Returning for credit is common to all brands of lamp - no one brand of
HPL or other type of lamp is superior to another at this wattage of lamp. Used to publically fight the
ETC brand for bad lot numbers, got some private calls to follow such issues such as bent or otherwise lamp caps that didn't fit or retain the lamps sufficiently
etc. Got nowhere in the end at least early on though the problems have perhaps lessened between the fixtures it took a pipe and hammer to seat the lamps with and the fixtures where you open the cap and the lamp falls out being a
bit less likely to find. The early
ceramic lamps had difficulties in both extracting and inserting and breaking often.
Used to despise the
ceramic base that the industry is still at odds about, these days one
HPL is as good as another in my professional opinion. Let me state it again, one brand of
HPL is just as good as another in my professional opinion and I am not taking sides.
All have lot number problems at times, and all work sufficiently 99% of the time. Lamps blowing upon turning on... it's possible but very rare.
Below is some initial problems in say heat shinks breaking upon extraction with a "
church key" as the only way to remove a otherwise stuck lamp. I like aluminum bases but overall for
HPL's buy what's cheapest and have not had any complaints over what's quality between GE, Phillips, Osram and Ushio. All preform equally well in my opinion these days and I do use all of them.
Hope it helps, at times one brand to another you will get an off lot but it's really rare. Don't get like my mentour in his no longer buying anything with a GE brand name on it if he can help it. Gee, you could have saved two bucks each on GE type GLA lamps but some past experiences with HX-600 lamps you had but I didn't tells you that only the Phillips will work in your situation due to the lesser quality of the GE. Funny, I had a pre-market GE/Thorn HX-600 and probably still have it 15 years plus later, this much less never had similar problems he noted in them being more fragile. Don't get like this TD in holding an opinion of a brand, this especially if it takes you to a brand in general even for lamps developed 10 plus years after the ones he had a problem with. The extra money he spends due to his hate of one brand doesn't do any service to where he works and is un-supported with more than his own observation.
In other words, nope once in a while I'll also get a bad lot number of fill in the blank brand and type of lamp. Heck, for Martan
Mac 2K fixtures, I don't accept the MSR 1200SA/DE lamp as a valid lamp - when we get them I
send them back and get
HMI 1200w/S lamps. That's based upon proof in me
tracking lamp hours - simply put the Phillips lamp is lucky to reach it's expected lamp life, on average the Osram lamp reaches it and gets up to double it. That's based upon literally hundreds of lamps all with serial numbers on them
tracking individual lamps and lamp hours tracked. Or in the case of the Phillips lamp that doesn't have a serial number in another problem I have with them - gee the lamp cost more than the day rate of the person installing it and it doesn't have a serial number... none the less, we scribe a serial number into them and
track individual lamps. Osram
Mac 2K lamps are better. On the other
hand when given the choice between a Osram HTI 705w/SE and a Phillips MSR 700SA lamp, I choose the Phillips lamp due to also tracked hours, this plus lack of serial numbers on the Osram lamp.
ETC,
ETC.
ETC. This is all big expensive lamps, for a
HPL lamp, I don't
track them as well but do note trends and have sent back bad lots before no matter the brand.
Beyond this all is advice to check your lamp
base. Problem possibly not related but potentially a trashed lamp
base that works fine with some brands but not with others. It happens at times.