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2008 Samsung HLxxA650 DLP Owners Thread/FAQ - Page 2

post #31 of 836
6/21/08 at 12:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jerlent View Post

I personally haven't seen it yet but then again I've watched my 50A650 for 2 1/2 hours this morning LOL. I don't think its as prevalent as earlier generation DLP's. This is my 2nd DLP in 3 years and have not had any with the Rainbow effect. What model did you get by the way and welcome to the club.



Best buy replaced my 4yr old Sony 42" projection tv with a DLP 61". The 650 model/ 6 series.
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post #32 of 836
6/21/08 at 12:32pm
Ok,RQS,
You're article 86/UA/AWOL from the "Home Plate".

you need to copyright all these tutorials that you write.
Bud
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post #33 of 836
6/21/08 at 12:34pm
Nice...gotta love those extended warranties huh? I don't know how much you plan on tweaking the picture settings but Quentin posted some and I'll be posting some later on. If you have any that you think look good, post em on up.
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post #34 of 836
6/21/08 at 12:47pm
I found these settings to be pretty good

Movie
contrast: 95
Bright: 52-55
sharp: 5-10
Tint: 50/50
Detailed Settings
Black ad: off
Dynamic Con: Low
Gama: -3
White Balance: 0
Flesh tone: 0
Off
off


I'm still messing with the settings. I am Legend did look pretty great on Blue Ray. I don't like the pq on standard stations though.
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post #35 of 836
6/21/08 at 3:03pm
Thread Starter 
techdummy, some people are very susceptible to the rainbow effect while others can't see it. I've never seen it in my A650 or the HL-T5076S I had for a while. I suspect even if Samsung has lessened the effect in recent models it's still a problem for some folks, especially if you sit close to the larger screen sizes which would cause you to rapidly move your eyes across the screen. The only way to be sure is go to the showroom and see for yourself. Of course test the LED models too since it's less of a problem with them.

Edit: oops, you've already got the A650, guess you don't need to go to the showroom! Hope it works well for you and thanks for your settings. BTW, amazing upgrade from BB, 42 to 61"!

Bud, welcome! I borrowed a lot of this from Mike_pro, he did a ton of work on his A750 FAQ and much of it applies to the A650. From there, rewriting and maintaining a FAQ on your new TV is a great way to learn more about it. Be careful if you hang out here, we'll get you to replace your Panasonic with a Sammy! While you're here check out http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=843204 which is the TH-42PX75U owner's thread.
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post #36 of 836
6/22/08 at 11:50am
Something else I think is that different people have different definitions of the Rainbow Effect. I thought it was those lil specs of colors u see across the screen. U see it more when the pic is white. That is kind of annoying. I'm watching a football game on NFL network and its snow all over the field. Those lil sprinkles of different colors are kind of annoying. I think thats more of a projection tv issue though(i'm not sure).
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post #37 of 836
6/22/08 at 12:01pm
Thread Starter 
I've never seen that, specks in color and showing up on a grassy field - so I guess you're not talking about Silk Screen Effect, the shimmering effect on bright backgrounds, like sky shots or fade to white?

Maybe someone who can see the rainbow effect will tell you if that's it. I thought it was flashes of light from the corner of your eye like you sometimes get by looking rapidly left and right in a pitch black room. Have you seen this on LED models in the store?

Guess it could be some kind of digital noise, this happens on all inputs? Hopefully you can tweak it out more with picture settings. Weird how people see things differently.
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post #38 of 836
6/22/08 at 12:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quentin2 View Post

I've never seen that, they're in color and show up on a grassy field - so I guess you're not talking about Silk Screen Effect, the shimmering effect on bright backgrounds, like sky shots?

Maybe someone who can see the rainbow effect will tell you if that's it. I thought it was flashes of light from the corner of your eye like you sometimes get by looking rapidly left and right in a pitch black room. Have you seen this on LED models in the store?

Guess it could be some kind of digital noise, this happens on all inputs? Hopefully you can tweak it out more with picture settings.



I haven't seen the flash of light yet. This is the first show I've seen where there is so much white on the screen and its kind of annoying. I can see small dots of color(green/red/etc) all over the snow or the white jerseys. My other projection tv had it, but it was just in the middle of the screen and not all over.
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post #39 of 836
6/22/08 at 12:27pm
Thread Starter 
Well I don't know since I can't see this but if it isn't noise you can tweak out with picture settings, maybe this is the classic "rainbow effect"! I noticed you posted in the A750 FAQ, I hope someone there can help you with the LED model. Sounds like next time you're in the showroom you've got to scrutinize both models. Keep us up to date on this, TD...
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post #40 of 836
6/22/08 at 12:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quentin2 View Post

Well I don't know since I can't see this but if it isn't noise you can tweak out with picture settings, maybe this is the classic "rainbow effect"! I noticed you posted in the A750 FAQ, I hope someone there can help you with the LED model. Sounds like next time you're in the showroom you've got to scrutinize both models. Keep us up to date on this, TD...



