service company called. (That was fast)
I talked to the guy. He looks up the service bulletins and says "Yup here it is: Geometry problems with 76 series DLP's"
So far so good. He says that the fix according to the service bulletin is pretty involved. He tells me it pretty much involves taking everything apart and putting it back together. I am ok with this if it fixes the problem. I am not of the ilk that they must replace my set (though I wouldn't complain if they swapped it). I just want a set with straight lines. I would think that the labor costs for Samsung to possibly fix this might be pretty high. I say possibly because the other tech (the nice one) told me that there is no fix that works 100%.

UPDATE:
A tech came out today. He adjusted the mirror as mentioned on this thread. This helped a bit. Then he tightened the screws in the vertical support bars. When he did that the picture fell into place. It looks pretty good now. I am now happy with it.
So for those that still have the bowing problem you might want to try tightening the screws on those 2 support bars. Mine had a little play and he was able to tighten by about a quarter turn.

FMDW, any luck with calling on the warranty? My screen has the same issue as well, I think I read somewhere on this board that it has to do with something between the two pieces that make up the screen. That along with my image "rotation" that I call it, it has become very frustrating. I will try and post a picture of my issue.

Will probably called the BB extended warranty as well.....might see what my options are for a replacement.

I talked with the repair company yesterday and the warranty company approved 2 screens. The frensel screen and the lenticular screen are ordered direct from Samsung, however the repair company did not have a date as to when the screens will be in. It seems the 2 screens separate causing the problem and that can occur from pressing too hard when cleaning( my wife is NOT allowed to touch the screen anymore..lol). I read on another forum or possibly here that a few have had this problem and it has occurred 2 or 3 times. Here is hoping this problem will be a one time fix. I had already picked out another TV from BBY in case the approval did not come thru, but alas I'll be watching my Sammy without the ghost!!

I had purchased my TV just over 12 months ago, of course now out of warranty and I now have no pic/sound.

The problem started with intermittent set shutdown, it would function for an hour, 5 minutes, 30 seconds etc.. turn itself off and the standby light would be the only light lit and would flash while the set would make a ticking noise. The only way to stop this would be to unplug the set. Once unplugged I could immediately plug the set back in and the set would work again for a short period of time.

After a few weeks of powering up/down, the set now does not function at all. All I get now is the flashing standby light and ticking sound which still can only be stopped by unplugging the unit. No functions work, cannot see menu, etc... The fan was operational while the set was working, have checked the bulb door to make sure it was securely closed, not sure what else to check.

Has anyone experienced this issue and have some advice on troubleshooting, factory resets or anything else that can narrow down the issue.
Thanks

Well. the repair was done and alas.......... the ghostly looking screen is STILL there and this time is worse. The 2 screens were replaced, and the problem will not go away. Samsung sent bad screens, the warranty paid for them at $ 350 and $ 200 labor. The repair center has sent over 2 weeks ago, a response that a replacement TV be issued as this issue can occur again... which would be another $350-$ 600 repair. After that we would be at $1200 in repairs and labor costs, and no guarantee the problem would be gone! Sure hope now that warranty company steps up because there is a new 52" Toshiba LCD I would love to have. I will keep you posted. Image 0448 is before repair. Image 0464 is after. That's what I call a problem......

I trying to help a friend find a part for her HLT5076SX/XAA (Ver PHO1).
She's been having the bowing problem for some time now but that doesn't bother her. Recently though she started getting black spots on the screen. Called in a Samsung repair guy who had a look inside and said its the mirror that needs changing and went on to show her that the mirror had a lot of dust settled on it.

The Samsung guy then said he would search for the part and get in touch. Problem is....he came back and said that they cant source that part anywhere !!! I couldn't believe this and asked my friend for the part number. It's a strange one...

2713100 1910 - 6103W 73CO68Y 110302E

I tried looking on samsungparts.com and partstore.com, both of which seem to have a complete list of all parts for this model.....however, no part with even a remotely similar number !!

Any advice anyone????? The TV was purchased on Amazon and never had any other problem than the bowing (and later black dots)

so to add to my previous post, the information found on the part (as listed on the part) is

2713100
1910-6103W
73C068Y 110302E
110302

Again, they Samsung tech guy called it a "mirror", however, there is nothing on samsungparts.com with those numbers and even the Samsung guy can't find the part. Help please anyone???

Also, I previously posted that the problem was black spots, however, I've now been told that its actually white spots on the screen. Search the forum and can't find anything about white spots on the HLT5076SX/XAA. Anyone knows anything about a problem with white spots???????

HELP PLZZZ:confused:

so to add to my previous post, the information found on the part (as listed on the part) is

2713100
1910-6103W
73C068Y 110302E
110302

Again, they Samsung tech guy called it a "mirror", however, there is nothing on samsungparts.com with those numbers and even the Samsung guy can't find the part. Help please anyone???

Also, I previously posted that the problem was black spots, however, I've now been told that its actually white spots on the screen. Search the forum and can't find anything about white spots on the HLT5076SX/XAA. Anyone knows anything about a problem with white spots???????

HELP PLZZZ:confused:

I have a few dust particles that have seemed to created grey spots when there is something on the screen and white spots when the screen is just black (like a non HD picture with the black bars on the side)

i was rewiring things and decided to blow out the back of the TV with compressed air and then I had two more spots on the side of the screen that I did not have before.

so I think I have dust on something that is being projected onto the screen.

does anybody know how to clean the inside of this thing or where to clean to resolve this issue without messing up the geometry (mine is good) or electrocuting myself?

Finally, after 7 weeks on and off the phone, the Best Buy warranty paid off and I was issued a replacement TV. This will be my last post on this forum as I have gone to Plasma and said goodbye to Samsung DLP HL-T5076S. The repair center owner told me this was the worst TV built by Samsung. I won't have to worry about a replacement bulb, ghostly screens, light tunnels, and color wheels. Do yourself a favor, if you can afford it, get another TV.... this one is bad news. Good Luck to all, I am heading to the Plasma forums!!:)

does anybody know how to clean the inside of this thing or where to clean to resolve this issue without messing up the geometry (mine is good) or electrocuting myself?
Have you popped open the porthole on the back? Look in there and see if you have an accumulation of dirt on top of the lens cover in the bottom. Do this with the set on to see the glass cover clearly.

Ok, so I was watching a DVD the other night and the screen would go black, I could hit the source button and scroll through till I got back to HDMI input and it would come back on and be fine for a while. Well today my wife said the TV made some strange noises and the screen went off, the TV shut down and I got two blinking lights. According to my manual it's a cooling fan malfunction. So I did a hard reset by leaving the power unplugged and then turning it back on and the screen will not light up and eventually I got the two lights, then after they'd been flashing a while all 3 lights would randomly flash indicating a bad lamp. Any ideas where to start? The tv is just barely over a year old and can't be anywhere near the 8,000 hours the lamp is rated for.

The repair guy came and I have something (it looked like dust to me) on the convex mirror within the projector.

It's a big bent piece of reflective material. He said it's sealed and you can't get in there. So he put everything back together and said that will be $100.

gee thanks.

Is there a way to dust that thing off that anyone knows of. It seems to me that dust in means it's not sealed. I may have to just take everything apart for myself and see if there is a way I could get a shot of compressed air in there or something.

Any suggestions?:confused:

does anyone have a copy of a service manual so I can see how that portion (convex mirror compartment) is put together?

Hello all. New member here but longtime reader.
I have had this set for almost two years now and recently noticed the left part of the picture was tilting. I adjusted a portion of the mirror as noted in post #1693, but the top left is still about 1/4 in. lower than the right. Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance.