# Monitor goes black on Compaq Presario V2000



## Pickngrin (Dec 24, 2006)

My wife just experienced a sudden problem with her Presario V2000: 
This morning, her screen began to sporadically go black. She wasn't sure what she did to make it come back on during a conference call. Afterwards, she was typing an e-mail and her screen went black while she was typing. She was unable to do anything to get the display to turn back on. The laptop was otherwise running properly (sans display).
After she rebooted, the laptop continued to function other than the display (still a black screen). The only time she can see anything on the screen is when she presses the little “go to standby” button and even then, the display is distorted and just stays visible for a second. Then, of course, it goes to standby. Even when she takes it out of standby, there’s no video display.

She hooked up the laptop to an external monitor. It works like a champ. Kinda defeats the purpose of a laptop, but at least (except for the LCD display), the laptop runs perfectly fine.

She did Compaq chat support. They had her unplug the power, remove the battery, hold down the power button for 60 seconds, then reinstall the battery and reboot. No luck.

Any ideas on whether the defective component is the LCD, inverter, or...? If the part can be had for a reasonable price, I'd like to replace it myself.
Thanks for any input!


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## TriggerFinger (Jan 30, 2008)

Hi.

try to put a light on the blacked out LCD and see if you can see the icons... if you do, it could be the inverter or the backlight.


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## Computer_Doctor (Feb 14, 2008)

Ive dealt with problems like these before on client computers and for sure it is a bad LCD or inverter. Since she already hooked it up on an external monitor, the internal videocard is working great.

Does your wife have any warranty on her computer? If not, it could get expensive to fix specially if the problem is the LCD screen.

Ive dealt with this before and sometimes I would order an inverter, but it turns out to be a bad LCD, vice versa.


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## Pickngrin (Dec 24, 2006)

Computer_Doctor said:


> Ive dealt with problems like these before on client computers and for sure it is a bad LCD or inverter. Since she already hooked it up on an external monitor, the internal videocard is working great.
> 
> Does your wife have any warranty on her computer? If not, it could get expensive to fix specially if the problem is the LCD screen.
> 
> Ive dealt with this before and sometimes I would order an inverter, but it turns out to be a bad LCD, vice versa.


Thanks for the response. The computer is out of warranty, unfortunately. I was hoping to be able to find a cheap LCD/inverter on ebay, but I don't know that I can. There's no way to discern which of the 2 pieces is defective?


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## Pickngrin (Dec 24, 2006)

Ok, I noticed that if I shine a bright flashlight on the LCD, I can see what's on the screen. Would this suggest that it is the backlight? Inverter?


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## TriggerFinger (Jan 30, 2008)

at least that narrows down the possibilities...

inverter or backlight you ask? frankly in most of the cases i encountered it is the backlight :upset:; and a delicate one to replace. it is also possible that it's the inverter and it is pretty much easier to replace. to answer your question, unless you can test the inverter or the lcd in a different machine, i believe there is no way to tell.

i believe it is best to bring it to a shop where they have the tools and equipment to test whether it is the inverter or the backlight. on the other hand if you want to dare do the repair and spend a few $$$ out of curiosity to know which one, then start with the inverter. I believe you can get one on any computer stores in the internet or on eBay (probably around $20, may be higher but not that expensive).


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## Pickngrin (Dec 24, 2006)

Thanks for the input. I wound up ordering an inverter through ebay for $9. Hopefully that will do the trick...


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## rdujang (Mar 11, 2009)

Here what you have to do:
1. Turn on the computer
2. If the monitor is still blank but you hear that the computer is running, you will need the flash light. 
3. Using your flash light, you can see the monitor and try to click anything (or Start button) to make sure that the computer is okay. It is possible that the problem comes from brightness.
4. If the symptom is exactly same with the points I tell you above, so the problem is coming from INVERTER. it is located under the monitor, right behind the logo "Compaq"

You can buy online the inverter for around $8.00 and it is easy to replace it. no need soldering. you need only screwdriver.
to repair it, you can click this sites.. http://www.screentekinc.com/lcd-removal-instructions_en,compaq,step5.shtml
it explain really detail and step-by-step with photos instruction on it. 
Good luck.


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## klu8892 (Aug 22, 2009)

I have been having the exact same problem but i am not sure if it is the inverter or the button for the screen. The situation i have i identical but when i press the screen lid button the screen flashes, but doesnt stay on. some times it stays on for 3 seconds but then turns right off. Just wondering if its the inverter? Thanks!


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