A8Jm - Screen not showing a picture when booting, but boots

I'm back!

My laptop was working fine yesterday morning. I took it off and carried it with me to my workplace. I turned it when I got there, and there was no picture. the backlight came on but it was black.

this has happened before and usually a couple of off/on's fixed the problem. I tried it SEVERAL times (maybe 10) and I didnt see the Asus logo and my HDD password input screen on the BIOS.

When I got home I tried again, no results. I unplug everything and tried via battery. same result. I took out the battery and tried via AC and nothing.

When I boot everything sounds fine. I hear the normal beeps and the DVD drive turning on (no DVD inside). But when I press backspace however, I hear the loud BIOS beep. I usually hear this when I press backspace on my HDD password screen when I don't input anything. So I proceed to type in my password and hit enter. I see the HDD light flickering and i can hear the HDD being read, as if the computer is booting. The blacklight is still on at this point, but the screen is black. I try turning the LCD on and off with the fn+F7 button and opening and closing the lid but just the LCD backlight comes on and off. I wait a while and the HDD stops clicking. I press Fn+F1 (standby mode) and the laptop goes into standby!

What I learn from that is that the laptop is working, can enter windows fine, and I can get to my desktop. The only thing not working is my picture. The blacklight is working tho, so I don't know if the LCD is working or not.

I tried again today and the same thing is happening, so no overnight healing took place

I haven't tried connecting an external monitor yet (don't have one, its my only machine). I have a few questions before I try that tho:

1) Any idea what the issue is without trying the external monitor?
2) If i attach it, and it works, what does that tell me? The LCD needs replacement?
2) If I attach it, and it doesn't work, what does that tell me? Graphics card issue? Hardware issue? anything specific?

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for your time!

 

Must be the LCD inverter board is faulty that's why it can't adjust brightness.

 

Hmm would it really be brightness? Its not like the screen is really dark. Its not showing picture. The back light is on, but the picture is off or not working.

 

yes, which makes me think of the LCD signal cable, rather than the inverter cable. If the backlight is on then the inverter works just fine.

I would say it's either the LCD signal cable, or the LCD itself. In both cases, if you're under warranty, you're better off sending it to ASUS for repairs.

If you're not under warranty, I'd first try getting the LCD signal cable (it's under 20 dollars) off e.g., ASUS eStore, replacing it myself. Otherwise, you need to buy a new LCD (or a new laptop which might be better overall).

I would suspect it would work when plugged into an external monitor. If it doesn't, then we need to rethink -- it would probably be the GPU. But I doubt it.

 

I bought my laptop in Winter 2006. When I bought it, Milestone PC said I qualified for the bonus 1 year warranty (with Asus) plus the $100 rebate ASUS had going on. I never received any documentation about the extended warranty but Milestone PC said Asus kept record of it.

Unfortunately Milestone PC went under. When I took my laptop in for repairs last time Asus didnt ask for anything and did the repairs for free. My laptop does have a one year warranty sticker on it.

If I took my laptop in, and they said they will fix it, will I get a phone call if the laptop isn't covered? If they repair it, then find out it isnt, will they charge extra?

I have no idea how I can argue the coverage since my reseller is down and I have no documentation other than the word of Danny that my laptop is covered.

 

You can't really argue on the basis of his word... but you could tell them the situation, explain that your reseller told you you have extended warranty, and ask if your laptop is still covered.

If it's not, you'll need to pay for the parts yourself + some for shipping and handling (50 to 100 dollars, I don't really know in Europe it's 70 EUR).

In this case I suggest trying to replace the LCD signal cable first. That's the most likely culprit and it's cheap on the eStore. Assuming it's in stock.

 

I remember there was a place for the dissembly guides for this and many more Asus laptops. The Info booth thread doesnt show a complete dissembly. I tried searching the Asus site but they don't seem to have it....unless its hidden from general public.

I have yet to try the external monitor solution.

 

They don't have the manuals on the general ASUS site. I do have a PDF disassembly manual for the A8J (there are several kinds of A8J so it might not be precisely what you need, but should help). The link is somewhere around the forums, I don't know where. PM me to email it to you, if you find it easier like that.