Computers & Electronics

Repair old Sony 36XBR200 or buy affordable replacement?

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  • May 25th, 2011 6:20 pm
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Deal Fanatic
Aug 25, 2010
5314 posts
1251 upvotes

Repair old Sony 36XBR200 or buy affordable replacement?

Years ago, I gave my old Sony 36XBR200 CRT TV to my aunt and uncle. Aunt called me and said they no longer have a picture but just "a mess of random color patterns on every channel". They called the cable guy and he told them it's not the cable, it's the tv. I called a repair guy and an "evaluation" is $100 plus taxes. Guy was honest and said that depending on the problem, he might not even find the parts anymore. So $100 + (if parts) maybe couple hundred more to fix. I say it's not worth it. Might as well buy a new tv. Do you guys agree?

If so, what would be an affordable replacement? I figure 40/42" would be fine. My aunt and uncle are both over 80 y/o so they obviously don't understand or give a hoot about LED, 120/240 hz or any other bells ans whistles. Even 720p would be fine (if you can still find those). Anyway, any suggestions?

I will obviously do the shopping/install for them. I figure $500 max??? Haven't shopped for tv's in a while...
4 replies
Deal Addict
Apr 14, 2007
2959 posts
463 upvotes
Montreal
You can always go to Costco to buy the TV. You get an extra 1 yr of warranty. Most popular brands are Samsungs and LGs. Samsungs still have a stigma for faulty powersupplies and LGs are pretty good.

Stay way from RCA it is a nightmare.
Deal Addict
Oct 22, 2002
2040 posts
526 upvotes
'sauga
Large CRTs are only worth repairing if you can do it yourself. My opinion.

If you feel up to the challenge try posting on http://www.riddledtv.com/forums/. They helped me fix my 36" Panny CRT when a capacitor on the main logic board began drifting.
Deal Guru
User avatar
Nov 5, 2001
11979 posts
3170 upvotes
Edmonton
No CRT is worth fixing at this point in technology evolution. Have them plug in a DVD player or even a VCR to confirm it is the tv that is shot.

A good cheap replacement would be a 40/42/43" lcd or plasma. 32" is going to be too small a picture, since they likely aren't going to be using HD cable.

Might be a good opportunity to dump cable and just use HD OTA if they are in a good reception area. A $20 antenna should do the trick.

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