Go For It...
The problem you're encountering is relatively common with RPTVs, particularly the series model you listed. I had one of the ICs start to go on my Hitachi 61SWX12B in February and after a bit of research, this problem is common in that Hitachi used some lesser capable ICs with the SWX and UWX series TVs.
There's a long thread over at the
Digital Home Forum where this problem is discussed in length and how it can be corrected. This thread is great info, just have to sift through several folks asking the same question. The short of it is, the STK392-110 ICs Hitachi used weren't meant for long-term usage and don't stand up to the heat over time. These ICs can be replaced with 150/160 versions which are much better:
While changing the ICs, the relevant resistors (6 or so, I believe) should be changed at the same time as they will likely burn out as well and can ruin the new ICs.
They sell a kit to replace these on the convergence board, so all you need is to purchase the kit, find either a friend or small repair shop that can solder a pc board (assuming you can't yourself) or Hitachi will do a swap out of the whole convergence board. The least expensive route is buying the kit for around $50-60 (
here's the one I used) and either doing it yourself or paying someone a little bit to do the work. The easiest, but most expensive route is to contact Hitachi, tell them the convergence board is going and you'd like to swap it out. I believe they charge $380 for the new board and once you send them the old board, they'll send you a refund for $80, so total of $300.
I couldn't do the soldering myself, but found a friend of a friend to do it for me. Took a few months, but for a total of $100 ($50 parts, $50 labor), I was able to get the parts on the convergence board replaced. After this, I went through the somewhat lengthy
DCAM Mode Convergence process (took a couple of hours, but I took my time). Now, the picture is pristine, likely better than when I had it for the past few years as I never did this convergence before, only used the Magic Focus feature. The only downside was the wait was so long, I ended up getting a projector, so now I have a 61" HD-Ready RPTV that throws a great picture, but I have no room for any longer...
If you're happy with the picture your 43UWX10B, I'd say fix it. If not, you might want to consider something new. I will say if you do get it repaired and do the convergence (correctly
), you'll likely see a better picture as well. It's hard to beat the clarity of a good RPTV and pretty darn expensive to rival it w/a flatscreen.
If you need any additional info on this, let me know and I'll try to point you in the right direction... -TD
