Have your say & ask the experts

Thanks to What HI FI people have a forum where they can find out about other peoples experiences before making a purchase, and give people the benefit of their experience after purchase.

I purchased a 40W4500 last November that had clouding,it was replaced but the second set had the same problem - even after a Sony installed software update and I got full refund. So now I am back using my old Sony 21".

The clouding issue is definitely real as it shows up during viewing of material with dark scenes and will not be resolved (in all cases at least) through adjustment of the settings (calibration). In proposing that people "calibrate'' their set to resolve a noticeable fault is unacceptable, since if that were the correct course of action, then why do Sony not ship the TV's pre-calibrated? Part of the SONY proposed fix for clouding is that the backlight setting is set low at about 2. Straight away the scope for calibration and adjustment of the TV is compromised. 

What is sad is that Sony provide no information as regards whether they have resolved this issue or not. If they did, many people including myself would buy one.Therefore we can only assume that the faulty sets are still out there in the shops.

WHF,  I am getting my 3rd Sony 40w4500 on Monday.  I do not believe that Clare got one for her father and was lucky enough to have tested 2 at WHF and have no problems with the clouding, while i have had 2 with severe clouding, this would make me extremely unlucky and yourself very lucky indeed.

Also i have been to the store where i got mine and the display model has the clouding (although hard to see with the lighting).  I believe the Sony coming Monday will have the same problem and yes you may ask why am i bothering.  Well, when the picture is good it's fantastic.  However, when on a dark scene and the clouding is showing it lets the whole telly down and spoils the experience.

Nothing will convince me that Clare has had the luck to see 3 Sonys in action with no clouding what so ever.  Why, because all LCDs over 32 inches have a little bleeding (ALL LCDs), but most are watchable and cant be seen unless under extreme conditions. 

I have seen four Sonys in action and four with clouding, that equals 100% bad luck.  Clare has seen 3 Sonys in action and not one with clouding, this equals 100% good luck.  This in find hard to believe!

Well the serial number of my father's set is somewhere in the gazillion pages of this thread if you choose to look for it - rather than calling me a liar in your very first post on this Forum (hello to you, too!)

And it's not just me, either - for starters we team test; then there's the two Sony W4500s we displayed on our stand at the Stuff/WHF show last November for three full days, without a single sign of clouding or bleed (and we were playing films all the way through, including end credits). Several other team members have advised friends/family to buy, too, and they've all been OK.

Oh, then there's the numerous people on this thread that have unaffected sets, too  - some of them just a page back on this thread.

I am genuinely sorry you've had a couple of dodgy sets, but having a pop at us isn't the answer. All the very best at getting a decent replacement - and remember to run a set-up rather than judge any TV out-of-the-box (or indeed in-store).

I don't always agree with this mags opinions, but opinions always vary. However I will say this in what hi fi's defence, it is not in their interests to cover up something like this because since it has been apparent to some unfortunate buyers, then it would explode in their faces. Perhaps if this was an exclusive sony magazine then it could be the case that all sony products would be marvelled at, but this is a mag, who feature many different products, from many different manufacturers. The fact that they have not censored any of this information presented on this thread illustrates that there is no agenda. Ultimately what hi fi can not be responnsible for the actions of others, All they can control is the review they give any given product and that is based on what is presented to them. I know you are aggreived about your television but common sense should be telling you whf have nothing to gain from omitting or overlooking fundamental aspects of the television.

Clare, i am sorry if i have caused offense to you personally, this was not my intention.  I am just blown away how some of us seem to have one dodgy set after another and WHF seem to have a all the good sets (including a couple on this forum).

I have a cyrus set up with dynaudio speakers, all recommended from reading WHF for many years.  Having had the system for a few years it has done me well.

I hope that the Sony coming Monday will be free from severe clouding.

I do appreciate you taking the time to reply and again apologise.

There is, of course, the possibility that as all the sets you've seen have been from the same store, they''ve got an entire run of wrong 'uns (see the previous page or two for some suggestions of a production fault).

And thanks for your apology. I do understand your frustration, but please don't direct it at us, as we're doing our best to bring this issue to people's attention (I'm sure this thread, plus our online reviews that highlight the issues, have put more people off buying these sets than our initial rating persuaded people to buy!), while remaining steadfast in our belief that when you get an unaffected sample of these sets they're still the best around for the price.

My set was delivered on Wednesday, and I could not be happier.  It was replacing my 40V2000.  I used the settings suggested further back in this thread, and the picture is stunning.  No noticeable backlight bleed.  Oddly it even seems to handle SD incredibly well. 

Put a planet earth blu-ray in and the difference between this and my other TV is amazing. 

That and the fact that I got this for under £1200, and I am a very happy boy.  Thanks to Clare and the other contributors who persuaded me that it was worth investing in this set.  Sony have never let me down before, and yet again they have not.

