I have Toshiba TV model #32A30 that is only about 5 years old and I am having some problems viewing the picture. It started about three months ago and when we turned it on the picture would not fill the whole screem. Little by little the picture would shrink and finally it would only be a straight horizontal white line. We would hit the top of the tv set and the picture would re-appear. Next time we would turn it on it would do the same thing. Now the line does not go away. All I see is a straight line and the sound is perfect. I am a handy man and have TV-101 knowledge, its been a while but still have a little clue of what is what (i think anyway). Is this an easy fix that I might be able to do or do I need to take it in for a professional to look at?
Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance.
If you have TV101 , you should have known then that you do not hit a TV set to repair it. When you have to hit a TV set to repair it or to get the TV set to work properly, there is a BAD CONNECTION on the printed circuit board. It should in your case, be in the vertical drive or the vertical output circuit. Although, in this case, it may be too late and a $50.00 repair could turn into a $150.00 repair. What happens is that every time you hit the TV set and the connection gets good and the set works for a while, you are surging the part where you have a bad connection and this can burn out this part I have seen it a hundred times at least. My best advice to you on this TV set would be to now let a pro have a look at it. Good Luck
Yes i know it was wrong to fix something by giving it a good wack but it got me in a bad time. Either way, I appreaciate your fast feedback. I have that tv in the garage stored away now and will think about getting it checked out. Its just a shame because when my wife bought this set it was one of the best according to the consumer reports. I don't know if it is an abuse to turn it on and off in a frequent time frame, which that tv has had that bieng in the living room and being in a household of four teenage boys.
Thanks again for your advice.
Hello all once again. I am new to this forum and I just noticed this post. I am having the exact same issue with the exact same model of television. Dan said that most likely it would be an issue with the vertical circuit and its capacitors. Since you (El Gato) had the same issue, I was wondering if you took it to the repair shop as of yet and how much did it cost you? I am a pretty intelligent man, but I made the same mistake of smacking the TV because it was an easy fix. I just hope that I did not do as Larry said and burn out the circuit completely. Any information you can give to me would help. Thanks!
Josh
Unfortunatly I have not done anything to that TV. It still sits in the garage floor taking up space. I'm a little tight on money at the moment so i dont see myself taking it to anyone yet. Got a newborn (4 month) girl that i need to make sure i have plenty Huggies and pay that water and gas bill cus she sure likes to throw up and get her self all wet...anyways, once i have someone look at it I will post what they found and how much I pay for all that.
Good luck!
Well, I appreciate your info on this. I am in a similar situation as well. I picked up the television for $6 from my work because of this issue. My friend who had the same television with the same issue told me that it would probably last for a long while because his did, even with this problem, so I went ahead and bought it. So even if it becomes a boat anchor (and at over 100 lbs it would make a good one), I am not out a lot of money. Still though, I have been watching television on a 20", so the upgrade to a 32" was so nice that I really want to fix it. :) Anyway, thanks for the info.
Josh
Hello, I've had the same problem with my 10-yr old 32" Toshiba. 5 yrs ago a horizontal white line appeared across the screen. I had a TV repairman come to my house ($60 service charge) and he replaced some tubes for another $60. So for $120 it was fixed & worked perfectly for the next 5 years. The white line recently returned. I too pounded on the sides until it worked - knowing it's days were numbered. Today the screen went completely black. It still has sound - but the picture is gone. Instead of investing another $120 (or more) repairing it, I am purchasing a new flat screen. You can purchase a 32" flat screen for $200 - $400. Unfortunately no one wants the old TVs - not even charities. I hate to put it out for the garbage, but that's probably where it will soon be.
I'd also like to add that I purchased 2 Magnovox flat screen TVs from Walmart & the picture went out on one after just one year. I had the repairman look at it too & he explained the inside of the new TVs are just one big circuit board & cannot be repaired without sending it back to the company. Cost to ship & repair it would have been $160 plus another $60 service charge for the repairman to install it. Since I only paid $200 (on sale) for it, it wasn't worth the repair. He said one of his clients had a large $2,000 flat screen TV & it's picture also went out after a year. The cost to repair & ship his TV was cost-prohibitive. So I recommend if you do purchase a new TV - to purchase the extended warranty as well.
I just realized this thread is 6 years old! So I guess I've wasted my time commenting. Oh well... ;)