"John Del" wrote in message
...
Subject: Lightning strike to JVC AV-36260
From: "Leonard Caillouet"
Date: 7/9/03 7:34 AM Eastern Daylight

John, why would you assume this? I have seen many sets and related
components damaged by lighning coming down the cable or antenna line
(actually usually shield), as evidenced by burn marks on the connectors
and
ground foils burned up......
Leonard Caillouet

I assumed that based on the description of the problem with that JVC,
something
I've seen lots of in their newer models. The original poster is saying the
TV
is dead, save for the LED flashing. While it's certainly possible for
this
damage to be caused by cable inputs (or even from other equipment
connected
through the A\V jacks), the vast majority of damage I've seen from surges
in my
30 plus years are line related, and this JVC certainly fits this
description
well.

I have seen a lot of customers blame the cable company for line surge
failures
in order to get the loss pinned on someone besides themselves. Of course
I
don't know for sure, which is why I didn't say it in my original response,
but
a flag went up nonetheless.

John

I don't disagree that a line surge is more likely if the JVC PS primary is
the only thing damaged. These things break if someone sneezes near the ac
line. My point is that most people are not aware of the potential for
damage via the other connections to their system and are not aware of the
importance of good grounding. You can't assume a line surge based on the
info given. Like David said, you may not be able to tell at all from the
damaged components. I just thought it was important to point out that there
is a lot more to protection against lighning and surges than putting a
"surge protector" on the ac line and your comment seemed to minimize the
other possibilities.

I also get people all the time that want to put the blame for failures on
cable companies, insurance companies, and power companies. We tell people
up front that we will document what we find and only state what the evidence
directly supports. Often we can say no more than the damage is or is not
consistent with external surge damage. Often we cannot conclude even this.
We will not state something that there is not clear evidence to support.

The fact is, however, that there are many cable and satellite installations
that are not properly grounded and make lightning damage much more severe.
We probably see much more if it in Florida than in other places. This time
of year my volume can easily double when the thunderstorms pass through.
There are also many electrical service grounds out there that have not been
checked, cleaned, nor tightened in decades. People need to be more aware of
the possible sources and how to protect against damage.

Leonard Caillouet