I'm worried about my monitor

[Drasca]

CRT's are sooo cheap! Yes, I am a cheapo. Hmm. Wait.. 3-400 for 17" LCD.... err

Getting that time now...

[Pete]

Hi,

You've gotten some good advice, so no need to repeat that. However, it occurs to me that you recently moved and that the monitor might have been jostled some in the process. There are a few connectors inside the monitor itself, and if they are loose, you can get the effects you describe (had it happen to my TV after moving). If you know or can get someone that knows the safety procedures involved in working on monitors, it would be worth a check to pop off the back of the case, ground out the capacitors, check for loose connections or other mechanical problems, and do some dusting.

However it works out, good luck.

--Pete

[Doc]

Safety warning!!

I have cracked open quite a few all in one Macs and have done work on them. I was once trying to do some work on an AIOM, was carefully, moving the analog plate, moved the wiring, was careful as can be to avoid Mr. CRT. Something got my attention and I turned, my elbow brushed the puter.

I laid down on the floor for a long time. Not like I had much choice. Had to physically concentrate on the act of breathing. You never want to experience this. Ow. That's pretty much all I can say. Ow. People take breathing for granted.

Do not mess with a CRT tube!

Sadly, I should take my own advice. I have been kissed by a CRT on several occasions now. I think I am starting to enjoy it. It's that tingly feeling... Makes me giddy and lightheaded.

Always let a trained professional take care of your monitor.

[WarBlade]

Originally posted by Sirian@Sep 15 2004, 08:49 PM
Besides, like KoP also said... LCD time for you! Get away from the bakery that is CRTs. I'm about to make that leap myself, as my nine year old $1000 monitor has done its duty and then some.

I had a look into that. I was able to borrow one, hook it up to my PC and take a good hard look.

Price? Ugly.
Picture? Hideous.
Portability? Good.
Physical stability when my cat jumps on it? Terrible.

And since my monitor practically doesn't need to be moved ever, the decision to go with a "17 flat screen tube was easy. Bugger the LCD's. They're just not made for gamers. Not yet anyway.

Edit: "Not" is such a crucial word in that sentence. :unsure:

[Griselda]

Physical stability when my cat jumps on it? Terrible.

Now that *is* something I'll have to consider whenever I do need to replace this one. Maybe I should bring the cat shopping with me.

Pete, thanks for the advice. The popping is new, but the wavy line thing started happening pretty much right after the move. It's worth looking into.

-Griselda

[KingOfPain]

Actually there is one more task on the checklist. Controls/adjustments knobs may have been screwed accidentally during the move. You would probably noticed it if any was way out of whack but old monitors can be sensitive to the slightest adjustments, especially controls such as overscan, tilt, Hoz/Vert centering... Check and set all controls back to neutral and see if porblem remains. And to give the monitor its last fair shake, try it in another location, a friend or relative's.

KoP

[HowGozit]

Gris,

Good advice in most of these posts.. I am like Pete - suspicious about hassles that happened after a move..

May not even be the jostling. It may be that you have unshielded wires rather close to you in the room where the monitor is now - try moving it a foot or so to one side.. I've had to do that on some of the sites I've worked on - mark you, usually when generator wiring is involved. Fridges on the same circuit are contra-indicated as well.. Motors do funny things to electrical current in the wiring. And being on the kitchen circuit is therefore a worry..

Umm - I wouldn't reduce the refresh frequency - its bad for your eyes to have it lower than 72Hz anyways (unless you have an LCD - different rules for them). Also, the higher frequencies are a bit more resistant to waving and junk. A 5-6 year old CRT is not that old. But any screen can go at any time. I've had them last 10 years, and I've had them fail after 2 years. But in my line of work - where I've been indirectly responsible for up to 6000 of the sods - we usually turfed them after 6 years because they no longer met a useful spec. not because they karked it.

Replacements - 19" CRT's are real good value. Lots of real estate, good refresh rates, and pretty inexpensive. Chew up desk space though. For gaming, an LCD with a 12ns response time is worth hunting for to stop smear under gaming and movie watching. This kinda jacks up the price a bit - especially for 17" LCD's. Having said that, we are using a lot of 15" and 17" LCD's at work, and they are very stable - even under fairly average power (I work for a mining company nowadays - Mines are not often in nice power stable evironments - odd that ;-) :P ).

Umm - a new circuit sounds like a good idea. Another way of smoothing out power is to buy a good UPS. I mean GOOD - APC SMARTUPS or similar, not the cheaper APC BACKUPS or other cheap brands. These have pretty good power filters built in (and you can even play in the dark when the power goes out ).

Lots of luck,

HowGozit

[Griselda]

I finally got a chance to check the breakers today, and the computer is *not* on the same circuit as the kitchen. The entire upstairs shares a circuit, but we really don't have much up here besides some lights (not halogen), two alarm clocks, a TV, and a small fish air pump. The TV really wouldn't be on when the computer is in use, and the fish tank will be going back to my classroom this week. So the circuit is OK, I think. At some point I'd like to get my daughter's P3 running up here, but even that, I think, would be tolerable.

I hear that it's not too hard to install a grounded outlet- that it's done at the wall and doesn't require running more wires. Is that true? I really have never done anything vaguely electrical other than changing car fuses :P (although I am pretty good at pulling broken baby outlet covers out of sockets ).

I raised the refresh rate and scooted the monitor over about six inches, and there are no more wavy lines that I can see. But, the popping continues. When it's on, the screen does shrink down when it pops, and then comes back. Every time I turn it off, it goes "snap snap snap snap snap" for a few seconds, even if the monitor has only been on a short while. So, I will just try to make sure I never leave the room with the monitor on.

Thanks, everyone, for the helpful advice.

-Griselda

[HowGozit]

Hmm - Popping noises with the screen shrinking sounds like some of the circuitry which handles the multiscan capability is getting a bit flakey. Your screen could still last for years (annoying you on occasion), or it could snuff it rather soon..

Your giveaway will be if it starts getting more and more frequent - if so, time to haunt your local retailer of choice..

HowGozit

[Roland]

Reminds me of my home. Horse-hair plaster, paper-wrapped wires, and of course: flat peg nails in the basement boards. Not to mention the logs that act as support beams for the floor (yes, quite literally just a pair of trimmed down LOGS). God help me if ever a fire broke out (15+ years and not a single incident, knock on wood) - I'd be dead before I could even inhale one wisp of smoke!

As for your monitor problem, I've experienced it before - a LONG time ago. I can't remember what caused it, though, nor what fixed it (even if it was simply replacing the monitor). The good news is monitors are cheap.

Here's one tip:
Try lowering the refresh rate on your monitor. Can always change it back up. Worth a try, in any case.

Good luck with your problem!