LCD TV Problems

Stuck pixels usually occur due to manufacturing defects. They will appear to be grey, yellow, red, green or blue. There are a lot of ways to fix stuck pixels on an LCD TV screen. But only very few are safe to try. The most common method to correct a stuck pixel is what we call ‘The pen prick’ method. Take a damp washcloth (damp, not dripping wet) and place it over the screen after switching if off. Take a stylus or a blunt pencil if you don’t have one and apply pressure exactly on the stuck pixel through the cloth. After holding the stylus this way for a couple of seconds, switch on the TV. The stuck pixel should be gone.

If it doesn’t work..
Repeat the process with a little more pressure.

This problem is mostly due to a loose connection. Turn off the power completely, disconnect all the cables and reconnect each one of them making sure that you plug them in to the right input. This should mostly solve the problem.

If it doesn’t work..
Iit’s likely that the lamp or the rear projection has been damaged. Well, there’s nothing you can do now. Call in the experts.

The brightness and contrast of brand new LCD TVs will generally be set at the maximum possible level such that they grab the attention of any unassuming wayfarer. Well, its a sales tactic and works most of the time. But back home, under normal lighting conditions, factory settings could almost give you a heart attack! Under such settings, colours could look way too gaudy and artificially-enhanced.

This can be amended with a few tweaks of the ‘Colours’ and ‘Hue’ controls. Most LCD TVs come with several ‘Picture Modes’ such as Movie, Sports, Normal, Game etc, of which ‘Game’ and ‘Sports’ will give the overall picture an overdose of colour. ‘Movie’ and ‘Normal’ modes are safe bets for everyday viewing. You can also try a calibration DVD to optimise the picture completely.

Poor audio quality is quite a common problem with LCD TVs. In case you’ve connected external speakers, make sure they are in the right setting. HDMI cables can also disturb the audio. Check if the cable has worn out, not plugged in properly or is kinked. Replace it with a good quality one if so. Poor quality HDMI cables are bound to give you a lot of problems. Also, use HDMI cables of the minimum possible length – the shorter it is, the better. In case the audio just disappears without warning, try unplugging the power cable from the TV and plug it in again after 30 seconds. The audio should be better once you switch the TV back on.

If it doesn’t work..
LCD TVs of several leading manufacturers tend to have a few hiccups with audio. So in most cases, scratchy background tones and flat voices will be due to the built-in speakers themselves. Only a professional hand can help you with this.

Motion blur is known to be one of the most commonest of problems associated with LCD TVs. The extent to which motion blur gets at a viewer varies from person to person, for some might not even notice it, taking it for dramatic effects. LCD TVs that have refresh rates of 60Hz tend to suffer a lot from motion blur while the same is not the case with 120MHz and 240 MHz TVs. Most of today’s LCD TVs come with advanced picture processing features that tend to cause a lot of ill effects on certain aspects of the picture.

For example, certain ranges of Sony’s LCD TVs sport the ‘Motion Enhancer’ feature, which when turned on can turn fast-moving pictures blurry. When you turn off this feature, you can witness a visible reduction in motion blur. Also make sure that the signal from the video source is optimal. Use of good quality HDMI cables to connect Bly-Ray players can also provide for decent pictures. Though this will not particularly address motion blurs, movies will be a treat for the eyes. Some viewers have also complained of motion blur while watching 24p movies due to the ‘Motionflow’ feature (of Sony Bravia TVs) . Try turning it off and see if it suits you.

Well, the clouds on the screen of an LCD TV are far from the puffy mass of little drops of water in the atmosphere! These are rather annoying and tend to spoil the entertainment experience. A clouded LCD screen will appear to have an uneven low-contrast pattern that severely affects its brightness and black levels. The easiest way to reduce the effects of clouding is by lowering the backlight to the maximum possible level.

You can also get rid of the clouds on the screen by rubbing the screen gently from the centre, moving on to the edges with a clean cloth. (Remember to switch it off before you attempt this) Repeat the process till the clouds are visibly reduced.

The image that is retained on an LCD panel can be removed by running an all-white, all-black or deep grey screen-saver saver for several hours. You can speed up the removal by carrying out the process at elevated temperatures (Between 30ºC and 40ºC should be fine). There are also interactive DVDs that can reduce image sticking, the most well-known among them being ‘Pixel Protector’. It’s is available for approximately £25 and also comes with a good pdf manual.

Backlight bleeding generally occurs along the edges of the LCD panel and is not all that easy to fix at home. If the edge of the display and the frame are not sealed properly, it is possible for a certain amount of backlight to bleed around the edges. To get rid of the bleed, all you have to do is stick a uniform layer of electrical tape around the edges of the glass that’s present inside the LCD panel.

Well, its not all that easy to get to the layer of glass. You will first have to take off the front bezel carefully using flat-head screwdrivers (this part isn’t all that easy), flip the monitor over a piece of cloth and pull the back off. You will now be faced with the circuitry that’s stuck to the front bezel. Remove it carefully. Unscrew the screws in each corner of the LCD panel to remove the metal structure that houses all the circuit boards. The metal structure does not come off easily – you will have to unplug a few side metal clips to do so. Flip the panel over and remove the steel frame that’s held in place by more clips.

It’s now time to stick the electrical tape. Stick it uniformly behind the glass, wrapping it all the way around the edge of the frame. Do so wherever you feel there’s bleed – it wouldn’t hurt to stick it around the entire frame. Now, fix everything back again, making sure everything is screwed tight. Switch on the TV – the backlight bleed should be gone. The above method is no joke, try it only if you’ve played around with appliances before. You can always get a repairman to do the job.