Sanyo PLV70 overheating. Replacement? (1 Viewer)

[Mike Clemens]

My PLV-70 is about 2.5 years old. Since new I've cleaned the filters once a month without fail. It has 800 hours of use over its 2.5 year life.

I've just had it back to Sanyo to for a problem where it displayed a bluish circular area in the center of the screen. The technician said it is from overheating and the blue LCD panel is damaged.

I'm afraid that if damage is caused by overheating, then this projector does not have adiquate cooling capability and will fail again at some point. I couldn't have done a more reasonable job of keeping the filters clean. It is ceiling mounted in an air conditioned room with a cathedral ceiling and is about 5 feet down from the ceiling. There are no obstructions around the sides.

I do remember forgetting to turn it off and having it run all night on about 3 occasions, but not recently. Should the projector be able to run this long without sustaining heat damage?

Anyway, i'm thinking of changing to a DLP single chip projector such as the InFocus Screenplay 7200

1. Do you think that DLP is a longer lasting technology and not as sensitive to heat damage?

2. I have a 133" screen. The 7200 is half the brightness of the PLV-70. Do you think I'll be disappointed with a noticably dimmer image?

3. Anyone with experience viewing these two projectors? How would you compare the image quality?

4. Any other choices I should consider?

Thank you very much for you help.
Best Wishes

Mike Clemens

 

[Mike Clemens]

no one has a comment?

 

[John S]

Not a lot if anybody on here using the displays in question. Or not than I can remember a post from anyways.

Have to respect people for not posting unfounded opinions on it.

Projector over heating is one of the most common issues with projo's in general ya know.

 

[Phil Hanson]

I have a PLV 70 that's about 5 mos. old and in dark scenes, I notice a bluish circle in the center of the screen. I sure hope it's not from overheating. My mounting situation is similar to yours in that it hangs about 3 feet from the ceiling in an climate controlled room. I've never left it on and probably have watched no more than 30 - 40 movies on it.
You would think some internal heat circuitry would shut it down before allowing it to get hot enough to damage the LCD panels.
Is there any other symptoms to check for to determine that as the cause? I guess I was suspecting something was on the lens and I just hadn't gotten around to checking it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Mike Clemens]

Call for service and get it repaired. They will give you the B/S of it not being covered under the warranty because it is a neglect issue in that you did not keep the filters clean. Lean on them and they will agree to fix it "this one time only".

I believe they have a product defect on their hands. I'm a member of the big picture forum and related heat problems have come up with the PLV70, also an internet search found similar cases of the "blue circle"

I used to clean my filter once a month and 20 hours max. I now clean it every week, but I don't think that is going to help. I think the projector runs hot, and will be prone to heat damage. To further the notion that it is a design defect, yes the projector has a built-in heat sensor that will kick the fan on HIGH and ultimatly turn off the projector and should save it from overheating.

I can tell you with certanty that my fan NEVER ran at anything but the quiet low speed.

The PLV70 produces a GREAT bright picture when all is right with it, but I don't think it is going to last long. My next projector will DEFINATLY be a DLP unit.

 

[Phil Hanson]

Mike,
Thanks for your response, you've probably also just received my email as I wasn't sure you'd see my post here. I have to admit my projector's fan does kick up to a higher speed sometimes then goes back down on its own. I never thought twice about it, assuming it was working as designed in a safe manner.

I agree, the picture is great, but I'm too much of a cheap-skate to want to keep paying to repair a design problem.

...Again, thanks so much for your help and sorry for emailing you so quickly!

 

[GaryGoff]

I also own a Sanyo PLC-70 that has developed the blue ring problem. I have taken very good care of my unit regarding cleaning the filters and proper installation. I just spent a good amount of time on the phone with Sanyo discussing this issue that I believe to be a design flaw. I spoke with a service rep and then to his manager. They denied having a design flaw. This unit has 9 LCD panels which each cost approx. $150 to replace. This problem is caused, they say from overheating which can be caused by not cleaning your filters, by dust build-up on the panels or a combination of the two. The LCD panels are located inside the unit that cannot be accessed without opening up the top of the unit. This, according to Sanyo voids the warranty. So, to keep your unit under warranty, you are not supposed to open up the top of the unit. If you dont open the top of the unit, you will have dust build-up on the LCD panels which will cause damage to the LCD panels. This is obviously a design flaw but Sanyo will not even consider that they have any responsibility. I did not intend to be buying a disposable unit. I dont want to spend $1500 on new panels. If I am going to spend that much, I want to be buying a new unit. Sanyo knows that they have placed us in that situation and sadly, like many other manufacturers today, they dont care. I would be happy to join any of you in a joint effort to hold Sanyo responsible for their design flaw. Respond to this post if you are interested.

 

[Jim Mcc]

Mike, the problem sounds like a dead pixel to me. If it is, it has nothing to do with overheating. It used to be very common with LCD projectors.