What does "beep, beep, beep...." mean?

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vielwahr

n00b
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Feb 18, 2004
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I tried to turn on my computer one morning only to find nothing happened when I pushed the "on" button. Presuming a power supply problem I subsequently purchased and installed a new power supply. Then when I selected "on" again, the fan ran for 1 to 2 seconds and then the power shut itself down. I had to wait 10 to 15 seconds before I could try again, and the same thing happened. I checked all the internal header connections, reseated the processor , memory, and all the various cards. Now when I select "on" I get a continuous "beep, beep, beep..." What does this mean? Can anyone help me? Thank you.
 
What kind of BIOS do you have? I have a chart for Award and AMI. Only the award has the continuous. Long beeps mean the DRAM isn't in right, and short beeps is a PSU problem.
 
Thanks for your reply. My motherboard is an Intel D875PBZ and the manual's only comment on a sequence of short beeps after turning power on is "may indicate that there was a problem during DDR SDRAM memory device detection. Check to ensure system memory is properly installed." How do I do that"?
 
Try taking it out. Put 1 stick in. Try that. If you have two sticks maybe one is bad. Try different slots until it works.
 
Okay, I moved the sticks around. This board has dual channel configuration so one must use matched pairs. In fact, when I use only one stick in all the four different slots, I do not get the "beep..." bit, but 1 to 2 seconds after the power is applied and the fans start, it just shuts down. I only get the beeping when the two paired sticks are in the dimm 0 Channel A position. Perhaps, I should send a query to Corsair (I am using Corsair 512mb, 400mhz DDR memory sticks) to see if they have any suggestions.
I cannot change the CMOS Setup because I cannot get the machine to run longer than 1 to 2 seconds before it starts its beeping or shuts down.
It seems to me that whatever a computer does in the first second or two is where the problem lies. Perhaps that part of the motherboard that communicates with the DDR memory at startup is defective. In that case, is replacing the MB the only or correct option? Is it likely that the problem is in the motherboard?
 
It could either be the ram or the motherboard. Hopefully it's the motherboard if anything is physically wrong. I would contact both intel and corsair. Do you know someone who has a computer that supports DDR? You could try the memory in that to see if theirs boots.
 
Try a single stick of RAM in all slots. Reset the CMOS before you turn the system on again.
 
My friend had this exact same problem. Computer gave him a DRAM error, so we decided to swap parts. After a good hour and realizing everything works perfect.. I checked if his heatsink was seated good... (I have a 478, him a 775 so we couldn't try those)... Turns out he only tightened two of those knobs... :confused: The CPU was running at 95*C and for some reason he got a DRAM error. So I guess check if your heatsink is on right :D
 
Thanks for your replies. I reset the CMOS by removing the battery for 10 minutes as described in the motherboard manual. I also tried moving the RAM sticks around again. But, I regret to say, no change. I sent a query to Intel's tech site yesterday, but because of the holiday I do not expect a reply until Monday at the earliest. The MB has a three-year warranty, so, if it is the MB at least I should get a new one for free from Intel. At any rate, thanks for all you help.
 
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