Unable to see bedroom tv while lying down

[tommyboy3700]

We are unable to see our tv while lying in bed, if you sit up the color is great. The tv is mounted inside a cabinet in our 2008 Journey 37 that we are unable to get to unless we damage the cabinet.
I found one older post but did not see that they got a solution and I am unable to post to that thread.:

[Zoafan]

Do you have the older style tube TV? Chances are it's the viewing angle, if you replace it with an LED it will eliminate that limitation.

[Francesca]

Suggestion #1: Strategically placed mirror.

Suggestion #2: Sit up. (This one's cheaper)

[gajd33]

Can you snap a photo of your tv setup?

I found a picture below out of a 2008 Journey 37 but it looks like it has a Flat Screen LCD TV.



If there is a LCD there I would just put a different mount with a tilt that you could adjust downward at your preference. If not it may be worth replacing that tube TV and purchasing a more flexible mount so you can watch in bed. Read more about Flat Screen TV mounts HERE

[ga traveler]

Originally Posted by tommyboy3700

We are unable to see our tv while lying in bed, if you sit up the color is great. The tv is mounted inside a cabinet in our 2008 Journey 37 that we are unable to get to unless we damage the cabinet.
I found one older post but did not see that they got a solution and I am unable to post to that thread.:

I have never worked on a camper that did not have access to the TV. All manufacturers know that the TV will at some point have to be serviced. Are there wooden buttons on the face of the opening? Take a flashlight and shine on both sides and the top and bottom. Look for screws that hold the TV in place. Most manufacturers elevate a board at the back of the TV to angle it for better viewing.

[KoolBell]

I just finished helping a friend with this same problem a few weeks ago in Biloxi, MS. He had the same problem. Here is how we solved it.

First we removed the TV by popping the plastic caps off of each corner, and removed the screws that held the face plate onto the actual cabinet.

Then we disconnected all the wires, make sure to make notes of where the wires go back in the TV

We unscrewed the bracket the TV was mounted to from the face plate, and then removed the TV from the bracket.

Wal Mart had a swivel mount in stock that allowed the TV to be angled down by 13 degrees. In your case I would get the swing arm mount so that you can maneuver the TV in any fashion you please. If you look carefully at the options of the different mounts, you will be able to make the right choice better than I.

We attached a piece of 1/4 inch plywood to the back of the face plate to accommodate the new mount fastening screws.

I now wish I had taken many pictures, sorry....

Once we mounted the face plate back onto the cabinet his wife was laying in the bed grinning because she could see her TV screen.

[Possum]

As you can see to the left we have a 1994 Adventurer 30RQ. I was poking around in it today and noticed that the 110 volt plugs over the couch and the dinette have little rocker switches beside them. What the heck are these switches for, please and thank you?

[Wayne M]

A picture would be great!

If your tv is sitting on a shelf there may be bolts up through the bottom to hold it in place, and if a cabinet above, or cubby hole there may be a screw or set of screws down through the shelf that hold a clip in place. It will come out without damaging the cabinet. It just may not be obvious. I had to change out the old 117 pound digital TV (30"), mid-coach, for a new LCD 36". It took a while to find the clips and bolts but they were there.

If it is in a cabinet it most likely fits inside a metal frame, and that is what the top clip holds the tv from "rocking" out from the top gong down the road, along with the bolts up from the bottom.

Happy trails.

[Muddypaws]

Some LCD TVs have bad off angle viewing. I put a Visio in the bedroom and had the same problem. I have another TV (A Toshiba) that is always viewed from an even worse downward angle. It has no color shift at all.

A tilting mount solved the problem.

I've never heard of a tube TV having this problem.

[Wayne M]

Some of the older tv's have the problem because of the slightly convex manufacturing of the screen area. Even some of the newer technology tv's have the problem even though the screen is flat. Some models are just better than others. Go into a Best Buy, or similar store, and walk as far to the side angle as you can and look at the different television screens with a program showin. What you see there will be the same for the up to down ratio. Many are faded pictures

I have an Akai LCD here at the stick house in my computer room . It is only a 19" or so. It is at eye level on a shelf when I stand up and it is a good picture, but when I'm sitting at the computer the picture is faded darker and harder to see. I put it at the level it is at for DW when she is on the treadmill. NO, I am NOT going to get on the treadmill so don't go there.

[tommyboy3700]

took back off cabinet in bathroom to get to tv. its a solid mt, no adjustment. would need to replace old brackets and start over.

[tommyboy3700]

that was the correct picture.. thanks

[KoolBell]

Originally Posted by tommyboy3700

took back off cabinet in bathroom to get to tv. its a solid mt, no adjustment. would need to replace old brackets and start over.

Good luck with it. Please post pictures, and what all you have to do to get it right. You may save someone a big headache, and lots of money that runs into the same problem later.

[mickey53usa]

My $0.02. Bedroom TV in our 09 Destination is in same location. I can take off the panel underneath it and get to the back of the TV (lots of wires back there.) After examining the mount, which is solid, but the TV bolts in at four locations, my course of action will be to loosen the bottom nuts (appears that the bolts are captive) take the top nuts off (again appears that top bolts are captive) push the top of the TV out, so the bolts clear the frame, slip three or four washers over the bolts, pull the TV back into the frame (bolts appear to be long enough) and replace the nuts. This should give enough downward tilt to make viewing in bed better, while not screwing up watching while standing. Thought I had taken some pictures looking up the back of the TV, but can't find them now.

Just my thoughts and observations
Michael

[Pusherman]

Originally Posted by Muddypaws

Some LCD TVs have bad off angle viewing. I put a Visio in the bedroom and had the same problem. I have another TV (A Toshiba) that is always viewed from an even worse downward angle. It has no color shift at all.

A tilting mount solved the problem.

I've never heard of a tube TV having this problem.

The smaller LCD/LED TV's have a viewing angle problem, as Muddypaws notes. If you can figure out how to get to the back of the TV, simple: put some standoffs in the mounting system to angle it down and towards the bed.

All the mounting systems are different, so you might have to explore how yours is mounted.

Just changed my rear flat screen TV (not digital) to a Visio 19" digital in my '07 Journey. Pulled the wood surround off, no mounting screws. The TV was mounted on a steel plate, accessible with 4 screws, 2 top and bottom.

New TV is mounted, but will be putting offsets in the mount to tilt the TV down and left towards the bed.

[rdkng88]

I had the same problem all I did was adjust the lighting of the screen. Made a few changes to the black light, brightness, contrast, etc and I could see the picture fine.

[reitrof]

I used wood shims from home depot to tilt the metal frame holding the tv.

[SCVJeff]

There is no convex or concave manufacturing in an LCD plate. They are FLAT.
The under 26ish " monitors have lousy off access viewing and there is nothing you can do about it. Recently I found a 24" LED LG at Best Buy that you can lay at almost 80 degrees and still see the screen with very little error in pix quality, it's the only one I've seen. At the 15-20 degree angles on some of mounts in RV's, the dropoff is not even a consideration. Went from a very poor 19" 4x3 to a 24" 16x9. While this plate is only 720, I don't care because I'll never ever be close enough to see the difference. It'll be installed this weekend

Check it out:
LG 24MA31D

On sale for $179 too

[SCVJeff]

Here is the TV installed. This replaced the 19" LCD that had the view angle problem, and I didn't have a good way to tilt it since it was already protruding out.





This pic is shot from the foot of the bed, very close to straight up.

[Possum]

Originally Posted by Francesca

Suggestion #1: Strategically placed mirror.

Suggestion #2: Sit up. (This one's cheaper)

Hmmmm sounds kinky!!