DescentBB

last night we had another crazy storm.....


well about 2-3 in the morning, i was awakended by my PC's BIOS beep indicating a good boot.....3 times back to back to back......

well i fell back asleep. i woke up this morning only to find my Sony Trinitron GDM 20E20 Monitor flashing both of its Status lights next to the power button back and forth. i turned it off, waited for a couple minutes...turned it back on.

it makes the humming sound of the CRT Charging, then the little click sound of the CRT adjusting its refresh rate.......but then another click and the status lights start flashing again. now im thining "WTF", so i run down the checklist of diagnostics....

check the VGA Cable....good
Cable connection on monitor....good
cable connection on Video Card....good
cable connections on another good monitor...good
video card on another monitor....good
monitor on my server.... no good


it has no OSD features except for the adjustments menu itself, it doesnt have the OSD diagnsotics screen like newer monitors do.


i really dont want to give up this monitor as ive had it for awhile and its capabilities and resolution are incredible.

i keep all my electronics on power strips, with RF Chokes and filters. im guessing that the power lines outside cycling on and off and on again
burned something out. i hope its not the tube itself, and it might be something minor and easy to fix.

before i take it to a shop.....what do you guys think?

Take a screwdriver and root around in the back of it

very funny. im not exactly in the mood for jokes

He wasn't joking?

Don't you have a surge protector in-line...something other than what you get at K-mart?

Newegg.com has a few monitors on sale.

did i just not say this:

i keep all my electronics on power strips, with RF Chokes and filters.

i dont use crappy walmart/kmart BS power strips.

i get my stuff from Best Buy and i get the premium equipment.

right now i have two Monster Cable 8 plug power centers. this powers everything around my computer desk.

my entertainment center has a single identical power center powering everything on the entertainment center



i know he is joking of which i replied that im not exactly in the mood for jokes.

ill check out newegg

Best Buy has premium equipment?

if Monster Cable isnt premium, then what is?


i cant find the product on best buy's website. but here it is on Circuit City's

Monster Cable PowerCenterâ?¢ Audio/Video Surge Protector (MPAV700RP)

DBL POST!!

AceCombat wrote:if Monster Cable isnt premium, then what is?

Uhm, $10,000 warranty ? 1110 joules absorption ? That's not very high. I'm using this one -- "With 2960 joules, phone/fax/modem protection, and an Unlimited Connected Equipment Warranty"..

You guys and your power strips... Throw them dang things away.

If you don't want your stuff blown up - get a battery backup unit. They have connected equipment warrenties, and are far better protection againsts surges, spikes, blackouts and brownouts, brownouts are probably the most deadly of them all because they can be an unseen killer. You people don't realize just how important good power protection is. I don't sell a PC without one, I force my customers to buy one or I don't warranty the system.

I'll bet you that at least half the problems you have with your PC are power-related, whether you realize it or not. PC's these days won't stand up to bad power like the older systems would - they've GOT TO HAVE clean power.

I use THIS unit. Its 200 bux at best buy, there are smaller, cheaper models, but I wouldn't go smaller than the 800va unit.

If you had been plugged into this instead of your junk powerstrip (I don't care what kind it is, they're all junk) your monitor would still be alive.

I have a backup CS 500. I really would like to get the RS1500 for my main machine, I have my server PC on the 500, my main computer is running through the surge only ports. The thing about power strips is they can only take one or two hits before the surge protection is gone, vs a battery backup which can get hit over and over again and will still work.

Jim is right.

You've got a blown fuse in the back of that thing. DO NOT try and replace it yourself - they are usually proprietary - plus the voltages, even in a monitor that's been turned off for hours, can kill you. Now you might not be the most popular guy at the DBB (Join the club - heh!) but I'm sure none of us *really* want to hear about you being zapped to death by a Trinitron.

X3 on the battery backup.

Capm wrote:You guys and your power strips... Throw them dang things away.

If you don't want your stuff blown up - get a battery backup unit. They have connected equipment warrenties, and are far better protection againsts surges, spikes, blackouts and brownouts, brownouts are probably the most deadly of them all because they can be an unseen killer. You people don't realize just how important good power protection is.

1. On my stationary comps I use Triplite/Belkin 1000VA UPSs. The strip is for my mobile computer since I don't want to haul a UPS around.

