TV - To replace or not to replace?

[tam.audio]

I have 4 year old DLP projection tv that just died. I spent $150 and replaced the lamp and it's still dead. Apparently if I replace the ballast ($80+) it should work because if the lamp is good (which it should be because it's new) then the ballast is bad. If I replace the ballast and it still doesn't fix the TV I would be spending $230+ to attempt to fix my TV.

My questions is this: Should I attempt to fix the tv for the low, low price of $230+ or just go buy a new TV? What would you do?

 

[Confuzius]

Fix the tv, wait a year or so until 3d TV's are cheap. The first round of 3d TVs are just coming out now and are $2-3K. Now is not the time to buy a new TV, unless you want to get Tech that will be "obsoleted" soon for cheaper.

 

[buyandhold2018]

Ok, let's do the math...

Let's say a new TV costs $1000.

The total repair on your DLP is $230...

You already have $150 invested in a new lamp.

You can invest $80 more for the potential to save $1000 (well, atleast for the short term, until you really need to have that 3D Panasonic TV)

Pot odds say the $80 is a good bet... actually, after spending the $150, you are essentially pot committed.

Of course there are other factors to consider but the $80 doesn't seem like a very bad bet.

 

[tam.audio]

Ok, let's do the math...

Let's say a new TV costs $1000.

The total repair on your DLP is $230...

You already have $150 invested in a new lamp.

You can invest $80 more for the potential to save $1000 (well, atleast for the short term, until you really need to have that 3D Panasonic TV)

Pot odds say the $80 is a good bet... actually, after spending the $150, you are essentially pot committed.

Of course there are other factors to consider but the $80 doesn't seem like a very bad bet.

The only problem I have is the chance that neither parts fixes the tv (even though every indication says it will).

 

[tam.audio]

Fix the tv, wait a year or so until 3d TV's are cheap. The first round of 3d TVs are just coming out now and are $2-3K. Now is not the time to buy a new TV, unless you want to get Tech that will be "obsoleted" soon for cheaper.

Side note, not a fan of 3D movies, tv shows, etc. Don't understand hype.

 

[buyandhold2018]

The only problem I have is the chance that neither parts fixes the tv (even though every indication says it will).

Ya, that's why I used the poker analogy... in the end you can still lose the hand. I wish you Good Luck though.

 

[Confuzius]

Side note, not a fan of 3D movies, tv shows, etc. Don't understand hype.

I thought the same until I saw Avatar, it's a different, more subtle 3d than has generally been used before. There are currently 34 3d movies in production, including the latest Harry Potter, Transformers and much more. Like it or not, it seems to be the way the industry is headed.

My only worry is that the non-3d versions of these movies will be lacking as so much of the design and planning was done with 3d in mind.

 

[Black Adder]

I'm not trying to be a jerk here, Kyle, but do you KNOW what is wrong with the TV? From reading your post, it seems like you're trying a lot of different fixes without addressing what might be the real problem.

I had my Toshiba projection TV go bad on me, and I had to call in some help to find what the problem was, and even then there was good help and bad help. The first guy said it was my transformer. He couldn't replace it then, but told me he'd call me back after ordering a new one from the factory. When he did call, he told me none were available for a set that wasn't even 2 years old! The next guy I called knew what he was doing. After describing the problem on the phone, he told me that my scan converter was bad. He came out, replaced the converter, and had everything going in no time. The first guy obviously didn't know what he was talking about, and would have probably charged me for the parts even though there was nothing wrong with them.

Again, I don't know your background or level of experience with video equipment, but it might be time for a professional to pinpoint the problem.

Don

 

[betat]

Depending on how much you are in love with your old TV, this sounds like a great excuse to buy bigger or better. With the price of LCD coming down you can get both bigger and better at a reasonable price. Even if money is tight, it stinks to throw good money after bad. Besides, I am convinced that we have reached the point of disposable technology even with bigger ticket items like TVs.

 

[Phog Allen]

I am not too familiar with projection tvs and I have no idea what screen size yours is. About six months ago my dearest wife (all 120lbs of her) decided to change the layout of the living room. She moved our old Sony Vega 27" CRT set to the floor by herself. Hmm. When I later came home and moved it back to the stand it would not work. At all. A bunch of googling told me it was dead, and was not coming back any time soon. I think she probably plopped it on the floor a bit too hard. So what to do? We simply were in no position to drop a few thousand dollars into a nice tele. I figured it was going to have to be a Walmart special or mayhaps catch something on sale at Best Buy. Best Buy was closer and fortune shone upon us. They had their own Insignia brand teles on sale and we grabbed the 42" model for $498. It was normally about $650. The clerk alleged that LG makes them. It is the dreaded 60Hz refresh rate instead of 120Hz but since I am not even sure what that means in tv parlance, I went with it. It was four hundred dollars cheaper than the same model with 120Hz refresh. They were about six feet apart in the display and I could not see a visible difference in them. So, if you wind up thinking you may need to spend too much money in repairs, the Best Buy house brand is a fairly cheap option as an interim. At least when on sale. So far we have had zero issues with it.

