Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Sony SXRD Woes

For those of you who have bought Sony SXRD TVs, watch out for these issues, and for those of you considering purchasing one, be warned.

Almost a year ago, I purchased the KDS-R60XBR1 because the picture was great and had great reviews. I was happy, except it wasn't long before I found that occasionally I would turn on the TV and within a couple of minutes the screen would go black, then come back on with the input and info displaying again, like it was reinitializing. It would persist until I would turn off the TV for at least 15 minutes and then turn it back on. That was kind of annoying, but it took me a few months to finally call on it, since it happened only occasionally.

Well, the local repair tech didn't know what could be causing the problem, but Sony suggested replacing the lamp. That didn't seem right to me, but I let them replace my lamp, since who doesn't want a free lamp? Well, it still did it after the new lamp, but I had plenty of warranty left, so I didn't get too concerned.

Then the right side of the screen developed a strong yellow discoloration. That was enough motivation to call for service again, and I reiterated how the blacking out was still occurring. The tech talked to Sony, and they told him to replace the light engine, which is apparently a $1600 part. Thankfully I'm not paying for the repairs yet. The tech mentioned someone else having the discoloration, too. That didn't sound very promising. If the light engine was just going to crap out like that within the first year, how many times would I have to get it replaced in the life of the TV? I didn't get an extended warranty, so yeah. The TV came back, and yes, the yellow discoloration was gone, but now there was a pink discoloration. It wasn't severe, and in fact you could only really notice it on a really white image, but it was there, and there's no way I paid $4000+tax for a TV that wasn't operating at 100%, so I decided to contact Sony directly and see about a replacement.

I spent a lot of time on the phone with a guy who was supposedly filing a report that he would send up the chain, and I'd hear back in 3 business days. Well, I didn't hear back, so I called again, and the woman I got told me the guy filed it completely wrong, so that's why I never heard back. Argh. She told me that the local repair place would have to come out and re-evaluate the issues, and then they could decide if a replacement was on the table or not. Of course, scheduling is an issue around the holidays, but he was finally able to come out again and verify the behavior of the TV, but it seems like repair, not replacement, was being discussed again. I gave up my TV again, and the tech said he'd have it back to me as soon as possible.

So yesterday, after over two weeks of not hearing from them, I called to see what the status was. The tech said that he could bring it back, but that Sony's engineering department didn't have a fix for the problem yet, and they didn't know when they would. They had him replace the light engine and lamp a second time, but he said that there was still a pinkish discoloration. So he said he'd just bring it back, and I should call Sony's Customer Service on Monday to make sure I'm on a list to be notified when a fix is available.

He was right. There was still a pink discoloration, but now there's a greenish blob, too, near the center of the screen, and when I was watching a movie, the light level in the letterboxing kept changing, alternating between solid black and a lighter, green-tinted black. I'm sure it was happening on the whole screen, but that's where it was most obvious.

Screw being put on a list. On Monday I'm calling Sony and telling them that I need a new TV or my money back. My warranty runs out on the 30th, and there's no way I'm going to be stuck with this lemon.

The question is, do I get them to replace my TV with the newer XBR2 (and a new warranty to go with it), go for another technology (probably at a smaller size), or try like heck to get my money back and buy another brand?

It's the most money I've spent on any single piece of electronics, so it really freaks me out that it's been issue after issue. I suppose that's the problem with getting cutting-edge technology.

Anyway, wish me luck for Monday, and I hope I haven't caused any of you to worry TOO much. This all just has me very perturbed.

Be persistant.

When talking to them, just make sure your voice conveys in no way will you be left holding the bag on this (active voice anyone?).

Good luck.
Bren R.

I'll do my best. I pretty much hate phone conversations like this, but yeah, I am definitely not going to be stuck with this unresolved problem.

I forgot to mention that the local repair tech has mentioned the last couple of times that many other SXRD sets in the area are being serviced for the same problem with the discolorations (though no one else has mentioned the blacking out). It's not a big area, so it sounds like it's a real problem with the technology.

The problems you are describing for the XBR1 read like a summary of the really long XBR1 thread on AVS. The good news is that the XBR2 seems to have made a significant jump forward in avoiding all of these problems.

You may want to check out avsforum.com, they have a boatload of posts on the topic, but if you look at the master thread there, they have listed the correct OB/lamp part codes that seem to have done the trick for many owners.

Good luck with your set.

I just got off the phone with Sony, and of course I'm having to wait 72 hours for someone to call back. The man I talked to assured me I'd be taken care of this time, and that there was a good chance they'd replace my unit with a comparable unit, since they don't make the XBR1s anymore. So it sounds like I'll probably end up with an XBR2.

Still, how is anyone sure that the problems have been addressed with the XBR2s? Discoloration didn't happen for me for at least six months. Or do the XBR2s also serve as crystal balls?

They also might try to replace you with an A2000.

Yeah, I won't go for the A2000. The XBR2s retail for less than I paid for my XBR1, which I'll bring up repeatedly if they keep trying to get me to take a lesser model. And if they try to get me to pay shipping, I'll be happy to if they throw in an extended warranty.

Well, here's half an update. After spending a lot more time on the phone, going through several more people and even starting to get mean, I finally got someone to approve my exchange and refer me to the exchange department. Unfortunately, when I was finally able to get in touch with them this morning, they wanted to offer my the same model I have reconditioned, when I'd been told before that I would probably (of course not definitely) be getting the new model, since they don't make the XBR1s anymore. I told her I didn't want a reconditioned unit. She said, "Well, our file indicates that your warranty has just run out, and Sony's policy is to offer a reconditioned unit."

Holy cow. I kept mentioning to everyone I talked to that I was concerned since my warranty was about to run out, but they assured me that because this was all documented within the warranty period that it wouldn't be an issue. Now they're trying to tell me that it DOES make a difference. Well, their argument is now dead, anyway, since I just got a letter saying my warranty was extended until 7/30/07. One of the guys said he could extend it, but he was also the guy I was getting kind of short with. Instead of biting when he said he could extend my warranty by six months, I asked if there was someone who could help me that day. He referred me, and I didn't really think he would initiate the warranty extension. Apparently he did, so the exchange department can stop trying to lowball me.

The exchange department wanted me to fax them a copy of my sales receipt after I said I didn't want a reconditioned XBR1. I don't know what information they're looking for that will somehow qualify me for a new model when they already have so much in my file already, but I had the place I bought it from fax it over, so tomorrow when I talk to them I should have everything I need.

Wish me luck. I really want this whole thing to be over. At this point, I don't even want a Sony TV, because if I ever have a problem again, I'll be looking forward to this much headache. I'm starting to think that the more you spend with them, the less likely they are to help you. Anyway, hopefully tomorrow I'll have something cool to tell you all, even though I'm sure that whatever they do for me won't be enough to convince me to buy Sony ever again.

The good news for today, however, is that I finally ordered my QS8s and stands, and a foot of the bulk speaker cable in order to get the 5% discount. I'll finally have replaced all of my Polk bookshelves.