James_A

Q: eMac random black screen - advice needed

I have an eMac G4 1GB, max RAM, OS10.5 Leopard. I have recently had the black screen problem. It randomly turns black, with everything running in the background. The screen then returns to normal a few minutes later. It sometimes runs for hours without a problem, other times it will happen several times a day. The machine runs perfectly otherwise... would be great to fix it if possible.

 

So far I have tried the following:

- Opened the eMac and cleaned the interior of dust

- PRAM reset

- Replaced the battery (which was dying because the date would reset on unplugging).

 

Are there any other straightforward things I can try, or is this most probably a hardware failure and ultimately a write-off?

 

Any ideas appreciated.

eMac 1GHz, iBook 14, Mac OS X (10.5.8)

Posted on Mar 19, 2013 6:05 AM

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Q: eMac random black screen - advice needed

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  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Mar 22, 2013 9:39 AM in response to James_A
    Level 8 (35,022 points)
    iPad
    Mar 22, 2013 9:39 AM in response to James_A

    Well, my friend the Mac tech, who has a lot of experience with the USB 2.0 eMacs (the variant after yours), looked in on the thread and did not see anything that looked familiar in his experience.

     

    He had two questions:

     

    1) Has anyone smoked tobacco (or, I guess, even "whacky tobaccy")  around the computer?

    2) Has there been a history of "dirty power" in your area, i.e., blackouts and brownouts?

  • by James_A,

    James_A James_A Mar 22, 2013 10:22 AM in response to Allan Jones
    Level 1 (60 points)
    Mar 22, 2013 10:22 AM in response to Allan Jones

    1) Lol... no tobacco of any sort roundabout here these days!

    2) No dirty power issues. Perhaps one black out. Reminds me though that the plug has been knocked half out accidentally a few times while the emac was on, which killed the power.

  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Mar 22, 2013 11:26 AM in response to James_A
    Level 8 (35,022 points)
    iPad
    Mar 22, 2013 11:26 AM in response to James_A

    Ok, I'll pass on to my young expert. Not sure why he asked about smoking but he's been inside a lot more macs than I.

     

    Sudden power cuts have historically been tougher on hard drives than other components, alsyhough I suppose that could have a effect on the power supply. However, power supply probloms don't tend to be intermittent.

     

    Can we clarify one thing: when the screen goes black, does it come back on a some point without requiring a restart?

  • by James_A,

    James_A James_A Mar 22, 2013 11:44 AM in response to Allan Jones
    Level 1 (60 points)
    Mar 22, 2013 11:44 AM in response to Allan Jones

    Yes, it just pops back into life and everything is how I left it. It's just the screen shutting down with everything still on in the background. Sometimes the blackout lasts only a minute or two, other times 20 mins or so. Some days it runs for hours without a blackout... which is why I haven't given up on it.

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