Fixing broken monitor.

[Dalfuss]

Ok, so this might be a stupid thing to ask. But I'm kinda desperate so I'll just do it. 

 

Yesterday I... did some things on my desk and when I turned on my PC today, I noticed my main monitor is broken. (see pic.) 

 

Is there any way to fix that, or do I just have to buy a new monitor? 

 

I already "powercycled" it (aka. I took out the power cable, waited about 15sec. and plugged it back in). I also checked the DVI cable connection. 

[Bombastinator]

Hard to tell if there’s actually anything wrong with that background. It appears to be big shaded black squares making the image near useless.  Monitors have parts.  Some of the parts are dirt cheap, and some of them are really really expensive.  Whether or not it’s worth fixing depends on what part you “broke” but I can’t even tell what the issue is in the first place from the pic. As a general rule the deeper you go behind the front glass the more expensive it is as a general rule.  If you just scratched the film above the actual glass you could get away with as cheap as USD14.99 plus shipping. Or you could just leave it. 

[Dalfuss]

3 minutes ago, Bombastinator said:

Hard to tell if there’s actually anything wrong with that background. It appears to be big shaded black squares making the image near useless.  Monitors have parts.  Some of the parts are dirt cheap, and some of them are really really expensive.  Whether or not it’s worth fixing depends on what part you “broke” but I can’t even tell what the issue is in the first place from the pic. As a general rule the deeper you go behind the front glass the more expensive it is as a general rule.  If you just scratched the film above the actual glass you could get away with as cheap as USD14.99 plus shipping. Or you could just leave it. 

For me it's pretty clear to see in the image o.O

 

I guess it's something with the panel. The bottom 2 thirds are a good bit brighter than the rest and show "scanline like" lines. 

 

You can see the difference really good where it says "App Einstellungen". 

[Bombastinator]

8 minutes ago, Dalfuss said:

For me it's pretty clear to see in the image o.O

 

I guess it's something with the panel. The bottom 2 thirds are a good bit brighter than the rest and show "scanline like" lines. 

 

You can see the difference really good where it says "App Einstellungen". 

You’re you.  The problem is that background then 

[Dalfuss]

2 minutes ago, Bombastinator said:

You’re you.  The problem is that background then 

Now come on. You're either trolling, or there's something wrong with the way the image is shown to you. 

 

You can't tell me, you don't see the huge difference about a third way down the image on the monitor. 

[Bombastinator]

2 minutes ago, Dalfuss said:

Now come on. You're either trolling, or there's something wrong with the way the image is shown to you. 

 

You can't tell me, you don't see the huge difference about a third way down the image on the monitor. 

Nope. I don’t troll. At all. Ever.   I’m just the only person that even bothered to answer.  A trouble shooting post that sits with zero replies for half an hour here generally says there’s something wrong with the question.  I’m just telling you what it is.  I do see a big difference, but it also happens that the background on the desktop background reshapes into squares so there no way to see anything useful from that pic with that desktop background. It could just be the camera reacting to the light change.

Edited January 25, 2021 by Bombastinator

[Dalfuss]

1 minute ago, Bombastinator said:

Nope. I don’t troll. At all. Ever.   I’m just the only person that even bothered to answer.  A trouble shooting post that sits with zero replies for half an hour here generally says there’s something wrong with the question.  I’m just telling you what it is.

Well. I stated my issue (monitor broken. Can I fix whatever it is?) and provided a picture of the problem. Can't think of any way to phrase the question better. 

[Bombastinator]

15 minutes ago, Dalfuss said:

Well. I stated my issue (monitor broken. Can I fix whatever it is?) and provided a picture of the problem. Can't think of any way to phrase the question better. 

You don’t.  You just need to Shane the desktop background to something flat so the issue can actually be seen and take another picture.  That one isn’t useful.

[Dalfuss]

1 minute ago, Bombastinator said:

You don’t.  You just need to Shane the desktop background to something flat so the issue can actually be seen and take another picture.  That one isn’t useful.

The whole "background", which is discords settings, is literally the same color except a tiny part on the right side of the image. 

 

The huge difference in color about a third down IS my problem. 

