Monitor has gone to Disneyland

[Dark Moment]

Just sitting here minding my own business last night when my second monitor suddenly gave a little ping and the image turned pink all over. Picture is still there, but faint lines can be seen on the screen and image is fuzzy.Turned it off and on, rebooted, checked cables, settings, etc. etc. No avail. About half an hour later it gave another little ping and turned yellow. That's how it remains after twelve hours.Has it blown up on me? It's a bog-standard Compaq MV720 17' (not flat screen, whatever the old ones were called). I think I can see a tiny "nick" right in the middle of the image like a tiny scratch.Anyway, don't know where to start with this short of taking it down to CompUSA and having them laugh at me. Can my trusty friends here help with any useful comments? Or even comments about Halloween fairies using their magic wands? "I think Sleeping Beauty's dress should be pink" "No, yellow!" "Naaah, pink" "Naaah, yellow!!" (You'll need to watch the movie if you've no idea what I'm talking about ... ah, the glory of having a three year old).Mark "Dark Moment" Beaumonthttp://www.swiremariners.com/newlogo.jpg

[Cruachan]

Hi Mark,Sounds expensive :(I'm no expert when it comes to such matters but I'm aware that some monitors have damper wires used to stabilize the aperture grill. I know this is so in the trinitron monitors but can't speak for yours. Again, I'm only guessing but is it conceivable that a wire has broken and the aperture grill has shifted slightly? Might explain the colour changes noted. How about a nice flat panel? :) Mike

[Guest outtatimeiii]

I think your monitor is on its way out :(. I had a Komodo K73P (I think) that did the almost same thing about 3 years ago. Apparently one the red electron gun in the back stopped working one day. Monitor worked fine, except with no reds at all (white was a cyan color). Two days later while flying FS2000 (broken red gun actually made the sky look better in FS2000 LOL), the monitor made a big POP, screen got very staticy looking, then died. I only had that monitor for a total of 5 months too, ended up replacing it with the older Komodo curved screen model free of charge. That monitor is still working to this day on my older computer.

[Guest tgabriel]

Monitor gone. That scratch is the phosphor inside the screen blowing off.Good monitors are so cheap now days it is almost impossible to get one repaied and very few computer repair shops can repair monitors because of the danger from high voltage. Go down to newegg and pick up a 17-19" CRT for $100 - $200. Or, maybe its time for one of those nice 46" Gateway Plasmas for $5k :-lol There are even some good used monitors around sometimes for less than $50.

[Dark Moment]

<<<<>>>Monkeys. I thought as much. When I shut down the monitor, that's where the "flash" is, with a small line running to it. What a blow. Compaq, five years old but almost permanently on for that period (given that it goes to standby overnight). So I'm back to a 15' for FSNav that I've had since 1995 and still DOES work.Thanks all who replied. Seems I do indeed have a new doorstop.Mark "Dark Moment" Beaumonthttp://www.swiremariners.com/newlogo.jpg

[gosta]

Hi Mark,I gather there's no hope of any warranty still being in effect?If that's the case, you could try to get some additional time out of it, by adjusting the settings yourself. Please try this only, if you're comfortable working with high voltage. Now, here goes: If you open up the case, you'll likely find a few potentiometers somewhere in the close vicinity of the tube. Get yourself an insulated screwdriver, and adjust them (you may have to experiment a bit, more often than not they're unmarked). You may be able to get an acceptable picture and a few more weeks out of the monitor, before it starts the journey to it's final resting place... :).Cheers,Gosta.http://hifi.avsim.net/activesky/images/wxrebeta.jpg

[Dark Moment]

<<<>>>Yeah, right. Thanks, Gosta, but that's like asking Winnie the Pooh to take over the NASA Space Program. I have enough trouble moving sliders up and down within FS2004. If I start trying to become a computer mechanic I am likely to end up as a small, frizzled black crisp on the "deck" of my "cockpit". If the monitor is on the way out anyway, seems I should show it the door.Waaaaaaaahhh. Bang goes my new video card. It's more important to see where I'm going first.Mark "Dark Moment" Beaumonthttp://www.swiremariners.com/newlogo.jpg

