4 chimes at Startup

Think I have had this before and it either required a new motherboard when under Apple Care, or maybe it was the HD failure.
The machine had been sent to sleep and only the front light was on. When I tried to wake it using space bar and then trackpad key, no response.
Had to switch off using power button. On attempt to restart it lit up near the latch and then I got four start up chimes. Did not move to boot and latch light would flash, then hold steady a short while then flash.
Tried power button again and then restart with the following combinations of keys pressed:- A)Command Option P R, Option, Command S . Pushed a Disk Warrior cd in the slot and tried to boot from that.
No success and then could not get DW cd out using the usual methods available in this situation.
Any suggestions as to how to get the DW cd out and to set the G4 PB going? I have a fairly recent Time Machine backup on a fire wire HD, and I have an old Titanium PB that works (hopefully). Will this mean a mechanical repair (of HD and/or motherboard).

Brody, thanks. The DW cd about a month ago worked OK. The 4 beeps came after the cd inserted admittedly, but it first appeared before that on an (attempted) boot from the HD. In strictness on an attempt to wake up , and then several attempts to start up from cold from the HD. Only then did I try an alternative of the Disk Warrior version of the OS.
I see the apple article article you quoted say four beeps means "4 beeps = no good boot images in the boot ROM (and/or bad sys config block)". Where is the sys config block in the Mac system? Is it in the rom or on the HD. If it is in the firmware then both the alleged potential errors are in (more or less) one place. If sys config block is (as I would think from DOS) on the early loads from storage then it could be either the firmware or the HD.
I have tried to eject the cd holding down the "mouse button" , in my case the trackpad left key. It did not work. I have never got it to work on my recent PBs. I would normally use a drutil command from Terminal.
In view of the foregoing, I will try a longer hold on the 'C' key though my recall is that the 'steady-flash' behaviour of the power light was there even with an attempt to boot from DW.

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MacBook Doesn't Chime Upon Startup

Hello everyone.
I have an issue that has really stumped me, and I have no earthly idea how to go about fixing it. My MacBook all of a sudden will not chime upon startup. I have no installed a program to silence it, or anything of the kind. The only recent change that I've made that I know of, is I set up Spaces, which I can't imagine is the problem here. All I know is that now when I hit the power button to boot it up, it no longer chimes. Also yes, my MacBook is not muted either.
Any help is greatly appreciated.

Hi
yu can try reset
- smc - pram
for smc - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
for pram , restart your mac and hold folowing keys until 2-3 boot chime
alt-cmd-P-R
HTH

Normal + 3 chimes at startup with intel mac mini

I posted this in the mac mini forum, but didn't get a helpful response. So maybe someone can help me here.
I have a 300GB USB drive (formatted as Mac OS extended (journaled)) connected to my intel mac mini with the drive's power on all the time. When I start up the mini after the USB drive has spun down I get the regular startup chime plus 3 lower volume startup chimes. The activity light on the USB drive flashes during the 3 chimes. Then the system starts normally with the USB drive icon on the desktop. I can read and write to the USB hard drive with no problems.
If I shutdown the mini and start it up again but now the USB hard drive has not spun down, I get just the normal single chime. Also, if the USB drive is disconnected, I get the normal single chime. I've tried a different USB port, but still got the same behavior.
I've connected a USB flash drive, but it exhibits normal behavior, that is, just the single startup chime.
Are the subsequent 3 chimes at startup OK and just telling me that there is an external hard drive? Or is there a looming problem? Has anyone else experienced this?
Intel Mac Mini Core Duo Mac OS X (10.4.7) Apple BT Mouse & Keyboard

Thanks. But the article says you won't hear the normal startup chime but some number of beeps if there is a problem with 3 beeps meaning no good banks.
I hear the normal startup chime, then 3 of the same chimes but at lower volume. Must be something about the USB hard drive.
When I bought the drive, it was formatted for windows with NTFS. I used disk utility to format is as Mac OS Extended (journaled). I've copied about 100 GB of data to it.

Chime on startup missing

My G3 pismo firewire powerbook no longer has the chime on startup. The powerbook starts up fine and runs fine. No other problems are apparent. I am running OS10.4.11 and I have tried resetting the pram, pushing the reset button on the rear, and running disk utility to repair permissions. Nothing is bringing back the startup chime. I have a partitioned drive that I setup years ago and I can start up in OS9 by selecting that drive and when I do that I get the chime. But if I try to start up in OSX, nothing. It is not a big deal I guess since I can work ok but I am wondering what the deal is with it not working. I might add, that up until last week, it chimed fine every time, then it stopped doing that. Nothing changed as far as I can tell. Any ideas?
thanks, Dave

The sound works ok for videos and other things. I did hear the sound when the pram reset but once I restarted, no sound. As you say, no other problems are present so it will work fine, just wondered why it happens. guess if no one found a solution I won't worry about. One of the reasons I was concerned is my cd/dvd drive has failed also but that was sometime ago it went to the dumper. Nothing will boot up, does not even spin the disc. I don't feel like investing in another drive since I only use this laptop for reading email and a couple other things. I have other macs for my serious work. Just hate to give up on an old mac. Still got my G3 beige desktop 233 and it works like a champ and I have an iMac G5 that I use for everything else. Thanks for the input!
Dave

No chime on startup since 10.9.3 update that allows ical and contact synch through usb

My 2009 iMac used to not chime on startup. I tried virtually every fix, I could find except taking it to a repair shop. After I upgraded to Mavericks, the problem magically disappeared. That is until I installed the 10.9.3 Maverick update today. This makes absolutely no sense to me, espescially since all that this update was supposed to change was the synching ability over USB, of ical, and contacts. Does anyone have any idea, what could be going on?

