Monitor, video card, cables or ??

[gwlogue]

A visually impaired user has a NEC MultiSync LCD 2010x that started missbehaving. After it was on for several minutes it would start to go blank, then come back on for a few seconds, go blank again, etc, etc. The green light beside the power button on the monitor would stay green while this was happening.

I don't know much about hardware so I replaced it with a CRT that I had from another system. The CRT worked fine.

She shipped the LCD monitor to a company in the city for repair and they said there was nothing wrong. They hooked it up and let it run for 24 hours and did not experience the problem.

Once she hooked it back up again on her system the problems started right away. She gave it to me for a few days to see if I can figure out what is going on. I have had it running for 3 or 4 hours now with no problems. She can't get it to go for more than 20 minutes.

I would normally say it's her video card that is at fault but why would my old CRT have run so well when she had it, (she had it for over a month)?

Is there some way I can stress test the monitor?

Thanks

[gwlogue]

I think I finally got the NEC monitor to misbehave for me. I told the system to shutdown as I was going out. When I got back a couple of hours later the system had shutdown but the monitor still had the Windows splash screen on 3/4 of the display and the light beside the on/off switch was solid green. I tried the switch to power the monitor off with no response. I rebooted and now only 3/4 of the screen is used until the Windows desktop appears. The full screen was used up until now. Does this sound familiar to anyone?

[gwlogue]

I think I might be on to something. After googling the symptoms and wading through screen after screen of online auction and sales sites I stumbled onto a tech support board that talked about similar problems with a couple of different NEC LCD screens, including the 2010X. The most success was achieved by replacing what they referred to as a "thermal 25v 2.5A fuse". One person said they thought the root cause was actually the inverter but no one chose to confirm or discuss that line of reasoning.

[Rat]

try uninstalling the drivers for it and installing any updated drivers. I f there are no updated drivers, install the drivers that came with the monitor. And as usual, check all cables and look for dustbunnies.

Rat

[gwlogue]

We finally got the repair shop to acknowledge that there is something wrong with the monitor. They say it is the power supply. I am skeptical but willing to accept their diagnosis for now.

What is involved in replacing the PSU in this monitor? Is it something I can do or does it need special attention.

Thanks

[Rat]

Check the power at her house where she pluggs it in, making sure the polarity is right and that the ground is indeed grounded (sometimes older houses are not grounded). I would also make sure she has a battery back-up and surge protector. My sister had a poor electrical system in her house and it kept frying stuff on her computers, she moved and has not had any problems since. If the thing works fine at your house and not hers, sounds loike it's her house.
Did you try the whole set-up at your house?

[gwlogue]

Although it took a little longer it did mess up at my place as well. Her house is newer than mine. She had the monitor for a few years with no problems. This just started recently. The guys at the repair shop also say it is the monitor, although I reserve judgement on their technical skills.

[fizur2002]

its probably going to be cheaper to replace the monitor than it would be to replace the power supply for it. Go with a different brand like Samsung or LG.