Hitachi Picture Loss

[John The Tube]

I just bought a Hitachi 61SWX12B. It is connected to standard AC, with a Belkin power surge protector strip (protects AC, Coax and LAN)

After watching TV for a random length of time, the picture goes out for a 1 second and comes right back. Before it happens, I notice no change in picture and when it comes back the picture is the same. I may have heard a "click" during the loss of picture (something I just thought of). The input source does not matter.

Called Hitachi and they claim that during the break in period (3 months) the unit will do this (may even display the word "stop!") during screen outage. They claim it is adjusting circuitry

Has anyone else experienced this situation ???

Is Hitachi blowing wind up my skirt ???

Thanks

[57U]

This has been mentioned once before. Others may comment here....

TVs should function perfectly, no BS about turning off, resetting, etc, unless there is an external cause.

Sounds like it could be a bad circuit board. Good news is that electronic equipment usually fails early due to a bad part and so should be OK after repair.

Give it a few weeks, if it continues, or becomes an irritant, call Hitachi service.

(I'm assuming this is not a loss of complete picture from an HD channel, which happens once in a while due to a signal loss, etc).

In a couple of weeks, let us know what happened.

Thanks

[schmoo78]

Just a suggestion...

Not sure what type of receiver you're using but I've noticed this with my HDTV (DirecTV) tuner on my 43UXW, but I think it's related to the receiver. It's the dreaded Panasonic HD20SU receiver, I've been having problems with it from day one, unfortunately it was an Ebay purchase so I can't take it back. The reason I say this is that my second RCA receiver works fine, no temporary picture loss or anything. Just something to rule out before calling Hitachi... try another receiver.

[kevinivey]

My 53" Hitachi widescreen did the same when I first got it,and has
not done it again for six month.I would have to believe Hitachi is telling the truth about the "break in period".I do not believe it is related to what source you are viewing,it happened with cable box,DVD,and Tivo.

[slc1t]

John The Tube,

Interesting post. I bought a mitsubishi 65905 tv 2 years ago that had the same problem. Every input blinked. The 480P input seemed to blink for a longer period of time than other inputs. The problem did not go away during the two years so I finally excercised the 5 year warranty.

I think the problem with my unit was circuitry. Not sure. Anyway, I am curious as to what you found. Has the blinking continued? We noticed with our set that when we watched a lot of tv it seemed to happen more.

I got the newer ws-65711 in its place... but the problem is that the new picture is horrible. So I am actually considering getting my old tv back and trying to fix the problem.

Let me know how things have worked out for you.

Chet

[kevinivey]

The tv would display the word "stop" and blink out for about a second,and the picture would return.The picture I get on this tv is absolutely stunning,no complaints at all!

[jsintic]

John The Tube,

I have a 53SWX12B and have also experienced the same picture loss problem. It happended a couple of times when I first got the set back in June and just happended again last night for the first time since then (Approx 3 Months). I will wait it out a little longer and then if it continues to happen I will call Hitachi Service.

Good Luck!

[bobignacio]

Hello All,

This is interesting...

We have a Toshiba 50H82 which does the same thing...
It shuts off and then on in about a second.
We had the tv for about 3 weeks then it started.

Posted this on the Toshiba Threads...

Heard that this is common with the Toshibas and
that it could be the circuit board.

Some have also said it has gone away,
others had a technician come in.

Was reading the Hitachi threads cuz I was going
to return the Toshiba and get a Hitachi/Sony.

Bob I.

[kevinw]

Bob;
As you can see the off/on is common to almost all Tv's. It should go away after a little breakin period. my tosh only did it twice in the first month and never again.

[John The Tube]

Folks

Thought I would post a final comment....

I have owned the TV since October (almost 1 year)

I cannot say exactly when it stopped, but it stopped & the TV has been fantastic - DVD, HD and regular old standard tv has been a joy .....

My wife has even come around to seeing the value of "SUCH A BIG TV"

:D :D :D

[akthor]

Mine has never done it.

