2408WFP Power Save/Signal Issues

Question

Hi- so this is my 3rd 2408, the first 2 were new A00 monitors (that did NOT exhibit this issue)- and the latest replacement is a A01 refurb.  The left side brightness was less noticeable so I thought I finally had one that I could live with, but after continued use a new (and quite annoying problem started).  The monitor will suddenly lose signal go black, and then display the little (DVI1) icon in the top corner with the image restored.  Sometimes this will happen randomly once, or several times and a reboot will only fix it.  I have tested the monitor on a 32 bit windows XP and vista install with the latest Nvidia drivers (as of 9-25-08 release) and the problem still occurs.  I also tried an Apple MacBook, with similar behavior- although it usually only flashes once on the Mac.   Again, this happens randomly- sometimes when the computer boots, sometimes after a few hours, sometimes when new hardware is added.  I'm just wondering if this is another 'funny' quirk of the 2408wfp or what.. The desktop I'm using is a Vostro 400 with an E8500 processor, 4GB ram, and an 8800GT graphics card (over DVI). Any ideas?   Update: I received a new (not refurbished) 2408 display from dell marked A01 on the box and monitor the other day. It does not exhibit any of the signal loss issues of the refurb, which the original post was based on.  I also swapped the DVI cable, but the bad monitor produced the same results.  Hope this helps others with a similar problem!   Update2: Before the new monitor arrived I tested the bad monitor with both DVI ports on the graphics card as well as both DVI inputs on the monitor- the problem still persisted.  Upon getting the new monitor I plugged it into the same DVI port (bottom of the card, closest to the motherboard) and DVI 1 on the monitor and have not noticed a single case of the signal loss again. Message Edited by SegmentationFault on 10-02-2008 07:14 PM Message Edited by SegmentationFault on 10-09-2008 03:02 PM

sdl68 · Answer

I've experienced the exact same problem. It has happened three times and it is after the monitor goes into powersave mode. One time the monitor did not come on after computer wake up from sleep state. I did not have to reboot the computer but did have to turn the monitor on and off.

I assumed this was either a windows or Nividia issue but if its happened on your mac it must be the monitor.

While it is a pain it is not enough for me to request a new one as I am completely happy with the monitor itself and has never blacked out during use but only for a split second on wakeup.

I have read of this problem before. My original A0 version did not have this behaviour either.

bulletx · Answer

I experienced the same issue within minutes of plugging in my new 2408WFP, revision A01.

I have a GeForce 6800 Ultra video card with NOT the most current Nvidia drivers. There are two DVI ports on the 6800 card.

I first plugged the 2408 into the same plug that my previous monitor was plugged into (a Mitsubishi DiamondPro 930). Turned on the monitor, set it to DVI1, and booted without problem, including Windows XP SP3 flawlessly recognizing the new monitor.

After the problem occurred, I had to reboot to get back a screen image. Turning the monitor off and on, even with disconnecting power to the monitor, did not help.

I ended up calling Tech Support, but they had no answers and were going to ship a replacement out ASAP. While still on the phone, I remembered I had two DVI ports, so I changed to the other port on the card. It worked... so far!

I made no changes to either software or hardware exact for changing which DVI port to plug into on the video card.

So, is it a monitor thing or a video card thing?

Since everything appears working and stable after 4 days of steady use, I have not upgraded the Nvidia drivers, though I might if there is a specific update concerning the use of this specific monitor or this size/type of monitor. Then again, why change things if it works?!

Overall, the 2408 is incredible. It is one of those things that actually lives up to its advertising/hype.

Computer specs:

Windows XP SP3 (updated current)
MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum (updated current)
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800
OZC PC3200 Dual Channel Platinum Rev. 2, 2 X 512 MB
Crucial PC3200 Dual Channel, 2 X 1 GB
PC Power & Cooling Turbo Cool 510 ATX-PFC Deluxe

Message Edited by bulletx on 10-09-2008 02:41 PM

Dman2 · Answer

Bumping!  i am having the same issue and i tried both dvi, hdmi, and vga

DELL-Chris M · Answer

Dman,

Get it replaced. If the replacement has the same issue, then we will know that the culprit was not the monitor but instead either the video card, cabling, driver, or some operating system setting.

Monitors

Was this post helpful?