Due to a force of ‘have to stop and deal with’ hitting the 30th day on STB return, I went ahead and put in my request for a tech to evaluate my Sony 60” LCD, which I have some issues with. I requested a tech with the ability to deal with service modes and capable of evaluating test pattern results wished to check my LCD 3-screen alignment (we did not even get to that).

What I got today was a guy, who sat down flipped to OSD, shoved my brightness level to 100%, and asked me if I had tried that yet!. Then he jumped into contrast and ran it up to 100%. And asked me if I ever tried watched the display using ‘vivid’ mode….(the professional reviewer documented worst, - factory pic mode option available…and I agree) because most people think that looks the best.
(What if this joker left my new RP CRT set up in this manner!!)

When I explained that I KNEW user controls could not affect the issue I was having (lack of detail and contrast in darker scenes) he replied:

1)Its probably your DVD player its plays darker than satellite.
2)And there’s really not much you can do in a service menu, its has very little control. Most of your controls are in the user menu’s.

He then casually commented that he’d never been to ‘school’ on this set. And he would call Sony and see if they could give him a list of things that might help in the service menu on Monday, although he doubted it if it couldn’t be fixed using ‘user controls’. And said ‘I’ll be back”.

I had grand central going on and no time for this. How do I politely call the store and tell them ….this guy is not coming back and touching my service menu with a 10-ft pole.

I sure he’s very handy for helping HO’s who get their screen on the wrong video feed.

That sucks. I hope it works out for you. I am sure you remember I was getting the 65" Toshiba. It is awesome. The line doubler is great and so are the stretch modes, and I couldn't be happier with the way it looks.

------------------
Stott

Lena:

Have you tried turning the brightness and contrast all the way up on your DVD player????

Sounds like a hardware reset problem. I think that the "service" technician that came out to evaluate your Sony, Lena, needs to be rebooted (out the door).

Paul

Lena,
Don't bother being polite.
Tell them that the tech is a moron, and if you need your toaster fixed you MIGHT be willing to have him help.
They're making the assumption that you're just a dumb J6P consumer who can be conned into believing what there tech "expert" says.
It's your thousands of dollars spent. Make sure you get your moneys worth.
Trace

All good advice:
(out the door)...Make sure you get your moneys worth....Have you tried turning the brightness and contrast all the way up on your DVD player????

Had not thought of that last one! Although I did try shining my flashlight into the darker portions of scenes to see if I could ‘see’ more detail. To no avail ……

Seriously…. since all the manufactories are now including burn-in disclaimers in owner’s manuals, can you imagine if I had ‘let’ this guy optimally tweak and ‘service’ if it had been a CRT or plasma, (not knowing any better). And how could you ‘prove’ that the last service tech left your (user accessible) settings at that danger level when the next service tech who evaluates your burn-in states…"Oh boy, -you should not have had ‘those’ settings boosted."

No…I don’t like disparaging people to their employers and somehow I’m going to have to ‘stop’ this tech (or any equivalent) from being sent out. If I think of the next customer who might get him …maybe it will make the chore more palatable.

I sense that when time allows since I’ve had to ‘help’ my HD installer install my satellite upgrade, and go back and reroute interconnects he installed backwards etc…. and my in-laws troubleshoot their installation which Dish left at ‘cant’ acquire…..bad box…(incorrect it was an LNB incompatibility issue which I had to research to discover) .that maybe this is a new trend in my life and its time to order the Service Manual, and study hard/carefully and learn to do this myself. It's a time issue for me at the moment, (as I feel it takes a dedicated amount of preparation to qualify myself to that task). All I wanted was a little ‘stop gap’ tweaking to get me through till then, and some confirmation that my screens ‘factory locked’ alignment is in spec.

I have definitely entered the zone of ‘she knows only enough to be dangerous’ but its very upsetting when I catch some of these guys flat out lying which is what Dish installers who screwed up my in-laws work order did yesterday., and my own installer who said he did not ‘bypass’ my panamax on the Sat coax, (he did) I found it 2 days ago when removing the new STB to return it. I’m beginning to think I don’t want any of the ‘professionals’ in my house. Some times it almost hurts to have a little bit of knowledge before I was just ‘blissfully’ unaware.

Question to any who have dealt with service tech's on displays. Is it even possible to get a tech through POP trained to tweak in service mode??? Or is this asking too much of any Brick & Mortar??? I should abandon the effort entirely and research a professional calibrator? Are professional for hire calibrators certified in a manner which will not bust the warrenty?
PS: Stott its GREAT to hear your Toshiba is in....enjoy!

[This message has been edited by Smart Little Lena (edited January 11, 2003).]

"No…I don’t like disparaging people to their employers............."

Lena,
That's the problem with being a nice upstanding citizen.
I've been in retail for 25 years and I can tell you for certain that a good employee would never take it personally and a smart business owner will greatly appreciate your candor.
I've lost customers because they didn't want to offend anybody. They just took there business elsewhere while I was stuck with an employee who was driving yet more people away.
I don't mean to sound preachy but I thought you'd like to see the view from the other side.
Trace

Lena:

Get an Imaging Sciences Foundation (I.S.F) certified tech to look at your set. They are trained - won't guarantee you'll not get a clunker, but at least they have been 'exposed' to the proper way to calibrate a set.

and a smart business owner will greatly appreciate your candor.

You are correct and thank you for the reminder to help sooth the ‘discomfort’ I feel in these situations that this is really for consumers and retailers best interests.
I’m noticing a tendency in myself the last years in certain areas to not argue or even ‘let on’ when I feel I am in possession of information to the contrary in any male dominated areas of interaction.
I just nod, smile…. Leave…. And never go back, (call back) whatever. (Although I was so mad at Dish, I let the install department know that I knew they lied about a part which they stated (they would have HAD to charge me bo-coos more) and needed to install IF they had correctly routed the upgrade per my request. What HE did not know - his ace-up-the-sleeve basis for: “We’re sorry about the screw up but it was ‘for the best’, as it greatly reduces your costs if we had gone that other route”. Was that (I) knew more than he bargained on and he was rendered speechless when I told him I knew the part detailed was already installed on the original system therefore meaning they could not have ‘charged’ us for installing it if they had routed the upgrade correctly.

What I seem to be running into are business’s who ‘HATE’ an informed consumer.
My retail spot wanted me to trade my STB for another model (that the salesman guaranteed had no issues) and were discombodgeulated when I explained (while two other customers shopping in the department within earshot) the alternative was the same exact platform with a different badge and had the same issues. Then he switched to the last viable alternative and said "Well I own a version of this and its ‘great’!" Until I asked don’t you have an issue with OTA acquisition on that model? And he hurried me back to the counter for my refund, saying, “Well, if you just delete all your OTA selections off your channel list and don't use them..…it won’t freeze up any more".

Thanks guys and Soundhound I’ll look up I.S.F.


[This message has been edited by Smart Little Lena (edited January 11, 2003).]

Whoa,
Spunky Little Lena!!
Now that's the kind of consumer I like to hear.
Go get'em.

SoundHound,
How much (ballpark) does an ISF visit cost?
Trace