Hi Allen,
Thanks for the response. I'll try a second DVI adapter in the future.
I have a hunch this is in fact my AMD Radeon HD 6750M card giving out. I've found some other threads mentioning theories that the kernel_task occasionally running many noop instructions in a last ditch effort to cool the laptop down, which would make sense, as the bottom of the computer's case has been almost too hot to touch fairly often when running in the DVI monitor mode.
When the VGA adapter is plugged in, the dedicated AMD Radeon HD 6750M does not kick in, instead the integrated Intel graphics chip is used, which runs much cooler apparently.
I'm hoping this is a 10.9.3 radeon driver change that'll be fixed, but at this point I'm thinking this is just another instance of a 2011 macbook pro with a 6750M card failing after only 3 years.
- Jason

No chime or startup screen 27" mid 2010 imac

Since upgrading to the latest OS 10.8.2, i have many freezes about 2 min after a complete start, porbably a couple times a day since upgrading to the new OS. Now today september 26, 2012 the imac was on but black screen which this has happened before but then i would power it down for a minute and restart without issues, well today it will power up but no chime or startup screen just black screen but it sounds like the HD is working and fans. Any suggestions or anybody else have this issue, i do have an extened warranty on it. Hopefully it is an easy fix???

Contact Apple Service, iMac Service or Apple's Express Lane. Siince you have AppleCare's protection plan and if you're within 50 miles (80 KM) of an Apple repair station, you're eligible for onsite repair since yours is a desktop machine. Might not apply outside the US.

TA43884 No chime at startup and no beeps.

Hi, at startup I do not hear the chime but the G4/533MHZ boots up normally.
There are no beeps to be heard so I guess the RAM/ROM is ok.
Only strange thing is, the fan is making a lot of noise, then goes quiet and then speeds up again fast.
Should the fan be replaced or is this a signal somethings wrong with the power supply?

Thnx for the reply.
I spend an hour dusting out. I opened up the power supply and cleaned it altough it wasn't that bad with the dust it contained. I removed the fan and cleaned it.
I even removed the fixed plastic sidepanel and removed the dust from the holes in the metal plate.
When I powered on the machine the blowing sound was still loud and after 2 minutes it started again going slower and faster. I shutdown the machine and waited 2 minuted before I turned it on again. The loud noise started from the beginning but it remained constant altough very loud.
I have an identical G4 and then I started it up to compare the sound. This one is very quiet. You only hear the humming sound of the fan while the other one seems to be very loud nois from the power supply so I think I will have to replace it. The chime I still didn't hear so I wanted to check out that link you gave me but it takes me to http://www.apple.com/support/?artnum=2238 a product page.
I will go and see if I can find something about PRAM reset here on the forum.
Thnx again for your advice!

Audio chime at startup, none after that

When I start my Macbook Pro (mid 2009 15") I get the familiar audio chime. However, when it finishes startup and I get to my desktop, I have no audio, and the audio icon up top is grayed out. The audio output jack works fine. I can use speakers and headphones. I've tried the solution of wiggling around a headphone plug in the jack, as well as doing the same with a toothpick. I've also reset the PRAM. For some reason, the problem persists. When I open sound settings in preferences, the only device listed is "Digital Out" and there is a message under it saying "The Selected Device has No Output Controls."
Is there anyone who has had a similar issue and has a solution? I've tried everything I can think of. Thanks.
Eric

Reinstall Lion, Mountain Lion, or Mavericks without erasing drive
Boot to the Recovery HD:
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Repair
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported then click on the Repair Permissions button. When the process is completed, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion, Mountain Lion, or Mavericks
OS X Mavericks- Reinstall OS X
OS X Mountain Lion- Reinstall OS X
OS X Lion- Reinstall Mac OS X
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet
if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

How to restore disabled chimes at startup?

Somehow my startup chimes have been disabled, and I'd like to return it to its normal setting. How do I do this?

If you have an external speaker system plugged into the audio output jack, unplug it, adjust the internal speaker volume and then plug the external speakers back in.
If you are using StartupSound.prefPane, refer to this > StartupSound.prefPane link for adjusting and/or uninstalling the utility.

