Does your Sony Bravia KDL-46W5100 TV spontaneously reboot while playing content via HDMI? Mine did, until I got it fixed under warranty. It took several weeks of diagnosis, attempting various fixes, sending emails and making phone calls before I finally persuaded Sony to fix it.
On Boxing Day last year I bought a Sony Bravia KDL-46W5100 television from Future Shop. For the first three months I owned it, I was really pleased with it. The picture quality was fantastic and I liked using the network-enabled features such as the DLNA streaming media player.
My problems started in the Spring of this year. The TV started to reboot spontaneously while playing content input via the HDMI ports. The screen would turn black for a few seconds and then I would see the Bravia logo splash screen. A few seconds later, I would see “HDMI 1″ in the top left corner, indicating that the TV was connecting to the input device on HDMI port 1. Finally, after a few more seconds, the content would be displayed. You can watch my Youtube video to see this in action.
At first, this behavior was rare, happening only once every few days. Then, after about a month, it became much more frequent, happening several times a day. Sometimes it would even reboot every 15 seconds for several minutes!
I believe the increase in frequency might have coincided with the warmer spring temperatures. In other words, I think the problem might have been somehow related to ambient temperature. However, it’s not like there was a huge change in temperature in the house between winter and spring. After all, our house has central air conditioning. Furthermore, the TV and the HDMI source devices were all very well ventilated.
After a few weeks I couldn’t stand this any longer so I emailed Sony Technical Support. Here is the advice they gave me:
1. Make sure that you have connected the source to the Television properly and securely.
2. Unplug the power cord of the unit from the wall outlet for few minutes, then connect it to a different wall outlet and check the operation.
3. Connect the video source to a different input on the Television and check the operation.
4. Connect a different video source to the Television and check the operation.
5. Replace the connecting cable and check the operation.
6. Reset the TV to factory settings. To reset your TV to factory settings, turn the TV ON. Then, while pressing the UP ARROW button on the Remote Control, press the POWER button on the TV. The TV will turn itself OFF then back ON.
If the issue persists, service will be required.
Yada, yada, yada. Of course I had already tried all of those things and none of them worked.
Next, I phoned Sony Technical Support. The technician I talked to was rude and arrogant. He seemed almost offended that I was suggesting there was something wrong with my Sony KDL-W5100 series TV. He insisted that the problem was caused by my Motorola DCT3416 HD PVR and not my Sony TV. He said that I should get my cable company to replace the PVR.
Well, that rude Sony technician was persuasive. The next day, I called my cable company and a few days later, the cable technician showed up at the door with a brand new PVR. Unfortunately, after replacing the PVR, the TV still rebooted randomly. Luckily, the cable guy was still there to see it. He went to his truck and brought back a component video cable. When we used that component cable to connect the PVR to the TV, instead of the HDMI cable, the TV stopped rebooting. Unfortunately, the picture quality wasn’t as nice as with the HDMI cable and my wife also complained about the unsightly proliferation of wires behind the TV (the three wires of the component cable plus the two wires of the related audio cable).
After a few days, I got used to the video quality of the component cable connection and I decided that I would live with it for a little while before doing battle with Sony again.
Then my big brother came to town, with his fancy Oppo blu-ray player and a stack of blu-ray movies. My brother is a bit of a videophile so he helped me diagnose the problem one afternoon. To rule out that the problem was the Motorola PVR, we plugged in his Oppo blu-ray player via HDMI. Guess what? The TV rebooted with the blu-ray player too so the PVR was not to blame.
Next, we turned our attention to the HDMI cables. We went to the store and bought three different brands of HDMI cable, including the grossly expensive Monster brand. Guess what? The TV still rebooted with all of the cables, even the Monster. After some more testing, we discovered that the problem happened mostly on HDMI ports 1 and 4. It did happen on ports 2 and 3, but only a couple of times.
Armed with this new knowledge, I called back Sony. This time they were very receptive and admitted that it was probably a problem with the TV. I made arrangements to have a Sony repair guy come and fix the TV. Unfortunately, it took a few more weeks before the repair guy could come over because he had to order a replacement part from Sony. Sigh…
Finally, the magic day was upon us and the Sony repair guy came to my house. He took the back off the TV and replaced a computer board that was inside it. The whole process took only a few short minutes. Guess what? The repair job worked! The TV no longer reboots spontaneously while displaying content via HDMI!
Mr. Kelly,
My Sony TV doing the same thing but Sony we not honor the repair because TV is one month over warranty date. I never used HMDI until recently when i got Directv HD install. Do I have a leg to stand on against Sony? Please let me know.
Thank you,
Mr. Rodriguez
You can try asking Sony very nicely and they might honor it anyway. Mention something like “Could you please honor the warranty anyway, as a gesture of goodwill for a long time Sony customer.”
