EMac monitor problem: bad caps or rastor shift or... ?

Something is wrong with my brother's eMac. About three years or so ago he had the bad caps (leaky capacitators) problem, and sent it off to Apple and got it repaired. But that wasn't the end of it. About a year ago the problem returned, though not in quite the same form. Originally, his eMac would freeze and get funny colours. This time if he has it set to anything higher than 256 colours the screen not only gets funny colours but appears to display twice (the top of the screen occurs again at the bottom, though it is hard to see in the pic). Here is pic:
The grey square in the middle is the cursor and it is selecting the monitor resolution/colors. The square surrounding it is the pull down menu which occurs again above it if you can make it out.
On 256 colurs, which is the only resolution he can work at, you get the following:
Here is a closer look:
It is only the small rectangles which are crazy colors - the rest is normal. Does this suggest that it is only one or two faulty caps, while the rest are fine? What else could this problem be?
Also, if we send it back to Apple, will they fix the problem again for free?

Looks more like the video ram is (has) failed to me you could try Apple again but don't think it will get repaired for free and probably not worth the cost as if it's a 1.25Ghz machine it's now around 7 years old and the CRT will probably go belly up soon as well - sorry.
custom mini.

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EMac Monitor Problem

Alright, I have an eMac G4, I think its 2nd or 3rd gen. Recently it has been having some trouble with its screen.
It boots up fine, but after no more than 20 minutes, the screen goes off. The light doesn't start pulsating and I can't turn it on again without turning off and on again, where I can have another 20 minutes TOPS. This only works for about three to five cycles before it has to sit without power for about a day before I can see anything. Booting in the normal OS (10.4.11) and its resore DVD(10.3.3) bolth have this problem. However, the Hardware Test extended test will find no problem, and the screen will stay on for hours if it is booted from the Hardware Test partition on the restore DVD. It has had this problem for a long time, but repairing permissions on the harddrive and removing/ replacing the backup battery seemed to work temporarily, until now.
When the screen goes off, I can still eject CDs, adjust volume, and it will play the error sound effect if I punch random keys.
I also have another eMac (first gen 700mhz) that works well except for its CD-RW drive. If I can't get the newer eMac working, I would like to salvage as much as possible and upgrade the older one. What all can be transfered? The whole logic board, RAM, HD, Superdrive? Any Combination? I am in need of a little more computing power, and been needing a new CD drive for years...
Thanks!

DreadPirate_Roberts wrote:
...but a lot of the dust seemed baked on pretty good and I didn't have a way of wiping it off very well.
The best gadget for stubborn dust deposits is a pastry brush. Make sure you get one with a wodden handle and natural bristles to avoid static isses. I have close to a dozen in various sizes and shapes in my computer kit.
Be sure you know the exact version of the eMac you have before looking up take-down instructions. There are two variants: those with USB 1.1 logic boards and 700Mhz, 800Mhz, and 1Ghz processors; and those with a USB 2.0 logic board. The latter are mostl y1.25 and 1.42G processors but there are some uncataloged "edu-only" eMacs with the USB2 board but only a 1Ghz processor. That;s the version that leads be to this caution.
The case take-apart is slightly different between the original 4,4 eMacs and the later 6,4 versions. Some people have broken the power switch while trying to use the older instructions to take about a newer eMac.
The 4,4 and 6,4 codes come from System Profiler (Apple menu > About this Mac and then click the "More Info..." button). It the second line of the opening Profiler screen. A code of 4,4 on your computer means it's USB 1.1 and a code of 6,4 means it;s the later USB 2.0 version.

Bad caps in G4 1.25 and 1.42 eMacs?

Do any of the G4 1.25 GHz and 1.42 GHz eMac models have the potentially bad caps in them?
If so, which specific models. If there is a web page, blog or other source for all this info, please link or list search keywords. Thanks.
G.P.

