Teac Lcd Brilliant

[Brian McGee]

Read up about the LG issues with Channel 9 before you jump at that option.

The truth is that at <3k there are compromises across the board.

This TEAC is a huge spec for very little dollars, but there do seem to be issues. Mine blew a power board last week and now it's off to the repair shop. Luckily I got the 5 yr warranty too and I can envisage the set being back and forward if other peoples experiences are anything to go by.

It could be that this set is a lemon. It scares me that TEAC no longer sell it. With those specs it would surely be a big seller at sub 3k?

As has been said already this set rocks when it works. Here's hoping I get it back working and it stays that way.

[strange_one]

It could be that this set is a lemon. It scares me that TEAC no longer sell it. With those specs it would surely be a big seller at sub 3k?

As has been said already this set rocks when it works. Here's hoping I get it back working and it stays that way.

I was told by someone at Teac that the reason they no longer produce this model is because they couldn't continue to compete. Then again there's probably other reasoning behind it.

All I know is I'm never throwing out the box it came in because, as you said, the bugger is probably going to have to be carted off for repair several times over the warranty period.

[davep]

took a few pics of my tv/setup here

These TV's are now off the TEAC main website (in archive), so I guess no real news or updates. Still enjoying mine plenty though.

Sorry for the poor quality pics - I have a semi-solid camera, but really struggle to get good photo's and resize them :/

[Guest SpaceFrog]

My Local JB Hi-Fi has a 3735A for $1499, it's their display model.

I'm thinking of getting it.

But is there a firmware upgrade for 1:1 pixel mapping on the 37" model ?

I was just playing with my brothers 3735A, via HDMI and overscan really sucks.

Am going to be using it as a monitor primarily.

EDIT:

Just called Teac, and they said a firmware upgrade was available, however it would most likely be at my expense.

They said that most of the people who had the upgrade done, had it downgraded later. Apparently the pixel mapping affects all inputs? I was under the impression that it only affected HDMI.

Can anyone confirm this?

Edited October 15, 2007 by SpaceFrog

[strange_one]

My Local JB Hi-Fi has a 3735A for $1499, it's their display model.

I'm thinking of getting it.

But is there a firmware upgrade for 1:1 pixel mapping on the 37" model ?

I was just playing with my brothers 3735A, via HDMI and overscan really sucks.

Am going to be using it as a monitor primarily.

EDIT:

Just called Teac, and they said a firmware upgrade was available, however it would most likely be at my expense.

They said that most of the people who had the upgrade done, had it downgraded later. Apparently the pixel mapping affects all inputs? I was under the impression that it only affected HDMI.

Can anyone confirm this?

been a while for this thread! I never had the update done but as far as I remember the pixel mapping did affect all inputs.

I'm surprised you found one of these, even if it was just a display model. I'd try get a few more $$ knocked off it if you ended up deciding on the purchase, it's obviously been there a while and the model is well over a year old at this point. Hopefully someone with the update done and still reading the board will chime in for further info regarding the firmware

[davep]

The update I have only affects the HDMI input. The overscan is still there on component inputs at least - I havnt bothered checking if there is overscan on composite and s-video inputs although I assume it's there. It does have a VGA input - if you read the thread, some people have had sucess (albeit through trials and tribulations) obtaining 1920x1080 over VGA. Note that the TEAC panel will not accept 1920x1080 over VGA with the 360, but 1080i over component works fine.

My firmware # is 4-PC21#-0.0.7-57-061010-3.0.15

MCU #: 2.48

To hop in the service menu, press and hold the source button.

I recommend when you get in there, turning the peaking to zero - its basically a sharpening tool. I also turned the normal menu sharpness to zero.

I have had the 42" for a shade over a year now, and still love it.

[spoco2]

Just to throw in that I still have my 32" model, and have for, oh look, it's been a year now ... anyway, I am still amazed by the image on this unit, great sets.

[davep]

I still havnt figured out if any of the settings other than peaking in the service menu actually do anything If you do, let me know

[spoco2]

I still havnt figured out if any of the settings other than peaking in the service menu actually do anything If you do, let me know

Here's what I could work out when I played around with the menus

Edited October 17, 2007 by spoco2

[drsmith]

I recommend when you get in there, turning the peaking to zero - its basically a sharpening tool. I also turned the normal menu sharpness to zero.

I have had the 42" for a shade over a year now, and still love it.

