A1083 DVI Cable Repair Question

My brothers office got broken into a few months ago and someone stole the computer that this [tigerdirect.com] monitor was connected to. Rather than unplugging the monitor nicely, they just cut the DVI cable. Here are a few pics of the monitor.

http://tinypic.com/r/140wx84/6

http://tinypic.com/r/jszoyg/6

http://tinypic.com/r/ih4k9i/6

As you can see the DVI cable goes into a larger cable that then connects to the back of the monitor. The large cable is built into the monitor so I cant just unplug it.

I was wondering if I could buy another DVI cable, cut it open, then solder the wires together. Would that work? Is it even possible?

Also, I could purchase a whole new cable, but then I would have to take the monitor apart and take of the old cable and solder on a new one....

Does anyone have any ideas on how to approach fixing this?

Thanks in advance.

This is why I hate apple. Ouuu it looks so sleek and pretty but bend a pin or break the cable end and guess what ur screwed. All other monitors use another connector to the monitor so you can replace the cable not the whole monitor.

Id try soldering if it doesnt work you can always cut it again.

Quote from nizzy1115 : This is why I hate apple. Ouuu it looks so sleek and pretty but bend a pin or break the cable end and guess what ur screwed. All other monitors use another connector to the monitor so you can replace the cable not the whole monitor. Id try soldering if it doesnt work you can always cut it again.

I read somewhere that Apple uses a different type of DVI cable, or maybe it was that there are two types of DVI cables, a single and double? I think the one on the monitor is a double.

You should be able to do that fairly easily if the cable is a bunch of twisted pairs, as opposed to 3 separate coax cables. Try to keep the twisted pairs in line and put heatshrink on each conductor. Also try to preserve the outer shield foil by wrapping all the wires in foil and wrapping some fine stranded wire around that, joining that wire with any existing ground wire that runs along the shield. If there isn't such a wire, tuck your stranded wire under the existing foil for a few inches.

Quote from brettnut : I read somewhere that Apple uses a different type of DVI cable, or maybe it was that there are two types of DVI cables, a single and double? I think the one on the monitor is a double.

They have in the past, not sure if that generation of monitor did or not. The connector looked the same but was not the same electrically. There are a lot of pins in a DVI connection and each one would have to be perfect to have a chance for this to work. Odds are not in your favor.

Are you really experienced with soldering? The wires in this type of connector will be very fine, and probably coated in lacquer, similar to soldering headphones. It will make soldering extremely difficult and any joint you do get will be fragile. I am not saying its impossible but it won't be like soldering 14 gauge speaker wire or through hole PCB work.

If you have an apple store I would try taking it to them. They have been known to fix things for people when you have a story, which you clearly do. I would guess on the circuit board it has some type of connector and is not soldered directly to the board. The $200 it might cost apple to fix it will be way better than any solder joint you could do yourself.

Quote from LiquidRetro : They have in the past, not sure if that generation of monitor did or not. The connector looked the same but was not the same electrically. There are a lot of pins in a DVI connection and each one would have to be perfect to have a chance for this to work. Odds are not in your favor. Are you really experienced with soldering? The wires in this type of connector will be very fine, and probably coated in lacquer, similar to soldering headphones. It will make soldering extremely difficult and any joint you do get will be fragile. I am not saying its impossible but it won't be like soldering 14 gauge speaker wire or through hole PCB work. If you have an apple store I would try taking it to them. They have been known to fix things for people when you have a story, which you clearly do. I would guess on the circuit board it has some type of connector and is not soldered directly to the board. The $200 it might cost apple to fix it will be way better than any solder joint you could do yourself.

I am not a seasoned solderer, but my dad has done some before. I thought I would give it a try before going to a store because I am sure they will charge a lot to fix it.

I saw that I could purchase a whole new cable from ebay, but I would have to open up the monitor and attach it to the board. If it were just a connector, this wouldnt be a very hard task correct?

Thank you for your responses especially Liquid. You have responded to some of my other post and gave me great information.

Quote from brettnut : I saw that I could purchase a whole new cable from ebay, but I would have to open up the monitor and attach it to the board. If it were just a connector, this wouldnt be a very hard task correct?

Easy to replace the cable, possibly hard to open up the monitor. Many monitor and TV cases snap together, so try to find instructions for unsnapping the Apple monitor's. If any plastic pieces break, use acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, or car throttle body cleaner to glue them together, and leave them alone for 48 hours before reassembling. Do not use super glue.

I believe the cable wire strands are not lacquer coated like headphone wires, but you may want to apply some liquid or paste rosin flux to help the solder stick better. Do not use lead-free solder but ordinary 60% - 63% tin, 37% - 40% lead solder.

Quote from brettnut : I am not a seasoned solderer, but my dad has done some before. I thought I would give it a try before going to a store because I am sure they will charge a lot to fix it. I saw that I could purchase a whole new cable from ebay, but I would have to open up the monitor and attach it to the board. If it were just a connector, this wouldnt be a very hard task correct? Thank you for your responses especially Liquid. You have responded to some of my other post and gave me great information.

Does the image from ebay not show what type of connector it is?

Opening it will be much easier than soldering 40+ wires, and the result would be a million times more durable. You should be able to find online a procedure on how to open the monitor up http://www.ifixit.com/Answers/Vie...ma+Display