I bought an Apple 1.25 GHz G4 eMac in December 2004 and registered it as soon as the registration screen came up in the setup. I was never contacted by email, postal mail or phone about the bad caps problem. Since I don't have the time to read all the discussions, blogs, newsgroups and web sites that deal with these matters, I didn't discover that my computer might be affected until a few days ago. I will contact the Apple Store or call Apple to see if any remedy is still available. I'm not having problems with it, but I don't use it regularly enough to cause the heating that would pop the caps. I might just do it myself or take it to a local tech since it's a relatively simply problem to fix - once you get the logic board out.
If you have had a similar problem, please reply. I've had two posts on this subject deleted by a moderator - Apple apparently considers the matter closed. I received one reply that many had been affected by this problem and the poster agreed that Apple dropped the ball in terms of customer service on this one.

EMac constant freezing - no bad cap serial number. HELP please.

Hi,
I've had my eMac since about november 2004. It's been crashing occasionally for a while now but it's getting ridiculously regular now. Any time I use audio or video editing software or photoshop it freezes after a few minutes. Also it freezes when on safari or even on startup. I checked my serial number against the list of the infamous 'bad cap' eMacs and it doesn't match.
I just wondered if anyone could let me know the best thing to do. A previous housemate updated my OSX to 10.4.11 against my will and added some other dodgy software. Should i just reinstall my old 10.3.9 OSX?
Any help would be amazing as I can't afford to upgrade or take it into the shop!!
Cheers!

Not very good news, Alex... Though not impossible.
Unless you are a very good soldering expert, handling the repairs yourself are probably not a good idea - in terms of replacing the bad caps yourself. There's more than just those 2 that you can see - I think about 10-12 - and if you could instead find a cheap replacement logic board, you need to be comfortable working around the insides of a CRT (ie television) which carry nasty voltages.
The best option is to call Apple directly, and tell them your eMac has just started showing the capacitor problem, covered by the eMac Repair Program, half hidden away on their support page:
www.apple.com
www.apple.com/support
www.apple.com/support/exchange_repair
www.apple.com/support/exchange_repair/emac.html
http://www.apple.com/support/emac/repairextensionprogram/
This Repair Program started in June 2006, 6 months after the eMacs started to fail from this problem. It offered a free repair to those affected. In your case, because your serial number is outside the range, they may say it's not covered, but just tell them that you've looked inside and SEEN the bad caps, leaking and bulging. The Program however only covered the eMacs for 3 years after date of purchase, which has now expired. HOWEVER as noted by mary, some people are still getting a free repair - you just need to be firm, and if the person you first speak to doesn't want to help, ask to speak to a supervisor. DON'T yell... remain calm... just be firm.
IF you can't get them to come to the party, find out what it will cost for parts & labour to get it repaired. The problem is you need the logic board (brains) of the computer replaced, and originally in 2006 the total cost was around $600 . You can buy these computers on eBay these days for a lot less than that... or a more recent Mac, for that matter.
Message was edited by: cosmichobo

Emac monitor goes black – slap brings it back to life

Last couple of days my emac monitor will just shut down and go black, just like an old TV tube packing up used to. It won't return on restart, but did return a couple of times after I took out mains lead from side of computer, let it rest, then tried again. However, today, this solution didn't work, but a tap to the side of the computer did get the screen going. I've read a number of different possible explanations for what might be the problem – everything from battery, to airport card to it's terminally ill, get a new computer, so don't really know what to do. Don't want to go and buy a new computer if all I really needed to do was change the battery. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.

That's all good news. You have the later and better USB 2.0 eMac. However, the model is one containing groups of units affected by the logic board issues with bad capacitors. The logic board issues were most commonly associated with these serial number ranges:
G8412xxxxxx- G8520xxxxxx
YM412xxxxxx - YM520xxxxxx
VM440xxxxxx - VM516xxxxxx
[again, don't post your serial number here]
If yours is in the list, all you can do is keep an eye on it. Keeping it clean like you've done should help keep internal temps down and that may help longevity. The repair--if the shop can find an unaffected logic board---is nearly as much as a new Mac Mini.
If your board goes, and you are within driving distance of Salem OR USA, there is a shop that offers a low-cost repair of bad eMac logic boards rather than a replacement; it's much less expensive IF you don't have to ship a 50-pound computer round trip.
Your particular eMac can take advantage of newer, larger RAM modules that were not available when Apple engaved the specs in stone (Apple says 1GB max RAM). With the proper modules, you can increase RAM to a total of 2GB with two of these:
1GB PC2700 DDR 333MHz CAS 2.5 184 Pin DIMM
We have one of the above installed in my wife's USB 2.0 eMac alongside an original 256MB stick for a total of 1.25GB RAM and it's completely stable. However, you should get the RAM from the source I mentioned as they test in Macs. Similar RAM form a retail outlet may be PC-only.

