The Official HP Pavilion 1080P DLP Owner's Thread - Page 295

Not really a big mess at all in my situation. Only the internal part of the lamp exploded. The outer glass was fully intact, so just about all the small pieces remained within the lamp's outer glass encasing along with most of the residue that I could see. The only glass shard to make it outside the glass encasing itself that I noticed was one small piece which was in the cabinet just to the right of where the lamp assembly pulls out. I really didn't notice much of anything else there, though it was a little dusty looking. Whether that was mercury dust or just house dust that has accumulated over the last year, I didn't want to take chances blowing it out, so I used a lightly dampened cloth and dabbed the inner area where the assembly pulls out to collect it. Oh, and after removing the lamp assembly the inner fan was accessible; since its fins had their own collection of dust I decided to clean it as well!

After cleaning the inside area I placed the rag in a garbage bag along with anything that exited the lamp assembly when I tilted it and rolled it side to side. Now I just need to get the new lamp.

Just in case maybe I should do a more thorough checkup prior to putting in the new lamp ... rather be safe I got everything than sorry I missed something.

That sounds like you didn't have to bad of a mess. I hope mine doesn't blow like that but like I said I have new one on the way and will replace the old one and keep it as a spare for a while.

Good luck on your new bulb

Guys, I'm posting a question for my neighbor who owns the md6580n. He was in the service menu trying to determine the number of hours on his bulb when he accidentally hit the 'ADC Calibration' option. His component 1 input is now completely screwed up. Does anyone know if this can be fixed? I'm assuming he could just change all of the service menu color settings to match the component 2 input but wanted to check here before I suggested something that screws his TV up even more.

So, after minimal effort, I've determined that HP is simply waving its middle finger at me as if to say, in a sing-songy fashion, suuuucker. you're stuck with your $4500 investment in our failed, experimental TV. I own over $15k in HP computers, printers, monitors, etc., but will summarily begin throwing them out my window, as they do not support their products the minute they're out of warranty.

If anyone wants an MD6580n (with a failing light engine) cheap, pm me. I'm giving up on HP and DLP's entirely.

Joel

I ran into what started out looking like it may be a small kink in my lamp warranty process. The nice rep who promptly called me back this morning told me that it seems Warrantech's vendors didn't have an L2114A in stock, ( , of course not) so the item was unfortunately going to be on backorder. She then started to ask me about the over night shipping option which I originally wanted if they could ship immediately; intuitively realizing I may not want the extra $35 charge since the item couldn't get to me in the next day or two anyway. I said if it was going to take more than a day or two anyway, another couple days ground wouldn't kill me.

I then shifted gears to inquire about alternative replacement methods. I told her that HP direct had shown the lamps in-stock the prior night, and a lamp could probably be ordered immediately online directly from HP. I asked her if their department could just order directly from HP themselves, without using their "vendors", and have it shipped to me. She replied "no", to which I then inquired if I myself could purchase the lamp directly from HP, and then get a reimbursement from Warrantech. I was delighted to hear her say "yes" , it's possible, but she would be bound by their pay scale for the item, and they would not pay for shipping.

I was already online with a lamp in my basket, the arrow cursor on the next button, and a finger itching to pull the trigger to get to the final ordering page! The claims rep wouldn't say how much was within their pay scale, but when I quoted her the HP price of $349.99, she said that was fine! I didn't feel like paying the $43 for 2 business day or the $48 for next business day shipping that HP themselves were offering, so I opted to take their FREE standard shipping. ... so I hit that button rather quickly, but forgot about the $21 TAX.

I told the rep I was getting free shipping but that HP was charging me sales tax; so I asked if Warrantech would pay for the tax as well, and a total of $370.99 instead of the lower $349.99 she had already agreed was fine. She said no problem, $370.99 is within her allowed limit and they would pay the tax!

Cool .... I finished the transaction on HP's site around 11:30 this morning ... just got the tracking number that it shipped. FedEx shows the delivery for this Wednesday 4/4! Who needs to pay 2-day business shipping prices when their 5-7 day free shipping looks as though it will get to me in 2 days!!! Maybe I shouldn't jinx myself and get so excited when nothing is in my hands yet ... I'll probably get a 150W oven bulb now instead.

