1080p is now out of the theater

[George Bellefontaine]

... well, temporarily anyway. After less than a month and less that 40 hours usage, I was watching a movie Saturday night when there was a loud bang from the BenQ W10000, followed by a grinding noise and loss of the picture. Lamp was still going, as was the fan(s?) but no picture. Just a jagged black bar top and bottom and nothing in between. When a dlp projector is running, you can see color wheel flicker when looking at the lens from an angle. There was no color flicker. Since the only continuous moving parts in a dlp PJ is the fan and the color wheel, it is pretty obvious that the color wheel bit the dust.

BenQ was pretty good about it. They had my faulty PJ picked up by Fedex yesterday and will be sending me off a NEW replacement unit. This is my first BenQ product but I had read that their products were pretty good overall, plus their 3 year warranty with swap in the first year was one of the reasons I bought the W10K. I just didn't think I'd be needing to take advantage of the warranty so soon. Other than the Sony VPL400, that had to be serviced twice under warranty, I have had pretty good luck with the Zenith crt, the Sharp lcd, the Yamaha lcd and the Nec HT1000 dlp, which has served me well for over 5 years and stills looks as good as the day I got it. Oh, well, I guess the odds just had to catch up with me.

In the meantime, I sure do miss that gorgeous W10K picture. :cry:

[John Holmes]

Sorry this happened George. You just never know how things will play out with gear. At least, the companies support team was quick to respond. And, you have a few units to fall back on. :T

[George Bellefontaine]

Sorry this happened George. You just never know how things will play out with gear. At least, the companies support team was quick to respond. And, you have a few units to fall back on. :T

Yeah, I won't be missing any movie watching time, but having something new die so quickly really sucks, especially since I was getting addicted to the great image it was outputting.

[John Holmes]

There is another bright side. You've not gotten into HD/BR DVD yet so, no issues there! :B

But I do feel your pain. I was just trying to lighten the blow a bit.

[George Bellefontaine]

There is another bright side. You've not gotten into HD/BR DVD yet so, no issues there yet.

You are correct there, John. When I read about players that won't play this BD disc or that HD DVD disc, I thank God I'm still on the fence. But with another 1080p PJ on the way, I can't help but feel anxious about getting into the hi-def camp. Right now I'm waiting to see what the new Samsung dual player is all about after it is released later this year or early next.

[Hdale85]

Yeah I have an Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive on my computer right now and been thinking about getting a BD one too but I'm really waiting for the Sammy standalone combo player.

[Chris D]

Oh, no! Sorry, George.

[George Bellefontaine]

Oh, no! Sorry, George.

Thanks , Chris. But it's more an inconvenience than anything. I'll probably have the replacement late this week or early next.

[aud19]

dang...bad luck George, I'm sure it will improve though :T

[PewterTA]

Sorry to hear that George...

Seems like that always happens right around the time you'd probably end up using it the most (at least to me it does).

I was going to wait for the Samsung player, but I couldn't justify the price tag on it, so I went out with a Xbox360-HD and PS3 combo. So far, the quality is amazing and neither has had any problems with anything on their desired format.

Hopefully the new Projector will arrive early for you... sort of like an early Christmas present! ha ha.

[Hdale85]

The Xbox 360 and PS3 together cost more then the Samsung. It's already advertised online as low as 799 and from a very reputable place (cdw) for 849. I don't know. I don't like the idea of using a gaming console as a HD format player. The 360 HD-DVD drive is rather noisy I can't imagine the PS3 being much better.

[Lex]

Bummer George. Let me give you my address for replacement delivery...

Goodluck on a prompt replacement!

[George Bellefontaine]

Bummer George. Let me give you my address for replacement delivery...

[draganm]

as the only CRT guy here running a machine is that known to run for well over 50K hours please allow me a moment to gloat. :B just kidding George, we actually have a DLP in a classroom at my work and that thing has been solid for 2 years. It get's abused every day and when I lock up at night one of the things I do is to make it's not left on looking for an RGB signal. :M
What you experienced is called the bath-tub curb. Things normally fail in the first 100 hours and then run until the end of their life-span when they start breaking regularly again. You just need a unit to get you past the first part of that curve.

[Dean McManis]

Sorry to hear about the problem George. This is generally how most electronics work. Either they die within the first month, or they work fine for many years.
It is good that BenQ is swapping out your unit with a new replacement loaner right away without any problems. Hopefully you will be back up and enjoying your 1080p projector very soon.

[George Bellefontaine]

Yep, what you say is true. Usually things go in the early stages. Now, hopefully my replacement can get through the early stages.

[sirbogey]

... well, temporarily anyway. After less than a month and less that 40 hours usage, I was watching a movie Saturday night when there was a loud bang from the BenQ W10000, followed by a grinding noise and loss of the picture. Lamp was still going, as was the fan(s?) but no picture. Just a jagged black bar top and bottom and nothing in between. When a dlp projector is running, you can see color wheel flicker when looking at the lens from an angle. There was no color flicker. Since the only continuous moving parts in a dlp PJ is the fan and the color wheel, it is pretty obvious that the color wheel bit the dust.

Really sorry to hear that! But it sounds like the same thing happened to me with the Optoma. Well they picked it up with Fedex 6 times, but never managed to repair it properly; then the warranty expired. I really hope you get yours exchanged instead of fixed.

[George Bellefontaine]

Really sorry to hear that! But it sounds like the same thing happened to me with the Optoma. Well they picked it up with Fedex 6 times, but never managed to repair it properly; then the warranty expired. I really hope you get yours exchanged instead of fixed.

The BenQ warranty is pretty good. It's for 3 years with replacement with a new unit if the PJ dies in the first 90 days of the first year. Thereafter they swap the faulty unit with a refurb for the first year and they pay shipping both ways. Second and third year it's repair ( or replace if they deem it necessary) and you pay the shipping there and they pay shipping back. The warranty , excellent price , and the good reviews on the W10000 was the main reason I went with a BenQ.

[Azeke]

Sorry to hear about that George , I trust your replacement will be expeditious.

Peace and blessings,

Azeke

[George Bellefontaine]

Thanks, Azeke. The turnaround on the replacement unit was 5 working days. I found the customer service reps at BenQ to be quite good at their job.

As a side note. I found it interesting that the unit that died was assembled in Mexico and had a fixed glass plate over the lens. The replacement unit was mfg. at the Benq factory in Taiwan and did not have a glass plate over the lens. Benq techs figured my faulty unit overheated and caused the color wheel to break, so I'm beginning to think that perhaps the glass plate was the culprit.