TV Repair - Potentially dead rows of pixels. (Polaroid FLM-4034B) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: CaptainObvious
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2015, 03:57:01 am
content: I've got a Polaroid FLM-4034B, it's a 40" LCD, 720p nothing too fancy. Bought it ohhh some 5 - 8 years ago back when I was working at Circuit City (when their stores still existed) it had some intermittent issues and it was going to be sent back to Polaroid for repairs, then it magically started working while I was testing it.. I asked my manager if they would sell it to me for a discounted price, snagged it for $200! Of course, about 6 months after having the TV, it stopped powering on and was dead... still within warranty, I sent in and got it replaced. So here we are some 5 odd years later and the replacement is still chugging along!I haven't had any issues with this current TV (replacement), minus these missing pixels. Not necessarily missing pixels, but looks like potentially certain colors have died? When it's displaying an image, you are able to still see what's being displayed, just missing some colors. If you look at the images provided, it's trying to display a white image, but only showing blue.. leading me to believe only the blue pixels are working correctly along this line? This issue has been going on with the TV for about a year, maybe longer, and it seemed to be smaller at first, starting at the right side, about halfway into the screen, then one day the other half.I've done the normal Google searches without any luck, lots of dead Polaroids (to be expected.. lol, I wasn't expecting quality, lets be honest!) but I haven't read a whole lot about dead pixels, or how they might be fixed. Just hoping it's a controller, versus the LCD itself.. assuming it's more cost effective to replace the controller.Next steps are diving into check some caps and replace any of these that are on their way out, but alas I don't think this will resolve the pixel issue. I'm just not sure if I should be looking for a controller fault, or if it's the LCD it self going bad? Any information would be greatly appreciated! I will provide some pictures when I get it opened up and dissected!

author: SparkyBruce
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2015, 09:53:26 pm
content: I have seen that sort of damage previously on laptop screens down to pressure damage. Not enough to break the glass but enough to vary the distance between the LCD electrodes.Bruce

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: May 26, 2015, 11:27:31 pm
content: Quote from: SparkyBruce on May 26, 2015, 09:53:26 pmI'm pretty sure that what you've seen looked a bit different and in black color, not blue. IMO this does not look like damaged LCD panel. More like it receives data already corrupted. Though I haven't seen something like this.

author: CaptainObvious
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2015, 01:18:37 am
content: The pressure is actually an interesting point, the LCD on this TV is so heavy, it cracked the chassis while moving it. (No handles so generally just carry from the bottom of the TV) It's a fairly small crack, doesn't seem to be in a position that would have an affect on the LCD's ability to be retained while sitting inside the TV.The only reason I'm leaning towards a failed LCD screen, no matter the input, TV, HDMI, RCA (lol), I'm still getting this streak across the screen, but alas that could be a controller as well! I'm going to dive into opening this beast up tonight, hopefully opening it up and doing a general overview will give some helpful results.Dinner first, then time for a "tear down". (We need an Emoji for "Don't throw it away... take it apart!")

author: CaptainObvious
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2015, 04:55:12 am
content: Alright, I got it taken apart, no obvious signs of distress. One cable was slightly loose, but alas didn't fix the issue. I didn't even care to dig into the backlight inverter, seems to be functioning without any issues.Just searched for replacement parts on the TV, assuming the TCon board was bad(Just assuming after researching what it's purpose was). After reading this website, they're saying horizontal lines are likely a bad LCD. The lines must be common because it's a huge warning on this board,http://www.shopjimmy.com/samsung-lj94-01370d-t-con-board.htm.And while typing this response, I got the great idea of downloading the service manual! Well, followed through and page 18 was really the only spot that really applied. It says some pixels will stay lit, or not light up at all, and if there's more than 7 pixels on the screen to just replace it. It appears the troubleshooting only really aims to check if you're receiving an image or not, did not see much about defects.http://www.manualslib.com/manual/372064/Polaroid-Flm4234bh.htmlJust out of curiosity I looked at the price on replacing the LCD.. Well, $1100 was the cheapest I could find, and I don't even think it was in-stock! 705-540-011SH was the part number provided on page 36 of the service manual, so that was my Google search, also tried "LTA400WT-L11" which is found on the back of the LCD, but searching for this just brings up the board components (power supply, control board, etc)I've never attempted to troubleshoot an actual LCD before. It's a TV that's more of a back-up, not a main use TV.. just figured if I can get rid of the issue, it might be more useful. At this point, I'll be diving into some research on how to troubleshoot these issues, see if it's even a viable fix. I'll post when I've got some updates!

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2015, 06:58:54 am
content: Just duct tape over the bad portion the way Dave did a few years back.

author: Rasz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2015, 05:24:49 pm
content: bad panelhttp://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=ru&u=http://monitor.net.ru/forum/topic238992-32.html&usg=ALkJrhhwiF1b98K0UY0wswBE6FaB4q6Atg#2753735I highly encourage looking thru the whole thread there to get an idea of what common issues and causes are.ps: $200 for a broken tv? with employee discount? for something that would normally land in the skip? you got effed in the a

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: May 28, 2015, 11:47:43 pm
content: How did he get effed? He paid $200, the TV failed under warranty 6 months later and it was replaced and the replacement worked for 5 years. Unless the replacement came like that, I don't think he did too bad at all. The OP doesn't really state if the issue just started or was there all along. If it was there all along, yes he got effed without even a kiss on the neck.

author: CaptainObvious
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 29, 2015, 05:54:29 am
content: Quote from: Rasz on May 28, 2015, 05:24:49 pm$200 for a working at the time (but kind of "broken TV") that was being sold for ~$600 at the time, and got replaced for free.. lasted about 4 years before getting streaks (That's good information to share in the post.. sorry). I'd take that deal all over again. Your comment made me chuckle, I'm actually watching that South Park episode as we speak.. "You're going to get effed in the a, on Saturday!"Anyways, appreciate the link! I will definitely read into that, I'm a whore for knowledge of any kind. I assumed bad LCD just from some google searches but it's always nice to get reassurance from those smarter than myself! (Google University only gets me so far)

author: necroscope
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 03:32:15 am
content: You could try fixing the pixels by the software method just google "Kill dead Pixel" and you should find a few blogs by people who have had success with different methods and software.There is also the pressure method....Taken from jetine yong lcd repair bookTurn on lcd and display black image so you can clearly see dead pixelsUse damp cloth wrapped around finger so not too scratch screen,Gently massage dead pixels whilst turning screen on and off several times,Continue to apply pressure till pixel is gone,Try starting one end of pixels and if no change try other end of pixel grid.