I've recently acquired a PJ-TX100 and I'm very pleased with it. However, after only 20 hours of use I noticed a green circular blob on the screen 20-30 pixels wide, which is visible on (only) dark pictures. This becomes more focused if I change the focus and is always at the same position on the screen irrespective of how the LCD picture is arranged (e.g. inverted). Through reading other comments in this forum I'm pretty sure this is a dust-blob. It seems that dust-blobs can be removed using an air-duster and I've seen instructions for a panasonic, but can't see any for the Hitachi.

Don't feel confident to be the first to try this so has anyone else given it a go?

By the way, seen lots of questions about connecting up a Scart to a TX100 - I've used a Scart to 4 Phone RGB Composite Sync cable from www.keene.co.uk and the picture quality is excellent. Regards.

[akarit1]

My honest advice would be to return it for a replacement as after only 20 hrs usage there should not be any blobs this quick unless it it being operated in a very dusty enviroment. Trying to open up the unit and doing the job itself may invalidate your warranty and seeing as it is a new pj on the market I doubt anyone will have got to that stage that the panny owners have got to.Given time it may be possible but if I'm correct,this pj has only been around approx 1.5 months??

[CrackDown]

Bah, ive just received my TX100 this morning, and tonight whilst watching a film for the first time I noticed a green dust blob. I don't want to have to send it back as im sure it would take weeks. Any ideas on how to shift it myself?

Thanks

[UrbanT]

Just a word of warning, I decided to send my TX100 back to Hitachi last week, for the simple removal of a small dust blob. I could have done it myself but didn't want to break the warranty on such a new product.

I had a phone call back from the service dept the same day I booked it in, to ask if I was sure it was an Hitachi projector as they didn't have such a model. Against my better judgement, after helping them find their own product, they collected it.

It came back yesterday, not only with the dusb blob still in place, but with a list of 5 other faults! Needless to say I have faxed and sent a very annoyed letter to Hitachi as the service dept wouldn't let me speak to a supervisor to explain the problems. The reply I got was 'all we did is clean it!'.

[andhoey]

just when i thought this projector was lookin good. i was thinking of buying this pj when its back in stock.is there any warranty on the bulb ? as i could only see 1 year on the pj itself. i noticed there is no warranty for pana ptae 500. mmm maybe ill just stretch to the ptae700. whats the code for the adaptor you used #1 ?

[brain]

dont let a couple of bad comment stop you from buying it - my bulb life must be reaching a couple of hundred hours now and I have no dust blobs - and i think its quite a dusty environment its sitting in. Seems strange though that people seem to be getitng dust blobs so quickly...

[CrackDown]

Tried to get into my TX100 before, and unscrewing the silver shell was fine, but getting it off from around the lens seemed impossible. Anyone else been able to do this?

[brain]

having said what i have just said - a dust blob appears!!! damn. The bulb life is at 100 hours and I have had the unit for about 6 weeks. What should I do? return the unit and have it cleaned [i hate to think how long it will take] or get the air duster out?

If i send it back do i have to pay for postage? I am assuming yes, in which case this will not be cheap considering its worth >£1000

[UrbanT]

As the projector is so new, I would be tempted to send it back. The good news is that Hitachi will arrange collection from you free of charge. If you call them before 11am, they will normally collect the same day. They will also return the projector to you within a week, so its not to long.

Just make sure you are very clear with the problem, and put a clear note in the box explaining the problem when sending it away

Chris

Originally Posted by brain

having said what i have just said - a dust blob appears!!! damn. The bulb life is at 100 hours and I have had the unit for about 6 weeks. What should I do? return the unit and have it cleaned [i hate to think how long it will take] or get the air duster out?

