Help! What's going on with this Panasonic P65ZT60?

[PlazMan]

Hello Everyone! Just joined. First Post.

I just recently put a deposit down on a Holy Grail 65" Panasonic ZT60 plasma that a guy was selling. He just called me to say he moved the TV downstairs and tried powering it up to verify it was still working and something strange happened. The thing powered up and he got the Studio Master Panel splash screen like normal but then he got the second funky looking screen you see in the next photo afterwards. He tried plugging in his laptop into a few of the HDMI ports and then he tried plugging an Apple TV into a few of the HDMI ports and couldn't get them to display. The screen stayed like the bottom photo no matter what HDMI port he tried. Hitting the menu button on the remote didn't work either. I'm getting him to try a different HDMI cable to eliminate that from being part of the problem.

What is going on with this set? He said he just watched a movie on it last week and it was just fine. All he did was disconnect it from his system and gently move it down the stairs into his basement. I'm hoping it's just a settings issue or something and not a board failure. - TIA

 

[mikej]

If pressing the Menu button on the remote doesn't work, then it'll be nothing to do with a faulty HDMI cable because that should bring up the menu no matter what input is selected. If he can't even get to the menu to do a factory reset then that's not a good sign, unfortunately.

It may be that something has been disturbed during the move but, either way, that doesn't look like a trivial issue to me - if it's not something that can be sorted quickly, then you should ask for your deposit back until the issue is resolved but even if it is, personally, I would walk away from this one.

 

[PlazMan]

I'm getting some indications from elsewhere that moving it may have caused a connection to come loose on the HDMI input board or possibly that the HDMI input board has failed. Does that sound like it makes sense?

If it's the former, it should be an easy fix and if it's the latter there is a trade-in service available on those boards so I could remove the board, send it into those guys and get a replacement for it.

The seller has refunded my money and is offering to let me have the set for free so I have nothing to lose other than a 3 hour drive one way to pick it up. It will give me a chance to visit some relatives I like spending time with so that in and of itself will make the drive and the gas used up worthwhile. If I don't take it, the seller is just going to recycle it and we'll never know if that gorgeous panel can be saved.

What do people think? Worth doing?

 

[JayCee]

All you’ve got is the seller’s word that it was moved “gently”
Yes, if you're getting it for free, by all means take it and try it when you get home.

 

[SonOfSJ]

@PlazMan How did you get on with the Panasonic ZT65 (which is 60 rather than 65 inches)?

 

[PlazMan]

@SonOfSJ The TV is still at my nephew's place a little over 3 hours drive away. Haven't had time to go up there yet. Hoping to go in June.

The TV is 65" BTW. In North America the models were VT60 and ZT60 not 65 and the ZT only came in 65". The model number of the set is TC-P65ZT60. In Europe, things were a little different I guess.

 

[SonOfSJ]

Ah yes, in America the size was different, my mistake!

Hope it lives up to expectations when you finally get to play with it!

Here's a review of the British version Home Cinema Choice review.