30 inch Cinema Display restoration questions

[srp]

Hey there,

Just picked up a used 30 inch Cinema Display and I have a couple of questions about restoring/maintaining this monitor.

First, the tinting is quite yellow, especially on the edges of the display. I have to calibrate the display to turn down red and green to fix the issue. I think this reduces the overall brightness however, or maybe the display is just very dim from an aging backlight, or my expectations of TFT displays are overblown...

I read this post where some people reported success when removing the polycarbonate diffuser in one of the LCD layers, as it ages and discolors over time. From what I read, it looks like they're just removing the sheet outright instead of replacing it. Is this best way to resolve the yellowing issue or if I want to retain full functionality (viewing angle, white balance etc) do I need to replace the diffuser sheet?

Does getting to the diffuser sheet involve manually peeling layers of the screen apart? I think it's something I could do if I just have to disassemble the monitor and remove the sheet, but if it's glued/requires special care I'm more worried that I'll break it than anything.

And then these monitors are backlit by CCFL bulbs, right? Some of the low brightness issues could be from those aging bulbs. Is there a part number I should be looking for when buying a replacement? Has anyone tried swapping those bulbs out?

Would appreciate any guidance I can get. Thanks!

 

[Perezx]

Hi there!
ACD 30" is a quite perfect display. It has IPS matrix and backlit by 12 (as soon as I remember; at least in 23" ACD there are 12) CCFL placed BEHIND the matrix and covered by plastic diffusor with several layers.
Swapping CCFLs will not be an easy task and will lead to unpredictable changes is gamut due to unstable quality of "new" CCFLs on the market. Cleaning / removing diffuser layers is possible, however, I am not sure it will help.
All ACDs are warm-colored by default; you might find it yellowish, sure. I have compared one which was in use for several years and one quite new, just from the box - colors look the same. So I suggest - at least if your ACD isnt almost dead - aging is not a cause.
Also I've noticed that while mine is good when attached to 2012 MBP (A1286) it gives severe greenish image with 2019 MBP, requiring recalibration. Definitely it is a TB->DP->DVI conversion problem.
I suggest measuring DeltaE to find out how functional your backlight is.