My 40XBR800 has been globbed!!!!

[mibnyr]

I can't complain too much about this because I read almost everything on this board concerning this TV and it's problems. Basically, I found a really great deal in someone who was moving to California and had to get rid of the set. He bought it in December 2003 and let me (and 2 of my strongest friends) take it away for just over a grand. Since I just sold my fiance's old car for $900, I figured it was worth the gamble.

As you can guess, once I hooked it up and played with it for a while I found the infamous green globs. One is in the lower left corner along the side wall. The other is a larger round glob in the upper right. I think it also has geometry problems as the picture looks slightly shifted to the left by less than an inch.

My questions for the experts/powers that be is this. Would getting this thing calibrated by an expert help me at in this situation? If so, are would someone please recommend one in the Central NJ area? Or, should I take the reciept and start the warranty claim process now and hope that in 6 months to a year Sony finally comes up with something?

Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Matt

[Electricpotatoe]

Sounds like your CRT may need to be degaussed (demagnetized). Also be sure that there are no external speakers too close to the tube. The magnets from the speakers can cause globs of colors unless the speakers are magnetically shielded. Modern CRT TV sets or monitors have automatic degaussing coils that work when a set is turned on. A manual degaussing using an external degaussing is sometimes needed. That is done with a more powerful degaussing coil that plugs in you AC receptacle. A TV shop would have one you could borrow if you leave a good deposit.

[DigitalB]

It also sounds like a magnet problem to me too. I have a KV-40XBR700 and my friends have the KV-40XBR800 with the memory stick reader. One of my friends KV-40XBR800 had a "glob" problem with pink, green and yellow. It appears to be due to the floor heater that the TV is next to. If we move the TV set, then bad color flare is greatly minimized. The Sony tech came out and demagnetized the set and then added in some tiny magnets to counter act the discoloration. Its not perfect, but its much better but still slightly noticable.

See if moving the location of the TV set changes the excessive green (sorry it's 350 lbs, I don't want to move mine anymore than I have to). Check for any magnetic or metal sources near the set or even in the wall behind the set. If moving changes the intensity, or location of the discoloration, then its environmental. Then degauss the CRT and you may have to try moving the set again. Worst case, you may need to get a professional who knows how to add the tiny counter magnets to offset the effect you are seeing. Hope this helps. Its a nice bright tube and works much better in bright light than any of the rear projection sets. But the large tube can have its problems too.

[mibnyr]

Thanks for the replies. E-potatoe, my subwoofer was the culprit for the discoloration on the right side. I've tried moving my Klpisch speakers all over the place to no effect with the small glob on the lower left. I also still have the small screen shift issue.
I'd like to have someone who knows what they're doing come out to try the magnet trick and to calibrate set. What do you guys think is a fair price and can anyone make a recommendation?

Thanks,
Matt

[TH3_FRB]

The lower left side is the usual suspect with this set...mine had it. It's a result of the shadow mask inside the tube being warped or otherwise damaged for some reason. It cannot be fixed without replacing the tube. You could have a tech come out and try to minimize it with magnets but this will introduce additional problems. Do you have the original receipt for the set? You might want to try a warranty claim to have it replaced. First you'll need to get an authorized Sony tech make a trip to attempt a fix...but the key here is to get him working for you. You need the tech to tell the regional claims rep that he tried everything possible and isn't able to fix the problem 100%. My tech was really cool...he worked on it for about an hour with magnets and such and it was better but not perfect. He said the only rweal fix was to replace the tube and that it was more trouble then it's worth. I asked him to suggest a replacement and he was morte then happy to help. Eventually I got SOny to agree to replace the set but I requested a 34XBR960 instead of another 40". I used the reasoning that we all know the 40" has issues and we could all avoid problems down the road if we just avoid the 40" completely...it worked. The shipped me a 34XBR960 the week they were released. The whole deal took almost 6 months to get through but I got rid of the 40". Do a search here and you'll find a few threads I posted in detailing my long claim process.

[TH3_FRB]

Do NOT use a hand-help coil to degaus this set...you'll likely do more damage. The lower left side green glob is a result of a design flaw of some sort...it's very common.

