HELP! Apple 30-inch Cinema HD display stopped working

[Forum Admin]

My 10-year-old gorgeous matte-screen 30-inch Cinema display suddenly would not power on a few days ago, and I've been scouring t'internet for companies that can repair it/check it out, as it is in immaculate condition and seems a shame to just abandon it.

Apple Store said it's too old and they don't do repairs for it... company I found in Stevenage said they no longer do Apple displays as the big Apple will not supply them with parts.

I've changed the 10 amp fuse in the moulded plug, and tried plugging directly into the mains socket rather than a power strip, but the white LED never comes on. Tried tapping the power and brightness touch-sensitive buttons on the righthand side, but no joy. Usual trick when the display wouldn't boot was to restart my MBPro (mid-2010) and unplug/replug the miniDisplayport plug that's one of the flying connectors. This time, nothing works.

I can find replacement 150W power supply blocks on eBay for around £150 quid, but I can equally find articles warning about dodgy devices that fail to work, etc. I can also find entire replacement Cinema HD displays with cables/power supply etc on Gumtree for £300-£450, but am reluctant to purchase as that still leaves me with a beautiful monitor that worked 3 days ago and doesn't now. And you cannot get matte screened monitors easily.

Meanwhile, I've ordered a 28-inch Ultra 4K LG monitor from PC World (£339.99) which has Displayport and HDMI on it, that should work with my ageing 17-inch MBPro even if I only get 1920 x 1200 resolution (I just can't do work on solely my MBPro's screen). Hasn't arrived yet.

So, anyone know of or used a Mac repairer who does repair such a display?

Hope to hear.

IAN G

[porthoss78]

Hi,

There are some official PSU for the 30" on Ebay every now and again, like this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UK-Cable-Apple-A1098-Power-Adapter-150W-for-30-inches-DVI-Cinema-HD-Display-/141693008242?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item20fd8fb972

Or this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-A1098-Power-Adapter-PSU-150W-for-30-Cinema-HD-Display-Monitor-/251989736645?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3aabc23cc5

Is there someone you know with the same monitor so you could check the power supply before you buy another?

Cheers
J

[Forum Admin]

Thanks Porthoss - I hadn't spotted those earlier in the week, only the China/Hong Kong ones which end up costly once Customs whack on their slice.

I found one in UK with a Buy Now price of £75, so have just bought that one. At least it will tell me whether the power adapter was dead, or whether the problem lies elsewhere (i.e. with the screen itself - hope not). I doubt it's the Dual Link DVI cables - they haven't moved and are cable-tied in position.

One other possibility is that the miniDisplayport socket has gone inside the MBPro.

Thanks for your help.
Ian

[porthoss78]

Hi,

Glad you found one for cheap, worse case is you can always sell it again if it isn't the PSU that's failed.

I have the same monitor and just tried to see if I could get the white light to come on without my Mac being switched on but no luck. Without a computer hooked up it won't do anything so I can't shed any light on where yours might be failing.

I hope it is the PSU as a complete replacement Apple display can be an eye-watering buying experience!

Good luck with it.

Cheers
J

[Guest]

Fingers crossed, keep us updated.

I would hate mine to go wrong and it is also getting a bit long in the teeth for these sorts of things.

[Forum Admin]

Will let you know what happens.

I suppose I should think of these things as having given me good value. The monitor has been used for 7-11 hours most days since January 2005, but if I can't recuscitate it, I'll feel like I have lost an old friend.

[BigRedX]

Are you sure that it's the power supply that has failed?

I have a 23" cinema display that was showing a fault supposedly on the PSU, but swapping the power supply did nothing. Then I found information that indicated that it might be a problem with a sensor in the display itself. The fix ended up being quite simple - cover up the centre contact on the connector between the power supply and the screen and my screen came back to life and has continued to work flawlessly since then.

[Forum Admin]

No, not sure it is the PSU but it's one place to start. I'll give your centre pin trick a go tomorrow. Saw it on YouTube but another vid said it didn't work so didn't try it.

Will keep everyone posted of progress.

[TheReson8or]

From my limited experience, most modern screens have 3 ish boards inside, which cost about £100 -£200 each. Buy , try and return if it doesn't work within 7 days. Dave

[Brisey]

Hi
you could try these guys http://www.macupgrades.co.uk They have been very helpful on some older work macs for me on a few occasions. (I'm not affiliated in any way). They are better and more professional than the look of their web page suggests

[Forum Admin]

Hi
you could try these guys http://www.macupgrades.co.uk

They were my first port of call, being 10 minutes up the road from my house. I've used them to install 1Tb SSD and 1Tb 7200rpm drives into my 2010 MBPro, and upgrade the RAM to 16Gb. Good guys, but they don't do standalone monitors (only iMacs) also cos of the parts issue.

THE GOOD NEWS....

My eBay 2nd hand 150W PSU arrived 10 minutes ago, so I swapped it out. Kept the same kettle lead with 13 amp plug on it, re-plugged the oval power connector from the Dual DVI cable, plugged the other end into my MBP and "hey presto!" I'm one very, very happy bunny writing this on my lovely matte 30-inch monitor -- and no need to try the centre-pin trick.

That's £75 squid well spent in my book.