Hi Joel,

I read some of your earlier posts regarding a "sheen effect" in the picture and I think I'm having similar problems with my out of warranty 16 month old MD5880N. I've looked elsewhere on the net for a description of the way the degraded picture looks and the terms "Posterized", "False Contouring" and "Solarized" seemed to describe the effect showing up on my TV. In my case the problem started out very subtle and has gotten worse over time. A Comp USA HP certified master technician came by and delivered the diagnosis of "faulty light engine". Sounds rather vague. It's my understanding that the light engine contains several different components including the DLP chip, optics and the color wheel. 'Kind of like having a bad spark plug in your car and concluding that the whole engine is bad and needs to be replaced isn't it?

Yep, disquieted, except the faulty spark plug has a pricetag of $2800. Kinda like driving a Ferrari that costs $9
0k, and needing a sparkplug that costs $95k. Dump it unless its warrantied, it'll probably happen again.
Good luck,
joe
(yes, I'm bitter)

Paying 4K for a RPTV and not getting an extended warranty is just not a fully thought out strategy. I bought the extra 2 year HP care pack and a spare bulb.. if my TV fails after that the new TVs on the market will be cheaper, bigger, and better for the $2600 I paid for my md6580n.

I bought a Panasonic 50" Plasma from Costco. A big reason was the extra year of warranty and the return policy. Well I am returning the TV. The Panny has a superb picture and is no doubt a solid piece. But after using the HP with all the features and controls, the Pansonic, at least the Costco model, is the equivalent of a car with roll up windows and vinyl seating, it simply has no features or any user controls. What was most surprising is that it had no features to counteract image retentio. I have a 50" Sammy Plasma coming to replace it. BTW the Panny has a couple of weird glitches. Hard to see why since it has hardly any features to go wrong.

After a bunch of trouble in the begining I am really enjoying the HP DLP these days. I will think twice before I go RPTV when it comes time to replace it. By then very big flat panels should be getting affordable. In my room 65" barely makes it.

Does the sheen effect show up when your TV is first turned on? Does it get worse as the TV is on for several hours? Did the problem pop up suddenly or did it get worse over time?
On my TV the picture looks perfect when first turned on and starts changing after about 20 minutes. Two weeks ago it took about an hour for the picture to start changing. The first thing I notice is bright blotches appearing on peoples faces. After a while all the colors and shading are off kilter although the picture still appears finely detailed even in the bright areas if you look closely.

Well, to continue my warranty lamp replacement saga, HP shipped it by free ground on Monday and it arrived safely at my doorstep this afternoon! Glad I didn't pay for the extra $43 to $49 for next or 2-day shipping, didn't need it what-so-ever ... Whoooohooo !

Plugged the new lamp in and the picture is once again stunning. Now I need to send in my receipt to Warrantech and get my $$$ reimbursement. So far everything has been smooth sailing so I hope that continues with the rest of my experience with Warrantech warranty service.

I was without the big screen for only 3 days , but I was already experiencing withdrawal symptoms , so it was great turning it back on this evening.

I wonder if this has anything to do with the dynamic iris. Did you try going to 'studio' picture mode, to disable the iris?

The manual for this TV states, "...We recommend replacing the lamp module if a warning message displays." Does anyone know the exact text of this warning message?

I sure do wish the fix were that simple. I tried tinkering with various settings and even went through this list of fixes from HP:

Please try a power drain.
To do this you will need to unplug your TV from the wall and unplug everything from your TV.
Then hold in the power button located on the right side of the TV for one minute.
The power will then be drained.
Please try a Hard Memory Reset.
Hold in Channel Down and Volume Up buttons located on the right side of the TV.
Then push the Power button located on the ride side of the TV and release it.
For ten more seconds continue to hold in Channel Down and Volume Up.
You should see Video One on the screen.
The Hard Memory Reset is done.
Please reseat your lamp module.
Here is a link to the instructions:
/ctg/Manual/c00599533.pdf
The information you need is on pages 57 to 59.