Multiple chime on startup

Hi. I have looked around and not found this precise issue: When I start my MacBook, some of the time it is fine, but on occasion I get a sort of double chime -- the chime seems to skip or hiccup in the middle. Then the computer starts normally.
Now, just today, it hiccuped twice for the first time.
I had my PRAM reset just a few weeks ago due to other issues, but this did not change this situation: it still happens about as often -- about one in three or four startups, I'd guess. I suppose I should test this and give a more exact figure.
Finally I should mention I have a brand new hard drive, as mine fried some weeks back, and a new upgrade from 10.4. I was having various problems then and can't recall if this was one of them. Let's assume it is a more recent problem: Any thoughts?

Have you tried running Apple Hardware Test to check you ram and other stuff?
Run Rember for some other ram checks.
Also note the following:
Power On Self-Test Beep Definition - Part 2
Based on that a double boot chime might be an indication of "incompatible RAM types". So are you mixing different brands of ram?
FWIW, it wouldn't hurt to do a smc reset when you go to do the pram reset since you need to shut down anyhow prior to these resets.

Multiple chimes during startup

Frequently, during startup my mac will go thru more than one boot cycle. I hear the chime and several seconds later it restarts and chimes again. Sometimes just once and at other times it may restart three or more times before reaching the login screen.
I've run Disk Utility's permissions and disk repair cycles and checked the same using Drive Genius. I also tried booting with all the peripherals un-plugged but the results were the same. What else should I try?

Hello Barry,
I stopped using TotalFinder 12 days ago and have not had the multiple startup chimes since. I've made no other changes to my system so I feel fairly confident I've found the cause. I posted a problem report with BinaryAge. I hope they can resolve this. I really like the app.
I'm going to put the app back into my login items and see if the problem returns. I'll post an update of the results
K.

Screen is black.. chimes on startup, but no response on display OR external

Hi fellow apple users.
I have a 2.2ghz MBP, and today I had my MBP hooked up to an external monitor (TV), the laptop was closed while I was watching a video. I opened up the lid, unhooked the video cable, and then there was no response, the screen was black. I restarted it, it chimes up, but no response. I tried to hook it up to the external monitor again, and still nothing. Also, the keyboard doesnt seem to be working because the caps light wont go on. I tried to turn the brightness up, but nothing.Also, i reset the SMC and PRAM, still nothing.
I heard on a forum that if this is related to a faulty video card, apple replaces it up until 2 years after buying it, because it is a common manufactorers defect...is this true? Is this the case with my MBP?

It could well be the logic board, sounds like what happened when mine died. But if you have a 15-inch or 17-inch MacBook Pro built between May 2007 and September 2008, with an nVidia GeForce 8600M GT video card, then yes, it could also be the video card. The symptoms can appear quite similar.
For more information on the video card problem and Apple's replacement policy, see http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377
If it's the logic board that's gone, though, you'll have to pay for it yourself if you're no longer covered by Apple Care. Either way, the only way you'll find out for sure is to take it to an Apple Store or authorized service centre.

PowerMac G3 no chime, no startup

okay I press the power button, no chime yet I hear and see all the drives power up. I have replaced the battery recently and the machine actually booted up about a week ago. I tried replacing my video card with another one that I have in another machine of the same type. I tried holding the button next to the battery, did not help. I tried resetting the PRAM and no luck. I am going to try to reset the processor speed back to normal and see what that does. But I personally dont see that as a problem because I checked the processor temperature and found no abnormal temps.
thansks,
Randy

I think these Macs don't respond well to changes in clock speed. I recommend you try, in order of increasing intensity, the following:
• Reset the PRAM with the tiny button on the board nearest the battery. Hold for a quarter minute, then wait at least 5 seconds before attempting to restart.
• same as above but when attempting to restart, hold down Command Option p r BEFORE you press the button to power on, and hold for three or four sets of chimes.
• remove the power cord and the battery. Short across the EMPTY battery cage with a metal tool for a quarter minute. Caution: Shorting the battery itself can cause it to explode! Re-install battery. Re-apply power. Try to start up.

My MacBook Air chimes during startup but flashes a bar at the bottom then shuts down, is this a hard drive failure or a hard ware failure? Please help I miss my laptop

First generation MacBook Air running OSX 10.6.8

Hi,
From what you describe it's certainly a Hard Drive failure so you'll definetely need to contact HP. Personally, considering this is the 2nd HDD in under 2 months, I say it's either bad luck ( however unlikely ) or there is another issue at play - it may be worth suggesting this to HP when you contact them.
Regards,
DP-K
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Microsoft MVP - Windows Experience

Multiple Chimes on Startup

When I booted up this morning I noticed that the computer chimed maybe 5 times before finally starting up. This has never happened before and doesn't seem to have affected anything, but I wouldn't mind knowing what happened. The only thing I can figure is that it might be related to the recent firmware update, but I installed and restarted for that the day it came out. Anyone know what's going on? Thanks for your time.

I have recently started having this issue with my MacPro, it just started happening all of a sudden one morning. After spending an hour looking for a solution I realised that someone had lent me a Freecom Hard Drive that was plugged into my USB port. The hard drive was hidden behind my monitor so I had forgotten it was there. I switched my machine off and unplugged the drive and it solved the problem.
There is another thread about this issue here: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3925979#3925979

4 chimes at Startup

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