PC will not turn on - bleep codes
 

Hi there

I got in today with the intention of installing some new RAM (upgrading from a lowly 1gb to 4gb). I installed the new RAM without trying to turn on the PC (2x 2gb sticks) into the bays and tried to turn the computer on.

I got no display on my screen, so tried checking connectors were still in while the machine was on. No joy. I powered it down, firmly pushed the RAM in just incase and gave my GPU a wiggle. I noticed one of the RAM sticks was pretty damn hot, and the PC had probably only been powered for a couple of minutes.

Then I tried turning back on again and got some bleep code errors. Oh dear. I turn it off, wait a bit, back on. Another bleep code, but this time different. I take the new RAM out and put my old RAM back in how it was before. Still the same problems.

I try putting in one of the new RAM sticks, still no luck, seemingly random bleep errors. I take the heatsink off and reattach it, still no luck. I take the heatsink off, remove the CPU and reseat... still no luck.

I've now disconnected the DVD drive, SATA drive and removed the graphics card and I'm still getting bleeps. The CPU fan spins, as does the power supply fan.

I tried to record the tones (turned on and off 4 times) and each time it's different! :/ Theres a soundcloud link here: Bleep tests PC by Chris Core on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

The motherboard is a RS485M-M, the manual is:
http://eudownload.ecs.com.tw/dlfileecs/ ... 485M-M.zip

The motherboard product page (RS485M-M socket AM-2):
http://www.ecs.com.tw/ECSWebSite_2007/P ... =1&LanID=0

As someone who works in IT (though not desktop support) I'm really stumped! Can anybody identify the bleep codes, or suggest anything else to try? Pretty much exhausted all my options as far as I can think :( Help is very much appreciated!

hello

i listened to the recording, and to be honest ive never heard of such inconsistent beep codes. something must have really gone wrong..

i suggest you try removing the cmos battery and discharging the motherboard. reattach everything that you can re-attach -- power cables from the motherboard to the PSU, video card, sata/ide connectors
(if you have spare thermal paste, reattach and the cpu fan, heatsink, and processor as well, then apply new thermal paste)

keep the hard disk disconnected as you dont need the hard disk for a successful booting. keeping the hard disk connected while doing a lot of restarts (forced power on and off's) can corrupt the disk.

all these detaching and re-attaching should take some few minutes enough to discharge the motherboard.

attach the original ram sticks that worked fine, and power on the computer.

from the details on the ECS website, your motherboard bios is an "Award BIOS"

per the manual, your motherboard supports DDR2 400 to DDR2 800 type of ram. check that your ram is within the supported range of DDR2 memory.

from this site: http://pcsupport.about.com/od/fixtheproblem/tp/award-beep-codes.htm im posting the beep codes:

Good luck on this, and i hope the board /RAM is still under warranty

thanks
 

Thanks for the suggestions :sbiggrin:

So I've now tried actually completely removing the whole motherboard, disconnecting all connections to the power supply in the process and removed the CMOS battery. I took the CPU heatsink off and cleaned off the thermal compound, added some fresh new stuff and also cleaned the old off the CPU, which I then reseated.

My hard drive and optical drives were already disconnected, because as you mention theyre not vital to boot and display something.

The old RAM is the one I've been using while trying to get some form of life back out of it, and the new RAM is 2x2Gb of Corsair 800MHz DDR2, so should be supported.

Unfortunately the motherboard will be waaay out of warranty I think as I bought it more than 4 years ago.. The RAM, I bought that last week but I'll probably hold onto it because I want to use it :tongue:

A friend of mine is going to come round with a different power supply to see if that helps at all, but I'm getting the feeling the motherboard is broken, which is annoying because I don't think you can buy AM2 socket mobos any more :confused:

Any more suggestions would be really welcome, but I've tried about all I can think of now.

My first response to that kind of problem, is to disconect the computer from the mains, not just switch it off, but unplug it, and pull the RAM.

Give it about 20 mins, and then reset the bios.

Dis. all of your hard drives, but leave your CD/DVD.

If you have DOS on a CD, insert it, failing that, your windows CD

If possible, insert an old but working HDD

Insert a known good RAM, plug in and turn.

If this works, turn off, and restore the original HDD, and try again.

Still Working? Replace *one* RAM chip, and try again.

However, if, having eliminated all the relevant components, you are still having trouble, then I can only gues that you have damaged one of the solder connections on one of the memory slots.

This is fixable, but requires some considerable soldering skill, and some understanding of the damage that an unshielded, or indiscriminatly applied electric soldering iron, can do to delicate electronics.

If you are going to go down that road, I would suggest a very small gas soldering iron, something like a BernzOmatic, a good magnifying glass or loupe, self fluxed solder, no heavier than about 22 SWG, and a very delicate touch.

If none of that helps, and no one elses contributions solve your problem, then I advise following your first instinct, and take it down the garden, and kick seven sorts out of it.

It won't make it work, but it will give some small vent to your frustrations.