Sony GWIII Owners thread - Page 128

Splinke Many thanks for the reply!

Perfect I will contact them when I have an extra $300 for the repair. You are correct its the first Orange glass panel at a 45 angle from the light source that shows the burn very well. As well as the pattern issue on the LCD panel.

I wanted to throw this thought for the group.

Would using a Non Sony bulb accelerate this issue? Is there a UV coating on the factory Sony bulb that is not on the knock off bulbs? BTW my set is at the 11K hour mark total time. Just wondering!

I love this TV. I think the picture when set up right can still rival anything out there.! The sound is bar-non. The funny thing is I have no problem spending $300 for something i know will only last 5 years!!

Again many thanks for all the help from the group!

djart

That is possible, but probably unlikely. My KDF-55WF655 has only had Sony-branded lamps (three of them in total), and it failed twice with blue discolorations--both times after an average of about 7,000 hours of usage. So, sticking with OEM Sony lamps does not prevent the problem.

Well, It looks like I don't have to do anything special to accelerate the issue. I took off the front panel and have some melted plastic. Even my limited use has been enough to melt it down, though it hasn't affected the picture yet.

Hey guys, been reading this thread for hours. Can anyone tell just by looking at this pic if this is an optical block issue or something else?

Thanks
Bill

Ok. Bit the bullet and took Sony up on their offer to replace my 60" GW. So now
I need to figure out what to do with it. I really hate to send it all to the garbage
dump as there's components in there that are still good, except for the OB.

What's everyone else doing? Is there a replacement part market (not looking
to recoup alot of $$) for GW3's?

If you are interested in a temporary fix, you can have your optical block rebuilt by John Breton ($199) or Tri-State Module ($299). It will likely work for a few more years. See my Optical Block Replacement page for details.

I have a 60xbr950 without any issues. Still running the original lamp.

Would a new lamp improve the PQ? This is an ISF-calibrated set and the PQ seems to be getting worse over time. I actually bought a $399 32" Sony HDTV a couple of months ago for the bedroom, and its PQ is better than than my XBR950.

The XBR950's PQ isn't exactly bad, but it's not great either.

Thanks for your advice.

i still have my kf 50we620- in fact, its my main tv
only problem is it has some overscan issues

After over 6 years, my 50-inch GWIII's original bulb gave out. I checked the lamp access door, and the sides are melted. So I called Sony support and arranged for a tech to repair it. Hopefully, the tech will know about the warranty. But I have printed the Sony warranty notice to show him, just in case. We will see what happens next.

My KF-50WE610 is dead. The tech looked at for just a few minutes. He called Sony and arranged for a replacement since it was covered by the melted lamp access door warranty. I was given some options and I made my decision to get the KDL-55EX500. Guess it's time to say goodbye to this thread. It's been very informative and helpful. See you at the "Official KDL..EX500/501 Thread."

jjb220 can you contact me regaurding reconditioning my optical block. Thanks, Jakemir

You might want to try emailing him directly, if he does not respond here. His email address is on my Optical Block Replacement page.

If my tv only has lamp door melting issue, but not the optical block problem, what will sony do? Thanks!

They'll send you a free refurbished unit or cut you a deal on a new one.

I've recently had a new issue pop up with my 50WE610. I just changed the bulb on the set (only the second bulb change in 6+ years). Now, within a minute or two of turning on the set, the screen will go blank (just black like it has no signal) for somewhere between 20 and 60 seconds. When the picture comes back, it slowly comes up to full brightness like it does at first power up. The sound continues while the screen is blank.

Once the picture is back up, everything works flawlessly and doesn't drop out again.

The GWIII is fed via HDMI->DVI cable from my Onkyo TX-NR807 AVR. All of my video components go to the AVR first then out the TV. The blank screen happens on every input as far as I can tell.

I know the HDMI->DVI cable is good. I guess the next step would be to take the receiver out of the loop and connect directly to the TV to isolate the problem. But before I tear my wiring apart, I wanted to see if anyone else has come across this issue.

Thanks for your help.

Note: I'm cross-posting this to the NR807 thread.

My WE610 did not have the optical block problem, but had the melted lamp door. Sony offered me several options to replace the TV, at an additional cost. It was around 1/3 the cost of the brand new models.

HTEvolution - Our 42WE610 has the same issue. It was working flawlessly until a week before Christmas, then the lamp wouldn't light and the power light flashed red 5 times (not the lamp light). We replaced the lamp with an authorized 2100U lamp. It worked fine.

3 weeks later, the lamp would cycle. It would turn on for about 25 seconds, then turn off. A faint ticking sound could be heard as it attempted to re-light. After 25 seconds or so, the lamp would light for another 20-30 seconds, then go out. It would attempt to relight again, and so on.

The fan was running during this whole time. There is not much dust built up and I vacuumed the vents.

Unfortunately, I just discovered the site I bought the lamp from doesn't have a warranty (why didn't I check that first?), so I'm out $140. I don't want to spend more $ on another lamp just to have the same thing happen.

Has anyone else experienced this cycling? If so, what fixed it?

I haven't had cycling like this. Mine just goes off for a few second then comes back on. No clicking or lamp light blinking either.

At first, I expected my receiver, but I'm not seeing the typical HDMI handshake flicker. That's why I'm leaning toward the TV being the source of this problem.

Good luck with yours. Hope you get it worked out.

Who manufactured the lamp? What does it say on it? The term "authorized 2100U lamp" makes me wonder that.

