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Loading ...Update #7: User Eric provided an update link to learn more about the class action coverage and which sets are effected:
Update #6: Leo called Sony demanding a replacement and Sony replied that they only thing they could offer is a repair. Upon further pushing Leo was told that he could write the Executive Review Committee with his concerns. Here is the contact information courtesy of Leo:
Executive Review Commitee
12451 Gateway Blvd.
Fort Myers, FL 33913.They asked me to include the following:
- Request to commitee
- Model and Serial number
- Copy of bill of sale (or note on letter that I cannot provide one)
- Reference number (i got this from CS) and
- Telephone, email and home address.
The hope being that if enough people write with their complaints of the settlement, Sony might rise to the occasion and do something more (offer replacements?)
Update #5: The pending terms of the settlement were posted by long time reader DOBI below:
I just read the pending Class Action settlement on Sony’s website; http://esupport.sony.com/sxrdsettlement
This is really good for us who have these problem TV’s… Did you realize that SONY has extended all in home warranty service until June of 2009? And, if you own or received one of these XBR50 or XBR60’s you are part of the Class Action. You needn’t do anything to join it. You can Opt out of the Class Action, but who in the world would want to do that?
OK..
Look at the benefits;
What benefits does the Settlement provide?
- A5. Currently the Settlement is still pending final approval by the Court presiding over the case. If approved, the Settlement provides for Sony to offer the following benefits, with proper documentation:
- An extension of the limited warranty to provide in-home service or replacement of the optical block in your Television until June 30, 2009, and special benefits in fulfilling this warranty extension.
- The refund of expenses incurred to replace the optical block in your Television.
- The refund of money paid after July 15, 2006 for an extended service plan for your Television from Sony or its extended service plan provider, Service Net Solutions, and cancellation of that extended service plan, if you so choose.
- The refund of money paid to Sony for the exchange of your Television for an XBR2, A2000, or A2020 SXRD model television, if you required more than one repair of the optical block in your Television.
I have read on this Blog that some of you had your sets exchanged for another model and you had to pay a cash differental… Guess what.. You get your money back if I’ve read the Settlement correctly.
The best thing to me is, that SONY has extended service on these stinkers until June of 2009. We had our first OB replacement just a couple of weeks ago with the new improved OB.. Lets hope?
IF things go sour again, we have more time to contact SONY about it..
Read the Settlement, I didn’t know it exsisted until last night!
Original Post:
More information on the green discoloration issue on the Sony SXRD sets, it seems there is a class action lawsuit against Sony for this! I feel this is a good move, it is too easy to find a set having this problem for it to be a fluke and so far the only word from Sony about the issue that is reported over and over and over again by users and warranty technicians is that “there is no issue” or the most they acknowledged is so far as is a “warm up issue”, sorry, no it’s not.
Anyway ’sourcery’ was given permission to post the lawyer’s contact information to the Sony A2000 thread that is handling the class action lawsuit, his information is as follows:
Robert I. Lax, Esq.
Robert I. Lax & Associates
535 Fifth Avenue
21st Floor
New York, New York 10017
Tel: (212) 818-9150
Fax: (212) 818-1266
rlax (at) lax-law (dot) com
According to ’sourcery’ Robert is most interested in speaking with Sony technicians or folks that have spoken to Sony representatives about the green blob issue to hear how it was described from Sony’s perspective to the person or technician.
If you suffer from this problem or have information for Robert, feel free to contact him. (Digg this)
Update #1: Sony have a QA process problem? Yes it seems so. Sony was the producer of all the batteries that Dell just recently had to recall because a few of them were blowing up. Keep up the good work Sony.
Update #2: Robert Lax, the lawyer handling the Class Action Lawsuit has sent notice that the website is now online: http://www.sonysxrdtvclassaction.com/
Update #3: John W. has posted a new Sony Support URL for their FAQ system that declares extended support for XBR1 sets as well as Sony reimbursing any out-of-pocket expenses owners may have spent fixing their XBR1 sets.
Update #4: Ken has updated the comments to say that his XBR2 is already showing a yellow stain. So it seems the verdict is in and the XBR2 did not completely correct the issue.
NOTE: Updates 5 & 6 are at the top of the post
Update #7: Greg Witham, in the process of writing his own script for a YouTube video of how best to destroy his Sony TV, provided a link to a YouTuber that has already done so… by taking it out into the desert and shooting it to death. While we wait for Greg’s video, here’s gwamba’s:
Update #8: Got sent this video from The Onion, for all the Sony-haters out there, it’s hilarious:
Sony Releases New Stupid Piece Of Shit That Doesn’t Fucking Work
September 24th, 2006 at 9:47 am
I have a Sony XBR1 SXRD 60″. I would like to be included in the class action lawsuit if applicable.
September 24th, 2006 at 11:15 am
Raymond,
I’m sorry to hear that you are effected by this issue. Please contact Robert Lax (rlax@lax-law.com) at the contact information given above, he should be able to provide more information for you on how to add yourself to the class action lawsuit.
October 12th, 2006 at 8:43 pm
I would like to be included in this lawsuit as I to have a KDS-R60XBR1 with this issue.
November 13th, 2006 at 1:29 am
My sony SXRD has a screen mess up also
http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/6349/dsc0023bz6.jpg
November 13th, 2006 at 11:01 am
I just called them today “sony” and they acted like nothing was going on and they could fix it overe the phone.
November 20th, 2006 at 1:21 pm
Sony said SXRD was better than DLP because DLP had a “fatal flaw” in its design. Now I am deeply wondering what Sony was really talking about. LCoS had this problem, so does Sony’s LCoS. They tried to get away with SXRD???
December 13th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
Ditto here on my SXRD!
December 17th, 2006 at 4:09 pm
I’ve owned mine since March and just notified Sony yesterday of the problem. They gave me two authorized repair shops to select from. Waiting to hear back from one. Mine still works great just has the green yellowish haze no matter what the source of programing. December 17.
December 18th, 2006 at 11:34 am
I have this problem and it did not show its ugly head untill 9 months after owning the tv. I had a technician look at it and sure enough it is the optical block/light engine. I’m very reluctant about having it fixed as I have heard the problem will return, given enough time. I would love to be involved in this lawsuit!
December 21st, 2006 at 8:49 pm
I just purchased a SXRD XBR1 and was buying a stand for it a a very reputable local highend AV store. The owner told me that another client who had purchased a SXRD XBR1 just bought a Blu-Ray DVD player and that even though Sony says the SXRD XBR1 is 1080p it is NOT compatible with Blu-Ray 1080p output via the HDMI connection!!! Has anyone else heard of this?? If this is the case, Wow, talk about another lawsuit…and count me in!!
December 23rd, 2006 at 8:45 am
The XBR1 is only compatible with input resolutions up to 1080i not 1080p. The newer version is capable of handling 1080p inputs.
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:59 am
This is my second set KDS-R50XBR1 in 1 year. the first one was loaded with problems a blue line on the bottom of the screen Now with new set less than 6 months old I have a diminishing color on the right side of the screen, but sony tells me I am not covered under the waranty, because the waranty goes back to the original sale date of my first set. So basicly on this set I ownly had a 6 month waranty. This set came from Sony they took my original set and replace it with this one serial.. I just want to know if there is a wide spread defect in this model . How could this happen twice to the same customer. I want to be loyal Sony customer but its up to Sony , for that answer.
December 26th, 2006 at 4:06 am
Wow! And to think that I had plans to purchase a Sony KDS-60A2000 Grand WEGA 60″ SXRD 1080p Rear Projection HDTV. The 1080p HD and lack of “rainbow” or “screen door” effect is what attracted me to this TV set. Thank you everyone for your truthful and useful information.
December 26th, 2006 at 6:20 am
Vic,
The really frustrating part about these sets, is that if you get one, and never have a problem with it, they are truely excellent, but then again the chances you’ll never have a problem with it seem to be about 50/50… really horrible odds for such an expensive purchase.
December 26th, 2006 at 10:08 am
Merry Christmas…After 10 months the blob has shown its ugly self on my SXRD XBR50..Called Sony…Now waiting for a tech call back…
December 26th, 2006 at 10:39 am
Steve that sucks. Fingers crossed on this end, I hope they fix it for you.
December 26th, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Just got the call back from sony on this Green blob issue. I tried to get a replacement tv and the lady would not do it. She said I had to wait for the part to come in and have it replaced. I read on other forums that this doesnt always fix the issue. I told her that she is going to lose a life long customer if she didnt replace the set. She basicly shrugged it off and didnt even care. I wont buy sony anything from this point on and will definitely get in this class action lawsuit.
December 26th, 2006 at 3:55 pm
Frank that royally sucks. Let’s hope the new optic block takes care of the issue. If not, and I know this isn’t the greatest, it could be a ready to get a new TV in a few years.
December 27th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
I’ve had the same problem with the 60″ XBR-1 bought in Feb 2006 and noticed the Blob about a month ago. I’ve been trying to get it fixed but the part was on back order. I have been calling every day to ask for a RA# but have not been able to get one. Should it take 4-5 weeks to have my tv fixed? NO! I paid too much for this tv to put up with this crap! How do we get a RA # so i can take it back to best buy and get store credit. I just want a tv that works.
December 27th, 2006 at 5:56 pm
Having my second optical block in a week replaced on my 50″ SXRD. Sony repair told me confidentially that every optical block in the field will need to be replaced.
Sony has major issues with this set.
December 27th, 2006 at 8:08 pm
Purchased my SXRD in Feb 06 and enjoyed a very nice picture until this month. My set not has developed a green blob but it also has a yellow stripe on the right hand side of the frame. $3500 for an 11 month disposable TV. I will definitely be in the lawsuit.
December 27th, 2006 at 8:44 pm
Sorry. Was having some anger management issues when I wrote the previous post. I meant to say “My set has developed the green blob and it also has a yellow stripe on the right hand side of the frame.” And it looks from the other posts that Sony is refusing to stand by their product.
December 27th, 2006 at 8:49 pm
Anger problems after $3500 and not having a company stand behind their product is totally understandable. I wish you luck.
December 27th, 2006 at 10:00 pm
Sooo..Get a call from the Sony Tech today..Does not even want to come out to look at the set (50XBR1) Just tells my wife that they will order “the part” and replace it when it get’s in…Not even an idea when it will be in or what the problem is…..just when it get’s in…Anyone have an idea of the actual wait time and will the problem be solved or are we all being given the run around…
December 27th, 2006 at 10:02 pm
I personally think what is happening is Sony isn’t warrenty-ing these optical blocks, so these service shops are eating the cost of them, which means they are giving their customers (owners of faulty sets) the shaft, or just humoring them on the phone and giving them a general run around.
December 28th, 2006 at 7:04 am
I talked to upper level customer service at Sony Yesterday, (whatever that means, I have to hold a really really long time), and they gave me a tracking number and told me the ob shipped on the 26th. She also said the part was still backordered.?? I was told before Christmas from the repair service it would be 4-5 weeks. Only when I started asking for a RA # did my part somehow show up and get shipped. She gave me a tracking #, but I tried it at the UPS website and of course it did not work. And now the repair company is closed until after New Years. I paid 3700 to watch my Razorbacks in Green and yellow High Def! Freaking Ridiculous!
December 28th, 2006 at 9:09 am
Daniel,
Where did you happen to get the set from? Did you pickup an extended warrenty or is all this work being done through the 1-year Sony warrenty?
December 28th, 2006 at 10:29 am
Got it @ Best Buy, and i bought the 4 year extended warranty. The set is still under the 1 year sony warranty, but the service company is the same either way. Talked to best buy and they said this repair will count as one of the repairs covered under the extended warranty also. Two more to go.
December 28th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
When I talked to sony the woman told me that the only way to get the tv replaced would be if there was a recall on the set. I asked her what constitutes a recall because there are tons of people with this issue on the internet forums?? She had no answer for that and said that she never had an optical block that was replaced go bad again??? She emphaticly told me that there were no repeat complaints on this issue.
WE ALL NEED TO CALL AND HARASS SONY ON THIS ISSUE UNTIL IT COSTS THEM SO MUCH TO REPLACE ALL THESE LIGHT ENGINES THAT THEY WILL PUT OUT A RECALL. THIS IS TOTAL BULLSHIT THAT WE HAVE TO BE INCONVEINENCED AFTER SPENDING THIS MUCH ON A TV.
December 28th, 2006 at 1:34 pm
Frank,
Do you have a number for folks to call?
December 28th, 2006 at 1:35 pm
I would also quickly point out that this problem has been raving in the AVS Forums for over a year now, with tons of people calling. Sony has been told to act like there isn’t a problem… so I wouldn’t be surprised if they continue to ignore the issue. It would be too expensive to acknowledge especially after the battery recall.
December 28th, 2006 at 4:54 pm
Gets even better. I spent several hours on the phone with Sony service reps and Sony.com service techs (this took about 1 1/2 hours on hold to get a Sony tech and he was useless) discussing my KDSR50XBR1. The independent service reps will not come to my home becasue I live over 25 miles away from the service shops and they say Sony will not pay the extra mileage (starting to paint a picture?) So much for in home warranty. The Sony people have essentially told me I would have to deliver it to the service reps and leave it. So when I called the service reps back, they informed me that the OB’s are back ordered and would likely not show up any time soon. Then one of the independent service reps from Memphis, TN informed me that the new OB’s that he has installed have about a 50/50 success rate. His suggestion was to beg CC for a replacement set. Dont really believe that’s going to happen but what the hey, it’s worth a shot. This is like a bad dream.
December 28th, 2006 at 5:18 pm
PS Soooie Pig!
December 29th, 2006 at 9:34 am
I purchased my KDS-R60XBR1 in May, 2006. I did extensive reviewing before making the purchase and thought I made a wise choice. However, I was unaware about the “Green Haze” until researching it last night (12-28-06) and found many people in my Titanic. I am waiting for tech support to call me back. I mentioned that I found a lot of people with the same problem and he gave me the quick answer, “he knows of a problem but apparently a firmware upgrade should fix it.” Will post anything I find out. I would like to be included in the class action lawsuit if I get the run around.
December 30th, 2006 at 11:02 am
OK..Talked to C/S again..They state that they are expecting a shipment of OB’s in next week..He said the number exceeds 100 and that is only a portion of the number back ordered..Get in line and wait your turn….Looks like this could be a long one!!!
December 30th, 2006 at 4:10 pm
No issues with my XBR1 yet, I do however see some green blob issue on start up and I have heard this is how it starts. No TV is perfect, but if Sony is smart they will replace the defective sets, and just replacing the “Optical Block” isn’t cutting it from what I have heard. Might not include myself just yet, but I will be keeping an eye on my TV. They had a great thing going the picture on this thing is stunning, they just need to fix this defect ASAP.
December 30th, 2006 at 9:16 pm
What frustrated me so much about the SXRD sets is that if they *do* work, and don’t have any problem, they are arguably the best looking RP sets on the market… so a lot of folks (almost me too) take the risk and then some get lucky and some end up with major problems where Sony just leaves them writing for months…
I hope all of you get the service you should get.
December 31st, 2006 at 8:52 am
Tech support called back and the problem was… I was not home and they spoke with the wife. I wanted to give them an ear full, but all they told her was they are coming out next Thursday. I wanted to tell them to save their trip because I already learned from you folks what was going on and to just bring the Optical Block if coming. Of course with it b/o’ed I’m sure it will be a wasted trip on their part. Long ride on this one, but I’m pretty damn persistent when it comes to my hard earned money. I will post after the tech visit. Keeping my fingers crossed he already knows the solution before the visit, but unlikely!
December 31st, 2006 at 1:27 pm
Rob W, and all: I don’t think we need a play by play on what is going on with your TV set. Go over to AVS forum and bitch there. This is for people who want to take legal action, not sure why people are posting there problems over and over. Looking at the very few post on here so far in comparison to the AVS, there are a small % of sets that have this issue, mine happens to be one of them, the more useful post as Sony is not holding up there bargin on the Warr, of if someone actually finds that all the Optical Blocks or whatever is causing the problem is we will all have to wait and see on this one. I hope your set gets fixed, if it doesn’t then please write in and tell us, as I will do the same but we don’t need redundant posts….
December 31st, 2006 at 7:36 pm
Didn’t realize you were so anal about this site sid…here is another link to more forums for all that want to be heard and not annoy sid anymore…
http://www.epinions.com/msg/show_~threads/cat_id_~13/id_~3530/forum_id_~361/pp_~2
December 31st, 2006 at 7:42 pm
I personally appreciate everyone’s contributions, both yours, Sid’s and everyone else’s.
Anyone that is hesitant about posting, just remember that there could be something in *your* post that helps someone else out. A link, a comment, some instruction or clue. You never know who you are helping out.
For everyone 1 person that posts on the net, I would say there are probably 1000 people that read the same bit of information. So if we have folks running across this post and going “oh wow I didn’t know that” and feeling more empowered, then we’ve all done a good job.
January 1st, 2007 at 1:01 pm
WELL SAID RIYAD! Will continue to post information and thanks for the link. I’m learning more and more about the “blob” out there and others suffering the same issues. Hopefully it will get resolved… we’ll soon see.
January 1st, 2007 at 9:55 pm
I am for one glad we have this site, just don’t need a play by play, and sure it is annoying when the person posts the same stuff over and over and over. AVS Forum is full of people like this, makes me wonder how widespread this problem is? All I know is my set looks fricking fantastic on HD and with my PS3, and I would have not noticed this blob at all if I didn’t put on a Black and White movie
DOH!!!!! If anyone get’s Sony to replace your set, I am all EARS!!! 
Whoever the lawyer is for this suit, should look for people on the AVS site also, seems to be a ton over there having issues…..
January 2nd, 2007 at 5:46 am
I’VE PURCHASED THE SONYXBR1 ALMOST A YEAR AGO, NO PROBLEMS OF YET. WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR WITH THIS GREEN HAZE PROBLEM.
January 2nd, 2007 at 7:29 am
Jesse S.,
You can click the “Memory card” button that takes you to the menu screen where you can read the contents of a memory card, it is a solid gray screen. If you see any discoloration (usually green) on the screen, that is probably the green haze/green blob problem folks are talking about.
Other ways to see it are to display other, light solid colors on the screen. Like a solid white picture.
Some folks have the green haze problem to a very small degree and in normal TV watching and image viewing they can barely see it and don’t care. Others however have it really bad and see it even under normal watching conditions.
That being said, even if you or others find it, I wouldn’t necessary give up the ghost. After finding it, decide if it really bothers you that much.
Also if you *do* find it, and the set is still under the return period from the vendor you purchased it from, you might want to try and return the set and get something else. I personally got the Mitsubishi WD-65831. It’s a brilliant set, but unfortunately I see rainbows (that is something the SXRD sets and other 3-chip solutions don’t suffer from). But the rainbows don’t bother me too much, so I kept the set (similar example to what I’m suggesting above).
January 3rd, 2007 at 3:22 pm
Hey everyone.
I’m getting a bit of a different response. My kds 50xbr1 showed signs of light engine failure about a month after purchase “July 2006″. I let it go for 3 months and it continued to grow. It seemed to be getting worse as the set got hotter (the longer it was on). It was especially noticable in the right hand side on the HD on ESPN HD (when they are showing a non hd program). Called repair shop and after 5 wk backorder part arrived and tv getting fixed. With this set burn in seems to be an issue as well. With the 360 and PS2 the burn in can take up to 5 hours to go away. Anyways they worked with me. I personally think the light engine is too close to a heat source and thus getting damaged.
January 4th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
ATTENTION SXRD OWNERS!!!!!!
If you have the optical block problem and contact Sony about it, they will flat out deny that the problem exists. DO NOT LET THEM FOOL YOU!!!! They know about the problem and I feel that the number of claims is growing every day as these sets are getting older. (My problem didn’t happen untill it was 9 months old) You can see just from this thread alone that it is a HUGE problem. I am in the process of ordering the second replacement light engine right now. The first replacement did not do the job but just manifested into a worse, but different pink blob problem. I feel they are very close to issuing a recall on this one. Please call Sony as many times as you can, as this is the only way you will be able to get anywhere with them. They have reports that say how many times you have called and once it reaches a certain number, your claim is elevated and you have a better chance of getting what you want.
January 4th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
After fighting with Sony and my Dealer, the dealer finally replaced my set with the upgraded model, the XBR2. Sony is trying to backcharge the service centers if they send in the light engine for replacement and they deem it to still be in specs. I don’t know of any problems with this model yet. Keep me informed.
January 4th, 2007 at 8:38 pm
Service tech came out on my set, said it was the Optical Engine and had to place on order. From reading other comments after my last post and other links, I’m wondering if even replacing the OB/OE will even suffice. XBR2 would be nice, but I guess I would need to go through the steps for replacement. It was MFG in 02/06 and I purchased in May 06. Seems the life avg is around 8-9 months on the OB/OE. I’ve been dealing with the Dealer at this point. Should I call Sony direct even though the extended warranty is with the Dealer I purchased it from? Any advice among others would be appreciated of course. By the way, I’m still interested in more information on the class action lawsuit.
January 5th, 2007 at 2:48 am
I got very frustrated after my KDS-50A2000 (purchased March 2006) got the green blob around Thanksgiving. Same problems as most of you- called Sony, they didn’t care, didn’t even acknowledge a problem until I asked to speak to a supervisor. Supe took info, promised to call back, we haven’t heard from Sony since. Well, we sort of did- some repair center called us and said we live too far away for anyone to check our TV.
My family basically decided to harass Best Buy since we had an extended warranty (even though this TV’s still under Sony’s warranty). It took Best Buy 2 weeks to get a service tech out, b/c apparently they’re swamped with calls about Sonys. Service rep came, said he had handled several other problems like ours in the last few days, and assured us that Sony won’t ship a replacement part for a month. So we harassed Best Buy some more (I felt bad, b/c Best Buy really did make an effort), and finally Best Buy just told us to pick out a new TV because they can’t make any headway with Sony either. So finally we’re going to pick out a new TV this weekend, and dump the old one on BB. I hope BB will put some pressure on Sony.
January 5th, 2007 at 6:35 am
I am having a similar problrm with my kds-r60xbr1 tv but the problem wasn’t just a green haze but also a large area of purple discoloration. As the set was still under warranty Sony paid to have it fixed. A new optic block was put in yesterday (1/4/07). Unfortunately that did not resolve the problem and I am very frustrated. Perhaps I should join this suit as well
January 5th, 2007 at 7:27 am
Guys I really appreciate you all posting… this thread combined with the ones from AVS really makes it painfully obvious how much of a quality-control and customer-service problem Sony is having and refusing to acknowledge.
Also, Seth, the purple-haze issue was mentioned a few time on AVS, it’s fewer and farther between than the green blob problem but similar… in those cases optic block replacements seemed to fix the issue but as you said that didn’t do the trick.. I have no idea what it could be.
Does it change at all as the TV warms up?
Also Phil, NICE job on harassing BB. The only way Sony will do a recall is if the *retailers* turn on them… they don’t give a shit about their customers. So you did the right thing.
January 5th, 2007 at 8:24 am
Question. Sony has now given me an Event Id # for my KDS-50XBR1 Does this put me closer to a replacemnt set since they have no idea of when the O/B will be shipped and no idea of a repair time.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
my problem so far is a little green haze during warm up then it pretty much goes away. is it only going to get worst.i see the blob on the menu stick then it goes away not on hd channels yet i have the kdsxbr160”. anyone have ant sugestions on a new type of tv. maybe i should go with flat panel? or a samsung or mitsu rphdtv.has anyone purchased the sony from p.c richards i wonder how there handling the situation.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:41 pm
My dealer is Tweeter – I have to put a plug out there. After filing a complaint with Sony, they gave me a bogus response on how to adjust the TV. What a JOKE! After the tech left and told me he was ordering part, I called to follow up. Ordered, but still not satisfied. My unit is less than a year old (May 2006 purchase). I took pictures and documented times/dates of everything that has happened and took everything up to Tweeter and sat down with the manager behind closed doors. He was shock of the class action lawsuit info and the green haze (said it looked like algae – LOL). He wasn’t aware of any of them, but mentioned they have sold a ton of them so he’ll probably start hearing about it. I flat out asked him if he could replace it with the XBR2 with my hassles. Getting it on Tuesday and they are picking up the Green Blob. I have pictures if anyone is interested in seeing it (email: robpkw@excite.com). Amazing. Tweeter came through on this one, I just hope the XBR2 is in better condition than the XBR1. It’s my understanding the XBR2 has two Optical Engines and should reduce the problem according to a recent CNET review in December.
Interesting fact the Tweeter manager told me that is NOT common knowledge: the XBR1 does not truly produce 1080i with the HDMI cable and it has been a hidden fact from the consumer. Only COAX will produce the true 1080i, but the XBR2 has corrected this with the HDMI cable to produce 1080p. As many have suggested – push, push, push (my added plug is keep your notes! I went into Tweeter expecting the run around, but they came through on this one!) The class action lawsuit I believe is only a matter of time with the amount of units purchased out there.
January 5th, 2007 at 6:00 pm
Rob,
That is huge and great news! I’m really glad to hear that Tweeter came through for you and not only with a replacement old set, but a brand new XBR2. They can be sure they will have your business in the future (and possibly many more folks from this thread? Who knows).
Also, just to clarify, both the XBR1 and XBR2 sets were 1080p sets, but the XBR1 only accepts up to 1080i, it could not take a 1080p signal (but the XBR2 can).
Is the issue you are referring to, that when the XBR1 receives an 1080i signal over HDMI, it doesn’t resolve all 1080 lines? That rings a bell, but I’m not sure.
Thanks for the info Rob.
January 5th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
Hey Riyad:
Well, I knew that the XBR1 said 1080i. From my understanding, even with the HDMI, the manager at Tweeter said it wasn’t truly 1080i from my understanding. And oddly, I thought I saw this because my keen eye on the 1080 overall was on target. So, from my understanding, I knew when I bought it that it was 1080i max and not 1080p. From my conversation, I gathered 1080i or 1080p wasn’t possible with the HDMI. Overall, they DO have my business. Impressive customer serivce! By the way… I chose them because of Consumer Reports listing as one of the top on the list for customer service….
January 6th, 2007 at 8:40 am
I have the same green problem! I live in canada can anyone help me out? Who should i contact?
tx,
Derek
January 6th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Victory!!! (I hope.) After I exhausted all avenues of satisfaction through CC (Circuit City’s argument was that this really was a Sony problem and not a CC problem and in some aspects I agree with them), I went after Sony one more time and finally got the right supervisor. I explained a third time to Sony my futile attempts to get a service rep to honor the in home diagnositc warranty. This Sony manager said that they would have to do their own service rep search and would get back to me in 72 hours. I really felt like I was getting another Sony run-around but I agreed . Within 24 hours I was contacted by a senior Sony supervisor who informed me that they also had no luck locating a service rep in my area and they then did the unbelievable, they offered to replace the set. Their first offer was the KDS60A2000. Having read some other posts on AV forums, I was prepared for this and informed the Sony supervisor that I did not consider that an equitable replacement. Unbelievably, she somewhat agreed and then offered me a refurbished KDS-R50XBR1. I told her that I also thought that was an unacceptable replacement since the set probably came in with the same problem that I already had. She then asked me how much I paid for the set and I told her $3500. She then said that I could upgrade for a new KDS-R60XBR2 for the difference in what I paid and the cost of the set on the Sonystyle.com website, $3800.00. The difference was $300.00 and I agreed to it. The KDS-R60XBR2 is scheduled to be shipped “white glove service” from a Sonystyle warehouse on Monday and should arrive by Thursday or Friday. The plus side to this is that since I paid an additional fee for the upgrade, the set comes with another 1 year full warranty. My nightmare is nearly over (knock on wood.)
