IMac G5 Intermittent power shutdowns?

System has powered off several times over the last few months for no reason? Last night it powered off and when I powered it back on the "FAN" was running at a very high speed and was loud. I reset the SMU and that solved the fan issue for now but I have concerns over the power supply. Anyone having these problems?
Thanks,
Jack

Mine did the same thing a few months ago. Took it into Apple authorized repair shop and turned out to be a problem with the power supply internally. Got a new part and it went within a week or so. Got a second part (warranty on the 1st part so no charge) and so far so good. Total repair cost $150US.

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IMac (2007) intermittent power issues

Hi,
I have a 2007 iMac. I am getting intermittent power issues with it.
One day it wont power up at all...and might not power up for a number of weeks. And just when I have given up on it, it will power up and work for a wee while without any issues (including being shutdown nightly). It'll work for a while and then it'll stop working and again it may take a couple of weeks before it'll start working again.
Does anyone have any idea what might be the issue?
any help/advise greatly appreciated.

Hi IsMiseAodh - did you ever determine what the cause of intermittent no response to power was? I have a iMac with a similar problem. Thanks!

IMac G5 sudden power shutdown - bulging capacitor on main board

Hi,
does anybody in Europe/Germany have had some experience with Apple dealing with this topic? Does Apple provide an extended warranty for these kinds of hardware malfunctions.
The fact that a 50 Cent capacitor in a so claimed 'high quality' product does fail is really questionable to me. I know that especially the capacitors under frequency switched conditions are under heavy stress, but either the safety margins had been calculated wrong or the item by itself had quality issues.
With best regards.

Hey huhnium,
The fact that a 50 Cent capacitor in a so claimed 'high quality' product does fail is really questionable to me
Well it isn't that the design was bad it's the capacitor plague that affected electronics made from 1999 to as late as 2007. The problem is that you can't tell a bad cap just from external appearance. Re:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague
I've also seen this in every brand of PCs I've worked on.
Richard

G3 imac DV SE power up problem

I've run out of ideas on this one, so any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
I have an intermittent power up fault with an imac dv 400Mhz 512Mb RAM.
On powering up via the keyboard or the main front button the power light comes on and stays green but no screen or hard drive noise goes along with it, pulling out the mains and reconnecting usually but not always allows the machine to boot and when it does manage to start up zapping the PRAM causes the machine to shut down.
When trying to install Panther from MacOS 9.2.2 the machine attempts to restart but shuts down and can't be started without difficulty.
The original battery that came out was completely dead and has been replaced with a used one that has good voltage.
The only other thing that sometimes makes a difference is disconneting the keyboard and powering up from the main switch.
I have reset the PMU, and upgraded the firmware and checked the logic board voltages J9,C10 and the J7 pins and all seem very close to the required outputs (how close do they need to be?) the only thing I haven't checked yet is the F901 fuse.
Is it likely that the PAV board is kaputt? or that the keyboard is causing the problems?
I'd really like to try and get this running as I use an identical machine upgraded with a 120Gb disc and 1Gb RAM running Tiger at my workplace that runs beautifully so I think it is worth trying to fix.
Or shall I give up on it?
G3 Imac DV SE Mac OS X (10.3.4)

If it consistently works with the keyboard detached, I'd switch keyboards with that other iMac to see if that's the cause. I would also buy a "new" battery instead of trying to re-use a used one. Another good test is to try it with one 256MB module at a time, to see of if one of them is faulty. Sometimes, RAM modules that worked fine with Mac OS 9 do not work with Mac OS X.

Firewire 800 Port back to life after power shutdown?

I experienced a strange event and would like to share it with you for feedback and comments.
During several days the external hard disk connected to the Firewire 800 port of my IMAC caused me increasingly problems, and eventually the disk would not mount at all on the desktop. I connected the disk to the FW800 port of my portable and the disk worked quite fine. I concluded that the FW800 port of the IMAC was damaged. I was preparing myself to contact Apple to get the IMAC repaired.
Then recently we had a general shutdown of power in our town, for several hours.
When the power came back, I had the idea to reconnect the external disk to the FW800 port, and miracle, the disk mounted immediately and has been working fine since.
Is is possible that the ports of the computer come back to life after a power shutdown? How is this possible?
Can I conclude that it is recommended to disconnect a computer from time to time, just to reset some parameters?