The bulb was a "Sony XL-2100U housing with lamp installed". The company states:

The DLP & LCD lamps we offer are original manufacturer replacement lamps only. We do not offer generic reproduction lamps commonly referred to as "OEM Compatible".

I returned the lamp to the company and they say they will replace it. Hopefully the cycling was due to a defective lamp.

If not, what do I try next?

Sony is required to repair your TV or replace it with a reasonably equivalent TV FREE OF CHARGE, because the lamp melting issue is still under warranty through March of 2011. It is unethical and illegal for Sony to charge you for a replacement TV, if they are unwilling to repair it, but I guess that is how Sony has chosen to conduct their business. See my Lamp Overheating Issue page for details:
http://sites.google.com/site/sonylcd...rheating-issue

Well, it's been a long while since I posted but since I started getting the blue lines on my 42WE610 I figure I come back to where I first read up on this TV before buying it.

I called sony yesterday and they asked for a photo of issue and SN and then they will offer me something... crossing my fingers for a sweet deal. Currently a little tap on the side gets rid of the lines but its the start of something worse.

I was planning to upgrade anyway but at a discounted price I hope this is a better deal than I can find. I will keep you guys updated.

Hello,
It has been awhile since I posted. I have an issue with my KF60WE610 that I am hoping you can help me with. When we turn on our tv the green light flashes on the power/stand by light 3 or 4 times with a loud buzzing sound and then it goes to a blinking red light that blinks 5 times and the tv won't turn on. Could this be a warped lamp access door problem or a bulb problem? I haven't looked at the door to see if it is warped or damaged yet. I know that when the standy by light blinks red 5 times ti means the lamp driver is faulty but I am wondering if the lamp driver is faulty due to the lamp warping the access door or the driver itself? Could these be related? Hoping to have my tv fixed covered under the warranty for the lamp access door since i don't want to pay for the lamp driver to be replaced. Let me know if you have had similar problems and what the fix was. Thanks so much!
(my husband thanks you too since Super Bowl Sunday is coming up quick!)

I hope you have another tv to watch the game on. You're not getting that Sony working before Sunday. Sounds like it is the lamp driver issue.

A warped lamp door won't cause those symptoms, but if you open it up and find signs of the lamp overheating, you'll be due a replacement set.

Either way you'll be out of commission for a while. It took about 3 months for me to get a replacement.

Thanks Speedbump. We opened it up and found very little overheating. There was some signs of the screws around the lamp door looking like they were exposed to some heat but not enough to cause warping of the door. I appreciate your response. I am going to file a report with consumer protection since we already had our optical block replaced a few years back, now the lamp driver won't work, and possibly someday the lamp door may warp in the future. It just feels like these sets should be recalled. Don't get me wrong-I loved my TV. But we spent a huge amount of money in 2003 for a tv that has had problems every since we bought it and now has had 2 different extended warranties for 2 different majorly expensive problems. Sony replaced our optical block (we had the blue squiggle roadmap issue) parts for free in 2006 but I had to pay for the service and labor myself-we didn't know that they offered reimbursement for optical block replacement service and labor in 2008. Bummer.
And now this lamp driver issue. I have seen alot of people on the net with the lamp driver issue. I really hope they extend the warranty on that part too someday or recall this tv. Thanks again for all of your help.

Did you actually take off the door, remove the lamp and look inside the lamp compartment? Even if the door isn't warped (mine wasn't), there may still be a lamp overheating issue. While my door wasn't melted badly out-of shape, the area around the lamp was cracked, discolored and some of the plastic was melted. The insulation on the wire leads near the lamp also were charred. This was enough to warrant a replacement of my 42WE610 (also purchased in 2003).

If you see any of these symptoms of an over heating lamp, I suggest you contact Sony and start the process to see if you can get it replaced. I'm certainly not suggesting that you misrepresent anything, but Sony never actually looked at mine or even requested a picture. They initially had me schedule a service visit to verify the issue and see if it could be repaired, but the local authorized shop knew that there was no fix for the overheating issue and cancelled the visit. I just had to submit the sticker off the back with the serial number.

Thanks so much Speedbump. This is very helpful info. I think maybe the charring on the screws for the lampdoor maybe indicate there is overheating.
I will use that info for starting the process of replacement with Sony. Although, everytime I call-they are so unhelpful. You guys are so great-thanks for all the info!

Yeah, try unscrewing them and look inside. It might be ugly.

You've only just begun the frustration of dealing with the unhelpful folks at Sony. The end result was okay for me but three months of dealing with them on the phone was torture. Every time you call, after they finally answer, they'll have to put you on hold several times. Each time will be for 5-10 minutes while they review you file. Then they'll transfer you to someone else and start over again. It will take 30-45 minutes just to get a status update. Hope you have a bluetooth headset or a way to multitask during many hours of hold time so you don't go crazy.

Good luck!

Don't call Sony! Go to this facebook page ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/I-Have...=wall&viewas=0) and follow the directions in the information area on the top right of the page. Send an email to that address with your model and serial numbers, symptom and contact information including a phone number. They will call you back within 1-2 days (mine was next morning). Tell them your problem and ask that you want to be offered a replacement set. They will give you options for whats available. Post back after you have started the process.

I called sony and was pretty happy. You get the odd guy that doesn't care but there were 2 guys that moved the process along for me. Got offered 40ex400 and a 46hx701.

Looking at 46 for sure but I asked for something bigger. They said they ran out of 52" so they'll throw me a quote for a 55". I beleive taking a 2010 model over a 2011 will same me big bucks as it seems they discount the repair cost off the retail price. The will rather get rid of the 2010 models so I will be more than happy to take something off their hands.