Lamp problems (flashing intermittently) and display compressed...
Just in case anyone is having problems with their Vivitek DLP projector -- mine is a D825MS, about three years old. It's provided yeoman service up until now... I didn't really WANT to replace it, and I couldn't find any advice online about this particular malfunction. Vivitek's apparently lousy customer service didn't bother to return my request for assistance, even though I know they received it and got an initial "we got your note" reply. It's been over a week since I wrote to them -- I am assuming at this point I am not going to hear from them. That will be a factor in any future decisions I make about an eventual replacement. Even a "Gee, we don't have a clue unless we look at it" would have been better than "Worm, you do not exist." That's OK though, I have a memory like an elephant... and a mouth like the neighborhood gossip.
I use the projector in my classes -- with PowerPoint programs and videos, etc. It's been malfunctioning lately - it's lamp has been flashing on and off, and eventually, the picture "scrunched" in on itself (compressed drastically). So my first thought was that this was its way of telling me the lamp was going. Heavy sigh. They're pretty expensive, as you probably know.
I searched the problem online, hoping to find some direction from others who had experienced the same problem. I didn't find much about this specific problem -- one user mentioned that the "auto" picture function could cause the flashing if it was not working properly. I figured it was either the lamp or the VGA cable -- and I went to the store (and I looked at new projectors just in case). Just about the time I thought it might not be bad to have a brand new LED-lamp projector ($600) with a 30,000 hour lamp-life expectancy, I brought a new VGA cable home to try that possible "fix." It was the cheapest possible fix and I was hopin'. Bingo.
Apparently, the cable started deteriorating some time ago - I think maybe it was the cause of my inability to use some PowerPoint programs that I initially thought were just memory hogs. A techie told me my laptop should be fully capable of running those programs (enough RAM, etc) -- so I thought maybe the programs I had were themselves the problem (glitchy in some way) -- but APPARENTLY, the VGA cable was not transmitting the data well enough -- and when it got even worse, it couldn't even carry enough data to support a static display.
If the fix lasts, proves permanent, then I saved perhaps $600 - $700 with a $24 cable ('cause I WAS really looking at that fancy, miniature LED projector with a 30,000 hour lamp...) I probably could have gotten that $24 cable on Amazon for half the cost had I not been so impatient. But I'm a happy camper, and my projector seems like it is back to normal operating condition. Can't beat that!
[Update: August 29, 2013 - Vivitek has never responded. Jeers to them!]
[ Update: January 14, 2014 - Never got any response from Vivitek. The projector continues to function normally. Yay!]
[Update: January 27, 2015 - projector still functioning normally!]
I searched the problem online, hoping to find some direction from others who had experienced the same problem. I didn't find much about this specific problem -- one user mentioned that the "auto" picture function could cause the flashing if it was not working properly. I figured it was either the lamp or the VGA cable -- and I went to the store (and I looked at new projectors just in case). Just about the time I thought it might not be bad to have a brand new LED-lamp projector ($600) with a 30,000 hour lamp-life expectancy, I brought a new VGA cable home to try that possible "fix." It was the cheapest possible fix and I was hopin'. Bingo.
Apparently, the cable started deteriorating some time ago - I think maybe it was the cause of my inability to use some PowerPoint programs that I initially thought were just memory hogs. A techie told me my laptop should be fully capable of running those programs (enough RAM, etc) -- so I thought maybe the programs I had were themselves the problem (glitchy in some way) -- but APPARENTLY, the VGA cable was not transmitting the data well enough -- and when it got even worse, it couldn't even carry enough data to support a static display.
If the fix lasts, proves permanent, then I saved perhaps $600 - $700 with a $24 cable ('cause I WAS really looking at that fancy, miniature LED projector with a 30,000 hour lamp...) I probably could have gotten that $24 cable on Amazon for half the cost had I not been so impatient. But I'm a happy camper, and my projector seems like it is back to normal operating condition. Can't beat that!
[Update: August 29, 2013 - Vivitek has never responded. Jeers to them!]
[ Update: January 14, 2014 - Never got any response from Vivitek. The projector continues to function normally. Yay!]
[Update: January 27, 2015 - projector still functioning normally!]
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