Out of curiosity, does reducing the peaking to zero fix the text distortion issues that I observed when I briefly owned the 42" late last year ?

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=44163

[davep]

Fix 100%, probably not, I'll try and post up some pics of the same test image you used when I get home.

It is hugely better than factory settings though. It was quite noticeable on teh 360's dash over component, but its pretty much gone when adjusting to zero. The peaking effect is shown on a DVE test pattern, and they recommend reducing the peaking and sharpness to eliminate it.

The reduction of sharpness and peaking has resulted in (obviously) a softer image, but one that I much much prefer.

[strange_one]

dave mate I've been meaning to ask for a while, in the VGA Window menu do you have any idea what Phase is or does? I turn it up or down and don't really notice anything happen, just curious

And yeah after almost a year now I'm still happy with it and thank christ it hasn't broken down after that bad period I had from Dec to Feb. I'll admit though that I spend some time looking at new LCD models and admiring how far the black level technology has come on some of them, the Teac will suffice for a while but now and then the black levels get to me

[davep]

I have a good link @ work saved. I'll send it on tommorrow.

[Guest SpaceFrog]

I ended up getting the teac 37" on Wednesday.

It's pretty good. The Salesman wouldn't budge on the price

Overall I'm pretty happy with it.

Unfortunately to fix the overscan, TEAC are going to charge $120, and i have to take it to tullamarine, which isn't that far for me. but I'd have to take time off work. And it's too heavy to lift by myself.

One gripe is that when i use composite input with my xbox (original not 360) I get these vertical lines kinda, they're about 2cm in width and it's like a gradient pattern. I saw the same thing while it was on display, but the aspect ratio was also wrong, so we put it down to a zoom setting.

When i change the xbox av cable to some cheap one with S-Video The vertical banding goes away. however the cheapass cable gives off a crosshatching effect especially during movement. It got a bit better when i fiddled with the cable, so I'll have another go at it.

[mimwdv]

Just wanted to give a plug for TEAC service. I've had an odd problem with my 3735a pretty much since I got it, but I didn't follow it up until a month before the warranty expired, when it was getting much worse and I figured I'd better get it fixed while I could. The right half of the screen was subtly lighter than the left - and sometimes it was MUCH lighter.

It took the service agents and TEAC 6 weeks and much head scratching before it was resolved - by them giving me a new 4235A in exchange!! Now all I have to figure out is how to fit it into my tiny livingroom - I'm sitting 2m away from it at the moment, and it feels enormous - especially since I'd been using an old 17" CRT monitor while I was without!

[strange_one]

Just wanted to give a plug for TEAC service. I've had an odd problem with my 3735a pretty much since I got it, but I didn't follow it up until a month before the warranty expired, when it was getting much worse and I figured I'd better get it fixed while I could. The right half of the screen was subtly lighter than the left - and sometimes it was MUCH lighter.

It took the service agents and TEAC 6 weeks and much head scratching before it was resolved - by them giving me a new 4235A in exchange!! Now all I have to figure out is how to fit it into my tiny livingroom - I'm sitting 2m away from it at the moment, and it feels enormous - especially since I'd been using an old 17" CRT monitor while I was without!

Very good of them, although 6 weeks is a bit long, at least they came through with something. I assume it would be a refurb 42", or does it look brand new? I didn't think they'd have any new ones left anywhere

My 4235A turned 1 year old a couple of weeks back, how the time does fly

[PhilLucky]

Hi all,

Just encase anyone is looking at buying one of these units I'd advise them to stay well clear of TEAC.

After originally reading this forum I purchased the 4235A and found the following problems on first use:

1. Stuck pixels viewable 5 metres away

2. Unusuable internal tuner

3. Faulty VGA input

I contacted Retravison (Hannams Retravision Northland), who forced me to contact TEAC customer service.

TEAC told me to transport the big screen to them directly, after reminded them of their first year onsite policy they agreed to pick it up, but would not give a time, hence I had to take a full day off work to meet them at home.

Once the TEAC technician arrived he refused to take the unit, sighting that even though he agreed the screen was no good, he knew TEAC would not repair pixel defects (no less than 20 dead). (mind you I'd logged the EXACT

problem with TEAC phone support and they original agreed to fix it and did not quote a 20 dead pixel policy.)

