Hi Everyone,

I was hoping for a few words of advice on a repair or upgrade decision. My Toshiba MT8 (Screenplay 7200 clone) had what looks like a power system failure, and will need to go to the shop - I'm guessing based on the repair folks' feedback that it'd be roughly $600 to get the thing fixed. Bulb is (was) at a little over 2/3's life (and showing it).

I have a dark room, and a matte-white 111" screen. Primary video sources are DirecTV HD TiVo, Std DVD, and a media center PC at 720p. I've been very happy with the MT8, with my only complaint (after getting past all the firmware upgrades and early bulb failures) being the field edge curvature others have commented on in the past.

I did quite a bit of research prior to getting this unit, but really haven't had time to keep up the last couple of years. I'm considering upgrading to a SP7210, which would be compatible with my ceiling mount and mechanical setup and would double my contrast - looks like about $2500. However, it seems like a lot to spend with the 1080 machines coming on strong.

I'm not ready to shell out $6K right now for an RS1, although the specs sound great. Should I just get the MT8 fixed and wait a bit for prices on 1080 projectors to stabilize? Is there a newer 720p unit in the $2K range that would blow my socks off compared to the MT8/SP7200?

Advice?

Personally, I'd punt. You could find a new 720p pj for $1-2k. The Epson 1080p homelite is just a bit more.

I punted from my Infocus 7200.

Reasonable projector repair rates. I sent them a 7200 last week for repair and should have it back in a week or so.

http://www.justrepairs.com/projector_repair.html

Barrry - did you also have the no power up issue, and was it fixed at the place you mention? What was the cost, seems like it is $500-$600 to send back to Infocus. My 7200 just decided not to power up tonight and trying to decide what to do with football season one week away...

hi
My SP7200 also decided not to power up over the weekend. I am deciding between sending it in for repairs and buying a new one. I just replaced the lamp about 3 months ago and have less than 100 hours on it.

I have an SP7200. It work fine but lamp is near death. I'm interested in buying a good used lamp if any of you folks decide to upgrade from a dead 7200.

Please PM me.

Denis

hi
My SP7200 also decided not to power up over the weekend. I am deciding between sending it in for repairs and buying a new one. I just replaced the lamp about 3 months ago and have less than 100 hours on it.

I ended up using the company suggested above. They said they replaced the power supply, I am getting it tomorrow. They claim the new power suppy they put in is more reliable. Total = $308 (not including $45 expedite fee I paid so I didn't miss another weekend of football) including shipping. I did check a couple of other places and they seemed to be the most reasonable.

I went through the same thought process about getting a new one, but figured I would hold off a little longer until 1080p comes down a little more in price.

Well, it powers up, but somewhere in the repair or shipping process a piece of lint or hair lodged itself in the optical path (left side of screen). :mad: I pulled the lamp out and made sure it was clean, and I did not see anything in the "window" directly adjacent to the bulb. The repair shop thought it might be on top of the DMD cover itself (although it should be sealed) and suggested tilting it in an attempt to dislodge it, but to no avail. They said they would take it back, but I would rather not be without it for another two weeks. Anyone else see anything like this before? Any suggestions?

I've had things like that on my MT8.

It was particles of dust on the colorwheel. Cleaning is quite simple, just remove the lamp, you then have access to the colorwheel. A spray of pressurised air will do, gently apply on the wheel, not too close because of possible condensing, I'd say about 3-4 cm from it.

It was particles of dust on the colorwheel. Cleaning is quite simple, just remove the lamp, you then have access to the colorwheel. A spray of pressurised air will do, gently apply on the wheel, not too close because of possible condensing, I'd say about 3-4 cm from it.

Followed your advice and problem solved! Thanks.