Hi all..
my computer has this really weird problem of dying on me after a night of intensive gaming. Usually it hangs, so i press the restart button on the CPU. after that the CPU emits 3 beeps periodically, and my system doesn't boot at all no matter how many times i press restart. but, miraculously, when i leave it and switch it on the next morning, the problem is gone!!
I wonder if this could be related to the monitor? cos sometimes my monitor's colours sorta change when i'm using it (like there's a blue clear plastic held over the screen) and i have to give it a good knock to get the colours back to normal. also, sometimes in the middle of a game, it just goes blank (but i can still hear the game).
i got a new graphics card just a month ago so i'm not sure if it's relevant. I am an IT idiot so any help will be greatly appreciated! :-|
thanks!
Here is a site that tells you what all the beep codes are.
http://www.pchell.com/hardware/beepcodes.shtml
as far as the colors on your monitor... I have come accross this before and have fixed it also... if you are good at soldering and are adventurous you may want to give this a try. The reason why your colors are going crazy until you hit it a good one is are loose connections in your monitor. The way to fix it in your case is this.
Please note... this is at your own risk... use caution.
1) unplug monitor from powersource and from computer.
2) turn on monitor to drain any power out of capacitors.
3) remove back of monitor case.
4) on the back of the tube there is a board that the tube is connected to. This is encased in a grounded metal shield.
Remove enough of the ground wires (most are soldered on) (do not cut them) to be able to remove this... you will have to heat up soder on the board itself where you see a large amount of solder so that you can remove it. Be careful and make sure that everything you take off or undo can be put back after.
5) once the guard is off and you can see the board clearly... you will notice that at the center of the board there are pins that are arranged in a circle... these are the ones where your poor connection likely is due to old solder. Re-Solder all of the connections.
6) put it back together and try it out.
7) if you have done a good job and nothing else is wrong with the monitor your colors should be much better.
Hi xquisite,
DANGER..DANGER...DANGER !!!!!!!!!!
DO NOT ATTEMPT TO FIX THE MONITOR YOURSELF !!! ..because.. like you said you'r a
I am an IT idiot
You SHOULD NOT attempt to do any monitor repairs unless you have electronic experience.. because..
YOU COULD SEVERELY SHOCK YOURSELF.. OR WORSE !!!!
Let an experienced repair shop do the repairs.
RGPHNX
hey dewman! thanks for the website!
however, i am afraid i am just a 19 year old girl and have no experience with soldering. haha. thanks anyway! and thanks for the warning RGPHNX!
by the way, i checked out the website and judging from what i hear it should be 3 long beeps, which = keyboard card error. but there's nothing wrong with my keyboard. i think the "display adaptor error" would be more relevent since i'm having a problem with my monitor?
anyways, the same thing happened last night but my pc restarted by itself a couple of times before i heard the beeps. HELP! this is all so frustrating T_T
Hi again xquisite,
Unfortunately the beep codes your getting are probably not accurate.:( The beep code chart ONLY applies to when you first turn the computer on.. not to after it's been running a while. Random beeps after the computer has been running a while tell us nothing.
From what you describe the problem probably comes from one of the folLowing: (check each one sequentially- in order)
> keyboard ( do troubleshooting at my website - 2 charts)
> monitor/video ( do troubleshooting at my website- 4 charts).
do both these steps first in order... & TAKE DETAILED NOTES on what the computer did at each & every step..
If that doesn't point out the location of the problem.. then post back here with the details..
The other possibility is. the ..
> Video card
But you have to check out the keyboard & monitor first.
Hope this helps :)
RGPHNX
hey dewman! thanks for the website!
however, i am afraid i am just a 19 year old girl and have no experience with soldering. haha. thanks anyway! and thanks for the warning RGPHNX!
by the way, i checked out the website and judging from what i hear it should be 3 long beeps, which = keyboard card error. but there's nothing wrong with my keyboard. i think the "display adaptor error" would be more relevent since i'm having a problem with my monitor?
anyways, the same thing happened last night but my pc restarted by itself a couple of times before i heard the beeps. HELP! this is all so frustrating T_T
Do you know what BIOS version you are running on? Different BIOS vendors (ie AMI, Phoenix etc) have different beeps for different errors. Best thing you can do is see what your Bios is and then find that particular vendors website. they should be able to give you more detailed assistance according to your BIOS version.
looking at your 1st post it could be that maybe your graphics card is at fault and maybe its not seated properly in the slot on the motherboard, but i would also look at the possibility of the PC restarting itself due to a problem with the actual processor like maybe its getting too hot. PCs when they get too hot do have a great tendancy to shut themselves down. this is a thermal cutout feature and protects your chips and components from a certain death by melting.
as you've said your keyboard works fine so rule that out. this is certainly a problem insie the actual computer itself:D
BTW. what is your pc make and model?
Hi Janine! x) thanks for replying!
My BIOS version is AMI. checked out the AMI website, and it turns out 3 beeps = memory problem. something about a parity error in the base 64k of my pc's memory. so does that mean i have TWO separate problems with my computer? >_< (monitor and memory)
about my pc make and model, err mine is just a brandless thing that some guy assembled for me. hehe.
Hi Janine! x) thanks for replying!
My BIOS version is AMI. checked out the AMI website, and it turns out 3 beeps = memory problem. something about a parity error in the base 64k of my pc's memory. so does that mean i have TWO separate problems with my computer? >_< (monitor and memory)
about my pc make and model, err mine is just a brandless thing that some guy assembled for me. hehe.
it definately sounds as though you have a memory error. i also checked the ami website myself and downloaded the white paper (link below)
http://www.ami.com/support/doc/AMIBIOS-codes.pdf
it looks as though you are going to have to replace the memory (or at least reseat the current module) with a new module as it look s like a memory read/write error.
as for the monitor problem maybe your graphics card also needs to be reseated correctly. either that or you have a faulty monitor or cable.
rule things out bit by bit - if you have another pc that you can easily access or a very good mate with one then check your monitor and cable on that pc. do it this way - 1) primary monitor to secondary computers monitor cable on secondary computer.
2) primary monitor and cable to secondary computers graphics card.
if you still have the blue tinge after trying one or both of these methods then a new monitor or cable is in order. If however they are ok then the problem will lie within the graphics card itself.
remember rule out the possibilities
on second thoughts though rare it could be your motherboard causing both of your problems.:D
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