Alright, bear with me, this might be long...
System specs:
HP NC6400 laptop
2GHz Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM
I was running Windows XP SP3 with a dual monitor setup, one with VGA and the other with DVI-D. This setup worked great for a while, but it stopped working somewhat suddenly. More specifically, my cat chewed on the DVI cable, and it sent the system into a fit. I uninstalled and re-installed the graphics card drivers, monitor drivers, etc, and eventually got it to where the system wouldn't have a fit (excessive CPU usage, etc), but following a restart, it failed to detect the DVI monitor at all. I got a new DVI cable. Didn't fix the problem. I took my entire system up to my school's IT department. The cables work fine, both monitors output with a DVI signal from another machine, and my system can output DVI to other monitors. No one could figure out what the heck was going on.
I decided it might be a good time to upgrade to Windows 7, and after installing it, the problem was not fixed. Even after getting the proper (Vista) drivers so that I can support two monitors, it still refuses to detect or allow me to enable the DVI monitor.
So I completely reformatted my harddrive and reinstalled Windows 7 again.
Here's the weird and annoying part. During the first part of the Windows installation, everything was being piped to the DVI monitor. During the second part, however, it went to the VGA monitor (the DVI was no longer recognized). During the pre-startup phase, signal goes to the DVI monitor, but during post it goes to the VGA (again, DVI not recognized).
I am out of ideas. The IT department here at school is no help, as their suggestion was, "Keep using google to figure it out!"
Please help.
Buggered video card/chip? Isn't really a good way to test/fix it on a laptop though. Maybe something's loose somewhere in the dvi connector?
How does it play one monitor at a time?
Quote from: PachmanP on December 17, 2009, 09:03:36 PM
Buggered video card/chip? Isn't really a good way to test/fix it on a laptop though. Maybe something's loose somewhere in the dvi connector?
How does it play one monitor at a time?
Dual monitor display works in Ubuntu.
Both monitors work with DVI connections on other machines. My laptop can output to another monitor with DVI, just not mine, it seems.
trade someone monitors, and quit rubbing cat food on your cables
Quote from: jeremy_nash on December 17, 2009, 11:14:26 PM
trade someone monitors, and quit rubbing cat food on your cables
I like my monitors.
ubuntu works... so it's a software (HELLLLLLLO MICROSOFT !) problem again.
sorry, you knew that already.
sorry, I gave up on fixing all things windows like, ohhh, 5 years ago now.
buy a mac :)
Quote from: ohgood on December 18, 2009, 01:27:54 PM
ubuntu works... so it's a software (HELLLLLLLO MICROSOFT !) problem again.
Yes, except that it does work... just not with my monitors. Like I said, I can use my DVI output to other monitors, just not the two I own for some reason.
And a complete hard drive erase and an entirely new OS... you'd think the problem would be fixed. I mean, I'm completely stumped.
Quote from: ohgood on December 18, 2009, 01:27:54 PM
sorry, I gave up on fixing all things windows like, ohhh, 5 years ago now.
This has been my first real problem with any Windows product. Most of the stuff I've encountered is easily fixable. This is the first time I've been completely and utterly stumped.
Quote from: ohgood on December 18, 2009, 01:27:54 PM
buy a mac :)
They don't have the necessary software I need for school, work, etc. That, and I don't know how to fix a Mac. Windows stuff is easy.
how strange :dunno_white:
Possibly a driver issue, maybe you changed versions during the install?
well since your attached to your monitors, have you tried downloading the proper monitor drivers for them, instead of generic pnp monitor? I had to create my own drivers for my primary monitor, and my hdtv secondary monitor using powerstrip, to be able to set a custom resolution
Quote from: dohabee on December 18, 2009, 11:30:52 PM
how strange :dunno_white:
Possibly a driver issue, maybe you changed versions during the install?
Nope. Driver was up to date when I uninstalled it. Reinstalled a freshly downloaded copy.
When I got Windows 7 I had to get an entirely new driver for it. That was a fresh install as well.
Quote from: jeremy_nash on December 18, 2009, 11:49:56 PM
well since your attached to your monitors, have you tried downloading the proper monitor drivers for them, instead of generic pnp monitor? I had to create my own drivers for my primary monitor, and my hdtv secondary monitor using powerstrip, to be able to set a custom resolution
The monitors I use don't have Vista drivers, unfortunately. However, when I did have XP I never needed the monitor specific drivers. I did install them. No difference. Other PnP monitors work with DVI on my system, and my monitors work with DVI on other systems.
Maybee your laptops resolution settings are too low/high for your monitor but not the others you are testing with?
What if you get it working w/ another monitor and hot swap yours in?
Quote from: scottpA_GS on December 19, 2009, 05:50:10 PM
Maybee your laptops resolution settings are too low/high for your monitor but not the others you are testing with?
Except that it works with VGA, and the resolution is just fine. And it's worked before as plug-and-play with no issues.
Quote from: scottpA_GS on December 19, 2009, 05:50:10 PM
What if you get it working w/ another monitor and hot swap yours in?
Tried it. Doesn't work. It works with other monitors, just not mine. I do not know why.
