lcd woes

[computerSolution]

I have an inspiron 6400 that is giving me problems. Here is what I know:

At first works fine, then starts to flicker before finally going out.

It is not the screen itself or the inverter, as I have replaced both.

When I plug in an external monitor, it works fine.

Is the next step to replace the motherboard?

[Rob_NNCC]

I would search. There are atleast 3 threads that cover Laptop LCD screen diagnostics on the first page of this section.


Is the backlight in the screen failing to illuminate or is the screen itself going black with the backlight still on?
Have you ruled out the cable or the motherboard?

[compnet]

Flickering is usually a cable in my experience.. I'd order it before the board..

[Mr.Mike]

Originally Posted by compnet

Flickering is usually a cable in my experience.. I'd order it before the board..

Agreed. I have found hinge binding and cable pinching to sometimes be the culprit. Good Luck.

[computerSolution]

I read each thread, as I was guided to when I started this project. That is what made me originally decide to go with an inverter.

I was hoping it was the cable, but I tried a second one and it didn't fix the problem.

IS there anything else besides the board that it could be?

[computerSolution]

the backlight is working fine as well

[Mr.Mike]

Originally Posted by computerSolution

the backlight is working fine as well

I would check the power supply to make sure it isn't having problems. It can't be the GPU you tested that with an external screen.

[computerSolution]

no such luck. I tried a different power supply and same thing happens.

How could a new board not fix the problem?

[ell]

wow, tuff one, don't laugh, but is there a switch when depressed turns off the screen when closed? just a shot it could be flaky, try external keyboard?

[PCX]

Piece of advice, when buying the inverter, also buy the cable if you do not have one on hand. Its cheap enough and you can either return it or use it and charge the customer. The other suggestion is to keep what ever cables and inverters you can from broken computers and use them for troubleshooting so that you do not have to buy an inverters and cables blindly. Same for screens.