Our home TV quit last night. It's an older Magnavox 37" LCD. The only thing I can get out of it is a very faint flash of light when I hit the power button. No sound. No little green light to show it's on. Nothing. I believe it may be deceased, but thought I'd throw it out here to you guys.

Might have blown a fuse, probably only a tech can change it.

Does it have a voltage reducer with a smaller type of electrical plugin?



Perhaps that has failed. If it has enough power to initially excite it, you might get a brief flash of power before it fades out to no voltage.

It could be something as simple as not seeing an input. Check the video output of the device driving it against a working monitor to verify that you're receiving a video signal.

If that fails - and you're going to toss it out anyway - open it up and check the voltage at the built in transformer. You'll need to feel comfortable with a/c voltage and know what the output past the transformer is. It is usually written on the unit what the d/c voltage is on the output tabs.

Check the fuses - you might have had a power surge and it could have burnt up. I believe most of these use standard type fuses found at a radio shack.

I was able to salvage a few of my friends LCD tv's by checking them in this fashion. Yeah, I know, I'm a diesel mechanic by trade. But, I also hook up av equipment for plenty of people and most of my friend call me when it comes to that type of stuff.

Or, do what most people do - send it in for repairs - pay a fee for checking it out - tell the company to toss it in the garbage because the cost of repair will generally exceed, or be real close to, the cost of a newer unit.

Thanks guys. It doesn't have a voltage transformer Bill. It's a big old home set. I'm thinking at least 10 years, back when 37" was big and expensive. It's silver grey with the speakers attached to the sides, if that tells you how old it is. I'll see if I can find a serious hobbiest to check it out, but I think I'll get a new Vizio 47". They seem to have a picture that my eyes like.

Magnavox are not designed to be repaired. Vizio sets have limited repairability.

Danny: About 18 months ago I had to replace the old big box we had. Bought a 40" TOSHIBA. Several months after the purchase ,each time you turned it on it took a few more seconds to be fully awake. Called service and the next day a tech called and said he was on his way but asked if I was in possession of my original receipt(which I was). When he came into the house I stated "this is an easy fix".He said it isn't worth the time to check it out, you just replace the "BOARD". 10 minutes and he was finished. The reason for the original receipt(I had to make a copy) is to avoid scams as to the length of the warranty. Sooo, save your receipt.......................

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Or, do what most people do - send it in for repairs - pay a fee for checking it out - tell the company to toss it in the garbage because the cost of repair will generally exceed, or be real close to, the cost of a newer unit

Buy a new reasonable quality iten and expect to throw it away.I have had some no names that lasted as long as some Sony's. a lot of bucks diff. ...crap shoot!

Every Sony I have had - 3 TVs and 1 car radio - crapped out before other "lesser" brands. The sole survivor is a 20" CRT pulled from the Barth.

What brand would you folks recommend for a large screen house TV?

Our little 20-incher would be lost in our new house.

The geeksites crown the Panasonic Viera plasma king of all sets.

LG and Samsung are the favored LED/3D brands.

But this changes almost daily.

Plasma? Really? I suppose they still listen to vinyl albums on turntables too.

Buy an LG LED, have about 5 of them and never an issue. I recommend stay away from 3D too.

Plasma sets have evolved significantly in the past few years.

Still got your 8-tracks, Corey?

I have both plasma and led sets, just a few months old. I spent a long time researching, watching sets, etc. Money was not the criteria. Plasma beats the lcd/led hands down on picture quality, brightness, color, refresh rate and very significantly, the viewing angle. And I made sure I compared the backlit LED which are much better than just the edge lit. The only reason the 42" set in the bedroom is a led is that they don't make plasmas that small. The plasmas generate a little more heat and are not quite as energy efficient. IMHO, it the led's that have to catch up to the plasmas.

Anyone have an opinion of what brand lasts longer?

I used to be a Sony fan, but their quality is now run of the mill.

Any idea whether LED or Plasma is more reliable?

For mobile (motor home) the choice is LED/LCD. For home it is a lot more fuzzy. Plazma is still rated #1 or it was 6 months ago. But I bought a 42" LG led for the house because Marleen would not let me keep the 50" Panasonic plazma.

In the Barth I have a 22" Insignia led (Best Buy) that runs on 12vdc.