Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

[SurrealMustard]

I'm working on this Samsung DLP and am having trouble getting it to start. It will usually light right up on the first power-up attempt of the day and stay on indefinitely, but subsequent attempts to boot it usually fail before the set gives up and blinks all three lights on the front of the case.

My first instinct was a bad ballast, but I'm not entirely sure that is the case because the set makes a humming sound while the lamp is actually lit (the best way to describe the noise would be to imagine a loud laptop CD drive loudly spinning a CD) (neither the lamp fan nor the ballast fan are responsible). Is it possible that there is a fan or color wheel (that is required to be up to speed before the set tries to light the lamp) somewhere that is being blocked or failing somehow?

[SurrealMustard]

what is the correct order?

Does anyone know what the boot sequence of these sets is? I'm thinking that if the ballast lights first, then that's probably the issue, but if the color wheel is supposed to be up to speed first, then that could instead be the culprit that holds the process up. I didn't listen very closely when it booted up successfully yesterday, so I don't remember which happened first and what little information I could locate about this on the web seems to be conflicting. I can't seem to be able to locate a service guide either.

[R_J]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

This dlp does use a color wheel. and it must start and be spinning befor the lamp will light. Color wheels going bad are quite comon in these sets. If the lamp was to light and the color wheel was not spinning the light/heat would destroy the color wheel.
I have a complete working lower chassis for this tv. The set was dropped and destroyed the screen/mirror & upper cabinet. but the rest of the set is like new.

[SurrealMustard]

differential diagnosis question

This dlp does use a color wheel. and it must start and be spinning befor the lamp will light. Color wheels going bad are quite comon in these sets. If the lamp was to light and the color wheel was not spinning the light/heat would destroy the color wheel.
I have a complete working lower chassis for this tv. The set was dropped and destroyed the screen/mirror & upper cabinet. but the rest of the set is like new.

So if the lamp is fine and the wheel isn't spinning up, then that's most likely the cause of the problem? If so, would you be willing to sell the parts from your old set?

[SurrealMustard]

wheel replacement

So if the color wheel isn't spinning at all even for a little while, then that's most likely my issue. Does anyone know of a good way to get at it (or of a service guide PDF that would tell how) in order to replace it or should I just carefully dive in?

[R_J]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

I am keeping my tv intact for now.
If the color wheel does not spin, the lamp will NOT light.
Google "HLN5065W color wheel replacement", you will see videos like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QznEaSWq-C8
Also take pictures of where things go to help in reassembly. You need to remove the lilght engine which is not that hard, once it is out of the cabinet or at least where you can work on it. Its not hard to remove the color wheel, Be carefull with the one wired plug from the color wheel as it can be hard to remove from the dmd board and some times the wires can pull out of the white plug itself.

[SurrealMustard]

no go

Got the new wheel installed, but there is no change; it still doesn't spin. Any ideas?

[R_J]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

Did you try spinning the old color wheel, does it spin freely like the new one? or was it tighter. Is the new wheel the same type as the old one (does it look the same)?
Make sure the thin ribbon is pluged in the correct way, if you plug it in backwards the contacts will not connect with the ribbon.
If you are trying this with the lamp covers off make sure you defeat the lamp switch so it thinks the cover is closed.
Are the fans turning? I think there are 3 of them
These sets can be hard to service even for an technician with proper equipment.

[SurrealMustard]

No luck

Did you try spinning the old color wheel, does it spin freely like the new one? or was it tighter.

I was thinking that when I looked at them too. The resistance in both wheels felt about the same, that was to say that they both spun quite freely by hand.

Is the new wheel the same type as the old one (does it look the same)?

They looked exactly the same to me.

Make sure the thin ribbon is pluged in the correct way, if you plug it in backwards the contacts will not connect with the ribbon.

Pretty sure I did this right too; it was bent in such a way that I don't think I could've put it in backwards without noticing the bend first.

If you are trying this with the lamp covers off make sure you defeat the lamp switch so it thinks the cover is closed.

I've got that covered with the help of a twist tie .

Are the fans turning? I think there are 3 of them

Lamp, ballast, and DMD fans are all turning when the power is on.

These sets can be hard to service even for an technician with proper equipment.

Clearly so. Is there any combination of buttons that can be pressed to get a more precise error code or are we stuck playing the guessing game?

While that link was to an advertising site with no download link, I was able to use keywords from the "preview" thumbnail to find the real document ;-).

[SurrealMustard]

Interesting discovery

An interesting discovery was made today. With the new wheel installed and the lamp removed, I attempted to power the set up and it actually spun this time. It sounded very loud, something like a laptop CD drive reading a disc at a high rate of speed and also similar to the way the old one sounded for the first few moments of being on (it quit just a second before I had my camera ready). I know what color wheels with bad bearings sound like (more of a whiny, high pitched noise) and this seems quite different. Is it possible that it might be dragging on something?