If i send it back do i have to pay for postage? I am assuming yes, in which case this will not be cheap considering its worth >£1000

[brain]

thanks for the info - i will give that a try. However, I'm supposed to be having a film night on the 1st October with about 13 friends coming round so I think it will have to wait until after that. I dont want to risk haivng the projector not being here for that.
[ill just make sure I pick a film without too many dark scenes where the blob will be seen] Currently its tennis ball sized [around 50 pixel diameter] green mark tha can only be seen on dark scenes. I have cleaned the lens so I know thats not the problem.

[brain]

Furthermore, how do we get these dust blobs? I thought the internals of projector were quite well sealed? I dont consider the projector to be in a terribly dusty environment [no smoke etc] but still this happens. Is this a general fault/risk with all projectors or a localised problem with this particular model?

Further research on the topic and I found these quotes on the american tx-100 fourm:

"My plan was to not remove the silver shell because of the warranty, so I just removed the filter cover and filter. Using the Air Duster I blew quite heavily inside wherever I could from the outside. Also blew some around the optics, the air duct in front, and by the dials controling the lens shift.

Imagine my surprise after turning on my lovely TX100 All the dust blobs - GONE!!!
It just feels great knowing I can get rid of the dust blobs this way if they turn up again!! "

and

"No biggie. Its just dust. open up projector, blow air over panels using compressed air. close projector up. back in business. its a hassle, but not the end of the world."

Think this is a wise option?

[UrbanT]

If my projector was older, I wouldn't hesitate to have a go myself. I did it with my old Z2 with no proiblems. The difference here is that its brand new, so
a) I want to wait until there is a proper guide printed (should appear on a forum soon, and I'm talking in english )
b) I don't want to risk blowing my warranty at this stage

The service is free and relatively quick, so there's no real need to have a go yourself at this stage IMO

[gossp]

Well 230hrs and 3 months usage of my TX100 and no dust blobs for me and no problems at all. Really loving this projector. For the money it really rocks. I have had to clean the dust filter twice (as instructed by the PJ). Seems to be needed every 100hrs. Quick and easy to do. And mine lives in a really dusty environemnt. Can't recommend it enough. Sorry to here some of you guys have suffered with this. But good to know Hitachi are willing to fix it for you quickly.

[brain]

...and another!
Today I tuned on the projector to find a second dust blob! Much worse than the first. This is extremely annoying since I am due to have about 13 people coming to watch a film within the next week! I hardly want dust blobs ruining the image.
I will phone Hitachi about this, but I dont think they would be able to collect and return the projector by the 1st October....
Somewhat tempted to use an air canister. Maybe I will speak to Hitachi support first though.

I should mention that I cleaned the air filter recently - as described in the manual.

[UrbanT]

Brain - If you speak to Hitachi, could you ask them to send mine back ASAP please? I've really missed it this weekend, and had to watch a film on a television. Almost bought a tear to my eye

[CrackDown]

Hitachi were meant to pick mine up on Friday......but nope. I notice that the dust blobs are more noticable when you have natural black set instead of off. I never know which to set mine at. Natural does give better blacks, but the colours seem to look dull, and if I set it off the colours look great but the blacks suffer. Hey ho.

[UrbanT]

I have to say that Hitachi have picked up my projector twice, on the day promised. I have so far always delivered back when promised. Mine isn't due back until Wednesday, its just that I want it now!

My first encounter with dust blob is at 138 lamp hours. Retailer will contact me after contacting Hitachi. Hopefully I get a replacement-PJ, since I can't do without ;-)
Had earlier problems with my Pioneer 575 DVD-player and my screen, so this is the last part of my HT setup that could possibly 'break down'.
I think when it's repaired I immediately installe an adequate dustcover for this.
No dusty environment, but it appears that any dust enters the machine anyhow.
I guess it's from the exhaust instead of from the filter-side.
Anyone a DIY-dust-cleaning tutorial for this PJ?