Imac G5 bad caps advice

I have an iMac G5 20" iSight 2.1GHz that stopped working. Made a loud pop one day and shut off. Upon restart it chimes, fan roars, and screen stays black. I've pulled the logic board and power supply for inspection. On the logic board one, and only one, capacitor has a domed top. All the others look like new.
On the power supply, none of the caps has a domed top, but one has what looks (and feels) like a fine gray ash covering half of its top.
I've read the many excellent sites helping with this repair, but I'm still unclear about a couple of things:
1- Do I replace only the obviously bad cap on the logic board, or is it necessary to replace all of them?
2-Any idea if the power supply cap I've described represents a bad cap?
3- And finally, I assume that at some point Apple stopped using these bad caps.
Any idea what model, or model year represents the start of a period when these bad caps were no longer being installed?
Thanks in advance.

Hey Kaynray,
1- Do I replace only the obviously bad cap on the logic board, or is it necessary to replace all of them?
Well ultimately all the caps were probably from the capacitor plague but given the difficulty of replacing them I'd just do the one obviously bad one. These caps are mounted on huge ground planes and it takes a lot of heat to remove them. The danger there is too much heat will damage the board.
Use a desoldering iron like this:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062731
Load the joint up w/ plenty of solder to give the sucking action purchase.
I just repaired a board that was missing two caps. They just weren't there. Must have been a refurb that was defective. Anyway I couldn't clean out the through hole eyelet and wound up drilling out the hole w/ a pin vice and a #60 drill. That's .040". Took 4 minutes for each hole.
2-Any idea if the power supply cap I've described represents a bad cap?
I wouldn't worry about that one unless there's the least amount of doming.
Of course I have an ESR (equivalent series resistance) meter to check just in case.
3- And finally, I assume that at some point Apple stopped using these bad caps.
Any idea what model, or model year represents the start of a period when these bad caps were no longer being installed?
Unfortunately these caps were and continued to be polluting the world market. The latest I've seen or heard of was in 2007 but it doesn't surprise me to find them in even newer products. As to Apple the iSight boards seem to be the most recent ones infected. We had 20 Dells at the school that had the same problem and they were all replaced but later 5 more showed up but Dell wouldn't make good on those. There were a average of 10 bad caps / board so those just got recycled.
Richard

Why no caps while holding Shift Key?

I use several iMacs and MB Pros. In all but one, holding down the shift key will produce a string of capitalized letters, no need to use the caps lock key. Cannot make the deviant iMac ( 1 yr old, 10.5.8 ) give me caps by holding shift key down. Happens in all programs and using different Apple keyboards. Have made multiple adjustments in International and Universal Access with no success.
Would be easier to train the keyboard than to retrain my typing for this one computer.
Thanks ( <- typed while holding down shift key )

Hi
A bit of a blanket approach but try this:
Create an untitled folder on your desktop. Navigate to your /Home/Library/Preferences folder. Select everything, deselect com.apple.dock.plist and com.apple.mail.plist. Move everything else (not copy) to the newly created untitled folder. Make sure there's nothing left in the Preferences folder apart from those two files. Restart your mac. Do you have the problem now?
If you don't keep the untitled folder for a short while in case you need to move back a preference or .plist file. Generally you don't however launch all your usual favourites and see what's changed. If everything is as you remember or if what's missing is something easily replaceable (a preference for example) you should be able to safely trash the folder. If you're undecided burn it to CD/DVD and refer back to it if necessary.
Tony

