Little computer tech help please

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

Probably replaced that cable and re-slid it into the frame, hard to describe but they tend to come out of the slots they slide into over time making them more loose
Dunno, personally I'm not the biggest fan of HP, but thats what you need above, it's not soldered

Me either. The build quality seems to be sub-par and they fail way too fast.

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

Me either. The build quality seems to be sub-par and they fail way too fast.

Ya I've seen a ton of HP's under recall, random issues like this

Not my least favorite brand but definitely not near the top of my favorites

 

[tipnitty 10+ year member]

Ok thanks for the help man. I really appreciate it.

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

Ok thanks for the help man. I really appreciate it.

No problem, if you're not comfortable taking apart laptops I wouldn't do it yourself, it is a pretty extensive process, here's a pic of the last one I did before I put it back together =P

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

That was an HP dv4

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

That was an HP dv4

Do you buy broken laptops? I have an Alienware that's showing lines (artifacts) on the screen even during the bios boot screen...It's not the graphics cards so it's got to be either the mobo or monitor, me thinks.

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

Do you buy broken laptops? I have an Alienware that's showing lines (artifacts) on the screen even during the bios boot screen...It's not the graphics cards so it's got to be either the mobo or monitor, me thinks.

Easiest way to tell is to hook it up to another monitor, if it doesnt do it on that then it's generally the screen, sometimes(rarely) can be a pinched cable but not likely

Another way I can usually tell is sometimes if you move the screen a bit, gently shake the screen (Very gently!) and it does more lines, then it's easy to tell thats what it is

If it is the screen you can get most screens on ebay for like 80-90 bux unless it'd an HD screen, then it can be pricey

I would buy if i had $$$ too, but I sink all my money in my car right now lol

If you wanted to fix it though I can replace screens no problem

 

[tipnitty 10+ year member]

The furthest ive gone is replacing the key board, so im going to ask my buddy who is a comp sci to give me a hand. I want to get an alienware because i always thought they weret sweet, but just not in my budget. Ill have to order that part today.

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

Easiest way to tell is to hook it up to another monitor, if it doesnt do it on that then it's generally the screen, sometimes(rarely) can be a pinched cable but not likelyAnother way I can usually tell is sometimes if you move the screen a bit, gently shake the screen (Very gently!) and it does more lines, then it's easy to tell thats what it is

If it is the screen you can get most screens on ebay for like 80-90 bux unless it'd an HD screen, then it can be pricey

I would buy if i had $$$ too, but I sink all my money in my car right now lol

If you wanted to fix it though I can replace screens no problem

Well I've tried to plug it in to an external monitor but couldn't get any video output from it. I don't have the graphics card drivers installed currently because they cause the screen to just go completely black when it acts up (instead of just the artifacts). It IS an HD screen (1920x1200 res) and it's had some monitor troubles in the past. The LCD's backlight has a problem (probably a pinched cable) and wiggling the screen causes it to flicker. I've already got a new Asus on it's way (it was time for an upgrade anyway, the alienware is over 4 years old) so if I do get it repaired it would simply be to increase the resale value.

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

Well I've tried to plug it in to an external monitor but couldn't get any video output from it. I don't have the graphics card drivers installed currently because they cause the screen to just go completely black when it acts up (instead of just the artifacts). It IS an HD screen (1920x1200 res) and it's had some monitor troubles in the past. The LCD's backlight has a problem (probably a pinched cable) and wiggling the screen causes it to flicker. I've already got a new Asus on it's way (it was time for an upgrade anyway, the alienware is over 4 years old) so if I do get it repaired it would simply be to increase the resale value.

Ah ya, a screen for that would be balls expensive, probably ~200-300

The backlight could be the inverter but if it does it only when moved could also be a pinched cable, hell even a failing screen can do that, personally whenever i replace screens i recommend replacing inverters too as they're usually pretty cheap

Asus is the way to go

The furthest ive gone is replacing the key board, so im going to ask my buddy who is a comp sci to give me a hand. I want to get an alienware because i always thought they weret sweet, but just not in my budget. Ill have to order that part today.