I'll do that. I'm still messing with the settings. I'm going to play ps3 on it later hopefully it looks amazing. Again the "I am Legend" Blue Ray was amazing to watch on it.
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post #41 of 836
6/23/08 at 9:06am
Hey guys...finally had some time to get back on here. We watched I Am Legend and National Treasure 2 on Blu Ray and both looked fantastic. I barely tweaked the settings that Quentin had posted so I'm not going post em unless somebody wants me to. I did have one minor problem w/ the sound thru my HDDVR but it seems like it was one time thing. I just had to shut off the TV and DVR and everything was fine after that. Dad was blown away by the clarity of the Blu Ray cuz he's never seen it much before. I have a feeling I'll be seeing him a lot more on the weekends. LOL
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post #42 of 836
6/23/08 at 9:44am
Believe it or not I have found that watching the New "Alvin and the Chipmunks" on BluRay is both entertaining and it looks really good. You can practically count the hairs on their furry little heads. I wonder why animated and CGI stuff looks so good on the BluRay and this TV. I'm assuming that it is because they are animated in HD so it translates really well.
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post #43 of 836
6/23/08 at 11:35am
So I am thinking about pulling the trigger on the 50 inch version of this model. I currently have the PT-47WX53 and I am honestly a little upset there aren't any new traditional CRT sets out there. It really needs calibration and the lack of inputs is starting to get annoying. Plus it is a bit stale in my living room now and I need a new toy

I personally like DLP technology, but from reading the forums, it appears that buying a extended service contract is a must with these devices. I am not worried about the bulb as I really don't have the tv on more than 15-20 hours a week, but items like the color wheel going concern me. What are your thoughts on having component level issues with these viewing habits? I would look at the 750s which have the LED based lighting and no color wheel, but 61 is a bit large for my area (have to love apt living.) Also, truly how bad are the speakers on this tv? I do have an audio setup but it usually results in my neighbor and I having a few choice words. Are the speakers acceptable for basic tv watching? (I tell him where to go when I put on a movie.) Thanks for you help.

--EDIT--
LOL - just saw my CRT for me under my name. I guess I have to change that now!
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post #44 of 836
6/23/08 at 12:45pm
I currently only use the stereo system for surround when I'm watching a movie or something that requires it (Xbox 360....LOL). The speaker on this TV is fine for viewing regular television. It will get loud enough to get over the vacuum cleaner if needed. People say the speaker sucks but when you compare it to surround sound of course it's going to suck. That's like comparing a VW and a Porche....

I would recomend the warranty. It's already helped me to upgrade from the 5076 to this set. The set this one replaced had multiple issues with the screen bowing/smiling but I'm not going to get into that here. For the money this set is worth every penny and then some and if you get the warranty you never have to worry about bulb life, lightning etc.

Just my 2 cents.
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post #45 of 836
6/23/08 at 12:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrkaos View Post

So I am thinking about pulling the trigger on the 50 inch version of this model. I currently have the PT-47WX53 and I am honestly a little upset there aren't any new traditional CRT sets out there. It really needs calibration and the lack of inputs is starting to get annoying. Plus it is a bit stale in my living room now and I need a new toy

I personally like DLP technology, but from reading the forums, it appears that buying a extended service contract is a must with these devices. I am not worried about the bulb as I really don't have the tv on more than 15-20 hours a week, but items like the color wheel going concern me. What are your thoughts on having component level issues with these viewing habits? I would look at the 750s which have the LED based lighting and no color wheel, but 61 is a bit large for my area (have to love apt living.) Also, truly how bad are the speakers on this tv? I do have an audio setup but it usually results in my neighbor and I having a few choice words. Are the speakers acceptable for basic tv watching? (I tell him where to go when I put on a movie.) Thanks for you help.

--EDIT--
LOL - just saw my CRT for me under my name. I guess I have to change that now!

I"d definitely get the extended warranty. I got it when I got my first DLP 3 years ago. It broke and was replaced w/ the 50A650. I was easily putting more than 15-20 hours on it a week and i didn't have any problems til now. How big is your room? I was thinking about spending the little bit extra and getting the 56" but for my viewing area the 50" is perfect. The speakers aren't horrible for everyday normal listening but I wouldn't want to watch a good action movie w/ them on. Good luck w/ the purchase, you won't be sorry.
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post #46 of 836
6/23/08 at 4:29pm
Thread Starter 
I may skip the extended warranty, only have a few more days to decide before 30 days are up. I did register with Samsung on line so have the 15 month in-home warranty.

It's a gamble, DLPs need service a little more than flat screens but if you don't need any warranty work your $250-400 is down the drain. If you just need one service call you might break even. And if you have a lemon, well the contract is a lifesaver.