2. That strip comes w/ an unlimited connected equipment warrenty. Do people read nowadays ?

Just a little FYI for all you UPS/Surge users with coverage:

Unlimited / 100,000 / 50,000 / 25,000 / 10,000

Unless you sent in the registration card that came with your "Protection" and a confirmation of receipt from the company...

you have ** $0 ** Coverage

All that is protecting you now is the hardware you bought..

repeat after me NO $hi@t

X4 on the batt backup

i got 4 Fortress 4200's... well 3 now, some tiem back we had a bad storm to hit and are nabers Ham tower got hit and blew every thang of theres and blew a few of are stuff, but one of my Fortress's took the main part of the hit and just burnt its self out and the drive array was 100% fine. the ups batts melted down and the transformer was a pile of goo but it saved the array. so i was jsut out what 140$ vs 3k for that array

Xciter wrote:All my stuff is on battery backup... esp living in FL.

Your monitor most likely has an internal glass fuse somewhere... open it up and peak around

GOD NO!!

IM NEVER OPENING A CRT DEVICE AGAIN!!

AceCombat wrote:im never opening a CRT based device again in my life.

i had a bad experience with CRT's.

*i think ive already laid this incident out on here, but its been awhile so here it is again*

i had a small 3' B/W dual power tv that my mom had in the basement in the junk box. so i grabbed it out of the box and took it upstairs out to the garage. i opened up the case and started getting curious as to what parts did what. well i noticed this large black suction cup attached to the side of the tube with a much larger wire leading back to the flyback transformer. i grabbed a flathead screw driver and started to pry that cup off.............................



ZZZZZZZZZZZAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i was blinded by what could be described as "The holy white light" for about 30 seconds.... after i regained my sight, i smelled burning metal, plastic and fiberglass. i looked at the smoldering screwdriver in my hands only to discover that the metal itself had vaporized about halfway up the shaft and was slowly melting the plastic handle. of which at that same moment, it got hot in my hands so i dropped the handle.


i grabbed some heavy duty rubber gloves and promptly tossed the tv into the trash.

and that is why

AceCombat wrote:if Monster Cable isnt premium, then what is?


i cant find the product on best buy's website. but here it is on Circuit City's

Monster Cable PowerCenterâ?¢ Audio/Video Surge Protector (MPAV700RP)

correction to make.......


this is the actuall model i have.

Computer PowerCenterâ?¢ PC 800 RP with Surge Protection

DBL POST AGAIN!!!

hey Xciter, how much do you think Redbone would charge me to get him to look at it.

all the shops around my area want waaaaay to much GD money just to check it out

Man... Redbone and Acecombat... a Match made in hell!

I call BS on the story -- no way there'd be enough energy stored in that tube to vaporize any metal.

Mobius wrote:Jim is right.

You've got a blown fuse in the back of that thing. DO NOT try and replace it yourself - they are usually proprietary - plus the voltages, even in a monitor that's been turned off for hours, can kill you. Now you might not be the most popular guy at the DBB (Join the club - heh!) but I'm sure none of us *really* want to hear about you being zapped to death by a Trinitron.

Try having discharged a TV tube 2 weeks ago, coming back with the repaired circuit board, replacing the Anode Cup, and 2 inches from the screen get a good bite from a spark that like to jump through the 600 ohm Human rather than the higher impedance circuit presented the other way.

Or opening a 12 year old PC power supply and assuming the caps were discharged.
I had throw away that screwdriver.

Xciter wrote:... and poking around with a screw driver is two seperate things... the second is just flat out stupid.

Won't get any arguements outta me on that subject. Inserting a metal device w/o proper grounding and technical training/know-how is just plain stupid. I would think that you would be happy that you had a plastic handle to insulate you from all that juice inside of that thing.(Whatever the amount there really was.) Leave it to the trained profesionals who know how to diagnose and repair safely, IMO.
If you think the price of a trained profesional is expensive, compare it to the cost to you if you are taken to the hospital for electricution or funeral expenses these days. If the trained profesional destroys the monitor repairing, all you get is a new monitor, and you are still alive. If you try to repair, you risk the monitor and yourself in the attempt.

My two cents.
Fus

Ace, fooling around with a fuse is not going to shock the ★■◆● out of you. Not unless you decide to muck with the capacitors or the cable connected by that suction cup again. All you really have to do is take an ohm meter and touch both sides of the fuse. If you don't get a load, its toast.

Grendel wrote:I call BS on the story -- no way there'd be enough energy stored in that tube to vaporize any metal.