My advice to all who are getting nowhere with their TV retailer is to go back after Sony and be nice to everyone you talk to but be adamant about making Sony live up to all of the hype that comes with one of these sets. Sony as well as most AV sites and Consumerreports.com report these sets to be the best of the best for the price range. If Sony is going to beneift from all of the talk, then they must walk the walk. 1st Sony will insist on sending a Service rep out to at least diagnose the problem and then most likely to replace the optical block. If there’s not a service rep in your area, you are homefree. If a service rep does the replacement, make them do it to your satisfaction. If they replace it in your home, make them stay and go through every channel and input with both of you looking at the set. If it is not to your satifsfaction, insist on them calling Sony right then. If they take your set away to install the OB, you may want to travel to the service shop to view the set before they return it to your home. If it is not to your satisfaction, then insist on them calling Sony right then and make “walk the walk.”
If your like me, you researched this set for a few weeks if not months and then relied heavily on the opinions of Cnet, Consumerreports, etc and then paid more for this set than your first car cost. Do not be hesitant to point any of this out to Sony and then tell them that you expect them to honor their end of the bargain and provide a product that lives up to the hype. The last bit of advice is that you have to get past the first two levels of customer service at Sony and speak to a supervisor with the authority to think. The first two levels of CS reps are not allowed to think and are only reading scripts. Let me assure you that the script does not have the words replace or exchange anywhere on it.
I will post one final follow up when the set arrives and let you know if Sony indeed makes good on their word.
Sorry for such a long post but hopefully it will benefit all. Good luck to everyone who is experiencing this nightmare.
January 6th, 2007 at 11:50 am
Kelly P, sounds like a victory to me!
Derek: how long have you had the set? Did you get an extended warranty? From reading other posts, keep your records – log – and calm, but remain persistent!
Riyad: many glasses of wine to celebrate victory after writing back the other day. I believe I asnwered the question, but just for clarification…. the XBR1 was to my understanding to produce 1080i with HDMI. Tweeter told me this was NOT the case with the HDMI on the XBR1 and he invited to tell me this information to my surprise. A “little hidden secret” is what he said to me. However the XBR2 has corrected this with the HDMI. Interesting!
I truly believe that most people will get what they need out of this and mainly from other experiences on this Blog and others! It has helped me tremendously!
January 6th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
I have been fighting with Sony since November. I have called 4 times trying to get this green blob KDS-R50XBR1 fixed. Nothing but wasted time. My warranty is up in May and I cannot get Sony to budge. I cannot find my receipt and the retailer that I purchased it from gives me their corperate number and then I get nothing. Sony needs to be accountable. We need to speed this lawsuit up.
January 6th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
KellyP: That is a *huge* win and we are really happy for you. Paying the diff for a XBR2 set is totally reasonable, I would have done exactly the same.
Rob, you have a XBR2 set on the way too don’t you? Very nice you guys!
Jason, keep your head up high. A lot of these folks were in exactly the same boat, just keep trying!
January 6th, 2007 at 1:36 pm
Riyad: yes, it’s coming in next week. Looking forward to it, but I just read on the High Def Forum the XBR2’s are having the same problem. Sigh. This is concerning to me now. Wondering if I really want to hassle with it. But the TV is awesome when it works!!! But is it worth going weeks/months with headaches??? Not quite sure…
Jason: Riyad is right. You are the customer/consumer! Keep pushing! I promise you one thing, dealing with customer support isn’t going to help! Got to keep pushing and raising the flag!
January 6th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
That is hotness Rob, I got my fingers crossed that nothing will go wrong… on the bright side, they sold so many XBR2s this holiday that if there IS something wrong with them, there are going to be a lot of voices yelling at them.
I did read some folks noticing problems with the XBR2, but it doesn’t seem anywhere as consistent as with the XBR1s.
I see two choices:
1) Get the replacement and immediately try and sell it as brand new and get some other TV.
2) Get the replacement, roll the dice, and just hope nothing goes wrong.
Given the level of headache you have already been through, I would probably do #2.
I don’t know if you saw my post on my blog, but 3 days after I got my first WD-65831 set, the color wheel destroyed itself inside the TV and the TV died… I went through this whole inner turmoil about starting my year-long hunt for the ultimate TV all over again or just replacing the set.
In the end, I replaced the set, and now instead of reading AVS every day, I’ve been enjoying HD. If it dies again, well there are worse things that could happen in life, so it’s not so bad.
Just kick back and enjoy the set. If it dies and they won’t replace it again, take it out to the desert, take some friends, and do and Office Space on it.
January 6th, 2007 at 4:46 pm
I recently got the green haze on my Sony SXRD. Worse for me, the warranty is just over in December. I hear that Sony doesnèt acknoledge this problem. How much is it if
I were to fix it myself
January 6th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
Yet another Sony victum. I purchased what I thought was the latest and greatest, a 50″ Sony XBR50 from Best Buy in January 2006. I now have a virtually unviewable green-tinted screen. It looks as if I adjusted the “hue” all the way to the green side. It is so bad, even when adjusted all the way over to the red side, that you cannot identify an NFL team without looking at their helmet logo! First, I jumped on the internet. That’s when I realized I was the member of a very large club. I am very brand loyal, so decided not to pre-judge Sony. I simply called customer service. The rep pretended as if this was the first time they had heard of this type of problem. She then informed me that there was no “authorized” Sony service companies in our area (300,000 people in our county with a Best Buy AND a Circuit City). She waould have to find a “non-authorized” company to service my TV. I had to call DAILY for 8 days until they finally gave me the name of a company. I am still waiting for his call and will keep you posted. In the meantime, I called the Robert Lax, the attorney listed the top of this site. He is a VERY nice guy. He’s not looking for blood, he’s not trying to get rich, he just wants all of us to have our defective, EXPENSIVE televisions repaired correctly or replaced. My guess is the only reason anyone is being helped is because he is putting the heat on them. Do I want to “sue” Sony? No, at least not yet. But I’ve only been trying to remedy this problem for two weeks. A month from now, I won’t hesitate. I can’t believe a I have been so loyal to Sony for the last 25 years. TV’s, stereos, boom boxes, walkmen, DVDs, VCRs, etc. Then again, all those were disposable, but a $3,500. television?….
January 7th, 2007 at 10:15 am
Just a postscript to my last comment. If you are lucky enough to get your XBR1 repaced with the XBR2 and you had bought the matching Sony stand for the XBR1, the XBR2 will not fit in the stand. My retailer, Sherman’s in Peoria. was good enough to replace my stand also at no cost. Just something everyone should be aware of.
January 7th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Keith T. Thanks for the information. My Dealer (Tweeter) said it should fit, but it’s their own brand (stand) and not made by Sony. I hope this is the case. Thanks for the heads up! Riyad, I will be calling all folks to help shoot this thing if the XBR2 goes out on me! I’m sticking with it to see…
January 7th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
I’ve had my 60inch xbr1 since June 06 (it was manufactured in
May 06) and the only issue I’ve had with it is this: if I’m looking
at black & white material I notice a hint of yellow that looks
like burn in on the right side of the screen by the border. It may
be caused by my webtv. When I first turn the tv on in the
morning the picture is perfect, then after about 45 minutes I
begin to see that before mentioned yellow. I guess I should
consider myself lucky that I don’t see green and blue blobs like
the rest of you. But just in case I’m going to sign up for the
lawsuit.
January 7th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
I bought my Sony KDSR50XBR1 in December ‘05. About 6 months later, the green blob showed up in the lower right corner of the screen. I lived with it for a couple months, and as it got worse, I finally called Sony Customer Service. They referred me to an authorized service provider, and they promptly came over and replaced my light engine.
It did not take long to discover that the second light engine looked worse than the original one. Instead of a green blob in the corner, now I had a large purple blob covering the left half of the screen, and horizontal green stripes at the top and bottom. I called the service provider, and they promptly came over again with another light engine. The third one did not work properly at all. It made a picture that looked like an old TV with the vertical hold misadjusted… the top half of the picture was on the bottom, and the bottom half was on top, with a black bar separating the two halfs. And it still had purple discoloration.
I asked the tech to put the second light engine back in, and then I called Sony. I calmly explained to the phone rep what had happened, and that I was now officially asking for a replacement TV. She said that I would be called by a Tech Rep within two business days, and they will most likely refund me for the TV or replace it.
The two days is up on Tuesday. I’ll let you know what happens.
To this point, Sony has responded to my particular situation pretty well. They have paid for two service calls, and 3 light-engine replacements. The real test of their commitment will come now. I will only join the suit as a last resort… I’ll first give Sony the opportunity to do the right thing.
Meantime, I’d like to hear some assurance from Mr. Lax that if we join his suit, he won’t be spending the proceeds on a vacation home while we plaintiffs come away with a coupon for five dollars off our next Sony Pictures DVD purchase.
January 7th, 2007 at 6:34 pm
I have the same problem with a Sony SXRD 1 series.
January 7th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Phil,
You’ve obviously been a part to a class action lawsuit before. All those who consider joining the suit should also consider the outcome and find out the specifics first (it will not be a replacement television I promise you.) Most likely it will be a compromised (between Sony and plaintiffs) agreement. If you participate in the suit, you are bound by the agreement.
Riyad (old wise one in the ways of AV),
What is your input on the XBR2’s. I’ve browsed all of the forums and have not seen any issues involving the green glob yet. Do you know of any?
January 7th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
To Mike Macahan (January 7th post): Sorry Mike, that was my TV’s first symptom. Brace yourself, even if the yellow goes away for awhile.
January 7th, 2007 at 8:37 pm
Kelly P.
Here is a link that I saw about the XBR2 issues and concerns.
http://www.highdefforum.com/showthread.php?t=33867
Hopefully it’s not as bad as the 1 though. We’ll soon see. About 2-3000 hours of life is the estimate.
January 7th, 2007 at 8:42 pm
Mike Macahan: You might have a convergence problem but if it’s just a little yellow along the right side that doesn’t sound too bad. Even on the most “perfect” (notice the quotes? No one is perfect) sets there are little things you can notice from time to time. For example, go have a look at the Pioneer Elite Plasmas ($8k) and look real close, from time to time you’ll notice some wonky things. So as long as the set looks acceptable to you, try and pretend it’s not there
Kelly P: Great question. When the A2000s came out, I saw people mention right away that some (less than XBR1s) had the green blob problem. After some good-mental-analysis the concensus was that the A2k sets were simply reboxed XBR1s. They had the same features, some new inputs, and the same limitations. Overall a big disappointment.
Then it seemed about 4 months went by and then the XBR2s started to come out, I saw 2 people at the beginning mention discoloration and then no one else for quite a while. Because of the inconsistency in the reports, I had to turn on my “fan-boy filter” and ignore the outliers… so in this case, the XBR2 sets *seem* to be a good improvement. However, a lot of the XBR1 folks didn’t have problems until about the 9month-1year mark, and the XBR2s just haven’t been out that long yet… so I can’t comment either way.
I suppose if you could find a 60″ XBR2 in the $3k price range, I’d probably say get it. If it’s still pushing $4k out the door, I’d say hold off, especially with CES occuring next week and *everyone* announcing their new TV technology for ‘07. Right now, until about March, is a great time to research, read and wait.
Just my 2 cents though, look at me, I bought months ago cause I was impatient and couldn’t take the waiting anymore. So totally depends on your needs.
January 9th, 2007 at 8:20 am
Kelly – do oyu have the name and number of the supervisor you spoke to? This might help all of us. I just found out about my green blob problem over xmas break when some family members said, they are all green. Not every channel, but most. I want a new TV
January 9th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Rich – Unfortunately I do not think that calling and asking to speak directly to Jackie, the last service rep that I spoke to, will get you anywhere. With every call that you make, they log your complaint and your efforts to resolve that complaint. My recommendation is that you start at the beginning and build your case log with Sony and be sure to express your dis-satisfaction, in a cordial manner, with each attempt to fix your set. I promise you that Sony will not send you a set until they have attempted to exhaust all other avenues. The way that it worked for me was that I asked to speak to a superior each time that I called back. After doing what the first rep asked me to do, I called back and asked to speak to a superior and so on and so on. The last person actually called me to negotiate the replacement. (She obviously had been trained to haggle:) At any rate, my travels through the Sony maze took a little over 3 weeks to get resolution and I still do not actually have the set. It is supposed to be on its way but we’ll see. I know it is not what you want to hear but you will have to start at the start. Just kill them with kindness and keep trying to move up a level until you are 100% satisfied.
January 9th, 2007 at 8:37 pm
After watching my 7 month old KDS-R50XBR1 begin to have a green haze about a foot wide on the right hand side of the screen, I thought I would check the web to see if anyone else is having trouble. Second site on Google was this blog. Looks like I am certainly not alone with this problem. Thanks for the site.
January 9th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
Randy, welcome… I’m sorry that you found this blog the way you did (so damn frustrating) but there is a lot of excellent information here.
KellyP has been giving folks some great advice. Expect to wait about a month, and just keep calling Sony and being really polite. Call them every other day for a few weeks and just keep asking to talk to a higher up. At some point they are either going to fix your set or replace it. In the worst case scenario they will do nothing… but loosing your temper won’t help, I think 15% of the sets they sold people are calling them on… you see this problem WAY to consistently in the XBR1s to assume it would be less than that. Even the A2000s had some pretty bad failure rates although the XBR2s are seeming clean…
Who knows, there are very few things in this world more frustrating then getting your dream TV and paying $4k for it, then having it crap out and the company act like they’ve never heard of it before.
January 10th, 2007 at 12:42 pm
I was having this same picture problem on the lower right corner of my screen. I purchased this set in May 06. I called Sony and I was refered to a Sony service center. One of the techs called me yesterday and told me that he already knew what the problem and that the optical block is on backorder!! He says, someone in 3-4 weeks would be calling me to schedule an appointment to come out and fix this problem. I warranty runs out in May and would like to problem. Am I just supposed to sit here and wait until someone calls me?? Should I call Sony? Scared that they are giving me the run around until my warranty is expired.
This really sucks…Paid way too much for this television to have a problem like this, this soon.
Please any suggetions would be helpful.
January 10th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
David,
Yes you definitely need to be pro-active. There are so many folks calling in with this problem only the ones being the most persistent are likely going to get serviced.
If there weren’t so many sets effected by this I imagine everyone would get taken care of, but I have a feeling this is a “most loud users bubble to the top” type of situation.
If it’s not, then at least your support log on their computers from calling will show that you aren’t about to give up and sit at home and wait.
Good luck to you.
January 11th, 2007 at 9:46 am
Post: Jan 11, 2007 XBR1 Set bought Feb 06. First optics block put in May 06. Lasted until Dec 06. Now waiting for in second optics block for the same green blob! While waiting for optics block lamp burned out. No TV period!
This plus what I read on web puts Sony in a terrible light.
January 11th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
I have the 50″ SXRD and my son has the 60 SXRD, both have the infamous “green blob” Mine was bought in March of “06 with the extended warranty. I called 1-888-BestBuy on Sunday to get a tech out to look at it. Finally, today I got a call from one of the service centers. They told me there was no need to send a technician to my house as they know exacly what is wrong. They have encountered the exact problem with many other SXRD sets. The service center told me they will try to order the part. I want BB to just take this back and trade for the new generation, but they claim to have never heard of the problem. I am very concerned that I will find out that the OB is back ordered, or that replacing the OB will result with the same” issue. My husband can’t understand why I am so upset over this!!!!!! He said just wait,,,,they will get it fixed….ha! If this were not such an insidious problem I probably wouldn’t be so concerned. BTW….my son CANNOT use the HDMI cable to hook up his PS3 that has a blue ray player in it. It will connect via the component cables…but nothing via the HDMI!! Husband won’t talk to me about this, so glad I can let off some steam….I
January 12th, 2007 at 12:27 am
Please include me in the class action lawsuit. I purchased my 60″ XBR1 in July, 06.
Over a week ago I noticed a green vertical line and haze on the right side of the screen. I called Sony and they provided me the number of a local service shop. Soly based on my description of the problem the service folks diagnosed the problem as being the optical light generator . The part was ordered and is already in… it will be installed tomorrow (Jan 12th)
Since I only have a few more months left in warranty…I too am concerned of a reoccurrence of this problem .
Like the other folks…I paid a lot of money and these types of issues
January 12th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
I also have a 50″ sxrd xbr that was purhased in Mar 06. Developed a green stain in upper right hand corner. Started to spread. The BRICk (Canada) send tech out and three weeks later the OB was replaced. He did mention that if it would happen again, it would not be covered (YA RIGHT!!!)
New OB has been in for approx. 3 months with perfect picture. If it does happen again…..I will ask for my money back
January 12th, 2007 at 5:00 pm
Same problem on my xbr1 60. Started getting yellowish tint in corner last week, bought the set in June, manuf. date of May. Waiting to hear back from Sony. Called and complained several times, now waiting to see if they will “escalate” it. Two repair companies here (San Antonio), that I was given to choose from, both seem like complete wastes of time. Hopefully I can get the set replaced, I have no condfidence in my repair options, nor the patience to wait the multiple times I’m sure it will take for the repair bafoons to fix it.
January 13th, 2007 at 10:29 am
KDS50XBR1 Purchased March 06 / Built Feb 06 Green Blob noticed in December 06 top right corner.. Had Optical Block replaced Jan 07 Went from Grenn Blob to Purple Blob…Waiting for Optical Block #2 to be installed… So is this lawsuit already in progress or can anyone with these problems jump aboard anytime?
January 13th, 2007 at 10:38 am
Tony,
I believe you can call and talk to Robert (the attorney handling the case). I think it would take a few years to put together a successful class action lawsuit.
Best of luck to you about getting the 2nd block replaced, sorry to hear that the fix didn’t “fix” anything. I have a feeling since Sony is making the service shops eat the cost of the optic blocks, that they are simply recycling them and not actually using new ones.
January 13th, 2007 at 2:04 pm
I have SXRD1 50 and noticed the problem a few months back develop until the green blob finally grew to encompass the entire pricture field for all inputs. Called Sony and was referred to authorized service for my area (central FL). Talking to service rep on phone about two weeks ago, they knew instantly what the problem was. said they had to order part which arrived within 10 days.
Official Sony Authorized Service Tech just left today after replacing my first optical block. He stated that the “design” problem was most likely due to dust accumulation inside the sets causing the block to fail. He noted that the next generation sets will be flat and sealed (like LCD and Plasma). Suggested that I contact Sony as my 1 year warranty expires in 2 weeks and request an extended warranty to get their reaction. He suggested that I vacuum the inside every 90 days particularly around the fans where dust is likely to accumulate and then be blown on to the components.
It sounds to me from reading the blog that indeed something is being blown and it’s not dust. It appears that the beautiful picture will be short lived and will take some of the excellent advice posted here to push Sony hard to get this fixed permanently. As noted, class action will be time consuming and may not improve the picture quick enough, suggest that we all become personal nightmares to Sony until they get “the picture” (to us) that we paid for.
January 13th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Mike M: I think you are absolutely right about the “personal nightmare” statement… at some point, if the volume of calls for these fixes is high enough, Sony is going to need to implement a special service path just for the optical block problems… although preferably not the one they have now (e.g. “What problem? I’ve never heard of that… weird!”
Some folks here have had success getting their sets replaced with XBR2 sets, and I think this is primarily because they:
1) Were very polite
2) EXTREMELY persistent (nice version of personal nightmare)
It seems to me with any company that is reluctant, this is the route the user must take.
About a 1.5 years ago I was looking at getting a Dodge Magnum and was part of all the forums (lxforums.com, dodgmagnum.net, etc.). The one common theme I noticed is that the vehicles commonly had problems with them and Chrysler/Dodge was ALWAYS reluctant to acknowledge the persistent design problems (”pulling to the right” was one, due to how the engine was mounted, fixed in ‘06). Anyway, it was the same story there too. Folks that are persistent as hell, calling Chrysler, dealer, god and the better-business-bureau got results. The folks that got pissed and went crazy at the dealership rarely succeeded.
In a time where everyone is feeling entitled, I don’t think short tempers get you as much as they used to… I think killing them with kindness is a much more pleasant way to go.
January 13th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
Riyad: once again, great advice wise one!
Got the XBR2 the other day… enjoying it, holding my breath, hoping for a longer lived Optical Block!
January 13th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Rob W: Congratulations! (about the XBR2)
I’m curious if you noticed any picture quality differences right out of the gates, or do things look mostly the same? Little brighter maybe?
January 13th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
Riyad..Recycling is right. I can’t imagine they are producing new optical blocks that now seem to be in such high demand so quickly.
Mike M. my service guy said the exact same thing when replacing my first optical block..Said that dust most likley was the cause of the light engine failure. Well than how do you explain the suddenly NEW O/B not functioning properly I asked..To that there was no answer. Dust my A_ _!
January 13th, 2007 at 9:35 pm
Riyad-Hopefully Rob W. notices a distinct lack of green now and forever. My XBR2 delayed shipping and has a new tentative arrival date of Wednesday the 17th. As far as noticing differences out of the box, I could not possibly remember what the SXRD is even supposed to look like after watching Sony Greenvision for the last 6 weeks. However, I did find a good article on calibration for those not fortunate enough to have access to a ISF calibration guy. The reviewer, Randy Tomlinson, is almost as ubiquitous as Riyad.
http://www.ultimateavmag.com/rearprojectiontvs/1206sonykdsr60xbr2/index.html
This article has some really good input on enhancing the 60XBR2’s picture qualilty and states that even just a few tweaks can really make it shine.
January 13th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
Kelly P, “Sony Greenvision” got some water out of my nose. Also great link for the folks here wanting to tweak their sets, I appreciate you posting that. Also, bummer about the ship date shifting but I’m glad they didn’t give you an open ended ship date or something next month. Come back on Wed and let us know if you got the set and how things are looking.
Tony R, I agree with you man… dust? Hmmm maybe 5lbs of dust on the optic engine specifically will do it, but that’s assuming you have cats… like 10 of them, and systematically use them to dust the fan vents on the set… if you did that then yes I agree with the tech, it’s dust
January 14th, 2007 at 9:43 am
This is NOT a minor problem now is it Sony? I just received delivery of a brand new Sony KDS-60A2000 to replace my KDF-60WF655 due to a faulty light engine. A year and a half old! Future Shop deemed it too expensive to repair at an estimated $2485.00. They agreed to replace it along with the stand. After letting the new t.v. warm up in the house for a few hours, we hooked it up, plugged it in. and WOW! What a picture.
That is for the four hours that it worked before it died! No bang, no pop, no smoke, nothing. It just died. Future Shop is going to replace it as soon as they get a shipment in, but, in the meantime I’m left with a brand new DEAD t.v. for who knows how long. Incidently, the new t.v. cost me a difference of $650.00 for an extended warranty and delivery. If you’re going to buy a Sony t.v. then the extended warranty is a must. I’m hoping the replacement will be trouble free, but I’m pretty sceptical at this point. The next step will be something else. Enough is enough. By the way, the fellow on the delivery truck told me that they’re picking up lots of these t.v.’s. The word is spreading and if they don’t correct the problem, this is going to blow up in Sony’s face. One last thing. I sent the repair shop a digital photo of my screen thinking it might save him a trip just to tell me that he’d have to order parts. He knew right away what the problem was and admitted that lots of these are going bad. Good luck folks and keep at them. Don’t let up. They are hoping and praying that you’ll just go away. Not too likely!
January 14th, 2007 at 9:51 am
R.Smith, that truly sucks and I admire your patience. I would honestly get them to try and replace the set with an XBR2, even if it’s a few hundred dollars difference. The A2000s, for all intents and purposes, are reconstituted XBR1 sets, so the likely hood of them work, then greening-out on you down the road is high.
Actually check the blog entry right before this one. Folks from AVS posting green-blobs on their new A2000 sets right after they got delivered.
XBR2s are not completely problem free, but they do seem to be a different design that is not effected as much by the issue.
I got my fingers crossed for you bud. Keep us posted.
January 14th, 2007 at 12:22 pm
Riyad: difference in picture, yes. It really seems the vivid colors are exaggerated more. I had a scare last night during the Philly/New Orleans game where I thought I saw green and kicked my coffee stand, but I think it was premature. As for picture quality overall, I haven’t adjusted the TV yet (thanks for the link Kelly P., I will check it out). When I first got the XBR1 I was jumping up and down, I feel about the same right now mostly because I got rid of the green. Fortuantely, I’m lucky compared to others because I only had to deal with it for a couple of weeks. Consider myself blessed on this one.
The only thing I have noticed is warm up and turning on/turning off the tv seems longer, but that really doesn’t matter much to me as long as the blob is GONE! You are very correct sir, persistence/patience, and most of all kindness got me a long way on this one considering I’m usually the hot head to get things done.
Only first few days on the TV… we’re obviously keeping a close eye on it. However, it may take 6-9 months for the optical engine to tank if it does like the XBR1 did. XBR2’s just haven’t had enough time to mature yet to really determine if the Green Blob is prevalent or not.
January 14th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Hello again. I don’t know if it makes any difference to the topic, but the “Artwork” on my KDF-60W655 was in blue. It was quite noticeable.
Looked kind of like an Etch-a-Sketck if anyone remembers those.
Everyone else seems to be experiencing a green problem. I’m in Ontario Canada so perhaps we were issued a different optical engine than our neighbours to the south. (Red flawed optical engines must be on back order or in short supply. as that colour doesn’t seem to have surfaced yet. I wonder how long it will take for one to show up on Ebay?)
I really haven’t talked to anyone else who has personally experienced this problem yet, but I expect it is only a matter of time. I will be only too happy to bring them up to speed and direct them to this site.
Store staff are aware of the problem as are delivery people and service people. C’mon Sony, we have the internet now. We are no longer in the dark.
As Kermit the frog would say, “It’s not easy being green!” (Sorry!)
I guess we should just be thankful that Sony isn’t building airplanes.
I’m going to have a chat with Future Shop tomorrow morning. I’m not all that sure that I want a Sony replacement after all I’ve read today, here and elsewhere. Too bad as it was a nice T.V.,……for the four hours that it worked!
January 14th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
Purchased SXRD 50in in Feb06. Noticed yellow squares on the screen today. I purchased the extended warranty. Im gonna contact BB and Sony and see what happens. This sucks.
January 14th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
Gabe T, can you post a picture of what you mean by “yellow squares”? That would be a first I think… I’m imagining systematic checkered yellow squares… is this what it looks like?
January 16th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Hello,
I have just begun my trek towards fixing my KDS-R50XBR1 dated as January 2006 SP1. I purchased it in January 2006 as well, with an extra 4 year warranty.
I first saw the green in June just prior 6 months time. Not quite ready for law suit but… we’ll see.
Somehow I just found at Sony, an older May 2006 support statement, while it doesn’t seem to cover this line it does sort of demonstrate their awareness to other models. There is a link to “see photos” and the top one appears like mine, maybe green blob, maybe yellow squares?
http://esupport.sony.com/perl/news-item.pl?news_id=127&mdl=KDF42WE655
In joking, ours sometimes looks like an image of Christ! But seriously, since June the problem has crept to perhaps 80% of the screen.
Saturday the Sony authorized serviceman confirmed the need for a new “light engine.” I guess that means the Optical Block. I expect next he’ll soon call back to explain the backorder situation.
I believe ‘ll take a run out to the Retailer with some “Class action” information from here and photos of my screen.
This years Superbowl looks like a no-go for us .
