Dell C800 inverter

**cmsppl** · March 22nd, 2004, 09:01 PM

Originally Posted by plp

Yes, that is the Hitachi # on the back of the lcd....have listed the inverter #'s in my previous thread...this inverter is going to be a devil to locate

I have the exact same computer as you, and exact same hitachi monitor, and have the exact same problem. It turns on for a bit, then turns off. and LCD is fine.

I am thinking it is either backlight or the inverter.

The inverter is indeed put together with the metal plate, but the part number is visible if you remove the power cable on the right.
It is PH-BLC91

You can type that in google, and it'll return one site that sells that part.

I want to purchase one for cheap. Some people around the forum said that that place was expensive.

Please let me know if you have a luck with the problem.

my e-mail is [email protected]

**Damned Angel** · March 22nd, 2004, 11:18 PM

try depressing the lcd sensor switch. if when you release it the lcd backlight comes on, even for a second, it may just be dirty contacts on the inverter. Get some contact cleaner and hose the ends down with it. let it dry and put it back together. A manufacturer that I repair notebooks for which will remain nameless has a tech bulliten on this problem.

**plp** · March 23rd, 2004, 09:04 AM

Originally Posted by Damned Angel

try depressing the lcd sensor switch. if when you release it the lcd backlight comes on, even for a second, it may just be dirty contacts on the inverter. Get some contact cleaner and hose the ends down with it. let it dry and put it back together. A manufacturer that I repair notebooks for which will remain nameless has a tech bulliten on this problem.

Thanks everyone for your help. Bliss computers wants $60 for an inverter. I have tried cleaning the contacts to no avail. By lcd sensor switch, do you mean the power button? Also, I have noticed a blurry "patch" on either bottom corner if/when the lcd comes on. Not really wanting to spend $60 plus S & H etc on a chance if you get my drift.

**Damned Angel** · March 23rd, 2004, 09:12 AM

the lcd sensor switch is what turns the display off when you close the lcd.

check the voltage on the lcd side of the inverter. If it dosn't register a couple hundred volts its bad.

**cmsppl** · March 24th, 2004, 06:57 PM

Originally Posted by plp

Thanks everyone for your help. Bliss computers wants $60 for an inverter. I have tried cleaning the contacts to no avail. By lcd sensor switch, do you mean the power button? Also, I have noticed a blurry "patch" on either bottom corner if/when the lcd comes on. Not really wanting to spend $60 plus S & H etc on a chance if you get my drift.

found a solution for ya...
it's the graphics card... even though external one works...
video's abilitity deliver correct amount of power to lcd is diminished, or damanged due to horrible design from dell.
change the graphics card, and it'll work

**l33tf00** · March 24th, 2004, 11:03 PM

Hey plp - have the same lcd display, and almost same inverter (last of 3 numbers you posted is different on mine). Screen also flickers then goes dim.

I looked under the metal casing as best I could and found "CK66 94V-0", and searching for that brings up an inverter manufactured by *****. Mine looks like "L-shaped" top one on this page:

http://www.*****micro.com/micro/Note...htInverter.htm

Their a Taiwanese OEM so they aren't gonna sell to us, and I couldn't find anything better than your $60. It looks like they're your best bet, if the inverter is the problem, which leads me to:

What symptom accompanies failure of the:

1. backlight
2. inverter
3. graphics card power supply (re: cmsppl)

What I could gather from reading tons of threads is:

1. backlight - becomes dimmer, yellowish, and finally does not light
2. inverter - flicker, red light and lamp cuts out after short period
3. graphics card - ?

Somebody with more info correct me.

Thanks

**plp** · March 24th, 2004, 11:47 PM

Originally Posted by l33tf00

Hey plp - have the same lcd display, and almost same inverter (last of 3 numbers you posted is different on mine). Screen also flickers then goes dim.