Originally posted by Electricpotatoe
Sounds like your CRT may need to be degaussed (demagnetized). Also be sure that there are no external speakers too close to the tube. The magnets from the speakers can cause globs of colors unless the speakers are magnetically shielded. Modern CRT TV sets or monitors have automatic degaussing coils that work when a set is turned on. A manual degaussing using an external degaussing is sometimes needed. That is done with a more powerful degaussing coil that plugs in you AC receptacle. A TV shop would have one you could borrow if you leave a good deposit.

[mibnyr]

Thanks for all the advice in youir replies. I'm having some trouble getting the former owner of the set to send me the reciept. He's responded with a few emails, but nothing has shown up in the mail yet. I guess he's fairly preoccupied with his move to California, but it's still frustrating.

Hopefully he'll get it to me soon and I can call Sony about sending a technician out to have a look. If it does need to be replaced, should I go with a smaller 16:9 CRT, or should I ask for an equivalently priced LCD RP?

Thanks again,

Matt.

[TH3_FRB]

Depends on what your preference is. My experience is that they will give you an even trade for the 34XBR960 if you ask. It'll cost ~$300 for the 42WE655. They are happy to do upgrade deals if you want...just have to pay the extra cash.

[Perryt]

Hello,

How did you approach the subject of the upgrade with Sony? I might need that option.

I bought a 40xbr800 last April and it has had the lower-left green glob from day one. No other problems though. Sony has tried replacing it twice but both times the delivery company damaged the new set before arrival. A third set has been shipped but I'm starting to get worried after reading about all the problems people are having. I don't want to get a set that might have more problems then the one I already have.

I'll see what happens but it would be nice to have an option of upgrading. Most of the TV I watch is 4:3 so the 34XBR960 trade won't work for me. I would need at least a 42" set to get a decent sized 4:3 picture without chopping off the top and bottom. I do love the picture quality of the 40xbr800 though. I'm not sure I want to go projection.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Perry

[TH3_FRB]

It should be easy if they have already agreed to replace the set. They really don't care what it gets replaced with. Just tell them that you'd prefer a different model to avoid the known issues associated with the 40" tube. They gave me an even trade for the 34XBR960. When that delivery went bad (damaged) I asked to upgrade tto the 42WE655 ecpecting I'd have to cough up some extra cash but they gave it to me at no cost for all the trouble I'd been through.

[Perryt]

Wow! Fast reply. If they smash the 3rd TV I'll see about getting the 42WE655. I think it's about 1/3 the weight. I'll have to stop by the local electronics store to check out the image quality.

Thanks.

[TH3_FRB]

More like 1/4 the weight or less. The 40" weighs in at 305lbs and is extremely front heavy due to the tube...3 people MINIMUM to move it more then a few inches otherwise you'll watch it flip forward and land face down. The 42WE655 is about 65lbs I believe...I can pick it up and move it myself...although it's a little awkward due to the size so I'd get help if I needed to negotiate any steps. My personal advice would be to pray for a damaged delivery and then call Sony and ask for the no-cost upgrade for all your trouble...just be firm and explain that you prefer to avoid any future problems by closing this claim out once and for all. They are very aware of the problems with the big tube and I'm sure would much prefer get as many out of circulation as possible...although they may not admit that.

Originally posted by Perryt
Wow! Fast reply. If they smash the 3rd TV I'll see about getting the 42WE655. I think it's about 1/3 the weight. I'll have to stop by the local electronics store to check out the image quality.

Thanks.

[Perryt]

Well, I'm going to be getting a 42WE655 now. The delivery company was finally able to deliver the tv undamaged, BUT, the replacement tv had the same problem with discoloration. This time, it was on three sides of the tube. The technician came out again and diagnosed it as a bad tube and recommended an upgrade exchange.

I was originally told it would cost more for the 42we655 but after talking with customer service, Sony agreed to make the trade at no cost because of all the trouble I went through. This is a great deal since the 42we655 is new and the 40xbr800 was a refurbished unit that I bought at a very good price. They also offered to extend the factory warranty to 2 years to match the warranty on the xbr800.

I have to say that I am very pleased with how Sony has handled this situation. The customer service agent I worked with was very pleasant and courteous. Now I am anxiously awaiting arrival of the new tv.

[TH3_FRB]

Congrats...you'll love the 42WE. Not only is the 42WE new, it has HDMI input, internal HD tuner, optical digital audio output, and a cablecard slot! I just got my 55WF this morning and will be selling my 42WE to a friend at a very good price.