January 16th, 2007 at 11:18 am
Mike thanks for the links (very helpful). Also keep us posted on the set man, I’ll be curious if Sony or your retailer honor that with the 4 year extended warranty.
January 16th, 2007 at 8:16 pm
I took a few pictures of Sunrise Earth.
It’s supposed to be a relaxing program, to maybe help us forget about the fun we have with folks over for the Super Bowl… Can’t a fellow catch a break .
http://home.comcast.net/~thelaskies/sonyxbr1/
How about pain and suffering?
Well, thanks and hope to get back here in a few, with maybe inspiration.
January 16th, 2007 at 8:23 pm
Oh dear Moses… that is really the worst discoloration I’ve ever seen. I really hope the techs fix it up for you.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
Just found this site yesterday and had a few questions, wondered if anyone had some answers for me. I have a 60″ SXRD that will be a year old in March, I noticed a slight green halo on my screen woundered if this is what you are all talking about. Does it get worse? Should I contact Sony before adding my name to this lawsuit? This is a huge deal to me as I’m sure it is to everyone else, these things are not cheap and when you purchase something like this, especially from a company like Sony you expect quality as well as good customer sevice, sounds like people are getting neither.
January 17th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
Chris welcome.
Yes it’s possible this is the same thing. Although a lot of sets do show a “green haze” or “green blob” during startup, but after warming up (about 20mins) the green will go away.
The real problem here is that a lot of sets will still show the green blob, or just get worse and worse and worse to the point that you can’t even distinguish real colors anymore in your material. For a great example of how bad this discoloration can get, have a look at Mike L’s URL here:
http://home.comcast.net/~thelaskies/sonyxbr1/
If I were you, I would wait for the discoloration to be permanent and readably noticeable, then call for a service technician to come out. If you read the other’s comments, chances are they will know what has happened immediately and will try and replace the optic block for you. If that is the case, after the replacement, make the tech stay and watch the TV after he does the replacement. You can also check out previous comments that a lot of folks are finding the replacement optic blocks are not helping at all and in some cases are just worse.
It’s an ugly situation all around.
January 17th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
I think my biggest concern was waiting to long and then being in a situation where I wasn’t able to have anything done about it.
January 17th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Thanks for all the postings. I purchased the KDSR60 XBR1 on 1/31/2006 and noticed the “greening” around Christmas- hmm- I thought it was a bad calibration-something I needed to learn how to do. Thank goodness for the internet and the education that we can all get! I feel sorry for all those who purchased these sets and do NOT do any research!
Anyway, I purchased the extended warranty from Circuit City and just put in a call to them stating all the info I have learned about the Sony XBR and was told that “corporate would contact me within 72 hours with their decision.”
Have no idea what the “decision” will be but was suprised by how “simple’ step one was. Has anyone else used the Circuit city extended warranty route?
Will let you know what happens in step two!
January 17th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
I know this is off the subject but has anyone heard of a firmware update for the SXRD’s to accept 1080p instead of only displaying it?
January 17th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
All- Seems the problem has gotten bigger since my last post by 4 or 5 more Sony Greenvision viewers. Don’t fall into a complete state of dispair just yet. If you can manage to be patient (it will be hard), informed (by sites like Riyad’s and others), and persistent (I spoke to someone from CC, Sony, or one of the service centers nearly every day for a month), there is a small glimmer of hope behind the green cloud. My replacement television, an R60XBR2, has at long last arrived.
Right out of the box, the R60XBR2 seems to be a little less bright than my old R50XBR1 (at least before the green.) I made some adjustments per my earlier post and the set really does come alive. The SD signals are marginal at best but the cable input HD signals (1080i) are absolutely outstanding. When connected to my Sony Blue-Ray (BDP-S1), the picture quality is just beyond description. It is all too apparent that these sets are optimized for HD.
So keep at’em. Sony will eventually make good if you’re within the 1 year manufacturers warranty. If you’re past the 1 year mark and have purchased the CC or BB extended warranty, then it looks like these guys are replacing by disfunctional sets. There is certainly a growing number of disheartened “greenvision” viewers but if you’ll check the forums you’ll also find an ever-increasing number of patient and persistent folks who have successfully made Sony live up to their hype.
Now, we (my family) play the waiting game and try not be too paranoid about the return of the green blob. “Wait…does that tree look just a little too green to you?”
Good luck to all. Patience, persistence, informed.
January 17th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
Kelly that is huge, thank you for following up. You are acting as a guiding light for folks that may want to throw the set out the window.
I’m also thrilled to hear how good the thing looks connected to a BluRay player. Time to re-adjust that Netflix queue!
January 18th, 2007 at 11:22 am
I will have had my TV for a year this March, does anyone know who I might contact about purchasing an extended warranty through Sony? I did not purchase the set through a big chain like BB or CC. I’d like to get one before the factory warranty is gone.
January 18th, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Chris,
I’m actually not sure how that works buying a warranty so late into the ownership process. I know that normally B&M shops will give you 15 days to decide if you want the extended warrenty
January 18th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
I just spoke with the store I purchased the set from and they are going to sell me one even though it’s been over 90 days. I asked them about the problem and they told me that they haven’t had any complaints from their customers which seemed kind of odd, maybe just lucky I guess.
January 18th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
Chris that is great news, good move. I wonder if anything happens with the set and you call on the dealer to service it, if all the sudden the story will change?
Given the year or so I’ve been reading comments like this entire thread I’ve come to the conclusion that the “I’ve never heard of that” line doesn’t hold any water. Sony says it, BB/CC says it, everyone seems to say it… then you have a technician out and they “know exactly what the problem is and the part is on back order”.
Let’s just hope you are in the clear.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
Has the part seemed to fix the problem? Sounds like in some cases it’s made it wores.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
So far seems to be hit or miss… then again you don’t see the folks it has helped because they tend to stop posting once the problem is fixed… I can’t really blame them for that though.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:45 pm
I too have got this problem. I am at the point that if it doesn’t get any worse then I will live with it. It is only on the right side and can’t be seen most of the time. I will be making a claim to Sony though and will never buy any product made by Sony anytime soon that is for sure. I have a Sony receiver that came with a cool touch remote that the remote was just crap.
January 18th, 2007 at 1:59 pm
Does anyone know which sets have been having the most problems, the Grand Wegas or the XBR’s?
January 18th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Chris,
First and foremost it’s the XBR1 series from ‘05 and ‘06. Then as for recent releases it’s the A2000 sets (as they simply seem to be repackaged XBR1s). The XBR2 sets seemed to be redesigned and are not suffering as readily from out-of-the-box green haze, but it’s yet to be determined if after a year (they haven’t been out long enough) if it will suffer the same fate as the XBR1s.
Also all the sets suffering from this are the SXRD rear-projection sets, not the LCD “XBR” series.
Lastly, the “Grand Wega” series encompasses everything from their EDTV sets (KDF series) to their 1080p XBR2 sets, it’s a general family of sets.
January 18th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
Thanks man, I appreciate the input. Can anyone point me in the right direction to find out about a firmware update for the XBR1’s to accept 1080p? Or does one not exist?
January 18th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
I bought my kds-r50xbr1 from CC with an extended warranty about ten months ago. I was incredibly satisfied. The picture was so nice I’d sometimes sit on my couch in profound awe, hardly paying attention to what was actually on TV, but just marvelling at the sharpness, clarity, and the amazing color range. Approximately one month ago, I noticed that the set seemed to be having trouble with lighter colors like white, light blues, and light grays. It would render these colors with a yellow-greenish cast, sometimes solid, sometimes splotchy. I’d adjust the set but it kept getting worse until after a month, it’snow out of hand. I’ve called CC and they’ve informed me that the local service company would be in touch within 48 hours…of which there’s another one hour and forty-five minutes left. Looks like I’ll be calling CC again later tonight. I guess my journey has just begun…
January 18th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
NC_Scott,
I got my fingers crossed for you, I bet it will work out just fine. You just be polite but persistent. If they want to send someone out to fix it great… if you need someone to come out again to fix it, great… if you need someone to come out a 3, 4th and 5th time that’s perfectly fine, just keep being persistent. At some point CC will realize they spent more on servicing your warranty then just giving you a new set, and then they will start talking “trade” with you
January 18th, 2007 at 4:45 pm
I can now sadly see the green “cloud” on my 50″ SXRD which I purchased in Nov. 06. It is very noticeable at warmup but tends not to be noticeable after a few minutes of operation. If this because worse I’m afraid I will be taking action against Sony.
Dave
January 18th, 2007 at 5:02 pm
Dave,
If the green haze goes away after the TV warms up (within 30mins) that is actually considered normal according to Sony. Just keep an eye on it and see if it gets worse or sticks around… then you need to call a service rep or Sony to take a look.
January 18th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Just wanted to get back to everyone regarding my attempt to add an extended service warranty long after the sale. I called up Sony (800-222-7669) to discuss my concerns regrading my new found knowledge (thanks everyone!) around this defect. I requested to add the warranty since my original 1 yr manufacturer’s warranty was still in effect through January 29th. The customer service rep was very friendly, took my info, and quoted me a 3 year renewable Sony warranty for in home parts and service for my area. The price was about 25% higher than it would have been had I purchased it when I bought the set, although that particular warranty would not have been renewable.
Upon hearing this quote I discussed the optical block issue. They explained that all the parts of the set, excluding the bulb (there are now secondary markets for the bulb around $ 200.00, down from $ 400 a year ago), are covered, including the block. They further explained that once the new warranty takes effect, Jan 30th, Sony will covers parts and labor on any particular part up to 4 times before offering a replacement set.
Although I am not necessarily looking forward to the 4 times, nor very happy to be forced to buy an extended warranty, it should be far cheaper than buying 4 optical blocks at 1k plus labor at a pop, before kicking it to the curb. This may be a stop gap until they can come up with a more eloquent solution.
So for everyone out there on the fence without any extended coverage, you might want to consider this option. Being somewhat skeptical, I will also read all of the fine print and legal jargon on the warranty to be sure that my well meaning Sony rep did not misrepresent or otherwise misunderstand my coverage.
I have already notified two friends with the same set and alerted them to this problem, hope this warranty information might help some of you as well. Best regards and I will continue to learn from all of you and likewise inform of any new things I learn on this journey.
January 18th, 2007 at 5:54 pm
Mike,
Very informative post with great info and contact information. I as well as others reading really appreciate you posting that.
It sounds like it worked out in the end for you, now you have a piece of mind that if things do go south, it’s just an issue of calling for service instead of getting stuck with a dead set.
January 18th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
Looks like were gonna run out of room on this page soon…Growing more & more everyday. GOOD!!! I’m glad that we are not alone in this!!! Soon maybe they will get the message and we wont need a lawsuit…By the way still waiting for Optical Block #2 The Purple haze on my screen is growing by the minute!!!!
January 18th, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Riyad,
Well, part of my extended service agreement states that if it has to be repaired a third time, I get a new set. That should get me to the bargaining phase sooner I hope.
As for being polite, I’m a firm believer that you can attract more flies with a teaspoon of honey than you can with a gallon of vinegar.
January 19th, 2007 at 6:58 am
Does anyone know if the green blob issue is related to SXBR’s manufactured before a certain date or if they are from specific date/lot codes? I am/was thinking about purchasing but after reading these posts, I will be SERIOUSLY re-evaluating my thought processes.
Best of luck to everyone that is caught in the quagmire with Sony. Customer service just isn’t what it used to be.
January 19th, 2007 at 7:24 am
Ted,
For about 6 months on AVS folks were looking for patterns about the manuf dates and we finally thought we had found one until a lot of the new sets started to show the same problems even folks with build dates up until the end of 2006 were having problems. So as far as I know, there was never a confirmed pattern of “Oh anything after this build date is fine”.
Folks with old, new and refurbished XBR1s and A2000s all over the board had problems. I was never able to see an XBR2 set with the problem out-of-the-box, but that’s not to say there hasn’t been one posted or it won’t happen after 9 months (as a lot of XBR1 sets).
I would point out that googling for XBR2 and Green Blob readily yields results which would make me *very* nervous if I was on the verge of putting down $4k on a new set:
http://www.google.com/search?q=Sony+xbr2+green+blob&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
Honestly if I was in the market right-now, given all the stuff at CES this year, I would hang back and wait for:
* Pioneers new Plasma 60″+ 1080p sets to roll out and push prices down
* Panasonic’s new 60″ 1080p set to come out
* Samsung to release more LED-based sets (20k bulb time, less rainbow effect)
* Mitsubishi was rumored to be working on a laser-light source but I also heard they were considering LED… sounds too far off if no demo is being shown.
* LCD’s in general are getting much bigger faster.
There are going to be SO many choices this year that I think it would be worth it to wait atleast until March to let some new things trickle out. The most attractive things I’m looking forward to (as I realize the waiting game can become infinite if you never commit) are longer-lasting light sources. The idea that you get 3-4k hours out of a bulb is just preposterous given what we (as consumers) are used to (owning a set our whole lives).
I’m not suggesting you wait for flat panel, SED or OLED… I just think longer lasting light sources and no-rainbow-effects should be expected. The SXRD doesn’t have the rainbow effect because it’s a 3-chip design, but suffers from discoloration which can be seen in other 3-chip designs from time to time and it suffers from short (relatively) lamp life.
Anyway, I’m rambling, just my 2 cents.
January 19th, 2007 at 8:34 am
Another one bites the dust. I tried to deny that my TV was getting worse but reality set in hard after reading everyone’s postings. I am absolutely disgusted with this situation. Not only was I sold that this set was true 1080p I also thought it would last longer than nine months. I have a question for any one out there who bought an extended warranty through their dealer; Has anyone been successful in simply trading out the set without going through the entire process of ordering panels? Furthermore is it worth upgrading to the XBR2 or should I raise enough hell that I refuse to own another Sony? I am sure this won’t be an easy task, for reasons listed throughout this blog, but I can’t trust Sony anymore and that is troubling. Any way I hope you all get restitution and I appreciate you all opening my eyes to this situation.
January 19th, 2007 at 8:49 am
Marc,
You are in a tough situation. Some stores are happy to swap out sets, other’s aren’t. Just work with yours and see how you do.
You have 4 choices:
1) Get set services (replace OB)
2) Swap set for same thing
3) Swap set for an upgrade (XBR2?)
4) Return set completely
I don’t think #4 is going to happen, and #1 is most likely to be the “first step”. If you are given the choice to do #2 or #3 ask the store what happens if this next set goes bad. If they say you only get 1 replacement, and you are sufficently nervous, get the replacement set, confirm with the store that it works, and then sell it on Craigslist or in your newspaper and buy something else.
If you are not sufficiently upset and like how the new set looks and the store is willing to extend it’s warranty to the new set as well, you might as well keep it.
Very very frustrating situation
January 19th, 2007 at 9:22 am
Riyad,
Very good information that I truly appreciate.
Yes it will be interesting to see the new sets we keep hearing about that use the high power LEDs’.
And as a side note, new LED applications will absolutely revolutionize how we view light sources in the years to come. Could be that regular incandescent and flourescent bulbs could become dinosaurs in the not too distant future.
Have a nice day and thanks again.
January 19th, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Just an update on my 1st light engine (optical block) replacement. Managed to get a servicer out in under two weeks to replace the part. The set now looks at least as good as the day I bought it. Hard to quantify given that I’m sure I was becoming accustomed to the deteriorating picture. Just had it fixed yesterday, so I’ll repost if it decides to die again. In my opinion this probably wont happen for another 6 months, as that’s when it happened the 1st time.
January 19th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
Mark,
Congrats I’m glad to hear that things are back to normal. So atleast for the folks that were interested, it does seem that replacing the optical block (OB) does the trick.
January 20th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Sony has offered to replace my purple blobbed 50″ XBR1 with a 55″ A2000 at no charge OR a 60″ XBR2 for $500. I told them that I was not particularly happy with either or those two choices. In my opinion, they should give me the XBR2 at no additional cost. I paid for an XBR, therefore I should have an XBR… and I shouldn’t have to settle for something less or cough up another $500 just because they stopped making the 50″.
We’re due to have another conversation on Monday.
January 20th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
Phil,
I can understand your disappointment at the offer. Try telling them that you appreciate their offer, but you wouldn’t feel comfortable paying more than $350 for the XBR2 and see if they take it. I think $350 for an upgrade from a 50″ XBR to a 60″ XBR2 is reasonable. $500 seemed a bit much *given* the premise of the trade (replacing a totally defective set).
I hope you can come to terms with them and get what you want. Keep us posted.
January 20th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
You can add me to the ever growing list of dissatisfied Sony customers. Mt SXRD 50″ is doing what everyone else’s is doing. Mine is a yellowing screen in the lower left corner. I expect this will get worse. I can live with it now, but not if it’s going to get worse.
January 20th, 2007 at 5:46 pm
Sorry to hear that Bob, extremely frustrating.
Are you still under the 1-year warranty provided by Sony or if you are over 1-year, did you buy an extended warranty from your retailer? I’m wondering if you can still get the set serviced or if you are totally out of luck.
It’s incredible that back in the day when I bought my old CRT set, I paid $500 for it and though “This better last 10 years”… now we have $3500 TVs that don’t last 1-year… at some point we started going backwards.
January 20th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
Riyad–
I agree with your thoughts… I think $250 -350 would be a reasonable amount to charge for the difference in the two sets. I’ll let you know what happens when I speak with them again.
January 20th, 2007 at 9:51 pm
Please add my to the list of the sony green haze club. I purchased a 50” sxrd November of last year. It tends to show the green haze on lighter backgrounds. It looks to be getting worse. Thankfully I purchased an extended warrenty program from Circuit City. Along with telling me “this is the only tv which supports 1080p”, they also told me that any issues I feel distract from it’s performance will warrent a new tv. I hope that the later is more accurate then the former.
January 21st, 2007 at 3:16 am
CC did call me back within the 48 hours promised and the service tech is supposed to be here Monday. I am wondering if I should call Sony as well since my *one year* mark is Jan 31??? any suggestions? thanks!
January 21st, 2007 at 6:43 am
Becky,
That is an extremely close call… unless you have an extended warranty, I believe you likely should call Sony first (responsible for the first year), then again if you have an extended warranty and your retailer is receptive you should be OK.
If you don’t have an extended warranty, I doubt Sony would have offered a replacement set this soon anyway, normally that process takes atleast 3 or 4 repair attempts which would put you atleast into March.
A previous poster mentioned that he was able to contact Sony and buy an extended warranty even though he had the set for quite a while… that may be another option.
I think for now just wait and see what the CC service rep says… everything might go smoothly. If not, you can look into an extended warranty with Sony (and then immediately call them to honor it) or you can push CC for more and more repairs under the reasoning that “I know my warranty is up, but the service rep never fixed the problem”.
Hope that helps. Anyone else with some ideas, please pitch in.
January 21st, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Well folks,
I’m glad to see that someone got some sort of satisfaction on a replacement for this piece of junk (KDS-R50XBR1). I have a set purchased January 2006, first noticed problem in June 2006 with purple hue on lower left corner of screen on gray and fleshtone backrounds, called Sony, they immediately called a servicer ( Qualx-serv), which by the way are fantastic and fast to deal with.
They called immediately and ordered an optical block and said it would fix the problem. That day the tech replaceded the OB I noticed same color issue but all over the screen in patches. I called Sony right away and they sent out the same company two days later with a new optical block. Tech replaced with new OB, sorry to say, I still had the discoloration issue, but this time it is a yellowish green hue with a large circle pattern to the right of the screen and a 3″ y/gr bar on the left side.
I tested with AVIA HT disc, I cycled with grayscale and white screens and pointed out inconsistency to tech and he agreed on the problem and told me to fight it out with sony for a new TV. Unfortunately I had to go out of state for work for a few months and did not want to leave this burden with my wife, but now I’m back and want vengence.
Just so everyone knows, Sony told me that under the original limited warranty they can replace the same part as much as necessary during that period and do not have to replace the TV. Lemon policy is only applicable in their extended warranty. I had to purchase an extended warranty last week through Sony and I was also informed there warranties do not go any longer than 5 years from date of purchase and they are non-renewable after that point. Yeah, they really stand behind there product.
I’ll try to take some photos of my screen and post them here, I’ll also post my latest results with Sony, as I will be calling to complain again tommorow. By the way, it’s nice to see that I’m not alone in this battle, thank you to all who have posted on this blog, It’s helped me tremendously.
January 21st, 2007 at 1:19 pm
Riyad:
I’ve been reading the posts and intend to continue reading the posts on this blog even though I have my TV replaced (60XBR2). I have this funny feeling at the bottom of my stomach that I will see the “green blob” again. Just keeping my fingers crossed.
What’s happening on the lawsuit? I know this will be a long-drawn out process (1-2 yrs.) but as I continue to read these posts, it appears a lot of newcomers are coming on board here. It’s a shame of course, but Sony has got to give in and recall these sets and/or optical blocks. We all know Sony is notorious for recycling! Repair and put back on the field is their moto. I know first hand from many products from Sony! Is there end in sight? It seems to me people like Duane J are going through OB’s and nothing is fixing the problem. It seems that someone needs to push Sony’s buttons a little more from an Attorney General’s standpoint or something!
Obviously I’m content with my replacement and glad to report no haze- no green blob at this time. However, I’m very interested in what we should do as a community to push back on Sony to get them to recall these sets. I mean come on… we’re talking about $2500-4000 for a TV here! This isn’t chump change and they are wanting to replace these sets with recycled parts within a year!
Thoughts?
January 21st, 2007 at 2:01 pm
Duane J,
Thank you for posting and also for letting everyone else know just how much they helped. It’s really easy to forgot that by everyone sharing their experiences we are no longer all stuck in a confused haze of mis-information. Keep fighting and definitely let us know how things are going.
Rob W, I just contacted Rob Law to see how things are going. We haven’t spoke before so the email may catch him out of the blue, but if he wasn’t aware of this resource I hope it can help him.
January 21st, 2007 at 2:23 pm
I heard from a gentleman at the shop where I purchased my set that he thought that Sony had extended the factory warranty on some of these sets from one year to two. Has anyone heard anything about this? I contacted Sony but of course they knew nothing about it, but then again they don’t think there is anything wrong with these sets either.
January 21st, 2007 at 7:58 pm
I recently had my optical block replaced and the tv looks great. However, I still notice tints of green and purple in the background of there is no signal displayed. I will be contacting Sony again tommorrow of this issue. This is very unacceptable and knowing that the optical block was already replaced, I want to see what Sony will do for me.
January 21st, 2007 at 9:19 pm
I purchased my Sony SXRD last March, so I have about 8 more weeks until the 1 year warranty runs out. My yellow/green blob is now just a small area in the lower left corner, and if I knew it would stay that way, I could probably live with it. I’m afraid that if I go through all this and contact Sony and do indeed get them to make some kind of repair, which sounds like it would be to replace the optical block, that it could very well end up being a lot worse. Suggestions? Also, what is involved with entering the class-action suit? Is there a fee involved? Do you have to submit evidence of the problem or of attempts to have it fixed?
January 21st, 2007 at 9:35 pm
James, hopefully second times the charm.
Bob Hay, you are doing the right thing. If you are *really* worried, you can purchase an extended warranty from Sony for a premium which should cover you longer if the original optic block repair doesn’t fix it.
Also for anyone wondering about the lawsuit, Robert’s information is at the top of the post. I don’t know a lot of the details so you will need to speak with him about it.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:43 am
I have the same problem with my XBR1 after a year. I was wonding if anyone had the XBR3 Light Engene replacement in their TV, and will it work in the XBR1 series. I dont want to pay $1500 for the XBR1 and have it go bad in a couple weeks or months.
January 22nd, 2007 at 6:37 am
I was at Best Buy over the week end and they had a XBR 70″ by the front door. So they are still selling defective TV’s to customers, and they had one of their 50″ reparied, they had on the floor so they are aware there is a problem.
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Riyad,
Here’s the latest in my ongoing saga with Sony:
I called today and complained again about the same problem with discoloration. The Sony CS agent was very polite, she told me that they have been tracking my progress with this problem. They also noted that on this third repair attempt they will elevate my issue to Sony Tech Service Rep department, and on the recommendation of the repair company who performed the service, they will replace my TV. I was told that Rep will call back with options within three days. Yes folks it does help to be patient and polite.
If anyone is interested, I have about twenty photos I captured last night on my digital camera of the discoloration. My e-mail address is jake14174@yahoo.com, I would be more than willing to send them to you upon request.
I will keep everyone posted on my progress. When Sony calls back, I’m playing dumb and hoping for the same results as Kell P. As she said in her previous post, we’ve paid $3500 for an XBR1, I want an XBR2! I’ll be more than happy to settle for a 60XBR2. Everyone please keep calling Sony and bombard them with complaints. Kelly P, you rule!
I also have a friend that has a KDS-50A2000, purchased in Aug 2006, were going to test his out and see if the repackaging theory is true. keep the blog going, thanks for the help.
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:32 pm
Duane J and Kelly you both are providing a light at the end of the tunnel for all the folks here. Proof that patience pays off and that suicide and/or pushing the TV off of an overpass aren’t the only things left to do.
I’m really happy for you Duane, either you get the set repaired (cool) or you get upgraded likely for a nominal fee (not too bad).
Thanks for keeping us updated!
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Anyone looking for a $3500 boat anchor? (QTY:1, slightly used) Manufacturer: Sony
January 22nd, 2007 at 12:47 pm
haha, water out the nose… on the keyboard… dangit
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:49 pm
I called Sony on Friday of last week and they are sending out someone on Wednesday of this week to check it out.
January 22nd, 2007 at 4:19 pm
Has someone posted the best telephone number to call and complain to Sony, or should I just get it from their website?
January 22nd, 2007 at 4:24 pm
My update: Sony’s service rep just replaced my optical block on my KDSR50XBR1. My picture looks great again, but not after 10 phone calls to Sony and waiting a month for the repair. I called Sony’s customer service today to thank them for the repair and to express two concerns: 1. Based upon all that I’ve been reading about the failure of these replacement optical blocks, I wanted to know if Sony would extend my warranty, at least on this specific part. The rep said “Unfortunately, no but if the part were to proove defective in the first few months that Sony would likely replace it”. 2. My second question was if I could purchase an extended warranty. The rep told me “absolutely, even if your original warranty has expired” (mine did 2 weeks ago). She referred me to another phone number. I called that number and the rep collected my specific information. She found my “account” on her screen, then asked “can you hold for a moment?” 3 minutes on hold, then she came back and said “I’m sorry, since your television’s original warranty expired on January 8th, 2007 we cannot sell you an extended warranty”. I might be a little sceptical (OK a lot sceptical, given the history) but my guess is that once she realized I had a Green Machine, Sony wasn’t going to lose another dime on this. So, it looks like I’m on borrowed time, until my screen turns green again. I am so disappointed with Sony. And as far as Best Buy goes, if they would put 1/10 of the energy into customer service that they do in high-pressure sales of $3,500 televisions, their customers would be a lot happier. Good bye Best Buy and Sony, we had a lot of good times together. Enjoy my money.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:00 pm
Could you post that number? My warranty expired at the end of December and when I called the other day to try and purchase an extended one they told me I was out of luck.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Never mind, I got so excited when I read about the warranty I didn’t bother to continue reading to find out you got shot down as well. Thanks anyways.
January 22nd, 2007 at 8:06 pm
Rob W – I’m still reading too. Even though Rob and I have both had our sets replaced -proof that persistence pays off – I suspect that we are both waiting for the return of the blob. (Once bitten twice shy.)