Regards, Todd

 

[mgarbell]

Do you want a new TV? If so, you can always find a way to justify getting one.
You should be able to sell that lamp you just bought and recoup most of the cost if you do so.

Also, not to push them, because I actually hate the place, but if you are looking for a good deal, you might also want to consider an open box deal from Best Buy. We got our TV there for close 50% off retail. It was such a good deal we went back a few months later when we decided to replace the TV in the bedroom.

However, if you do go with their house brands, Insignia or Dynex, just be aware that they aren't quite as good as other name brands. Unless you are a videophile, you probably won't care though.

 

[s1mp13m4n]

Side note, not a fan of 3D movies, tv shows, etc. Don't understand hype.

I think at this point I would try and fix the TV. Now what I do find funny is all this "new hype" about 3D, UMMM didn't we do this in the 80's folks? LOL Heck just give me a TV that works. I am still using my 26 inch Magnavox that was given to me and it was made in 1995 and still works just fine. I just can not justify $3k for a TV, but that is just me. I do hope that you get your TV fixed soon. Have a great day.

 

[Defend Tacoma]

I would definately get a new TV. I picked up a great Toshiba 48" LCD for about $800 from a local retailer. The picture looks so much better than my 6 year old Samsung DLP, it's really quite amazing. My old TV quit working, and was sold on craigslist for $20 bucks. 3D is overrated IMO.

Also my tv is now mounted on the wall, it looks much cleaner than sitting on a TV stand!

-J

 

[Alacrity59]

I'm not sure I'd call buying a TV an investment. The new ones are not lasting too long. To me it is part of the entertainment budget. Kinda like dress pants now . . . you pay more for the dry cleaning than the pants would ever cost. For TVs it costs a lot more for cable and dvds than the screen which will probably crap out in less than 5 years.

 

[tam.audio]

Ok...

So I decided to gamble and buy the ballast part, total investment in parts right now is $250. This part comes in Monday, should this not work, I'm sure I could sell both the lamp and the ballast online as there seems to be a market for these parts.

Main reasons I decided not to buy a new TV:

1. If I buy new it's a plasma, only plasmas available through Best Buy are 42" or 50" (why Best Buy? See reason 2). 50" tv's are expensive and I don't want to down grade from a 46" to a 42".

2. I just financed (no interest for 18 mo.) a new PS3 and monitor for my desktop computer and do not want to pay that off in its entirety to turn around and finance a tv for upwards of $800.

I'm a media guy and value my quality equipment (i.e. investment in computers for audio work, stereo and tv for movies/tv/video games and previewing of my own work). But rarely do I have the ability to drop a lot of cash when something breaks.

I appreciate all the input.

 

[ironbrewer]

SPAM!!!

Great first post by the way?

 

[tam.audio]

SPAM!!!

Great first post by the way?

yeah really? That's gotta be scam. No way is Sears trolling the internet for dead appliance posts.

 

[knlgskr]

There are those who repair and there are those who are parts-changers. If you are not sure of the cause of a problem; get a good diagnostician. There is nothing wrong with repairing a television and if you want/need to replace it Consumer Reports is a good source of information.

 

[Thebigspendur]

There are those who repair and there are those who are parts-changers. If you are not sure of the cause of a problem; get a good diagnostician. There is nothing wrong with repairing a television and if you want/need to replace it Consumer Reports is a good source of information.

Very true however the issue is to decide what the specific problem is and pull circuit boards out and change specific parts which means big labor costs so it's easier to just change the entire circuit board and charge you for all the parts you don't need. The "new" circuit board is probably just remanufactured old parts anyway.

Also, finding a competent technician as opposed to a circuit board jockey is very difficult.

 

[knlgskr]

Very true however the issue is to decide what the specific problem is and pull circuit boards out and change specific parts which means big labor costs so it's easier to just change the entire circuit board and charge you for all the parts you don't need. The "new" circuit board is probably just remanufactured old parts anyway.

Also, finding a competent technician as opposed to a circuit board jockey is very difficult.

True, not likely there will ever be a surplus of competent service personnel.