m1530 LCD Screen Swap - Backlight yes, video no

hey all.

based on a guide by Rikimaru, purchased a new LG 1920x1200 screen to install into my m1530.

tonight it arrived, and before i actually installed it i wanted to test it out.

i got through all the tear down and attempted hooking the new screen up. The backlight works, but i get no image. the key command to change brightness up or down still works as you can see the screen change brightness, but still no video of any sort comes up.


i swapped the original screen (also an LG, 1650x1050 i think) back in and everything worked fine.


Swapped the new screen in and again, backlight yes, video no.



This tells me that the problem is either:

1. screen is non functional
2. screen is not compatible with the m1530 at all (which i've heard is not true)
3. screen is not compatible with the m1530 video cable (i've read that the cable may have something to do with determining resolution)
4. screen is not compatible with the m1530 inverter board.


before i talk with the company i got the screen from, can anyone confirm that i don't need to change the inverter or anything?


The screen i bought was the LG LP154WU1. My current LCD Inverter is a YPNL-N022B made by LG.


thanks


Update 2011-06-02:

i've been away while i worked on my film, and now that the film is finished for now, i wanted to let you all know that i'm visiting the forum and responding on DakkonA's old m1530 screen, an LG 1920x1200 LP154WU1(TL)(A2} with bezel swap, and it's included backlight module.

the cable sent with it didn't work for some reason. i assume probably a lose or broken connection in the ribbon itself as the model and everything was the same as mine. Swapped the cable, and the screen started right up. it's a lil small to read, but i was expecting that.

there is absolutely no graininess to the screen, and the color looks even all the way around.

i have some errands to run today but i will post more of an update when i have a chance.

I'm narrowing the possibilities to the following:


1. Screen's motherboard is different from the ones in the past. Will post pics to show later.

2. Grounding issue. The inverter on this new, working screen was attached to the frame. i never swapped the frames on the others as i wanted to make sure it worked before i did anything of the sort.

Thank you DakkonA!

 

anyone still have these?

 

okay, I have had the same problem as you and here is your problem. It is your LCD Ribbon Cable. Certain cables only support resolutions and your cable doesn't support the screen resolution. You just need to replace that cable then your good to go.

 

Wait...1920x1080 is 16:9 and the XPS M1530 is 16:10. I don't think they are compatible. There are people who have swapped in a WUXGA screen (1920x1200) which is 16:10 aspect ratio.

 

My original M1530 screen was an 1680x1050 and I upgraded it to a 1900x1200 (that exact LG screen in fact) without changing the cable or inverter. One problem I ran into is that the cable-to-LCD connection can easily come out when you assemble it, and it could be that it is just loose enough to be giving you trouble.

If you can't get anything working with your current set, I actually am selling these parts if you want to message me. But I hope you can get it working.

 

you are right, my new screen is 1920x1200. thanks!

 

Thanks for that. i looked around for another ccfl cable for this unit and didn't find one. Seems that there were only 2 cables: the LCD ccfl one and the the LED one.

I may take you up on this. i called the company and had them send me a new screen in hopes that it was just a bum unit.

 

As I understand it, the M1530 and M1330 offered CCFL (when it first came out in 2007) and later on they were offering LED screens.

The same LVDS cable should be able to support the resolution.

 

well, the replacement screen from screentek came today. i'm rather impressed...they didn't require me to send the old one back first, and they overnighted this screen. i've got a ton of homework to do but if i finish it tonight i'll try the new screen and see what i get.


thank you all for helping so far!

 

Well, they sent me a Samsung screen. I'm not sure if the samsungs got any better in the last 3 years, but i know i'm not taking a chance with it as far as possibly keeping it.

I did, however, give it a shot on this system, and found that it too did not function.....Backlight was there, but no video. Put back the screen i'm trying to replace, and everything works again


So, i'm now working on the possibility that the screen i had originally bought actually works, and that there is something else wrong.

but, i'm completely at a loss. i don't want to swap frames until i know that the new screen will work, and none of these screens are showing up with the right mounting frames. i was thinking that there might have been an issue with grounding or something, but i threw that out the window when i put the original screen back on and everything worked.

So, parts involved are

A) Screen iteslf, could be broken, but now doubtful
B) Inverter. Might not be acceptable for what is needed
C) LCD Cable. Though it works on the old screen
D) Settings on the motherboard. Might need to have something tweaked in order to change screen? Guessing here.
E) Video card. I've got the NVidia GeForce 8600 GT though, so i doubt this one as well

i'm totally at a loss here, and truly hope someone can assist.

 

what this guy said.

 

Well, i wish i could agree, but it turns out that dell only made 1 cable type for this note book for CCFL, and a different one for LED, so this doesn't seem like it can be the issue. Either way, i did buy another cable (and an inverter) and i'll just have to see.

