Broken laptop LCD (inspiron 600m)...

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 14, 2006

I'm at work so I can't get pics ATM, so I'll describe what I have. A laptop was brought to me with a cracked LCD, so I replaced it with a new one, but now I'm left with a LCD that's destined for trash and nothing but imagination and google to work with. Naturally I took the LCD itself out, and now I'm left with a cool back-lit blank screen. I need to know what voltage the cold cathode takes (has to be AC), and once I know that, the possibilities are endless. Any help on this search would be much appreciated!

Adragontattoo · Mar 14, 2006

Hell I was Dell Certified and I dont even know..

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 14, 2006

Hehe.... I posted this because I can't even find it on google

I should just grab that laptop back "to check something" and see what the voltage is with a multimeter, but if I fried it accidentally (not saying I would, but IF) then I would have hell to pay. I'll have to find this out another way, such as asking here

Gotta figure out which one is pos / neg too, because these lights fry if you switch them around. I have a pink wire and a white one, and I don't trust dell to mark the colored wire as positive. You work on dell models long enough, and you start thinking like a bomb technician......eenie meenie minie moe...... Nothing is "standard" in a dell.

Jeff Moser · Mar 14, 2006

The cold cathodes in an LCD are perty much the same as the ones ya use to light up your case they are driven by an inverter at 500-600volts supply to the inverter is prob 12dc
But what are ya going to do with it .... near impossible (cost wise) to run it with anything but that laptop video system. Different beast than a PC.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 14, 2006

Did you read my post? The LCD itself was cracked, this is purely modding fun. I don't plan on using it for a screen.

Captain Slug · Mar 14, 2006

You can take it apart and play with the lenses...

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 14, 2006

Bwaahaha score! I took a cold cathode I ripped out of a scanner and tested it, and found the voltage coming out of the inverter at ~400v AC. I decided to give it a test and guessed that dell might color things right and figured that pink was positive. I got lucky LOL.

Pic of the orphaned inverter powering the screen. It's actually on, but the flash overpowered the glow.

lol cat on one side and a dog on the other....barely.

Anways, the cathode gets HOT, so I'm going to see what I can do about lowering the voltage output, maybe it's too high.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 14, 2006

I put a rheostat on the 12v side and tested it down to some unknown range, and decided to try 5v, and it worked great at 5v and doesn't seem to be cooking itself anymore.

So what would you do with an illuminated screen? Make a lighted picture frame? Light up a dark keyboard tray? I have no idea what to do with it right now, but I'll think about it some

Captain Slug · Mar 14, 2006

=ACID RAIN= said:
I decided to give it a test and guessed that dell might color things right and figured that pink was positive. I got lucky LOL.

It's AC, there is no positive wire.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 15, 2006

Now that I think about it you're right (as usual), it doesn't matter for the cathode, it matters only for input voltage. I got my wires crossed, so to speak

I printed a full-size picture of jennifer love-hewitt and put it on the blank screen and taped it down with black duct tape, yes duct tape, and lit it up. It looked so freaking awesome! My wife was very displeased. I'll see if I can get a pic of it actually showing the light tomorrow, but don't know how well that will work.

Man this looks so cool LOL

ghettocomp · Mar 15, 2006

Easily Amused? I Know I would be if I got my hands on one of those. I think it would make a really great illuminated case window.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 15, 2006

Haha yeah I'm easily amused when I get something new. I was thinking window too, but I dunno...I mean you could get the same effect with a cutout and a light behind it. I was thinking of something framed, but it can't be the scantily-clad jennifer love-hewitt...maybe I'll put a pic of my wife in it :attn:

BTW it seems to work best in the 7-9v range with this inverter I have.

threeme2189 · Mar 15, 2006

i would try to light up a keyboard with it somehow or make a lighted mouse pad.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 15, 2006

I did consider mounting it up above my keyboard tray, but it seems like such a waste when I could be doing so many other things with this panel. I have yet to think of something that really is unique though.

Albaholic · Mar 20, 2006

lol not really computer related but dont ask me how i came up with this (im not on any drugs well not any illegal ones anyway) You could make some kind of clear acrylic toilet seat and find someway to stick the panel in it.

=ACID RAIN= · Mar 20, 2006

R_O_F_L!!!!

Imagine a clear acrylic toilet seat with a CC lighting it up...oh man that would be funny as hell. White ones for businesses and blue/red/green for home use :lol:

-maddog- · Mar 20, 2006

=ACID RAIN= said:
R_O_F_L!!!!

Imagine a clear acrylic toilet seat with a CC lighting it up...oh man that would be funny as hell. White ones for businesses and blue/red/green for home use :lol:

LOL

Broken laptop LCD (inspiron 600m)...

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