STRANGE power supply/modem problem need help!!

popeye2008 · 02-03-2008, 10:08 AM

Hello,
Well here's my problem. I came home from work one evening and tried to get on the internet with my HP Pavillion dv9000 running Vista, when I clicked to dial there was a hum on the speakers as the computer dialed the number, you could still hear the number tones as the number was dialed as normal. I've had trouble with my phone line before so I called the phone company to check the line it is OK. I also took my laptop to another house several miles away and got the same response. When I try to dial the internet it does dial the numbers but that's as far as it goes it will not connect. Now here's the strange thing to me anyway, if I unplug the power supply the hum goes away as the internet is dialed and I can connect to the internet just fine, as I type this thread I'm connected from my home on battery power only. So I thought well I need a new power supply, something has happened to the power supply and it no longer provides a clean supply of power. I purchased a new power supply off Ebay and as luck would have it when I received the new power supply did not work I checked the the output with a digital OHM meter for voltage and got no voltage, zero but here's the kicker if I plug in the new power supply (defective) I get the same results- the hum and can't connect to the internet. The laptop seems to work fine otherwise and the original power supply does charge the battery. Also if I take the battery out of the laptop and plug the original power supply into the laptop I get the same results- hum and can't connect to the internet. As long as I don't try to connect to the internet I can use the laptop with the original power supply plugged in and it charges the battery and there is no hum. Any Ideas? Sorry for long post. Thanks in advance.

**TriggerFinger** · 02-03-2008, 11:49 AM

Hi...

Do I get your message right that newly bought power supply has no output voltage? And even without an output voltage, you get a hum each time you plug it in the laptop or only when you try to use the modem?

I am just curious but have you tried plugging in your old power supply to your laptop but not plugged on the wall AC outlet? Do you still hear the hum? Try this and if you hear a hum, I figure it is a DC jack problem that somehow affected the modem.

popeye2008 · 02-03-2008, 02:11 PM

Thanks fixmypc,
Yeah you got it, just my luck getting a bad replacement power supply I usually have good luck with Ebay but not this time. I also tried what you suggested with the original power supply not plugged into the AC outlet I still get the hum and I also discovered (which may not be significant) I have to have the phone line plugged into the modem too to get the hum. I only get the hum when I try to use the modem and modem works fine using the battery power alone. it does seem to suggest as you did that it's something to do with the DC jack on the laptop.

**TriggerFinger** · 02-03-2008, 02:49 PM

At first glance, I would think it would be a 'NO DIAL TONE' indication. Is your dial up setup to wait for a dial tone before it dials out? If not, I suggest you change the dial up settings so that it will wait for a dial tone first.

On the other hand, instinct would tell that it is something inside the laptop already. If you know how to fix, I suggest you try replacing the modem.

02-03-2008, 10:08 AM	#1 (permalink)
popeye2008 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 2 OS: vista	STRANGE power supply/modem problem need help!! Hello, Well here's my problem. I came home from work one evening and tried to get on the internet with my HP Pavillion dv9000 running Vista, when I clicked to dial there was a hum on the speakers as the computer dialed the number, you could still hear the number tones as the number was dialed as normal. I've had trouble with my phone line before so I called the phone company to check the line it is OK. I also took my laptop to another house several miles away and got the same response. When I try to dial the internet it does dial the numbers but that's as far as it goes it will not connect. Now here's the strange thing to me anyway, if I unplug the power supply the hum goes away as the internet is dialed and I can connect to the internet just fine, as I type this thread I'm connected from my home on battery power only. So I thought well I need a new power supply, something has happened to the power supply and it no longer provides a clean supply of power. I purchased a new power supply off Ebay and as luck would have it when I received the new power supply did not work I checked the the output with a digital OHM meter for voltage and got no voltage, zero but here's the kicker if I plug in the new power supply (defective) I get the same results- the hum and can't connect to the internet. The laptop seems to work fine otherwise and the original power supply does charge the battery. Also if I take the battery out of the laptop and plug the original power supply into the laptop I get the same results- hum and can't connect to the internet. As long as I don't try to connect to the internet I can use the laptop with the original power supply plugged in and it charges the battery and there is no hum. Any Ideas? Sorry for long post. Thanks in advance. Last edited by popeye2008; 02-03-2008 at 10:10 AM. Reason: spelling

02-03-2008, 11:49 AM	#2 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,802 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: STRANGE power supply/modem problem need help!! Hi... Do I get your message right that newly bought power supply has no output voltage? And even without an output voltage, you get a hum each time you plug it in the laptop or only when you try to use the modem? I am just curious but have you tried plugging in your old power supply to your laptop but not plugged on the wall AC outlet? Do you still hear the hum? Try this and if you hear a hum, I figure it is a DC jack problem that somehow affected the modem. Last edited by TriggerFinger; 02-03-2008 at 11:50 AM.

02-03-2008, 02:11 PM	#3 (permalink)
popeye2008 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 2 OS: vista	Re: STRANGE power supply/modem problem need help!! Thanks fixmypc, Yeah you got it, just my luck getting a bad replacement power supply I usually have good luck with Ebay but not this time. I also tried what you suggested with the original power supply not plugged into the AC outlet I still get the hum and I also discovered (which may not be significant) I have to have the phone line plugged into the modem too to get the hum. I only get the hum when I try to use the modem and modem works fine using the battery power alone. it does seem to suggest as you did that it's something to do with the DC jack on the laptop. Last edited by popeye2008; 02-03-2008 at 02:16 PM. Reason: spelling

02-03-2008, 02:49 PM	#4 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,802 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: STRANGE power supply/modem problem need help!! At first glance, I would think it would be a 'NO DIAL TONE' indication. Is your dial up setup to wait for a dial tone before it dials out? If not, I suggest you change the dial up settings so that it will wait for a dial tone first. On the other hand, instinct would tell that it is something inside the laptop already. If you know how to fix, I suggest you try replacing the modem.