Forgive me if this post shows up twice... I thought I posted it once but it doesn't appear to be in the thread list, so here it goes again.
I was given a Hitachi 43UWX10B earlier this year and its been working ok. Some minor convergence problems, but good enough for me given the price. In the last few days it has gotten continually darker and darker. Now, even with the brightness cranked to 100% we can't see whats going on. It looks horrible. Is this simply the sign of a lamp going out? If so, where can I buy a replacement and is it a fairly straight-forward repair to make? Opening up the unit doesn't bother me at all. I've worked on more expensive electronics than this, and its not like I'm going to void the warranty that doesn't exist.
If it's a dlp, get ready to fork out $200 to $300 for the lamp. Look for a lamp door in the back. If it's a crt, your losing screen voltage. Your going to need the service manual to work on it.
The manual would be useful to an electronics tech who was not familiar with projection sets. It wouldn't help in the least if you are a doctor, lawyer, butcher or a candle stick maker. Call around. Try in get a ball park price over the phone. If someone won't give you a ball park, call someone else. I'll give you mine right now, under $300. Most shops have a flat rate for pros. (Something like $229 plus parts, $75 for NO repairs, etc...) If they won't give you their price menu.... CALL SOMEONE ELSE!