I looked under the metal casing as best I could and found "CK66 94V-0", and searching for that brings up an inverter manufactured by *****. Mine looks like "L-shaped" top one on this page:

http://www.*****micro.com/micro/Note...htInverter.htm

Their a Taiwanese OEM so they aren't gonna sell to us, and I couldn't find anything better than your $60. It looks like they're your best bet, if the inverter is the problem, which leads me to:

What symptom accompanies failure of the:

1. backlight
2. inverter
3. graphics card power supply (re: cmsppl)

What I could gather from reading tons of threads is:

1. backlight - becomes dimmer, yellowish, and finally does not light
2. inverter - flicker, red light and lamp cuts out after short period
3. graphics card - ?

Somebody with more info correct me.

Thanks

now you guys are really confusing me....now I should forget the inverter and upgrade my graphic card?...too what?...perhaps that would help...

**l33tf00** · March 25th, 2004, 12:56 AM

Yeah, agreed... how do we figure out what really is our problem? I don't know much about lcd displays, except what I get from reading forums.

cmsppl: where'd you find out that it was the graphics card that would cause this failure?

**cmsppl** · March 25th, 2004, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by plp

now you guys are really confusing me....now I should forget the inverter and upgrade my graphic card?...too what?...perhaps that would help...

Symtoms of graphics card failure...
is that sometimes lcd will show random black and white random lines, and blocks. Also, it will work in the beginning, but the backlight will eventually shut off, but the data on lcd is still readable if you shine light on it.

I had geforce2 and it had symptoms, and i bought a geforce 4 which is hell better off ebay and it works beautifully.

**puckogre** · April 2nd, 2004, 01:42 PM

We have over 60 of the inspiron 8100 and latitude c840's that my lan division maintains. The LCD problem is rampant in those lines - main symptoms is a rose washout of the lcd until it finally is dark enough to not display video. The root cause of this is the lack of an LCD door button. These put the laptop in power save when the lid is partially closed. Since these laptops don't have the switch, some users will partially close theirs and the heat off the keyboard (videocard is centered under the keyboard and the processor is offset slightly to the right) eventually "bakes" the LCD. Luckily all of ours are still under warranty so far, but we've got about a 15-18% failure rate on these screens (when you have over 60, thats a lot of tech calls to Dell) - seems we always have 2 or 3 waiting on a service call for screen replacement. Just about every time (1 exception - the video card was actually the fault, but symptoms were diff) replacing the LCD fixed the prob. I am uncertain if the inverter is connected on the back of the LCD or not. Sorry :P

Just as a side note, we've had about a 10% failure rate in the IBM travesltar drives on these as well. some DOA.

**Varjeal** · July 23rd, 2004, 08:17 PM

I'm a bit confused by the possibilities.

A few months ago the screen on my laptop went on the fritz. It's a 15" screen.

What happens is that on start up the screen would come on for the Bios, then to flash for a few seconds on the opening XP screen, then suddenly go really dark and stay that way.

The odd day, such as now for example, the screen seems to work perfectly fine (and the external monitor seems to work always). Most days recently though, it has shown no signs of recovery, so I'm sort of hopeful after finding this site.

It has a 32mb Video card, ATI, and from the comments I've read so far it seems to be the inverter. I'm afraid I'm not a whole lot of a techy...I don't mind ripping a PC apart but I'm a little unnerved since I've never seen the insides of a laptop. I also hope this post is in the right place but it seems to go along with the topic.

What steps to go I through to determine the problem? Do I need to remove the trim around the screen? I have ventured as far as that to check the little cable in the bottom right corner, and it seems secure. I've also gone as far as vaccuming and sucking out as much of the cat hair (the comp was given to me by my bro who loves cats, I personally hate them) as possible. I would like the advice of someone with some experience before I attempt to delve further, especially since this is my work computer, but is almost useless since I cannot take it with me on my job.

Another question pops into my mind...are there different types of inverters for the same model?...and how do I determine that?

I'll have a more in-depth read through this thread again, but the poor or damaged inverter definitely sounds plausible.

Assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.