Becky D – Absolutely call Sony!!! Get your case file started with them before your manufacturer’s warranty runs out and just in case CC bails out on you.
DuaneJ – No…you rule. You’ve played the game flawlessly so far. As for the end game, now that I think about it, I guess I sort of played dumb as well. I had researched and knew that nothing less than the R60XBR2 would be satisfactory to me. I then sat there and waited for the Sony CS to offer rebuilt sets and the also problematic A2000 politely declining each time. Nicely done.
Mike C – Probably would not hurt to contact Sony again and find out what happens if the OB goes out again. Surely Sony would not decline to repair once you’ve established the history with them on that part. Let us know.
January 23rd, 2007 at 11:02 am
Hey all. New post here and I just wanted to let everyone know my story (and it’s resolution).
I started noticing the greenish haze a couple weeks ago (it’s gotten progressively worse). It’s to the point now that if I watch a b/w movie like Sin City, it’s really a green/white movie.
Anyway, I bought my TV from Good Guys in October 2005 and didn’t get any extended plan (good guys was going out of business then). So that makes my set about 3 months beyond the Sony 1-year warranty.
I did a search for repair services thru sony’s online website and the first hit back was to contact QualixServ.
I contacted QualixServ and they were quite familiar with the “optical block” problem and created a quote for me (with parts and labor the total was about $920). They suggested that I first contact Sony and see if they’d help pay.
I contacted sony and they then contacted QualixServ and generated a Sony “event” number and escalated this to their Tier 2 folks (because my set was out of warranty).
The next day, I spoke with a Tier 2 tech at Sony and they went thru a “script” where I had to say “I agree” or “I don’t agree”. So the first thing they “offered” in their “script” was to cover 25% of the charge. At that point I said that “I dont agree” and I explained that I was hoping to not pay anything because this part is known to be faulty. Anyway, after that they then said that they would pay for 75% of it and that was the absolute maximum that they could do for helping cover costs when the set was out of warranty. I agreed to this. So basically, they are paying 600 and change and I end up paying 200 and change to fix the issue.
I can live with that. The other thing I asked them was whether or not they keep their “event” number on file forever in case the optical block goes bad again. They do, so if I have the same problem, I can call back using the same Event number and hopefully that will help in the future.
Just thought I’d share.
January 23rd, 2007 at 11:20 am
ScottH,
Thanks for sharing. I was particularly interested because your story is quite a bit different than other folks.
Is anyone else noticing that not only this is a well known problem by all the shops around, but Sony still denies it BUT they seem to have in place all these different scripts and 1-2-3… processes to handle the “optical block” or “green” problem? In Scott’s case, I like what happened. In other cases you get offered a new set on the 4th repair and on others you are told “go jump off a bridge”.
Either way I’m glad to read at least 4 or 5 success stories so far.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:17 pm
I got a list of repair people from Sony in my area but upon calling them none seemsed to know anything about this problem. My 1 year warranty has been up sence the end of December and I’m at a point now where I don’t know what to do next, everyone at Sony I’ve spoken with says there is no problem and I can’t really afford to pay $1000 dollars to have a problem fixed that could just return. Any suggestions would be very appreciated. Thanks for this site by the way, I’m glad to know I’m not in this boat alone.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:37 pm
Chris,
Sorry to hear you are in that position. Can you do what ScottH did, he seemed to have been in the same boat as you? Call and ask Sony to cover some of the cost of repairing it?
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:47 pm
Hey Schott H. glad you got something. Do you have the phone # or wed site of Qualix Service. Right now I am waiting for a level 3 supv fm SONY to call me and talk about a extention warrenty more than 90 days on the replacement part at $1500
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:54 pm
Good lord Wayne… do they realize that is how much the set would likely cost you new on clearance from a big-box right now? (I guess that’s the point… they want you to buy a new set…
)
January 23rd, 2007 at 2:10 pm
When dealing with our ‘green blob” issue, no one has acknowledged a problem with the Sony’s. I talked directly with Sony, the BB where we bought the tv, and BB Corporate. However, when BB’s “authorized service center” contacted us, they were very much aware of the problem. In fact, they didn’t even bother making a call to our home to inspect the set. They ordered the part, and are to install it this Thursday. I believe all of them are lying to the customers when they say they are unaware of the green blob issue, which just adds insult to injury. My son has an sxrd as well, it also has the same problem. Between the both of us, considering the cost of the sets, extended warranties, special cables and so forth we likely have over $10,000.00 wrapped in these much hyped tv sets!!! What an expensive headache this has become!!
January 23rd, 2007 at 2:18 pm
Barb,
I wish you weren’t right but I have a feeling the way this setup works is as such:
1) Sony cannot acknowledge problem, especially with pending class-action lawsuit. If they admit the problem exists and they are aware of it, then people sue for other things and win. So Sony issues company-wide policy of “Never admit that it is a known problem”. And since the support calls are I’m sure recorded, the support personel can never admit it.
2) Sony offers the incentive to retailers of a larger profit margin IF they say nothing about the problem. So now retailers have the incentive of selling more of the TVs, making more money as long as they say nothing about the issue. BB, CC and others issue company-wide policies of “never disclose *rumors* of deficient parts to the consumers”.
3) Service shops are the ones making constant warranty claims and service claims against Sony and sometimes getting paid and othertimes not getting paid. They have no loyalty to Sony on the issue and if anything are getting burned by Sony not refunding them the cost of the optic block enough of the time, so they have no qualms sharing the “real” status with you.
And what do consumers have at their disposal? Blogs, forums and lawyers… and we are doing all 3.
January 24th, 2007 at 7:47 am
Mike Macahan Says:
January 7th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
Thats how my problem started, one year after purchase (DEC 2005) and now (Jan 24) the yellow is across the entire screen. Hope you had luck getting it right with SONY. I am still calling.
January 24th, 2007 at 8:03 am
Hi everyone! I have enjoyed reading all of the comments posted and getting advice. I had the sxrd60″ and have been going thru hell with Sony for 4 months. Finally today, customer service rep tells me that I can go ahead and push to get and exchange.
The short version of my story is the Greenvision also. Started on the right side and goes down the screen. I had noted everytime and person I have talked to at Sony. There are supposedly 2 repair places here in Jacksonville. After fighting for 2 months waiting to get the “Light Engine” part in, the repair shop decides they are going to renew their contract with Sony. Now, I’m waiting for Sony to get in touch with the other repair shop as of last friday the 19th and was to expect a call by monday the 22nd. No call of course. So, I called and I’m in “Critical care” is what I’m told. By the end of the day if I haven’t heard any thing from Sony, I’m going to call Customer service and demand and exchange/upgrade. I purchased my tv for $5k brand new and also have the extended warranty that I purchase online thru Sony directly. All this seem to have started 9 months after we purchased it. What is up with the 9 month thing?
Anyways, if anyone has any advice, please feel free to pass it on to me.
January 24th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
Someone asked (wayne) earlier about QualixServ (the repair company that new about this specific problem and was going to repair it in home for me).
Their number is 866-282-7412. They may not be in your area though. If you do a search on sony’s repair website, they should come up if they are in your area. The sony website repair search tool I used:
http://eservice.sony.com/webrma/web/index.do?ref=http%253A//www.sony.com/index.php
It was easy to find and use on their website. Sony’s customer service number that I used to contact them is 800-282-2848.
January 24th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Hello All,
Yet another victim of the SXRD. Bought this TV 2/11/06. Yellow line is starting to form on right side of the screen, and from what I have read so far, it will not get any prettier! So, I have contacted HH Gregg where I got the TV from and they reffered me to an Authorized Sony Service Center. (My Sony is still under Mfg Warranty but it ends in Feb of this year), I also have an extended warranty through HH Gregg for 5 years). I have a service appointment for this coming Friday. I also contacted Mr. Lax to get my name on the List. Should I contact Sony and let them know whats going on? Will they have a record of what is taking place after the service is completed on my TV? I want to make sure that I have all my grounds covered, since it is unfortunate yet likely that the replacement Optical Block will eventually fail again.
I am preparing my self for a long ordeal with Sony, so having said that, if the opportunity does arise and I am offered a replacement, what other TV out there is comparable to KDS- R50-XBR1? I apprciate all the inputs on this site and look forward for a fruitful resolution to everone!!
January 24th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Masrico,
Try a Samsung, I’ll never buy Sony again. My friends all have Samsung DLP’s and they love them, they laugh at me everytime I mention my problems. Hopefully my replacement for the 50XBR1 will be a 60XBR2 or a 46″ XBR2 LCD Flat Panel. Goodluck dealing with SONY Customer Service, they will tell you anything just to get you off the phone, trust me!
January 24th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Riyad,
Another piece of interesting news; I received a phone call from Sony CS agent at 6PM last night. She told me, “I apologize for the miscommunication, when our rep spoke to you yesterday, she told you that we would replace you set this time after further review. I’m informing you that your escalation has been rescinded, and we would like you to have your set serviced one more time”. I told her, “As long as Qualxserv does the repair I have no problem with that”. When she was scheduling she gave me a list of Authorized Repair Centers, and Qualx was not one of them. She said, “They do not service your area code anymore”. Being the more intelligent one in that conversation, I decided to contact Qualxserv personally. Not surprisingly, they told me that Sony is giving out incorrect information and they are forwarding that to their Corporate Office. Soon after, I called one of the Authorized Repair centers to schedule service. When I requested an appointment I was told they require an authorization from Sony, Sony told me that a sales receipt was good enough.. Service center said no, have Sony fax an Authorization to us. To make a long story short, Sony rep told my she called Service Center while I was on hold to authorize the repair, I called back to SC again to schedule and I was told that Sony did not call. Big Surprise! I called back to Sony and tore them a new one. I spoke to “Guy”, in Escalations. He got the Service center on a conference call with me, and we scheduled an appointment for Friday. He told me when the tech looks at the TV, call escalations back while Tech is still there and if he says it’s another OB, they will negotiate an exchange for a new TV. To all that read this blog, you have to do this in a specific order, Sony keeps track of how many times you call, and about what you are calling. The TV has to be repaired three times for the same issue before Lemon Policy is executed. Be smart about what you tell them and try to remain calm. I’m expecting the inevitable on Friday, so I’ll post again after I talk to escalations. I hope this helps!
January 24th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
Duane,
The level of double-talk going on here is incredible and the fact that you stuck to your guys and are fighting through it is really respectable. No one wants to work or take any responsibility, they just keep tossing you around from call center to call center as long as the person the phone doesn’t have to lift a finger… it is so maddening!
Thank you for continuing to keep us posted with all the info.
January 24th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
Duane–
My experience is that Sony is pretty clueless as to who their local service reps are. When I first experienced my problem, they recommended three authorized service centers to call for an appointment. The first one said that they no longer repair TVs. The other two said that they don’t work on projection TVs. When I called Sony back and explained this to them, they gave me one more recommendation, which turned out to be good.
January 24th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
Here’s the latest update on my situation.
Last week Sony offered to replace my 50″ XBR1 with either a 55A2000 at no cost or a 60XBR2 for $500. I told them that I was not pleased by either choice. Today, they offered me a refurbished and tested 50XBR1 at no cost. I accepted.
Now before you scream “YOU IDIOT” at me, let me explain. I know that I may be getting into more of the same problems with another XBR1, there are a few factors that entered into my decision. First, I don’t want an A2000. Period.
Second, I don’t want to pay another $500 for a TV, and furthermore a 60″ is really too big for my room.
Finally, I asked them for a fresh 1-year factory warranty on the refurbished set, so if the problem shows up again, I’m covered. They agreed. I also have a 4 year extended warranty with Best Buy. A perfectly working 50XBR1 is really all I want, so hopefully this will be the solution. The Sony rep assured me that the refurbished sets are tested thoroughly, so hopefully I’ll end up with one of the good ones.
I wish all of you satisfactory solutions to your XBR problems.
–Phil
January 24th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
Phil,
Keep us posted on how the 50 incher looks when it gets to your house. I want to know what Sony thinks “testing thoroughly” means.
January 25th, 2007 at 5:25 am
Duane, I heard that Sony and Samsung are in a joint venture together with LCD tv’s. I hope that whomever has a Samsun doesn’t start to see the Greenvision eventually. My brother-in-law just bought a Samsung about 5 months ago and I told him about the XBR1 problem and how these two companies are on a joint venture. We’ll see!! If anyone has the XBR2, please advise as to how it’s working out. Hopefully no yellow line!
January 25th, 2007 at 7:50 am
Apparently Samsung’s customer service center is on par with Sony according to this story:
http://www.breakitdownblog.com/2007/01/22/the-samsung-saga/
January 25th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Just to keep everyone updated, A service tech called me this afternoon and asked a few questions about the problem I’m having with my TV. His first question was: “What Model is it”? I replied, “KDS-R50XBR1″. Next, he asked, “What is the problem”? I told him, “I have discoloration mostly noticeable on gray or fleshtone colors”. He then asked, “Is there a greenish yellowish haze only on parts of the screen”? I replied, “YES”! Without hesitation, he said he had to order a part before he services it. I asked what part he had to order, and he told me a light engine. I told him the whole story behind what has transpired over the last year and he agreed to keep the appointment to look at it. I told him I’ll call Sony escalations department while he’s there, and hopefully I’ll get the exchange I’ve been waiting for. The appointment is tommorow, I’ll keep everyone updated. Hmmm, I wonder why he asked me about the Green/Yellow haze. I also wonder why Qualxserv is so back logged that I can’t get an appointment till April. Just throwing that out there.
January 25th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
>I wonder why he asked me about the Green/Yellow haze. I also wonder why >Qualxserv is so back logged that I can’t get an appointment till April. Just >throwing that out there.
Because there is no known problem with these sets?
January 25th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
After 2 OB replaces I am going to live with the faint purple streaks. The original developed the green blob afte 11 months, the first replacement was very streaky with green ans purple streaks. The last OB is a lot etter than the first replacement, as I said I will live with it.
January 26th, 2007 at 8:54 am
Got my 1st OB replaced yesterday. The tech said sony is refurbishing the OB and have resolved the discoloration issue. The lens on the replacement OB is much bigger than the original. I was reluctant about getting a refurbished part, my picture is now as good, if not better than when purchased. Nature, Sunrise Earth in HD are stunning. I do have an exteneded warranty if the discoloration rears it’s ugly head again. For now, I am happy, becuase when these sets are working correctly, the picture is amazing…
January 26th, 2007 at 10:48 am
I may want it on this lawsuit. Same crappy problem on my Sony XBR1 60″. The local authorized service firm ordered the light engine and picked it up yesterday without even troubleshooting it. I thought it was odd that they automatically knew it was the light engine and they pre-ordered it. Sounds like Sony absolutely sucks! I can give the contact info of the AV repair firm if the legal firms so desires it. I’ll try and post the results.
January 26th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
VICTORY!!!!!! after calling repeatedly for the past 5 business days and speaking to several supervisor’s, I finally was told that a man named Joe would call me and he’s the field supervisor for my area who is in charge of my file. I talk to Joe yesterday and he said that I needed to fax him the receipt of purchase for my XBR1 which I did. I also pointed out that we purchased the stand at the same time as well. Joe told me that once they receive the receipt, someone will call me from the National Procurement department of Sony to give us our options on swapping our tv out.
I thought that was odd that Joe didn’t argue about trying to have it fixed. He just literally said they would swap it out and give me options.
Anyways, this morning, a guy named Scott called me from procurement and said that he has the faxed receipt and that one option of swapping out would be to give me a refurbished XBR1 and I told him that that was not acceptable considering we purchaed the tv and stand brand new 1 year ago for $5k. I told him we wanted something brand new to replace it and the stand if needed as if we purchased it today from a store for the money we spent. Scott said they can offer me a brand new XBR2 and the stand to that goes with it.
On that note, I accepted and he said it will take about 2 weeks for this whole process to be done.
So, if anyone has an XBR2, I would live to know if there are any problems. I’m so warn out from fighting with SOny for 3months, but it’s hopefully over. Next project on this is to talk to Sony warranty Department to make sure that the 1 yr manufacturer’s warranty starts over in addition to the extended warranty we purchased last month. I’ll keep everyone posted as to how the XBR2 is. I’m so afraid as to thinking about when 9 months come after we’ve had the XBR2 will we start to see the “Greenvision”.
January 26th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
Kimi, that is a HUGE success!
I like to see how persistent you were, calling every day until something was done. I can’t even imagine psychologically how worn out you are after this little mini-olympics of will power.
I’m curious what the 4 previous times you called were about? How did the people on the phone end the conversation with you? How did you proceed to the next step to getting the set replaced? Or did you just call back with the same script every single day until someone responded?
January 26th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
Excellent Kimi !!
What size XBR2 and full model number did they offer? I would like to look it up. Thanks
January 26th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
Kimi: further up on this BLOG, you can see my posts about the replacement on the 60XBR2 that I got replaced. At this time, looks great but it’s just a matter of time to see if the green blob/haze will come back. Remember, I believe it’s the same light engines, but there are two in the XBR2’s. There were great reviews on these XBR1’s and there really wasn’t any idea about the green haze until 6-9 months later (some sooner for others). Enjoy and keep looking for it and make sure you get that extended warranty!!! It’s been a lifesaver for me with larger purchase items!!!
January 26th, 2007 at 9:33 pm
I have a 60XBR1 purchased 12/2005 that had the light engine replaced 11/2006. Looked great after that but the on 12/23/06 it died, will not stay on. I bought the BB extended warranty and a BB tech came out on 12/28 took the back off and made sure no connections were loose from the OB replacement and the set started working. That lasted two days and now it’s dead again. It tries to turn on but immediately shuts itself off with the little red light blinking in front. Called BB on 12/31 and was told that a part had been ordered and they’d contact me for installation, which was confusing since the tech never said anything about a part. So I called back the next Monday after not hearing anything and the CS rep said that the parts department would call me by the end of the week. Come the next Monday no call, so I called back and was told that they didn’t know anything about a part and would I like a tech to come out to look at my dead TV? Gee, ya think maybe!
So on 1/22 the tech was scheduled to come out on 1/24. When I got home that day I had a message that the part was in and to call to schedule the install. ?! So I call and ask if the tech that is coming out on 1/24 knows anything about the part and does he have it, because the OB was delivered directly to my house. They said sure, the tech must know about the part so I didn’t schedule another service call. Big mistake. The tech calls Wednesday morning to confirm when he’d be out and when I asked if he had the part, he didn’t know anything about it! He came out that afternoon and decide to order a replacement fan.
So now the TV has been dead since 12/23/06 and I have no idea when it will be fixed. Is this worth trying to escalate with BB or do I have to just live with a worthless lump of tech until they get around to fixing it?
January 26th, 2007 at 10:10 pm
Hello again. Just an update on yet another Sony dilema. I had the KDF-60WF655 with the BLUE fog/blob etch a sketch problem which was exchanged by Future Shop for the KDS-60A2000 that went dead after four hours. It was replaced with a new set last Thursday which is so far still working. So far, so good. I will await the apparent nine month gestation period to see if the green or whatever other color blob makes its appearance. I e-mailes Sony Canada regarding my problems and received a response this morning apologizing and with a phone number to call. Obviously they won’t put anything in writing. I will try to attach their
response here for all to read. I will contact them if only to start a history with them. Dear Customer,
Thank you for contacting Sony of Canada Ltd.
We regret to hear that you are not satisfied with your Sony KDS-60A2000. Please be assured that Sony products do enjoy an excellent reputation for reliability.
We would like the opportunity to address your concerns, therefore, please contact our Customer Information Centre, toll free, at 1-877-899-7669, to speak with one of our customer service representatives.
We look forward to hearing from you and trust your confidence in Sony products can be restored.
Best regards,
Customer Information Centre
Service and Engineering Division
Sony of Canada Ltd.
http://www.sony.ca
http://www.sonystyle.ca
Tel: 877-899-7669
Fax: 416-499-3399
The information contained in this email (including attachments) is confidential and may be privileged or contain trade secrets or other proprietary information. If you are not the intended recipient, any use, dissemination or copying of this information is prohibited. If you have received this email message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply email and delete the message and any attachments without retaining a copy.
——————————————————————————–
Sent: Sunday, January 14, 2007 4:48 AM
To: Feedback
Subject: Sony Television question.
Hello.
Can someone please tell me what is happening with Sony televisions?
I just had my Sony Grand Wega KDF-60WF655, which I purchased from
Future Shop on Aug.16th. 2005, replaced with a brand new KDS-60A2000.
The replacement was due to an optical engine failure that was estimated at
$2485.00 and deemed to be too expensive to repair. Fortunately I had
purchased the extended warranty so Future Shop agreed to replace the set..
The New KDS-60A2000 arrived this morning. It sat in the living room for
several hours to warm up and to give us a chance to put the stand together.
We plugged the KDS-60A2000 in and turned it on at approximately 2:00 p.m.
We were quite pleased with the picture on the new set. That is for approximately
four hours, then the set went dead! No noise, no pops, no smoke! No kidding.
It just died. In four hours.
I phoned Future Shop and they will replace it for me alright. WHEN THEY HAVE
ONE IN STOCK! Who knows how long that will be?
In the meantime I’m sitting here with a brand new Sony television set in my
living room that I can’t use. I’m not too pleased with my brand choice at the moment.
I’m well aware that there is a problem with the optical engines on some Sony televisions
and that many are being returned. I hoped that the newer sets would be problem free as
the Sony products that I’ve purchased in the past have been. Doesn’t appear to be
the case though. I’m hoping that this is an isolated incident and that the new set will
be up to Sony’s usual standards.
Sincerely,
Ron Smith,
Holland Landing
Ontario.
January 27th, 2007 at 6:37 am
A further note on the optical engine issue is that it seems to be a
fairly widely known and accepted fact that the cost to replace the optical engine on a Sony T.V. here in Canada is between $2000.00 and $2500.00. This comes from a wide variety of sources at different levels in the industry, which also indicates that this is a well known problem. Remember that the decision to replace rather than repair my original T.V. was based on digital photos NOT a service call, as they knew exactly what the problem was. I don’t like having to buy extended warranties at $600.00 a pop, as I feel that the company should stand behind the products that they sell, but unless cornered, they don’t, so you have
no choice. At the first hint of an abnormality, I will post it here along with the response from Sony and Future Shop. My final thought is that it’s likely Sony tried to cut corners and took a gamble and cheaped out on these optical engines and it has come back and bit them in the ass.
January 27th, 2007 at 7:39 am
Same KDS-R50XBR1 problem. 2 weeks out of warranty. Technician estimates $1600.00 light engine, $400.00 installation. I have Sony Event I.D. number and have to call Monday with estimate to see what they’re payment assistance will be. Any advice?
January 27th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Fellow Fony owners,
Update:
I had a tech from Liftime Service center in Amherst, NY look at my KDS-R50XBR1 yesterday. He looked at it for about thirty seconds and told me it was an OB, which I already knew. I called and asked directly for escalations department. I told the rep that this was the third time that this part needs replacing in 9 mos. and that I was told that I would get an exchange this time. I was told that she is processing my claim and that I would get a call from a Sony Rep in three business days about a replacement. The unusual thing is, that the Tech told me that Sony would send the replacement to them first, and then they would deliver the new one and pick up the old one. To anybody who has got a replacement from Sony, does that sound right to you?
January 27th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Guys I just woke up this morning to some of the most incredible series of posts… I’m actually frothing at the mouth here at the level of consistent failure across the board and then, as the consumer with the failed product:
1) Being lied to by Sony
2) Being handed off by Customer Service centers from stores like BestBuy and the like
As if the set blowing out isn’t bad enough, you guys turn around and say “Well atleast it’s under warranty” but from what I”m reading that doesn’t mean anything… stores are deciding what warranty means and what will get serviced and what won’t… this is maddening.
I just did a story on how casinos are not paying out jackpots as often now blaming the customers winning on “software glitches”… I think this world is going coo-coo and “warranty” is a marketing term now to some folks.
Please keep us updated, for the folks just starting the fight. I’d like to see how you progress and it provides tips for others just finding themselves in the same boat.
January 27th, 2007 at 8:07 pm
Well, the local service center in my area came today to pick up my XBR1. I described my symptoms (green blob/haze) over the phone initially, and they immediately said they’d need to pickup the set and bring it to the shop.
I wonder how long I get to be without a TV in my living room. I guess it’s not that big a deal, since I haven’t been able to stand watching my XBR1 for several weeks now, opting instead for our bedroom 13″ low-def CRT. I think that about says it all.
January 28th, 2007 at 6:54 am
I own a 50″ XBR1 and had the OB replaced 3 months ago. I plan on joining the class action lawsuit. But while I wait with the rest of the owners of these flawed sets, I can only wonder what this TV is really going to cost as it continues to break when the 1- year warranty is expired. I looked at the fine print on Sony’s extended warranty, they will only make repairs until it equals the initial costs of the TV. After that, you are on your own. With one OB already replaced ($1400 with install under original 1-year warranty) I have $1600 left. Sony can also drop you from their extended warrnty at any time, refunding your money after pro-rating the time you had left on it.
Wow. No wonder they have a long list of class action suits against them. I guess it’s cheaper for them in the long run to not stand behind their products. Maybe several years down the road we will see some small measure of compensation – if they stay in business.
January 28th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Hey Riyad, Masrico, and Rob W.
To answer all of your questions.
Masrico: When “Scott” from National Procurement” dept. from Sony called to offer me my options, First, he said one option we can offer you is a refurbished 60xbr1 and I told him absolutely not. We paid $5k for the TV and stand brand new and only had it 9 months and then Green vision happened. I told him I expect to get a brand new replacement and since the 60xbr1’s are not selling anymore then we would like a new comparable version or replacement version of the xbr1’s. He said that they can offer me the 60xbr2 and stand as the replacement. I then accepted.
Rob W. – I’m confused. did you say that you had a 60xbr2 and then green vision happened and you had to have it replaced?
Riyad: I had been arguing with Sony and the repair service they gave me for 3 months. Right after New Year’s I called Sony to find out what the heck was going on. I didn’t get anywhere with them so I called the repair service and they were the one’s that told me that they did not renew their contract with Sony to repair TVs for 2007. I thought I was going to die!
I called Sony (customer relations) and asked for a supervisor. I explained my whole pathetic story to them and they agreed that it shouldn’t have taken this long and also that just because the repair service did not renew their contract for 2007 for repairing TVs that they had to finish it since we started on it late October of 2006.
I didn’t want to hear it so I told the supervisor that they will have to swap my TV out and she agreed. So, she said that the regional tech for my area who was in charge of my file will be calling me in about 24hours.
24hours comes and no call, so the next day after that, I called again and asked for a supervisor and told Stephanie that I was told that the regional tech would call me in 24hours and they haven’t. She said it could take 24 to 48 hours and I said I wasn’t told that. She didn’t want to argue with me so I hung up. I waited another day. The regional tech named John called me and asked me to fax my receipt so I did that. He was mean and was PMSing. He said that someone from procurement dept will be calling me. So the next day comes, last friday, and Scott from procurement is the one that approved of the swap….
Be persistent and call customer relations and ask for supervisor’s. Make sure you get and Event number because that is the file/complaint number and they document everything (times you called, who you spoke to, etc…).
January 28th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
Hey Kimi: yes, I NOW have the 60XBR2. I had the XBR1 with the same nightmare, but I’m still keeping up with the posts because I have a feeling the XBR2’s will show signs of problems. Let’s hope not, but I’m going to keep a close on the screen! Don’t get me wrong, I’m enjoying it, but I don’t think Sony has ironed the kinks on the SXRD technology they have come up with and their refurbished ways on parts will only cause problems with consumers! Persistence and patience is what it takes and it seems you have done that! Well done!
