The worst solid state color TVs ever made

[radiotvnut]

I've had my hands on three Philco-Ford solid state color sets. One was a 19" ex-motel set that had no HV and the jug was dead, so no effort was put into that one. The next one was a 19" color set that had a good picture, but had HV regulation issues and I gave it to a TV repairman friend. The third was a big 25" TV/stereo combo and as the owners were unloading it off the truck, they bumped the neck of the jug and that was the end of it. From what they described, it had horizontal sync issues, but they did not want to replace the jug and they picked it up to use as a stereo.

I know I'm derailing my own post, but I did not care for GE Portacolor sets and I've never met a technician who did. In fact, most technicians got so they would not work on them. I was told that at a GE seminar, it was announced that the 10HE chassis tube Portacolor was being discontinued and everyone in the room stood up and started clapping.

[Telecolor 3007]

About "GoldStar" or "Samsung" or both there was a talk in the past and I wondered how in U.S.A. the tv sets made by the companies where bad.
In Romania there where imported tv sets from both of them. "GoldStar" had the advertising with ˝"GoldStar", nobleţea aurului˝ - nobleţea aurului = the noblese of the gold.

I don't know much about "GoldStar", but "Samsung" tv sets where quite good sets. Lasting 15-17 years. Not as much as more expensive sets ("Samsung" was expensive in Romania), but still quite fine. I think some lasted 20 years.
They where also assamble in Romania, specially a series models called 'BioVision'. One of the models of the series runned to a dental clinic at least 8 hours a day, 252 days a year from at least 1998 to 2010 or 2012. The last time, it still offered a good image. Got replaced by and L.C.D. one... The old "Samsung" was young and restless.
At a hotel, it was also a '90's "Samsung". Stil in use in a lobby in 2009 or 2010.
"Samsung" made quite long lasting picture tubes too. In early '90's, at 'Elecrom' tv sets ('Elecrom' was a Soviet tv "Elektron" tv set with a P.A.L. decoder aded) "Samsung" pictures tubes where put, because the Soviet ones didn't las long.

[AlanInSitges]

Originally Posted by radiotvnut

I've had my hands on three Philco-Ford solid state color sets.

Shango did one of these in his "pulled out of a ravine" series, a 19" set. Once he hosed all the mud and wasp nests out of it I was surprised at how well-engineered it seemed to be: modular, SCR horizontal, and a pretty advanced switching power supply for the 1970s. I seem to remember it had a pretty decent picture, all things considered.

I thought Philco was pretty much coasting by that point, so it was unexpected to see them taking big swings like the design of that set.

[Alex KL-1]

For me, for servicing, is not a maker individually, but bad decisions about mixing techs at time (examples will be mentioned below). Since one of best TV I serviced was a Philco, and the worst also...
But for owners here... maybe Cineral and CCE, since these make a bad fame itselfs... makes these early Samsung and Goldstar seemed a tank machine and a breeze to fix.

Based on my relatively little time I worked with TV sets, used and new (early 2000's):
80's Philips: blue cap disease, some with circuits difficult to diagnostic for a newbie technician (on this include some Telefunkens).
Early 2000's Philips: bad solder joints, very small solder area for non-SMD parts
CCE, Cineral: local makers know to cut costs at any costs... so a miryad of problems
Philco (then Itautec, former Hitachi and Ford): like local makers, cutting costs using some SMD on very large common phenolic ordinary PCB without chassis metal clamp, prone to flexing and making various SMD parts fail.
Early 480p TV: terrible to diagnose processing boards.
And too many makers to mention...

BUT when LCD TV started to appear, I furtunately found another job! those SMD in these is a PITA to fix, and makers love to sell modules only, if any.