Sony LCD RP 2004 - blotchy look

homerhd · Post by **homerhd** » Thu Nov 19, 2009 1:50 pm

I have a 50" Sony rear projection LCD Wega that has been running since December '04. I haven't had to replace the bulb yet. We watch an average of 3 hours a night. When I heard that Sony was discontinuing this technology, I bought a replacement bulb from them so i would have the real thing when I needed it. While my picture still looks great, I notice a slight "blotchy" look on the whites of the ice while watching hockey games. Is it possible for the picture quality to degrade as the bulb ages or is an all or none scenario? I'm just wondering if I should drop the new bulb in at this point or should I wait for the original to fail outright.

Tombanjo · Post by **Tombanjo** » Thu Nov 19, 2009 5:30 pm

My experience with a Samsung DLP is the lamp did a long slow fade that I didn't even realize it until the picture was so dark. Getting a new bulb made the picture look like it was right off the showroom floor.

On the other hand, I had two bulbs go quickly but that was the result of a failure in the bulb housing, the ballast, I believe.

I have a buddy who has your model Sony from around the same year and his picture is getting darker yet he sits there with a new bulb at the ready and doesn't swap it out. Stubborn bastard.

Richard · Post by **Richard** » Sat Nov 21, 2009 8:26 am

I notice a slight "blotchy" look on the whites of the ice while watching hockey games. Is it possible for the picture quality to degrade as the bulb ages or is an all or none scenario?

The light output and color temperature changes as the lamp ages, nothing more.

Blotchy would point to something else such as an optical cleaning for this MD driven display, which is part and parcel of any rear projection display regardless of the technology driving it. Many provide cleaning hatches on either side of the cabinet so you can get to the mirror and lens. Avoid the mirror! Agitate the dust on the lens with a clean paint brush and use a can of air to blow the dust off (one single short burst is plenty). Avoid using fluids and wiping but if you must, turn the TV off, let the lens cool for about 10 minutes, use chemical free fluid such as lens cleaning fluid and non-abrasive wipes such as lens tissue.

If you don't have this kind of access then major disassembly will be required to get inside. You'll have to decide if you can handle this or let some one else do it.

Another likely possibility is you have teeny dust bunnies in the internal optical path of the light engine. This is far trickier to deal with and can happen with any of the MD technologies except DLP because all the others require cooling of the light path. Some shops will take on the intricacy of cleaning it and others won't touch it, replacing the light engine instead.