Possibly mundane Mini-DVI to VGA into an external monitor problem

Hi,
I've had a look over the interwebs regarding my problem and it seems as if it's not unusual to have external monitor problems but I'm not sure if mine is slightly different:
I had a perfectly working set up with my new Macbook (the white one, '06 model I believe), that was connected to my Hanns-G HU196D monitor via a mini-DVI to VGA adapter, no problems whatsoever. But for a couple of weeks now my Macbook just flickers a light blue colour, with nothing at all on the monitor, and my macbook is unusable until I remove the adapter. I've read about updating firmware but I can't see my desktop once the macbook is connected to the monitor so it's not possible to configure anything. I've read somewhere that my external monitor isn't compatible with this set up, but it was until a couple of weeks ago!
My Macbook's 4 months old now and since then I've bought a new mini-dvi to vga adapter and a new VGA cable, no connections seem loose on either mini-dvi port or my monitor's vga port.
Thanks if you can help!
Jack

You will need to use a mini Dvi-dvi and a dvi-svideo/rca adapter.
Joy joy hallelujah.
Pardon the sarcasm...I just wasted 3 hours of my life trying to sort the issue out.
Heard a KWORLD PlusTV PCTOTV Converter SA235 USB 2.0 Interface would sort the issue out for under 40$ but it's not Mac.
Hope that helps.
~r

Have a problem where I'll occasionally shift my computer (i.e. physically move it, say from the coffee table to my lap on the couch) and it will freeze and the screen will turn into a bunch of horizontal multicolored lines (closer to 100 lines than 5). Us

Have a problem where I'll occasionally shift my computer (i.e. physically move it, say from the coffee table to my lap on the couch) and it will freeze and the screen will turn into a bunch of horizontal multicolored lines (closer to 100 lines than 5). Usually restarting (by holding the power button to turn it off) works. A few times that has resulted in the three beeps (RAM issue? -- I've since replaced my RAM [it *seemed* to stop it for a while, but maybe not]), but the second time it always works. Attempting to SSH into the computer during this state does not work. Please advise as to what to do/what reports I can run and post. I will take a pic next time it happens.
Here's this info:
Model Name:          MacBook Pro
Model Identifier:          MacBookPro7,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          8 GB
Bus Speed:          1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version:          MBP71.0039.B0B
OS 10.6.8

Sounds like a problem with your GPU. Do you have an external display you could connect your machine to in order to test this? If the external display renders the same way, then your GPU is damaged. If the external renders fine, then the CPU display is damaged.

Solution to clean the Emac monitor!

Does anyone know any solution to clean the emac monitor best beside the windex or iklear wiper?
thanks!

Vinh Pham,
Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
In general, don't use Windex; alchohol-based solvents can disolve the antiglare coating on CRT glass (whether an eMac or a flatscreen TV). Your profile shows 9.2.2 which says you have a first-generation nVidia graphics eMac; you can actually get away with using small (really small, as in barely moisten a cloth) amounts of Windex or the like, but it's not a good idea in general. You can actually get good rsults using nothing more than distilled water and a clean lint-free cloth. This was discussed recently in this forum; see JMVP, "CLEANING MY MONITOR" #1, 01:50pm Oct 22, 2005 CDT

Monitors flickering badly after Yosemite Install

Monitor flickering badly after Yosemite installed
I will be awaiting upDated drivers in a release soon.
I notice is very badly when I connect my iphone to ITunes screen
goes crazy flicker. . . . Anyone else having this issue ?

Try these in order testing your system after each to see if it's back to normal:
1. a. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
    b. Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
2. Restart the computer in Safe Mode, then restart again, normally. If this doesn't help, then:
     Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the
     COMMAND and R keys until the Utilities menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the
     computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager
     screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
3. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu. Select Restart from the Apple menu.
4. Reinstall Yosemite: Reboot from the Recovery HD. Select Reinstall OS X from the Utilities menu, and click on the Continue button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

