Samsung HLT6176SX/XAA no pic/no sound lamp lit

[jimajke]

I have basic electronics training but the only testing equipment I have is a multimeter. Any help would be appreciated.

Symptoms:

Lamp fully lights-no picture/no sound/faint glow on screen/no flickering

Color wheel sound is normal (very faint whirl sound like always). Fans are both running normally. I stopped them long enough to isolate the color wheel sound.

Front green light blinks 17 times then goes off for a couple seconds then blinks 10 more times then goes out like it would if the TV was working right. The count has been the same every time I counted. TV shuts itself off after a couple minutes and the red light comes on indicating off. The cycle takes about 4 minutes.

When it's cycling like this I can't turn it off or use any of the controls on the set until it turns itself off. The green light blinks if I use the remote but it doesn't control anything. However, if I keep restarting it within 20 seconds after it turns off it will eventually run normally. The picture and sound start at the same time when it works. All controls function normally then.

This problem initially started a few months ago and for the first month or so it just took one restart and everything would work fine until I turned it off and let it get to room temp. It has been progressively taking more and more restarts to get it running.

A new symptom developed after the first month of using it like this. The picture/sound would start about the 3rd-5th try and the HTML graphic indicating what input it was using would stay on screen in the upper left until the picture and sound would freeze, always within a couple of minutes. Sometimes it would have tightly spaced almost horizontal lines on the screen but usually just a frozen picture and sometimes a hum or screech from the speakers (I verified it was the speakers, not anything inside the set). Usually after 30 seconds or so it would resume on it's own with a normal picture and normal sound and be fine until I turned it off and let it cool down. Occasionally I would have to unplug the TV to get it to unfreeze and then continue restarting it. I tried the other inputs with identical results.

It's taking way more than 5 tries now to get it started. I recently burned out the lamp at just 3500hours (I assume because of all the extra restarts). I am sure the new bulb is fully lit though and the new bulb has made no difference in the need for restarts. I had it running again a few times after installing the new bulb.

There is no obvious signs of problems on any of the boards including the ballast board. I have taken the unit apart, reseated all the connections, checked for bloated capacitors and whatever else was easy to do. I did not remove the color wheel sub-assembly.

I replaced the DMD Board as a best guess with no change. I also tried a new DVI cable that I had handy. The lamp door switch tests good.

I was going to take a chance and buy a Digital Video Board http://www.discount-merchant.com/SAMSUN ... 218601.htm when I noticed these forums. Another opinion would sure make me feel better spending the money.

Thanks in advance
Jim

[jimajke]

I replaced the Digital Video Board http://www.discount-merchant.com/SAMSUN ... 218601.htm and the TV was finally happy. It lit up the screen under 10 seconds of turning it on. Apparently the problem existed before I noticed because the TV hasn't started this fast in a couple years.

Description Digital Video Board
Part Number BP41-00310A
Reference Number(s) BP97-01196A

[TexasAggie]

I just acquired a Samsung DLP set with this exact same problem. Would you suggest replacing the video board first or trying the lamp first? (Is there a big difference between the OEM lamps verses the much cheaper replacement lamps?) When the TV would start, the picture looked fine.

Your post is the first I've seen that has given me any indication of what might be wrong. Thanks!

[jimajke]

[TexasAggie]

Thanks for the info. Do you know of a website or source for the installation of the video board? I've seen sites for the bulb and color wheel but don't recall seeing anything for the video board.

[jimajke]

I took mine apart slowly, took notes, and took a few pictures along the way to insure I got it back together right.

I didn't find any videos but it wouldn't surprise me if some of the sellers of the board had some. Take your time and document the steps as you take it apart and you should be ok.

Good luck,
Jim