how do you replace a damaged vga cable?

[EdipisReks]

a friend of mine gave me a gateway vivitron 17 monitor yesterday. it's a nice flat 17in trinitron monitor, but there are a couple of lines on the screen due to the cable being damaged. is there a way to replace vga cables without sending the monitor to a repair shop? i searched the net for replacement vga cables, and i saw two types: those with 5 connectors on the monitor end and those with 3 connectors on the monitor end. is it as simple as opening the case, seeing what kind of cable it has, and then plugging a new one in? if this requires professional repair i will just live with the lines. they aren't any more noticeable than the aperture grill lines, and the monitor was free, afterall (and lines or no lines, it is a lot better than the 15 inch crap i was using).

thanks!
--jacob

 

[EdipisReks]

bump

 

[Agamar]

You aren't talking about the lines about 3/4 from top and 3/4 from bottom are you?

 

[EdipisReks]

i don't understand what you mean by "3/4 from top and 3/4 from bottom". the replacement cords i have seen are standard HB15 on one side (the side that goes into the video card) and then terminate in either 3 or 5 connectors (each one looking like an individual plug) on the otherside. i don't know if those are only for monitors with removable cables that plug into the monitor externalyl, or if they are what are used for monitors with a non removable cable.

--jacob

 

[Gunslinger08]

All trinitrons have two thin black lines going across their screens, 1/4 of the way from the bottom of the screen, and 1/4 of the way from the top of the screen.

Josh

 

[EdipisReks]

if you read my first post more closely, you will see that i say that the 2 lines "aren't any more noticeable than the aperture grill lines", thus showing that i know about the two horizontal aperture grill lines in 17 and 19inch trinitron monitors. the two lines that are caused by the bad cable are vertical. when the question about 2 lines was asked, i thought it referred to the vga cable (and "3/4 from the top and 3/4 from bottom" makes no sense, though i now know what he meant since he was talking about the aperture grill and not the cable).

--jacob

 

[Theslowone]

If it is the cable then you can get a new one from a lot of places don't get a cheap one though.
Heres one from pccables.com for a pretty good price, and looks good quality.

 

[EdipisReks]

that cable is HDDB15 on both sides and looks like it is for a KVM switch box, so i don't understand what it would do for me (unless you are suggesting i splice that cable into the main line of my vga cable). my monitor just has the standard internal "permanent" connector for the vga cable. it is not removable without removing the case, and i imagine that the leads are soldered (i don't mind soldering work, so that isn't a problem). if someone could tell me whether the cords that are HDDB15 on one side and either 3 or 5 leads on the other are the correct type of cords to use as a replacement, i would appreciate it.

--jacob

 

[Theslowone]

sorry I thought the cable could connect and disconnect, does your monitor have bnc connectors on it?

 

[EdipisReks]

as i said, it is just a standard monitor cable that attaches inside the case. it does not have external BNC connections. i haven't cracked the case yet, so i don't know what is inside (i'm hoping that it is seperate terminators so that i can just replace it with one of the 3 or 5 connector cables i have seen on the internet). does anyone know if splicing the main line of a vga cable is difficult? i'm sure i could find an old monitor with an intact vga cable somewhere.

--jacob

 

[EdipisReks]

well, i opened the case, and it isn't user replaceable (well, not unless the user happens to be a tv repairman). does anyone know how much it generalyl costs to get cables replaced?

thanks,
--jacob