Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage,alt.comp.hardware (
More info?)
joel.mcclure@gmail.com wrote
> My AMD 2400 XP+ system has an 80G Maxtor (primary IDE) and 30G
> (secondary IDE w/Linux only). I'm getting random freezes at the point
> where the bios detects IDE drives. I'll hear a weak beeping noise,
> and the boot process will be halted before it detects an IDE drive.
That sounds like one of the drives is recalibrating when it cant
read the platters properly. That is likely the 'weak beeping noise'
> I changed ribbon cables, and the problem seemed to go away only for
> a while. I then changed mainboards, because the PC Chips seemed
> flaky anyway. Now, with the new ABit, the problem happened again.
> Usually several power on/offs will clear up the problem, and sometimes
> unplugging the machine helps. Other symptoms include occasional
> random "blue screens of death" during normal usage with "dumping
> physical memory" messages. I ran the manufacturer diagnostic tools
> on both hard drives, and there was nothing detected. The machine
> will run for days between incidents. Could this be a power supply issue?
Yes.
> I'm plugged into a UPS, but maybe the power supply is flaky.
Yes, that is a real possibility. The UPS was
unlikely to help the problem with failing to boot.
> Could either of my two CD drives (secondary) be causing this?
Its possible, but not very likely. The obvious way to test
that possibility is to physically disconnect them and see
if that makes any difference to the boot particularly.
> I don't see how the hard drive electronics could be an issue, because
> they work flawlessly for days, and the diagnostic tools gave them a pass.
Yes, there is no common fault that affects just the boot.
And the hard drive cant produce those other symptoms.
> I would appreciate any suggestions.
I'd try a new power supply myself.