 

There is a bit of colordifference at the top but that's just from the viewing angle and isn't important. 

[Bombastinator]

1 minute ago, Dalfuss said:

The whole "background", which is discords settings, is literally the same color except a tiny part on the right side of the image. 

 

The huge difference in color about a third down IS my problem. 

 

There is a bit of colordifference at the top but that's just from the viewing angle and isn't important. 

It’s clearly quartered in the picture.  There a black grey, brown, and something else I forget.  If it’s supposed to be all flat black or something then it could be the issue.  I don’t use discord on PC.

[Dalfuss]

7 minutes ago, Bombastinator said:

It’s clearly quartered in the picture.  There a black grey, brown, and something else I forget.  If it’s supposed to be all flat black or something then it could be the issue.  I don’t use discord on PC.

If you can't see the problem in this picture, you should contact a doctor. 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

7 minutes ago, Dalfuss said:

If you can't see the problem in this picture, you should contact a doctor. 

Well you're a polite one. 

[Bombastinator]

Do you mean the sort of hourglass shaped dark patch in the lower section?  That could be misaligned lensing.  It’s a bitch to fix but it can be doable.  How do you feel about taking your monitor screen apart?

[Dalfuss]

2 minutes ago, BlueChinchillaEatingDorito said:

Well you're a polite one. 

Well I'm sorry, but I feel like they're literally just trolling me. 

 

Maybe I don't get what they're trying to tell me and I'm actually sorry if that's the case! But for me the problem is obvious to see in the first picture and all their answers have just been weird and pretty helpless. 

[Dalfuss]

1 minute ago, Bombastinator said:

Do you mean the sort of hourglass shaped dark patch in the lower section?  That could be misaligned lensing.  It’s a bitch to fix but it can be doable.  How do you feel about taking your monitor screen apart?

You're kidding me, right? 

[kelvinhall05]

Wow, this thread is a shitshow.

 

 

OP, can you try doing a factory reset from the monitor's settings menu? Also try another monitor input and computer output.

[Dalfuss]

1 minute ago, kelvinhall05 said:

Wow, this thread is a shitshow.

 

 

OP, can you try doing a factory reset from the monitor's settings menu? Also try another monitor input and computer output.

It kinda is, yeah. 

 

I tried a factory reset and it didn't work. Why I haven't thought about using another input is a myth to me tho. I'll try that, thank you!

[kelvinhall05]

Just now, Dalfuss said:

It kinda is, yeah. 

 

I tried a factory reset and it didn't work. Why I haven't thought about using another input is a myth to me tho. I'll try that, thank you!

If another computer and/or input doesn't change it, I would say a part of the backlight has gone and you should either get the monitor replaced under warranty or buy a new one.

[Dalfuss]

5 minutes ago, kelvinhall05 said:

If another computer and/or input doesn't change it, I would say a part of the backlight has gone and you should either get the monitor replaced under warranty or buy a new one.

Okay, I tried using HDMI instead of DVI but it didn't help. So, since I don't have a warranty anymore it's a new monitor for me. 

 

Anyways. Thank you for an actual answer and trying to help me!

[kelvinhall05]

1 minute ago, Dalfuss said:

Okay, I tried using HDMI instead of DVI but it didn't help. So, since I don't have a warranty anymore it's a new monitor for me. 

 

Anyways. Thank you for an actual answer and trying to help me!

Just to make sure, did you try another computer or your current PC in the BIOS to eliminate the possibility of an OS problem?

[Dalfuss]

Just now, kelvinhall05 said:

Just to make sure, did you try another computer or your current PC in the BIOS to eliminate the possibility of an OS problem?

I don't have another PC here sadly. But my other monitors still work fine, so I guess it has to be the monitor and not the PC

[Dalfuss]

2 minutes ago, kelvinhall05 said:

Just to make sure, did you try another computer or your current PC in the BIOS to eliminate the possibility of an OS problem?

I also see those lines in the bootup screen of my monitor so it's pretty unlikely it's windows

[Bombastinator]

54 minutes ago, Dalfuss said:

You're kidding me, right? 

