Reader query about Pioneer LCD TV - anyone else encountered this problem?

[Clare Newsome]

This was posted by MSmith on the User Review page of the Pioneer KRL-37V review:

MSmith

November 26, 2008
21:07


Hi Guys,

I am hoping to get a solution to my problem. Basically I purchased a
Pioneer Kuro KRL-37V. I collected my Kuro from Sight&Sound in
Preston where it was purchased on 21/10/08.

For the first week it
worked perfectly, and then it developed an intermittent fault. What
happens is the television displays information in the top right of the
screen i.e. source, input, 1080p & the time at the bottom right
corner, however this information should disappear, it does. Except when
the fault develops this information flickers on & off repeatedly.

I
have video taped the fault because it is intermittent. In the worst
case the set switches itself off then back on; it has on 1 occasion
displayed 2 red LCD lights at the bottom of the screen.

I have checked
the cables used between my sources & the Kuro KRL-37V. This fault
was particularly bad with my scart connection between my old sat box.


Pioneer have said that they have never heard of this happing before,
& basically it must be all the other equipment I use the new Sky
HD box, apple TV, new PS3 & Cables etc.

I feel it is a Faulty set.
I have been in touch with Pioneer with no answer; I contacted sight
& Sound they got back to me with the number of a repair centre.



I basically feel let down by Pioneer in particular they were happy to
Take my money £1400. For that amount you expect a premium product. My
previous set was a Bang&ousfen Beovision, I should of kept it it
gave me no trouble if it had a fault the B&O customer service is
fantastic.

If anybody has any suggestion please let me know I feel
Pioneer should exchange the set with no question given the fact I have
only owned this Pioneer Product just over a month.

Matthew

Does anyone have any suggestions? To me,

a) it sounds like a connectivity issue

b) The retailer/Pioneer could have been more helpful.

I'm happy to take this up with Pioneer, as well....

 

[kena]

Why not disconnect everything start with just terrestial via ariel then add sky box etc. and try and identify when problem occurs , or if it happens on terrestial its the set...

 

[Alsone]

I agree with Kena.

Strip the set back. Then try each component in turn. If it happens with all both individually and seperately then its probably the set. Note: If terrestrial is analogue via an aerial plugged direct into the tv rather than a Freeview box ie aerial striaght into the tv as opposed to via scart, then it might not occur on terrestrial as its an aerial input and that doesn't show in the Pioneer info box. So you should discard the terrestrial result and concentrate on testing the other boxes.

You could also try a different scart lead if its particularly bad on scart and also a different scart port (it could be one faulty port). A faulty lead could possibly cause this if shorting as it would be effectively disconnecting and reconnecting and thus popping the information box up as a result. If changing scart ports cures it on all equipment, then clearly its the port and not the connected equipment. (I'm presuming your tv has more than 1 scart input here).

As an aside, this doesn't actually help you now, but my experience with Pioneer customer service was nothing but bad either.

If they carry on like this then I hope their reputation cripples them because anyone spending so much money on a tv deserves 1st class service in my opinion.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Guys, Thanks for the reply's it is nice to know people are interested in my problem.

I will try your suggestions. The reason I tapped the problem was because it is an intermittent fault, however when the information box flickers through a entire program it can be very annoying especially when the set switches off then back on 4 times in 1 hour, I know this is going to happen because where it displays the time you get what looks like an error code displayed and the set goes off completely & you then get 2 red lcd lights at the bottom right of the television.

I do appreciate that these are complicated pieces of kit; however my old Thompson box worked perfectly for 2 years with my B&O, the rest of my equipment is brand new. I even went to the trouble of buying more expensive cables because pioneer convinced me that the cables where at fault.

The problem is these days the manufactures & dealers seem very happy to take you hard earned cash, and promise you the earth however when it comes to the crunch they run and hide. With regards Matthew

 

[Anonymous]

Clare Newsome:

I am hoping to get a solution to my problem. Basically I purchased a Pioneer Kuro KRL-37V. I collected my Kuro from Sight&Sound in Preston where it was purchased on 21/10/08.

For the first week it worked perfectly, and then it developed an intermittent fault....

.... I basically feel let down by Pioneer in particular they were happy to Take my money £1400. For that amount you expect a premium product. My previous set was a Bang&ousfen Beovision, I should of kept it it gave me no trouble if it had a fault the B&O customer service is fantastic.

