[Phil Smith]

I sell on ebay for a living, and over the last 3 or 4 of years have bought and sold a few digital projectors. I never messed with them other than to be sure there were working properly. About 1 1/2 years ago, one came in and I hooked it up to my DVD and audio system just for kicks. Having only seen a few projection systems, and they were VERY old, and a friend's system that is poorly set up, my expectations were very low. The Sharp XG-C40XU is not much of a projector, but it performed way beyond anything I could have imagined. I was simply blown away. I soon sold my Mitsubishi widescreen and set up the Sharp permanently.


About 6 mouths ago, my friend with the poorly set up CRT had it set up properly. It now looks great, and while I always knew my projectors colors were a bit weird and the contrast was horrible, I soon began to realize how severe those shortcomings were, and notice other shortcomings as well. I've also learned a lot from reading this forum from time to time over the last 1 1/2 years, which also contributed to my dissatisfaction with my projector. (Damn you all! I WAS content with my projector. Ignorance is bliss sometimes.)


In any event, I have reached a point of intolerance with my projector. This morning I noticed a Barco 1208s on ebay which was local. The fact that I could pick it up in person and avoid shipping cost and shipping trauma, not to mention I could check it out before paying, made it very appealing to me. I researched this model and didn't find much, but at the last minute, after much debate, I decided to go for it.


I did notice a few AVS Forum members own this model. Any advice is appreciated. Here's a link to the auction. From the short period I had to research it, and from what little I know about this stuff, I THINK I got a decent projector at a decent price. Let me know if I screwed up or not:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...ME:B:EOAB:US:6


--

Thanks,


Phil Smith

Dallas, TX Dallas Music: http://www.dallas-music.com

 

[Chuchuf]

Here is the god news and the bad news Phil.

The G CRT is pretty badly burned, and it is very uneven burn. This will show up most when you have a white screen and you will notice it in other lighter screens. This being a 1208S it most likely uses Sony CRT's which means you cannot send the G CRT to VDC and have it rebuilt. You are stuck with trying to find one on the used market (good luck) or a new one from Barco, or live with it the way it is. Unfortunately the burn is pretty bad and looks like computer graphics and will be very noticable.

The good news is that this will make an outstanding CRT when you get it set up and from the pictures the R & B CRT's look good.


Terry.

 

[Andrew_Ballew]

Yeah, that green tube is toast. Useless. Otherwise, that is an excellent model PQ wise... have fun!

 

[KennyG]

well, at 2 grand, and you don't have to pay for shipping you made out ok...you can stick a brand new green tube in it and it'll still be worth every penny you payed.

 

[Phil Smith]

Wow! Well I guess my first lesson will be CRT burn. I thought that a little burn was normal, and I thought the green CRT showed exactly that, a LITTLE burn. But what the photo shows is actually a lot? I e-mailed the seller about the hours, and it supposedly has 1881. I thought CRTs were good for like 10,000 hours, so I'm a bit confused.


It sounds like I did ok regardless. Thanks for the responses.


--

Thanks,


Phil Smith

Dallas, TX Dallas Music: http://www.dallas-music.com

 

[Chuchuf]

CRTs are good for a long period so long as you don't have a static image on them, which this one did and that was what burned the G CRT. Yes that is quite a bit of burn, it is ont the G CRT which is the most dominant color and will show up as a discoloration.


Terry

 

[Phil Smith]

Thanks! It think I understand that now. I'm sure I'll have a lot more questions and all your help has been and will be appreciated.

--

Thanks,


Phil Smith

Dallas, TX Dallas Music: http://www.dallas-music.com

 

[scottatl]

This is at least one place that sells a new CRT for that unit.

http://www.crtcinema.com/store/?page...5b4a6c2818b560

 

[Jay Wilson]

Hi Phil, I have a Marquee that had 10 times the burn on it and I used it for a year until I could get a new green CRT. Like you said, ignorance is bliss. While I knew the picture was suffering, I didn't realize how bad it really was until I put in the new tube last week. Even though that burn will show in the image, you may be able to use it for a bit until you get a new one. Good luck!

