[kungflumaster]

Hi all,
Picked up the above projector last weekend. So far I've been reasonably successful (for a noob) in getting it up and running.

I can just about get the convergence set up to something acceptable, but then it's getting a little temperamental.
Closing the lid seems to trip the power and cause the projector to reset.
When it comes back on, the picture is scrambled. Switching inputs a few times usually fixes it, but then I've lost the convergence settings I've just spent half an hour playing with.

From looking around the forum, I believe this indicates a problem with the horizontal sync board? Can anyone recommend what in particular I should be looking for if I pop it out to check?

Cheers,
Jonny

[Chris Frost]

Before you go diving in swapping boards it is worth doing some basic trouble-shooting first.

• Power resetting on closing the lid:

Check the hinges. If they've worked loose then the lid won't be aligned correctly. What happens then is that the lid fouls the power switch as you close the projector - Hey Presto - a power reset!!

• Losing the convergence settings:

You can't lose the convergence settings - they're on manual adjusters; on that big flat board with all the little icons. What you can lose is the deflection settings (DEFL). These are the master controls for picture shape, size and blanking that are stored for each of the five different aspect ratio memories per signal type. You have 5 for PAL, and 5 more for NTSC. This is what the Aspect Ratio Flag means under the F column in Memory Manager. The reason you'd lose those settings is that they weren't saved before the power is interrupted.

The thing to do is to make it a regular habit to save any settings you do with the remote. You do this by pressing MEMO and then following the onscreen instructions. If you accidentally change source, or the source goes to standby, or you lose power, or switch off without saving then anything after the last save is lost.

• Picture scrambled:

It's worth checking the memory manager and getting rid of any unused memories. The way Memory Manager works is that it sees the signal by its refresh rate (50Hz for PAL, 60Hz for NTSC) and then selects the first memory bank it finds that matches the refresh rate. After that you use the Aspect Ratio button to cycle through the other matching memory banks. Here's a useful set up tip: If you want the projector to default to 16:9 for PAL (flagged W) then make that the first of the 50Hz banks in Memory Manager.

Once you have eliminated these as posssible causes of trouble then you can look at board swaps with a bit more confidence.

[kungflumaster]

Awesome! Thanks, Chris. I'll check those out before I start poking around with things I might break...

I had a feeling the power reset problem *might* be down to the lid catching on the switch but it was hard to be sure. Good to have confirmation from someone who knows what he's talking about though.

The convergence thing is still confusing me a little though. I spent a fair bit of time tweaking the manual adjusters to get something I was happy with, but after the power cycle everything was back out of line* again, which is why I was assuming the settings were lost. Does that make any sense?

I haven't looked in the stored memory settings, so that looks like a sensible thing to check for my scrambled picture issue.

Thanks again for your help, will let you know how I get on

*Rereading that, it sounds a little vague. What happened was, I used the manual convergence adjusters to line up the 3 images using the grid test pattern. Closing the lid caused a power cycle after which the 3 colour grids were no longer aligned. Makes sense that this might be getting messed up if there's bad info in the saved settings though, I'll check it out.

[Chris Frost]

It's important to start with a clean sheet when doing a set up. That's why I suggested clearing Memory Manager. But Memory Manager only stores Deflection settings and the values for brightness contrast colour sharpness and tint.

The convergence panel isn't digital, so it is not "storing data" that can be corrupted. It's analogue. Each pot is setting a resistance value for that individual circuit. In a broad sense you can say that unless the pot position changes then the value will remain the same.

You need to work through in logical steps - get the position right, get the angles right, then get the lenses toed in so that the centre cross test pattern aligns in the centre with the projetor working in 4:3 mode on the N Normal aspect ratio. You'll need a source image to start with too. I always start with NTSC first, then do PAL after.

You'll need a long reach Philips No2 screwdriver (go to Halfords), also to reset the deflection controls to their mid points, and you'll need the convergence controls in their mid positions too. There's a short cut for this last bit. Have a look on the convergence board for JP101, 102, 103 (or switches on later 350s). When the jumpers for the Red and Blue channels only are shorted (or switched) these will by pass the convergence controls. The effect is like putting all the pots to the mid positions.

Do the lens toe in, then remove the shorting links. Now when you make any adjustments you are only correcting for convergence error and not lens angle. If you have cleared the Memory Manager then there should be only one memory bank in there. With the same source still running try powering off then back on. Now if you see a big convergence shift you'll know it is probably a projector issue.

[BobbyBlaze]

Hey Chris,

did you ever try NTSC DVD's at 576i 47.952 hz from a HTPC or scaler on a 350? I did and thought the extra sharpness, less line structure and lack of pulldown really helped but have never heard of anyone else trying the same.

Thoughts?

Rob

[Chris Frost]

AFAIK most Lumagens, DVDOs, Key Digitals or Quadscans I've used won't output an interlaced image at 576, so there's never been an opportunity with a 350 to try a higher interlaced resolution by dropping the refresh rate.

The benefits of running NTSC at 48Hz (or better still at 72Hz) is pretty well known though, just not usually with a baseband projector.

[BobbyBlaze]

Didn't know that about VP's. Stands to reason, I suppose. They are high end gear after all.

I did take RGBHV 576i 47.952hz out of a PC to compare the NTSC version of "Apocalypto" with the 480i 60hz output of a pioneer 737 DVD player which I held in high regard as far as PQ was concerned but the PC output kicked it's butt for the reasons outlined above. In particular, the ability to close up some of the line structure of the 350 by playing NTSC DVD's at PAL resolution made a dramatic improvement IMO. A multiple of the native frame rate didn't hurt either.

[kungflumaster]

Hi again.
So after sitting unused in my living room for 6 months or so, I finally motivated myself to clear out the spare room and get this set up properly.
Think leaving it for a while must have helped - the instructions above made a lot more sense to me this time around, possibly helped by my actually reading the bloody manual

Looks like your advice was spot on there Chris. I was a bit confused about the difference between convergence and deflection. Once I finally twigged how to save the deflection settings (which took an embarassingly long time) things went a lot more smoothly, and I've now got the picture to a state I'd consider 'acceptable'. Still needs some fine tuning before I'll be happy with it, but at least there's something to watch until I really get the hang of things.

The problem with the picture scrambling's still there though. Seems to be an intermittent thing, which usually goes away after I switch inputs a few times or shut the power off for a minute or so. Any ideas?