If anybody has any suggestion please let me know I feel Pioneer should exchange the set with no question given the fact I have only owned this Pioneer Product just over a month.

Matthew

I'm happy to take this up with Pioneer, as well....

Can't really help with the technical side of things I'm afraid, but just wanhted to respond to your comment '.... I basically feel let down by Pioneer in particular they were happy to Take my money £1400....' as it seems odd that you are laying all the blame at Pioneer's door. Obviously you would expect such an expensive piece of equipment to be trouble free, but all brands will naturally suffer some failures. I presume you have requested a refund/replacement from Sight&Sound, as after all it was actually them who were '....happy to Take my money £1400....'? What has been their response so far?

In my experience, a manufacturer will only step in and intervene as a gesture of goodwill, your contract is with the retailer who are the ones who have made their profit from the sale of the tv to you and it's them that should now be running around to remedy the situation. Don't let them fob you off with the usual rubbish about it being a manufacturer's guarantee and therefore you have to deal with the manufacturer yourself, this is absolute nonsense. Pioneer have absolutely no legal obligation to help you out, faulty set or not, Sight&Sound most definitely do.

Where has all the aftersales service gone these days?

 

[Anonymous]

Basically I feel let down by the whole situation. When the set was purchased the salesperson at sight & sound Preston promised me 6mths call out. However when the set first demonstrated the fault I first got in contact with Pioneer to ask for technical advice, they said that they had never heard of this happening. They blamed the Cables and other equipment I was using, so I purchased new more expensive hdmi cables. That did not cure the problem. I got back in contact with Pioneer and they suggested I take the set back to the shop to go on test. I did ring sight & sound to arrange this, however in between I had sky HD installed & after the installation the fault partially disappeared. So basically I decided to monitor the situation, that was my mistake, because 2 wks later the problem returned. I therefore re-contacted sight & sound and they said because I had left it 2 wks they would not exchange the set, although they gave me the number of a repair centre. I feel disappointed by the whole experience. I shouldn't have to be taking a new tv set to a repair centre. Regards Matthew

 

[Anonymous]

Absolutely right, you should not be having to take a new tv for repair.

Have you tried the previous poster's suggestion of running the tv with everything disconnected bar the terrestial aerial, then slowly attaching your other kit stage by stage? If you are ABSOLUTELY certain it is the tv at fault, you need to write to Sight&Sound and insist that they exchange the set or give you a full refund as the tv is 'not fit for purpose' and ask them to respond within 7 working days.

It seems odd that Pioneer cannot offer any real advice, as this would suggest that they are not aware of any issues which can sometimes occur with new models. This would possibly mean that any necessary repair could be quite major or potentially drag on for a while.

Like I said, if you're certain and your relationship with Sight&Sound is getting a bit tense, reject the tv, sooner rather than later.

 

[ElectroMan]

You should mention the Sale of Goods Act - the set is evidently not 'fit for purpose', and it is purely the dealer's responsibility.

 

[matthewpiano]

I am quite shocked at this situation. Sight & Sound is what used to be Sevenoaks Sound & Vision in Preston and is run by the same people who ran the Sevenoaks franchise there. Although slightly blinkered to their own choice of products (Arcam Arcam Arcam Pioneer Pioneer Pioneer B&W B&W B&W) I have always found their customer service to be good.

My advice is to make a visit to the store and very calmly explain again that you have been left completely disatisfied by the whole experience. Give them the opportunity to put things right but remain quite firm about the fact that you need your television to be working properly to spec whether that involves a repair (with a loan set during the time that yours is away) or a replacement. S&S do need to take proper responsibility for ensuring that your set is working properly but you may need to accept that this will by via the repair route (which may just be a firmware upgrade).

Good luck with this.

 

[matthewpiano]

PS Who are the authorised repairers for Pioneer that S&S gave you the number for?

 

[Clare Newsome]

Just as an update - Pioneer has promised to put its customer service team on this case pronto.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the replies, Basically The owner of Sight&Sound has contacted me personally to confirm that Pioneer are to send an engineer to my house to identify the poblem with the television. I will keep you updated.

Regards Matthew

 

[Anonymous]

About time too, Sight and Sound should be suitably embarrassed.

However, the way you have worded this suggests that Sight & Sound will now take a back seat and let Pioneer do the running around, which if it turns out to be, should be a warning to any potential future customers of Sight & Sound. Why is it that so many retailers these days are so reluctant to offer any kind of backup?

