My 4-year-old 57" Sony KP-57HW40 HDTV has suddenly developed green swishing lines that distort and obscure the picture. You can see elements of the picture in the sweeping lines, but it is nearly unwatchable.
I have been quoted $500-600 to repair this problem. My questions are:
- Is $500-600 a fair estimate?
- Is this something a person could repair on their own? If so, where would you get the part?
- Would it be better to spend $600-900 on a new TV? Some of the deals at the national chains look awfully nice.
Thanks for you help,
--Tim (a.k.a. ScribbleMeat)
Tim, that estimate is a bit steep! You have a typical Sony convergence problem with this set. Wow, I have seen in the p[ast month or so many many complaints about this problem. If you have any soldering experience, as well as some solid state repair experience, You can fix this set yourself or with someone assisting you if they are not charging you labor , for about $100.00 bucks! Go here and see the parts you need, you will need two of these . If you can call the parts house and see if they have the STK392-150, these IC's will last longer and also run alot cooler. Dont forget to use plenty of heat sink compond on the back of each IC. Now there maybe small resistors also around these IC's that go bad along with the IC's sometimes. If you don't have any buds that work on this kind of stuff and or you have no TV repair experience, I highly recommend that you find someone who is a little more reasonable with the price, because this TVset is not a place to be experimenting around inside of. Good Luck, and please keep us informed of your progress with the repair of this set.
Thanks for the help, Larry. However, I need a couple of clarifications:
Thanks again,
-- Tim (a.k.a. ScribbleMeat)
Im so sorry, I put the wrong link.. The IC's your looking for are the STK-392-###. The ### is differant, on differant models. Thats why you will need to look and find the stand up IC's that start with the STK suffix. They are HERE when you find the corrct number. I do not have a manual for this set. It is available HERE for download for about 24 bucks. If you have no TV repair experience, I would recomend to call in a pro to assist you, as sometimes this is only one fix to the same problem, as power supply resistors and capacitors can blow out with these IC's. Oh and the reason the green is shwooshing around is these IC's are nothing more the tri- type analog audio amps. One channel in this IC that dontrols the green correction is distorted and /or clipping. These are used in many many stereos and sound system. They blow up because the way the engineers designed the convergence correction circuits, these ICs are running at max. power output, as to why they are mounted on large metal heat sinks. Well hope this will help you out to make the right decision. Good Luck, and please keep us informed how you got your set working.
Hi,
Amazing. I have the same model KP57HW40 purchased Mar 2002 with similar symptoms.
The green lines were visible only with a dark screen and did not interfer with general viewing. However last night the tv screen blossomed blue then the tv shut itself down.
This morning I unplugged the tv for 30 mnutes then plugged it back in. When it is turned on
-a small blue rectangle appears with the green curved lines
-the picture appears for 30 seconds
-the screen flashes blue and then goes black
-tv then shuts down
-red light on the front panle for blinks in cycles of 8 flashes
After mulktiple tries the same symptoms appear though in one instance the picture went black but sound stayed on. In this case the red light in front blinked in 5 flash cycles
In other forums the culprits mentioned are the "FTB," HV splitter and focus block. One person said that "30kv of HV are arcing into your G2 drive causing it to XRAY project."
Thought I'd buy the repair manual on line but would appreciate any comments/parts ideas putting this info in perspective.
Thanks, and Happy Holidays!
boomer
Hi,
I've experienced the same problem with my Sony KP-57HW40. After a few minutes powered on the screen starts flashing blue. Then the screen turns blue and shuts off. I'm curious to what your solution was for correcting the problem. And is this repair something a do-it-yourselfer can do. Any answers to this problem would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
iamtheone7
iamtheone7
This is not a repair that should be attempted by a do-it-yourselfer. There are very high voltages inside which can be damaging to the human condition. Also, it is easy to damage other parts by accident. There are a number of improvements made to the model you have which may be applied to your set. Take it to an authorized service center or at least call one to see if any of the modifications apply.
Hi from boomer,
Following is a posting from another forum. I used the procedure to fix the symptoms posted earlier. It also helped to purchse the service manual online for $23.99 from servicemanuals.net ([email protected]).
My sense is that when the track lines show it indicates a voltage buildup. When the voltage buildup exceeds a set limit the screen flashes in that color and then the tv is shutdown autonmatically. Re-adjusting all trace lines to be just out of sight puts the voltages within limits and the tv is good to go.
The service manual also discussses fine convergence procedures using the original remote. worked well.
Hope this helps.
My own question at this point is how to properly clean and what material is used for the screen and crt lens covers.
boomer
A-Woo Hoo!!!
from another forum:
"Thanks guys...I fixed my KP51HW40 last night with your help. I used the service manual provided by [email protected] at http://rsfsquad.org/download/KP51HW40-RA6.pdf and the posting on May 27, 2004.
The service manual on page 8 shows how to adjust the Red/Blue/Green screen voltages. To get to the adjustment board, take the front speaker grill off (two screws at the bottom left and right) and set it aside. No need to disconnect any wires. Then remove the plywood board with 4 screws that exposes the screen/focus adjustments. The top 3 adjustments are for focus, and you need not mess with these. The bottom 3 adjustments are for Red/Blue/Green screen voltage rough adjustments. My screen showed red lines, so I had to turn the bottom right adjustment with a philips head screwdriver just slightly until the red gun retrace lines where no longer visible.