I only use my set 3 hours a night so hope it will still have a lot of life after the warranty runs out in 15 months. And I'm kinda thinking I'll be playing leap frog in two years anyway and selling this set.

Besides all this talk about Blu-ray has me jealous and thinking I should put my $300 toward a PS3!
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post #47 of 836
6/23/08 at 6:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quentin2 View Post

I may skip the extended warranty, only have a few more days to decide before 30 days are up. I did register with Samsung on line so have the 15 month in-home warranty.

It's a gamble, DLPs need service a little more than flat screens but if you don't need any warranty work your $250-400 is down the drain. If you just need one service call you might break even. And if you have a lemon, well the contract is a lifesaver.

I only use my set 3 hours a night so hope it will still have a lot of life after the warranty runs out in 15 months. And I'm kinda thinking I'll be playing leap frog in two years anyway and selling this set.

Besides all this talk about Blu-ray has me jealous and thinking I should put my $300 toward a PS3!



I just got a ps3, but If I had to choose I would definitely go with the warranty. U never know about these tvs. On my last tv I had to have a power supply unit changed that would have cost me 800bucks. Not to mention the lamps. I just couldn't sleep at night without a warranty. Even if u don't use your tv as much strange things happen.
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post #48 of 836
6/23/08 at 8:48pm
Thread Starter 
From the FAQ, "Consumer Reports doesn’t recommend extended warranties for plasma and LED HDTVs but DLPs are prone to more service calls than flat panels. Still CR data from thousands of DLP users indicates only 1 out of 10 DLPs need service in the first three years."

So I guess I'll roll the dice, pretty good odds plus I have 15 months of standard warranty. I tend to be a gambler and buy a lot of as-is stuff on eBay, motherboards with corrupt BIOSes and CPUs with bent pins that go dirt cheap. I average about 75% recovery rate so gambling often works but there is risk involved! I've got about eight Frankenstein PCs in my extended family with graverobbed parts. The one I'm on right now has a K8N Neo2 board that went for $15 including shipping and a dual core Opteron 180 that went for $50 about a year ago. The rest of the parts were stolen from a Socket A PC. Cheap thrills!

I know, I know, I'm probably jinxing myself right now!
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post #49 of 836
6/23/08 at 10:45pm
Received my replacement HL50A650 from Samsung today and I'm very pleased with the PQ and features of this TV.....however I noticed significant bowing and geometry issues. It was noticable w/o me even trying to look for it. When I pull up my satellite TV guide.....the top line makes a "smiley face" and on 4:3 aspect viewing, the black side panel extends OUT (similar to a flask shape) towards the bottom of the screen. Also using some calibration test patterns on my USB drive.....the viewing screen is not even. It extends about a 1/4" to the right and about a 1/2 to the top.

I assume that none of these issues can be fixed by a service call? I'm going to call Samsung in the morning tomorrow and see if they can bring me out another set (or 2 just in case the 2nd replacement is "off" as well).

Overall it's a great TV and I'm pleased with everything except for the issues described above.
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post #50 of 836
6/23/08 at 11:17pm
I'm searching Monoprice looking for a good quality HDMI cable for the HL50A650 (about 3-4 feet long) and noticed they sell a bunch of them. Can someone familiar w/ HDMI cables please recommend me one that will work well for my set.

Thanks.
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post #51 of 836
6/24/08 at 4:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by left4dead View Post

I'm searching Monoprice looking for a good quality HDMI cable for the HL50A650 (about 3-4 feet long) and noticed they sell a bunch of them. Can someone familiar w/ HDMI cables please recommend me one that will work well for my set.

Thanks.

I just bought 2 HDMI cables from Monoprice myself. I got their 6ft black cable. HDMI 1.3a Category 2 Certified Cable 28AWG - 6ft w/Ferrite Cores (Gold Plated Connectors) - BLACK I just got them yesterday and they work great. Great deal at $3.81/cable.
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post #52 of 836
6/24/08 at 9:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jerlent View Post

I just bought 2 HDMI cables from Monoprice myself. I got their 6ft black cable. HDMI 1.3a Category 2 Certified Cable 28AWG - 6ft w/Ferrite Cores (Gold Plated Connectors) - BLACK I just got them yesterday and they work great. Great deal at $3.81/cable.

Thanks for the info and link. Just picked up a similar cable but shorter (3 ft) from them.
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post #53 of 836
6/24/08 at 11:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by left4dead View Post

Thanks for the info and link. Just picked up a similar cable but shorter (3 ft) from them.