Good luck in getting your problems sorted.

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for comments.

We can assure our customer and any "potential future customers of SIGHTANDSOUND" that we most certainly are not letting Pioneer do the running round.

We have been in communication with Pioneer, in order to find the best resolution, for Matthews potential problem. We presented Matthew with two further options to resolve this problem. The first was to collect the screen itself and put it on test at our store in Preston to see if we could replicate the fault in some way. The second was to have a Pioneer agent attend Matthews home and test the screen in situe.

We felt and Matthew agreed that to be able to have a chance of correctly identifying the problem, a Pioneer engineer should see the screen fully connected to the many peripherals that Matthew has connected to his screen.

We did feel from what Matthew had told us through our telephone communications that the screen was indeed faulty.

We would also just like to make the point that the Pioneer screen is under Warranty and as such, we would not advise our customers to go directly to a repair agent. The Manager of SIGHTANDSOUND offered Matthew the number of a Pioneer repair agent to simply see if there was any light to be shed from his own perspective, without the need of dismantling the whole system.

If any confusion was caused by our actions Matthew, we offer you our sincere apologies.

It is not our intention to inconvenience any of our customers, no matter how large or small the purchase may be and we continually strive to offer our customers the best service to be found.

Our standard service in most cases is simply this.

We will help you find the ideal set-up to suite your budget, style and requirements, whether this is a full on AV set-up or a simple HI-FI.

We will always offer our demonstration facilities, which are stylish, extremely comfortable and in a contemporary setting.

We will then personally deliver the package, provide set-up, calibration and connect all other existing equipment, whether this is purchased from ourselves or not, Free of Charge.

This service was offered and carried out for Matthew, with the exception of the Pioneer screen, which Matthew collected himself, at his own request.

We pride ourselves in our customer service levels and we always endeavor to resolve problems and complaints as quickly and painlessly as possible.

In spite of this situation, we have a good relationship with Matthew and will continue offer our support, until this matter as been resolved and beyond.

These are just few comments from our customers in relation to our service.

"Cheers Lee, Excellent customer service - even though I'm not yet a customer..." Regards, Danny.



"I would like to thank you for your professional service and speed in response. I appreciate it very much and will be definitely coming back to you first when I make my next home cinema purchase!" Thank you again, Mr. D. Adams BA Hons.



"Thank you for a great service. We shall both praise your services to any one we can tell." Sarah

"Just wanted to let you know that I received this morning the amplifier. This makes one more very happy customer! Thanks a lot for the good service!" With best wishes, Martin

These are just a few responses we have received, but if anyone is any doubt, please feel free to be a mystery shopper and put us to the test.

All the Best and Happy Shopping,

Lee

SIGHTANDSOUND

P.S. These a just few of the brands we stock - Arcam, B&W, Cyrus, Dali, Denon, In focus, Marantz, Meridian, Mission, Monitor Audio, Onkyo, Pioneer, Primare, Rotel, Roksan, Sennheiser, Sonos, Yamaha.......

 

[Clare Newsome]

Thanks, Lee - and welcome to the Forums. Please feel free to join in on a wide range of threads, as i'm sure you've lots of experience to share.

 

[Anonymous]

Regards Matthew

 

[Anonymous]

Outrageous treatment over such an expensive purchase. And not to offer a loan set is simply the icing on the cake. Customer service from both Sight & Sound and Pioneer, in this instance at least, barely befitting a third rate brand.

Whilst your tv is in being repaired, it is vital to notify Sight & Sound in writing that if the repair is not 100% successful, that you will be pursuing an immediate replacement or better still,full refund.

 

[Anonymous]

Clare,

Almost related but not quite. My parents have a Pioneer 42inch plasma which occasionally switches itself off. However, it does not go into standby it just loses the image and sound. When you switch the TV off then back on everything returns to normal. I have spoken to Pioneer about this problem and at first they said that problem should not happen on their generation of TV (but it does). They have repeatedly said that they would send out an engineer, but no-one ever comes. The problem has been existing and reported for over a year. Do you know what could be causing it?

Thanks.

 

[Clare Newsome]

I'm afraid not, though if I had to hazard a guess i'd say a flaky power supply in the set. It's sad Pioneer haven't followed up on their promise - do you want to try again, saying you've spoken to WHF?

 

[Anonymous]

Will do, thanks for replying.