Dead TV, what to do?

DaisyCutter

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My 2006 Sony Wega 42' Projection HD cooked it's bulb last year. It's been collecting dust since.

I decided to look into a replacement bulb.

I can pay $200 for a bonafide replacement bulb.

OR

I can pay $80ish for a knockoff bulb.

OR

I can junk the TV and get a new flat screen for less than $500.


Here's my conundrum. I paid $1300 for this television in 2006. I want to fix it, but I'm afraid to invest $200 in the old TV, because it may have other parts ready to go bad. It looks pretty dust comtaminated, and I'm skeptical it's picture will ever be 100% again. Frankly, in working order it's only worth $200 at best.

The gray market knockoff bulb idea seemed like a winner. Then research revealed they have a hit & miss reputation for life and performance. Most only last 150ish hours or die within 3-4 months of routine use.

The last option is to junk the TV and get a new TV. A friend of mine explained that I could harvest the screen and make some kind of wicked light magnification survival device... he offered me $50 to cannibalize the set to make a "Fresnel cooker".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wprlzCDfLm8

(Representative, not my friend. Heck yes, I googled his idea.)


What would you do?
 
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skyfire

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I say junk it! those TVs dont last long even after you fix them... another problem with them is the capacitor.
those Tvs went obselete fast. picture quality on them isnt great either. get whatever you can for it, and make room for a newer TV.

i paid $2000 for my 55" LCD, and a few months later i saw it for $1500. and im sure its less than that now. these new technological electronics arent an investment. over time itll be worth less and less.
 
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Sub_Umbra

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Long ago in a galaxy far away, when I was a kid, I can remember a TV repairman actually coming to our house and fixing it right on the spot. Light-years ago...

Junk it -- it was never designed to be maintained or fixed. Heck, I'd be hard pressed to find someone who can work on a pair of shoes in the city I live in, let alone a TV.
 
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beerwax

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you are lucky - you have full justification for an upgrade . you have 'worn out the old tv' and it is not 'economically viable' to repair and if repaired is 'superceded technology'.
you have the green light to go shopping for a new toy . enjoy ! .
 

Lite_me

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Junk it! I echo the comments above. I just gave away a perfect working 2006 34" CRT HD TV just to get rid of it so I could upgrade. Got a 46" 1080P LCD and I'm ecstatic over the new one. The picture is sooo much better. I love it! I think so will you.
 

jtr1962

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Normally I might say try and repair it in the interests of avoiding landfill, etc. In this case though the replacement is superior, and uses far less power (often a good enough reason for replacement even if the original is functional). Some things just aren't worth repairing. This is one of them. Salvage anything interesting from the set, but other than that, not worth spending any time bothering with it.
 

Lynx_Arc

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I think it is a toss up.... if you get a few years out of a $200 bulb the tv you would have bought now to replace it vs a new tv when it finally fails that would be better and probably near $200 cheaper.
 
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bansuri

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Make a fresnel death ray.
If the power goes out you could cook and boil water with it. Or just destroy stuff.
 

LukeA

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TVs (esp. projection models) depreciate so fast you should just replace it.

Don't forget to take out the sweet lens that does the projecting.
 

LukeA

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Long ago in a galaxy far away, when I was a kid, I can remember a TV repairman actually coming to our house and fixing it right on the spot. Light-years ago...

Junk it -- it was never designed to be maintained or fixed. Heck, I'd be hard pressed to find someone who can work on a pair of shoes in the city I live in, let alone a TV.

Nope. Plasma and Projection TVs are designed to be calibrated and repaired. Everything is just modular circuit boards. Usually the work is performed under warranty.

I've met TV repairmen who do house calls and there are two cobblers within 5 miles of me. They are both going to retire in not too many years.
 

LEDAdd1ct

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I tore my triceps tendon, so I haven't been able to lift/use my left arm/hand, but I did ask a friend and his brother to help (lift) a 27" 4:3 SONY Trinitron out to the curb. Made in 1992, another friend and I found it by the curb 2 miles away in 2000/2001, and kept it out of the dumpster for ten years in service in my family room downstairs. I can't afford an LCD or plasma, so I am waiting for a local CRT set that can display 720p and 1080i to become available for $50 or less. I watch very little television, but it would be nice to upgrade!

As for the OP:

If you can get $100 for it, sell it. Otherwise, cannibalize it for the lens, and feel wholly justified in purchasing something newer. :)

(typed slowly with one hand)


LEDAdd1ct
 

ebow86

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I say junk it, not worth the risk of buying a $200 bulb and having something else break or finding out something else is broken besides the bulb. Use that money towards a new TV.
 

PhotonWrangler

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I agree that it's probably time to replace it with a flat screen tv.

Open it up and look at the electrolytic capacitors closely, particularly the tops of them. If there's any sign of bulging or leakage, it's definitely time to scrap it and save a few parts from it (optics). And those bulbs generate lots of waste heat and will only become harder to find over time.
 

Marmaduke

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I say junk it, not worth the risk of buying a $200 bulb and having something else break or finding out something else is broken besides the bulb. Use that money towards a new TV.
+1> Go for a flat screen HD TV. The latest backlighting on them is LED instead of fluorescent. Sony, LG, and Panasonic are the high end brands. The crisp and sharp detail of the HD picture is amazing and actually took me some time to get used to!
 
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skyfire

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be very CAREFUL if you decide to salvage parts from it. typically, the capacitors used for those TVs can hold quite a charge.
 

Colorblinded

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I'd tend to agree, junk it. My father has a 60" Sony SXRD rear projection, it looked great when he got it but I prefer even a cheap 1080p 40" Toshiba LCD to it with a fresh bulb now.

Of course a plasma would have been the ideal choice for picture quality back then but they were a LOT more expensive and had more issues back then.
 

GrnXnham

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Ask it this way:

Would you pay $80 for a used 42" TV?

I probably would. If you can really get it to work with an $80 bulb, I would do that and use it until something more expensive dies. Heck, $80 is how much the average person spends on only one month of cable/sat/dish whatever, right? That's not a lot of money for TV entertainment.
 
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