Just got an HP Zr30W and...it's blank?

M

Matrices

Supreme [H]ardness
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Feb 5, 2003
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Not sure what's going on here. I have this thing hooked up via the included dual-link DVI, and nothing happens. The LED goes from orange to blue and the black screen gets bright, but it won't display anything. The computer is acting like it is displaying, though. Hitting source doesn't change anything.
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I have an equally new ZR22W plugged in, which works fine. But when I plug that in, and then plug in the 30" afterward, they both go blank. Or the 22" seems to act as the extended display on the 30", except nothing shows up on the 30", and since it's supposedly the main display, I can't access the control panel from the 22" since the window doesn't open on it.
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What the hell is going on?

e: Now I can get the 22" to act as primary. The 30" is recognized by the system. But again, nothing displays on it. That wouldn't even be possible if it was just a bad cable, right?
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Well that fucking sucked. You open up your first 30" beauty and it's a fucking dud. I've never even heard of this type of shit before...a backlit image that displays absolutely nothing. RMA time.
 
Have you confirmed the output to the 30" is 2560x1600@60Hz? I wouldn't trust those included cables. If even one of the wires is damaged inside it can cause all sort of problems. Do you have another DVI-(D) cable to test? The pin-outs must look like the second from the bottom:

277px-DVI_Connector_Types.svg.png
 
Yes, I confirmed the output resolution and frequency. Windows recognized the monitor, it just didn't display anything. On three video cards in two systems.

Like most people, I didn't have any dual-link DVI cables just lying around, and Nvidia cards don't do DP, so I really don't have any other choice. I suppose I could check a single-link DVI to test 19x12 and then...wait around weeks for HP to ship me a damn cable?

I'd rather just do what I'm doing: ship this thing back (prepaid) and order a new one (should be here by Monday).
 
A Best Buy or any type of computer store should have a DVI-D cable. They aren't that rare nor expensive.
 
Haha, you want to recommend Best Buy for cables? I'll take a pass on the 1000% price premium. Yes, I could order a cable from Monoprice...or, in the same number of days, I can just have a new monitor and new cable delivered. Why take a risk and bet that it's just the cable at fault? If that doesn't work, I just wasted money on a cable and I'll still need to RMA. Maybe it's the cable, maybe it's the DVI port, maybe it's the panel - I'll let the vendor worry about that. My time is too valuable to me to play nanny to $1200 purchases.
 
Best Buy is horrible for cable prices, but I mentioned them because they are so prevalent. If you have your mind set on returning it, then return it. HP warranty work has been real good in my experience.

BTW most towns also have a radio shack. Their site says they stock these. If the new cable doesn't fix the problem, just return it for a refund.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3371341

I personally would take a look at the easiest fix and run to a computer store and buy a returnable/refundable cable to test real quick. Sounds a whole lot easier then going through the warranty process, shipping off the current monitor, waiting for the new one etc if it ends up being just a cable problem.

Was the monitor box damaged in any way? Maybe it got damaged in shipping. Hard to tell.
 
I hear what you're saying, but I'm not going through the warranty process. I went through the retailer, Newegg, and had them agree to refund this monitor after they get it back while immediately sending me a new monitor that I paid for.

I'm actually going to flip the situation to my benefit if the problem really is just the cable. When the second monitor arrives, if it has any dead or stuck pixels at all, I'll simply try the first monitor with the second monitor's cable. If that panel turns out to be problem-free, I'll just ask them to switch around which purchase they're charging and refunding.

The monitor and box seemed in good condition.

I don't know enough about the internals of electronics to pinpoint the problem, but I do find it weird that the DVI cable is obviously able to communicate to the PC but the PC apparently can't communicate back to the monitor.

Anyway, I've fallen in love with this little ZR22w in the few hours I've had it, so I can't wait to get my hands on a working 30". I've got another flanking U221H en route for Monday, too. It's all going on my KTA325 mount, which has just enough room to fit a 30" and 2x20" all in landscape mode (though I'm keeping the 22w in portrait). Actually takes up a little less space than the 3x25.5" I've had on there thus far.
 
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Each of those pins in the cable end is an internal cable. Some send display signals and others send monitor info etc to the OS. This is how things like HDCP work. If one of the display wires is broken and the info wire isn't broken etc. You get the picture. Or maybe it could be where the wires are crimped on the end, etc.

The Newegg shipment is good in the respect that it does give you a double shot at avoiding a stuck/dead pixel situation. Be advised though that the monitors are linked to their box and linked to the sale by serial number. If you do swap them for refund purposes make sure to swap out the bezel's/cases that carry the serial number or they will find out real quick. The cases are easy to remove with no damage and I can tell you how if you need to know.
 
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I was planning on just asking them to make the switch on their end if it even came to that, but if they're asses about it I'll hit you up for the info. ;)
 
I heard Newegg was pretty crappy about helping people out with stuck pixels, but it wouldn't hurt asking if it comes down to it.
 
Matrices said:
Well that fucking sucked. You open up your first 30" beauty and it's a fucking dud. I've never even heard of this type of shit before...a backlit image that displays absolutely nothing. RMA time.
Click to expand...

Should have purchased the U3011...this is what you get.
 
At any rate, I "rented" a replacement cable from Radioshack, and no dice. The problem persists. That's some pretty poor QA for a $1200 product - not to test whether the thing even turns on before it leaves the factory. Oh well, hopefully that exhausts my bad luck reservoir for a good amount of time. ;)
 
I had a tint problem when I bought my HP LP2475w. I called HP tech support (quite a headache to get to the right person) and they sent a technician with a replacement panel the next day or so. The process was fairly straightforward...no shipping panels back and forth.

That being said, I went with the Dell U3011 this time around.
 
Matrices said:
At any rate, I "rented" a replacement cable from Radioshack, and no dice. The problem persists. That's some pretty poor QA for a $1200 product - not to test whether the thing even turns on before it leaves the factory. Oh well, hopefully that exhausts my bad luck reservoir for a good amount of time. ;)
Click to expand...

I guarantee you that they test these monitors at the factory. Just because it works though before they put it in the box doesn't necessarily mean that it will work 100% of the time any time after that. Shipping shock, grounding issues, etc.

While it does suck to get a DOA monitor, it's not that huge of a deal. Out of all the different forums I've visit this is the first DOA ZR30w I've read about so it's not like it's a systemic issue.
 
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