I've been talking with different people, including Dell Tech support, ScreenTek, and the folks here. The guys at Screentek believe that since i did not get the EXACT model of screen requested, there might be a pin-out difference or issue.

the LG screens made for Dell that fit this machine are supposed to end in (TL)(B2), and the LG screen i had was labeled (TL)(C2) on a sticker but (TL)(A1) on the green board under the tape. The thought was that, unlike what seemed to be believed in the previous thread, the (TL)(??) actually referred to more than just the frame around the screen, but also to the pinout on the screen, and that several different revisions of the screen are made to be somewhat proprietary to certain computer manufacturers.

To me, this sorta makes sense, but i'm really hoping that someone out there has more proper knowledge and can help.

in the mean time, not one of the 3 screens i've tried have worked, and i'm getting kind of frustrated. Maybe someone who's done this exact upgrade can get back to me and help me figure out what's going on.

 

You know what's frustrating? I just did an M1530 screen swap because my backlight appeared to be busted and . . . .

The backlight doesn't work. New inverter and new screen. Super frustrating.

 

Might want to try a cable change.

 

Yeah I ordered a brand new one. Waiting until it gets here. I don't expect it to work.

 

Ah yeah. So I actually swapped the thin metal bezel on my old screen for the new one (TL)(A2) so that it would have the top two screw mounts and the inverter mount. Although it probably didn't need those to be installed, I was trying to be safe. The frame is the only difference from the (TL) (B2) as far as I can tell, though, but if the pinout was different, I would think you'd have trouble plugging the cable in at all?

So anyway, your old inverter should work with the new screen, and it seems that it is--it just controls the backlight, and you said that works (and can you change the brightness?) And there's no good reason for the motherboard to be the problem--I mean it could be damaged I guess, but I'm not sure it would happen in a screen-specific way.

Hmm... and you're sure the display cable isn't pulling out of the LCD when you reassemble?

 

Alright so, i got a replacement inverter and a replacement cable. before i tried either of them, something weird happened: my current system stopped being able to turn on. it appears that there is some issue with the current LCD cable.

so, i go ahead and replace the cable, and it starts right up...with the monitor that i want to replace. I try the other screens i've got, and once again, Backlight yes, video no. i also try the other inverter, but the results were actually worse.

so, posed to replace the cable, i put everything back in and found that the system was starting up, but it was not actually turning the monitor on at all....No backlight, no video.

i put the original cable back in, and it worked again.

i think both the inverter and "new" cable i got were actually old.

anyway, i'm kinda out of ideas now, besides the one where the pinouts on all these screens are different, and i would have to get an exact match that someone else put into their system.

with that idea in mind, if anyone here has made an upgraded swap successfully, can you tell me what screen model, inverter model, and cable you used, as well as what screen and inverter model you started off with?


thanks!

 

Yep. i know because i don't fully reassemble before testing. The only other difference i can think of is that, since the new screen doesn't have a place for the inverter, there might be a grounding based issue, but i think i eliminated that as a possibility by removing the current inverter from the base initially and testing it with all 3 screens. The screen i'm trying to replace worked, the other 2 did not.

as for the pinouts being different, it wouldn't surprise me much if Dell screens had a bit of proprietary-ness to them....same cable could be used, but on the dell motherboards, the pins would be different, so LG or whomever would have to change the order of the pins on the monitors. it's not exactly the most probably solution, but it's the only one i've got left.

I really want a 1920x1200 LG screen in this laptop, and i want it pretty soon. been working on this rebuild for almost a month and i'm ready for it all to be done. It surprised me greatly that, despite so many having done the change, we have almost no idea why it works for some and not for others. I've been through every thread i could find related to screen swaps on the m1530, and a few that involved screen swaps on other systems using LG screens. I'm not the only one with the issue of having a backlight but no video, but the threads are so old and i don't think a lot of the people from back then still come by here. they certainly don't send messages back if they are active. I've tried sending PMs to Rikimaru and UDI and got nothing back so far.

 

I am interested in at least trying out your screen. I was told that the TL A1's were the "right" screens for dells. if the change worked for you, i'd love to know what model inverter you have, as well as any other info that might help me figure this out, such as what screen you had in it before, what video card, what proc (i know, long shot), etc.

let me know how much you want for your screen. thanks man

 

Didn't work. I can get a new Mobo for around $100 on eBay. Kind of want to shoot the damn thing now.

 

Update 2011-06-02:

i've been away while i worked on my film, and now that the film is finished for now, i wanted to let you all know that i'm visiting the forum and responding on DakkonA's old m1530 screen, an LG 1920x1200 LP154WU1(TL)(A2} with bezel swap, and it's included backlight module.

the cable sent with it didn't work for some reason. i assume probably a lose or broken connection in the ribbon itself as the model and everything was the same as mine. Swapped the cable, and the screen started right up. it's a lil small to read, but i was expecting that.

there is absolutely no graininess to the screen, and the color looks even all the way around.

i have some errands to run today but i will post more of an update when i have a chance.

I'm narrowing the possibilities to the following:


1. Screen's motherboard is different from the ones in the past. Will post pics to show later.

2. Grounding issue. The inverter on this new, working screen was attached to the frame. i never swapped the frames on the others as i wanted to make sure it worked before i did anything of the sort.

Thank you DakkonA!

 

You're welcome! Interesting findings. I'm glad it all worked for you in the end.