How do these cables compare to Monster Cable? I must admit I've been suckered into buying two of them so far.
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post #54 of 836
6/24/08 at 11:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by left4dead View Post

Received my replacement HL50A650 from Samsung today and I'm very pleased with the PQ and features of this TV.....however I noticed significant bowing and geometry issues. It was noticable w/o me even trying to look for it. When I pull up my satellite TV guide.....the top line makes a "smiley face" and on 4:3 aspect viewing, the black side panel extends OUT (similar to a flask shape) towards the bottom of the screen. Also using some calibration test patterns on my USB drive.....the viewing screen is not even. It extends about a 1/4" to the right and about a 1/2 to the top.

I assume that none of these issues can be fixed by a service call? I'm going to call Samsung in the morning tomorrow and see if they can bring me out another set (or 2 just in case the 2nd replacement is "off" as well).

Overall it's a great TV and I'm pleased with everything except for the issues described above.

UPDATE: called Samsung and they're sending out a service tech in a few days to "repair" the bowing, tilt and geometry issues.

I don't know too much about DLP TVs and bowing and geometry problems....but can they be repaired via servicing or would I need a replacement TV?
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post #55 of 836
6/24/08 at 12:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Webhead68 View Post

How do these cables compare to Monster Cable? I must admit I've been suckered into buying two of them so far.

IMO, after using both Monoprice and Monster, no difference in PQ. The Monster cable might "feel" better but that does not appear to impact PQ.
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post #56 of 836
6/24/08 at 12:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by left4dead View Post

UPDATE: called Samsung and they're sending out a service tech in a few days to "repair" the bowing, tilt and geometry issues.

I don't know too much about DLP TVs and bowing and geometry problems....but can they be repaired via servicing or would I need a replacement TV?

The Bowing on the 5076 set was not repairable by techs. Maybe that's why they only made that model for one year. I'm not sure about the 650 sets.
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post #57 of 836
6/24/08 at 2:30pm
Thread Starter 
left4dead, I also suspect the tech won't be able to correct the bowing very much. Bowing is almost a given in Samsung DLPs and they won't do much about it unless it exceeds what is considered normal (seems like that was about 7mm on the HL-Txx76S models). Replacement is about the only solution if it's too bad.

My HL56A650 has a little bowing toward the top like you describe but it sounds like yours is more severe. Mine is nothing like the smile I've seen on the HL-Txx76S, though. I considered exchanging my set but noticed the demo in Best Buy was about the same. So I'm going to live with it since I could get something worse in exchange. I almost never notice it except on menus or the top black bar as you said. Otherwise Samsung DLPs are incredible so a smile within tolerance may be something we have to put up with.

Good luck with the service call though. You might get a tech who knows something more about it.
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post #58 of 836
6/24/08 at 9:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quentin2 View Post

left4dead, I also suspect the tech won't be able to correct the bowing very much. Bowing is almost a given in Samsung DLPs and they won't do much about it unless it exceeds what is considered normal (seems like that was about 7mm on the HL-Txx76S models). Replacement is about the only solution if it's too bad.

My HL56A650 has a little bowing toward the top like you describe but it sounds like yours is more severe. Mine is nothing like the smile I've seen on the HL-Txx76S, though. I considered exchanging my set but noticed the demo in Best Buy was about the same. So I'm going to live with it since I could get something worse in exchange. I almost never notice it except on menus or the top black bar as you said. Otherwise Samsung DLPs are incredible so a smile within tolerance may be something we have to put up with.

Good luck with the service call though. You might get a tech who knows something more about it.



Don't u have an LED Samsung as well?
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post #59 of 836
6/24/08 at 9:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quentin2 View Post

left4dead, I also suspect the tech won't be able to correct the bowing very much. Bowing is almost a given in Samsung DLPs and they won't do much about it unless it exceeds what is considered normal (seems like that was about 7mm on the HL-Txx76S models). Replacement is about the only solution if it's too bad.

My HL56A650 has a little bowing toward the top like you describe but it sounds like yours is more severe. Mine is nothing like the smile I've seen on the HL-Txx76S, though. I considered exchanging my set but noticed the demo in Best Buy was about the same. So I'm going to live with it since I could get something worse in exchange. I almost never notice it except on menus or the top black bar as you said. Otherwise Samsung DLPs are incredible so a smile within tolerance may be something we have to put up with.

Good luck with the service call though. You might get a tech who knows something more about it.

The Samsung authorized service repair tech made his way out to my place this evening and inspected my HL50A650. After 5 minutes, he determined that there was "trapezoid" bowing and he said there's no way to fix it (as I suspected). He said he will let Samsung know and it's up to them whether or not they replace the TV entirely or just replace the engine with a new one.

Considering this TV is just 24 hours old, I hope Samsung swaps it out with another one instead of servicing it.
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post #60 of 836
6/25/08 at 6:05am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by techdummy View Post

Don't u have an LED Samsung as well?

Nope, just my HL56A650.


L4D, good luck with Samsung, hope they do right by you.
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