Z70VA Split Screen Video Problem

I have been having an occasional (couple of times per week)video problem when booting. It starts at the Centrino post. Display split with a horizontal line and stretched,faded out look. The unit is two weeks old. Then yesterday it did it every time I tried to boot. Could not even get into bios setup. Windows would come up and I could control everything, just distorted display. Vendor had me try external monitor - this worked fine. Did a search on the web under something like "laptop split screen". Found some forum posting for another brand that had the problem, solution was to hit CTRL ALT 1 at boot. I did it, apparently fixed the problem. My vendor is stumped, said Asus was stumped too as this was not a valid booting keystroke sequence. I am running Win2k SP4.

Any experience out there with this?

 

the problem hasn't returned since?! does FN+F8 do anything?

 

Has not done it since, but we are only talking a couple of days here. I will try the FN F8 if it happens again. My vendor initially wondered if when the unit was assembled there was a refresh timing incorrectly set. He was thinking outloud. I sure miss all of the documentation that you usually get when you build something with Asus.

Also when I mentioned in my first post that I could not get into the bios setup I was using the traditional desktop techniques - still learning the nuances of the notebook.

Also to note that I was using the Accessibility feature in windows to enlarge icons. When the notebook came back up for me these settings were reversed. Don't know if that means anything.

 

This happens when a screen has been removed and the cables were not fastened properly. it can also happen if the transformer cables are loose. Its a little 5 inch long power strip thingy on the bottom inside the lcd. You need to contact your vendor and request a check of this problem. Split screen is not a faulty video card however it can be. Just going by past experience. Seens this same problem a few times it always was poor cable jobs.

 

... if this is the case, if you remove your keyboard you can at the very least check all of the cables that attached to the computer yourself. Under the grille that covers the wifi mini-pci card to the upper lefthand side of the keyboard are the two cables that attached the screen to the computer....... you can certainly check those yourself...... Now there are other cables that are accessible behind the lcd bezel but those are harder to get to because of the chance of you breaking the bezel itself.......

 

Should I wait to do this until I have a problem again? I usually don't mind mucking around inside as I have built many desktops, but am a little hesitant on notebooks because it is my first. And, since it is new it should be the responsibility of my vendor. Of course sending it back would be a hassle for both. Even sending back in might not be so great on an intermittent problem, tech turns it on and says it is fine and ships it back. I guess the biggest issue that I have is that if I wait past my warranty period and have to eat the repair. But, it does not sound too serious in any case. Any opinions from you guys that deal with this?

 

Crap. Doing it again. Previous hocus pocus does not correct it. Computers don't fix themselves I suppose. I will get out the screwdriver and follow the advice given.

 

Did as instructed. Removed and re-attached the cables. Booted OK. Will burn in and post if this did not solve the problem.



Update:

10 days of perfect video operation. Thanks (and my vendor thanks you I am sure!) for the tip.