Television repair, Mitsubishi, perhaps power supply

Factual Questions
1

I have a Mitsubishi Big Screen Rear Projection television set, model VS-50605. It is no longer under warranty.

Last evening, while watching the TV, it shut off on its own. When I attempted to turn it back on, it made its normal clicking sound, the power light illuminated briefly, but it immediately shut back off. After about one second, the power light* blinked three times.

[sub]*I say power light, because that appears to be its main function, but on the front panel, it is labled “timer”. Under its normal function, it stays off when the power is off, stays illuminated when the power is on, and constantly flashes when the TV is programmed to turn on automatically.[/sub]

After attempting the usual troubleshooting methods, I referred to the Users Guide. The Users Guide makes no mention of such a condition.

Before I retired for the evening, I unplugged the TV. This morning, I plugged it back in, and attempted to turn it on. Same symptom as described above - no luck.

I called the Mitsubishi Operational Support tollfree number. After first suggesting that I unplug it for an hour or so, and try again, I explained that I had already tried that. They told me that the three flashes indicated that the problem was something I could not fix, and it required an Authorized Service Technician.

I told them that it was clear to me that the three flashing lights indicated a diagnostic code, and asked for the description of that code. They told me that they only had access to operational support information, and that that information was available through service technicians. They provided me two local Authorized Service Dealers to contact.

I contacted one of the Authorized Service Dealers. They indicated the repair would require an onsite visit, which costs $72. They told me that the average repair cost for such a TV (including the $72) was between $400 and $600.

I told them that I would like to know the description of the diagnostic code before I scheduled a service visit, as understanding the code could indicate whether the repair expense may be more or less than the average. They responded that their management did not approve of giving out the descriptions of the diagnostic codes (but confirmed that the three flashing lights was a diagnostic code, and available in the service manual).

I postulated, theoretically, that if the diagnostic code indicated a failed power supply, would the repair still run into the average repair cost they provided me of $400 to $600? The person I spoke with confirmed that replacing a power supply would be around the average repair cost.

Some other background relevent for context to my questions to follow: $400 to $600 sounds quite expensive to me for replacing a power supply. I am effectively unemployed (but not finacially strapped), so being frugal is especially important right now. I am not an electrician or a TV repair hobbyist, but I am also quite handy at general electrical repair. I know that if I remove the back cover from the TV, I would lose any warranty, but the TV is already out of warranty, so I have no qualms about doing that. The TV was about $2,000 new three years ago, and a new comparable model is about $1,800 today.

My questions:

  1. Can anyone tell me what the description is of the diagnostic code I described above, for this model (or a close relative)?

  2. If it is a power supply failure, can anyone confirm whether or not $400 to $600 is a reasonable repair estimate?

  3. Can anyone confirm either the power supply part number, or the cost of the power supply?

And for anyone able to answer any of those three questions, I would also appreciate your opinion on these two questions:

  1. If the repair only requires replacing the power supply, or whatever repair may be indicated by the diagnostic code, is this a repair that I might reasonably be able to complete myself?

  2. Assuming the answer to the question above is no, does it make economic sense to spend $400 to $600 to repair a three year old big screen rear projection television (that already has some burn-in problems, btw), when a new equivalent would be about $1,800?

One last thought: I have googled for the service manual, or any page describing the condition, and have had no luck so far.

Thanks to all who take the time to read this post, and thanks in advance to all who can provide helpful answers.

2

I don’t know about your type of set, but the clicking sound is more likey a problem with the HV power system, and the “HOT” (horiz. output transistor) than the main PS. The HV is generated using the flyback transformer and associated parts, which is sep. from the main PS. In order for the HV to kick on, a booster shot of voltage has to be fed it, if that fails to kick on, you get that click and it tries again until it decides to shut off.

If it’s only the HOT, it is quite reasonable cost to repair for a set of your type. But the real issue is: Did something else fail and take out the HOT? Tracking down and fixing that is noticably more $.

For more info, see the Repair FAQ web pages.

3

ftg, thanks for your response. It is apparent that you have much more knowledge in this area than I do.

However, I must point out that “clicking” wasn’t the best description I could have offered.

As long as I remember, whenever I turned the TV on, it made a relatively loud (single) click. With regards to the click, it’s behavior now is no different - it makes, what sounds to me, like the same click it has always made. It just shuts back off immediately thereafter (or fails to power on thereafter, semantics, I suppose).

In any case, I do appreciate that whatever the diagnostic code might indicate, the problem may be “upstream” of that, and therefore, a risk I would face should I try the repair myself.

I’ll now review your link. Thanks again.

Also, if anyone might suggest another message board frequented by TV repair types, I’d be interested in that as well.

4

While this site is primarily for “antique” radios and televisions, there are some extremely knowledgeable semi-retired types that can likely help you out. Just put “OT” in the subject line in the Television forum, they are pretty mellow and should get you pointed in the right direction. Also peruse usenet/google, and be sure to read the Sam Goldwasser electronics repair FAQ.

http://www.antiqueradios.com