Pictures goes out but Sound stays on

[tarigand]

All,

Here is the model number:
Samsung HLR5067WX/XAA

So I have been doing crazy research to see if anyone has had this problem, but it seems like I am the only one. Hopefully I can get an answer to this problem before I go out and spend another $1500 on a new LCD TV.

The problem I have is that when I am watching TV, playing a DVD, hooking up a laptop via VGA, or playing XBOX, the screen just goes black, but the sound stays on. No red lights show up, other than the red light when i turn the TV off for the lamp. When I turn the TV off, I can see the screen finally shutting off a few seconds later. I replaced the lamp, and noticed that when the screen goes black, the lamp is still on, so I do not think its a lamp issue. We cleaned out the dust, and my cousin also took apart most of the boards and cleaned them as well. So there isnt much dust left in there. I dont think the color wheels is getting stuck because we dont hear a noise when the screen goes black, but we do believe that there is a heating or power issue. It has gotten worse over the months, first it would last more than 3 hours and then go black, and decrease throught the day. We tried placing a fan in the back, but that did not work. We had a Samsung "technician" come to our house, and he had never seen the problem before either. He suggested that we replace the digital board, but that costs $600.

So I thought before I just give up on this TV and go out and buy a LCD, I thought I would take some advice and see if you guys/girls have any thoughts on this problem without having to spend $$$$ to repair it.

Thanks,
-T

[ovadoggvo]

tarigand,
The problem you are describing to me seems to be a bad DMD board. A digital board is also a possibility, however, from my experience with these TVs... When there is a blackout the DMD board is 70% of the time at fault. And $600 is rediculous.. I know.. Samsung is crazy on their pricing..

I would recommend buying the complete light engine from D-M for $250-$350 here:
http://www.discount-merchant.com/Search ... 7W++engine
The above comes with the DMD board and optical block... Samsung wants $1000 for that!

They also carry the bare DMD board there for $180-$220

Also, the Digital Boards are around $80-$150

Let us know how it goes.

[tarigand]

ovadoggvo,

thank you for the reply.
lets say i do replace the DMD board, what guarantee do I have that it wont fail again? i mean lets say it fails again in a year, thats $300 i could have spent towards a new tv correct? i appreciate the help, but im just not sure I want to spend more money than I have to on this TV. I think if it is a faulty part, that SAMSUNG should replace it as a manufacturers defect, even if it isnt under warranty. I am sure a lot of people have had this problem, and im not sure what other people think, but TV's should last more then 3 years, especially if you spend close to $2500 on them.

Just my two cents.

[ovadoggvo]

Tarigand,
The DMD boards on these TV's normally last 3-5 years. I can't gaurantee that it will last a long time, however, in this economy $300 is better than $1200-$1500 for a comparible set. You will be spending $300 but in 1-5 years, if and when it does fail, you will be able to get a bigger better TV for cheaper as technology advances. In my personal opinion, that $300 will go a long way.

In today's market you will be able to buy a 52" 120Hz 1080P SLIM line LCD for around $3500 (this is currently top of the line).

In the market that presents 1-3 years from now, that same TV may cost $1200-$1500.. This is a bigger savings than the $300 right now. Specially with the current economy. And maybe a 65" TV with the same specs will be around $3500 (which is around $7000 in todays market).

I hope this makes sense and explains the reason behind why people repair their TV's even if it does mean only another year or two before making that big expense.

[tarigand]

ovadoggvo,

Thank you for the reply. I will talk to my cousins and uncle about this purchase, but I did have one question. I cant seem to find just the DMD Board on Discount-Merchants website, can you point me in the right direction?

Thanks

[ovadoggvo]

tarigand,
I don't see the bare DMD board on there either. If you are gonna make the leap, I would recommend the following light engine:
http://www.discount-merchant.com/We-pro ... amsung.htm

The price is only $259 and it comes with the opticle block, DMD board, and color wheel! Should keep your TV running for a long time to come.

It's still less than half the price of the DMD board alone from Samsung.

Let us know how it goes!