And yes, the same picture problems occur from different sources; OTA antenna, S-video and component video.

Yes, Disquieted, I hate to tell ya, but the exact same thing happens on mine. Set looks fine when turned on, then the exact degredation occurs, sheen on faces, then splotchiness, and it all goes to h_ll from there. The tech looked at it for 5 mins and said "yep, light engine".
I have already jumped ship and bought another plasma, instead of pouring good money down the black hole known as HP's DLP. Kinda like the dinosaur and dodo bird. . ..
MD6580n reeeeeally cheap if anyone wants one. . . . .
Joel

How cheap is cheap? Can always use spare parts for future repairs.

Lol, cheap is cheap, I'd rather sell it as a whole instead of parting it out, pm me if your interested. Hopefully this doesn't violate forum rules. Everything works gr8, just starts blurring after a while.. .. .

Hi, been awhile since I last posted. Been enjoying my 6580n No further problems after the light engine replacement and a self align. Altho in the midst of buying the new house etc etc I forgot to get the extended warranty and its out of HPs 1 yr now by about 5 weeks
I am moving over this weekend and the tv is going on a 24' box truck for a ~40 mile journey. Should I remove the bulb assembly and let that travel in the car with the other electronics? Or should it be OK leaving it in? What would you guys do? (I tried searching the thread but the search leaves alot to be desired )
Reply quick please the tv goes on the truck tomorrow.
Thanks all.

Hey all! Been a while since I have posted. The 6580N still rocks the Hut! Although I have run into a new problem with my HTPC. I'm not having the boot time sync issues as mentioned earlier. My problem is, I rebuilt my system with Vista.

Asus A8N-E
AMD 64X Dual core
Nvidia 7600 GT

Everything works great, until the Nvidia driver is installed. Once I reboot from this, the driver is detecting my desplay model, but will not sync @ 1080P, or 720P. Anyone else come across this issue? For a few hours last night I thought I had it licked using the MS pagacked driver. I was able to watch it for about 3 hours, then it started flashing again. I have had zero luck with the current forceware driver, or the latests beta. Could this be an EDID issue in the set?

Any suggestions welcome... And so I don't hear it too much, the thought of going back to XP is a last option.

Ok, this is strange, but the drivers are stable when set @ 50Hz. Make any sense to anyone?

I like your last option. That is why I won't be "upgrading" to Vista on my rigs until XP no longer works. Aside from all the other problems, it may be a while before the Vista video drivers are mature enough for prime time. I already regret building my latest desktop with an ATI card. I am forced to use Normal aspect ratio and still just almost fills the screen. There is a workaround for the newest Nvidia drivers for custom resolution within a resolution, but I haven't seen one for ATI.

I just joined this forum, and could not locate how to start a new subject, so I'm posting as a reply:

I received my 65" tv last September. It had a hum from the speakers, and by reading this thread, found out that a grounding strap would do the trick. A technician came by on two separate occasions, but could not eliminate the hum. That was only the start of my problems.

On March 16, a very loud and continuous noise (sort of a screeching sound) came from the speakers, drowning out the regular audio. The screeching continued for more than a minute even after the TV was turned off. The sound was present after turning the TV on again, for several tries. The sound did not return after the TV was turned on later that night.

On March 20, after enduring other intermittent nights of that sound, the tv seemed to work fine, but then the tv shut off by itself (a red light came on briefly where the blue "on" light normally is). I tried turning the tv on again, and again it shut down. It was then that I smelled a burning odor of rubber or insulation.

I contacted HP and to make a long story short, they said that they can either try to fix it, but not extend the 1-year warranty, or they would give me back my purchase price (less California sales tax), since the 65" is no longer available.

I took the repurchase, and am now awaiting a call for the pick up of my tv. HP said they would release the check once it was confirmed that the tv was being shipped back to them.

