Screen goes momentarily blank

[bigseb]

This started yesterday:

while I'm working at the PC the screen suddenly goes black. then about 3 seconds later its on again. It doesn't show the Phillips logo as it would when it is switched on from an 'off' state so I assume its not a power issue but rather a lost/missing signal (maybe). Then I noticed that as it comes back on I hear the 'device plugged in' sound from Windows (like when you plug in a flash drive).

This happens intermittently, from once an hour to 4-5 time in a row. I have checked my power connections, all fine. The 'device plugged in' sound made me think that possibly a USB device/port is failing. I have unplugged every device, one at a time, to determine if one of them is the culprit. I changed the batteries in my mouse. I switched the HDMI cable for a DVI cable. No change.

I have been doing nothing but technical drawings since yesterday. Could that somehow be causing this? Would disabling 2D rendering help?

A virus scan shows everything is in order.

Any help appreciated.

 

[RocketNut]

That has happen to me few times. Check your video driver might be out of date or needs to reinstalled.

RocketNut

 

[bigseb]

Right, here is the full story 'cos I am having no luck:

On Tuesday, while busy working, my screen suddenly goes black. About 3 seconds later its on again. In the background I hear the 'device plugged in' notification from Windows. A while later this happens again. And again and again and so on.

Today, Thursday, the problem is still there although it seems to have shifted slightly. The screen still goes black as I mentioned earlier however it only seems to happen when I use a program with a white background eg. browsing certain forums and websites that have white backgrounds or using my design software to create technical drawings. Another thing I noticed is that very often is that the keyboard seems to stop working intermittently, again this is accompanied with the 'device removed'/device plugged in' notification. This happen quite a lot is very annoying, not to mention cutting into my time.

Steps I have taken so far:
rebooted PC
switched off PC, unplugged everything including wall socket, and held in on button to properly lose all charge.
Changed batteries in wireless.
Plugged in one device at a time.
Changed keyboard.
Switched monitor cables HDMI to DVI
Reinstalled graphics driver

None of these helped. I don't have a back monitor so I can't check that. I really need to find a fix for this. All help appreciated.

 

[JordanCClark]

Hmm... :?

My first guess would be a GPU reset, whether it's hardware or software related. But if it's crashing, it should show up in the error logs.


But some things to try:

• Reset power settings to default.

Assuming you have a separate video card and an integrated one.

• Reseat the video card (pull out of the slot then seat it back in. I know it looks a lot like 'reset', but it's not. :mrgreen: )
• Disable the on-board video through Device Manager-- Windows may be trying to initialize it.

 

[cherkey]

It sounds like you've checked everything...except the monitor. It could be getting tired and needs to be put to bed :wink:

 

[bigseb]

Hmm... :?

My first guess would be a GPU reset, whether it's hardware or software related. But if it's crashing, it should show up in the error logs.


But some things to try:

• Reset power settings to default.

Assuming you have a separate video card and an integrated one.

• Reseat the video card (pull out of the slot then seat it back in. I know it looks a lot like 'reset', but it's not. :mrgreen: )
• Disable the on-board video through Device Manager-- Windows may be trying to initialize it.

Doing this today.

It sounds like you've checked everything...except the monitor. It could be getting tired and needs to be put to bed :wink:

Ok but why does the keyboard switch off. And why is there a windows notification?

 

[cherkey]

Hmm, read right past the keyboard thing... could be a motherboard issue then. If there's issues with both USB and PCI... ... Hmm..maybe power supply... just throwing thoughts out here....

 

[TylerDurden]

Anytime my rig gets too hot it acts erratically. I'd check for any cooling blockages.

 

[jimbees]

Does the RAM check out OK, at least you can eliminate one more thing. Sounds like hardware to me and it is summer time.

Jim

 

[bigseb]

UPDATE:

Problem found. It was a dodgy multi-adapter. Bought a new one and now all is well!!