I will tear back into it and examine the area around the housing and look for potential causes of hang-ups.

Update: after going back into it, there doesn't seem to be any obvious point of potential rubbing. I put the cover/lens back over the wheel and made sure it was down straight, all the way, and in the right position. Now it starts slightly more consistently and the noise is less audible, but still present.

[SurrealMustard]

Here's where we're at, I have no idea anymore

Tested without the housing (to make sure there is no obstruction or possibility for rubbing) using both wheels and still getting the same thing - the wheel will sometimes start. If it starts, it is a bit noisy (not "bad bearing loud and noisy", just "loud laptop cd drive noisy"), but it never stops running. Seems to have a 30% success rate for starting. Could I have bought a bad wheel with the exact same obscure problem as the current one or is there likely some other problem at play here?

[SurrealMustard]

Unusual symptoms

I can't imagine that both the original and replacement wheel would exhibit the same unusual symptoms - does this mean that the DMD board is bad?

[mmartell]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

I'm guessing there is no other place for that noise to come from except the wheel ? Have you measured the voltage to the colour wheel and/or checked it for ripple ?

Failing that what else would make the wheel sound like that ? Wouldn't be surprised if you got another bad wheel there.

[SurrealMustard]

differential diagnosis

I'm guessing there is no other place for that noise to come from except the wheel ?

Is it maybe just normal operational sound? When I stand back, it's not all that noisy, and with the cover on, it would probably only be somewhat audible over the fans. How loud are properly operating color wheels supposed to be?

Have you measured the voltage to the colour wheel and/or checked it for ripple ?

No, but that's not a bad idea. What would be the best way to go about doing that?

Failing that what else would make the wheel sound like that ? Wouldn't be surprised if you got another bad wheel there.

Originally, I didn't think that it was terribly likely that we could get two wheels in a row with the same unusual and undocumented symptom, but I'll check into the logistics of a return.

[R_J]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

The color wheel should make a whine sound, if its turning its most likely ok, if it spins it should be generating a pulse back to the dmd board telling the board it is turning and to continue to the next step ie: turn on the lamp.
You could check the solder connections on the white plug for the color wheel, that plug provides the voltage to the opto and receives the pulse back from the color wheel. I do remember those connections failing, use a magnifyer to check them. the plug is surface mounted to the dmd board.
Do you get +5volts on pin 1 of plug CN107 (dmd board) after the color wheel starts?
On the ballast you should have around 380 volts on the large white plug with the black and white wires.
on the small white plug (3 wires) pin 2 is ground, pin 1 shoud be around +5 (is actually a pulsed signal) when the balast is told to turn on, pin 3 is a pulse from the ballast telling the dmd the lamp is lit.

[mmartell]

Re: Samsung DLP Projection HLN5065W won't light lamp

I've read where the sensor that provides the feedback can get dirty and cause all sorts of problems. It sits just above the wheel and has a wire running to it. Make sure it's clean.

[SurrealMustard]

differential

I've read where the sensor that provides the feedback can get dirty and cause all sorts of problems. It sits just above the wheel and has a wire running to it. Make sure it's clean.

Ah, that was indeed overlooked. I cleaned a fair amount of gunk off it, but still no luck.

Do you get +5volts on pin 1 of plug CN107 (dmd board) after the color wheel starts?
On the ballast you should have around 380 volts on the large white plug with the black and white wires.

I would imagine yes. The ballast always lights the lamp if the wheel actually starts.

The color wheel should make a whine sound, if its turning its most likely ok, if it spins it should be generating a pulse back to the dmd board telling the board it is turning and to continue to the next step ie: turn on the lamp.
You could check the solder connections on the white plug for the color wheel, that plug provides the voltage to the opto and receives the pulse back from the color wheel.

I will check that next and report back.

[SurrealMustard]

out of ideas

Any other ideas? I talked to another technician, and based on my description of the symptoms, he thought the set might have a power supply issue. Is that a possibility for this kind of problem?

You could check the solder connections on the white plug for the color wheel, that plug provides the voltage to the opto and receives the pulse back from the color wheel.

I performed a quick visual inspection and the connections look okay.

[SurrealMustard]

out of ideas - anyone else? anything?

Am I most likely looking at a bad DMD board here then?

[SurrealMustard]

anyone? :-) Bueller? ... Bueller?

Last call for diagnosees or ideas. I'm about ready to throw in the towel and give this set back to its owner and say I couldn't find a way to economically uncover the cause of the problem otherwise . I guess you can't fix 'em all, right?