[gosta]

Hi Mark,>but that's like asking Winnie the Pooh to take over the NASA Space Program.:). In that case, I guess it's time for a new monitor. If you're looking for something reliable, I have an old NEC MultiSync 75, that's been running without any problems for quite a few years. It's 17 inch, very inexpensive and does the job. As far as features go, it's got an on/off switch, and that's about it. If you get something like this, the purchase of a new video card may well be still on.. :).Cheers,Gosta. http://hifi.avsim.net/activesky/images/wxrebeta.jpg

[Dark Moment]

Thanks, Gosta, thanks all.Mark "Dark Moment" Beaumonthttp://www.swiremariners.com/newlogo.jpg

[Guest FPSFREAK]

Mark,You were running those pesky 3.8 Catalyst drivers that are frying monitors weren't you. ;)Same thing almost happened to me one night. Sitting there fragging a** in DM and all of a sudden my monitor starts to shrink. Perfectly from the edges down to a pinprick sized white dot over the course of about 3 minutes. Needless to say 2 days later.......HELLO SONY :)It's done bud. Put a fork in it.Bobby

[Maxis]

COMPAQ 17 inch monitor ??? ROFL this is some serious deja vu... Like you i was just minding my own business when my Compaq Monitor decided it would like to show me various color tints.... on a permanent basis..Trust me... I see a new monitor in your future :)

[Guest tgabriel]

One more comment about these beasties and I will shut up.Regarding opening the back of the monitor. There is a large thingy on the end of the CRT that acts like a capacitor. It holds voltage for a very long time. I have seen these things hot for six months after the monitor has been unplugged from its voltage source. It is very easy to burn yourself with this devilish device. You need a high voltage probe to ground to discharge it and then half a dozen attempts to discharge it might be necessary.The voltage stored is at least 50,000 volts and some large units can have much more.Caps on now because I am shouting UNLESS YOU ARE A WELL TRAINED AND EXPERIENCED MONITOR TECHNICIAN, DO NOT - DO NOT - D O N O T !!!!!!!! OPEN THE BACK OF A PC MONITOR. LET ME REPEAT THIS FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO MIGHT NOT HAVE HEARD ME THE FIRST TIME. THERE IS A HUGE AMOUNT OF VOLTAGE WAITING TO HURT YOU VERY BADLY IN THE BACK OF A CATHODE RAY TUBE. DO NOT OPEN THE BACK OF A MONITOR UNLESS YOU ARE WELL EXPERIENCED WITH WHAT YOU WILL FIND IN THERE.Thanks.Breathing normal.All quiet now.The voices are becoming quieter.Can go to sleep now...

[Guest FPSFREAK]

Tg,The best advice I have seen here so far. Kiddies, the inside of a monitor is not to be taken lightly. The "Thingy" that Tg refers to is called a Fly-Back transformer and will knock the friggin' snot out of you if your not careful. It can, will and I have seen it, arc to s tweak tool from 6 inches away. In all honesty it can kill in certain circumstances.Now here's were I get rude for a minute..........If you don't know what your doing, KEEP YOUR HANDS OUT OF A MONITOR. The life you save could be your own. :)Bobby

[Guest tgabriel]

One last comment then I'm gonna get my funeral suit ready for when the notices start getting posted.:-lol Bobby is exactly right. A number of years ago, I had an old monitor that had been in the shop in the back of the garage for over 6 months - unplugged and just sitting on the shelf. I opened the back and discharged it with a high voltage probe and got a huge arc out of it. Obviously, I didn't meter the discharge, but it was 3 or 4 inches worth from the transformer to the probe.This stuff can hurt you.:-eek