7700 and mt700 lamp problem solved. Also posted in mt700 thread.
Hi,
I just want to share what I have found out about the benq and tosh proj bulb problem.
I bought my MT700 in late august and have had 3 bulbs replaced. Everyone of them before reaching the 200h mark. Needless to say I also figured out something was wrong with it.
Calling AVD-Tech, they are toshibas official service partner in sweden, they say that they have not had a single mt700 fail but quite a few 7700's. "You need a new lamp design and a firmware update" the guy then says. Ok, fine i guess. I get the new bulb and firmware and use it about 150h then it goes black. Must have been a bad batch they say and send me another one. This one lasts 180h before going out. Frustrated and determined that this cant possibly be a lamp problem I turn to a friend who works in the store where I bought it and I get the number to toshibas sales rep. After being somewhat reluctant to admit that the mt700 also has a problem I return to my friend in the store. He then calls the toshiba rep and says that if this is not solved they will no longer recommend toshiba projs. Then, all of a sudden, its a common and well known problem with the mt700 and 7700 and ofcourse they have a sollution.
They need to replace the psu, ballast and upgrade firmware. Firmware upgrade and new lampdesign wont matter because the psu and ballast cant really handle the lamp the way it's supposed to. This means that all 7700 and mt700's have to have half their interiors exchanged to work as its supposed to and that explains why they are so reluctant to tell you guys. And since this is a psu and ballast problem it somewhat explains why projs connected to powerconditioners last a little longer.
Oh, and another thing, I found out what a lamp really costs for benq and tosh since I have some connections at Osram who make the lamp... practially nothing... something like $2...
So, basically, it's much cheaper for them to keep giving you lamps for a few years than actually upgrading your units with the parts needed.
I'll be getting the new psu, ballast, firmware and lamp next week and will keep you posted as to how this turns out.
It's been an interesting week, to say the least.