I know some sets have suffered from clouding, but what about buzzing? My sets buzzes as if something is vibrating. I’ve been through mill with the retailer and trading standards. After getting nowhere I tried contacting Sony, who agreed for an engineer to take a look.  Unfortunately an engineer could not find a fault. However after delivering it back to me, they set it up, switched on, and there the buzz was again. They didn’t know what to do, and had to leave me with the set. Sony know of no one else who covers my area, unless I try the same engineer again, but I‘m not sure it‘s worth the hassle.

It would be great if someone had heard of a familiar problem? I can’t believe I’m stuck with an irritating problem like this, after all the money it cost me. Felt like putting my foot through it tonight.

From an engineering point of view, first try the set with only the power connected to see if the buzz is still present. Then one by one, connect any ancilliary equipment such as cable, Sky, VCR, DVD, etc, to see if any of these are creating a hum loop.
The other alternative is the set's power supply. Does the noise increase with the overall brightness of the picture? If it does, this clearly indicates a faulty PSU and can easily be replaced by an engineer within half an hour. Does the hum appear out of the loudspeakers (try using headphones to see if it's an audio board problem) or does it appear to eminate from within the set? In some rare cases, hum can be caused by induction, so try and plug the set into another room just as a test, to see if it still makes that noise.

If it does, it's a clear case of defect workmanship and will be covered by the warranty.

Blueglue1:

WHF,  I am getting my 3rd Sony 40w4500 on Monday.  I do not believe that Clare got one for her father and was lucky enough to have tested 2 at WHF and have no problems with the clouding, while i have had 2 with severe clouding, this would make me extremely unlucky and yourself very lucky indeed.

Also i have been to the store where i got mine and the display model has the clouding (although hard to see with the lighting).  I believe the Sony coming Monday will have the same problem and yes you may ask why am i bothering.  Well, when the picture is good it's fantastic.  However, when on a dark scene and the clouding is showing it lets the whole telly down and spoils the experience.

Nothing will convince me that Clare has had the luck to see 3 Sonys in action with no clouding what so ever.  Why, because all LCDs over 32 inches have a little bleeding (ALL LCDs), but most are watchable and cant be seen unless under extreme conditions. 

I have seen four Sonys in action and four with clouding, that equals 100% bad luck.  Clare has seen 3 Sonys in action and not one with clouding, this equals 100% good luck.  This in find hard to believe!

 

 

 

I agree. I can't see why WHF cannot 'Disprove' that all LCD's suffer from BLB in some form of another. I have proved it to myself but British people being 'British' will not except the fact because they have parted with their own hard cash. Its like a built in defence mechanism. The guys in the US on other forums tell it how it is no matter how much they have paid.

Also other Videophile sites have run tests on LCD so why can't WHF? Do a test under logged and expert conditions. LCD TV's have BLB because of the way the technology's M.O.  There is no way that they cannot have BLB in some form even if it is very weak.

Oh but go on please someone shout "Well mine is fine!" put it against a Pioneer Plasma in SD with a black background with settings on 'Vivid'.

Martin Gman:

Blueglue1:

WHF,  I am getting my 3rd Sony 40w4500 on Monday.  I do not believe that Clare got one for her father and was lucky enough to have tested 2 at WHF and have no problems with the clouding, while i have had 2 with severe clouding, this would make me extremely unlucky and yourself very lucky indeed.

Also i have been to the store where i got mine and the display model has the clouding (although hard to see with the lighting).  I believe the Sony coming Monday will have the same problem and yes you may ask why am i bothering.  Well, when the picture is good it's fantastic.  However, when on a dark scene and the clouding is showing it lets the whole telly down and spoils the experience.

Nothing will convince me that Clare has had the luck to see 3 Sonys in action with no clouding what so ever.  Why, because all LCDs over 32 inches have a little bleeding (ALL LCDs), but most are watchable and cant be seen unless under extreme conditions. 

I have seen four Sonys in action and four with clouding, that equals 100% bad luck.  Clare has seen 3 Sonys in action and not one with clouding, this equals 100% good luck.  This in find hard to believe!

 

 

 

 

I agree. I can't see why WHF cannot 'Disprove' that all LCD's suffer from BLB in some form of another. I have proved it to myself but British people being 'British' will not except the fact because they have parted with their own hard cash. Its like a built in defence mechanism. The guys in the US on other forums tell it how it is no matter how much they have paid.

Also other Videophile sites have run tests on LCD so why can't WHF? Do a test under logged and expert conditions. LCD TV's have BLB because of the way the technology's M.O.  There is no way that they cannot have BLB in some form even if it is very weak.

Oh but go on please someone shout "Well mine is fine!" put it against a Pioneer Plasma in SD with a black background with settings on 'Vivid'.

So i take it you haven't got your sony tv dilemma sorted yet then, martin?