 

[Jay Wilson]

Phil,

Just for comparison, here is a shot of the tube I lived with for a year!

http://www.subtv.com/MVC-103S.JPG

 

[spearce]

I have the same situation as both you and Jay, Phil. I picked up a Barco 808 off ebay that was relatively local for pretty cheap. My green and blue tubes are roughly in the same condition as the green tube on your new 1208. I've been living with it for about 6 months now, and so long as I avoid cartoon movies and things with mainly white scenes, I don't notice it very much.


It does however stink compared to a good tube, and I'm currently saving up for a set of replacements. (Fortunately I can get VDC rebuilds for this set.)


I think you'd be fine with that green CRT for a while. But yes, its toast. Its not hard to have a computer burn a CRT, and can easily happen in 1,000 hours, as you have seen. If properly setup and well cared for (meaning don't leave static computer images up for hours/days) the tubes will last for 10,000 hours. The good news is your blue and red are in very good shape, you'll most likely never have to worry about them.

 

[kal]

Some wear is ok as you can compensate for it slightly (to a certain degree). What's not good is UNEVEN wear as there's no way to compensate. The parts of the tube that are browner will appear dimmer and off-colour on screen vs. the parts that are 'minty white'.


Kal

 

[Drew Eckhardt]

Quote:

Originally posted by kal Some wear is ok as you can compensate for it slightly (to a certain degree). What's not good is UNEVEN wear as there's no way to compensate. The parts of the tube that are browner will appear dimmer and off-colour on screen vs. the parts that are 'minty white'. Kal

You also don't want a _small_ wear area. If the wear area is relatively large, you can stay within it without loosing much light output. OTOH, if the projector was originally set up too far back you get to choose between an abrupt transition to a blue/green region at the sides and (potentially dramaticly) reduced light output.


It would be nice if CRT sellers showed a full-screens of white/blue/green/red with the projector no farther back than the stock throw distance.

 

[glankford]

You can even out that wear, just do a search on that topic. It basically means turning the phosphour on that tube to all the same level of burnt. You put an inverse image of the burn on the tube to fry the rest of the phosphor to the same level. It will even out your image, with careful work. It would be a zero cost alternative until you can pony up the dough for a new tube.


-Garrick

 

[Phil Smith]

Thanks for all the responses. No one posted for a couple of days and I thought this thread was dead. I just noticed the new posts.


My business has done very well the last couple of years (knock on wood) and as of right now I can really afford to buy any projector. But I HATE spending top dollar on tech-based items that are rapidly changing. To pay 6 grand for something that potentially will be worth 1 grand in 2 years just kills me. So, a leading edge guy I'm not. I don't want to be on the trailing edge either, so I always shoot for a good deal on a used item that falls somewhere in the middle of the pack.


I told the seller that his description was inaccurate (which it was) and I didn't feel I was getting what the auction led me to believe (which I didn't). Citing that it needed a new tube and I had no idea what it would cost, this projector no longer fit my "middle edge" philosophy. I decided the best thing to do was pass on it (the seller was very cool about it) and do more research before I jump in the fire. I now see that Projection Systems, Inc.'s site (thanks scottatl) list the 1208s green tube at $1,340. Once I know more about CRT projectors, I may wish I would have bought it, but for now I'm glad I passed.


E-Home 8500LCs have rebuildable tubes. Is purchasing one with fried tubes for a low price and having the tubes rebuilt a practical plan?


--

Thanks,


Phil Smith

Dallas, TX Dallas Music: http://www.dallas-music.com

 

[spearce]

The rebuildable tubes tend to run around $500-$600 from VDC, "the" tube rebuilder. So retubing a full machine will cost roughly $1500, but it does depend on the type of tube needed. Not sure what 8500s use, but i'm sure its in that ballpark.


Retubing isn't like changing a lightbulb. It can be done, but its really best by a tech who has done it before on your projector model. This is about a full day's worth of work, so retubing can easily cost you $2000+.


Something to keep in mind when looking for fried tube projectors that use rebuildable tubes.


Since most are unwilling to retube a projector, the value of a used projector is directly tied to its tube quality and life left. Therefore, there is a significant discount on a chassis with bad tubes, but is otherwise in good shape.


Generally, you'll pay about the same for a chassis + new tubes + tech to retube as you would for a chassis with good quality tubes. Maybe more if you don't have a tech nearby you (or if I've way underestimated what they will charge).


So I guess I'm saying just be careful when trying to find a fried chassis at a low price and hopeing for a deal.