Pavilion DV8000 Screen Problem

[rkoenn]

I am working on a friend's DV8000 which has display problems. It is an Intel based machien with dedicated GEForce 7400 Go graphics. Most of the time when it starts the screen briefly displays the BIOS info clearly and then once it is running the screen turns basically white but covered with very light multi-colored vertical lines. I hooked up an external monitor and it works fine on it. On occasion it will display fine at the 1400x900 native resolution but most of the time it has this jumbled white screen. I just tested in safe mode and it seems to work fine with the generic driver at lower resolution. Further testing info:

It was running Win XP when I got it. It would run fine about half the time. I also seemed to note if I connected the external monitor when the laptop screen had problems and cycled the monitors with the key strokes it would clear up and both monitors would be ok. I uninstalled the NVidia drivers and reinstalled them which did not help. I also installed earlier drivers with the same results.

The machine has two hard drives and one was empty so I installed clean Win 7 on it. Basically it exhibits the same problems although it actually seems to be a bit worse with 7. Switching monitors with 7 doesn't seem to fix the laptop display at all. I am using the latest drivers too. Booting into safe mode and the laptop screen is ok.

I have been testing various configurations in the last half hour and sometimes the screen is OK, usually in stand alone mode not, but a good part it is a scramble white screen. With XP frequently when both monitors are running it is good at a lower resolution. I've changed refresh rates and that seems to have no effect. It appears basically totally random.

I am in a quagmire as to whether to get a replace LCD or not. I've found a new one on eBay for only $50. But if that doesn't fix it completely then what. I need to open the case up to replace the cooling fan which works but is very noisy. Definitely a machine I can't pinpoint the problem with.

 

[rkoenn]

It started acting up again after I posted this.

 

[Burpo]

On a DV8000, It is likely the screen and not the inverter, tho it could also be the data cable or connection. I would start by removing the screws around the bezel, and pop the bezel off. You can then see & remove the screws that attach screen & frame to the lid. Once you get the lid separated from the LCD frame/hinges then you'll see the data cable & where it attaches to the panel. there's a large thick piece of clear tape over the end helping to hold the connector in place (see pic below, left end of cable). You'll have to pull the tape loose to wiggle, unplug, or check that connection.

You can wiggle the end with it powered up & see if the white background disappears or flickers. Data cable & inverter are both cheap & not that bad to replace. However if after checking cable & connections, your issue remains, it's probably the panel.. Good luck..

 

[Ketchup]

From what I had read, the dv8000 is about 10 years old. Are you sure you want to be dumping money into it? Is the battery any good?

IMO, it sounds more like the cable than the screen. Does the screen change if you move the display om its hinges?

 

[AnitaPeterson]

I don't think it's the cable, inverter or anything else.

I think it's the fact that HP used poor-quality solder, which decomposes at high temperatures (the nvidia chipset in the DV 6xxx series and above is hot as hell).

Basically, the laptop cannot be repaired thoroughly. The most you can do is solder reflow, but there's no guarantee the problem won't come back.

The problem is well-documented, and HP's greed to save a few cents on quality parts has made many customers very unhappy.

http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebo...es-6000-to-9500-lead-free-solder/td-p/4684220

http://mayohardware.blogspot.ca/2010/01/what-kills-hp-dv-series-laptops.html

 

[rkoenn]

I don't think it's the cable, inverter or anything else.

I think it's the fact that HP used poor-quality solder, which decomposes at high temperatures (the nvidia chipset in the DV 6xxx series and above is hot as hell).

Basically, the laptop cannot be repaired thoroughly. The most you can do is solder reflow, but there's no guarantee the problem won't come back.

The problem is well-documented, and HP's greed to save a few cents on quality parts has made many customers very unhappy.

http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebo...es-6000-to-9500-lead-free-solder/td-p/4684220

http://mayohardware.blogspot.ca/2010/01/what-kills-hp-dv-series-laptops.html

While I consider that a possibility why does it seem to come out of that mode when plugging in the external monitor, which always works, and is clear and good at that time? I would expect that the laptop screen should stay the same whether the external monitor is plugged in or not. But sometimes it is good, even at boot up on occasion, and then other times it is white with faint lines and blocks on the white screen. It is almost like the screen is not always interpreting the data correctly. Definitely a frustrating problem.

 

[blankslate]

I suggest you research the price of replacing the screen (including of course diagnosing the problem in terms of time or cost) on a 5 year old laptop (with an at the time of it's release lower end cpu) vs getting about a $500 laptop which would very likely outperform the one you have in almost all situations.

You might decide that it's more worth it to connect the laptop to your monitor and copy the data so that you can transfer it to a newer laptop. If you decide to repair it tearing down the laptop to get access to the ribbon connection to the lcd shouldn't be too hard and I wouldn't be surprised if you could find how-to videos for your model on youtube.com


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[rkoenn]

I wanted to let anyone who is still interested in what was wrong with the laptop and that the machine is fixed. It was actually the panel itself. I found a new 1440x900 direct replacement panel for $50 and just finished installing it. It is working perfectly and looks great. So apparently there was electronics problems in the panels circuitry itself that was the cause and putting in the new panel fixed the problem. I told the guy I considered it a 50/50 chance of the new panel fixing it but it worked out great. Thanks to everyone who did make suggestions.