Monitor doesn't come on without a bit of “fiddling”

Question

PROBLEM

I have three monitors and one of them recently started acting very flaky. In short, when I:

• Turn on the computer,
• Come out of Sleep mode
• "Enable" the monitors after they have been shut off due to my computer's Power Plan

The one monitor either:

• Doesn't turn on until after waiting 30-90 seconds.
• Doesn't come on unless I unplug the cable from the computer and plug it back in

And for the latter approach, that doesn't always work the first try, sometimes I have to fiddle with it repeatedly, plugging and unplugging it. And when I say it "doesn't come on," I mean the monitor screen remains black and the power light flashes like it does whenever the monitor is suspended.

Once on, the monitor works fine.

WHAT I'VE TRIED SO FAR...

Here is what I have tried so far:

• Turn the monitor off, then on - same problems
• Turn the monitor off before going to Sleep or turning the computer off, and then turning it back on once the computer has awoken or been powered back up - same problems
• Replaced the DVI cable connecting the monitor to the computer with a new one - same problems
• Tried swapping out to a VGA cable with a VGA --> DVI converter - same problems
• Tried moving the cable input to a different video in port on the back of my computer (I have four DVI inputs)

My guess is that there is some connector or switch in the monitor that detects whether the monitor is plugged in, and that is flaking out.

Answer 1

Your conclusion makes sense. There's one more thing you can try though...

• Make sure the power cable is plugged in properly -- you may need to use a little bit of force to ensure the connector is pushed all the way in

If this behaviour persists after confirming that the power cable isn't loose, then try another computer to rule out PC problems as a last resort. If it still persists, then hopefully your monitor is still covered by a warranty (so that you can get it repaired at no cost).

A note about warranties: Some vendors provide a short grace period (usually a month or so) so if your warranty expired, say, a week ago, then they may still provide coverage for you. I've had this experience a few times over the years with different vendors (such as Intel for motherboards), and so I hope this is helpful to you if you find yourself in a warranty-just-expired situation.