HLPXX63W Owners Thread/Problems/Tweaks/Service Menu/Discretes etc. - Page 32

The ballast is about as easy as the lamp. Once you take the lamp out, the ballast lifts right out. The screws that hold the lamp in, hold the ballast in too. Worst thing is that you need to invest the $80 to find out if that is it. Since the set is coming on, and then going off, it seems like the ballast should be a high probability item.

The partstore.com was very good about taking my ballast back. (I have an RMA and the part is on its way back to to them... hopefully the rest of the process will be smooth).

Thanks for the info. Right now, the $80 investment for the ballast is worth the risk. Off I go to order the part!

I have the HLP5663 for about 3 years and all fine till now. Turned on the set this morning and displays picture but everything is blue !
Turned it off, waited about 5 minutes and turned it on again and now all OK.
Is this the sign if something about to fail (ie.color wheel etc ) ?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks !

Was this with multiple inputs (Component, HDMI, TV, etc) or was this a single input?

There is not a troubleshooting chart in the service manual for a single color output that I saw. So, we are on our own....

One thought would be that the color wheel is not spinning. I am not sure how credible that is since I believe there is a feedback circuit that prevents the lamp from coming on if the colorwheel is not spinning.

Don't get too excited yet (don't order any parts...) until it happens again and you have more data. Keep the folks in the thread posted.

Thanks for the help. Happened with my HD Satellite box, connected by component to my AVR and HDMI out to the TV. Hopefully it's a one-time event !

Update: The ballast arrived yesterday. I was able to successfully replace the ballast in my Sammy. The only little trick I needed to do was to connect the lamp to the ballast before inserting them into position. Otherwise, the connectors were not lining up properly.

I went over everything to ensure all cables were securely connnected. After final assembly, I reconnected the cables and fired up the tv. It went through the regular power cycle 2 times before the video image appeared on screen. The image was brilliant - crisp and full of color. I was able to flip around video sources (cable and Apple TV through a HDMI switch, and my DVD player through component connection).

Life seemed to be good until tonight. Got home and turned on the tv. For over 30 minutes, it was constantly going through the power cycle. The Lamp light would remain flashing while the screen would sometimes show a greenish black or simply black before powering down and back on again.

I unplugged the set and left it unplugged for a few minutes. I plugged it back in to watch it go through the power cycle for about 10 more minutes before the video image finally appeared. From that point in time, I could once again switch between video sources with no problems. The video image was perfect as before.

So I've now replaced the lamp, the color wheel, and the ballast. I believe the replacement of these items has helped to improve the video image (when it works), but has not resolved the problem of the power cycles.

I'm at a loss as to what could be the problem. Once the video image appears, the set will behave perfectly.

It's been a while, so I'd thought I would let you know what's been going on...

I was at a loss on what was causing the issue. I was able to get my hands on a service manual to look through to see if I could possibly pinpoint the problem. Unfortunately, none of the symptons in the service manual matched the conditions of my set.

I have a feeling that the entire light engine and/or the DMD board need replacing. I called up Best Buy service (where I bought it) and found out my extended warranty was still good for one whole month! The 3 year warranty didn't kick in until after the 1 year manufacturer's warranty.

The technician came out and saw what was going on. He's placed an order for a new light engine and DMD board to replace in my set. If that doesn't fix the issue (or if the parts don't come in), then they will replace the entire set.

I'm happy that my warranty was still good and can handle these two most expensive items (or full set replacement). Still, it's been very educational to learn about the guts of the set and know what things I'm able to handle on my own.

I'll let you know if the new parts fix the issue or if I have something new altogether.

That is great news. Too bad you didn't make the call in April! Please keep us posted.

Hello all,

I've been fighting a flaky input problem for months now, but it's getting worse:

I can only get one component input to work and that's only some of the time. Doesn't matter if it's a DVD player or the Wii. It just cuts out to black. Sometimes jiggling the cables at the connection seems to work. It's something loose back there.