After a big argument I called the Retravision Store manager (Con I think his name was) and reminded him I had a 7 day moneyback agreement when I purchased. At the point he refused the refund and told me they would speak to Teac instead and asked me to trust him, he would get it replaced with a new one and all issues resolved. Several days later I again had to take another half day off work and meet the same TEAC technician.

New screen came back a couple weeks later, and it had the following.

1. Was now a second hand panel, dust, scratches and crayons marks on it.

2. Touch panel on screen non-functional.

3. Internal tuner still usuable

4. VGA input unstable at higher supported frequencies

5. No fix for overscan, technican said this forum was wrong, and adjusting overscan caused other problems with device compatibility, so he decided not to do the update of firmware. (Sounded like nonsense, because obviously others on this forum had it done ok)

This time I called retravision and they informed me that they 7 day return policy had now expired!!! (remember I was waiting on teac in the meantime) This time I called TEAC's Melbourne Service manager (Michael I believe was his

name). I stated all the new problems then instead of contacting me he contacted Retravision and told them he would NOT replace the screen. Retravision offered me an old demo model that had in store (running all day every day and in average condition) as option but would otherwise not help resolve the issue any further.

I decided not to force the issue, as the stuck pixels were far more critical to me than the other issues. So I gave up on teac and just kept the second hand screen.

I'd been ok with it until the last couple months. The screen colour has been failing, resulting in a greenish/yellow defects on the screen especially in the first half hour of use. Now if I want it fixed, I again face the unknown on

1) whether they will fix it

2) if a replacement will have dead/stuck pixels

This is a ridiculous position to be in particularly considering the cost of the purchase? something like $3500 for this piece of junk? My next option will be going to court with TEAC.

Again I advise readers to be careful if you are talking to either Retravision or TEAC about a purchase like this. TEAC has to be the worst company I have dealt with so far regarding electronics.

[davep]

These havnt been sold for at least 6 months I think, so I doubt theres much chance of new buyers picking one up. And if I were to spend $3.5k on a TV now, theres quite a few panels in front of the TEAC that i'd buy first. I bought one of these about 16 months ago, for about $3.2k, which at the time was a solid price, the 40" x-series was over 5k etc.

Anyway, they have a 2 year warranty, so don't give up, if the colour issue is there for the first 30 minutes, its pretty easy to prove. Also hit up the Department of Fair Trading. Realistically, you should have gotten your money back the first time. I doubt TEAC are keen to replace these as there wont be any left to replace them with, being discontinued, leaving you with a repair option only. I'd almost try and get a refund, although assuming you purchased back in Nov '06, when you joined the forum, I doubt thats an option.

On a personal note, my 42" one has 1 stuck bright pixel, which, to me, is unnoticable. I have never been able to get 1920x1080 over the 360, but lower resolutions were doable. I've never tried connecting a PC.

I do have the newer firmware on my TV, which appears to eliminate overscan on HDMI only (not other inputs) and also appears to correct the input display when inputting 1080p via component, so it comes up with "1080p" when you push the display button on the remote.

One of the members has a link to fair trading in their signature, and I think theres an instructional post in another forum. Give it a shot and don't let either TEAC or Retravision mess you about. Its still well within the warranty.

[spoco2]

You should really be pushing for money back from Retravision on this. You asked for it within the 7 days, and it's their stuffing around that has let that 7 day period expire. Teac is buck passing and handling things very poorly as well, but really, Retravision should just take the unit back, hand over your money and deal with Teac themselves.

You were sold a defective unit, you should just get your money back via any means neccessary and buy another brand of tv. For that sort of money you can definitely get one of any number of units.

Not from Retravision mind you.

Just to balance things I've had my 32" Teac for, erm... over a year at least with zero problems at all with it... still love the unit and its image, and am incredibly happy with the $1400 spent on it.

[drsmith]

This is a ridiculous position to be in particularly considering the cost of the purchase? something like $3500 for this piece of junk? My next option will be going to court with TEAC.

Again I advise readers to be careful if you are talking to either Retravision or TEAC about a purchase like this. TEAC has to be the worst company I have dealt with so far regarding electronics.

If memory serves me correct the 4235A came with a 3 year warranty.

[drsmith]

Double post.

The hampsters powering the server seem to be somewhat out of breath at the moment.

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?s=&...st&p=902559

[davep]

Just checked the sticker (which I stuck into the instruction book after taking it off the TV), and you're right, 3 years. The manual only says 1 year, which is, interesting.