January 29th, 2007 at 7:50 am
Hey Rob W., is there any other sites of posts that you recommend I keep up with? I also have a bad feeling about the XBR2’s…I don’t think I could take it again if something went wrong. It was hell!
January 29th, 2007 at 8:51 am
I am having the same issues as everyone else on here except I’ve had my tv for about 4 months and 3 months of that have been trying to get Sony to fix it. They finally came and replaced the OB after about 2 months and it fixed the “Green Blob” issue but now the tv is not aligned and the “Green Blob” has turned into a “Pink Blob” that is worse than it was. The lady at Sony is offering me a refurb if they come out today and see the OB is messed up again. I didn’t pay for a refurb when I bought my tv so why should I be given a refurb? Any tips on getting a refund or maybe the XBR2 as a replacement?
January 29th, 2007 at 8:52 am
I bought my tv less than 18 days ago and I am already experiencing that green screen. Yes, indeed I will be part of this lawsuit. This is crazy that I spent the money for a television that is giving me problems less than a month after I purchased it.
January 29th, 2007 at 9:39 am
Robina, you should be able to just deal with the store where you purchased your set since you have had it such a short time. I would think they would swap the set for a new one! Good Luck
January 29th, 2007 at 9:40 am
Frustrated: See my earlier posts on my experiences if you’d like to get an idea of what I went thru.
Do not except a refurbished TV. Call Customer Relations and ask to be transferred to a supervisor. If you get a supervisor, explain to them how you have already had your TV fixed and now it’s messed up again and you are over it and want your TV replaced with a brand new comparable or newly updated version (upgrade).
If you have the XBR1, then the replacement is to an XBR2. I spent too much money on my XBR1 to have refurbished ones as a replacement. NOT ACCEPTABLE!
January 29th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Kimi: Thanks so much! I was reading through most of the posts but they started to become overwhelming. Tech is coming today to “Inspect” my tv again and the lady I am dealing with at Sony told me to give her a call back when they see that is indeed still broken. She said to tell them not to order another OB because they are costing Sony too much to replace more then once. I don’t really care how much it costs Sony…I just want my tv I payed good money for to work the way it was intended. Thanks again for the great info.
January 29th, 2007 at 10:19 am
Kimi:
Here are a couple that I keep track of when it comes to reviews and information. Simply search “60XBR2″. Of course, you won’t find much since the XBR2 is fairly new.
http://www.highdefforum.com/index.php
http://www.avsforum.com/
I use http://www.CNET.com for a lot of research too.
Unfortunately… there are many people caught in this trap with Sony with refurbished replacements with the TV AND the OPTICAL ENGINE. As Riyad and many others have mentioned, the process is persistence to win. “Frustrated”, I would get started right away on replacing the TV, but be patient because it’s a journey! Robina, that’s a shame. As I did and I’m sure many others would agree, start with creating an EVENT with Sony even though you may have a warranty with the retail company you purchased it from (i.e., BB, CC, Tweeter, etc.). This way it’s logged. I would gather all information, documentation, and notify the retailer about the problem. Take pictures too. Be persistant with the retailer and Sony direct. Eventually your niceness will payoff and hopefully result to a replacment.
Kimi – I don’t want to go through it again either, let’s keep our fingers crossed and try to help the others on these posts since we were lucky enough to get the XBR2 replacement!
January 29th, 2007 at 11:02 am
Hi Kimi:
Here are some sights that I have kept up with during this mess. We are lucky to get the XBR2 compared to others as you can see. BUT, I’m keeping a close eye on it. Just do a search on the model number, or I used “60XBR2″ for the search.
http://www.highdefforum.com/index.php
http://www.avsforum.com/
Keep an eye on http://www.cnet.com too. Good information from other people posting reviews, etc.
I would have to say that even though Sony is high on the chain of electronics, I may never purchase another Sony product again. My experience on other products have been the same, not good!
January 29th, 2007 at 11:12 am
Good site for reading…….XBR2
January 30th, 2007 at 5:15 am
Thanks Rob for the sites. Unfortunately, I have majority of Sony tv’s in my house. This is the first of it’s kind of experiencing problems and having to get the most expensive one in my house swapped out or repaired.
January 30th, 2007 at 7:37 am
I too am on my second repair for the OB which is schedule Friday. Tweeter has been accomodating to my problems but at this point, it seems as though once the OB is bad, you rarely get fixed completely. My feelings definitely echo what everyone else has said. When you spend 4k on a Sony brand TV you dont expect to have such a widespread issue and hassles dealing with repairs. Hopefully Friday it gets resolved or i’ll be set for a 3rd repair sometime in the next month.
January 30th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-KDS-R60XBR2-SXRD-1080p-Projection/dp/B000IHM940
Good info here. I sent off for some repair manuls for my XBR1.
January 31st, 2007 at 5:52 am
To All,
Update:
I hadn’t heard from a CS agent from Sony yet about my replacement so I called Sony last night. The CS agent looked up my account and told me that they had contacted the technician yesterday morning and asked him what was wrong with the TV. He told them it was the Optical Block again for the third time. Sony told him to change it one last time with new part # ending in 495A, if you’ve done your research you’ll see that there is two OBs for that model TV. I told him that would be fine, and he assured me that Sony will replace the TV if this one is bad also. My gut feeling is that Sony realized the defect with the old part # but failed to recall the OBs from the earlier sets. Not a reputable company if you ask me. If a car manufacturer such as FORD put out cars that tend to start on fire, you know that there would be a recall. Sony thinks the average consumer is dumb, and unless you call them out and complain about it, you get hosed. Please everyone call Sony and bug the hell out of them until they lose so much money, they’ll have to listen. Here are the OB part #s if you would like to check yourself or ask the tech before he installs it. make sure it is the new one.
old part # (original)
A1148155A
new part # (the one you want)
A1168495A
So you know, when Sony replaced our OBs multiple times, they used either rebuilds or old part# still in circulation. To make sure that I didn’t get one of these, I asked the tech what part # he is ordering and he told me the 495A, I told him that I know that there are two #s for this TV, he answered yes, but Sony pulled the old part from circulation because of maufacturing defects. FINALLY! Someone admitting they knew there was a problem. That’s all I really wanted from them originally, I’ve only wanted them to fix the original TV that I bought in the first place. Let’s face it XBR1 is a more attractive TV than the A2000s. I don’t want a downgrade. I hope this helps anybody in the same boat. I’ll keep posting here until we all have some sort of resolution. I guess my part won’t be in for the Superbowl, go figure, but when I do get it replaced, trust me, I will be highly critical and I won’t let the tech leave until I’m satisfied. Keep the posts coming!
January 31st, 2007 at 7:03 am
Duane,
This information is excellent. I thank you for posting it for all of us to share. Armed with all this info puts a customer in a much stronger position when calling Sony. The main reason for a high success rate will be because of people sharing information and experiences. Again, Thanks to all!
January 31st, 2007 at 12:48 pm
I posted last week the when my OB was replaced that it was a different part from the one that came with the set. The tech said that Sony had “supposedly” redesigned OB and fixed the problem. When he removed the old OB and compared it to the new one, it was visibly different. The replacement has a larger lens, and probably some other internal upgrades. My picture is BETTER than when we purchased the set in March of ‘06. Now, only time will tell if the issue will return. However, the tech that fixed our set does work for BB, CC and a couple of other retailers of electronics. He said he spoke Sony regarding the OB and that the issue was address …thus the redesign w/larger lens…etc..
January 31st, 2007 at 1:02 pm
My 50 inch was bought at SEARS on April 15th, but did not develop the Green Slime Blob until early December. I contacted SONY Live Online and spent 20 minutes hearing my set needed the hue adjusted! When I did all that was asked of me and exclaimed ‘Bob Barker is still a Vulcan!” I was told I needed to contact Tech Support. Having enough of them, I called the Manager at SEARS who scheduled a repairman visit which happened on January 4th. Took one look at it and ordered, via his laptop, an OB. It came last week and was installed today. Green gone for now, but the daytime soaps have black splotchy areas in lowlight or dark scenes. We had seen these before, but never to this extent. maybe there is a break in period…
I have high regard for SEARS and their attempts to help me, but looks like this needs to fall on SONY’s shoulders.
rick
January 31st, 2007 at 3:06 pm
Well, finally had a breakthrough with Sony last night. After talking with them all day on the phone they decided it would be fair for me to drop another $1k to upgrade to the XBR2. Unacceptable… I told them I just wanted a refund and they can have their tv back. I was quickly told that Sony does not offer refunds and that this was not an option. I had to pick a refurb, try and put the 3rd OB in, or pay them more money since they can’t fix their product. Well, I unleashed my secret weapon (The Fiance) on them last night. Same lady I dealt with yesterday that said Sony doesn’t offer refunds called today and told me she has scheduled a pickup and refund for my tv. This is great news, but the bad part…she said it would be weeks before they come out and they have to get confiramtion that the tv is on the way back to Sony before they will issue me a check for my refund. TV stand is going to look pretty gimp while I wait for my money, but hey…no more screwing with Sony for me. Definately will never buy another Sony product. Hope everyone else has luck with their issues. Only took me 4 months…
January 31st, 2007 at 3:08 pm
Sorry, forgot to mention that the OB installed was the new part # and apparently the green blob problem was fixed on those but they have the same issue with the red filter, hints my pink blobs. Go figure…
January 31st, 2007 at 3:16 pm
Nice job unleashing the secret weapon on them and I’m glad their more of their “not policies” turned into “policies” after enough bargaining.
My suggestion, buy your next TV at Costco, atleast you know you can drop it off if it breaks and get a full refund for the amount even without a receipt. (Sams club might do that too, not sure).
January 31st, 2007 at 3:36 pm
Question for everyone: Does this green blob issue only affect the A2000 or does it also affect the latest models, ie, the Sony KDS-R60XBR2 ?
January 31st, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Randy,
Seems to be all sets, but the XBR2s haven’t been out long enough yet to see if the playing field evens out.
February 1st, 2007 at 7:23 am
Well, finally things are getting done. Sony had the XBR2 stand shipped to me yesterday and the top right side of the stand wasn’t assembled right and so I called Procurement (exchange dept) and they said they will ship me out a new one, but they don’t want the old one back. Now, not only do I have the stand for the XBR2 that we don’t need, but I also had a stand for the XBR1 that they don’t want that we originally purchased.
Anybody need a stand?
February 1st, 2007 at 11:05 am
I’d love a stand Kimi, after what they put me thru, it would be a nice bonus!
February 1st, 2007 at 11:23 am
That’s really nice of you Kimi to offer that up.
February 1st, 2007 at 11:48 am
Duane J.
Thanks for the info, but the old part vs new part is only for the serial number of the tv, it is not a new product.
I got Sony Customer Relations and they need first of all a Sony Tech to look at the TV and then maybe they will replace the part at Sony’s cost.
I also learned that there are several Class Action Law Suits not just the one in NY, maybe one from each state. Looks like Sony is up a creek on this.
Thanks to “”ALL”" for keeping everyone informed. Looking forward to reading more comments.
February 1st, 2007 at 3:17 pm
Tim and Riyad, these stands are all yours and if you guys can figure out how to get it from my house in Jax FLorida to where you are…Let me know!
February 1st, 2007 at 4:37 pm
Wayne,
I can’t figure out what you are getting at with your last post, the new part number was used in later issued XBR1s, most of us had first issued versions with old OB part number that is no longer used. When the tech came out to fix them, Sony issued either new OB with old part number or rebuilds with old part number, unfortunately for us, since we were the first to report these defective OBs, Sony did not exercise the Quality Assurance process and pull these defective units out of circulation quick enough. Most of us have had this problem for >9mos and we haven’t had our OBs replaced with new part # yet.
February 1st, 2007 at 4:46 pm
Hi Kimi, I’ll pay shipping and your time. Can you email me at tjleg@hotmail.com?
February 1st, 2007 at 5:32 pm
Kimi thank you for the offer but I was only thanking you for your generosity. If I get another piece of furniture in this house, we will have to move
Please someone else take dibs on it than can use it.
February 1st, 2007 at 6:28 pm
FINALLY!! 2 ob’s later.. upgading to the 60xbr2 for about 600.00 + new stand. At this point I don’t care about the money. I think it’s fair to pay the differance in price from my 50xbr1 to the 60xbr2. I get more tv and the full year warranty. I’m happy and will keep my fingers crossed that it last’s. Thanks to all!!!!!!! Good Luck!!!!
February 1st, 2007 at 7:42 pm
KDS-R50XBR1 with green haze hits! boght May 29th, Son notices green haze at Christmas. Spoke with Sony and they had us do two hard resets…Didnt work…On Sony Repair Dealer in area and they dont make house diagnositcs but will pick TV up… Sony contacted me and stated that if the dealer agrees to pic TV up that is OK…I stated that if they came and looked at the set, they could order the parts and at least I would have my TV till the part came in! She stated since the dealer was willing to come pick it up, that they agree with the dealer. Reading this, I think I am going to take a picture of the green haze, bring it to the repair dealer and show them and see if they will order the OB and then they can pick the TV up when it comes in…But I sure hope the new part works! This really sucks that there is so much of a problem and SONY is not doing what is needed. But I have found that not many companies want to stand behind their warrent these days. What do you guys think about the picture and bringing it to the dealer instead of the complete TV?
February 1st, 2007 at 9:24 pm
Ron,
Same TV, pretty much the same situation. I just let them pickup my TV as well. I called the service company today and they stated that the TV needs repair and parts were on order for the TV. When I asked approximately how long it would be, I was told 7-10 days. It bites, but the truth is that for me, the hazy green blob makes my TV unwatchable. The screwed up color is just too distracting. If I want to watch TV for now, I watch it on our low-def 13″ CRT.
I was in a rush today and forgot to ask what part(s) were being replaced. I’ll have to call back in tomorrow and ask. Although, it’s certainly an OB.
Good luck.
February 2nd, 2007 at 5:02 am
Duane J
The Sony Tech here told me that the part numbers you gave are for different serial numbers on the tv. I persume the old part number is for the older TV’s. Hope this explains my last, to this point I don’t know if Sony has a good replacement OB for XRB1 TV’s.
She also told me she talked to another guy that is on a Class Action Suit in California that lives in the Washington DC area.
February 2nd, 2007 at 11:40 am
I PUCHASED MY SET IN MARCH OF 2006 THREE MONTHS LATER I HAD THE SAME GREEN GLOB PROBLEM. A1 ELECTRONICS HAD THE SET REPAIRED, BUT THEN I BROUGHT A PS3 AND FOUND OUT THAT THE SET WOULD NOT ACCEPT A 1080P SIGNAL!!!!! COUNT ME IN ON THE SUIT.
February 2nd, 2007 at 11:44 am
I PUCHASED MY SET IN MARCH OF 2006 THREE MONTHS LATER I HAD THE SAME GREEN GLOB PROBLEM. A1 ELECTRONICS HAD THE SET REPAIRED, TECH STATED THE PROBLEM WAS THE LIGHT ENGINE SET SHOWS FINE, BUT THEN I BROUGHT A PS3 AND FOUND OUT THAT THE SET WOULD NOT ACCEPT A 1080P SIGNAL!!!!! COUNT ME IN ON THE SUIT.
February 2nd, 2007 at 2:12 pm
I followed up with the service company today and inquired as to what part(s) were being replaced. As expected, they’re replacing the light engine. I’ll keep everyone posted.
February 3rd, 2007 at 9:04 am
Here’s another one, my 60″ XBR1, just under a year old, has started to display the dreaded green blob. It is not yet overwhelming, but it is getting worse every day. I called my retailer, and they said the unit is under Sony’s warranty since it is less than one year old. I was referred to a local service shop who said that he had already replaced 6 OB units so far. He also mentioned that there were two different replacements, one is typically in stock and the other is alway back-ordered, so I am waiting on his call back to see which one I have.
February 3rd, 2007 at 9:11 am
We also had the green haze on our SXRD…the tech came out and replaced the motor with a brand new one….he did say that he has done this for lots of these tv’s. The haze is gone, but should I be worried that it will happen again?
February 3rd, 2007 at 12:53 pm
so, i work at best buy, and this is a ‘green-blob’ problem that we’ve had with this TV a lot… even before i bought the TV… it was something that i was aware of when i got my 60 XBR1 SXRD, but i got it because it had such a nice picture… well i got the service plan, because i personally believe in the ones my store sells… i called the 1-800 number and they sent a tech out, and my TV was fixed within an hour… if you spend that much money on a TV it only makes sense to get something to protect it… this is NOT a sales pitch I’m putting out for best buy, I’m simply saying that it is a problem that can be fixed, but it will come back… luckily for me, if i have to get it fixed 4 times in 4 years, i get a new one via Best Buy, no hassling with Sony… for all you people out there who are hating Sony and never going to buy from them again, good luck with LG, Samsung, Toshiba, Magnavox, Philips, Westinghouse, Maxent, Vizio, and all the other companies that have horrible customer service too… they are a MANUFACTURES, Circuit City, Best Buy, Magnolia AV, and places like these have customer service people… let them do the work, and let THEM deal with the manufacture… good luck to those sewing Sony… you will probably win… it just makes me sad, because you pay that much for a TV and no protection, and no service plan… would you buy a Lamborghini and not get an oil change? ok, why to you buy the Lamborghini of TV’s and not get a service plan, which covers these things and annual cleanings? again, i work for best buy, this is NOT a sales pitch, i just hate whiny little wankers who aren’t smart enough to buy a $2500 odd dollar TV and EXPECT it to work for ever flawlessly… you buy it because Sony has the best picture, not because it lasts for ever… you buy a Lamborghini because it’s a sexy car, not because it lasts like a Honda!
PS3
don’t get mad at Sony for making a TV that’s 1080p and cannot accept a 1080p source through HDMI… switch your ps3 to 1080i (if you can, I don’t own one so I’m not sure if you can) and it will de-interlace it to 1080p (if you can switch your ps3 to 1080i)… it’s NOT Sony’s fault that HDMI was not as advanced as it is today… they made the set able to accept 1080p over the air or through fire-wire, but Sony cannot help that technology is not as fast as they are and as fast as you people want it! Stop hating Sony because you didn’t read your manual, stop blaming Sony that you didn’t do YOUR research… stop blaming Sony that your best buy or circuit rep didn’t know what he was talking about… and if you bought it off amazon, it’s not Sony’s fault you didn’t talk to an expert
next time buy a tv, talk to SEVERAL reps, go to CC and BBY, go to Amazon and read reviews, go to Sony.com and read parts of the manual, BECAUSE THEY HAVE THEM THERE FOR FREE BEFORE YOU BUY THE TV… go to consumer reports and read what people think… don’t be an ignorant whiner… the laws state that it is YOUR responsibility to know the laws, NOT the laws responsibility to tell you all about them… why should we hold Sony accountable for the same thing? Figure stuff out on your own people, and stop blaming others for your ignorance. If you know how to search on the net to find this blogg… well let me tell you something, you should have found this blogg, or one similar to it BEFORE you buy your TV… or car, our sound system, or even your refrigerator, microwave, dishwasher, and so forth, don’t blindly buy your stuff people… it’s not smart…
February 3rd, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Nadar:
Although I agree with what you have said on some of the things you have said, I don’t agree with it all. Of course, there’s always going to be opinions.
I believe that most people might agree that when you buy a Lamborghini you expect a fairly good warranty, not less than a year to breakdown. Most of our TV’s have fallen into a one-year downfall and SONY wants to replace with REMANUFACTURED parts and used TV’s. The fine print on Sony’s warranty claims this. Again, they are covering their tails on that one. They have something that most of us want, the “what’s in” item and we’ll pay for it. BUT, it’s sad that a company this size (or others) are taking advantage of it by skimming through on their warranty policies within the laws.
I agree with reading the fine print. When I bought my TV, I was told 1080p acceptance. Come to find out it wasn’t true because the sales person told me otherwise.
I agree with the extended warranty too. Mine has paid off, however, I don’t agree with an extended warranty on anything when a product should be backed with quality.
I’m sure this can go on for days back and forth. I agree with some of your comments, but we are dealing with a TV that’s lasting less than a 1.5 years and Sony is replacing with REMAN OB’s or replacing with REMAN TV’s that have REMAN OB’s and that is unaccetable to many of us. What a warranty on an engine for a Lamborghini with proper upkeep? Should we change the oil in our TV’s for proper upkeep? We should be able to turn it on and off longer than a year!
I truly believe as more people join this group, we will possibly (hopefully) see Sony recall these TV’s. And when I researched my TV (and today), I did not see anything about green Blobs or problems back in May of 2006. When you google KDS-R60XBR1, you don’t get anything out of “green haze” or “green blob”, but if you add that to your search, guess what you find?!?!
Most consumers believe it or not, probably have NOT found this blog, but when they get more and more irritated by Sony, they will do a search and soon find out they are not alone.
February 3rd, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Nadar,
Sounds to me that it’s more likely that you work for Sony rather than Best Buy. I think it’s really funny how intelligent you BB employees claim to be. Why, just the other day I was at a Best Buy and the BB employee didn’t even know what size TV we were looking at, much less the model number, or what other sizes they came in. I think it’s pretty sad that most of us come to trust Sales Associates that don’t bother doing the research themselves and give customers poor information. You can still enter in those Model numbers in Consumer reports or CNET, and the reviews on these items are still between 8s and 9s out of ten.
As Rob posted earlier, Sony claimed, as well as retailers, and Sales Associates that this TV excepted 1080P via HDMI, (incase anybody is wondering, it’s only a matter of a software patch to which Sony has not bothered to remedy). That’s the kind of support you can expect from a non- compassionate, monopolistic company like Sony.
Nadar, my suggestion to you is, get off this blog, you don’t belong here. We are interested in finding a solution to a problem that all of us share. We’ve come together as a group, and we will find resolve Good luck dealing with BB if you have to return it, some of us haven’t had any luck with them either. I do find it fascinating that you know about the problem, and I bet you still pushed the sales of these TVs on innocent hard working people. I’m sure your not losing any sleep over it.
One more point moron, Most of us bought these TVs when they first released them, it’s a little hard to find blogs on class action lawsuits when only a handful of people own them. I think before you started bashing people on this site, you should ‘ve researched more into peoples’ stories. Goodluck working at Best Buy for the rest of your life, it looks like a person with your selfishness and narrowmindness will make it straight to management.
ooohhhh, that hurts.
February 4th, 2007 at 9:32 am
I have a Sony KDF-55WF655. Less than two years old. At 1.5 years old the lamp went out. No biggy except the morons at Sony couldn’t figure that out when I called them. (Most ABYSMAL customer “support” EVER!!! Someone actually answered the phone “WHAT?!!” and then hung up on me before the call was over) Had to call the local store to get that figured out. Then after having fixed that about two months later I get the blue haze. Dunno if my tv model can be included in a class action suit but it sounds like to me that all of these problems boil down to a an optic assembly defect. I will NEVER buy another Sony product again.
February 4th, 2007 at 10:13 am
Ray I’m glad you posted because I was never sure of the KDF series also suffered some the same problem (as I didn’t follow that series) but it sounds like it did.
Also I am surprised as your experience with the customer support. I’ve had that happen in the past with another company (forget the name) and it was such a damning experience, even AFTER I ended up talking to a real support person, the door had forever been closed in my mind with that company because of such an unprofessional 1st experience.
February 4th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
I started having the same green haze problems as the rest of you with my 60″ XBR1 set a few weeks ago. It’s about 14 months since I bought it. Sony customer service did say that the set was close enough to the expiration that they would be able to give me an accommodation, although given what I’ve read thus far, I’ll remain skeptical until they come through…
February 4th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Spoke with repair dealer on Feb. 2nd. They will pick TV up on the 5th to bring in for service. I asked the repair dealer if they could check on the OB part for availability and they stated the part is on National Back-order and he had another set like mine, 50″ SXRD, waiting on the part for over 4 weeks? Sound right?
I did ask the repair dealer that once the Technician found the problem, which we all know what it is, after he orders the part, I would like to know the order information. Also, I would like to pick my set up until the OB is in…I still can watch my TV but I dont want to wait 4 or 5 weeks for the part if it comes in then.
Can you pick up the Sony extended warrenty if the unit is 8 months old? It seems I will need it from what I have been reading!
February 5th, 2007 at 11:30 am
Sony KDS-R50XBR1, 50-Inch Television 1080P has been discontinued from the manufacturer. You have been forwarded to the replacement model. Sony KDS-R60XBR2
Got this surfing the net. So guess Sony knows about the defects. HA HA HA
Has anyone heard when the Suit is going to court.
February 5th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Ron,
Yes, it is possible to purchase a warranty up until the 1 yr manufacture warranty expires. You have two choices: 1) buy through sonystyle, 5yr for $289.00, but you must be at least 60 days from expiration of 1 yr manufacture warranty. 2) if you wait till the last minute like I did, ask for Sony extended service, I got a 3yr from date of expiration of factory warranty for $360. 3) your best choice is through warrentech repair master, you can get 5yrs for as low as $250, an it’s renewable, with Sony, you can only have a max warranty until the TV reaches five years old, but warrentech requires that your TV be from 120 days from factory expiration. I wish I would have known about that one earlier. Hope it helps.
February 5th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
Wayne,
Can you paste a link for the info on the blog please regarding the replacement.
February 5th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Wayne,
Can you post a link on the blog for the info you found on the replacement please?
February 5th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Duane J,
Thanks for posting that as reference for folks.
February 5th, 2007 at 8:03 pm
I want in….big green blob sufferor
February 5th, 2007 at 8:52 pm
Green Blob appeared Thanksgiving 06. Reported the next day. Service Tech (through CC) didn’t even need to see the TV..immediately knew the problem. Ordered OB and STILL have not received. Called Sony to escalate and they initially said someone would contact me re: a replacement…then they backed away from that offer. I’m soooo pissed. How do I get in on the Class Action? Paid $4k for this TV that looks like someone peed in the upper right corner.
February 6th, 2007 at 4:53 am
Called (301-593-7676)—-A1 TV SALES & SERVICE— 2141 Industrial Parkway, Silver Springs, MD they are the ones that told me about the serial numbers.
Still trying to get a local Sony Tech to come look at my TV so I have something to give Sony. This is all stupid, but thats the way it is. They said that a Best Buy Tech is not what they want.
February 6th, 2007 at 7:12 am
Wayne, what is the last URL for that you posted?
February 6th, 2007 at 7:51 am
Duane J asked me to post them.
I was surfing the web for other blogs and found this one site. Try them.
February 6th, 2007 at 9:52 am
Robert Law, the lawyer handling the Class Action Lawsuit against Sony let me know that their website has gone live:
http://www.sonysxrdtvclassaction.com/
For those of you that want to be included in the lawsuit all the contact information you need is available on that page. I wish all of you luck getting your issues resolved, and for those of you that did get your issues resolved with Sony, I really respect your 3-months of will power that it seems to take to go 12 rounds with customer service before they do what they are suppose to do.
February 6th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
OK. I’ve had 2 optical blocks replaced. The tv’s been in the shop 4 times. I called for service again 2 weeks ago. They finally called me back today and offered me a B stock refurb. A refurb? A REFURB! Someone punch me – I must be having a nightmare. I told them to stuff it – come get the tv for another optical block replacement. I also sent in my retainer agreement for the lawsuit.
For those of you thinking of signing up for the suit, it involves 3 firms (NY, California and Florida. I can tell you that Jeff Konsius from California is extremely responsive, low-pressure and seems like a good guy in general. You can sign-up for the suit through him as well. jkoncius@lange-koncius.com.
