Philips Magnavox 42MF231D/37

8 years ago

I have a plasma tv that’s around 10 years old and I’ve loved everything about it. However, recently, the remote doesn’t work, which would be fine since I only use HDMI, but the volume is stuck on low and the tv control buttons don’t do what they are supposed to. For example, if I press volume up, the menu comes up. If I press volume down, it changes the channel, etc. and the buttons never do the same thing when pressed again. I have no idea what to do. Please help! Thanks.

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Comments (3)

PRO
Square Peg Audio/Video
8 years ago
Hello Nicole

If you're sure that it's the "Magnavox" remote causing the problem and you can't locate a new one/used one, then you might want to try purchasing an after market remote such as a Logitech Harmony that can easily be programmed by selecting the make and model of your TV. Logitech remotes are made to be easily programmed by the consumer. If you have a cable box or sat box remote, you can also try programming your TV model into their remote. If you already have a custom remote, the programming could be corrupted. Other things to try - replace batteries in the remote, try un-plugging the TV power cord from the wall, wait a minute and plug it back in. There could also be other issues causing this to happen as well, but at least you can eliminate a few things.

good luck

- Frank P.
Nichole Ring
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you for respond! It’s definitely not the remote. This happens when I press the buttons on the actual tv unit. I have no idea when that started being the case, because we only used the remote until it quit working entirely. I don’t know if those two problems are related or not.
I have unplugged the tv and waited 5 minutes before plugging it back in. That did nothing. We can’t use a replacement remote, because apparently we’d need to access the menu for programming it. The volume is stuck on high and we can’t turn it down.
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PRO
Square Peg Audio/Video
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Look closely at all the button functions on the TV and see (and feel) if any of them appear to be stuck, make sure that they all move freely. Any buttons that are stuck may cause strange things to happen. I know this is a bit of a stretch, but if you can get to the menu function by some means, e.g. remote, check for a factory default setting.

Just an FYI, you don't need to access the TV menu to program an after market remote - if I understood you correctly. If you do have a cable/sat box, your provider can help you program in the TV code - then test vol. up/vol. down. That's the most economical way to isolate the problem from being the TV control board itself.

I'm not that familiar with your TV but a repair may cost much more than the TV is worth.