I wouldn't get one personally, I think alienwares are generally overpriced and overhyped, kind've comparable to JL, decent products, not worth it for the dollar

Asus like I said above is the way to go for PC's, hell even apples are good in my book if your not opposed to using mac os

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

Ah ya, a screen for that would be balls expensive, probably ~200-300The backlight could be the inverter but if it does it only when moved could also be a pinched cable, hell even a failing screen can do that, personally whenever i replace screens i recommend replacing inverters too as they're usually pretty cheap

Asus is the way to go

Well now that we got to talking about it I decided to give it another shot. I reinstalled the drivers (to enable the ext monitor) and restarted the machine. Of course when it's running both the laptop and ext. monitor are black but in bootup both he bios and windows loading screen were displayed on the ext. monitor....along with the artifacts. This means it's not the monitor that's bad so it has to be the mobo...

I wouldn't get one personally, I think alienwares are generally overpriced and overhyped, kind've comparable to JL, decent products, not worth it for the dollar
Asus like I said above is the way to go for PC's, hell even apples are good in my book if your not opposed to using mac os

Like I said, I've owned my Alienware for about 4 years and I completely agree with this statement. If your in the market for a new laptop, check out the Asus N73SV, should be a pretty slick machine //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/naughty.gif.94359f346c0f1259df8038d60b41863e.gif

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

Well now that we got to talking about it I decided to give it another shot. I reinstalled the drivers (to enable the ext monitor) and restarted the machine. Of course when it's running both the laptop and ext. monitor are black but in bootup both he bios and windows loading screen were displayed on the ext. monitor....along with the artifacts. This means it's not the monitor that's bad so it has to be the mobo...
Like I said, I've owned my Alienware for about 4 years and I completely agree with this statement. If your in the market for a new laptop, check out the Asus N73SV, should be a pretty slick machine //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/naughty.gif.94359f346c0f1259df8038d60b41863e.gif

how do you know for sure it's not the video card? Have you ran the built in dell diagnostic? (Should be built in with alienwares I would think)

I agree it's not the screen if it's doing it via external

Asus and apple are my two favorites, ironically I do like dell but not alienware, even though dell owns alienware.

For regular people who don't know how to work on computers / etc, apple is great with their warranties / applecare IMO

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

how do you know for sure it's not the video card? Have you ran the built in dell diagnostic? (Should be built in with alienwares I would think)
I agree it's not the screen if it's doing it via external

Asus and apple are my two favorites, ironically I do like dell but not alienware, even though dell owns alienware.

For regular people who don't know how to work on computers / etc, apple is great with their warranties / applecare IMO

I ruled out the graphics cards because the system is running dual Nvidia cards in SLI. I booted the system using only a single card (tried both) and each time I still had the artifacts. So unless both cards failed in the exact same way, I'd say they are working.

 

[tpmeredith 10+ year member]

I ruled out the graphics cards because the system is running dual Nvidia cards in SLI. I booted the system using only a single card (tried both) and each time I still had the artifacts. So unless both cards failed in the exact same way, I'd say they are working.

Im inclined to agree with you, however there is always the 1% chance both of them are failing =P With the amount of heat that would be going through a laptop like that its always possible, the dell diagnostic is actually decent at narrowing things down, wouldnt hurt to run it

Sounds crazy but sometimes I've even seen memory cause issues like that, it hasnt been getting blue screens / crashing has it? Or just lines?

 

[bubbagumper6 5,000+ posts]

Im inclined to agree with you, however there is always the 1% chance both of them are failing =P With the amount of heat that would be going through a laptop like that its always possible, the dell diagnostic is actually decent at narrowing things down, wouldnt hurt to run it
Sounds crazy but sometimes I've even seen memory cause issues like that, it hasnt been getting blue screens / crashing has it? Or just lines?

Nope, and I have no idea what the dell diagnostic tool is, not sure if mine has it but I will look.

EDIT: It looks like that diagnostic tool is similar to a recovery partition, which I do not have...