[drsmith]

A TEAC 68cm CRT I purchased several years had documentation that stated a one year warranty but in actual fact it had a 3 year warranty. I got caught by this and paid for a repair (not by TEAC) when the unit was between one and three years old. The same component failed twice more, and TEAC repaired the unit on both occasions under the 3 year warranty.

For anyone who has a TEAC TV that develops a fault between 1 and 3 years it would be worth checking with TEAC even if the warranty documentation states only one year. At the time of one of the above repairs by TEAC I was advised that TEAC warranty all their TV's for 3 years.

[strange_one]

Just checked the sticker (which I stuck into the instruction book after taking it off the TV), and you're right, 3 years. The manual only says 1 year, which is, interesting.

hello thread! missed this update last week but let me chime in anyway. I noted the 1 or 3 year warranty thing when I bought my panel. I called Teac and the customer service girl told me it was 1, then I pointed out why did you put a sticker on the TV that clearly says 3 and the reply was along the lines of 'oh well it must be 3 then'. Now that many of us are out of the first year warranty I'd hope they wouldn't stuff any of us around for a free repair, I left my sticker on there even.

I'm confused by PhilLucky's post, is he talking about a purchase recently or one that he did back when registering in 2006? The fact that he found one for sale in a Retravision anywhere nowadays is pretty remarkable. The store was definitely in the wrong though and should have agreed to a refund or swap for another brand without much hassle, sounds like he got a bad guy to deal with.

When Teac took my unit in for repair it came back in pretty much the same condition. I was particular about any scratches done to the thing as the outsource company I dealt with before put several marks all over the screen and then denied it, so I did a condition report with the courier who took it to Teac. I was happy with their repair, although it took a while longer than it should have and lots of phone calls. That said I wouldn't be looking forward to going through it all again ever.

The 20 dead or stuck pixel thing is interesting, I enquired about it upon purchase and was told at the time that Teac's official policy was 7 dead and the panel was no good.

It's incredible what around 3k can buy now compared to when people in this thread bought theirs in 06, back the though a 42" LCD that could 'maybe' do 1080p was a rarity unless you went for a Sony X over 5k. 14 months on I'm still happy with my Teac, haven't watched any HD DVD on it still but the FTA HD channels look fantastic and it is great for 360 gaming. No adjustable backlight is still the biggest downfall of the panel for me, the blacks are really bad sometimes but I can live with it until an upgrade

[PhilLucky]

Hi thread,

My unit is around the 12 months or so, bought it just before Teac pulled

them from the market probably. Same experience with the warranty, was told

1 year by teac and my manual also says 1 year, but I have a sticker somewhere

that says 3 years. This was some sort of bonus warranty, so you need proof of

it to get it otherwise you'll get shafted by teac.

Teac Dead pixel policy was all over the place. Retravision said zero dead

pixels when I bought it, TEAC call centre did not know, TEAC regional manager

said somewhere around 7-12 and the dude named theo said you'd be luck to have

it fixed if there were 20 while laughing at the same time. In short, I think

it depends on who you get. In any case, those of you who have had stuck

pixels know that once you have a small cluster, it stands out like a dent on

your car. Expecially using something like a media centre and a uniformed

colour backgrounds or night scenes. I guess if your vision is not too good,

then you won't care too much, but then would you spend the extra cash on a

1080P screen??

Also, thanks for the advice everyone, but I've tried using Consumer Affairs

in the past and they are as good as useless, as they have no power to enforce

the law. It will have to go to court to resolve and I seriously don't think

I will gain back all the time I would invest in a court case against TEAC or

Retravision. If only we had enforced lemon laws in this country... P.S. I did also

ask Retravision at the time to swap it for a Samsung and I pay the difference

but they would not go with that. They are a real bad bunch.

The screen colour problem is currently intermittent in nature, but it it

goes completely then I will have take it back for repair. (I think its

worse if the TV is turned off at the power plug and left to cool down)

The longer I wait the better I think, as given Teac are not making screens

of this size I have a fair chance at a refund, right? So maybe I can get my

cash back some day and go get a nice Samsung or Sony. I'd love to have

something where the blacks were black, not the fuzzy white-grey of the TEAC.

(plus maybe Samsung might extend their zero dead pixel policy to LCD TV's

one day soon???)