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JVC RS46u Deal or no Deal?
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tri_joel




Joined: 03 Jul 2007
Posts: 646
Location: Northern Virginia


PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 12:10 pm    Post subject: JVC RS46u Deal or no Deal? Reply with quote


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I bought an "untested for parts or repair" JVC RS46u on eBay. I knew I was taking a chance but after researching common failures on this model I thought the risk was worth the buy it now price. The PJ arrived, well packed, clean, and in very good cosmetic shape. I plugged it in and got a red power light, orange lamp light, and a blinking warning light (6 flashes). I consulted the oracle (AKA Google) and couldn't find a code for the 6 flashes. After a few days consulting the oracle as time allows, I found one of those obscure tech help sites that said it's likely the power supply or digital control board.

My question is, does anyone have a reasonable guess how much it would cost for a real tech to diagnose the PJ? I don't mind investing a couple hundred dollars to get it up and running. I don't want to invest in a tech if there is any certainty that the PJ can't be repaired.

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kal
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Joined: 06 Mar 2006
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TV/Projector: JVC DLA-NZ7


PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:00 pm    Post subject: Re: JVC RS46u Deal or no Deal? Reply with quote

tri_joel wrote:
My question is, does anyone have a reasonable guess how much it would cost for a real tech to diagnose the PJ?

Contact JVC. There are basically no repair shops that would touch something like this.

Kal

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tri_joel




Joined: 03 Jul 2007
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PostLink    Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2019 12:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you Kal.
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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2019 1:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Let us know what they say! I'd be curious myself. They would mostly definitely swap out boards only (no component level repair as pretty much nobody does that anymore).

Kal

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tri_joel




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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 1:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Got the quote back from JVC today. Defective processor board. $800 in parts, $350 for labor and return shipping. Labor includes cleaning optics, fan, filters and complete testing. At this point, all-in I'm just shy of $1500 for an operational entry level machine. For back ground, I went from a Barco 1208 to a Marquis, and am currently using a Christie LX55 (freebie dumpster dive with a Chief ceiling mount). I'm trying to decide if I should cut my losses, which adds up to roughly $500 in what I paid for the untested unit on eBay, shipping from the seller, shipping to JVC, diagnostic cost (applied to repair if I go forward), and disposal fee to not have it shipped back to me. Or think of it as a decent upgrade to my existing system, with a 90 day warranty and a presumably "good as new" machine (although outdated). At the end of the day, I've outgrown the freebie LX55 and want to upgrade but I'm not ready to invest serious money into a machine that does more than the RS 46u can do. $500 of the $1500 cannot be recovered, so I guess the real question is whether or not I can do better spending a grand for something else.

I'm interested in any and all thoughts. @pureaudio sent me some info on repairing myself, which I appreciate. I followed the link and it's definitely beyond my skills and abilities.

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garyfritz




Joined: 08 Apr 2006
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Location: Fort Collins, CO


PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 3:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My non-expert opinion: you're not likely to find anything for $1000 that will touch a freshly-reconditioned RS-46u. I paid $800 for a non-reconditioned RS-45 (2 yrs ago) and I was delighted with the result.
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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 3:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Agreed. An RS46 is far from an ‘entry level machine’ as you stated. Enjoy it!

Kal

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tri_joel




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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 10:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks guys.
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garyfritz




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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 2:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Another possibility, if you want a cheaper option: there are a couple of RS-46u's on eBay for $550 and $700. But those aren't reconditioned or warranted, so you're back to "untested unit from eBay" again.
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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:52 pm    Post subject: Re: JVC RS46u Deal or no Deal? Reply with quote

tri_joel wrote:
I bought an "untested for parts or repair" JVC RS46u on eBay. I knew I was taking a chance but after researching common failures on this model I thought the risk was worth the buy it now price.

Something to keep in mind for future purchases too is that a seller listing an item like this that is actually dead easy to test (just plug it in and turn it on and make sure you can pull up the menu) usually means that it's known to not work. They see it doesn't work so they list it as "untested" instead in the hopes that someone thinks it may work. So best to assume the cost of a repair when you big. If the thing worked correctly they'd be able to get a lot more money for it and so why wouldn't they plug it in and try it? It's not a specialized device that the average person can't test like some of the equipment you'll find listed on eBay. If the failure was a common one, they could fix it themselves too. There are always exceptions though, like some insanely high volume sellers that don't bother and use stock photos because they have a warehouse full of stuff constantly coming and going - they find it it's better to just move stuff and not provide any guarantees that the device works. But if a seller provides non-stock photos they've taken the time to take those already so why not just plug it in too and charge a bunch more?

Kal

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tri_joel




Joined: 03 Jul 2007
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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 9:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yep. That was my thought also. I don't know much about the JVC projectors, so I did quite a bit of research for common failures. I knew I was taking a chance, but it also seemed the majority of failures were due to lamps on the RS46. There were a lot of failures on earlier models, not so many from the 46 on. I also know that Kal waited for JVC to release the RS56 so I thought the JVC is the likely the best digital option.