Ian

[Guest]

Good news

[BigRedX]

If swapping the PSU caused the display to work again then the centre pin trick wouldn't have had any effect since it's a fix for a different problem (the display thinks the PSU is faulty due to a problem with circuitry in the display not the PSU itself).

Glad to hear that you are sorted.

[Folderol]

Always pleased to hear of a sucessful fix, especially when it means a substantial bit of kit is not going into landfill

[porthoss78]

Good news! Glad you got it sorted.

Cheers
J

[Guest]

Hi Ian,

Did you get any warning from the monitor that it was about to go?

I ask as I just turned mine on this morning and it was flashing on and off to black with the power/sleep light also flashing on and off.

I checked all cabling and it made no difference, powering everything off from the main supply and then starting it again seems to have brought it back to life but I guess this is not a good sign

[Guest]

Arghh, mines just bitten the dust as well.

Tried the centre pin thingy no luck

So could be the screen, PSU or display adapter. Maybe time for a new one.

[Sam Spoons]

I have two of the 20 inch 'Apple Cinema Displays' (and two Mac Pros), both currently working, but I'd like a bigger display in the new studio.... The Apple displays just look so damn good,,,,,,,,

[Guest]

The old 30" monitors do look good, but are getting a bit dated on the resolution front.

Also after visiting the Apple Store to buy a new monitor I was slightly surprised to see that Apple just don't do any monitors anymore, the thunderbolt 27 inch has gone.

As far as the Apple Store tells me as well the two monitors they do sell are not compatible with the MacPro 2013!

I ended up ordering a Dell P2715Q https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00R420U8O/ ... 11_TE_item as this seems to be a recommended monitor.

The 30" is now in the pile of kit that needs fixing

It has lasted over 10 years though, I bet the Dell won't.

[Agharta]

I ended up ordering a Dell P2715Q https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00R420U8O/ ... 11_TE_item as this seems to be a recommended monitor.
The 30" is now in the pile of kit that needs fixing
It has lasted over 10 years though, I bet the Dell won't.

Dell have a very good reputation for monitors and there's nothing magic about Apple's that make them more reliable.
So unless you've read a reliability survey that puts Apple ahead of the pack I wouldn't assume it's any worse.

[Agharta]

If you are looking for a similar PPI and size then 31.5/32" @2560x1440 is the nearest generally available. Unfortunately 2560x1600 is much rarer these days.
They start at around £240 for IPS panels such as this:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01M70UTZS/
I'd look to spend more in the £300 - £400+ range with something like these:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/BenQ-PD3200Q-D ... 01NBH7IW2/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0746P6L45/
I'd look for factory calibrated with a decent colour gamut, flexible stand and on-site warranty.

You can get 40-43" 4K for around £450 and the 43" has a similar PPI to the Apple 30".

[ManFromGlass]

I have two of the 20 inch 'Apple Cinema Displays' (and two Mac Pros), both currently working, but I'd like a bigger display in the new studio.... The Apple displays just look so damn good,,,,,,,,

Apple stuff does look good but I ended up with the LG Ultrawide. No regrets, well perhaps except for going for the one with thunderball (thunderclap? Seniors moment, hehe)
The resolution is very good for these old eyes. A buddy has the curved one. I didn't get to sit in his chair to check it out. Well priced too.

[BigRedX]

However from a physical build quality PoV the Apple Displays are streets ahead of most of the competition.

I recently did an install for several mid-range Dell desktop systems. The 24" displays that came with them were very flimsy looking at feeling. The picture quality was good out of the box, but I would fancy their chances in an environment where they were going to moved about with any regularity.

If Dell made a version with a decently robust surround and stand then I would certainly consider it when I need to replace my current Apple displays. In the meantime I can help but think that the comparative ruggedness of the surrounds and stands on the Apple Displays means that they last long enough for electrical problems to make themselves noticeable, whereas the competition has long fallen apart before similar symptoms manifest.

[Agharta]

However from a physical build quality PoV the Apple Displays are streets ahead of most of the competition.

I recently did an install for several mid-range Dell desktop systems. The 24" displays that came with them were very flimsy looking at feeling. The picture quality was good out of the box, but I would fancy their chances in an environment where they were going to moved about with any regularity.

If Dell made a version with a decently robust surround and stand then I would certainly consider it when I need to replace my current Apple displays. In the meantime I can help but think that the comparative ruggedness of the surrounds and stands on the Apple Displays means that they last long enough for electrical problems to make themselves noticeable, whereas the competition has long fallen apart before similar symptoms manifest.

Dell make a wide range of monitors so if you looking at Apple pricing then compare against the Dell Ultrasharp range which are the premium ones.
Very good adjustable stands and on-site next business day warranties.
They may not look as 'shiny' as the Apple ones but that's a moot point as Apple no longer make any I think!
Dell are highly respected and they make a wide range to cover most bases.

[Guest]

I ended up ordering a Dell P2715Q https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00R420U8O/ ... 11_TE_item as this seems to be a recommended monitor.
The 30" is now in the pile of kit that needs fixing
It has lasted over 10 years though, I bet the Dell won't.

Dell have a very good reputation for monitors and there's nothing magic about Apple's that make them more reliable.
So unless you've read a reliability survey that puts Apple ahead of the pack I wouldn't assume it's any worse.

I have gone through quite a few dell monitors over the years, none lasted anywhere near 10 years!

I'd love to be proved wrong though.