CRT TV Dead Advice

[PowerFalcon]

I have an old Samsung CRT TV, that has died If it's the picture tube, can it be fixed without costing me the price of a new TV ? TV Repair shops in my area, either won't fix it or they will charge outrageous fees to fix it. Looking for some general advice.

[aedipuss]

recycle it

[DB83]

I would have thought that these days the chances of getting a new CRT tube is pretty remote. Same really for other components in these so boards would have to be re-built rather than simply swapped out.

Its a bit like any other older consumer product. Cheaper to replace than repair.

[orsetto]

If you very much prefer a CRT tv over a newer flat screen, and repair costs for your Samsung are unrealistic, the most sensible option is check the second-hand Craigs List ads in your city or neighborhood for the same or similar TVs. Things have slowed down since last year, but quite a few large-screen CRTs are still being listed on CL every week at bargain prices. I've seen nice clean 27" Sony Trinitrons for $50 and 32" Trinitrons for $75 (many people will let them go for $20 just to have someone come with a car and take it away). The final CRT-based HDTVs from Samsung and Sony typically fetch $125.

If you (or your spouse) don't like the idea of bringing someone else's used TV into your home, you will need to look at a new flat screen HDTV. In sizes 42" and smaller, you'll find LCD technology only, 42" and up you'll get the additional choice of plasma screens. LCD and plasma aren't very good at playing standard definition TV sources like budget cable service, old VHS tapes and old TV shows. In time, your eyes adjust and you get used to it, but it can be disappointing at first. Its a good idea to buy from a large chain store with a wide selection in each size, because you may need to exchange models or brands a couple times before you find one you're happy with (its very hard to evaluate flat screens in the store, you need to have it in your home).

Here and there you may find a store that still has stock of cheap new generic CRT televisions, usually in 20" and 27" sizes, but these are not nearly as nice as CRT sets from ten years ago. For best picture quality, the choice today is between a good second-hand CRT or a brand-new flatscreen.

[PowerFalcon]

I'll have to recycle it, or trash it, after I try a few options.

orsetto - I don't want to buy a CRT TV, I want to get rid of one. If I could get it fixed for $50-$70 I would.

[redwudz]

If the picture tube was dead, there are places that can repair them or sometimes offer a substitute. But that's only half the problem. After a replacement picture tube is installed, it still has to be aligned and adjusted. This takes a fair bit of skill and equipment and the labor costs would likely be fairly high.

There are old threads here on rebuilding picture tubes, but they may be out of date these days. I would probably just see if you can recycle/dispose of it safely. Those picture tubes can contain some hazardous materials, so you usually can't just throw them away. Same goes for older TVs with lead solder in the connections.

[Hoser Rob]

You actually have no idea what's wrong with it, and without a proper description of symptoms neither does anyone else.

If you google this sort of thing you'll get a lot of advice on how to change caps because some people assume that's what the problem always is. They don't know what they're doing.

Do not start poking around inside if you don't know what you're doing. Those things contain lethal voltages.

As advised, recycle it and start looking at kijiji or craigslist.

[sanlyn]

True, that stuff is dangerous. Even with knowledge, you need special techniques to just get in there. There's an industry that sells rebuilt picture tubes, but they cater to pro equipment and charge likewise. You could buy a dozen new TV's or a few dozen used ones at those prices. It could also be another component that has a problem, not the tube itself. It's difficult to find a tech who'll work on that stuff, even with a used set that still works. Give the used market a try.

[PowerFalcon]

It's in the trash !

[sanlyn]

Yep. Happens to the best of 'em. Happened to mine, same stormy-night problem. Pissed me off.

[PowerFalcon]

I watched a lot of movies on it. Now the LCD TV thinks he is bad ass, if he was alive, that is

[pandy]

I have an old Samsung CRT TV, that has died If it's the picture tube, can it be fixed without costing me the price of a new TV ? TV Repair shops in my area, either won't fix it or they will charge outrageous fees to fix it. Looking for some general advice.

Search for working (same) model on ebay? CRT deterioration is a slow process - not sudden situation then tube should be fine.
I like CRT's for many reasons so i would go to repair TV (as electronics by myself probably).

[neomaine]

I watched a lot of movies on it. Now the LCD TV thinks he is bad ass, if he was alive, that is

Do tell! What did you pick up?

[PowerFalcon]

Movies I have watched, DVD etc over a long period.

[jman98]

neomaine and PowerFalcon are not speaking the same language. Perhaps I can help.