February 6th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to announce that Sony is beginning to accept responsibility for our misfortune. Today I received a call from Sony, not the usual customer service line, the procurement department. They apologized for the inconvenience, and offered to exchange my television. Luckily for me, I had seen previous posts from others stating that they would offer a refurbished 50XBR1, to which I replied, absolutely not. I then had to explain lemon law to the agent and told him I would be willing to upgrade or accept another model. I had to fax the receipt to them, they told me I can pick out whatever I wanted, but if the price was more, I had to pay the difference. If I can give anyone advice, I’m probably not going with a projection TV from Sony again, I’ve already looked into the LCDs and I’m probably going with a 46″ flat panel. I’ll keep everyone informed of my progress, as things tend to change day to day.
February 6th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
bought my 50 xbri just before super bowl last year. didn’t buy extended warranty. thank goodness from my kids constant use screen started going green 30 days before sony warranty expired. called sony cs and was told the OB was on 3 month backorder.whined and OB appeared at my techs office in one week. tv supposed to be ready this thursday. i’m going down to see tv in the shop before they bring it home.it took me 2 weeks and countless hours on the phone to get this far.hope it last more than 9 months with new OB.this suuccckkkks!!!!!
February 6th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
Duane J,
I’m really happy for you. You went in armed with information and said all the right things. I also agree with your change of heart in TV-technology. I would suggest the Bravia LCDs to you, beautiful picture.
Mike,
Nice catch man, finally a good reason to let the kids watch TV all day long
Hope the OB replacement does the trick.
February 7th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Duane J, very good. I dealt with the procurement dept as well. new xbr2 should be arriving any day now. XBR2 stand arriving tomorrow. The first one we received had an assembly problem. As you may know from previous blog, I have a collection of tv stands. XBR1 that sony doesn’t want (not cost effective they said) and first xbr2 shipped to me that they also don’t want back (not cost effective they said)…GOOD JOB!!!!
February 7th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
Comrads,
I’m listing the options that Sony offered me, so you know what to expect:
For reference, I paid $3,150.00 on a price match at Best Buy, not including tax. Sony refuses to accept tax liability.
First offer: Refurbished KDS-R50XBR1, with one year man. warranty
Please refuse, it’s not within lemon law to accept this choice.
Second offer: New KDS-55A2000, with one year man. warranty
Legitamit exchange, your option, no cost to you.
Third offer: New KDS-60A2000, with one year man. warranty.
Acceptable, but if cost of TV plus $500 shipping is more than you paid, you have to cover the difference. In my case, I accepted, and had to pay $250.00. Sony charges shipping on any upgrade.
Final offer: Any Sony product that you want, price from Sonystyle.com, plus $500.00 shipping for pick-up and drop-off, minus what you paid for your TV. Sony refused to refund my money.
Only you can be the judge of what choice is best for you, I would have like to get a Bravia LCD 1080P, but I did not want to pay anymore money to this horrible company. $250.00 was my limit, I got a bigger TV, plus another one year man. warranty.
If some of you are wondering about your warranty transferring over, you have to call warranty provider for details. In my case I purchased through Sony Extended service, call: 1-866-766-9259, press 1 on automated system, 2 doesn’t work, trust me. They cancelled my warranty and refunded my money back, then they will recharge my card, and send out a new registration for new TV. Keep in mind, you have 60 days to cancel this warranty, if you are over that, which none of us should be, it would be pro-rated.
Here’s some other info:
Sony Exchange Department (procurement): 1-866-850-8673
employees that I personally dealt with: Scott, John, Sarah, and Joann
Sony Escalations Department: Call Sony CS, ask for Escalations
employees I dealt with: Guy and Velma
Sony CS: 1-800-222-7669
employees I dealt with: Randy, Ebrickah, Stephanie, Leteria (Liar), and Melissa
Supposedly Sony was going to fix my TV one last time, but evidently they are so far backed up on Maint. and parts they are just replacing them. I hope that my experience will bring everyone closer to justice, I will still post here as long as it takes to make sure everyone is taken care of. If anyone has questions, post them here or e-mail me at jake14174@yahoo.com. Goodluck to all, I’ve been told that my new TV should be in my house within two weeks.
February 7th, 2007 at 2:49 pm
Excellent Update Duane, I am sure we will all benefit from what you posted. Very Much appreciated!!
February 7th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
Duane, that was an awesome update full of information that will help all 100 people or so posting here. That was very nice of you to post that.
February 7th, 2007 at 3:55 pm
Any time Gents
February 7th, 2007 at 4:22 pm
For those who are out of warranty, I heard back from Sony and they immediately offered to cover 75% of the repair costs without my having to argue about it. I’m about two months past at this point, but as long as it gets fixed that’s good enough for me. Qualxserv was the repair company, their quote was $920.
Based on what I’ve read regarding others having to argue Sony up to that point if not within warranty, hopefully Sony is starting to be more responsive.
February 7th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
Well, the circuit city technician showed up last week and it was the typical OB issue. He ordered the part and called me a few days later for the install. He got here, took the TV apart and then opened the box with the replacement. To his dismay, it was the wrong part. So he called around and I guess he found a part in California. He said the part would be in tomorrow and he would repair it then — basically asking me if it would be okay to leave the TV dismantled. I agreed but the part didn’t come in, so he came back and put the TV back togeather so I could watch the superbowl (only tv I have).
Tuesday he comes over and installs the new OB. He buttons the TV back up and turned it on. In the bottom right corner there was a square of black – looking like he left something inside. He tears it apart again and said there was a peice of plastic, which was part of the TV in the way of the OB. He bent that peice back and put it together again .. The TV’s picture looked okay.
The green blob was gone from the top center of the TV. Instead, there was a doughnut shaped green blob in the center of the picture. It was better then it was before, but it wasn’t the same as when I purchased it. He left and I went about my day. Today, when watching the TV, the place where the original green blob appeared has been replaced by a purple blob. So now I have a green doughnut and a purple blob to watch. The intensity of the blobs are less then what the original was but I’m not happy by any means.
I’m going to call Circuit City again and let them know of my dissatisfaction. I will ask to speak with a supervisor and see if I can get the TV exchanged for an XBR2. I have no faith in this model anymore after reading about the problems on the web and seeing it happen twice.
February 7th, 2007 at 5:58 pm
Casey that sucks man, especially after getting it “fixed” and thinking you are done with all the hassle but that didn’t end up being the case.
February 8th, 2007 at 7:56 am
Duane J, great update you gave. I have been dealing with Scott and John in procurement. Our 2nd tv stand will arrive today for the xbr2. Hopefully, we won’t have to add this one to our collection. The first one wasn’t assembled properly.
Supposedly the xbr2 has arrived here in town and we are waiting for them to call to schedule delivery.
Question, we have extended warranty. Do I need to call warrantly dept to have the model number changed over from the xbr1 to the xbr2 and do I need to ask for a 1 year man. warranty as well?
February 8th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
Kimi,
I’m sorry to say that it might be too late to negotiate for the 1 year manufacturer warranty, call procurement and ask them. They should have briefed you on that when they offered you your choices. It could very well be that you do have it, and they just didn’t tell you. As for your extended warranty, you have to call the number I listed above and ask them, remember what I posted about the 60 day rule. I purchased my extended warranty on Jan. 12th, 2007. You have to be within 60 days of your warranty purchase date, or else you will be pro-rated on the return of your warranty. They will return your money for the warranty you bought, and then recharge you for the new warranty. If you’re past 60 days, you pay the difference. Does that make sense? It’s hard to explain, just call them at the number I provided above. Supposedly, once you get the new TV, you have to call Sony extended service and provide the new serial number.
February 8th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
Hello all.
I have been lurking for about 3wks – I found the site when a friend asked me about the “Yellow Stain” on his XBR1 50″. I was initially shocked at the plethora of unfortunate failures being reported. I was aware of green blobs but not the “pee stain” issue. I was able to give my friend some insight through what I found here and other sources. He is into his Sears extended warranty, and is now glad he purchased it. I fear he may not be happy with the replacement OB that is on order, but I did give him the “new” part number to check for.
I’m writing now because I also have an SXRD XBR1 (60″) with a build date of 12/2005 which I bought in AUG 06 (I think) – It sat until 9/06 in the box while my home was constructed. So at this point I have about 6mo average use (avg 2-3hrs day) on the unit. So far the PQ is perfect (although my mind may play tricks on me at times – I see green in the darks and the convergence/focus seems softer, but I don’t think that’s possible).
My question is this, is there any data as to non-failure units? Could i have gotten a “winner”? I don’t want it to die, of course, but I also don’t want to assume it won’t and miss the boat (IE, not purchase an extended warranty before its too late, get in on the C.A.L.). I had read failure rates as high as 50%, but without non-failure consumers reporting, how can we know?
February 8th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
Well, here’s my story, I got the blob and called Sony. They asked me to unplug my ty and after five minutes had me plug it in and see if that worked. Of course it did not. They gave me two numbers to call. I called one and told them my problem. They came out and the guy looked at my tv and said that he would have to order the part. (he did not say what that part was) about two weeks later they called and said my part was in and they could come out the next day to install it. He came out by himself and I went behind my tv and unhooked everything and together we picked it up off of the “Bello” stand and put it on my coffee table where he proceeded to take it apart. I sat there and watched it all. The OB is buried way inside the set. I could not believe that he gutted the whole tv to get to it. I was thinking I could not get that back together again, but he did in about and hour and fifteen minutes. The part had the A1168495A part number on it.
it seems to have taken care of the probem for now. My year is up on the 18th of Feb. I hope this lasts for a while. Also for the people that think dust was a problem, I saw very little dust inside my set. So don’t believe that. One question though, how many of you have am X-Box 360 hooked up to your set? I never had this problem untill a couple of months after I got one. The green blob is very much like the green blob looking stuff that comes on the screen when the Xbox starts up. Have you ever noticed that?
February 8th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
Ron,
I did notice what your talking about with the XBox 360, but I have to tell you, it looks the same on my Panasonic 26″ LCD. I thought about it too. I hope for your sake that the new part# fixed it. I was hoping that Sony would just fix my 50XBR1, but in the end, I knew if I kept the old TV I would never be satisfied. I’m glad I’m getting a replacement.
February 9th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
Well, my local service provider called and my TV returns on Monday. I’ll provide another update once it gets here and I have a chance to evaluate it.
February 10th, 2007 at 2:06 pm
Hey Duane J, I talked to procurement a few weeks ago and they said I would have to call the warranty dept to talk to them about a new 1 yr man. warrant on the replacement tv (xbr2) and to give extended warrant the new serial info on the XBR2. I will call them on monday.
My XBR2 comes on monday. It’s a brand new one (replacement) from the XBR1 I purchaed in 12/05. There is no way on hell that I would accept a refurbished one.
Henry, I saw above that you purchased your XBR1 in 12/05…So did I and 9 months later like clock work, the nice yellow pee stain appeared in the top right corner and then down the side..Keep the numbers handy that Duane J gave. I also have a spiral of phone numbers and notes of everyone I have talked to and dealt with since last November and all of this started for me and here we are in February and my replacement comes on monday.
By the way, I have an XBR1 stand and an XBR2 stand (top right strip cover not assembled good, but can be Mcgyvered) up for grabs….
February 10th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
Duane J. I talked to procurement a few weeks ago and they said to deal with warranty dept to give them new serial numbers on the XBR2 when it comes. It comes monday (brand new). They also said I had to talk to warrant about a new 1 year man. warranty on it…I will call them monday and let you know what they said.
Henry, I also purchased my 60″XBR1 12/05 and it took 9 months for the yellow pee stain to appear in top right corner and then eventually down the side to the bottom right corner of the screen. Keep those phone numbers handy that Duane J. gave above. I also have a spiral of notes and phone numbers of depts. and names of who I spoke to. Looks like Duane J and I spoke to the same people.
Don’t take any refurbished tv’s people…It should not be acceptable considering the amount you paid on these tv’s….You bought your tv brand new and you should get a replacement brand new.
I know we paid 5k for our 60xbr1 with sony stand.
We are getting the 60xbr2 and stand which still we are losing a few hundred in the end.
By the way, I still have the xbr1 stand and an xbr2 stand (top right strip cover not assembled good from man.). They are both up for grabs….
February 10th, 2007 at 4:27 pm
Kimi,
I know in my case that I made it a point to ask procurement about the 1 year man. warranty, when I asked about the extended warranty, they told me that was handled by a seperate department. Something doesn’t sound right with them telling you to talk to Sony Extended Service about the manufacture warranty. They are in fact, two seperate departments. I would suggest you definitely ask procurement about it, they ensured me of a new man. warranty. Joann is the one who told me, if that helps you.
February 12th, 2007 at 8:32 am
OK, talked with tech at TV Repair Dealer. Optical Block is bad! So there you go guys, another Green Blob Incident! TV was bought May 29th 2006 and the blob was noticed in January. Technician stated that the OB was on back order and probably 3 to 4 weeks till one comes in…I told him that is why I was not happy that the in-house diagnostics as per SONY Warrenty wasn’t conducted since I would have my TV to watch till the part came in… Any ideas on what my next step should be now?
February 12th, 2007 at 9:12 am
Ron,
Call Sony again, and tell them that you are not satisifed with what is going on and that you need to have the TV replaced. Thats what I did when they told me that. Sony rep called me same day to tell me that the part is on its way to the service center. Strange?! OB was replaced on Friday and TV is looking as good as new. For Now…
February 12th, 2007 at 11:23 am
Kimi,
I appreciate the mention about your set from 12/05 – However, 12/05 was the maunufacture date, not my purchase date. I have only been “using” the set since 8/06, but if your build date was in fact 12/05 (same month you bought it?) Then i could indeed be facing the same issue shortly.
February 12th, 2007 at 6:20 pm
Thanks Masrico,
I talked with the tech this evening again and he called Sony and the person stated they had just received a shipment of OBs and the part would be shipped shortly. I am still going to call Sony in the morning and push the shipment issue. Also, I am going to get a hold of Sony Warranty and extend the current policy! I might need it after reading all of this.
February 12th, 2007 at 7:49 pm
Thanks for the intelligent input Duane J!
I also bought a KDS-R50XBBR1 and having the same problem with my screen. I had read this blog before I called Sony to complain and believe it or not they refused to acknowledge that this is a know issue with this model. I expected that from the messages I read but I still couldn’t believe it. Tomorrow I am going to call the Procurement department and see if I get the run around. Hope the information I copied from Duane J helps me out. Thanks Duane for the information and effort you’ve taken to help all of us out.
February 12th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
For those of you who may stumble on this problem after your manufacturer warranties are out, you may want to look into seeing whether your credit card offers any protection (i.e. doubling the warranty). I’m not sure what the limits are, but I do know that most “platinum” cards offer this type of service, usually as part of your deal, but most people don’t even know about it. Again, I make no guarantee that you do, or that it will even work, but maybe it will for someone. I know I’m looking into mine right now.
February 12th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
Here is something from consumer reports about this:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/shopping/2006/12/protection_on_t.html
February 13th, 2007 at 12:53 am
I almost hate to post because it sounds like I’m rubbing things in, but maybe this will give you hope.
I noticed the green blob, looked on CNET and was eventually directed here. Then I was horrified on what I’d have to go through.
I tried Sony online chat help…was no help. Tried filling out the online form… got nothing.
So I decided to call the Best Buy number, they said they’d take care of everything (still under manufacturer warranty by 1 week, and I did buy the extended Best Buy warranty). Sony called the next day, offering service for the following day. I actually had to put them off a few days for my schedule.
Sony showed up three days later with the new OE (new model number) and had it replaced in less than an hour. TV looks great now.
My advice- try going through the store you bought it from. Good luck to all!!!
February 13th, 2007 at 6:43 am
I have the Grand Wega KDF55WF655 and have a bright blue spot with blue blob (or a progressive blue pooling). I have not any success with Sony at all. I do have an Event log, but when I try to contact someone else there, they read my information and say that I have already spoken to someone and was TOLD there was nothing more they could do for me. From other forums it seems that this model goes just after two years. Yet, for the price it should not occur.
I was originally told by Sony that I had to have a certified Sony repair person come out and give an estimate, and that they would “probably” work with me if it was the optical engine. I paid the “extra” $$ and got them their estimate. After calling them and telling them that it was the optical engine they stated that the tv was too far over the warranty, they knew the age of it during the original phone call. Now, I just get the same wooden, robot like response.
I do not understand why they are covering etching, green blob and yellow blobs but are not covering the blue blobs in this model. Obviously, there is HUGE problem with their optical engines in several different models.
If anyone has success with getting help on the blue pooling I would appreciate any advice. Thanks
February 14th, 2007 at 5:42 am
After many calls to different Sony Departments (over 3 months), I was told that I needed a Sony Tech to look an my XBR1 and get back to them. I called several Sony Techs in the Washington DC area but none came to Waldorf, MD. Called Sony and they said to call Sears and get a Sony Tech. Well the Sears man came and told me I needed a OB and it would cost $1900. He explained the Sears 1 year warranty to me. It sounded like Sony knew that most people would take the Sears warranty and that would get them off their back. I took the Sears warranty, I will need to calls Sears back in 60 days and get a $1900 OB that cost me $650 for the year warranty. Hope I did the right thing, but was fed up talking to Sony.
Hope the best for all of you and that Sony some day gets shafted for all the troubles they have caused everyone.
Sony Tech said that he is replaceing OB’s in others TV’s, so guess you may hear about those in the future.
February 15th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
Well – let me relate my Sony KDs-XBR1 60 ” experience – after much research on cnet and other sites I purchased it on 1/14/06 – I do remember tv getting the best ratings and it looked like the best in all stores I checked – but I do remember a warning on one web site about it being new technology and no one knowing how long it would last. I passed up extended warranty thinking tv’s never break and the extended warranty being a ripoff and the only source of profit for the big stores etc.
Anyway about a month ago being bored I went back to some sites to check out some new models and to look at the old ratings where I was stunned when I saw all the one’s and two’s – as read about the problem I suddenely realized that I also had the green/yellow spot mostly on the right side of the screeen though I barely noticed it before I read the posts.
Unfortunately I was now 8 days out of warranty – I called Sony and they were actually nice saying that I had to have the tv diagnosed before they could do anything. I received a commitment from them that if it was the usual suspect – optical engine they would pick up all parts and labor but not the $50 initial service call fee. I said fine – they came and looked at the tv a week later and then ordered part. Today about 2 1/2 weeks later they installed it in my house took about 40 minutes. So far so good but I guess the question is how long will it last and hopefully even if it decays it wont be worse than it previously was.
I give some credit to Sony for being responsive and treating me well. I think the big problem with all these hi-def expensive tv’s is the lenght of the warranty. I bought several $500 computer monitors 20″ LCD from Dell and Samsung ( and replaced 2 under waranty already) and they have 3 year warranties. It seems to me the days of 1 year warranties on tv’s and other expensive electronics needs to end. And we shouldn’t have to buy extended warranties from the retailers.
As others have said it is a great picture – hope it stays that way.
February 16th, 2007 at 7:07 am
Not sure if what I have to tell has been said before but it is interesting. I had a large yellow donut blob in the middle of my SDR-R50XBR1 develop over the last month of warranty period. Luckily I was able to get to Sony before my 1 year warranty expired. The tech was out yesterday to replace the optical block. Upon first turn on after completing the replacement the whole bottom of the screen was tinged red with slight blue above that. I complained to the technician who showed me a Sony service bulletin that stated this problem (blobs) was within the normal operating specifications of the TV as long as it went away within the first 30 minutes. Well after several hours the blob had not gone away so I guess this replacement optical block is out of Sony’s spec and they will hopefully replace it. The question I have…is what did Sony really replace my original optical block with? It would appear that it was a refurbished optical block from someone else’s failed machine. I know this is speculation but I was surprised after hearing of the long wait for a replacement optical block that my replacement was available so quickly. And secondly how can Sony make a specification (probably after the fact) that basically says you must watch the first 30 minutes of your programming in “sonycolor”. Tell that to my wife who really loves those old black and white movies.
February 16th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
J,
Don’t believe what they tell you. It does appear to be worse upon startup, but what we’ve all seen does not go away after any period of time. Read all the posts prior to this and it will set you straight. Keep calling Sony, You need to get a replacement set. If you make it that far, do not accept a refurbished TV.
February 16th, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Follow up to original post above. KDS 60, mfg Dec 2005. Green blob 3 weeks before 1 yr mfg was up. Tech installed new part after 2weeks on order. Looks like new but holding my breath. The tech has installed several optical units now. He does not have a lot of faith in the replacements though…time will tell.
February 16th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Well, after the service company totally skipping me on their first delivery attempt, they managed to deliver my TV tonight around 9:30 PM. Nevermind they told me between 12-4 PM. At least the damned thing is back in my living room.
As for the picture, so far it looks great. Although, I plan to evaluate for a day or two before rendering final judgement. In any event, even if it looks good, how long will it last? I still have over 2 years left on my extended warranty. At least there’s that.
February 16th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
Just found this site and it is very helpful. I have a couple of questions. I bought a KDSR50XBR1 back in late April and have loved the picture. Ijust noticed a very faint green areen in the lower right corner. The problem is it is not there always, but can be seen sometimes even if the TV has been on for a while. Judging from this forum, it WILL get worse. As my warranty expires in April, should I call Sony now? If they do fix the problem, it will be difficult for me to know if it is even fixed. I did purchase the extended 4 year warranty from Circuit City and am wondering if I should ride it out until it is too bad and let that warranty kick in? I was probably going to wait until March and get Sony involved then. Another question, I don’t think I registered the set with Sony but have all receipts. Does that matter with the warranty?
Thanks for any info.
February 17th, 2007 at 9:09 am
I have a KDF-42WE655 and like Mary in Detroit after 18 months I got the blue blobs. Mary says, “I do not understand why they are covering etching, green blob and yellow blobs but are not covering the blue blobs in this model.”
Since Sony has yet to answer this question, the obvious and logical answer is that they are trying to mitigate the recompense for what looks to be a huge batch of defective optical blocks.
It’s like Ford recalling defective alternators and only replacing the ones that burn out the dash lights and not the brake lights. I’d sure like to see that service bulletin J Brinson mentioned.
February 17th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
Unfortunately, I had to call Sony to report the Green Haze problem with my KDS-R60XBR1 this morning. I bought it in April 2006 and the I noticed the green discoloration on the screen a few months ago. It started out and the lower corners of the screen. I thought it was caused by the speakers that were near the TV so I moved it away. I didn’t pay too much attention to it. But lately I noticed the the whole screen started turning green. It got better when I switched to Vivid option but it didn’t go away. So I went to google and typed in SXRD Green and came across this site.
Thanks to the info posted on this site, I was prepared when I called Sony and the repair shop. When I talked with Sony CS, she was very professional but completely devoid of any emotion, like talking to a computer. She had me unplugged the TV for 5 minutes and had me play a DVD. But the screen was still green. She then proceeded to give me phone numbers to the repair shops near me. I asked her for the event number and she acted like she didn’t know what I was talking about. When I persisted, she said “Ah, the reference number!” and gave me a number that started E334…….. is this the right number that others posted in the forum?
Anyway, I called Magnolia Hi-Fi, the place that I bought my TV from, to hedge my bet. Magnolia recommended a repair shop who also happened to be Sony’s authorized repair shop. Called them, spoke with the owner, described the symptoms and immediately the guy says that I need the Optical Block. I asked him if he was going to order the newer part A1168495A. He said that I was very well informed (thanks to this site). He said he was going to call Sony to order the part. In about an hour, he called me back and told me the part in back-ordered and won’t be available until 4/3/07. It sounded like he wanted to pick up my TV to repair it. He offered to give me a loaner TV while the TV was out for repairs.
Does anyone have any experience with Magnolia Hi-Fi in dealing with this issue? Does anyone have any experience dealing with George Meyer TV & Stereo (the repair shop)?
Thanks.
February 17th, 2007 at 4:59 pm
Duane why are you lying to everyone about the deal you cut with Sony? You know darn well you did not get a 1 year warranty through negotiations, if you pay for any exchnge you automatically get a new warranty. i dealt with them on excchanges before. they were professional understanding and very informative. come on give credit man
February 17th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
Barbara,
Who are you to call me a liar? Why don’t you ask everyone else on this site how professional and understanding Sony has been to them? What possible reason would I have to lie about anything to anyone. Each person in the Procurement department had different things to say when they offered my exchange. Every person that I dealt with contradicted what one another said. The bottom line is, when you get passed on to Procurement they have certain guidelines they have to abide by, the number one objective is to not lose any money, or as little as possible. It’s not their business to volunteer any information, unfortunately you have to ask all of theses questions before you accept the offer, Sony looks at it as a contract once you accept. Why don’t you invest more time in reading all the previous posts, or question people like Kelly P., or Kimi, who have also made it this far, and had to ask about the warranty. Kimi was mislead and told that she had to talk to Sony Extended Service about her manufacturer warranty. Is she a liar too? Incase you haven’t noticed, my dispute has been settled, but I still care enough to check this site to try to help as many people as possible. Like I said, I do not have any reason to get on here and lie about anything. By the way, I never said I had to negotiate the 1 year man. warranty, I just made sure to ask about it before I accepted the offer. This site wasn’t created for Sony humpers. You’re obviously on here for the same reason as us. You got screwed, and if you didn’t, kindly click away.
February 17th, 2007 at 8:52 pm
I just got my TV back from the repair dealer today. It is not the picture quality that it was prior to the green blob. I have the 50″ XBR1 that was 7 months old when the green showed up. The blacks are grayer after the repair. The set has to be set to Vivid now to get almost the same quality as the prior repair “Pro” setting. I just got the repair ticket and I had told the repair dealer to get the updated OB and Sony sent the A-1148115-A OB instead of the updated A-1168495-A OB. So now, I call Sony and complain about the quality of the picture which I would have not bought this Sony TV if the picture would have been the present quality. Any suggestions?
February 17th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
I also would like to be included in the lawsuit.
February 18th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
Hey Folks, I don’t know if this has been suggested yet, but I thinks it’s time we kick this up a notch. I don’t know if this will do any good or not, but I believe that the failure rate of these TVs is a lot higher than anyone realizes. I’m betting that many who have bought these TVs in the last 18 months or so, don’t even realize that the green blob or the yellow pee stain has started and will likely get worse in the very near future. Most of us probably live in or near a big city that has a local TV station with a “consumer” reporter. Here in Cincinnati we have several. I suggest we all send our stories to these guys and spread the word as much as possible. Most of these guys love to take on the big ones (e.g.Sony). I intend to send mine to John Materese at WCPO in Cincinnati. I will tell him that the best way to determine that one of these Sony models has a “pee stain” problem, like mine, is to go into the video menu and turn the color completely down to 0. I thought I just had the “pee stain” in the lower right corner, but turning the color off, I can see that most of the right half of the screen has a faint yellow haze, with a heavier concentration in the corner. I’m betting that if the thousands of unsuspecting SXRD (et al) owners out there do this test, then the number of complaints will grow exponentially. I believe consumer advocates would get behind this and get the word out. How do we know that the failure rate won’t eventually be 100%? I bought this TV knowing I would have to replace a $250 bulb every 3 to 5 years. But no one told me I’d have to replace a $1900 optical block every 1 to 2 years. This just isn’t right, and we need to do more than just vent our frustrations in a blog and/or to Sony.