Yep, both USB and Firewire ports can get in into a "bad state" and only complete removal of power will reset those chip sets.
Unfortunately, when you power down the computer there is always a bit of power still applied to the motherboard to keep things alive and this usually includes powering the ports to do stuff like detect when a device is plugged in or wants to wake up the computer. The downside of this is when a bus/port chipset goes into a weird state, locks up, etc., simply power cycling (shutdown & restart) the computer won't work.
So first thing to try is resetting the chipset and to do this you have to power down the computer and completely unplug the computer from the wall power (unplug the power cord to your Mac). Also unplug everything from the Mac's ports (USB, FW, Ethernet, etc.) to make sure no parasitic power is still there to keep the chipset alive. Now let it sit for a minute (give those big power caps in there time to discharge). Now plug stuff back in & start up the Mac. Now see if your USB or Firewire ports work any better.
Even Apple acknowledges this occasional issue...
What to do if your computer won't recognize a FireWire or USB device
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1317?viewlocale=en_US
Best of luck!
Patrick

Intermittent power issue

Have intermittent power problem that has just lately started. If Imac put to sleep via the side bar I sometimes cannot get it to boot up either by using the space bar ( which is how I normally awake it) or by using the power button. The logic board, power supply and the wire for the power supply has just been replaced and the problem has happened again. The iMac has been plugged into a UPS for some time and doesn't appear to be the problem as other items work OK. I can reboot the Imac if I pull the power plug and re-plug whenever the problem has arisen. I can also reboot by shutting the UPS of and the on again. Any thoughts?

Try resetting PRAM: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379

Myth or Truth, iMac uses less power in Standby than when off

I'm sure I read this somewhere on the internet.
I'm not sure what model it was for, but I heard that the imac uses less power when in sleep than being shutdown (when still plugged into the wall)
Can anyone confirm or denigh this?
Ifs it true any web links to this?

If it's powered off, it's using no power at all.
I suspect this is about the power cost of waking from standby versus pwoering up from off, and whether it makes more sense to leave your Mac in standby when out of use or whether to swticth off completely.
It depends on your usage pattern. If you leave the Mac unused for very long periods of time, it makes sense to power off, because standby uses a little power constantly. If you leave it unused for shortter periods, you probably use less power in standby.
Unfortunately, I don't have a magic number for the time period
As a rule of thumb, I'd say if it's unused for less than a day or so, standby makes more sense. There's a discussion at the link below which also fails to give a definitive answer but has some interetsing comments.
http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/7588/for-least-power-usage-should-i-tur n-off-or-put-my-mac-to-sleep

IMac won't power up anymore

Hi,
for a couple of days now, my iMac (Core 2 Duo, 8 months old) won't start up anymore when I press the power button. However, if I press and hold the power button for about 5 seconds, then press it again, the computer will start. Has anyone seen this before?
I know the trick of pressing/holding the power-button to force shut-down. So could this in fact mean my iMac didn't shut down properly? Just guessing.
iMac 2.16 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Mac OS X (10.4.10)

To shutdown your iMac go to: "Apple / Shutdown" from
the drop down menu bar.
To sleep your iMac go to: "Apple / Sleep" from the
drop down menu bar or the auto sleep funtion!
Using the power button to shutdown the iMac can cause
loss of data, file corruption and damage to your HD.
Go to: "Apple / System Preferences / Energy Saver /
Options" Look at "Allow power button to sleep the
computer" If the the box is checked then the power
button will sleep the computer the first time you
push it, then hard shutdown the next time you push
it.
Dennis
I know... But what's that got to do with my (possible) SMC failure? I wonder, apart from this:
How to reset the System Management Controller < </div>
Is there any "hard reset" that could fix it? Or does my iMac need repair?

Intermittent power problem Canon 5D Mark iii

My Canon 5D Mark iii (2 years old) has an intermittent power problem, as described below. It may simply be a question of cleaning the terminals that the battery connects to. I haven’t tried since I can’t reach them at the bottom of the battery compartment.
Details as follows:
this is a recent problem in the last 3 weeks
the problem occurs with all three Canon batteries that I use
from time to time when the power is on, the camera suddenly loses all power and displays an “empty” battery image
sometimes it happens of its own accord while no demand is being placed on the camera
but more usually it occurs at the moment of focusing (I use back focus on the * button)
it is often fixed by turning the power off and then on again. This fixes it half the time
it is always fixed by turning the power off, removing and then re-inserting the battery
needless to say this is very annoying!
Since coming back from a trip, while transferring images from the camera to my computer, I noticed that the (almost) full battery started showing “empty”.
The transfer was completed successfully, and when the camera was disconnected from the computer, the battery showed that it had lots of charge left. Very puzzling!

