Chosen Solution
Hi there, my father’s iMac screen is no longer working, but the Mac obviously still boots. What I’ve been told: During use, the Mac “froze” (that’s what my father called it, I have unfortunately no closer details). He pulled the power cord, reconnected the Mac and turned it on. But the screen stayed black. What I’ve tried and found out so far: the Mac plays the boot soundthe Mac seems to start booting successfully (the hard drive is spinning and making noises)after booting, the Mac makes the ‘plop’ sounds when I use the keyboard’s volume buttons, so I assume the entire operating system is loading successfully I tried flushing the PRAM without any change (multiple attempts)I tried resetting the SMC without any change (multiple attempts)the screen is completely black; when using a flashlight, I can see no picture at all What I have not tried so far: connecting an external screen (need to get hold of a suitable adapter) Based on my observations, are there any obvious spots which I could check? Any suggestions, or hints concerning weak spots, known issues, etc. would be very welcome.
Aim a flashlight into the screen at a sharp angle see if you can see the faint image of the desktop icons. If you do you know the backlight circuit needs repair. But, from the sounds of it, a freezing screen more often implies the GPU has died. It might be wise here to look at getting a newer used system Vs trying to replace the logic board. You should still be able to access the HD in Target Disk Mode to then migrate your dads stuff over to the new system if it comes down to that. Or, take the drive out and use a SATA to USB adapter (powered). to hookup to the new system.
