Is there anything I can do to improve my monitor?

[cdfreelancer]

I've had my monitor now since december 1999 and it's a Hansol Magellan 500, basic 15" colour monitor.

It has served me just fine up until now but about 6 months ago I noticed that picture quality has become slightly faded and I have also noticed horizontal lines that resemble grooves that go across the screen. They are not completely straight and appear to bend down on either side as though being sucked toward the magnetism of my speakers.

There is a button on the front of my monitor that is intended to cancel out magnetism. I don't know if you know it but makes the screen flicker for a few seconds if pressed. Well it doesn't do anything to cure the problem.

I don't fancy spending any money on a new monitor if there is something I can do to fix my present one. Does anyone know what might be wrong with my monitor or what I might be able to do to fix it?

Thanks in advance!

 

[SlothX311]

Your best bet is to just buy another 15" monitor, even a new one would be cheaper than a benching fee for a shop to look at it. You might even save money buying a 17"

 

[Lorand]

A monitor can be tuned up in a service adjusting some variable resistors that are inside the monitor's case. I don't recommend you to play around with these because 1. you can mess them up badly, 2. there are dangerous voltages inside the monitor.
The adjustments could improve the quality of the image, but not for a long time. So it's cheaper to buy a new monitor.

 

[Rambo]

I bought a Sony 15" Vivitron Gateway 2000 off ebay last night for £15.99 and that includes postage (it's coming all the way from wales!!). I bid 0.99p on it and the postage was £15. Surpisingly enough, I won it! I reckon that was a bargain!!

So, from my little paragraph up there, it would be even cheaper to buy them off eBay!! heh!

 

[Praetor]

Is there anything I can do to improve my monitor?

Short of keeping it away from magnets and giving it clean power. Not much. Now, like lorand said, you *can* mess around with the resistsors in the insides (much like you can replace capacitors and coils in a PSU to make it a bit more robust -- its NOT reccomended unless you really know what you're doing)

 

[Grimulus]

It has served me just fine up until now but about 6 months ago I noticed that picture quality has become slightly faded and I have also noticed horizontal lines that resemble grooves that go across the screen. They are not completely straight and appear to bend down on either side as though being sucked toward the magnetism of my speakers.

sounds like a trinitron! my sony trinitron did that after about 8 years. i was impressed with that.

yeah seriously man, it's time for an upgrade anyway. you can buy awesome ass CRT's for like 300 bucks. Viewsonic 19" CRT for 300 bucks. I almost bought one just because it was so awesome.

you can even buy decent 17" ones for like 100 bucks. regardless of what some say, CRT's are still improving...

 

[computerdude2004]

Yeah, most companies plan to quit production of CRT's within the next year. That is when I am going to get a huge screen for practically nothing. Last year 86% of monitors purchased in the US were LCD monitors.

 

[Praetor]

Yeah, most companies plan to quit production of CRT's within the next year.

Where'd you read this?