None of the Composite inputs work, including the one near the front! That doesn't make sense to me, if it's a loose cable on the rear panel.

Even more weird, the HDMI seems to be rock solid. So, smart me, I picked up a new monoprice HDMI switcher as I could get the STB/DVD/game through one input. Well, it works for about 3 seconds, a color test screen (solid blue) pops up and then the set goes black. This switcher has the newest 1.3 compliance, maybe it's too new for this set?

Finally, I just replaced the color wheel (wow, what a difference!) and am familiar with the service menu, so I'm not afraid to take a look inside. I'd just like some idea of where to target. Nothing looked obvious when I replaced the wheel and I couldn't find anyone with a similar problem on the net.

Any help is appreciated, even if it's to point me somewhere else.

The light engine was replaced, and now the set is working again. No more power cycles. Video comes on the first time every time.

I was able to save the lamp from my old setup (since it was still new) so I can have it as a backup later.

There is something else I've just noticed. Was playing some movies this weekend (had some Sammy quality time to catch up) and notice that the entire video image has shifted up by an inch or two. When watching a full 16x9 image, I now get a small black bar across the bottom of the screen while the top inch or so of the picture is chopped off.

I'm off to do some searching on if the video image can be adjusted, but if anyone has any ideas, please let me know. If not, I'll call up Best Buy to come back and fix it.

Before my set started having power cycle problems, mine would also have the video blank out when switching between composite and DVI. My solution ended up being the replacement of the whole light engine. I had replaced the color wheel, lamp, and ballast, but that wasn't the solution.

I am glad your original problem is fixed. It has been a long road. This one should be easy.

There is a "projected image adjustment" in the service menu. You can adjust both horizontal and vertical position.

Frankdib posed this question in a PM:
There is a jumper that needs to be removed if the color wheel is changed from original type to the new type. There is a access area in the perforated metal screen. There should be a sticker above it talking about removing a jumper for air bearings. The attached picture is a little out of focus, but you should get the general idea. It is a little difficult, but you can get to it through the lamp replacement door with needle nose pliers. It is easier if you pull the back of the TV off.

I went into the service menu to adjust the image. I dropped the horizontal all the way down to 0. It was set at 30 before. With the image change, I still have a 3/4" black band at the bottom of the screen.

Guess it would be easier to get Best Buy back to make the adjustment (since it's warranty work and no cost to me).

If your problem is a band across the bottom should you not have adjusted the "vertical " setting not the horizontal. I had to make a similar adjustment on my HLP 5663.

Maybe I get the names confused. The option I was adjusting was showing the box shifting up and down as I was increasing/decreasing the number value. I had it set as low as it could go (box was down as far as possible).

Going back to run the screen tests, there continued to be a 3/4" black band across the bottom of the screen.

I would call Best Buy. Make them fix the problem. I checked the service manual yesterday and did not see anything about a physical adjustment, but that does not mean that there isn't one.

Appointment made for Thursday.

"There is a jumper that needs to be removed if the color wheel is changed from original type to the new type. "

I am getting ready to replace my color wheel. Is there a way to determine beforehand whether or not that jumper needs to be removed? The build date of my HLP4663 is October 2004. Had they switched wheel types at that point.

Alos--Anyone know if the availability problem of color wheels been resolved yet?

Thanks

Color wheels are available to order. I only had to wait about a week to get mine.

Best way to know about the jumper is to see if your set has the jumper in the first place. My Sammy (HLP5063W) didn't have one. The new light engine does have one, so I know that I may have to deal with it in the future. You can easily take the back off and compare to the picture that's been posted here.

Had service guy stop over yesterday. All that was needed was a physical adjustment to the DM board. Adjustment was done in reverse (push down and the video image moved up). Everything is back to perfect.

Here's hoping it lasts another 3+ years. At least I now have a much better understanding of the internal workings of the set and how to handle most repairs myself. Thanks to all for your kind help!