I probably didn't end up with a great deal, but I think I ended up with an acceptable deal. And a much better PJ than the LX55 or going lower end.

Thanks again guys. I'll send an update once i get the PJ back from JVC and have it installed. I'm really excited...

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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 10:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

At the end of the day I think you’ll be very happy with the picture quality given that it cost you $1000-1500. That’s not much in the projector world. I bought my RS56 (new) in 2013 and am still thrilled with the image. Is there better? Sure, but I don’t care. I use it almost daily and enjoy it immensely.

Kal

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tri_joel




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PostLink    Posted: Tue Jul 30, 2019 12:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you Kal. Your decision to get a JVC and the awesome post you wrote on it is why I wanted a JVC. I no doubt will enjoy it, and am excited to get back from JVC.
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tri_joel




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PostLink    Posted: Mon Aug 19, 2019 12:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have the projector back from JVC, and wow! What an improvement over the Christie LX55. Not that that is a high bar for comparison.

Now that it's all said and done, I think I got a great projector for a reasonable price. Probably not a great deal, but I'm extremely happy.

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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Mon Aug 19, 2019 1:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Enjoy the new (to you) projector! Hopefully you get many years of enjoyment out of it.

Kal

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Spanky Ham




Joined: 22 Mar 2006
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PostLink    Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2020 2:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the info, Kal. It makes sense, but for some reason I never thought about it.

As long as the pj runs and your happy that is all that matters. I still have my RS25 and have went back and forth with either going with a larger LG OLED or a newer JVC. IIRC AVScience had some b-stock 400s for like $1500. I probably should have jumped on one of those.
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WTS




Joined: 08 Mar 2006
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Location: Calgary


PostLink    Posted: Fri Jul 03, 2020 7:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

kal wrote:
At the end of the day I think you’ll be very happy with the picture quality given that it cost you $1000-1500. That’s not much in the projector world. I bought my RS56 (new) in 2013 and am still thrilled with the image. Is there better? Sure, but I don’t care. I use it almost daily and enjoy it immensely.

Kal


Geez Kal, by now I thought you'd be full bore into 4K and running an RS4500. An RS56 from 2013, hmmm sounds like me, I'm still using my VW95ES from 2012, original lamp(only 2400hrs though), just ordered a new lamp from AVS, I should have saved myself the hassle and just bought it from Quebec Acoustics, anyway.

How many hours on your 56 and how many lamps have you gone through.

I'm guessing you don't work at GM anymore, of course that was a long time ago I think when I knew you were still working there.

Hopefully you're keeping safe from the virus and still drinking lots of beer from your own brewery, lol.

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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Fri Jul 03, 2020 8:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Walter! Haven't seen you around here in ages!

Still loving my RS56 and it's been used for at least an hour a day since it was installed in 2013, some days considerably more. The "change bulb" warning comes on at 2900 hours at which point I do change them. So let's see, I'm little more than 50% through my 3rd now so about 7500 hours so far in 7.5 years. Doing the math that's an average of 2.75 hrs/day. Wow. More than I thought!

Haven't done any work for GM since 2000! (I used to design plant floor systems). That feels like ages ago...

Definitely still brewing a lot (it's a whole other business now - see https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/) and staying safe! Hope you're doing the same! Cheers!

Kal

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WTS




Joined: 08 Mar 2006
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PostLink    Posted: Fri Jul 03, 2020 8:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah every once and a while I stick my head in the forum and read some.

Wow, that is a lot of hours on it, glad to hear it's still gong strong. Where are you buying your lamps from. I'm debating whether to jump to a JVC 4K machine next year or just wait and put some more hours on my Sony 95.

I'm surprised you haven't made the jump to a JVC 4K machine yet.

Oh I thought you working for GM when you joined the forum here.

WOW! That's quite the website you got going there looks great and I assume it's your business too. So is that what you've been doing for employment for the past 10 years or so. As for me the oil industry here in Calgary has been on the decline for years now so after my last engineering position 3 years ago I just packed it in and said to hell with it all and haven't worked since, lol. Cheers.

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kal
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PostLink    Posted: Fri Jul 03, 2020 9:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

WTS wrote:
Where are you buying your lamps from.

Quebec Acoustic (so far)

Quote:
I'm surprised you haven't made the jump to a JVC 4K machine yet.

Still extremely happy with this one, and given my small screen size (and low amount of good 4K content available), throwing that much money into this doesn't make sense for my needs.

Quote:
WOW! That's quite the website you got going there looks great and I assume it's your business too.

It is! My design, my business, since about 2008-2009.

Quote:
So is that what you've been doing for employment for the past 10 years or so.

You name it! Brewing, HT, IT consulting, the list goes on. Wink

Quote:
As for me the oil industry here in Calgary has been on the decline for years now so after my last engineering position 3 years ago I just packed it in and said to hell with it all and haven't worked since, lol. Cheers.

That's great! Hope you're enjoying your "retirement"!

Kal

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