DLP Light Engine issues

[dont24]

Anyone here with a Sammy DLP that had a light engine replaced. Just got one replaced under an extended warranty on my 72". Warranty is good until August. Problem is I was told Samsung no longer makes new engines. Everything is all refurbished. Issue was a bad dmd board. Dreaded white spots issue. So the 1st attempt failed. Both the DMD board and the ballast was bad. 2nd attempt was done on Tuesday and no issues. Repair shop told me a 30 day warranty. Not really an issue since I'm good until August. But doesn't give me a warm feeling to know Samsung is sending out crap parts. I'd tear someone a new one if I had to pay out of pocket and the part failed say 60 days out. Samsung must provide a better warranty for refurb'd parts?? It'll probably be time to get out of the DLP arena, if I have another LE out of warranty. Problem is no one makes a a non dlp 72" or so TV. Projector is not an option. Too much light during the day.

 

[teachsac]

Sharp makes 70" and 80" sets.

S~

 

[Stargazer]

Was it an LED DLP or just a DLP? I bought a 67" LED DLP 2 1/2 years ago and have had no issues with it.

 

[Jonhern]

yeah our rca 61inch has had a lot of issues in the 8 years we have had it. will never buy another dlp again.something went wrong with it that it blacks out all the time and then turns it self off, just a paper weight now, long out of the extended warrenty. i did see a 70 inch sharp lcd, or plasma, at bjs the other day, so there is that option. but from my experiance dont expect your set to last another year or two without a major repair. dlps are just not reliable and not worth the hassale.

 

[StevenD]

yeah our rca 61inch has had a lot of issues in the 8 years we have had it. will never buy another dlp again.something went wrong with it that it blacks out all the time and then turns it self off, just a paper weight now, long out of the extended warrenty. i did see a 70 inch sharp lcd, or plasma, at bjs the other day, so there is that option. but from my experiance dont expect your set to last another year or two without a major repair. dlps are just not reliable and not worth the hassale.

That sounds like an overheating issue. Pull that thing apart, clean out all the dust, then put an auxiliary fan where the vent is to get more airflow through there.

I have a Samsung DLP that is about 8 years old that is still on the ORIGIANAL lamp. It currently has about 12,000 hours on it. I put a fan on it about a year after I bought it because I read about overheating issues.

 

[dont24]

Mine is a lamp based DLP. At the time in 2008, was the best bang for the buck. Got a deal from Sams Club. TV came with a free Sammy stand.
Saw the 70" lcds. Would be a little bit of a downgrade as far as size goes. 80" is just too big for my space. To replace dmd board, it requires some alignment.
Most repair shops opt to just replace the entire LE.

 

[teachsac]

You won't notice a 2" difference. Light Engine failure is not uncommon with DLPs. My Mits had the same problem. Luckily Mits replaced it under recall.

S~

 

[KAB]

This is wild. My 5 yr old Sammy DLP started getting stars just a week ago tonight. Have three as of today. Been studying an old AVS forum thread. It's a chip causing the problem. Cleaning mirrors will not help. Have not quite gotten to the bottom of the fix yet...the thread is 26 pages long. Extended warranty expired early March. I do know the ballast has nothing to do with it, though.

 

[Jonhern]

That sounds like an overheating issue. Pull that thing apart, clean out all the dust, then put an auxiliary fan where the vent is to get more airflow through there.

I have a Samsung DLP that is about 8 years old that is still on the ORIGIANAL lamp. It currently has about 12,000 hours on it. I put a fan on it about a year after I bought it because I read about overheating issues.

I'll try that, worth a shot, but we have had a fan next to it for about 4 of the years. Almost all the insides has been replaced at some point when we had the extended warranty from Best Buy. And I bought a new lamp last year for it, its thrid lamp since we had it, and i always kept it on the setting to save lamp life, instead of blasting the brightness.

 

[Stargazer]

Are the LED DLP's subject to this?