[terryf1960]

I bought my first HDTV about a year ago. After a couple of weeks I noticed that black lines would go through the picture after the set was on for a considerable length of time. It would get so bad that the picture swold finallycompletely black out, although the sound would be unaffected. No matter what source I used there was no difference. I did buy the extended warranty which I was told by the salesman that I would get a new set if anything went wrong. Of course this was a different story when I approached them about this problem. They didn't want to do anything about it and finally I threatened to roll it up to thier doors and drop it off. The managers reply was " do what you want. W got our money. So another week of fighting with the head manager from Toronto and he agreed they would pick it up and try and fix it if the service tech couldn't fix it onsite. well the service tech was a joke. He come out and removed the whole chassis to have a look and really had no idea what to do. So he said they'd take it to London to have it put on the diagnostic equipment. He dropped a piece of wood in to the electronics and said woops that won't hurt anything. Then I had to help him carry the chassis in to the back of his truck cutting myhand in the process. The electronics for my TV would be bumping in the back of that truck 60 miles to London totally uncovered. Well after about 3 weeks I call to check on the status and they still know nothing. Fortunately I did provide them with digital pictures showing the set acting up. The manager finally tells me that if they don't find the problem within an additional week that they would deliver a new set. Of course they didn't find the problem and they did deliver a new tv makink me feel like I should be thankful they did me such a huge favor. It did get heated between the local store manager and myself. He acted very intimidatin (he was big) and threatened me. When my wife went in the next day just to get his card from front desk he intimidated her. This guy is a lunatic and has scared me off ever shopping at the brick again. DO NOT SHOP AT THE BRICK.

[jime]

I purchased a 51S500 on July 6. After a three weeks it was shutting down for about 3 seconds, then coming back on at least 3 or 4 times a day. I called Hitachi and they wanted me to make an appointment with a repairman – under warranty. I made the appointment, then thought about it and call Circuit City – where I purchased the set. They brought a new unit out the next day. We have had this one for a week and haven’t noticed a repeat of the problem yet.

[IndyKen]

I've had my Hitachi 51swx20b since January. I also noticed this "loss of picture" phenomana right away. I'm happy to report though, like others have mentioned, that it does fade away after a break in period. I still, on occasion, see it, but it's rare now. The picture is superb by the way, couldn't be happier with it.

[hawks066]

Wow. I happened to be looking for this issue on here and it actually has happened quite a bit.

I bought my Hitach 51F500 2.5 weeks ago and have noticed this problem where I hear a click, the picture goes out for 1 second and comes right back on as if nothing had happened. I've seen it three times now, the most recent being today. I truly hope that it does go away like everyone has been saying. I just hope it isn't a huge defect that will kill the life of my TV. If it continues to happen I will call Hitachi about it.

[sillygoose]

Originally posted by hawks066
Wow. I happened to be looking for this issue on here and it actually has happened quite a bit.

I bought my Hitach 51F500 2.5 weeks ago and have noticed this problem where I hear a click, the picture goes out for 1 second and comes right back on as if nothing had happened. I've seen it three times now, the most recent being today. I truly hope that it does go away like everyone has been saying. I just hope it isn't a huge defect that will kill the life of my TV. If it continues to happen I will call Hitachi about it.

i see that you have a moto 5100. you didn't happen to plug the power cord from the 51F500 into the back of the moto did you. i had my 65swx set up like that for quite a while and noticed the off the back on issue occuring every once in a while. i suspected the 5100 might be the culprit so i plugged the 65swx power cord directly into the power strip and haven't had it turn itself off since.

[hawks066]

Nope. Directly into the power strip.. It doesn't exactly turn itself off, the red line remains on I believe.

[Quiller]

Last night I purchased a Hitachi 46F500 from RC Willey. Actually, I started at Best Buy but the "supervisor" there couldn't explain diddly. Couldn't switch video inputs to compare. Sorry, got off track. Back to the Hitachi. Loved the picture in the store. Good Salesman. Delivered this morning at 0927. By 0945 I turned it on, got the red power light and NOTHING ELSE. Changed remote batteries. Unplugged and plugged back in. Called Hitachi. They said it must be the 1 per cent problem. Send it back. RC Willey coming back out this afternoon with another. They aren't leaving until I see it work. Not a good way to start out.:(

[57U]

Welcome to the forum. Sorry about your DOA. Hope the next experience is better. If you haven't done so already, see the FAQ section, especially the post "what you need to do to your new HDTV".

[hawks066]

typically if it's in home delivery most places will turn on the TV and make sure it is working before they leave... No TV is perfect. People can only go by the information out there when purchasing a tv. Hitachi does have the lowest repair rate as stated by consumer reports, but that does not mean there won't be any problems.