Feel free to tell them about this story.
Supposedly updating your firmware to aa0178pn will do the trick. The only catch is that you can’t update your firmware through your TV (it says aa0176pn is the latest – it’s not!) You need to download aa0178pn from the sony support website, put it on a USB stick (FAT32 formatted), and use the USB port on your TV to install it. I was pleased that my TV didn’t power cycle while the firmware was installing. It’s all up to date now. So far, so good.
Hi Judy,
I tried that exact step months ago and it did NOT work for me. The only thing that worked was the hardware replacement discussed above.
Thanks – you are right. The firmware upgrade helped for 2 days and now I’m back to the same problem. Mine seems to happen regardless of whether it is on HDMI or component. It also happens even when I turn off all other devices, most of which are Sony (PS3 and DVD). We don’t have a cable box because we only stream from the internet or watch DVDs.
Did you also have the problem with a relay clicking when the TV is off? I found that problem elsewhere on the web, but there were no replies to the posting.
There was no relay clicking that I could perceive.
To any of you still having this issue: Have you by chance linked your TV wirelessly to a Dlink DIR-655 router? If you disable wireless at the TV, does the rebooting cease? This combination of router and wireless connection seems to be a common thread in many forums about Sony rebooting, and is my experience as well. I also thought a firmware update would solve the problem, but it returned the very next day. Not sure if this will help pressure Sony and/or Dlink to address the issue, but identifying such a common thread might help.
Mr. D.: There is no D-Link in my config. If I had to guess, I’d say that some of the TVs shipped with defective system boards. In my case, the system board replacement fixed the rebooting and I have not had any problems since.
Thanks Joe! I guess I’ll have to “arm-up” with evidence and call Sony; my KDL-40NX711 is doing the same reboot trick. So far, all I have is that it started acting up simultaneously with the install of my DIR-655 router, and that it quits rebooting if I disable the wireless from the Bravia setup menu. If it is the system board, it’s obviously tripping over some wireless function just like yours was with certain HDMI ports.
Surprise, surprise — D-Link just released a firmware update that says right in the release notes that it “Address an issue with some Sony TV’s connecting to the router in n mode with security enabled”. So maybe I can quit pounding Sony and start enjoying internet streaming. Seems to have fixed the issue, but time will tell!
Thanks, Mr. D! The firmware worked for me as well. I was sure the problem was with the TV, since that is the device that crashed. I have a KDL-46EX701. Is yours still working?
Yes, Dave; it’s still working. But Sony isn’t off the hook as far as I’m concerned. Just last week, they sent me a customer satisfaction survey and a letter asking me to rate them “all excellent”! A lot of gall, those guys! (Or more likely one hand not knowing what the other foot is doing.) OK, in the end it turned out to be not their problem, but I’ll bet money someone in the org knew about this for quite some time — firmware releases aren’t thrown together overnight. And how the he## does a router give a TV a “reboot” command anyhow?? All they had to do was tell me “we’re working on it and will give you weekly email updates.” More than satisfactory. But instead, now they have one less future customer.
I have a 52w5100 that has been crashing sometimes while I’m streaming Netflix from the TV app. I’m wondering if this is related to the same hardware board as the OP was having problems with.
Judy also mentioned something about a relay clicking after the tv had been turned off. I do notice that after I have turned the set off, something will click from within the set a short time after. I had always thought this was a normal thing with the tv. Is it actually related to some kind of issue?
I am having the same issue on my Sony Bravia KDL55EX723. It will reboot itself 3 times and then stays powered off with the red LED blinking. I spoke with a sony tech….they had me remove the power cord from the surge protector and plug directly into the wall. The problem still occured. Then he had me unplug it from the wall for 1 minute to make the TV reset itself. The problem still occured. Then he told me it looks like it needs service.
Steve – If you have a D-link router, look on their website to see if there’s a firmware update. It’s not the most user-friendly site, but keep after it until you find the area you need. If there’s an update for your D-link hardware, install that before you waste another minute with Sony; they’re clueless about this issue. Good luck!
Ps. Sorry Joe, for usurping your article — just blame Sony!
Pps. Sony: Start reading the internet! Get your tech support updated!!!
Hey Joe! i’ve got the same issue as you had with the sony 46 inch tv,mine will work fine if i go into the settings and go to eco and set it to low instead of off,i was wondering if it was the power board that you had replaced or something else! any help would be appreciated! thanks.
It was the main system board that they replaced.
Hey joe i was wondering if the main system board is the one with the hdmi connections on it,i seen one on ebay but didnt want to get the wrong one. Thanks alot! have a good day!
I’m not 100% sure but I think it is the one with the HDMI connectors.