Canuck wrote:Or opening a 12 year old PC power supply and assuming the caps were discharged.
I had throw away that screwdriver.

thank you Canuck. Grendel, if a small 100-200 volt PSU is capable of destroying (not entirely) a screw driver, think of what a couple 1000 volts will do to a screw driver.

MD-2389 wrote:Ace, fooling around with a fuse is not going to shock the **** out of you. Not unless you decide to muck with the capacitors or the cable connected by that suction cup again. All you really have to do is take an ohm meter and touch both sides of the fuse. If you don't get a load, its toast.

i dont care what it will or wont do. that one event has forever decided what i will or wont do with a CRT Based device.

anyways.....im still searching for a good repairman close to me with decent prices.

Grendel wrote:I call BS on the story -- no way there'd be enough energy stored in that tube to vaporize any metal.

x2, but what did you expect, it's an Ace Story(tm).

AceCombat wrote:i dont care what it will or wont do. that one event has forever decided what i will or wont do with a CRT Based device.

Dude, do you even know what a fuse is? Even if the circuit were live, I guarantee you the majority of the charge will not go through you. That little bit of metal in that fuse has FAR less resistance than your body, and current always takes the path of least resistance. Ask Canuck if you don't believe me.

you a$$hat, i know WTF a fuse is.

WTF do you not understand about what i said?!?!?!

I WILL NOT OPEN A CRT DEVICE AGAIN IN MY GOD FORGIVEN FUBAR LIFE!!!

i dont give a fat rats a$$ about what parts contain what amount of voltage even if it was .00000000000000000000000000001 of a volt.

IM NOT GOING TO OPEN THIS MONITOR!!

you wanna come down to ATL GA and do it for me? i thought not!!

so STFU with this useless banter about what parts are what. IM NOT OPENING THE MONITOR!!

[aceface] JESUS CHRIST!![/aceface]

If ya open the back of the monitor, there's a fuse you can replace. Oh wait, did someone already say that?

Ace, you didn't open a CRT; you pissed into the wind onto an electric fence.

aww man, krom busted me!!

Mobius wrote:You've got a blown fuse in the back of that thing. DO NOT try and replace it yourself - they are usually proprietary

A fuse is a fuse. They come in standard shapes, sizes and current capacities. The only concievable complication is manufacturers who save a few cents by soldering them to the damn board instead of fitting proper fuse holders. Even then it's nothing a few minutes with a soldering iron can't fix.

WarAdvocat wrote:Man... Redbone and Acecombat... a Match made in hell!

Haha, I dunno it might be kinda funny actually.

okay this topic has gone to shiznit.


those of you who suggested good thigns.....thank you.

the rest of you guys need to find something else to do instead of constantly telling me BS when i actually need help instead of creating BS For myself.


Stressy-poo could you be a sweetie and lock this for me?

change the fuse, ya big pu$$y.

look here you a$$hat mofo. you bring your non-pu$$y self down here and change it for me.

im not opening that f00king monitor!

AceCombat wrote:the rest of you guys need to find something else to do instead of constantly telling me BS when i actually need help instead of creating BS For myself.

See...thats the thing. We did post suggestions. All you did was ★■◆● and whine. Still, whatever you want to do. If you want to waste $100 for a job that would've actually cost you at the most $2 to fix, then by all means. Just don't expect any help in the future when something else fucks up and you come crawling back begging for help.

and look at the line directly above it. i appreciate the replies that are helping.

but what i do not appreciate is the BS repetative pestering about me opening my monitor when ive already said it 5 times that im not going to do that. i had a bad experience with CRT's and that has forever sealed my decision about ever opening one again.

Then have a neighbor do it. Paying someone over a hundred dollars for a simple fix is STUPID. Hell, I'll do it if you'll Fedex it to me including the cost of shipping it back.

MD-2389 wrote:Then have a neighbor do it. Paying someone over a hundred dollars for a simple fix is STUPID. Hell, I'll do it if you'll Fedex it to me including the cost of shipping it back.

all of my neighbors are pretty much technology illiterate.


they can click and point and type....thats it



now see, that is the kind of feedback that i appreciate. all that repetative "Just fix the fuse" BS wasnt needed.

this thing is UBER heavy, i dunno if it would cost any less to ship it to you +return than to take it to a local shop

you might steal it too!!


might be some kitty porn burned into the phosphor dots aswell!!