[kumala]

i have the same problem and this is my second go around. I think mine is an internal problem, because no matter where i move it its still there. I to me that is horseshit when they tell you to move your tv around until the globs go away. for one the tv is 350 lbs, two I don't want to watch tv in a small corner of my living room, three i would feel like a dumb ass having this tv dictate where it wants to be. I payed over 2500 for this, hell no.

[TH3_FRB]

While it is true that magnetic fields from the earth and power lines can affect these large tubes that's not a reasonable solution to the problem we have. The 40" tube is just too big to maintain color purity. There are ways to try and mask the impurities but that usually results in other problems like geometry issues. As nice as the picture on the 40" is, it's just too damn big and that leads to problems. Sony is completely aware of this...although they may not admit it directly. As I suggested to perryt, you should start working with Sony to have the 40" replaced with something else less troublesome...the 34XBR960 is a good choice if you really want a direct view tube otherwise you might consider the 42WE655. I'd bet you can get either one at no extra charge, especially if you've gone through multiple 40's and still aren't happy.


Originally posted by kumala
i have the same problem and this is my second go around. I think mine is an internal problem, because no matter where i move it its still there. I to me that is horseshit when they tell you to move your tv around until the globs go away. for one the tv is 350 lbs, two I don't want to watch tv in a small corner of my living room, three i would feel like a dumb ass having this tv dictate where it wants to be. I payed over 2500 for this, hell no.

[cajieboy]

Originally posted by TH3_FRB
While it is true that magnetic fields from the earth and power lines can affect these large tubes that's not a reasonable solution to the problem we have. The 40" tube is just too big to maintain color purity. There are ways to try and mask the impurities but that usually results in other problems like geometry issues. As nice as the picture on the 40" is, it's just too damn big and that leads to problems. Sony is completely aware of this...although they may not admit it directly. As I suggested to perryt, you should start working with Sony to have the 40" replaced with something else less troublesome...the 34XBR960 is a good choice if you really want a direct view tube otherwise you might consider the 42WE655. I'd bet you can get either one at no extra charge, especially if you've gone through multiple 40's and still aren't happy.

I totally agree. The 40" tube seems just too big to maintain color purity, and this is a design flaw. I've owned my 40XBR800 for a little over 2 years,and after about a year it developed a slight impurity along the edge on the upper left side. Most of the time I don't see it, but it's there nonetheless. I don't dare put any speakers or other magnetic field gear around it. Thing is, other than this the 40XBR has been great and has excellent PQ. This and the fact that I still have 3 years left on my CC Extended Warranty has kept me from attempting to enact my CC Warranty.

Does anyone have any experience dealing w/CC on something like this?

[cstu]

I'm thinking about buying a 40XBR used and was wondering what a fair price would be for it. This one doesn't any green blobs, is there anything else I should look for?

[TH3_FRB]

Well, if it's an 800 series in great condition and never had any problems I'd probably say $1200-1400 is a fair price unless it has some type of extended warranty that transfers with it. But even if it doesn't have issues right now be careful. You could easily create problems just by moving and transporting the 350lb beast. Good luck.

[cstu]

The guy wants $1400, which is fair for a TV of this size and quality, but my main concern is anything happening to it during the move. It's only 5 miles away, but who knows what could happen to it. If I could get it for under $1000 I'd be more willing to take the chance.

[Jeff Ray]

CSTU,

The set better be almost new. I paid $400 more when it was new and on clearance from a reputable retailer. That was about six months ago. Hey, if the person wants to get rid of it, they ought to pay you to remove it from their premises. If the price includes the stand then, you might be in the right price zone if it is a vintage 2004 machine. Still, in the bid and ask game, you ought to get closer to $1000. After all, a new Sony 36HS420 goes for less than their ask. You do have nice new alternatives out there.

Jeff in NYC

[TH3_FRB]

How old is it? Is it still covered under the original warranty...2 years?

[A_Pac]

did you try http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=498086

[jbug]

I purchased the Sony 40' model for Christmas 2004. I haven't had the slightess problems with it. Not to say they won't or can't pop up later though. I did get the extended warranty from CC though. I am very pleased with this set. If it ever gives out, I hope it happens about the time they fix the shortcomings related to plasma sets. I would definitely move up to a larger plasma screen. There are others out there who have not had any problems with their 40' sets.