PowerFalcon - neomaine is assuming that you bought a new LCD TV. That's not an assumption I would make as you could have had one for some time and be referring to it. So since he assumes you bought a new TV, he wanted to know what you got.

neomaine - PowerFalcon does not understand that you are asking what brand of TV he bought, so he mistakenly thinks your question is asking about what kind of movies he watched on the old TV. That would be fairly pointless if that's really what you want to know.

[PowerFalcon]

If he could re-phrase the question

[johns0]

People are selling crt tvs online for $20-$40,repair shops will charge you much more and make you pay in front.

[sanlyn]

OR perhaps: what brand and model LCD are you using, and how are you playing those movies (VCR, DVD, BD player, whatever) ?

[PowerFalcon]

What kind of Info are you looking for ?

[sanlyn]

I get the idea you have some dissatisfaction with viewing movies on your LCD. If not, then I guess I'm just reading that in with your previous posts.

[PowerFalcon]

You are correct, there is some dissatisfaction with viewing movies on my new LCD.

[sanlyn]

In what way? Are we talking upsampling problems, motion artifacts, color, clarity? Keep in mind that LCD's aren't nearly as "forgiving" as CRT's when it comes to imperfections in the source. On top of that, CRT's had 100 years of development and tweaks, which is why they're still widely used in pro mastering work (and maintained for more $$$ than you can imagine).

All LCD's are not equal; some can upsample and and render motion better than others. Players aren't equal, either. And price is not a reliable guide.

[PowerFalcon]

I know CRT are used in pro master work, because they were solid all around, including there design. Upsampling is the main issue, I'm currently using composite cables from LCD to DVD and vise versa, I probably will get near 1080p resolution, once I change to HDMI. The question is, will I still need to convert to 720x480 resolution or can I finally convert to 1080p resolution ? From my understanding, no, even though the DVD player does 1080p up-scaling.

[sanlyn]

Umm....I think you need to do a little reading about HDTV. If you're using a 16x9 LCD, you need to tell your DVD player about it. If you're using composite cable, you're wasting electricity. If your HDTV has component inputs, you should be using component output from your player. If no component facilities, you should be using s-video. Also bear in mind that all analog inputs/outputs are disappearing from all players and TV's. The industry really doesn't like it if you keep equipment longer than 18 months; and if you insist on keeping stuff around longer than they'd like, they'll rig things so you can't use it any more.

Start by reading your player's and tv's user guides.

720x480 is NTSC encoded resolution frame size for standard DVD and for standard-def BluRay and ACVHD. Nobody makes a TV that displays 720x480. If you're talking about encoding from 720x480 to 1920x1080, take this tip-: if you don't know exactly what you're doing and don't have the right software (which has nothing to do with Adobe or SONY or spending lots of $$$), it will look like crap. Your TV should upsample correctly if you tell your player what TV size you're using. People all over the world do it that way. As mentioned earlier, some TVs and some players are better at it than others. There being more than one model of player and TV out there, I wouldn't even try to guess what you have.

[PowerFalcon]

I have told my player the TV size I'm using. It sounds as if it should be automatic ?

720x480 is NTSC encoded resolution frame size for standard DVD and for standard-def BluRay and ACVHD. Nobody makes a TV that displays 720x480. If you're talking about encoding from 720x480 to 1920x1080, take this tip-: if you don't know exactly what you're doing and don't have the right software (which has nothing to do with Adobe or SONY or spending lots of $$$), it will look like crap.

If I setup the player correctly, what option is there to convert 720x480 to 1080p, does this option even exist, or must I continue to convert to 720x480 and let the player do the up-scaling ?

[sanlyn]

What are you converting to 720x480?

[PowerFalcon]

Yes, I'm converting to 720x480. I always have been referring to video encoding I didn't notice the questions concerning the player and TV I'm using, I believe I stated, what do you want to know ?
That is what I want to know, besides that is it analog, will I benefit with a HDMI cable and if so, will I be able to convert video to 1080p ?

[sanlyn]

DVD isn't analog. It's digital media. VHS is analog.
You will not benefit by upsizing standard def originals to 1080p. DVD players can't play 1080p anyway.
You will definitely benefit by getting rid of your composite cables. The only thing you can use them for is direct-to-TV playback from a VCR.

[PowerFalcon]

What benefit will I get with HDMI ?

[usually_quiet]

HDMI and Component video are very close quality-wise. I have used both with a DVD player and an LCD TV and could not see much difference at a normal viewing distance. Since my TV has only one component video connection, I used it for an older DVD recorder that has no HDMI out, and used HDMI to connect another newer player.

However I should mention that N. American closed captions are not supported by HDMI or component video. This means you can only use use S-Video or composite video connections if you use N, American closed captions when watching DVDs.