Monitor keeps blinking out

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Skinypupy
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Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Skinypupy »

My monitor just goes black for about 5 seconds then comes back on. Happens very occasionally (every 20-30 minutes) and only when I'm doing non-gaming stuff on the PC (web surfing, working in Word or Outlook, etc.). Hasn't happened when playing a game yet. I've updated my video driver this morning, but it happened right after so I don't think that's it.

If it happened consistently, I'd just assume the monitor was on the fritz. But it only happens when I'm not in a game, which is odd.

I'm stumped, tbh...not really sure even where to start troubleshooting.
When darkness veils the world, four Warriors of Light shall come.
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Anonymous Bosch
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Anonymous Bosch »

I'd suggest replacing your display cable.

In terms of proper diagnostics and troubleshooting, you want to replace digital signal cables first and foremost unless you have a specific reason to suspect something else. DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort and other high symbol rate digital cables are very particular about their conductor integrity and the most common fault mode is intermittent drop-outs. The signal drops, so the transmitter and receiver have to re-handshake. You lose a few seconds of display. Longer, cheaper brands of cable tend to be more prone to failure. So a decent replacement should hopefully rectify your problem.
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Daehawk
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Daehawk »

Cable....agree.
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Zitterbacke
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Zitterbacke »

You might experience a capacitor on it's way out. If so, it's a rather easy repair if you know how to solder, i've done it a couple of times myself. Why it doesn't happen whilst gaming makes no sense in that case, tho. (Link to that common problem, it still exists.)
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Kasey Chang
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Kasey Chang »

Yeah, but aren't monitor capacitors pretty large and capable of serious shock if not handled properly? Or was that only in the CRT era?

I had an LCD screen that did that. It was a REALLY old 4:3 19 inch (and really low-res) one I kept around (it's way more than 5 years old) so I just replaced it with my spare 16:9 20 inch I bought off Craigslist a while back. Not really worth my time trying to fix it.
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Zitterbacke
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Zitterbacke »

Nowadays they are an inch or less. If they read 120V they might bite you, 25V not so much. Discharge them with a resistor of say 10kOhm for a few seconds and you are safe. I hate techno-waste, but if you plan an upgrade anyways then it might not be worth looking into.
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Daehawk
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Daehawk »

"Well honey did you get that monitor fixed?"

"No but my hair is straight and I glow in the dark now"
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Kraken
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Kraken »

Kasey Chang wrote: Fri Oct 18, 2019 10:44 am It was a REALLY old 4:3 19 inch (and really low-res) one I kept around (it's way more than 5 years old)
:lol: My monitor is 15-ish years old and still going strong. It's on its third PC. As long as it keeps making pictures, I'll keep using it.
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Skinypupy
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Skinypupy »

Thanks all. I'll get a replacement cord this weekend and see if that fixes it.

I'm probably due for a monitor upgrade anyways.
When darkness veils the world, four Warriors of Light shall come.
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Victoria Raverna
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Re: Monitor keeps blinking out

Post by Victoria Raverna »

If it doesn't happen during gaming then the issue is likely to be with the GPU card or the driver.

My guess is that it is a power saving issue. If it is a NVIDIA card, go to the control panel->Manage 3D settings->Power Management Mode and try change it to Max performance. See if that fix the problem.
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