All of which leads to this:

I had previously bought a spare L2114A lamp back in January. I used this lamp for approximately 8 weeks (less than 200 hours of use), intending to use it for 90 days to test the 90-day warranty, before the tv conked out.

A brand-new lamp retails at the HP website for approximately $350 (but is perpetually out of stock). I am offering this near-new lamp for $200 plus $35 insurance and shipping.

If you are interested, please e-mail me at pyrus321 (yahoo address). I have photos of the lamp and the original box it came in.

Are you going to receive your entire purchase price back upon return of the television? I am only getting 70% of my purchase price, which was at my senior case managers "discretion".

I'd love to file a class action lawsuit against HP for selling what I believe to be a highly defective product.

Also, how has your contact been with the case manager assigned to your case? My correspondence has been less than adequate. I frequently have to make repeated phone calls and send multiple e-mails before I hear a response from him. It's sad, I have a non-functioning television and terrible correspondence from HP's customer service. I want nothing to do with this company ever again.

I think that I am a prime example of an "early adopter" who paid the price of having too much faith in HP. When my light engine failed 2 mos. after expiration of the warranty, they shoved their middle finger at me and said tough. I'll accept that I was stupid for not getting an extended warranty, but the fact that a multi-billion dollar company like HP won't stand by their product with at least some concessions for out of warranty victims, and especially for in-warranty customers, is pathetic. (Hellishly Pathetic)
Kudos to all of you that have working sets still, I know they're great when they work, but man, it'd be hard to sleep, knowing the next day could be the last, and there's no one there to help. . .
Probably my last post in this forum, so I'm not trying to flame, just advising of my dissatisfaction with this product.

Good luck to all,
J.

I had exceptional customer support from HP when dealing with an HDMI-related issue. They ended up completely replacing the TV. All of this was of course during the warranty period.

Jbailey, what exactly are you expecting HP to do? Your TV is out of the warranty period. It is unfortunate that your light engine failed so soon after the warranty expired but these things happen. They are not "shoving their middle finger at you". They are simply enforcing a policy that almost every other electronics manufacturer follows. I just spent $1400 to have a 2 year-old plasma repaired. Am I upset? Yes. Am I going to throw every product from this manufacturer out of my window? No. Lesson learned...move on and enjoy your new plasma (hopefully with an extended warranty).

As I mentioned in my post, I am getting back everything except the sales tax. My experience with my particular Case Manager was excellent. She did mention that each CM has some discretion in determining the final compensation for a defective product under warranty. I still had 6 months of warranty left. My tv is being picked up tomorrow for shipment back to HP. Once she has documentation that the tv was picked up and being shipped, she would release my check.

I think I have the same problem as you or atleast close to it. My problem is with the HDMI 1 input. Ill be watching a movie or on my PS3 and all of the sudden Ill get a black screen or sometimes green screen for approx 3 seconds and then the screen will flicker and the picture will come back. Ive tried swapping out the HDMI cable and stiill the same problem. HP came out last week to fix it and they replaced the main zappa board (refurbished part, HP does not service with new parts). Now the problem is worse. HP is now sending out another tech to replace the main board again and also replace the power supply. Since they worked on it the TV got worse. 1. the problem got worse. 2. now my TV makes a loud popping noise when I turn it on. 3. My buttons on the side of the television dont work. SERIOUSLY, we all need to get together and file a class action law suit!

I would seriously like to pursue a class action lawsuit against HP for this television. Since I am not a laywer I have no idea how to proceed. Is there anyone still reading this thread that can help? Should we start a new thread?

Any thoughts or suggestions are more than welcome but, I think HP should realize that this television is an inferior, defective product and should compensate those that paid a lot of money for this fairly.

Thoughts?

I don't mean to be rude, and I really hope I'm not jynxing myself by writing this, but I haven't had any trouble with my 5880n. I think you should start a new thread for any discussion of a class-action lawsuit. Anything that comes of that discussion will probably not be of interest to people looking for shorter-term solutions for issues with their TV, which (along with providing technical information) seems to be the primary goal of this thread.

"The Official HP Pavilion 1080P DLP Owner's Thread"