M93p dual monitor problems; monitor turns off and cannot be turned on again

Hi,
we have multiple M93p tiny computers causing problems in dual monitor setup (VGA / Displayport->DVI). Our users (already >5) keep telling us, they leave their workplace, return, then DVI attached monitor if off and they do not find a way to turn it on. This is true; the only workaround that has been found by our users is to bring Win7/32bit into standby mode and awaking it again.
Needless to say, we turned all windows energy saving options off (computer standby/hibernate, monitor turn off). Still the problem appears.
Maybe there is something wrong with DVI power/DVI signal?
- Monitor independent, as far as I can see
- Independent from Windows energy saving modes
- BIOS updates did not help
[todo]: Try Intel/(AMD?) drivers, let users test.
I haven't seen exactly when the monitor turns off because it is reported by users. I had a testing machine, but was not able to reproduce.
http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/A-M-and-Edge-Series-ThinkCentre/Dual-monitors-problem-VGA-and-Displaypor... is related.
Anyone?
Thx

Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine tested.
Back up all data on the internal drive(s) before you hand over your computer to anyone. If privacy is a concern, erase the data partition(s) with the option to write zeros* (do this only if you have at least two complete, independent backups, and you know how to restore to an empty drive from any of them.) Don’t erase the recovery partition, if present.
Keeping your confidential data secure during hardware repair
*An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.

Activity Monitor problems increase CPU and power burn

Migration Assistant worked very nicely, transferring from a Powerbook G4 with 30GB of files and data in about 45min via Firewire.
However, after 2 days of usage, the CPU was still running at 80% and applications were incredibly sluggish. My battery calibration at full charge only showed a little over 1 hour. Activity Monitor also would not show any processes -- the list was completely blank.
The solution was to rename the Preferences folder, allowing programs to create a new Preferences folder. I then selectively populated the new folder with the main old preferences for mail, Safari, etc. This not only solved the Activity Monitor problem, but immediately drove down the CPU usage to about 10% where I'd expect it. Now the battery shows over 2.5 hrs on a full charge with the screen on full brightness (and it's BRIGHT!)
Also, Microsoft Word/Powerpoint/Excel/Entourage: trial software on the MacBookPro will mess up your migration, so delete the trial software BEFORE MIGRATION ASSISTANT.
Hope this helps some of you out there!

Another thing users who run Migration Assistant should know is that many of your background processes and helpers may slow down the Macbook.
For example, I notice that a bunch of PowerPC menu items running under Rosetta slowed things down. Also, the Microsoft Office Autoupdate background process, which is started from System Preferences > Accounts > Login Items constituted one Rosetta process running all of the time.
When I remove/disabled these background processes, I noticed a significant difference.

Caps lock and shift not recognized from a usb or virtual keyboard on the Mac

Caps lock and shift not recognized from a usb or virtual keyboard on the Mac client. You have to use the native keyboard or bluetooth keyboard.

Hi,
nswint, it seems that we have to do as you described.
Corey, I have the remote desktop client installed on a iPad Air, I can input capital letters via the on-screen keyboard within the remote desktop session that we can activate by a tap on the keyboard icon in the connection bar.
Thanks.
Jeremy Wu
TechNet Community Support

New video problems after replacing bad cap

We are attempting to repair our first gen IMac G5 after it started having a problem with randomly shutting down. After much online research, and everything pointing towards bad capacitors, we opened up the machine and sure enough there was a bulging cap. We did the LED tests as well (fine), and ran hardware test (which also pointed to a problem on the logic board). After ringing the local Apple tech and confirming that they would only replace the whole board, not individual capacitors, we found a repair shop locally that was willing to solder on a new cap for us.
So we've put the whole machine back together today, and again the LEDs light fine. However, now, the video is totally messed up! It starts up as far as the login screen but it'd be impossible to log in as the screen is so badly scrambled.
Now we're trying to decide what the culprit is--incorrect reassembly? Accidental damage to the video cable during disassembly/assembly? Static electricity zapped the board at some point? Replacement cap not good enough (it's got a much higher uF and voltage rating but that seems to not be critical)?
Any pointers on how to proceed? We're loathe to throw in the towel just yet!

Don't throw in the towel, take it back to your local tech and have her replace the cap with one of the proper rating.

EMac monitor problem: bad caps or rastor shift or... ?

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