I am an electrical engineer by trade, but you do not need any technical background at all to do this adjustment. If you can operate a screwdriver, you can save yourself the hassle of a service call and save a few bucks. Make sure no kids are around when making the adjustment and make sure the screwdriver touches nothing else in the TV because the set has to be powered on to make the adjustment. Since the screen/focus block is right up front, danger of shock is extremely minute.
The adjustments have white marker paint on them, so if you adjust the wrong gun, it is a simple matter to return it to it's original adjustment by realigning the paint marks."
Worked like a charm....!!
Hello All
My TV sonyKP51HW40 has been shutting it self off. I did what boomer said to do I I think I fixed my problem.
Thanks to all
jimcope
Glad someone could help you. Tell your friends they also can get assitance from techlore.com
Hi, Larry.
My Sony KP57HW50 turns full red screen after a short warmup period. Initially the picture is normal and as the minutes go by it becomed redder and redder until it is impossible to view. Will adjusting the red screen voltage solve the problem? Also, how do you remove the front cover?
Generally, the front cover comes off the front of the set below the screen as described above. It is really good to get a service manual, as it will show you the disassembly of the set and show you in the proper order on exactly how to perform the screen adjustments you are asking about. I highly doubt though this is going to fix your problem my friend. it sounds like you have a problem with the red drive on this TV set. Most likely it is the red drive circuit, transistor, or the drive PC board on the rear end of the red Picture tube. If you do get the manual, and you know how to read a service manual or schematic I should say, get a multimeter and measure the collector and base of the red drive transistor, and compare it to a known good color. If you do not know how to do this, please do not attempt to experiment around inside this set. There is alot of high voltage on these CRT boards and can harm you. Good luck, and let us know how you made out with this set.
Hi, Larry.
I took off the front cover and adjusted the red and it worked! Thanks much!!
LR
Great to hear. Another success story here at techlore.com. congrats!
I just wanted to let every one know how much this site has saved me money in two ways. I did not have to call a repair man and most of all I did not have to buy a new TV. My tv is working fine now and has not shut off one time by itself. My TV is a sony KP51HW40. Thanks to Boomer and the creator of this site.
Thank you jim for your feedback. Tell all your friends about us here at techlore.com We are pleased to help.
I had blue lines on my screen.... what i did is i removed the front speaker assembly.. then there's a piece of wood that comes off with 4 screws... in the bottom right corner, theres a small black box with dials on it, i think the green one is the bottom one to the far left. just put your screw-driver into it and turn until the lines go away.... it worked for me.
I have a similar problem with my TV and have troubleshooted to needing to replace the D board by using the standby flash indicator code. Only problem is there are many boards located inside my TV and the only readable info I can get are off 2 of them: the AD board & B board. I need to know exactly what functions the D board controls in my TV and where it is located if possible. PLEASE HELP!!!
Thank you
I took the front cover off and turned the screw a little to the left and the picture cleared and the tv stayed on I have the same model in 65"
You just saved me $500
Thanks Thanks Thanks
Hi,
After fixing the green lines arcing across my KP-57HW40 earlier this year I now have another problem.
Occasionally there is a "snapping" sound followed by a brief flash of green. The green color diminishes returning to a normal TV picture after several seconds. This happens about once per week or so.
Would appreciate knowing:
1. Is this indicative of a specific part?
2. If this part is not replaced will the TV be damaged?
3. What is the part name / number / approx cost and where would I get it?
4. How hard would it be to install the new part as a pre-emptive measure?
Looking forward toi hearing from the pros!
Regards,
Boomer
Wow... I can't believe I forgot to let everyone know how this turned out for me.
Turns out that as a Web Programmer, I was able to swap 5 hours of my time for a quick web site design -- nothing fancy. But here's how it went down with the tech.
First, he came out and looked at it. He called Sony and described the problem. They said the problem was the IC chip, just as Larry Dillon had originally said. He told me that he was ordering a WHOLE NEW daughter board because "simply replacing the IC chip won't fix the problem long-term."
Three days later, he returned with the daughterboard assembly and installed it. It now works fine.
After looking over the more recent posts, it seems that he may have been making it sound more complicated than it was in order to inflate his hours so I would still do his site. But that's okay, because I inflated the amount of time it would take me to do the site -- haha.
Now a sad, sad story about my brother's TV -- same Sony model. He also had the exact same problem. I told him about the feedback I got here... but he still wanted to use a professional. So, he called a NON-SONY Authorized repair shop. They put 3 (count'em THREE) new CRT's in and charged him $450. It then worked fine for a while.
Funny thing is, the CRTs were never the problem, so they obviously installed a new IC, which means they ALSO KNEW that there was no need for the new CRTs.
About 6 months later, his TV started having the same exact problem with the IC. I called Sony directly and told them about the lines. They said that the IC chips tend to overheat in this model and that the proper way to repair the problem is to install a new IC and a larger heatsink. However, the TV was out of warranty, so they would not repair it.
KUDOS to SONY: Sony agreed that it was an unacceptable manufacturers defect and gave my brother a $1,800 gift certificate for SonyStyle.com -- even though it was out of warranty!
The bad news is that after Sony replaced the TV, my brother put the TV on the curb for the trash guy to take. Talk about STUBBORN!
One final problem... when the tech guy realigned the RGB pictures, he managed to make a mess of it... he must have something wrong with his eyes, because none of his lines are straight. He used a remote code to get into the convergence menu.. but I don't know where to find those remote codes.
Thanks for all your help... my new favorite site... TechLore.com!
-- Tim
Nice stroy Tim, thanks for sharing it with us. Wecome to techlore.com.