The Official Sony 2007 KDS-(XX)A2020 [NO PRICE TALK] SXRD Owner's Thread - Page 120

Hi,

I had read about the failures and recalls and checked for distortions last time I was visiting here. Is it possible to still seek a claim for these sets now? I know my stepdad purchased very late and he may still have relevant paperwork.

Thanks, I emailed Sarah Kepler and got an event number. I told my dad about this sets problem last year but last year it was fine.

Again, thanks.

You can contact either one , Sarah is Amanda's supervisor I believe . Her status said that when I contacted her also .

Thanks for the pointer. I chatted with Sarah earlier today via FB. Haven't gotten an event number yet but hoping I get some kind of response from customer support today (I sent an email last night).

Update: Went through the process on the replacement models. I'm going for the KDL55EX720. Appears to be a decent LCD TV. Has some 3D issues, but I'm not getting it for the 3D. Hopefully this will be a good games TV in addition to a solid HDTV.

Thanks to all for the help/pointers!!!

that is how my set went out, then a yellow spotch, but mostly blue-blacks

NX is a much better set unless you have glare problems.

My bulb on my 50A2020 last week after 5 years of usage. Contemplated buying a plasma but decided to just get a new bulb for $140 and save the cash for now. Am I the only one that hasn't had any problems with this set?

You're not the only one. I have a 55A2020 that is still going strong. I replaced the bulb once. You should be able to get a Philips in a housing for less than the price you mentioned. Maybe as low as $120.

eh. 20$ I'm not gonna worry myself about that.

So just got the Sony replacement HDTV today. It looks great.

Of course there's a problem. Isn't there always a problem? In 2012 I am having problems out the wazoo.

Anyway, the old 55A2020 had the standard white/red audio out connection which plugged into my white/red audio in connection on my Philips surround system. This worked great.

Now, the new TV does not have the white/red audio out. They have a digital audio out connection. And of course the Philips surround system does not have a digital in (that I can tell).

So right now I can't get the TV connected to the sound system.

Does anyone know whether there's a digital out adapter that can hook into these white/red audio cables? Or do I basically need to bite the bullet and buy a new sound system to go with my new HDTV. Ugh.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

http://www.radioshack.com/search/ind...converter&sr=1

Also, I hate to be a bother, but I am having the exact same problem you mentioned in your original post and have a 55A2020 as well. May I ask what replacement TV options you were given and the prices offered? you can PM me if you'd rather. Thanks!

I called Sony Tuesday and got an event ID for replacement of my KDS-55A2020 (green screen, bad optical block).

They offered me a:

KDL-55BX520 for $700+local sales tax
KDL-46EX640 for $400+local sales tax

I'm replacing the 55A2020 with a 60" in the family room so we opted for the 46" as a replacement since we need a TV in the basement.

I just went through the replacement process* with my 55A2020 and got the following offers from Sony...
KDL46EX640 for $400.00 + local sales tax
KDL55BX520 for $700.00 + local sales tax

Kinda strange they didn't offer 55EX640

The process was relatively smooth after sending email to sonylistens. They responded within a day. The most annoying part was having to call Sony on the phone and speaking to "John" in the Phillippines. Do these people really think we believe their name is "John" when they can barely speak English?

Anyhoo, now I need to get rid of my 55A2020. It has a green blob that is evident while TV is warming up and then mostly goes away to the point that its very hard to see.

P.S. I'm in the Denver-Boulder, CO area if anyone is interested in taking the 55A2020 off my hands for a good price.

Same as my oiffer (see above).

We already have a 55EX500 LCD TV so we'll likely go with the 46" for bedroom.

I just took the required photo and mailed it along with the other required info yesterday. "John" said 2-3 weeks to get the 46".

I didn't ask "John", but did they say anything to you about taking the 55A2020 away when the new TV is delivered? I'm assuming they don't.

Anyone know approx how much it would cost to have the optical block replaced in the 55A2020.....or does Sony even have a "good" OB for this TV?

They don't take your old TV. OB replacement was around a grand last time I checked, more if someone else does it. There is a guy who sells them for a few hundred if you search this thread. Most are refurbs, meaning used ones which will also fail. Even with a brand new OB, your set is worth about $250.

There a guy out of CT that rebuilds them for $300 , you have to take it out yourself and send it to him . I'm debating whether to do it myself , I read somewhere the turn around time is very long though ( like 3 months ) which is why I haven't it done it myself yet , got a HX750 from Sony at reduced price and I'm loving it . The HX850 recently got great reviews from cnet .

They do not take away your defective TV, they just require the serial number sticker, to get it out of circulation...I had recieved a replacement for my 50A2000 last year.
Which was stolen... so i got the optical block repaired by a guy on the FB IHADS page, for 249$ including return shipping.
So if you like your defective tv, it may be a less expensive option for you.
Especially if you have recently purchased a new lamp for it.

I mailed the form and picture on June 2 and my EX640 was delivered by FEDEX June 8.....unbelievable:)

I have a 55A2020 and its still working great. Replaced the bulb about 2 years ago and went the cheap route and just got a bulb with no housing and swapped it out myself. Just got the alert that says bulb is nearing its life expectancy again and pic is getting pretty dark too.
The replacement bulb I used never was as bright as it was when new either.

I don't want to spend a lot on a new bulb but would like to know some opinions on using different bulb replacements.

I just purchased a 60" panny plasma so the Sony will be going in the bedroom.

You'll get best service from a real Sony or a real Philips lamp. Osrams are acceptable as well. They will cost $80-120.

The cheaper Chinese knock-offs that are no-name brands and sell for $40 or so have a high out-of-box failure rate, and when they work they will only last a few months. Beware of sales talk like "Sony equivalent" or "replacement for Sony original" which means 'Chinese knock-off'.