February 18th, 2007 at 10:40 pm
I’ve owned a KDSR50XBR1 for about 8 months now. I’ve been pleased with it thus far (except you can’t turn on surround sound and TV speakers at the same time). Recently I’ve started to notice a green spot in the corner of my screen. I decided to do a search online. Low and behold I find this… I thought I made an informed decision when I bought this TV… It appears I was lied to. This HDTV is not what was promised when it was sold to me. I feel insulted and taken advantage of. I hope that everyone that has been a victum of this poor craftsmanship recieves restitution. I plan on contacting my local TV reporter as well.
February 19th, 2007 at 7:10 am
Hey Bob,
I am in Cincinnati as well, and i have nad my TV’s Optical Block exchanged once so far. Let me know when you contact John Materese. I would like to see if he does actually respond to this situation.
Thanks and good Luck,
February 19th, 2007 at 8:22 am
Masrico, can I ask who did you have exchange your optical block? And is the new one better?
February 19th, 2007 at 9:34 am
i have a yellow line down the right of my screen and we went through the son troubleshooting to no avail. i called sony and they directed me to a local center but they can’t come to check it out for 2 weeks.
February 19th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Bob,
I had electrasound service my Tv, 1-800-252-4200. They are pretty responsive and they did a good job. The yellow tint is gone now. However, i kinda see a purpulish tint for white colors, not sure if i need to play around with the colors/contrast or am i just paranoid?! I will give it some time and see.
hope this helps,
February 19th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
to all interested, i bought my KDS-R50XRB1, nov of 2005, made on oct 2005, istarted having the greenblob problem in aug. of 2006 it kept getting worse, by dec of 2006 i couldnt watch it any longer. called sony and just happened to be out of warranty, and i did not purchase the extended warranty. sony gave me alist of auturized repairman, naturally i was out of there service area, had to haul it 75 miles, and leave it. they called two days later and said my optical board had to be relaced at the tune 1400 dollars. i paid 3500 dollars for the set,and i wasnt going to throw it away. so i said go ahead and fix it. i called sony again and told them wat took place, well after two days of bikkereing they said they would pay 75%, and i took that and felt like i won something. just wanted you all to know what took place. dont give up there is help just persist. wayne
February 19th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
I want to confirm the accuracy of the information in Duane J’s 2/7 post. I just used it as a guide to find my way to procurement and negotiate a new 60XBR2 to replace my 50XBR1 that had a 2nd bad light engine. (I willingly paid a difference amount.) Joann was surprised to learn that she and her colleagues were listed on the web.
One other note. I encountered a SONY person a level after Velma but before I got to Joann. Not sure if she was high level Customer Relations or Low level procurement but she was insistent that I needed to endure a 2nd OE block replacement “because those are the conditions of your warranty.” She gave zero indication that there was another available step. Her job was stonewalling. When for the 5th time, I told her her soluton was unacceptable, I asked to speak to her supervisor. Those were the magic words. She immediately agreed to pass on my file and Joann called me the next to dicuss TV replacement options.
February 19th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Purchased my set 9-13-06 which had a build date of Nov 2005. 12-20-06 green began in the center top of the screen. By 2-19-07 had a green across the top of screen and down the right side of screen about 6 inches from the edge. Haze in the upper middle of screen. I called Sony, advised I had the KDSR60XBR1, the one with the Optical Block problem. I said I am having the green haze and green lines which are consistent with the Optical Block problem. Tech support tried top repair the problem by having me go into menu, turn it on pro, then adjust a color light setting you can only access from the pro section. I said still there after the fix. She then had me unplug the set, wait two minutes and plug it back in. I said green haze still there. She gave me an Event number and told me to call a repair service 42 miles away. That it would be repaired for free.
Called the repair and requested the newer optical block giving the newer part number. They knew of the old and new optical block. I said while it is on order for 4 to 6 weeks, I would like to keep the set. Repair said they were unsure because they have to first identify the problem which requires they see the set. I suggested order the new Optical block and bring it with when they look at the set. She said didn’t know if they could do that after all the Optical Block is $1000.00. Then she said they have to have a copy of my receipt, event number, serial number of the set and then they can call Sony and ask if it is OK to look at the set. All this under the first year warranty. Now with in two days of my original purchase I did buy a five year warranty through Sony style. I figured if I have to go through Sony procurement, that it was better to go under the first year Sony warranty and under the first year rules rather then go through the third party for Sony Style named Service Net Solutions. If working under the first year warranty doesn’t work I always have the 5 year as a back up. I am now waiting for a call from the authorized TV shop Sony uses to see if they want to drive 42 miles, look at the set, order the part, drive back and replace the part or if they want to hold my set for 40 days till the part comes in. If I had the Sony 50″ I would be glad to pay a few hundred more and get the 60″ XBR2. But I already have the 60″ and there is a real big jump between the 60″ and 70″. It sounds as if I am going to have to get the optical block replaced several times before I will be given an option of trading into the XBR2 though. I have to say, for a problem Sony has known about for several years, they sure are not very accommodating. There service centers know this problem so well that they should simply come out and replace the optical block or at least carry it with when they check the set for the first time.
February 19th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Mark X,
I hope that the info I gave was of some use to you. Most of us that have been battling with Sony since early on had to endure all the inconveniences of getting the OB replaced three times before replacement of the TV. I’m glad to see that you don’t have to wait to get your replacement, I still think that Sony should replace a 50XBR1 with a 60XBR2 at no price, it’s not our fault that they don’t make a 50″ anymore. As you might have seen, I took the 60A2000, I wanted to get the most out of my exchange with paying the least.
February 19th, 2007 at 8:51 pm
has anyone had any success getting their ob replaced? all i hear is horror story after horror story about getting 2, 3, even 4+ OBs replaced….and even then people complain of a softer/less sharp picture!
i am picking mine up tomorrow from the repair place and cancelling my service request until/unless it gets a lot worse….right now i can deal with it as it is only a faint yellow stain along the side of my TV.
I’d rather have excellent PQ with a little haze than to go through this ordeal….I hope everyone gets their problem solved…this may very well be the last sony tv i ever buy!
February 19th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
Greetings. I was one of the first to buy the -60XBR1. I was in Tweeter looking for a new big screen, when I was advised that the new Sony RP tv’s were coming in “next week”. I waited and was blown away. I picked it up 10/05(the first one out of that store) for $4,500. Of course I opted out of the EW, cuz from past experience- they are a waste of money……. anyway, 14 months later (Dec ‘06) the green blob appeared from top to bottom, middle 12″ of screen.
This blog has been extremely helpful with information to help me resolve the problem. I will be contacting Sony soon.
My question to others is, my tv is on 13 hrs a day, 7 days a week (wife/2 young kids) and I only have relatively minor greening compare to what others describe. It only seems to be visible on SD programs and/or light scenes (incl. mem. stick screen). HD/ DVD programs do not seem to be affected. Considering the age and amount of hours on this Tv, do you think the blob will get worse? I would hate to get a replacement OB and have it become worse as others have reported.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Kevin
February 19th, 2007 at 11:33 pm
Oh, and the blob does NOt appear to be getting worse, but in fact staying the same.
February 20th, 2007 at 8:13 am
I called Sony Exchange and they told me they can do nothing till they obtain authorization from Sony for procurement to make the replacement. I called Sony customer relations and spoke with Shauntel. I offered additional money to make the upgrade from my XBR 60″ to the XBR2 60″. Shauntel said that Sony is not permitting any such up grade. That the people on the INTERNET are not being truthful. That those on the INTERNET who received authorization received authorization only after there local service center decided the set could not be repaired. I stated that the set can always be repaired with a new optical block all though it may be 4 or 5 blocks replaced. Shauntel said that until the local service center speaks with the Sony Technical assist line. “No” set can be referred to procurement for an upgrade. The people assigned to your set in your area has got to make that decision alone before anything can happen. Shauntel said people on the net are not policed and can write anything they want. I said I just do not think they are lying, they have no reason to do so. Shauntel said she doesn’t know why they would say that. That they work all day with these issues and it is just not true. I guess Sony would like people to know that they not only resist the repairs but also think there customers lie on INTERNET forums. I explained to the lady they it would make life a lot easier for both me and Sony to simply upgrade for a fee rather then go down a road fraught with repair and argument. Sony however prefers the latter.
February 20th, 2007 at 10:24 am
Masrico,
You must live on the north side of Cincinnati. I called TV Electronics in Westwood. That was the closest authorized Sony repair to my house. They knew exactly what I was talking about when I told them the problem. They said they didn’t need to look at the TV and would go ahead and order the OB (P/N A-1168495-A), and they will call me when it comes in. Asked them if it was still on back order and she said she would call and let me know. That was just yesterday. I also sent my story to John Materese, WCPO Consumer Reporter, along with these web links. It’s still early for me, so I’ll keep you updated. I hope others around the country are sending their stories to their local TV consumer advocate. I still think the failure rate on these things will be closer to 100% once a little more time passes and people become more aware of what to look for.
February 20th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
Gene,
I read your comment and I have to point something out. The info I provided was for reference only. Keep in mind that my process took 9 months from start to finish. Sony is telling you the truth about the local repair company having to give there recomendation. My TV is on it’s third OB, and was pending a fourth, until I finally received authorization to replace. According to Sony, the TV has to be repaired three times for the same issue, before an exchange can be authorized. I’ve already seen that a few people are calling straight to the procurement department and demanding an exchange before it’s even serviced. I don’t think anyone here is giving misleading information, the other newcomers to this website have to realize that there is a process involved here. I personally made 21 calls to Sony to get my issue resolved, I kept track, wrote down who I talked to, when I talked to them, and what was discussed. I’ve been lied too, and passed off, anything to get me off the phone. I read some of the comments that Kelly P had posted earlier, and I called back, remained calm, and let the process run it’s course. She was exaclty right every step of the way. I’m not telling anybody what to do, if they want to skip steps and try getting an exchange right away, just be warned, because I tried too, unsuccessfully. The best advice I can give anbody, and I know it stinks, but you have to be patient, and play the game. As of now my issue has been resolved, and I’m awaiting shipment on my new TV, best of luck to you, and keep checking this site for updates, the lucky few of us are still posting here trying to help others.
February 20th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Gene,
I also agree with your last comment, 100%. I would much rather just have it replaced than keep taking time off work for the useless repair attempts.
February 20th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Play the game is what sucks. They know they have the problem and they would rather pay repair to drive 42 miles for me how ever many times, put new OB in how many times then maybe offer me an exchange that I proposed at the beginning. Wasted time and money for both. But seeing they want to play the game, I can be a player just like anyone else. It is after all there money and I am retired so I have the time to play. My extended warranty expires in 2011 and I am 6 months in my first year of the manufacturer’s warranty. The local service person told me before making an appointment, that OB is $1000 and that is why we don’t stock them. If Sony wants to have 3 or 4 replacements, no one should be concerned of the cost then as in my case, Sony will spend out more doing it this proteracted way before this is finally corrected perminantly. Oh, yes, I will also be nice as wel go along. I really do not have a choice but to play the game so why not be accomidating. I have no problem there either. Just a poor choice on there part.
February 21st, 2007 at 7:50 am
Hey Duane, thanks for standing up for me to Barb. It’s been a while since I’ve sent a new post. I finally received my XBR2 and so far so good. No complaints here yet. I say “yet” because I’m paranoid. But like you, I’ve been through the whole process and received my swap out to an XBR2, but come back to this blog because I care about others and want to help. As far as warranty goes, my extended warranty transferred over of course. As far as getting an 1 year man. warranty on the XBR2, they only gave me 90 days coverage for that. I actually got a really nice person in extended warranty dept. who called service for me and got the 90days man. warranty on the swap out and then the extended warranty picks up from there…I’m so tired of dealing with all of this. It’s really draining. If I were anyone of you still going thru this, deal with procurement only. Forget service, it takes forever. You get the run around and before you know it several months will go by. Sony know about the OB and they don’t admit to it. They want to send service techs out to diagnose what they already know….
February 21st, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Not sure I understand the power of Class Action Lawsuit. Would seem to me it who hit Sony harder and maybe then they would get the point if everyone who has experienced this problem would file their own independent lawsuit in small claims court. Can you imagine the legal cost and logistics nightmare it would be for Sony if thousands of these small claims were filed. Yeah I know it would not resolve fixing my Tv (most likely) but as a last resort it just might feel good to get in the last punch.
February 21st, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Gene,
Ditto what Duane said about it being a process. I didn’t write my whole story but that doesn’t mean I’m one of Shautel’s liars. I did have an authorized servicer replace the first OB and diagnose the 2nd problem. The approach I used with success to avoid being forced to do a 2nd OB replacement was this. I maintained that it was not a true fix, based on experience with the first OB replacement. I asked for assurances that the 2nd OB replacement part would last x numbers of months or years. None given and I hammered them for that. I asked for the the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) of the new part. (Every Electronic Engineer of a part or component knows how long on average it’s supposed to last.) They didn’t know and I hammered them again. The fact that they DIDN’T know, meant the 2nd OB replacement part was no better than the first. If they had in fact engineered a replacement OB with a longer life, all their folks would know it and be telling us that. Good Luck!
February 21st, 2007 at 3:04 pm
Mark X,
I guesss you sum up pretty well the reasons I wanted to simply bypass these repair issues as they really know the new part will not last any longer then the first. Frankly I don’t need the headache and Sony should not want to bear the expense of several repairs labor and costs. But that is something which needs to be brought up before the stock holders meeting. I offered to bail them out of the extra costs andf bail myself out of the headaches of months of calls and poor television viewing and they turned me down opting rather to bear a higher expense. Doesn’t make good business sense but producing a part which doesn’t operate doesn’t make much business sense either. If it is hoops I have to jump through for prosperity, then I guess I will jump but at least I tried an easier and less expensive way for both myself and them in the beginning.
February 21st, 2007 at 4:44 pm
Gene and Duane, just as an fyi, I tried the service on the OB once and never got it replaced. When I called Sony back to find out why the service people they told me to use was not responding (after repeated calls to the service company), they immediately sent me to procurement. No questions asked. They probably saw the amount of times I called, etc…I never got my OB replaced at all. That’s why it sounds so fishy to me that some of the agents that we talked to at Sony repairs acted like it was not a common phone call regarding the problems with the tv..Anyways, I’ll continue to post here to try to help others and give advice.
February 21st, 2007 at 6:06 pm
Kimi,
Anytime. I have no idea why some of these people are getting on here and calling us liars. There is the possibilty that they’re Sony employees and they’re pissed because we’re making their jobs more difficult to lie to customers. Which I would totally believe. I’m willing to bet a lot of the agents are looking at this right now. Let the truth be known! I don’t think that anybody’s experience is going to be exactly the same with Sony, it just depends on how knowledgeable we are of the system, and how to play the game. I’d like to know, what ever happened to the customer is always right ideal? I worked Retail for 7 years and had to deal with anybody and everybody, and always give them what they wanted. It’s just another example of Sony thinking that their S@#* doesn’t stink. I think that’s fantastic that you got a replacement without all the extra bull. I want repairation for all the days I took off of work, all the pain and suffering, and added stress that I endured throughout this process. I wonder if I can sue them for high blood pressure and weight gain from all the stress. Too bad Johnny Cochrane’s dead, or maybe he’s the reason Sony is getting away with murder. Hmmm? Maybe Sony will write a book soon, entitled; “if I DID IT”
February 21st, 2007 at 8:19 pm
5th day watching replaced OB and the picture seems to still have more of a gray fog or the colors just dont stay the same from scene to scene. Is this the HD DISH programs or something to do with the OB????
I have manually adjusted the colors on PRO setting more times than I ever did with the origianl OB. Posted earlier, they replaced my origianl OB with the same part instead of update anyhow I told them about the new part…but then, this OB should go out just as fast so I can get on the 2nd fix.
Now what is going to be something to see how SONY handles the set after this fix…I only paid $2699 for my SRX50XBR1 through CC on a speical opening sale. I wonder is CC knew about the Green BLOG and put the sets they had remaining on sale to get the problem to SONY?? Anyh, two repairs will exceed the cost of my purschase price…NOW, Sony Extended warranty states replacement after 3 occurance of the same part…TO me Sony would want to exchange the TV prior to 3rd OB change out.
I know I built my home with an in wall location for my XBR1. Now, upgrading to another unit might not work so easy in my wall cavity…I look at like this…I purchased the set because of the picture quality, I am a long time purchaser of SONY products….over 35 years now….to play games when you know there is a problem with the product is not good business.
February 22nd, 2007 at 10:24 am
I have the Sony KDS-R50XBR1 which was purchased at Sears in November 2005 and has a build date of Oct. 2005.This was a Christmas gift for my family and was not used untill Dec.26th. We did not purchase the extended warranty. Now I have the same Greenish/Yellow haze on my screen and factory warranty is out.From what I have read this is a problem that many others have.Called Sony to ask about this problem and they act as if this is 1st time they have heard of this.They told me to call Sears Service to have it fixed and that I would have to pay for repair due to factory warranty expireing 2 mounths ago.From what I saw the repair will probably cost over $1000 and I will have to get it repaired again in about another year.Its a shame you spend $3600 on TV that has a life span of about 1 year.I will also add my name to the class action lawsuit and hope for the best!
February 22nd, 2007 at 11:46 am
Just so all of you will know…. I’m the fool who kept talking to Duane J about how great the “New Sonys” picture looked. Well…Duane went and bought it before I did. Sorry Buddy…But I did get a 50″A2000(only because they were out of the XBR1’s). I just now joined this site because of reading some fairly “Dim-witted” responses on this subject. The ordeal Sony is putting you all through, in my opinion, is despicable and a desperate attempt to derail and delay action on all the problems they’re having. If they would’ve done their homework, put out a quality product, and not been in a race to “appear” to be….”THE ONE AND ONLY”….then, maybe we’d all be watching MORE T.V., seeing more Sony commercials, and believing their propaganda. Hey, maybe they finally screwed the pooch.
We’re all here finding out how Sony’s “Customer Service” hurts “In the End”. Sadly though…Sony isn’t the first manufacturer to know how much crap that people will put up with, and maybe never do anything about it. Good luck to all…Duane, call me when you’re new set arrives !
February 22nd, 2007 at 1:40 pm
Have early build 60″ purchased in Sept 05. First OB replaced in May of 06. Was fine until recently……green straking in bottom right corner is back. I do not have EW. Contacted Sony today and was told to have servce company come out for estimnate and then contact them for resolution.. What are folks without EW finding for “resolution”?
February 22nd, 2007 at 6:42 pm
Au’rai!!! I had a 50″ xbr1 purchased in Nov ‘05 and noticed green discoloration in Nov ‘06. Thanks to this sight, I pursued this issue with my retailer – Magnolia Hi-fi – in Jan 07. After two optical block replacements, I’m getting a full credit.
I’m very fortunate that I purchased a 4 year extended warranty ($400) thru Magnolia Hi-fi. They contacted Sony for me and got the return authorized. Throughout this ordeal my tv was in their shop but I was loaned a 50″ Samsung DLP. I originally paid $3849 for my tv and $470 for the matching stand back in ‘05. Thanks to technology the prices of tvs have dropped. I’m looking to get the 60″xbr2 or maybe switch technologies and pay some $$$ towards a 52″ xbr2 lcd. I’m glad that I didn’t have to deal with Sony customer service personally. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences on this site and good luck to those who are still pursuing this issue.
February 25th, 2007 at 10:35 am
Here’s some more news to think about. Best Buy is clearancing out all of there A2000 Sxrd’s. They say that the sale is limited to stock on hand and that’s it. There’s a pretty good clue that Sony and BestBuy and I’m sure every other store selling these defective pieces of junk are well aware of the problem and know that it can not be fixed. I just hope mine goes out again before the bulb goes out so that I will not be tempted to dump any more money into this P.O.S. Count me as one of the people that will never buy anything made by Sony again.
February 25th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
Ron that is certainly incriminating, I bet the repairs were outpacing the sales/profit margins on the sets.
Which best buy told you this? (what area are you in?)
February 25th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Ron and Riyad,
Sony has just released new A2020 models, that’s why A2000s are being clearanced. Get on sonystyle.com and check them out. They start shipping on March 15th. The only difference I saw was memorystick added, it’s all black, and it has component inputs in front.
February 25th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
A2020s are also cheaper.
February 25th, 2007 at 5:17 pm
Ahhh, thanks for the heads up Duane.
February 26th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
I would still like to know if this issue is “guaranteed” to occur. Has anyone heard from consumers that, during regular of heavy use did NOT have a OB failure? I ask because my set has NOT shown symptoms yet, and I do not want to assume it won’t happen to me as well. If this is a design flaw we will all eventually succumb won’t we? It seems like 9 months at 4-8hrs a day is the trigger point, yet repaired/replaced OB’s seem to go faster, no? Has there been any progress with the suit? Will the suit, if successful, benefit owners regardless of whether their set goes/went bad?
February 26th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
I bought a xbr1 50″ just in time for the super bowl last year 06, then about a week before the super bowl this year I saw the middle of the screen look green when I was in the menu or there was a white back ground. I thought it was the bulb so I replace that worthless 250 dollar part that did not help and buy the time I received that part and called Sony to tell them my problem it was too late my warranty had expired. I need help… how can I get them to fix my TV?
February 26th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
It seems my local repair has a OB in stock. They have arranged to pick up the 60″ XBR1 and replace the OB. I asked if they had heard of these OB’s going out after being replaced and she said no. I asked you know this is a problem with this model set and she said no. I made sure to say that I offered Sony to pay a little more to get a replacement to the XBR2 for a little extra money. She said lets put this OB in and then if it occurs again, they can consider this. A week ago when I first contacted the repair they told me that it usually takes a month and a half to get the OB’s in. Last week they also knew about the old part number and the new part number. So they know full well of the repeated problems even though they said they never heard of a repeat problem. I would have liked to tell them to hold there nose because it was growing. After we hung up I called Sony again and made the same offer again. That instead of continually replacing the OB at Sony’s expense, that I would pay a bit more and get an XBR2. Sony said if the local repair shop next time says an exchange to XBR2 should occur, then it would. Dishonesty is never a good policy in my book and when people are not truthful, it makes me all the more suspicious. The set should be in repair for about 5 days.
February 26th, 2007 at 4:45 pm
I just had my repair shop replace my OB and luckily my TV looks like the day I bought it. One funny thing is that the part # for the OB is A-1168-494-A. My repair shop came through and replaced my OB within 8 days. If you are in Los Angeles area, give George Meyer TV & Stereo a call for your repair (they are also Sony authorized repair shop.)
I will be crossing my fingers that I don’t see any more green haze. If it happens again, I am going after Sony or Magnolia Hi-Fi, I don’t care who, to replace my TV for a XBR2.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:07 pm
Update:
After NINE MONTHS, finally I have a new TV! Unfortunately, I’m 700 miles away right now, but my wife sent pictures to my phone. I still can’t help but have the feeling that this one will fail too, but I think I’ll have a leg to stand on in getting my money back if this one fails. I’ll keep everyone updated on Picture Quality and Color, as time goes on. For reference; I exchanged the KDS-R50XBR1 for a KDS-60A2000. Good luck everyone.
February 27th, 2007 at 6:07 pm
Has anyone exchanged a KDS-R60XBR1 for a KDS-R60XBR2. If so how did they calculate the difference in price. How much more did you have to pay. The reason for asking is that I can see people are going from the 50″ to the 60″ and paying the difference but are also ugrading in screen size in addition to the XBR1 to XBR2.
February 27th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Gene,
I wanted the 60XBR2 but they wanted $500 automatically for shipping, and the difference of what I paid for 50XBR1, $3150 to the $3799 from Sony. I did the math and thought, no way! Sony told me they charge $500 for any upgrade, they said it’s for shipping, but I thought that was bull. Needless to say I got the 60A2000. I think Kimi got the 60XBR2, but I don’t know if she exchanged a 60XBR1 or a 50XBR1. Either way, I refused to pay them anymore money.
February 28th, 2007 at 5:12 am
Duane,
Good to hear, too bad you can’t see 700 miles. How ’bout I go check it for ya. If it’s any(more of a consolation) to you, I still don’t really think I have a blob issue…now that I cleaned my screen. It was dirtiest in the lower corners, and upper right. Only time will tell. Has anyone here had or heard of the A2000’s having the “blobs” ? Anyway…I’m real happy for you, and everyone keep up the good work, and keep pluggin’ along for your “replacements”.
February 28th, 2007 at 7:33 am
There is a person reporting in the AVS forum of an A2000 with the blob that he has seen. You can view it here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=584936&page=542&pp=30
February 28th, 2007 at 9:15 am
Gene, I had my xbr1 switched out for the xbr2. I actually lost money on this deal. Originally, I bought the xbr1 in 12/05 for $4500. The xbr1 stand for $500. When I got the xbr1 switched out for the xbr2, the cost of the xbr2 is $3799 on sonystyle.com and the stand is $599. I actually lost about $600.00, but I can deal with it because I didn’t have to put money out of pocket. So far, the xbr2 is awesome, but I’m completely paranoid and constantly looking for a “pee-stain” or “green-vision”. I’m crossing my fingers. My whole dilemma took about 4 months. I never had a chance to have the OB replaced. I’m glad I didn’t just knowing from others on here that they had their OB replaced several times.
February 28th, 2007 at 9:16 am
Gene, forgot to mention. I had the 60xbr1 swapped out for the 60xbr2. No refurbishments on the 60xbr1 was acceptable. They tried to offer that and I said “hell no”.
March 1st, 2007 at 1:27 pm
My R60XBR2 was delivered yesterday. Man that SOB is big! Nice to know the process works. Like everyone else, I’ll be watching things carefully and won’t be comfortable until I pass the 9 month mark.
March 1st, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Mark,
Glad to hear it. You and others that have gotten replacements represent hope to the rest of the folks just starting in on this process, finding this thread, or wallowing in misery as they realize their $4000 TV just crapped out.
March 1st, 2007 at 4:39 pm
Congrats Mark!!!!!! Join our club…
March 3rd, 2007 at 3:26 pm
A week or so ago my 60 inch xbr1 developed a lime green/yellow line on the right side which has now grown into a line with jagged flares. I also have an overall yellow tinting on the entire screen. My set was bought in Nov. of 2005 and up to this point had an outstanding picture. Thinking that I got a defective set, imagine my surprise when I googled “sony xbr1 problems” and the first thing to come up was “class action suit filed against sony”. Luckily I do have a 3 year warranty and the Sony repair guys are ordering what is probably the optical blocker componant {it could take up to 10 days} My questions to anybody are that I’ve read that replaced parts break down even faster than the initial 9-12 months that people have been experiencing; if so, on average how fast? Also for the people that have upgraded to the xbr2; have you heard if the OB problems have been fixed or is the set another crap shoot. I’m a loyal Sony buyer, but what I’ve been reading is that they are not treating their customers right. I never understand when corporations screw up their goodwill with the people that support them. With so much product to choose from, go figure. So until my set is fixed, I’ll have to watch all the shows in the lovely color of jaundice!
Cheers
March 4th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
we have a kdf42we655 we bought it about 2 years ago. has worked fine until about 2 months ago. seen the blue blob at the bottom of the screen and up the right side. thought it was the bulb and they are expensive. replaced it and the blue blob is still there. talked to sony they denied knowing what the problem was and said sorry, to call a sony representative. well there is not one close to us. so we took it to a local repair man who estimates $750.00 to fix. heck ya we are in. now how do you decide to fix the problem and hope it doesn’t happen again or just say the heck with it and buy another tv. just not a sony this time.
