Replacement lamp for Panasonic 54" RPTV
I own an older Panasonic 54 inch RPTV. The available replacement lamps come in their own enclosures which slide into the back of the set. Unfortunately, the replacements cost over $400, nearly $500 with shipping.
These lamps have been around long enough now so that some DIY'ers out their must have found a way to use something like a metal halide bulb, 150 or 250W, as an acceptable alternative to spending an amount which comes close to that what one would pay for a new CRT Tube HDTV.
Looking at the enclosures that come with the official replacement lamps. You can see how easy it would be to de-solder the burnt out lamp and replace it with a different kind of lamp that would be much cheaper. I've had some experience with metal halide bulbs. These bulbs emit a bright white light and are commonly used as security lighting on building and, in their larger 1000W form, as street lights. They require a ballast in order to operate.
So, if I could find the wattage rating of the Panasonic RPTV bulb and find a metal halide bulb with equal or similar wattage and illumination rating, why couldn't I use these cheaper bulbs in place of those expensive replacements.
If anyone with experience with RPTV bulbs and how they function in projection TV's, please let me know you opinion if I could switch to a differenct lamp. Otherwise, I'll have to throw my RPTV in the garbage and that would be a shame.
Thanks
Steven Hebert
I own an older Panasonic 54 inch RPTV. The available replacement lamps come in their own enclosures which slide into the back of the set. Unfortunately, the replacements cost over $400, nearly $500 with shipping.
These lamps have been around long enough now so that some DIY'ers out their must have found a way to use something like a metal halide bulb, 150 or 250W, as an acceptable alternative to spending an amount which comes close to that what one would pay for a new CRT Tube HDTV.
Looking at the enclosures that come with the official replacement lamps. You can see how easy it would be to de-solder the burnt out lamp and replace it with a different kind of lamp that would be much cheaper. I've had some experience with metal halide bulbs. These bulbs emit a bright white light and are commonly used as security lighting on building and, in their larger 1000W form, as street lights. They require a ballast in order to operate.
So, if I could find the wattage rating of the Panasonic RPTV bulb and find a metal halide bulb with equal or similar wattage and illumination rating, why couldn't I use these cheaper bulbs in place of those expensive replacements.
If anyone with experience with RPTV bulbs and how they function in projection TV's, please let me know you opinion if I could switch to a differenct lamp. Otherwise, I'll have to throw my RPTV in the garbage and that would be a shame.
Thanks
Steven Hebert
A little more information from you would go a long way into determining if what you ask is possible. The model number of your RPTV and the model number of the replacement lamp would help.
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