Possible causes of “streaks” on LCD monitor

displayvga

I've got a dual monitor setup run off of a NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS video card with 1 DVI and 1 VGA output.

Things on my VGA monitor looks OK after a reboot, but eventually everything will look like it was printed in ink and someone ran their fingers to the right across it, causing all text and icons to have long streaks trailing them.

Between the card, cables and monitor, who's the most likely suspect, and is there anything I can do to fix this?

Best Answer

I would check the cable & connection first. Can you switch cables/monitors so the inky display is using the DVI and vice versa? If so, we could potentially rule out a monitor issue.

My experience says this kind of problem would be the cable connection first, then card, then monitor.

  • If it's the connection, re-seating the cable may fix the issue.
  • If not, try replacing the cable. Since the problem only after some time, I think it's probably not the cable itself.
  • If that doesn't help, check the card, is the fan working? Long shot, but it could be a heat issue.

One of those DVI-to-VGA adapters might be helpful for troubleshooting. Switching monitors/ports/cables would definitely be a big help in narrowing down the issue.

Let's say we have Monitor A with Cable A on Port A (DVI) And Monitor B with Cable B on Port B (VGA)

1) Try Monitor A with Cable B on Port B and Monitor B with Cable A on Port A

  • If Monitor A exhibits the issue, you know the monitors are not the problem.
  • If Monitor B exhibits the issue, you know that Monitor B is the problem.

If the monitors are not the problem.....

2) Try Monitor A with Cable A on Port B and Monitor B with Cable B on Port A

  • If Monitor A exhibits the issue, you know the card is the problem.
  • If Monitor B exhibits the issue, you know the B cable is the problem.
Related Question