Help??
Replaced the color wheel on my HLP4663 today. Everything SEEMED to go fine, other than we mught have knocked the lamp unit as we freed it.
Set will not power up the lamp, and I have the 3 blinking lights.
Is there anything we could have missed? We double checked the connections and all steps after it failed, and all seems proper.
Is there any way the lamp can be tested somewhere? It does not appear to be damaged, but I don't expect this to look likea normal light bilb if it is not working.
Anything anyone can offer to troubleshoot this will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Cyberpmg - Not sure how I missed that you posted last week. Glad to here everything went well. I hope you get a couple of good years out of it...However, I must say I really like the picture of my 2007 model much better than the 5663. (However, I think the sound was better in 5663). The new sets in a couple of years will REALLY look great. Don't hang on to the old one too long and cheat yourself!

My boss is still waiting on a new light engine for her 4663. She cheered up when I told her that the LE fixed what was ailing yours.

Good job on getting the new color wheel in. When you connected the color wheel connectors, did you get the copper-colored, flat cable all the way seated in the connector? Are you sure you connected that cable with the exposed copper conductors facing the right way? There is nothing that prevents you from doing it wrong. I am not sure what the symptom of putting that in cable in backwards would be other than the set would not work since the color wheel can't would not be spinning.

That said, 3 blinking lights points to the lamp.

How old is your lamp? Does it have enough hours on it that you buying another would make sense? (Do you need to buy one soon anyway?) I don't know how to check the lamp outside of a TV.

Thank you dengland!
We had double and triple checked, or so we thought, but after checking the old wheel we pulled it apart again and saw that we had that copper connector the wrong way. Red id it (that conmnector sure is a PITA to secure)and up it came just fine. It's funny, I'm not unconfortable with this stuff, and my high school son with the steadier hands who is on his robotics squad (the build group!) was fully involved. And yet we missed it.
Apparently there are check circuits back and forth so the lamp won't come on if it can't work!
BTW, althjugh coming on 4 years old lamp life is only about 3700 hours, so I did not think this should have been the lamp.
Thanks again.

Implot - I am glad it was an easy fix for you. It is really easy to miss things like that.

You are right, 3700 hours is not many. I had over 11K when I replaced my lamp. (I just went ahead and replaced the lamp when I did the color wheel). The old one makes for as good spare now.

OK, I thought I could just live with HDMI only, but it finally went out. So, no component, composite or HDMI. Cable input works as does the PC in. No problem paying Xbox 360 through that connection. This leads me to believe that I don't have issues with the anything related to the light engine. I can run through the service menu color test on all inputs.

When I unplug HDMI from the STB side, the message changes from "No Signal" to "Check Signal Cable" so I know it senses it. I just know something's gone bad on the "video input board" or something like that. So, I tore everything back down and the entire "input jack" chasis comes out pretty easily. The next question is what do I replace? Could this be the digital board? Both the HDMI and PC inputs look connected to that, but the component inputs are above it. Am I just getting in over my head? I really don't want to throw away a 4 yr old set I paid $3k for. Any suggestions? Thanks!

its an easy fix, just take that secton out of the tv by unpluging all the cunections on the analog board and the two screws that holds that big medal pice out. 2 or 3 screws to take the face plate off, discunect the cunecters so that nothing is cunnectied to the top board ( analog board ) unscrew the top board from the big medal pice and install the new board, cunect everything back. I would replace the analog board, because the digital board is more money.

I think I might try this route. It'll cost more money just to take it in and get looked at. Is there any reason to believe, based on my symptoms, that it's the analog board and not the digital one?

the only thing you could do is get another hdmi source like a dvd player and see if it works. if it still says "no signal" or "check signlal cable" then you have a bad digital board, but if it works it could be bad hdmi cable or your source (X-box) might have a bad hdmi out put.

if you dont have another hdmi source then go to best buy and buy a dvd player and return it the next day.

that sucks that both your analog board and you digital board might be bad.