Sony LCD Issues

[Mark Strube]

Ok, so back on January 18th, I called American about a problem with my tv. I had noticed a small, faint green circle on the right-middle of my screen. I also noticed about 3 or 4 stuck-on pixels (green).

The guy came out on Jan. 25th to look at it, and determined that it needed a new light engine, and had the order put thru to Sony for the part. They originally scheduled the repair for Feb. 3rd.

When Feb. 3rd came around, they called me and said the part still hadn't come in, and that it would probably come in within a week, and they would call me. A week passes, no call, so I call them. No part, and they don't know when it will come in. They tell me another week. This happens again and again until I finally said please call Sony NOW and find out when the part will come in. They returned my call later in the day, and said the part would be in within a week, and a repair would be scheduled for March 1st.

The guy came yesterday and installed the new part. Problem solved! Or so I thought... Now I'm noticing a bit of a green "aura" on the bottom center of the picture (fainter than the original circle, but bigger, so more annoying) and right above that is a small faint maroon-ish circle, and up and to the right a bit is a bright blue stuck-on pixel. Just like with the other problem, this shows up on all inputs. Am I going crazy? Did I get 2 defective light engines in a row??

The repair guy is coming out again tomorrow to take a look at it... but this is really getting ridiculous... with all the waiting they put me thru (like 47 days) and then for the replacement part to be defective as well... should I demand a new set? This is really getting annoying.  :bang:

[StarvingForHDTV]

I would say let them try and fix it one more time, if that fails demand a new set.  This was a recent purchase, right?

[Mark Strube]

Purchased on Oct. 6th 2004.

They just left from looking at it today. They mentioned how it's a 'minor' problem but I made the point that minor or not, when you pay over 2g + warranty for a tv, there should be NO problem... and when the picture is dark, you DO notice it, and it's NOT supposed to be there.

They're going to put a call into Sony to see if they know what the issue might be, and he said they'll probably just end up ordering another light engine.

[Mark Strube]

Well they finally fixed it again... there are now no anomalies in the picture. But! Great! New problems!

After the tech got everything hooked up, it didn't turn on at first. He realized he didn't transfer the bulb. He does that, it turns on, but now the built-in sound on the built-in analog tuner is completely muffled. You can't even tell what people are saying. I haven't tested the built-in sound on any other inputs since I don't use it for any others. He said he has no idea what the problem might be, and said he'd contact Sony. Since he's left I also notice now the front panel on my tv wasn't put on correctly, it's loose, so if I want to use the power button on the front, I have to push it WAY in before it does anything, and then it almost gets stuck inside the tv.

I've called American listing all these problems and how they never called like the tech said they would (what else is new)... they scheduled another repair with the same tech for sometime next month.

Since I called them I've recently been noticing a pretty bad "screen door" effect. I never noticed this before. Am I going crazy? Did they give me a lower resolution or lower quality light engine? I know I wasn't noticing that before, or it wouldn't become so prominent now. The fan now sounds completely different... so maybe it is a different light engine.

What in the world should I do? This is so frustrating!

[gparris]

If this is your third time of servicing this set,  maybe you should get a new set from where you bought it.
I know that at CC, when friends of mine got their Home Theater devices repaired, after the second time. they get a new ones under the CC extended warranty.
One was a Sony 42" LCD RPTV and the other was a Sony 6.1 receiver...they ended up with better products since the models had been replaced with newer models.
Maybe you just bought at the wrong retailer,  to get such a run-around.

[Mark Strube]

It is from American. I almost feel like calling and demanding a new set - fixed 2 times and then the tech screwed it up.  :guns:

[StarvingForHDTV]

Maybe suggest that after an experience like this, you are likely to do your electronics and home furnishings shopping elsewhere in the future.  Perhaps after a comment like that (if said to the right person), you will get a better solution offered to you.