Hey guys!
If your TV started to show something like this:
(Tip: You can click on all of the pictures on this website to see a larger photo - will open in a new window)

  



Then you come to the right place.
I'll show you how you can easily fix it yourself

You can visit these forums for discussion or questions about this topic:

HDTVoice or AVSforum

The problem is that your Convergence chips(IC's)
(amplifier chips that send a signal to the projectors) are shot.

The RPTV on a pictures is Pioneer SD-643HD5

If you have a CRT-based RPTV brand other than Pioneer, the fix will very likely be very similar, with only the model of the STKs IC's and the resistors being different.

The typical cost to get this fixed by a pro is about $300 - and it doesn't mean that he/they will do a job better than you do. The parts are less than $100 (about $20-$30 for the IC's) if you want to do it yourself. Replacing only the IC's MAY solve the problem, however, many people have also had blown resistors requiring replacement. Why would you ask should you replace both of the IC's if only one is shot?! If one is shot the other one is not far away and for that little price of the chips it worth changing them both at the same time. Also the convergence board should be checked for cracked solder. If you replace the ICs and the resistors are shot, the ICs may blow again almost immediately, meaning you may have to do the repair twice.

What you will need:

 

Digital Multimeter:
You can find a chipper one in Wal-Mart or HarborTools

Alcohol is nice to have to clean up those soldering points

Different screwdrivers

And the most important - Time and Patience



Ok Let's get started!

Unplug your TV from the AC outlet!

Get your screwdrivers and take that back panel off the TV.
This is what you are going to see when you open it:
 

Your IC's are behind that black heatsink in a back


So, now we need to remove that board that the IC's are on

Pull this four plugs up


Pull this jumpers up from the points where the arrow shows


Pull the big red wire up by pulling the small tabs on the connector sideways


Pull the white wire from the back of the TV
Pull the sleeve on the wire back before you reinstall it later
 

Pull the tab on a right side of the connector sideways and pull the plug up


Pull the three plugs up in the back of the board
They are little hard to get to



Get a very small screwdriver and take that screw out
There are 8 more screws on the board that you need to take out
(marked with arrows on the board)


Now you should be able to remove the board
There are plastic tabs holding it - just bend them one by one and take the board out carefully
and there are also one wire left on the board that you have to remove by applying soldering iron underneath the board


Ok - the most difficult part is done!!
That how it looks when you take it out:



Take your digital multimeter and check all of the big resistors on the board
(note - some of them connected parallel to each other - so the meter will read half of their nominal)


Check the board for cracked solder and tracks


Now cut all of the legs on the IC's, unscrew them from the heatsink and take em out!


Take all of the legs out of a board by applying soldering iron on one side and pulling from the other.
Make the holes for the new IC's with the help of sewing needle and soldering iron.
Clean the Heatsink from the old Thermal Compound (grease) and apply the new one to the IC's.
Fish the legs of the new IC's in holes and screw them to the heatsink.
Wipe excessive grease with the napkin.
Make sure they are making the good contact with the heatsink.
Cut excessive length of the legs from underneath the board leaving about 2mm.
And finally solder them in.
Clean your solder points with the alcohol.


Make sure your solder points going to look something like on the picture - with no solder going to the two legs at the same time!

And that is it!
Put all of that back together and watch TV!
You may need to readjust the convergence - mine was perfect right from the start.
Also after I've changed the IC's my colors and picture sharpness have improved significally!

Here is a little mod I did
Will let you know if it really works in about 4 years :)