You would think it has to be in the monitor itself then? Like it needs re-set? I cant see how its the PC or the card if the PC has been restored :cookoo:
Quote from: scottpA_GS on December 19, 2009, 08:36:44 PM
You would think it has to be in the monitor itself then? Like it needs re-set? I cant see how its the PC or the card if the PC has been restored :cookoo:
You'd think, except that the monitors work on other systems. And the monitors work on my system during pre-startup and when the video driver is not installed. This makes me think it has something to do with the video card driver, except that the driver runs other monitors just fine. That made me think it was the monitor drivers, which a complete system wipe should have fixed.... except it didn't.
AHHHHHHHH!!!
time to trade someone monitors I guess? ??? very strange
maybe its an incompatability with the newer video drivers? try using the older drivers you used ot have? if you know the specific driver revision?
Here is your your solution.
Get a new monitor.
Its the one that keeps having the issues. Whether you like it or not, its the most constant of them all. You may have fried something in the monitor that other system due to being diff setup can overlook. As for your specific video card..it says..nope i see an issue..i wont overlook it.
If you really want to test it out.. get another system same setup as yours in terms of video card.. and see if it sees it.
Why spend so much time...when you can just "upgrade" what a great excuse to do so.
Quote from: Bluehaze on December 20, 2009, 10:45:04 PM
Here is your your solution.
Get a new monitor.
Why spend so much time...when you can just "upgrade" what a great excuse to do so.
never seen a better reason to upgrade than when something doesnt work the way u want it to
Quote from: Bluehaze on December 20, 2009, 10:45:04 PM
Why spend so much time...when you can just "upgrade" what a great excuse to do so.
Because I can't really afford an upgrade. I'm a grad student, I don't have money. Also, one of my monitors (provided by my work), is a Lenovo L22x, a 22" widescreen beast of an LCD. It's amazing. I can't afford better.
The thing is... if something was fried in the monitor, why will it display through DVI during pre-startup and if the video card driver is uninstalled?
because it hates you! seriously I dont have any idea
This maybe something dumb and you may have overlooked but when you are looking at the display settings it is set up to have a dual monitor set-up for output purposes right? I remember when i was in college the IT department always had problems connecting laptops to projectors while keeping the screen on the laptop cause none of them understood how to change the settings and just assumed it always should just work if plugged in.
Once booted up can you use either the vga or dvi output or does only one of those work after the computer is on? (have only one plugged into the computer at a time and even try both monitors on both ports and which ones work when?)
Are you using 2 monitors and the laptop screen or just 2 monitors and acting as if the laptop is a desktop but able to be easily transported and used?
Might be a setting on the monitors also try going through their menus and resetting them back to factory settings and see if that fixes the problem?
Could be a whole list of other things but that is what comes to mind to check first.
Quote from: Alphamazing on December 21, 2009, 12:06:06 AM
The thing is... if something was fried in the monitor, why will it display through DVI during pre-startup and if the video card driver is uninstalled?
Thats the point i am trying to tell you. When the drivers kick in.. It apparently requires a talk with the monitor.. it sends the signal.. the monitor does not talk back.. well.. ok..you dont exist.
During boot up.. all you are seeing is the output from the computer.. once the driver kicks in.. it begins to get a bit more complicated. So this driver apparently requires a signal returned by the monitor to say.. hey i am here my name is lenovo 22". that signal is not being sent by the monitor..so your video card says..ok nothing is there .. i sent a request and i get nothing back.
Other computer video card may decide to go..ok got nothing back from the monitor..BUT... i see that something is connected..i will use a default driver for the monitor.
Either way.. the only way for you to resolve this issue is to find another computer with same vid card as yours and plug your monitor to it.. the concept of it works on another computer just doesnt mean anything unless you keep constant what matters..which is the vide card. and the monitor.
The answer is there.. you just dont want to believe it.
What made you think that a cat chewing your DVI cable might cause a software issue? :dunno_white:
Since your laptop outputs DVI to other monitors and both of your monitors work with other computers and a new cable didn't fix the problem, that means your cat didn't cause your problem. It was just a coincidence. YOUR CAT IS INNOCENT!
From here the most likely culprit is a corrupted or wrong video driver. When you hook-up other monitors, your laptop must be using a different driver for that particular brand and model. The only way I'd know for sure is to hook-up another monitor that is the exact same brand and model, ensuring the same driver is called. Otherwise, what you're saying is impossible I'd say. Best of luck.
Quote from: Bluehaze on December 21, 2009, 03:52:17 PM
Thats the point i am trying to tell you. When the drivers kick in.. It apparently requires a talk with the monitor.. it sends the signal.. the monitor does not talk back.. well.. ok..you dont exist.
Ahh, I see what you're saying now.
I've got to give my big monitor back to work, since I can't keep working through next semester (already working 60+ hour weeks, can't fit in another 10+), so I'll just have a single monitor and my laptop screen to work with. Ah well. Maybe when I get a new monitor the problem will fix itself.
Quote from: bill14224 on December 21, 2009, 08:08:17 PM
What made you think that a cat chewing your DVI cable might cause a software issue? :dunno_white:
Because he chewed on the cable, and the monitor went crazy. It's as if he possibly shorted something.
Did you ever try VGA instead of DVI on the monitor with the issue?
Quote from: meri on December 28, 2009, 01:56:10 PM
Did you ever try VGA instead of DVI on the monitor with the issue?
Neither monitor will respond with DVI. Both work with VGA.