[Quiller]

RC Willey came thru. Around 6PM, RCW delivered a replacement and I love the set. I know, sometimes shat happens, its just that noone expects it to happen to them. Ok, I've had my turn. Couple of historical points to ponder...
1. As I said before, Best Buy seems to have competency problems. I don't think I'll be back unless its to buy a specific item that I've already decided on and they have the best price.
2. Why a PTV? I started out thinking I didn't want to spend that kind of money and would just go with a 32-36 CRT to replace my 27 Sony. But... after comparing picture quality and $$$$, the Hitachi wasn't that much more expensive and it gave me sooooo much more. FYI, the 46F500 was $1499 with a $100 discount making it only $1399. I purchased the optional stand for $179, and purchased a 5year extended warranty for $179. I don't usually go for the extended warranty but at only $30 a year AND I get half back at the end of the 5 period if it is never used it was something I couldn't afford to pass up. Here in Utah, we have crappy power, always going out. This warranty specifically covers damage caused for this reason. I think that is what killed my Sony. Anyway, so far I'm very happy.

[hawks066]

Yes. I agree with the fact the Best Buy has no idea what they are talking about. Last time I went in there, I asked a kid a question about a tv, and he continued to look down at his paper, said NO, and never even had the common courtesy of looking at me or acting like I was there. I walked out, decided not to buy my TV there and went down to Circuit City and bought it.

[Paul Mohr]

Some times I like to go to these big chain stores like Best buy and Circuit City just to mess with them. We have another one in our area called ABC whare house that is completely clueless, and very high pressure as far as sales go. I like to ask them questions I already know the answers to just to see if they will lie to me. I hate being lied to, if you don't know, just tell me you don't know. Don't make some crap up just to make a sale.

In my area I like Rex Electronics. Rarely do make things up or try to sell me something I don't want. Usually if they don't know a spec or or something technical they tell me they don't. Alot of the times if they don't know they say they will try to find out if I want to check back in a few days.

Just once I would like to walk into an electronics store and see the kid behind the counter reading Home Theater Magizine, or Sound and Vision. I would think a good salesman would be a prepared salesman. In thier defense though, I wonder if they don't work in different departments on different days. That would mean they would halve to learn about every product in the store, that would be a bit daunting. I will also admit, I helped a friend buy a computer from best buy last year and the guy helping us was pretty knowledgable, I was kind of impressed.

Oh, I bought a 61 inch philips from Rex about 5 years ago and when they delivered it, the guy asked what room I wanted it in and he set it up turned it on and adjusted the convergence for me before he left. And I didn't even have to pay for delivery.

Good luck and I hope your new tv works better. By the way, If I bought a new tv and the picture kept dropping out, I would throw a freakin' fit! All that test and burn in crap should be done before it goes in the box. 2 or 3 grand for a tv and it glitches the first month you have it is unecceptable in my opinion. I have a hitachi 32 inch direct view hdtv ready and it worked great right out of the box though.

Paul

[Tom]

Originally posted by Quiller
Last night I purchased a Hitachi 46F500 from RC Willey. Actually, I started at Best Buy but the "supervisor" there couldn't explain diddly. Couldn't switch video inputs to compare. Sorry, got off track. Back to the Hitachi. Loved the picture in the store. Good Salesman. Delivered this morning at 0927. By 0945 I turned it on, got the red power light and NOTHING ELSE. Changed remote batteries. Unplugged and plugged back in. Called Hitachi. They said it must be the 1 per cent problem. Send it back. RC Willey coming back out this afternoon with another. They aren't leaving until I see it work. Not a good way to start out.:(

I'll say it again because I still have a bad taste in my mouth from my whole HITACHI service experience: if you have an extended warranty and you keep getting the run-around from Hitachi Customer Service and your local Authorized Hitachi Service Center, then go back to where you got the set (before they jack you around too long) and demand another set............preferably something OTHER than Hitachi.

my .02 worth...........

[Quiller]

As I said before, RCW came thru with a replacement set. Since then ZERO problems, not even the seemingly prevalent intermittant picture blackout. The only problem I have is that Oscar the cat has realized the top of the TV is within his jump range. One more time and its dead cat time.

[hawks066]

Hitachi is the way to go it seems...every store I had been to has said they are the best. I went to Sears the other day, and the salesman was talking with customer's saying they are the best. He went on to say that they make there own parts, and that the have the best repair rate. I go to Circuit City.. You ask what is the best tv, they say hitachi because of their repair rate, the fact they make some of there own parts, and the picture quality is just as good if not better then the rest. I even go to Best Buy, who doesn't sell Hitachi, and I ask the salesman what tv does he think is the best. He tells my Hitachi. Of all the numerous boards I have been on, all are favoring Hitachi.