If you have a new good quality lamp and you notice it's not as bright as when the TV was new, your main mirror and main lens might need a cleaning.

HI All, this thread hasn't been active in a bit. I guess everyone's sets have either suffered Optical Block Failure.....or still hanging in there.

Mine has succombed to the dreaded OB failure.

It is out of warranty (even had an EW through Mack, but I've had the set for over four years). I am going to contact Sony Listens or Sony Cares....or whatever it is, but I doubt what they offer I will jump on b/c I've already purchased a new 60 inch plasma set.

So, I'm wondering what are my options as far as getting some money back on the set. I'm considering posting it for sale on Craigslist, but I have no idea what to set the price at reasonably to get some offers (and I'm going to mention the green haze indicative of OB failure and not try anything tricky). Anybody have any suggestions?

I have a 55 inch KDSA2020

Any other ideas on how to sell the set (or get some money out of it)? I'd consider getting the OB repaired, and placing the set in my son's room and figure I might get another 3-4 years out of it, but I don't think it's worth the price of repairing the OB out of pocket.

Even if you get the OB repaired, you likely won't get more than $200 when you sell it. So I recommend you look at your replacement options. They may offer you a significantly smaller set for next to nothing. Then you could sell your A2020 anyway as-is or dispose of it. The person I sold mine to was happy to get a big tv for next to nothing even though it was discolored.

Emailed Sony Listens about my yellow tinited KDS-60A2020 and although they explained the program was over they offered me a KDL-55HX850 for $1060.00 plus Tax. This appears to be a fair price for a decent model, however I was puzzled why they did not offer me another 60 inch model as a replacement. I have emailed them back to request a price on the KDL-60EX645. I understand this is a lower end TV, but I really don't want to drop 5 inches as I am already 19 feet from the TV.

Thoughts?

Just wanted to let readers of this thread know that I have posted my perfectly working KDS-50A2020 in the classifieds section. Never had any optical block probs, still has original bulb in there.

They came back with an offer of $965 for the 60 inch KDL-60EX645.

I'd grab the HX!

Looks like I'm one of few remaining happy owners out there.
I have a kds 60-a2020 that I haven't had any problems with (knock on wood) other than replacing 2 bulbs. Actually each time I replace the bulb (using a phillips of course) I fall in love with the TV again.
Anyway, I have a question.
My wife and I decided to get rid of cable and go to OTA channels and streaming. I've tried a set of rabbit ears and i get 4 more channels upstairs that I don't get downstairs. My upstairs TV doesn't give me any diagnostics but the channels come in with no breakup. I know the height might help out a bit but I'm wondering if the other tv might have a better tuner. I know internal antennas aren't the best anyway I don't want to mount an antenna outside as i would only gain 1 channel (nbc) that we would watch and our attic is tiny.
Do the SXRDs have weak tuners?
I'm trying to sell the wife on an OTA DVR and this whoel tuner thing might help.
Thanks

I'm also a "hanging on" SXRD KDS-50A2020 owner, on the second bulb of its life and no optical block failures of any kind...the set is still pleasing with both 1080p and DVD sources, albeit small for our needs (I'm dying for a larger 70" or up Sharp LCD, but we just don't have the money)...

Anyway, I had a question about these sets' "Color Matrix" settings in the Setup menu -- what should this be on? I have always left this at "Standard" without any -- seemingly -- issues with color, but is this okay to leave it on?

And because I'm using HDMI (Video 6 port) for my Blu-ray connection, feeding 1080p signals to the 'A2020, is this the reason I don't get all the options for "CineMotion" and Sony's processing modes (Reality/Clarity etc.)? If so, should I have no concerns about just leaving the set as-is without worrying about its processing? Is this because due to the fact the TV is seeing 1080p incoming resolution, its internal processing is bypassed? Can anyone explain this to me?

Thanks in advance...

Funny, I just decided today to see if this thread is still alive, and it is.
I just replaced my bulb with 8582 hours. It still worked, but the warning was popping up. The picture did come back to life with the new bulb - I did not realize how they dim over time. I will keep the old one on hand just in case the new one breaks one day.

As far as OTA, that is a tempting alternative to the rising cost of FIOS.
I am well versed in antennas and will try to give some advice.

Of course the ideal antenna is large (for gain) and mounted as high as possible, outside, with a rotor. I don't know where you live relative to a nearby city and transmitter towers. If you are getting some stations you must be near some transmitters.

When you say you get 4 more channels up stairs, does that mean 4 more RF channels (3, 6, 10, 12) or 4 more sub-channels (10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4) from one more RF channel?

I would think that the additional channel(s) is/are the result of the added antenna hieght, but it could also be antenna location (near a window), building material (aluminum siding), antenna angle relative to the transmitter, objects in and out of the building, and/or TV receiver sensitivity.

An option may be to run a long cable to the antenna upstairs, but this could result in signal loss in the cable. There are powered indoor antennas on the market as well that may get you more signals. Relocating the down stairs indoor antenna may also bring positive/negative results. Try to have it near a window and try it at various angles, both horizontal and vertical and everything in between. Also, with digital TV, do things slowly. There is a lag time between when a DTV reciever sees a signal, and when the TV shows a picture. In the old days of analog TV, moving rabbit ears gave instant feedback in the screen, not true with DTV.

Another down side to DTV signal hunting is that the TV must be programmed to receive the channels, they are not all available just by turning the knob like on analog TVs.

Play around and you may be surprised what you can watch.

BTW try this website: http://www.antennapoint.com/
Edited by Larry L - 4/17/13 at 10:02am