 

[dont24]

Are the LED DLP's subject to this?

Basically yes, except the bulb shouldn't have to be replaced. Same downfall with the LE parts.

 

[dont24]

This is wild. My 5 yr old Sammy DLP started getting stars just a week ago tonight. Have three as of today. Been studying an old AVS forum thread. It's a chip causing the problem. Cleaning mirrors will not help. Have not quite gotten to the bottom of the fix yet...the thread is 26 pages long. Extended warranty expired early March. I do know the ballast has nothing to do with it, though.

It's the DMD or DLP chip. You may want to call Samsung. I know they used to do a one time replacement of the chip at their cost on certain models. Not sure if it's still the case, but worth a shot. The chip itself is not that expensive, but I was told it requires some aligning.

 

[Jonhern]

Well I took it apart to clean it and it was dirty, but when I put the light back in and turned it on i noticed neither of the fans, the one below the DLP chip and the one in the lamp enclosure, were turning on. Don't think its the power supply as the color wheel was spinning. I did a search and some said if the fan is dead the lamp wont turn on. The lamp did not look dead, the other times it died the filament broke or was black, the lamp looks fine, plus it has not been used in awhile. The last time i tried to turn it on I got a picture but after about a minute it went black, and the picture kept coming on and off. That was around the Superbowl. This time the lamp never turned on and the power button blinked 5times and then it turned it self off. Anyway, I will think about investing more money into this thing, i found the fan online for $7 at one place and $20 at another, did not check the shipping cost. The lamp has come way down in price, i saw most places had it for about $70. I just don't want to put more money into it if its something else that is wrong, like the light engine. That was replaced once before by BB.

 

[KAB]

It's the DMD or DLP chip. You may want to call Samsung. I know they used to do a one time replacement of the chip at their cost on certain models. Not sure if it's still the case, but worth a shot. The chip itself is not that expensive, but I was told it requires some aligning.

I found the chip I need and detailed instructions. About $150.00. Alignment not necessary as long as you don't mess certain screws.

 

[Jonhern]

looking more at the inside, i think its a design issue with the tv itself. I mean they have the fan blowing the hot air out of the lamp right into the inside of the tv instead of through the sides where the vents are. no wonder it always overheats. Anyway, I tried to take the fan out but the whole enclosure is screwed in tight and could not get it out, the easiest way would be to just remove the box where it attaches the light gun but the screws for it and fan are in the back and hard to reach, got my torx screw in there but could not loosen it. Just taken the model number of the fan to a local shop and see if they have it, and then get a friend that does tv repair to take a shot at it.

 

[navychop]

Sharp makes 70" and 80" sets.

S~

They $ure do!

My JVC LCoS is now 7 years old. No problems, but getting worried. It's 61" and there's not much on the market near that size to choose from.

 

[KAB]

They $ure do!

My JVC LCoS is now 7 years old. No problems, but getting worried. It's 61" and there's not much on the market near that size to choose from.

Several 60+" Plasma's out there...LG, Samsung's, Pannys.

 

[navychop]

I stand corrected. Not many I can watch in a sunlit room. I keep forgetting plasmas are still out there. Not anti-plasma, just don't see them for the living room.

Or is there a suitable plasma for sun lit rooms now?

 

[teachsac]

Samsung and Sony also make 60" LEDs depending on te model.

S~

 

[navychop]

I can see I'd have to pay $1,500 to $5,000 for 60" and up. Sigh. I paid about $3,000 7 years ago for my 61" JVC LCoS RPTV. Thankfully, it is still going strong. But I'm reading more tales of unrepairable failures, and watched the AVS forums on the product line wither. Now even DLPs seem to be failing. I don't think it'll hold up until a reasonably priced 60" or so (or even 55") OLED arrives on scene.

And I'm hearing bad things about the 70" & 80" models. And FPTV is not in the cards.

So LCD or plasma it will likely be.