Ok thanks alot!
this is what it looks like….http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-KDL-46W5100-Main-Unit-Brd-Pt-1-879-224-14-AS-IS-/380347466648?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item588e79c398
Guys, Great thread. I have just experienced the same system restart issue with my Sony KDL46EX720 in the last hour. Coincidentally, I was setting up the sons 3ds to the internet over the wireless network. As this was the first time this issue has ever occured I am firmly placing the issue on the wireless connectivity.
At this stage, I am leaving the 3ds off to see if the Sony issues continue. I have a Netcomm modem therefore it is slightly differing in configuration then those stated above but time will tell.
I have a similar issue. We only have netflix streaming. Some videos will play for 10 seconds, without the counter moving and then the screen goes green and the TV restarts. It’s often an issue with some films repeatedly and even specific episodes within series. Damned annoying – particularly as it prompts my wife to repeat the ‘when are we getting a new TV?’ line. The TV’s a year Bravia. Sony have no idea and nor do Netflix.
Adding mine to the list KDL-52W5100 / firmware aa0195fn TV keeps rebooting.
Hello dee, something you can try go to settings/prefrences/eco and set to low and see if that helps! i changed out my system board[the one with all the connections] and still have the problem! so im thinking its something to do with the power,probably one of the other boards,havent had any luck finding much info on this problem other than here,hope this helps.
Same problem here! (why else would I be reading this thread)
My sony bravia kdl 46w5100 shuts down….
I thought it was a heat issue whereby the TV was on too long.
If I turn it off and leave it off for a few minutes it seems to work well after that although as of late it has been rebooting itself much more often.
I am running Apple TV into an HDMI port.
Haha I’m the first for 2012, mine has been doing it for a while now. It’s a 2 year old tv!! Kdl 46w5100. I will call sony to see if they will warranty it. If not new I will get a Samsung or Lg .
My KDL-52W5500 started rebooting yesterday. It reboots 3 times in a row and then the red LED flash 10 times. The picture is only visible for at few seconds between the reboots so I haven’t had any luck doing a factory reset or updating the firmware. Come to think of it I have experienced a few reboots before yesterday. They all appeared when I connected the TV to my Sony Vaio via HDMI.
Just had the same thing with mine a Sony Kdl55ex500 done the update, unplugged it , reset it , man got nothing going to ring Sony only 18 months old!
My two year old KDL40W5100 just started with the power cycling moving on to the red led blinking 10 times. Means it is out of warranty too- any idea what goes the repair costs? Not sure if it is coincidental or not but mine started to do this after switching from a HD receiver to a HD PVR receiver.
just read thru the threads, again. KDL 46EX701 with repetitive reboots: checked DIR-655 firmware, no updates since May 2010… Removed usb wireless connector, stopped rebooting… i see there is a TV firmware update in a bin file. Do i put bin file on usb stick then upload to tv? Does this ‘new’ sony firmware update fix random rebooting?
rebooting not related to hdmi connections, other hardware, or netflix. just the wireless connection
My brand new KDL55NX720 started constantly rebooting right after I hooked up a computer to it via HDMI. It reboots three times and then stops with 8 blinks of the red LED. I disconnected everything, unplugged it overnight, etc. Nothing solved the problem. I talked with Sony tech support and they said it would be FOUR days before a tech would call me back to schedule a visit to my house. Fortunately, I bought from Amazon so its going back.
Same issue here. It just started happening with my KDL46EX620 – purchased it in December (less than 6 months old).
The trouble is that it doesn’t happen in a pattern. Restarted itself after being on for less than 5 minutes. Last time it happened 4 days ago at about the same time (a few minutes after being turned on…)
I’m only using one HDMI connection. Not using wireless at all.
Sounds like calling Sony is the only option here.
I had bought a kdl55ex723 in August and enjoyed it for the first month and then it started rebooting and wouldn’t come back on and do the 8 blinks of the red light. I had seen some threads on how to unplug everything, recheck plugs, and then got a hold of Sony Tech and told me the same thing and even tried to get the TV to restore to default. After a day they did have a repair guy get a hold of me and I told him what the problem was over the phone and he said that he would have a new power board in 7-10 days. Good thing I still had my Sony 40″, had it for over 5 years and no problems, just wanted a bigger TV. He replaced the board and seemed to fix the problem. I bought the TV from Best Buy and did buy the configuration package but didn’t have it done because at the time they were to come out the TV wasn’t working. I hadn’t rescheduled yet and kind of glad that I haven’t because I have noticed that the past couple of weeks the TV has been rebooting after being turned on for a couple of minutes and the sound seems to be worse too and I only keep it on a volume of 15. I have noticed some pixels out too, but it may be the camera on that particular channel. I’m heading to Best Buy tomorrow for some shopping but I believe I will talk to them to see what they recommend.