Member Avatar for wmc1956

How can I tell if my emachines monitor is the problem or if it's the cord. The monitor (which is about1 1/2-2 years old) all of a sudden quit working so I bought a new power cord (in the meantime I used an older monitor) which worked for about a day but now has quit working also. For a while I was getting nothing from the monitor, but now if I plug the cord in (by the way, the monitor is now in an upside down position) and wait a couple of seconds the blue light comes on. Then it sounds like the monitor switches off and the blue light goes out. Any help will be appreciated! Thanks!

  • 3 Contributors
  • 5 Replies
  • 674 Views
  • 6 Years Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by Nancy Hensher

Dani AI

Generated

Short summary tied to the thread: the Emachines 900W reports from and —blue power LED comes on for a few seconds then the monitor dies, and re-seating power or DVI/HDMI sometimes brings it back—match two different fault families: failing internal power/backlight electronics (common as these age) or an intermittent digital-input/handshake or connector problem. Both show the same outward symptom but need different tests to separate. (serverfault.com)

Quick, safe diagnostics to separate causes:

  • Power-only test: unplug the video cable and power the monitor. If the LED still lights then shuts, the fault is inside the monitor (power board/inverter/backlight). (serverfault.com)
  • Flashlight test: with the monitor “on” but black, shine a bright flashlight at an angle. A faint image means the panel logic is working but the backlight/inverter failed. (badcaps.net)
  • Swap cables/devices: try a known-good HDMI/DVI cable and another source (or a PC) to rule out the receiver, adapter, or EDID/handshake problems that can make a monitor appear to lose the picture. Re-seating can temporarily restore a bad digital handshake; if LED behavior changes only when the video cable is plugged/unplugged, suspect the digital side. (extron.com)

Safety and repair-versus-replace notes: modern LCDs contain high-voltage circuitry and charged capacitors—do not open or probe the interior unless experienced; it can be hazardous. For many older consumer monitors the cost of board-level repair (surface-mount parts, inverter or cap replacement) often approaches or exceeds the price of a new display, so replacement is frequently the pragmatic choice. If a repair shop is chosen, pick a provider experienced with LCD power/inverter faults. (repairfaq.org)

Specific to : a faulty DVI/HDMI cable or adapter can cause intermittent pictures, but the LED coming on then going off strongly points at an internal power/backlight protection or failing components rather than the connector alone. Trying a different cable, a direct DVI (no passive adapter), and the power-only / flashlight checks above will tell which side is failing. (extron.com)

Recommended Answers

All 5 Replies

Member Avatar for crb3

Your post is lacking a few details.
- what kind of monitor -- LCD or CRT? Better yet, include the model# of the monitor, so someone can look up what kind of cable and hardware (VGA, HDMI etc) the display-adapter card (or on-motherboard circuittry) drives the monitor with.
- which cord are you wondering about -- the data cable from the computer to the monitor, or the power cord from the monitor to the wall-socket?
- which cord are you unplugging and plugging to get that ten-seconds-on behavior -- the data cable or the power cord?

I can think of a reason why a power cord would cause that kind of intermittent behavior, but it's more likely to apply with a CRT than with an LCD, with the higher current draw, and only when the cord's been flexed a lot. Reply soon, because that reason, if true, is a potential fire hazard.

Member Avatar for wmc1956

Sorry for the lack of info!

It is an LCD monitor, Emachines 900W, and the cord is the power cord and it's that cord that makes the light come on for a couple of seconds.

Thanks for your reply

Member Avatar for crb3

It'd have to be an extremely tattered power cord to fail under load like you've described. No, sorry, my guess is that the fault is in the monitor, specifically the "power-supply" area where wall-mains power is converted down to the voltages which the various circuits of the monitor need. From browsing the net (fixya.com in particular), you're not the only person having this specific problem.

Your monitor needs repair by a knowledgeable service techician; the guy down the street won't do for this, as it's likely to be all surface-mount components in there. It could just be that the jack which the power cord plugs into has a weak solder joint which has worked loose with flexing, causing a thermal intermittent, but that's a call I'm not prepared to make at a distance, not when a wrong guess or a wrong move can turn the monitor into a fire hazard. Repair-or-replace is a decision you'll have to make after finding out how much such a repair will cost you.

Member Avatar for wmc1956

Yes, I believe you're right and we'll probably go the replace route. We can probably get another monitor for about the same price we'd pay to have this one fixed. I appreciate you answering my question!

Member Avatar for Nancy Hensher

Emachines monitor (900W) it is used for my digtal reciever box. In our spare room .iIt is never mover what so ever .so the cords are in like brand new condition.
Here is my issue.All of a sudden the picture has gone out .I unpluged the hdmi from the dvi plug.Took the dvi plug off .Then put it back on .It worked fine for about 2 months. And once again the picture goes out .I unplug the hdmi .I plug it back in , the blue light on the power button comes on for 15 sec then back off .I do like before. I take both plug off very carefully. Then I put them back on and it wotks again .You said something about a lose connection on the inside of the monitor .But you were talking about the power .Could the same thing happen to the dvi connection.And if so how ? The thing has not moved for 1 yr & its in a corner where nothing can bump into it .Do they meybe just go bad after time?

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.