HP Laptop no display
 

I have received a laptop from a relative. It is a HP dv9000. It has a GeForce Go 7600.

The laptops screen wont come on. When you turn the laptop on, the screen changes from the standard black when its off, to a lighter black. Indicating that something is happening, but nothing is being displayed. I cannot enter the BIOS or access any features of the laptop.

I have connected the laptop to an external display, and the laptop works through that. I can access the BIOS, boot menu and load into safe mode. While on the external display, I can use the laptop as normal.

I want to know if this is a screen problem, or a graphics problem.

Edit;

Can you buy a replacement GeForce Go 7600 card? Or is it an on board graphics?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Sounds to me like the connection between the screen and the motherboard isn't in properly. I don't know about buying a graphics card but if it outputting to an external display fine then that shows the graphics card is working. To me it's either the screen is faulty or the connection to the screen is faulty.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

If the lappie displays OK to an external unit it's not a graphics card failure. Far more likely that the backlight or related power components have died.

Edit: Just googled this a bit and there is apparently a known issue with the dv9000 where the 'open lid' switch gets stuck so the laptop does not switch the screen on. That should be a simple one to check.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Sounds like a broken inverter to me. Thats the data and in some cases power cable from the graphics card to the screen by the way.
If the screen wasn't lighting up I would normally assume its the screen itself or at least the back light but since you are getting the light it must either be the Inverter or the LCD itself. Your only real problem now is that you won't know whether its the LCD or the Inverter until you try to replace one or the other. The Inverter should be £10 - £45, LCD will be about £130 - £180 so I know which I would try first.

And since you are getting picture on an external display I wouldn't think the graphics card is the culprit at all unless its the inverter socket on the card itself that is the problem (very unlikely).

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I'm unable to find the switch you're on about.

Apparently people are saying it has a magnetic thing instead of a switch. Or that the cable that goes beneath the laptop connecting the screen is 'crimped'.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Manual here

Page 3-8. I think it's item 6.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

How exactly do I take that out though?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

It looks like there are a few possible causes for this issue. Switch, backlight, inverter to name a few.

To check any of these requires stripping the machine and having the appropriate knowledge and parts to do a repair.

Kymmy may be able to advise here but personally I'd seriously consider looking for a good repair shop.

but then again, I hate working on laptops !!

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I have a slight update.

I gave up trying to open the laptop a few weeks ago, because it was ripping my hands apart. I have had another look, and with a bit of help, I have managed to open it up.

I have found the part you were on about, and I have included photo's.

I don't know what to do now.

It looks as though the flappy bit connects to the metal either on the back of the sound panel (which is upside down on the photo) or what looks like a black metal strip under the flap.

I have tried stopping the flap from connecting to other parts, but that didn't work.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Have you tried to reset the BIOS to default?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I can't, because I can't get the screen on, and I'm not sure if a laptop has a manual override.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Have you tried pluging to an external monitor?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Yeah, and I can see everything perfectly. Well, I say that, it's all in 640x480.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

You will be able to enter the BIOS it will show on the other display.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Resetting the BIOS (on the external monitor) and wiping the CMOS through a boot disc didn't work.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

You could try and replace the inverter. Plenty on ebay.. http://shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40&_t...v9000+inverter

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Is that the part in my attached photo's on an earlier post?

Edit, just looked closer, and it is.

How do I take out the old one, and put the new one in?

What exactly does that inverter do?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Didn't you download the manual that DaiNasty sent in post #6 ? It should explain how to replace the inverter in there. MANUAL

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I did download it, and that's what I've been viewing, but I can't make out how to replace it. I'll have a go anyway. The laptop is useless at the moment anyway, so it isn't like I could make it too much worse.

Thanks for the help anyway.

Edit;

Out of those being sold on ebay, which one would you recommend buying? I've always been sceptical buying from ebay.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

This one seems to be ok, he/she has some very good feedback, and there's a 30 day return too. Make sure you pay through PayPal.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Thanks for your help. :)

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

You're welcome. :)

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I've just installed this, and it hasn't worked. :(

I'm just wondering now if it's the graphics chip.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I've got an HP ZD8000 which I'm convinced the graphics chip is borked on, if you install windows, it's fine until you install the graphics drivers, if you install Linux, it's better but still not great, lots of artifacting

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

The problem seems to be sorted. Infact, I am posting from it now.

I replaced the inverter, and it didn't work. I then flashed the BIOS to the latest version (using HP's tool) within Windows, through the external monitor. The only way I could get my desktop to appear on the monitor was by launching Vista in 640x480. Then it rebooted, and the laptops screen came on, so I was chuffed.

I had previously flashed the BIOS while the old inverter was in, and it didn't work. Maybe it was the two together.

Now I just need to upgrade the RAM.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

I'll try giving that a go then

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

How typical is this? Litterally 5 minutes after posting this, the screen stops working again. Now I'm frustrated and out of ideas. Looks like bin material once RAM/Hard Drives have been taken out.

---------- Post added at 20:54 ---------- Previous post was at 19:09 ----------

Now this is irritating. It's started working again. It must be a loose connection or something.

There's a shop in Manchester who claim to be able to fix this problem on various ranges of HP laptops. I don't know if the shop is legitimate, or if the problem will arise again once 'completed'. According to their website, they simply replace the graphics cooler...which I don't think it the problem, though I could be wrong.

I'd love it if someone could tell me if this shop are any good or not.

Their website is http://www.clickpcrepair.com/Hp_Comp...op_Repair.html

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

Does the inverter have a clamp you need to secure once the cable is in? Have you made sure the clamp is in the correct position?

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

If the inverter is now ok (only way to test this is to use it on an identical machine or one that uses the same part no., unless you have the test equipment) then it could be the LCD driver circuitry, which sits inside the lid casing behind the LCD. Other than that, check all the connector as suggested. Disconnect and reconnect them again and make sure the ZIF clips are down securely. The other thing you could try if you feel up to it is to strip the cooler assembly off the cpu and graphics chip, clear off the thermal pads with the proper cleaner and reapply some decent paste and stick everything back together. The DV and ZD series laptops made around the time of yours seem to suffer from poor pads that 'dry up' and so don't conduct heat as well (happens quite often where pads are used and a a few years old) and as those laptops run pretty hot (I have a ZD8079) this improves things if heat is the suspect.

Re: HP Laptop no display
 

The Inverter was correctly installed.

I have salvaged the laptop now. I know what the problem was, and I couldn't fix it myself, nor am I paying ridiculous prices to get it fixed.

The problem, as you said Strzekecki, was the thermal and/or solder material used by Nvidia or HP. It wasn't absorbing the heat as it should have, and causing the chip to overheat. I didn't know how to remove the chip (it was soldered into the motherboard...I thought it might have been some sort of expansion card)

According to HP, this laptop doesn't fall into the category of the defected Nvidia chips, when blatantly that's the problem. So I gave up, took the processor, RAM, wireless card, hard drives, DVD drive and screen so that I can sell them. Or at least try.

That shop in Manchester wanted to charge £120, and HP want to charge £260.