No.  I would not kid you I’m trying to figure out what the heck is even wrong.  Keep in mind we’re communicating over the internet. I don’t even know what country you are in and it doesn’t really matter.  There are two possibles: 1 it is that ver sharp line from light to dark, the other is the hourglass shaped fuzzy dark thing in the darker area.  If it’s the sharp degradation line that is the issue you’re probably hosed depending on the kind of backlighting your monitor has.  If it’s got active back light but a really low number of cells it might be that your backlight could be adjusted.  It’s a weird kind of super cheap yet super expensive problem though.  Might happen.  You don’t say what model you have so it can’t be looked up and I have to guess. 
 

I get that when someone’s computer goes screwy intelligence can get driven out the window by sheer frustration. Even bright polite people can get testy when their hardware acts up. 

[Dalfuss]

20 hours ago, Bombastinator said:

No.  I would not kid you I’m trying to figure out what the heck is even wrong.  Keep in mind we’re communicating over the internet. I don’t even know what country you are in and it doesn’t really matter.  There are two possibles: 1 it is that ver sharp line from light to dark, the other is the hourglass shaped fuzzy dark thing in the darker area.  If it’s the sharp degradation line that is the issue you’re probably hosed depending on the kind of backlighting your monitor has.  If it’s got active back light but a really low number of cells it might be that your backlight could be adjusted.  It’s a weird kind of super cheap yet super expensive problem though.  Might happen.  You don’t say what model you have so it can’t be looked up and I have to guess. 
 

I get that when someone’s computer goes screwy intelligence can get driven out the window by sheer frustration. Even bright polite people can get testy when their hardware acts up. 

Ok. First off, I'm sorry about how I reacted. I just now realized, that I actually never specified my exact problem. I thought it would be obvious from the picture, but obviously it isn't. So, I'm really sorry about how I treated you! I'm just kinda used to getting trolled and I read a lot of your messages really sarcastic

 

The problem is in fact, the sharp line my monitor is an Asus VG278HE and I found out that it's basically beyond easy repair and I opted to to buy a new monitor. This one's been with me for many years so I guess it's just time to say goodbye. Also my fault for fucking on my desk.

 

Thank you for trying to help me and again, I'm sorry for being such an ass!

[Bombastinator]

2 hours ago, Dalfuss said:

Ok. First off, I'm sorry about how I reacted. I just now realized, that I actually never specified my exact problem. I thought it would be obvious from the picture, but obviously it isn't. So, I'm really sorry about how I treated you! I'm just kinda used to getting trolled and I read a lot of your messages really sarcastic

 

The problem is in fact, the sharp line my monitor is an Asus VG278HE and I found out that it's basically beyond easy repair and I opted to to buy a new monitor. This one's been with me for many years so I guess it's just time to say goodbye. Also my fault for fucking on my desk.

 

Thank you for trying to help me and again, I'm sorry for being such an ass!

Sarcasm I am guilty of. Frequently unintentionally.  I have problems recognizing it quite frequently.  My only defense is that I don’t confuse it with irony as many used to.  Not much of one really. Yeah if it’s the line you’re likely hosed.  There might have been hope of it was one of the layers over the actual LCD panel.  Less hope but still a tiny bit if it was an artifact of a messed up backlight.  There are a bunch of different ways that LCD displays work. Without the model there’s no way to know which one it used.  Edge LED which is a cheap but still effective system uses fresnel lenses and other optical trickery to spread the light from the LEDs ringing the screen to become an evenly lit pane.  The layers they use can get out of alignment with a big enough jolt. The good news there is you can take the monitor apart and relayer them.  Very little money cost.  Another more modern and more effective method is array direct backlighting. (There’s a specific term but it’s escaping me atm) With that various sections of the display are arranged into a grid and their light varies seperately.  Makes for deeper blacks in the areas not lit, but the cost is this kind of weird halo effect.  The more panels in the array the better it works and the more expensive it is.  There could be some array panels that could possibly use as little as four cells in the array. Seems odd though.  A nearly useless system.  Would only be done in as-cheap-as-possible systems where they still wanted the checkbox.  If yours were that sort of monitor it could explain things.  There then could possibly be a way to set the brightness of the individual backlights.  Might not be though in which case no hope. 

Edited January 26, 2021 by Bombastinator