runco projector advice needed

scottyboy76

i know this is an audio site, but i also know there is huge knowledge here of all av, so here goes.

a few months back , bought a marantz 8000 rec. the guy threw in all the old home theater stuff he had just replaced.

Among these was a runco dtv940 projector.

Im going to give it to jerry j12 here on cp, if he wants it, but i went out last night to hook it up for sh**s and giggles to shine against the house for a few minutes.

The owner said the blue bulb needed to be replaced, the unit came on last night, responded to the remote commands, a light could be seen inside the unit, but none of the color bulbs would come on.

Again, just curious, as this was a 14000 dollar projector 9-10 years ago, and would like to play with it, even if picture isnt perfect, would one bulb out keep others from coming on, are there other generic issues with these big, old style projectors?

any advice, as always, is app.

Sherardp

This looks like an old school CRT projector so you will need all three guns to light up in order for it to work properly. You could consider sending it in for repair, or perhaps take it to a shop but the expenses will probably cost you a good penny.

jon s

I used to own a NEC CRT projector ten years ago... (brand new, it was $20,000, I bought it used for $4,000) Here are the issues you will face...
1. alignment. CRTs are designed to focus only at one point, at the correct angle. You do not have any zoom capability. If you cannot get the alignment right, the three tubes will be having convergence issues.
2. the blue tube. This tube wears out the fastest and is the hardest one to align because it is relatively dim compared to the other two.
3. noise... my NEC had 13 LOUD fans to keep it cool.
4. light output... CRTs are dim... you would be lucky to get 8-10 lumens on the screen. This means you have to place it in a light controleld room, e.g. no external light interference.
5. Weight... some CRT projectors weighed 200 lbs, they average about 100-120 lbs... the ceiling will need added strenghtening to support that weight.
6. maintenace... CRTs convergence drifts as it ages. You will need to have it aligned periodically.

Finding someone who can do all the above will be really hard with the advent of cheap LCD/DLP/D-ILA projectors. I had to fly someone from California to Hawaii on my dime to set up my system. It was dang expensive.

scottyboy76

i was really just wondering if the lack of any colored light was due to one bulb being out

Im def. not putting money into it