screen goes blank on my notebook for not particular reason

[weepul]

Hi,

I have a Compaq Presario 1700T notebook and about 2 months ago, i've been starting to get this weird problem: the screen would go completely blank. Before it would occur only when I am opening large programs such as photoshop or word, but recently it would do this when i'm chatting on AIM.

several things i notice is that when it goes blank, there is no backlight or anything on. the screen is as the computer was off. the harddrive is still running and the fans are still spinning. ctrl+alt+del doesnt create any veiwable response.

i've swapped ram with my friend and that didn't fix the problem.

this only occured when my ac adapter was plugged int, but keep in my my laptop is plugged into the ac 90% of the time.

i've looked around online and seems that it might be a battery controller problem, or maybe the lcd cable is lose. my friend told me to chk the numlock light next time to see if it really did freeze.

anyone have any clue what might be going on?

thanks in advance!

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[LiLithTecH]

What OS are you using?

It definitely is not the Voltage Convertor Board as it would affect
all the devices on the laptop.

There could be a problem with the Cable that goes to the LCD Interface Board,
either loose, kinked, or frayed.

If you move the panel Up & Down can you re-create the problem (AC & Batt)?

 

[weepul]

it's currently running windows xp w/ sp1. i've made sure all my drivers are upto date, especially the video drivers. next time this occurs, i'll try the moving the panel up and down. thanks!

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[weepul]

okay. i did some more troubleshooting. it seems that when the screen goes blank, my computer has indeed froze. moving the screen around didnt do anything. none of the numlock,capslock, etc lights would come on or off.

any ideas ppl? thanks in advance!

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[OZEE]

You might try plugging it into a "real" monitor.

My HP notebook went through a spell like that about a year ago. In the computer, there's an inverter circuit that increases the voltage available from the battery to what the LCD needs to be able to run... this inverter is a "known" issue, particularly with HP/Compaq's... It's about a $30 part, but, IIRC, over $200 for the repair... it's not user-replacable.

 

[weepul]

interesting. do u know where i can find more info about this problem? if the laptop is still under warranty, do u know if this is covered?

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[OZEE]

Try plugging it into an external monitor first... that'll tell you bunches. If it's still under warranty, then it's covered.

I had researched the problem and had found what it had to be... but can't find the links now. I then went into HP/Compaq's support-chat area and confirmed the problem with them. He told me the price and turnaround and who my local support-contact was (Radio Shaft...) I took it in, they shipped it off to the Tandy repair center in Oklahoma City - where it was promptly lost to eventually resurface again about 6 weeks later.... It was just out of warranty, but they only charged me for the part since they screwed up.

I've just recently got the same computer back from the shop again. This time it was the socket where the power supply plugs into the computer. That is integrated into the mobo, so they had to replace the mobo... and then in their infinite wisdom, they also chose to refresh the hard drive. It's only taken me about a week to get everything back to normal -- it's a work computer, so I had to upgrade it to XP-Pro again, then install all of my work-related software again.

I'll never, never, never own another HP/Compaq product again... I've never had anything but troubles with them...

 

[weepul]

Originally posted by: OZEE
Try plugging it into an external monitor first... that'll tell you bunches. If it's still under warranty, then it's covered.

I had researched the problem and had found what it had to be... but can't find the links now. I then went into HP/Compaq's support-chat area and confirmed the problem with them. He told me the price and turnaround and who my local support-contact was (Radio Shaft...) I took it in, they shipped it off to the Tandy repair center in Oklahoma City - where it was promptly lost to eventually resurface again about 6 weeks later.... It was just out of warranty, but they only charged me for the part since they screwed up.

I've just recently got the same computer back from the shop again. This time it was the socket where the power supply plugs into the computer. That is integrated into the mobo, so they had to replace the mobo... and then in their infinite wisdom, they also chose to refresh the hard drive. It's only taken me about a week to get everything back to normal -- it's a work computer, so I had to upgrade it to XP-Pro again, then install all of my work-related software again.

I'll never, never, never own another HP/Compaq product again... I've never had anything but troubles with them...

thanks so much for your help. i think i have the same exact problem as you mentioned. probably going to get a new computer instead of trying to fix this old one. and i'm positive hp/compaq will not see me as one of their customers again until i hear from many how much they've improved.

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[LiLithTecH]

It would be covered if it is still under warranty.

Unlikely that it is unless you purchased the extended warranty.
Easiest way to check is to look at the serial number. There will
be a '2YR' (for 2 year) or '3YR' (for 3 year).

The inverters are user replaceable. It is located next to LCD panel.
The front brezel is all that needs to be removed to replace.

It has been my experience that the ribbon cable is bad. Most vendors
and HP sell it in KIT form (inverter + cable). Can be had for as little
as $25 on eBay.

 

[OZEE]

But weepul won't know if that's the case until he plugs it into an external monitor.

Hmm.. they told me it wasn't user replacable.

 

[weepul]

are we talking about something like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...86&item=6705447370

is the installation easy?

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[weepul]

i just found this online:

http://www.lcds4less.com/PDF/L...moval-Instructions.pdf

i dont really have an extra monitor at the moment to test it with. i can take it to the labs and try their monitors there, but since i can control when it occurs, it's hard to tell when i can conclude that it's not occuring with the externl monitor.

however, i do notice that when i remove my wireless pc card, (when i removed it, it was quite hot), that it has not crashed once since then.

//krunk (^_^x)