Clouding/Flashlighting - does a fix actually exist?

[w3d]

I have been researching all over the internet since noticing some clouding/flashlighting on my Samsung LE40A656. I know this is expected with larger lcd screens and I really can't be bothered to contact samsung after all of the fuss with the dead pixel on my lg.
There seems to be a number of methods to reduce clouding such as loosening screws, laying the tv on its back, laying the tv on its front, massaging the screen etc.

I have loosened the screws in the corner with the 'flashlight effect' but that hasn't made the slightest difference. I tried massaging the screen a little bit with a microfibre cloth but i wasn't too comfortable with it. Is this issue likely to improve with use?
Alot of people suggest to simply 'not watch dark scenes in a dark room' lol, but I mostly watch movies on this tv and having the lights on would be the last thing i want to do. (especially with a glossy screen lol)

I would attempt the 'tv led down' fix, but i cant see how this could work. The one thing i would maybe explore more is the loosening of screws around the area as it definately looks like a problem with pressure.

What I want to know is if any of these methods actually work and more importantly if they are likely to make things worse?!

 

[stormy]

I have read alot and tried many with my Sony D3000 and nothing fixed it really, so I think its just a fault with the panel personally which cannot be fixed. Everything else seems to be a placebo effect.

I even fell for a placebo effect having 'thought' once leaving the panel face down over a couple of nights helped, but in reality, it did nothing (good or bad).

The only way to fix it imo it to get another panel.

 

[w3d]

did you get the panel replaced or did you leave it alone in the end?

 

[Bhazza]

I have the LE40A686 (pretty much the same as the LE40A656, as I understand it) and also have a bit of backlight bleeding in the top corners of my TV. I too tried loosening the screws around the corners, but this did nothing to aleviate the bleeding. Since I was convincing that it was a problem with uneven pressure at the corners, I took the entire back of the TV off to see how the LCD is clamped to the chassis of the TV. From what I could tell, the external screws play little or no part in clamping the LCD, so no amount of loosening is likely to release any uneven pressures on the LCD. As my TV is otherwise perfect, and the backlight bleed relatively minimal, I decided not to delve any deeper into the TV and risk breaking it. I do remember reading a post where someone had their red bezel frame replaced by an engineer, after which their backlight bleed appeared to have disappeared. So it is possible that taking it apart further would fix the issue, but I wasn't prepared to do this.

Also, after putting the TV back together I did see a little clouding that wasn't there before. This disappeared after a few hours and I suspect was due to the screen "saging" whilst being laid face down.

I assume you have tried optimising your settings and running your backlight at a lower level, as this will help reduce the appearance of the bleed. I think my backlight is set to 3...

How long have you had your TV? I did feel that the bleeding did get a little better over time. Whether this was due to it actually getting better, or just me becoming less obsessive over time, it's difficult to say. If you're otherwise happy with your TV, and the bleeding isn't too bad, I'd concentrate on enjoying your TV - there're certainly much worse problems your TV could have!

 

[stormy]

did you get the panel replaced or did you leave it alone in the end?

Lived with it in the end.

 

[w3d]

I've only had it about a week, I have calibrated the tv with the settings on this forum and my backlight is also at 3. I can't complain about the picture quality as I think it is amazing.
I was tempted to take the tv apart and try to ease the fixing of the lcd panel; were there any visible screws holding the panel in place when you had taken the back off? and was it easy enough to get the back off?

 

[w3d]

Would it be worth calling out samsung to look at it? The only problem is that I have read alot of threads where people have had their panels replaced only to find it is much the same or in some cases worse!
What are the chances of actually getting a completely uniform display; has anyone got one of these sets without clouding?