March 4th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
I bought my kds60xrb1 from bb in dec. 2005. I started getting a green haze after 12 months. I called sony who denied any problem with a green haze or blob and since I was 10 days past the warranty I had to use my extended BB warranty( finally glad I purchased the Ext. warranty. I have a friend who knows a sony rep, he told him there is a problem with the light engines in the xbr1. I called BB corporate advised them of the problem, they told me I had to have the set fixed 3 times before it would be replaced. I was lucky enough to get a great BB tech who replaced the light engine and when he turned the set on there was the green blob right out of the box. another LE was ordered and installed and you guessed it it was also bad, not only was there a gree blob but a pink and blue blob also. At almost $600.00 a piece and 47 days watching green tv BB replaced my set with xbr2 ,its being delivered this weekend. Hopefully the rep is correct and the problem is fixed with the xbr2 series. I still think this tv has the best picture quality on the market as long as its not green.
March 5th, 2007 at 7:53 am
If you love “Shrek” …
…you’ll love this Sony. I purchased a Sony KDS-R60XBR1 in February, 2006. One week after the manufacturer’s warranty expired, the lamp burned out. Since the warranty had expired, I paid for the $300 repair. When the technician replaced the lamp and powered up the set, he found that a green haze permeated the picture and could not be tuned out. In addition, a more intense amoeba-like area of green bled into the picture in the upper right half of the screen. The green color artifacts are not subtle; the Sony tuning menus, typically bright blue, are now pea-soup green. The margins and interior of the green blob are clearly visible during viewing. I consider the television to be only marginally useable at this time. I am now aware of a class-action suit against Sony for this very defect, although the Sony customer care representative denies that there are any issues with this model, and specifically denies a problem with the optical block. The fix involves the replacement of the optical block, an expense of approximately $1000.00. I have seen pictures of the “blob” on websites provided by other owners which are almost identical in scope and location to the discoloration on my set. I believe this is indicative of an inherent defect because the manifestation of the problem is common in appearance on every set in question. Many owners have reported that their set powers-down unexpectedly or will not power up, flashing a red diagnostic light indicating the set has overheated. It’s possible that a defect in the cooling system results in damage to the lamp and optical block, but either way the components must be replaced.
March 5th, 2007 at 11:01 am
I have greenish yellow haze across the top and a yellow line running down the right side of my screen of my 50 inch sxrd purchased in January 2006. I sure would like Sony to make things right.
James
March 5th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
I was in Cir. City in Augusta, GA when I asked the salesman if they had ever heard of the Green Blob effect on the SXRD’s. He said “no, that was only last year’s problem with the XBR”. He said the A2000’s on display had been up and running for about 8 months with no problems. I walked over to the 50a2000 and almost immediately noticed the yellowish green stain on the bottom right of the screen. I say “almost immediately” because the SONY 1080 Demo was continuously playing and in just about every scene, there is green or blue in the bottom which conceals the stain. When it gets to a scene where there is a lighter color, problem is very noticeable. It affected only the bottom right corner of the screen. It was not doughnut shaped, however. It occupied the entire bottom right corner and came out into the screen from there about 3 or 4 inches. Feeling a little bit like Dick Tracy, I pointed this out to the salesman who shook his head in disgust! He said obviously, SONY hasn’t worked out the issue and that was his first time noticing the defect. This was probably true because the SONY demo only shows a few seconds where that area is not a darkened scene. I was hoping that the A2000s had received a SONY fix but obviously not The 60A2000 was on sale for $2199 at CC just a few days ago. Today it was $2499.
March 6th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
I will join the club now. 60XBR 1 3/06 build, 3/31/06 purchase. Got the yellow, green upper right corner. Called Sony to document. Had the O/B replaced today, now I have a beautiful pink donut around the whole outside edge with a nice green creamy center filling. Sony better back their product up and take care of this customer. Count me in on the lawsuit, I refuse to buy an extended warranty for a part/product that the manufacturer knows has problems!!!
March 7th, 2007 at 5:43 am
I too after months of research chose the best looking RPTV on the market. I even heard about the blob on the previous models. Then I heard that the problem was fixed on the new models. So I took $3000.00 and purchased an A2000 55inch. Now six months later, I have the green blob and it appears to be spreading and lasting past warm-up. I contacted sony once and they called it a warm-up problem. Now I see it hours into watching TV. I will call them again today and most likely will be joining the lawsuit. Also, A friend that knows nothing about technology trusted my judgement since I am a techy, and purchased the same set on the same day. He hasn’t said any thing about the blob, but I feel obligated(reluctantly) to mention the problem before the warranty runs out. Thanks Sony.
March 7th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
Well, my set was in the shop for 5 days and the blob repaired. At least for the time being. Happy to say I am lucky and the screen looks new again. My build date on this set was Nov 05 and purchase nov 06. SXRD 60″. Having them take it into the shop I have no clue as to what OB was put in though. I did go to the shop prior to repair and speak with the guy who would do the work. He knew about the old OB and the new. Said the new would go in. But like many before me, I will look for the pea green stain and report back when the next one appears. When it appears again, I will demand from sony again to replace it with an XBR2 rather then send someone round trip for three hours.
March 7th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
Well, my set was in the shop for 5 days and the blob repaired. At least for the time being. Happy to say I am lucky and the screen looks new again. My build date on this set was Nov 05 and purchase nov 06. SXRD 60″. Having them take it into the shop I have no clue as to what OB was put in though. I did go to the shop prior to repair and speak with the guy who would do the work. He knew about the old OB and the new. Said the new would go in. But like many before me, I will look for the pea green stain and report back when the next one appears. When it appears again, I will demand from sony again to replace it with an XBR2 rather then send someone round trip for three hours two time.
March 8th, 2007 at 8:58 pm
I am getting my first OB replacement tomorrow. Then my manufacturer’s warranty runs out in two more weeks. There’s no way I’m investing more money on an extended warranty for a set that could possibly be in and out of the shop, with only substandard picture quality when it’s not in the shop, for the entire extent of the EW. Has anybody had any experience with Sony on an OB replacement that went bad again, but after the original warranty expired? Will Sony replace another OB if it again goes bad within a year of replacement?
March 9th, 2007 at 6:51 am
I have read threads that Sony is paying about three fourths of the cost for out of warranty. I didn’t want to buy the EW either. But went through Sony style and got a five year. The class action should be settled by then and the EW will guarantee the set repaired till the settlement. The problem is the next OB you will need even if Sony pays three fourths will cost you more to pay out of pocket then the warranty for 5 years would cost. I paid $280 for the EW through sony style. It all sucks and sony should be paying the whole cost of repair with out the EW. It just doesn’t work that way in this country anymore. Many corporations are not being held accountable any longer for bad parts or bad goods unless a judge forces the issue.
March 10th, 2007 at 9:10 am
I purchaced the SXRD 60 in Feb. 2006. It was made in Dec. 05 and the serial # is 9101449. The “green blob” was reported for warranty work this morning. I also signed up for the class action just in case. The internet sure can be a great tool!!
Thanks
March 10th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
I purchaced the SXRD 50 in July and have had the light engine changed, the modular, and the HDMI and nothing got rid of the green haze, but now the color is all messed in with the new light engine. Also everytime you turn on the TV the Green Blog is there.
Talked to Sony about replaced TV and they said give them 72 hours to make decision, I have no hope that they will replace it, they are just making everyone go around in circles.
I want to join the lawsuit.
Sarah Whalen
March 11th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
Here is my Nightmare!
25 days out of warranty. I now have a green and yellow haze. Called Sony they tell me to unplug for 1 minute and plug back in. Of course nothing happened!
They give me “their” Platinum and Gold repair service (who would not drive 25 miles) Sony tells me “IF” it is a Known issue they would fix…I am feeling a little better. I call BEST BUY to come look at TV and tell me it is a know issue. (The repair man happens to be fixng 2 others light engines that day same model problem. We call Sony to verify it is a know issue….they say NO never heard of it. Have a good Day!
The Best Buy repair man was great! He went above and beyond to help. But without me handing over $800.00 for a part that would only be covered for 90 days…I had to say good bye!
Not sure what to do now. I would like to write to someone…But it is impossible to find an address or email address for any who may care. I hate Sony…The worse customer service I have ever had.
March 11th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
My KDS-R50XBR1 was purchased in July of 2006 with a build date of 4/06. I just noticed the yellow haze today and called sony .
March 12th, 2007 at 12:05 pm
Not a KNOWN issue ??… I had one OB replaced in May of last year. Warranty expired in Sept…and now its bad again. Sony is replacing…. I got an estimate faxed to Sony…and now have a assesment number and part is being shipped to my service agent..
March 12th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
Steven, how did you sign up for the class action lawsuit? They replaced my OB last week. The guy said his first one took him about 3 hours to change. Mine he had in under 30 minutes. All of the other components have to be removed to get to the optical block. Looked like he had done so many of them he could have done it blindfolded. The picture looks fine now, but for how long? Sony told me the new OB is only warranted for 3 months. I tried to get an extended warranty from HH Gregg. They said ‘no way’. So I called Sony. They talked me into a 3 year EW for about $350. That of course doesn’t cover the bulb which will probably blow in a few months. I will still join the lawsuit if it isn’t too difficult.
March 13th, 2007 at 8:02 am
I just had this issue. Bought the KDS-SXRD60XBR1 April 2006 after REPLACING a relatively new Samsung DLP 61″ that had ongoing problems! Noticed a few weeks ago that the pic on the sony was ‘green’…couldn’t get rid of it. Still under 1 yr manuf warranty… repair came out with a new “light engine”.. apparently they knew the exact problem. Took him close to 3 hours from start to finish…and said he repairs 2-3 per week. Did purchase the 3 yr ext warranty from Sony…to the tune of about $499… Sounds as if I might have to join the lawsuit myself if it’s not too late, in the near future
March 13th, 2007 at 10:01 am
I have the same problems as all of you. KDS-SXRD60XBR1 with a manufacture date of Dec 2005. Called Sony and it MAY be a week or so out of warranty. Had me recycle power, unplug from surge protector…. with no help.
Sears came out and stated it was the “Light Engine” and would be $1575 to repair. Not bad, considering I spent $4K on the TV a year ago. I bought this TV becuase most of my Sony items have had no QC issues, except my other big screen 8 years ago.
I think I’ll be looking at a different TV brand next time
March 15th, 2007 at 7:59 am
Disturbing to say the least. The OB on my KDS-50xBR1 started to fail on Dec. 25, 2006 – 2 days before the factory 1 yr warranty expired. Didn’t take immediate action because was able to adjust color (from green) using the menu options. A few weeks later relatives were over to watch a football game and noticed the green tint had reappeared. Looking at a picture long enough, you don’t notice the subtle changes, but someone else noticed it immediately. Tried to readjust color, but was unsuccessful. Talked to Sony and they gave me all the same recommendations mentioned in this thread, but none fixed the picture. Been in contact with Sony since, and finally, after having a factory authorized service rep visit and determine the OB was bad, my case was finally escallated up one level to Customer Relations, and they have agreed to cover the repair ($1,750). Repair will hopefully be completed next week – once the part arrives. Service rep said they repair 2-3 / day. Happy the repair is going to happen at no cost to me, but I’m still nervous/upset that the repair will last. May need to get in on the class action if it is still open.
March 15th, 2007 at 11:02 am
For anyone who wishes to write someone of importance at Sony, here is the e-mail address of the VP of Service. His name is Michael Ehlers. The address is: (SonyServiceVP@am.sony.com). I have extensively tested my new 60A2000, and aside from it’s gargantuan size in my livingroom, I am satisfied thus far. I still miss the asthetic looks of my XBR1. but I’ll sacrifice that for a discolored picture. I still plan on writing Mr. Ehlers and letting him know that I wasn’t satisfied with replacement options. I still feel that I paid for an XBR, and I should have gotten an XBR replacement. Keep the threads going, it looks like our community is growing exponentially now, so lets keep disseminating the info for others.
March 15th, 2007 at 11:09 am
Duane,
Again great information for everyone to use.
In a true brain-fart moment though, I read the address as @am.sorry.com, and thought “Wow… yea you are sorry” then I realized it said “sony”
March 15th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
Ok so I had my 2nd OB replaced today. TV is out of warranty by 4 months…and Sony footed the bill. ( $2080 estimate from service provider… but you know the part was doubled..). looks good now…only been a couple of hours I did check the part numbers on the OB he removed and the one he put it….different..
Old 1143-241-A
New 1127-174-A
hmmmm
March 16th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
I have a kdf-55wf655 ( less than 2 years old) . My screen just started getting “darker”. I was in the process of buying a new lamp until I read this forum. Is this the beginning of the issue??
March 17th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Guess I’m “lucky” – I purchased the KDS-R50XBR1 in March ‘06 and it showed green problems by November. It took me 3 months for the local repair shop to pick it up, but then the TV was fixed completely free of charge.
Sony initially told the Authorized Repair shop that the part was backordered and it would take 5 weeks to get it. Fortunately, the repair woman told me to call the Support # and demand faster replacement. I did, and got the part shipped THAT DAY! If you don’t accept the 5 week response and push harder you can get results.
No happy ending though – two weeks after getting the TV back, it’s now dropping into “stand-by” mode randomly during operation. Every 20 minutes or so (very random) it will go blank and the stand by light flashes green for 30-60 seconds. Then, it mysteriously comes back on. Now I call the repair shop again, but I’m guessing it’s a loose cable or mis-installed part.
March 17th, 2007 at 5:09 pm
Guys, from the length of this thread I think it’s obvious that this is *the norm* behavior for these sets… but something I haven’t seen anyone talk about yet is: Are you selling your replacements after they come in and immediately getting into a different TV? If so, which ones are you picking?
I know a handful have gotten replacements, and rather than sit there with a stop watch waiting for it to screw up again, are you guys jumping ship all together?
March 18th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
Riyad,
Trust me, I’d love to sell my replacement, but, If you’ve looked at the prices of these TVs from last year to this year, you’ll see a significant difference in price. I would lose over $1000. I can buy the same TV that Sony gave me a $3000 credit for, for less than $2000 at any online store. People would never pay what I would have to sell it for. Rock and a hard place. I am quite pleased with the A2000 though, thus far.
March 19th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
TO mrekted ~ My 50′ SXRD is doing the exact same thing! I had my OB replaced (refurbished part i believe), picture is great. But, just like you, my set is now going in to stand by mode, green light flashes for several seconds before coming back on. It does this many times a day. I have called BestBuy.com as we have the extended warranty. I am waiting to get a call from the authorized service center. They are extremely slow, and when you call them, their mail boxes are always full-unreachable!!! Please post if you find out what is causing this problem! I will do the same, however, I know this will take weeks to get resolved. The set never did this until the OB was replaced. Good Luck…
March 19th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
I’m a newbie to this forum. Unfortunately, I’m in the same boat as all of you, I just started noticing it last week. Got a KDSR60-XBR1 manufactured in January of 2006.
haven’t called anybody yet, but I’m exasperated before I even start…………………
March 20th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
To Barb:
I haven’t seen any more standby mode since Saturday (almost 72 hours) – here’s what I did:
1) Turned off the TV and let it cool for 5 minutes
2) Unplugged the tv for 45 minutes
3) Remove the side cover that houses the bulb
4) Remove the bulb assembly per instructions
5) I noticed that a red wire was not seated in its slot, instead it was slightly in the bulb track – I pushed that back in very carefully (the mirrors are right there!). Not sure if this was part of the problem. If that wire had to do with the thermostat, then it could have been part of the issue.
6) Reseated the bulb firmly (until it clicks) as per instructions
Since that I’ve had no more problems (did I just jinx myself?). But, I still called Sony and got a trouble ticket # in case I have future problems with this. Sony said that step 1 should be unplugging the TV for more than 1 minute, and that is part of the process that I followed.
Some have suggested that if the bulb is partially unseated during shipping it will falsely “overheat” until it’s re-seated. This is apparently common also with replacing the bulb.
Who knows why it worked, but at least for me I’ve had 3 solid days with no standby.
Good luck!
March 20th, 2007 at 8:03 pm
I’m having the same problem as all of you with a KDS-R50XBR1. Yellow stain in the lower right corner. I will be setting up the service shortly and assume they will have to replace the OB. My warrenty is up in 2 months and after reading these posts I am having a hard time deciding whether or not I should buy an extended warranty or if I should attempt to stick Sony with a bill if it happens again. What do you guys think? Is it too late to join the lawsuit?
March 21st, 2007 at 10:20 am
Thank-you mrekted,
I will pass this information on to my husband. I’m still waiting for the Best Buy authorized service center to call (it’s been 3 days). Mine is on stand by as I type this, and seems to go to this mode more often as time passes.
I didn’t watch the technician closely when he replaced my OB, but he practically took the entire set apart to do so. I was thinking that when he put everything back, something wasn’t installed correctly. Also, my replacement OB has a much larger lens. Not sure if this would produce more heat? My point is I have been thinking that the replacment of the OB was tied to my current problem.
Anyway, thank-you for sharing your experience. Not sure when my tech will call to schedule an appointment, but at the rate that it goes into stand-by I’m sure he will witness it. (this service center for BB is horrible, but the only one in my area).
Keep me posted on this issue…Thanks..
March 24th, 2007 at 3:16 am
The service person replaced the optical block in my 60 XBR1 on thursday. In talking with him he said I was ahead of the curve because Sony will annonounce this weekend some type of recall or service bulletin on these problems. He expects to be very busy the next few months replacing the optical blocks on all first generation XBRs. He was of the opinion that there is no way Sony would not handle the problem because this in their top of the line Television.
Take it for what it is worth
Frank
March 24th, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Sony just posted this up on their site today, I’m actually on hold with them trying to talk to tech support:
http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/news-item.pl?mdl=KDSR60XBR1&news_id=185
March 26th, 2007 at 8:19 am
60″ XBR1 purchased at Tweeter about a year ago, service guy here now to replace the OB resulting from the green haze on top right corner of the screen. Sucks, espeically with Tweeter going out of business practically, will my 5 year extended still hold up? Perhaps not. Looking forward to seeing the tv the way I recall when all was well though.
March 26th, 2007 at 3:42 pm
Guys,
I would like to thank the people who went through the initial “hell” to get the recall/warranty extension in effect.
Of course the day after I started reading this blog I sat down in front of my 1 and a half year old 50″ sxrd and see the green haze in the center now too.
BTW, there should be NO more bashing now though as this is 100% stand up behavior from Sony (sure it may have taken hundred of pissed of customers), but the remedy they just posted is fantastic.
Here’s to happy green haze free tv watching.
March 26th, 2007 at 6:51 pm
On May 21, 2006 I purchased the KDS-50xBR1. About 3 weeks ago the screen went green and now am getting a 6 inch vertical yellow border on the left and right of the screen. I purchased this from CC and also purchased extended warranty with it. Will be getting it repaired this Wednesday. The OB part was ordered 3 weeks ago. From reading the comments here there doesn’t seem to be much hope that the repair will correct the issue fully. I have noticed KV’s comment and was wondering if this New Part 1127-174-A that replaced the Old Part 1143-241-A fully corrects this issue? I also see that Sony has extended the warranty on this for what ever this is worth. I would like to hear some comments on the best course of action for this issue. Would it be best to keep contacting CC with the extended warranty and hopefully get a replacement after 3 attempts to repair or call Sony and complain nicely, or join the Class Action Lawsuit? And would also like to know any and all ramifications for joining the lawsuit?
Thanks
March 27th, 2007 at 5:48 am
I think you would first work under the manufacturers warranty and deal with Sony direct. The extended is always good after the manufacturers warranty. You can join the class action and also continue to get repairs. I believe the class action doesn’t seek a temporary fix, but rather seeks a permanent resolution to the OB problem. At any rate, the way it stands, Sony decides now if and when they offer you another set be it new or refurbished so you have very little control over that anyway. You can always ask and suggest to Sony as all of us have done here. I asked Sony that the expense and hassle of three OB repairs be avoided and I was willing to pay a little bit more to get a same size XBR2. Sony didn’t want to and by my figures, that will cost Sony more in the long run. So go figure. All Sony decisions are made by Sony and some decisions are more costly in the long run.
March 27th, 2007 at 5:54 am
John W. thank you for that link, I updated the original post for quick reference so folks don’t have to skim all the comments to find it.
I’ve also seen a lot of folks posting saying they are getting their OB’s replaced… in all these cases, is everyone satisfied with the results or are you still having struggles?
March 27th, 2007 at 6:43 am
To mrekted: IF you recall my sxrd has been going into stand by mode many times a day since the replacemnt of my OB (like yours). Called for repair (takes forever, they have not looked at the set). Last night the sony went into stand by mode, and never did come back on!!! No tv for NCAA games, or anything else. Let me know how your set is doing. (We are now trying to negotiate a new set)….
March 27th, 2007 at 10:23 am
Robert L. – the part # you list (A-1127-174-A) is for the 60″ XBR1, not the 50″ and it is the original part, not the supposedly redesigned one.
March 27th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
After speaking to a Sony tech on the phone and unplugging the set like he advised (while he was on the phone)so it would reset I called the service center. The receptionist that answered the phone knew exactly what the problem was. She is smarter than the Sony techs. Sony did replace the “engine” at no cost because it was under warranty. Be sure to keep the “original” receipt.
March 28th, 2007 at 5:37 am
Update: 60″ xbr1 OB replaced last Monday by a Tweeter tech in Ma., so far so good, tv looks great–no more green haze but my eyes are very suspicious now, guess time will tell.
March 28th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Fantastic news from Sony! I’ll be calling them about the yellow stain that grows from the right side whenever I dare to watch 4:3 television on the set.
March 30th, 2007 at 12:05 am
Good luck calling Sony I couldn’t get a hold of anyone, so I E-mailed them regarding the Yellow-gold 2″ bar that had formed on the right hand side of my t.v. from top to bottom. They send me an E – mail telling me to adjust the color and settings, which did not solve the problem. So I will call and start the process I have a 50 ” KDS – SXRD a little over a year old.
March 30th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
Some people have posted a thanks, but I’d like to send my own thanks to those who started this post and who were actively responsible for bringing this issue to light. I absolutely love electronic devices and absolutely hate when anything goes wrong. So when I started seeing the issue, I was extremely upset. I had left my TV on when I ran out of the house for, what turned out to be 4 to 5 hours. The channel was on a CBS broadcast of the NCAA first round games – when I returned I changed the channel, but noticed the CBS symbol “burned” into the screen. After playing with some settings and watching some HD content, it seemed to go away, but then I noticed it was just moving around. I then hit the internet and quickly found this post. I bought my kds-r50xbr1 (SXRD) in August from BB, but did not get the extended warranty (usually do on major purchases – and I planned to since it would pay for itself once I needed to replace the lamp in 2 to 3 years). Since I’m under a year, I should be OK, but I’m really upset that this TV has problems. I first got a Sony Wega in 2000, and it has lasted us all the way to August 2006 with no issues – still works great. That is one reason I went with Sony over Samsung or Panasonic. Now this….ugh.
Well, I called Sony CS and was on hold. I went to the web while I was on hold, found a FAQ about the set and it said to remove stereo equipment away from the set…LOL. Then it says it may require servicing. No kidding. So I used the set to locate an authorized support shop, so I hung up with Sony, called Walt’s TV (Gilbert, AZ), they picked up on one ring — knew the issue before I could even tell her my TV and problem. Asked to fax copy of sales receipt so they know it is under warranty, then will have service tech call me Monday. I mentioned the OB, and she said it was actually the “light engine”. Not sure what the difference is, but if they fix it, I’ll be happy.
I’m glad to see that Sony has offered an extension on the OB until 2008 – but I’m still upset that this TV probably won’t last the 6+ years my previous Wega did. Too bad, because this TV sure does have a great picture when it’s working.
Sorry for writing this short novel, just wanted to thank those that lived through the pain for the rest of us. I just wish I would have searched for issues when I bought it last August.
March 30th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
Jay,
Your thanks as well as everyone else’s is exactly why all these fantastic people sat down and cataloged every step of their journey, all their findings and information here.
Everyone on this thread is so well informed and has so much ammunition at their disposal if they find themselves backed into a corner by Sony or any other company. You should all be really proud of yourselves.
March 30th, 2007 at 8:42 pm
Jay,
The OB (Optic Block) IS the “light engine”. Surprise the repair place didn’t know that, but as long as you get one, doesn’t matter what they call it.
April 2nd, 2007 at 12:22 pm
I just want to say that I had spent nearly 2 months researching this television before I purchased it. Whether the information came from Sony or any other electronics review site, or distributor, this set was advertised as a 1080p television. No, I am not an expert t.v. technician. But after the hours of research I put in to my purchase, and I’m sure after your personal experiences, that you would not be surprised to hear how much more I was informed and knowledgable than the so called PRO’s at the local retailers. I’ve contacted Sony and spent a conciderable amount of time on the phone with their tech’s, and service rep’s. I have received NO help from them and all I’ve come away with B.S. I did not know of the more concerning issue at hand of the green blob OB problem, and am now going to be half paranoid knowing that Sony will “ignore” this too… I would love to use my $650 PS3 and $2800 60″ and actually see what a Blue Ray/1080P signal looks like in my living room. Does any one have ANY advice on how to get Sony to accept accountability???
April 2nd, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Ricky,
Can you be more specific what the problem is you are having? You mentioned talking to Sony, but weren’t aware of the green-blob problem.
I wasn’t sure if you mean that you were having the green-blob problem and just now became aware of it, or if you were having another problem and just became aware of this particular problem.
On the bright side, when the SXRD sets are working, they give one of the most favorable images in HD (atleast for 2006). So assuming you have a XBR2 set that will accept and broadcast a 1080p signal over HDMI, your PS3 will look brilliant.
On a somewhat unrelated note, I have my PS3 hooked up to my MITS 65831 and it looks *amazing* with really good HD transfers like Crank or Casino Royal (I mean, knock-out good).
April 2nd, 2007 at 10:30 pm
I have the XBR1… I rarely use it as it’s in another game/entertainment room, and have yet to have the green haze occur. However, coincidently enough. I do have another 43″ 2003 standard definition Sony that did have that green haze problem. This was corrected easily after an authorized tech came out and replaced a part. That must have been a good year for service. My current issue is that the XBR1 does not accept 1080p as advertised. Unfortuanately it will probably take 2-3 years for the green haze to show up with the limited use my set receives.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:08 am
Ricky R.,
I don’t know where you read that the XBR1 accepts a 1080p input – the XBR1 is limited to 1080i and that’s been known for quite some time.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:17 am
Ricky,
On par with what Jim said, you likely got confused by the issue that:
XBR1 *accepts* 1080i signal, but internally upscales everything to 1080p and displays it.
A lot of people were confused about this for a very long time on AVS and other places I saw, because why would the TV display a signal it couldn’t receieve and so on and so on.
Anyway, the XBR2s accept *and* display 1080p, so we all threw out our old sets, burned all our DVDs and only watch BluRay now… right?
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:16 pm
I purchased the Sony KDSR50XBR1 in June of 2006, I also purchased the Sony extended warranty directly from Sony. I have had no luck at all with projection TV’s and bought a Sony because I was tired of having problems. My previous sets were Hitachi and Proscan. The Sony worked great until this past weekend when the Yellow stain appeared in the right hand corner of the screen. I called Circuit City where I bought the set and they would do nothing because I did not get the warranty from them. I contacted Sony and they are sending out their authorized repair person on Friday. I hate this I am ready to go back to a plain 27″ TV. Projections TV’s are nothing but headache’s.
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Bob,
Don’t get too discouraged. All these crazy complex electronics are headaches in different ways. LCDs can have stuck pixels and ones with slow response times can show motion blur. Plasmas can show color distortion that to some folks look like “cartoon coloring”, etc.
Heck, your HD media pla