I am in the market for a large tv, I have found on craigs list, this model HCN5527W A 55" samsung RPTV CRT. As far as I can tell from talking to them the only problem is that the green and the blue are working fine, but there is something wrong with the red, I dont know what I will need to replace. He said it was the convergence board. They had purchased the TV about 2 years ago from sams and now its just sitting in the garage, They are asking $350, Is this tv worth the price, even though I need to do repairs? I am a computer tech so working with PCBs and the like are not much of a problem, How much do you think I could get the parts for and where are some good places to start looking for parts before I buy it? Thanks for all the help, I have been on google for a while now looking to no avail except to find this fourm :)

1) How do I know if the tube is bad verses bad convergence?
2) What do you think the price of a new tube(1)/ convergence board(2) will cost me?
3) Is this a good deal, I will be playing Xbox and Watching Movies on it (Its a college apartment tv)?



Shadowghost

Just my opinion but I think $350 for a TV in need of repair is too much. Non working TV's often go out with the trash.

The out-of-warranty repair on this will likely run around $400 or so.

IF the CRTs themselves are in good shape (meaning no burn-in due to being run in "torch mode" - ie. contrast above 50% - for an extended period of time), it comes down to whether you think $750-$800 total is worth it.

Being a CRT RPTV, it is likely gonna have a big "footpint" - take up a bit of floor space. Being used in a college dorm/apt, it may take up more space than you would like. W/O seeing the set in question, though, it's hard to say how well it was treated prior to it's conv board failure. I say avoid it - unless you can see it fired up first -just for this reason. Not due to the conv. repair needed, since that is a repair job that ALL makes/models of CRT RPTVs will need at some point in their lifetime.

If you are particularry handy w/ a soldering pencil and are confident in doing the repair yourself, the repair cost would be significantly less. Plenty of help can be found on the AVS Forums concerning this very common repair job.

There are brand new CRT RPTVs that could be had for around the same $$. Although most B&M stores no longer carry them, thre are still several online vendors selling them.

The Hitachi F59 series CRT RPTVs (came in 51" -which I own and love, 57" and 65") can still be found new online for smokin' deals, as are their predecessors, the F710s. Just need to do a Google search. CircuitCity was blowing out the last of their stock of 51F59A's for $599 at one point recently. Excellent price for a set that orginally retailed for around $1500. And there was a thread on the XBOX forums here that had many happy 360/F59 users.

edit - just Googled the 51F59A. Online vendor thru Amazon.com has a new one of these for $948/free shipping, and another has a factory refurb for $819 + shipping.

The F710/F59 Hitachis were the last CRT RPTVs that company produced. The last F59s were made at the end of 2006. They have HDMI inputs, so you are essentially "future-proofed" for HD input types. The major diff btwn the 2 series' is that the F710 has an actual HD tuner internal, the F59 has a digital tuner, but not an actual HD tuner. "Real" HD needs to come from an HD source (cable/sat/ext. HD tuner/HDDVD player - or 360 add-on/BluRay -or PS3) connected via HDMI or component.

I fear that these deals are fast disappearing but Sears had a one day sale last month of a 51F59 for $599.99. I was tempted to buy one as a spare.
I've noticed in a couple of stores that the inexpensive CRT RPTV's were displayed with composite video, I assumed, to make sure they don't look as good as the more expensive TV's.
John

thanks for all the replies, you guys are very helpfull I am not going to get the tv, I will continue to watch the sales and see what my roommate and I decide (of course the wife is no support saying I dont need another tv) Thanks guys

Shadowghost