The TV is Fixed!!

I ordered a new light tunnel from some online outfit so I could install it myself. I didn't really know what I was getting myself into, but I made the decision and there was no turning back. I got the new light tunnel on Friday, unpacked it and gave it a good once over. It's a simple part that contains 4 mirrors. One of the mirrors on my old tunnel was collapsing, which caused the shadow that was being seen on the screen.

I grabbed the service bulletin about the light tunnel online and went to work. I first pulled out the entire light engine assembly (pictured) and placed it on the counter. I then went to work. I removed the lamp, the entire lamp cover, the ballast cover, the ballast, the color wheel cover and finally the color wheel. From there, I need a T-6 Torx wrench which of course I didn't have so I had to take a quick trip to Lowes to pick up the tool. After finally removing the old light tunnel and putting in the new one, I worked backwards and put everything back together.

This is where the frustration started. They stated in the bulletin to put the light engine back but not to secure it in place. Fire up the TV and make sure no further adjustments were needed on the light tunnel. I did just that, but when I turned on the set, it would show the input selection on the screen then the set would turn itself off and 2 flashing lights on the front panel would nag me until no end until I unplugged the TV from the wall. Aaargh!

After a bit of research, a trip to the Strong Brew Fest in Mesa, scrambling to hook up my XBox 360 upstairs so I could play some Gears of War 2, I went to bed without my TV working. Bummer. I knew things had to be working correctly or I wouldn't be able to even see the component selection on the screen before it turned off. There had to be some sensor or switch that was causing this occurrance. So back online I went trying to find the solution. I eventually found that the 2 flashing lights are caused by the lamp door not being put back into place. So I pinpointed the area where the lamp door would go if everything was put together and found a little blue switch. Open (or Close I couldn't tell) the switch and viola! The TV would stay on. After inspecting the picture and validating that no further adjustments were needed, I put everything back together and I was able to catch the entire Suns/Lakers game in which the Suns took care of business and defeated the #1 team in the league.