MacBook screen issues on startup

[JimBraden]

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Hi,

I tried turning on my trusty MacBook today, but after the chime there was a very brief grey flicker of the screen, and then it turns black. The computer stays humming, but I simply can't get the screen to work.

I've tried rebooting many times, disconnecting the battery, but still get the black screen after that grey flicker.

Any idea what's wrong guys?

 

[Detrius]

Is it booting fine? If you hold a flashlight up to the screen, do you get a picture?

 

[JimBraden]

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Yes, it appears to be booting fine. Held against sunlight I can make out the desktop and dock. It also goes into sleep mode when I close the lid.

 

[JimBraden]

Update:

Okay, this seems peculiar...

As said earlier, I was able to make out the dock and the desktop (though just barely). I then turned the brightness levels right down to 0, and then put it back up. Suddenly the screen lit up.

Now, I can ramp it up around three notches on the brightness scale, but if I take it to the 4th notch, then it will turn to black again after a few seconds. Then I have to turn the brightness levels back to 0 and back up to 1 again.

Any clues?