[UrbanT]

Originally Posted by j0p3Y

My first encounter with dust blob is at 138 lamp hours. Retailer will contact me after contacting Hitachi. Hopefully I get a replacement-PJ, since I can't do without ;-)
Had earlier problems with my Pioneer 575 DVD-player and my screen, so this is the last part of my HT setup that could possibly 'break down'.
I think when it's repaired I immediately installe an adequate dustcover for this.
No dusty environment, but it appears that any dust enters the machine anyhow.
I guess it's from the exhaust instead of from the filter-side.
Anyone a DIY-dust-cleaning tutorial for this PJ?

Just a few comments.

Firstly, you should not describe this as a repair, it is simply a clean and no more

Secondly, I think its a mistake to send your projector away to Hitachi for a dust blob, based upon peoples experiences so far.

Thirdly, there is virtually no chance of getting a TX100 as a replacement machine, a TX10 (no DVI) if you are lucky

Fourth. Its highly unlikely you will stop dust getting into the machine, as there are several places of entry including around the lens housing. Any extra material around the filters/exhausts may cause excessive heat

Finally, there is a method that works quite well for dust removal. Assuming the machine is standing on your table, remove the dust filter (and clean). Then use a can of compressed (keeping upright at all times), and stick the straw into the gap between the top housing and plastic internals. Spray around liberally moving the tip of the straw left and right, and in and out. This will blow air over the LCD panels and hopefully remove the dust. Reassemble.

Hope this helps

oh yes, Repaircenter (which here in Holland does all Hitachi's beamers) said to me that I'd have to pay >€ 300,- to have the unit cleaned!!!
It isn't under warranty (I own the beamer just 3/4 years) so NO WAY am I going to do that.
I asked the retailer to send me a better filter material (I read that the more recent versions of the PJ TX100 have better filter material).
Hope that helps
Just have to dust the internals of the projector still..... anyone a small tutorial??

[PJTX100]

Originally Posted by j0p3Y

It isn't under warranty (I own the beamer just 3/4 years) so NO WAY am I going to do that.

eh?

If you mean three or four years, it hasn't been out that long!

If you mean three quarters of a year, it should still be under warranty!

Originally Posted by j0p3Y

I asked the retailer to send me a better filter material (I read that the more recent versions of the PJ TX100 have better filter material).

It looks to be an extra layer of something you put on the plastic filter compartment door, but it looks a p1$$ poor compromise to me TBH. Gave up asking Hitachi for one...PJ

I meant three quarters indeed... Helpdesk said this wasn't under warranty....
I just try spraying clean air inside the machine, hope that helps....

[CrackDown]

I've got 4 of these little buggers now. I had 3 yesterday and tried blowing compressed air into it, which gave it a fourth. Anyone know of any companies where you can just walk in with the projector, pay a fee and collect it the next day cleaned? Or how about any instruction on taking it apart so I can do it myself?

Thanks

[PJTX100]

If it happens to me the first thing I'd do is take the bulb assembly out and see if that gives any better access.

I'd also be thinking about thich way the air was passing the lens in normal operation and try to clean it out by getting the air flow in the opposite direction. If you do it in the same direction it may well be likely to shift along the dust which hasn't quite reached the lens area yet.

I read about someone successfully cleaning a TX by use of a vacuum cleaner and a bit of taping up here and there!

Getting the case off is by all accounts not a task to be taken lightly...PJ

I just bought a can of compressed air (or exactly, as the writing on the can says: "dry inert gas").
Brand is 'Dust off -360' of 'kontakt chemie' (product is from belgium). Be aware that you specificly ask for dry gas, because otherwise you get bigger problems having drops of any fluid getting on your lens-system.
I detached the filter from my projector, after which I randomly sprayed the gas through the opening, moving the nozzle from left to right over and over.
The large blobs disappeared.
Warning:
only use the gas on a projector that hasn't been used for a while, since the gas gets really cold after a while. On a warm/hot bulb this will be very dangerous (ie your bulb might explode). Also, do give your bulb the time to acclimatize after spraying the cold air.