Acer AL1916W takes at least 10 minutes to show the display

ReneeM · September 2021

I have a Dell laptop running Windows 7 Professional and I use an Acer AL1916W monitor with it because I like the larger display. For approximately the last year, when I turn on the laptop, the Acer logo flashes on and off on the monitor and the monitor makes an intermittent soft humming noise for at least 10 minutes until the display appears on the Acer monitor. I have another Acer monitor, and the same problem occurs with both monitors, so I assume that there is some problem with the computer communicating with the monitors. Sometimes (but not always) if I turn off the power to the monitor and turn it back on, the display will quickly appear. I have had the same computer and monitors for many years, and they used to work great together. How can I get the display to appear on the Acer monitor at the same time that it appears on the Laptop?

William_mk2 · September 2021

ReneeM

It might be a cable issue.. Remove all the cables from monitor. Press and hold the power button of monitor for 1 min. Connect all the cables back. Try to turn on the monitor. Connect the monitor to laptop and check.

Please remove the cable between monitor and computer. Try to connect it back and check. If possible try to use an alternative cable and check.

If the problem persists try to use an alternative power cable and display cable and check. Try to bypass the surge protector and connect the monitor directly to power outlet. Try to connect monitor on a different power outlet or surge protector and check.

On the monitor - use the control buttons. There will be an option to reset monitor settings to default. Try to reset the monitor and check.

Easwar · September 2021

Hi ReneeM,

Ensure the cable between the computer and monitor are connected properly at both ends. Reinstall your video driver. Reseat the graphics card inside the case. Try a different cable (preferably one that's known to be working on another system)

ReneeM · September 2021

Thank-you for the suggestions. I have changed the cable between the computer and the monitor, I have changed the power cord between the monitor and the outlet, I have plugged the monitor into a different surge protector, I have turned the monitor on and off, and I have reset the monitor. I do not know how to reinstall the video driver or to reset the graphics card. The green light at the on/off button flashes on and off and the Acer logo flashes on the monitor until the computer image finally appears at which time the green light stops flashing and stays solid. I have done some searching on the Internet today, and this is a common problem with old Acer monitors. Most of the answers that I read said that it was caused by a faulty capacitor. I rarely go out of my house because of Covid in my community, but I think that I am going to have to connect my equipment to someone else's equipment to find out if the problem is in the computer, the monitor, or a cable.