It sounds like either the battery terminals aren't getting a solid contact or there's a fault (something loose or grounding out) inside the camera. But if something were genuinely loose or grounding out inside the camera, then power cycling or even re-inserting batteries would probably not fix it -- which makes me suspect it's still something outside the camera.
Are any of the batteries new, or are they all about the same age as the camera?
Batteries only last a few years but it'll depend on how they were used. In other words if all three were used about the same and enough charge cycles to be at the end of their reliable life... it might be time to replace them.
It's difficult for the internal battery terminals to get dirty unless the battery itself had something on the battery iteself when you inserted it. You can try a bit of denatured alcohol on a cotton swap to reach in and clean the terminals. Also, inspect the batteries to make sure they're all clean.
Tim Campbell
5D II, 5D III, 60Da

My brand new iMac will not power up after an update restart, any suggestions?

Any suggestions on why my IMac will not power up after it done a restart?

Try an SMC reset and PRAM reset: https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3603
If that doesn't help:
See if it will start in Safe Boot: restart holding down the Shift key until you see a grey progress bar, type your admin password when prompted, let it continue to (hopefully) boot. Restart as normal from the Apple menu.
If that didn't help, try booting into the Recovery HD: restart holding down Command+r and choose Disk Utility from the four choices when they appear on screen. Once DU has launched select your Macintosh HD on the left and click on 'repair disk'. If anything gets changed click on repair disk again until you get a clear pass, restart as normal from the Apple menu.
If you still have problems, give AppleCare a call.

My iMac wouldn't turn on. This has happened out of nowhere, it was working really well before. checked my power cord and outlets everything's fine. The iMac has no power at all. no sound or anything, completely dead. It is only 1 year and 2 mos old.

My iMac wouldn't turn on. This has happened out of nowhere, it was working really well before. checked my power cord and outlets everything's fine. The iMac has no power at all. no sound or anything, completely dead. It is only 1 year and 2 mos old. Any idea what it could be?

I have purposely been ignoring your responses to my posts about the heat issues in the newer design iMacs, but if you want really want to ague the point...
First, the iMac is marketed as a desktop model Mac. Not a laptop or MacBook.
I have never owned a MacBook, so I can't attest to how much heat the MacBooks generate.
I Have two iMac models. A 2009, 27 inch screen iMac for myself. And a 2010, 21.5 inch screen iMac for my Fiancée.
As a desktop Mac these are hottest running desktop Macs I have ever owned. Period. I owned two beige Macs, a pre-G3 tower, aG3 desktop, a G4 MDD Tower, the original iMac, eMac, iMac G4 and now my current iMacs.
None of my previous Macs have ever, EVER ran this hot. I have never, also, had any component failures in any of the previous Macs I have owned, either. All of my Macs have been upgraded or modded to some degree over the years. About 2 years ago I had to press my old G3 back into service. Both my G3 and G4 models have been heavily modded. The G3 ran without issue for a close friend for over a year until that friend went out a got a Mac Mini.
That's a 1996-97 Mac my friend. And it still is in working order and hasn't had any failures.
The fact I am pointing out here is that heat is an enemy to electronic components.
Whether desktop iMac or MacBooks, tightly packed enclosures of heat generating computer components with fans that do not run fast enough at most times to cool off the interior or exterior, will and does slow roast computer components to premature failure.
I do not know how frequent component failure is in the MacBook line up. So I can't attest to those.
I do not participate in those forums.
This is why at some point in computer history, Super Conputers were liquid cooled. PowerMac G5 systems were liquid cooled because they ran too hot!
I have taken my own precautions to keep my iMacs' heat down as much as possible.
I don't have the money to keep buying a new Mac every 3-5 years when some catastrophic failure happens.
I had to purchase my iMacs used as I couldn't afford the cost of a new iMac with the specs I needed.
My idea, your idea and Apple's idea of acceptable operating temps we can argue all day long.
I feel, personally, that the operating temps are too high and exacerbate operational issues.
I Have been participating in these particular iMac forums for just over a year and have seen plenty of posts of iMac component failures due to both heat and dust, dirt issues from within the iMac.
There can be no other reason for all of these failures. The SuperDrive is, usually, the first to go bad.
It's probably due more to its vertical mounting, but the excessive interior heat isn't helping it.
Next to fail is the GPU. The last to fail, but the most expensive to fix, the Logic Board.
I Have seen plenty of posts in my last year here of all of these failures in iMac less than 5 years old and ,perhaps, a little older. 2008 model iMacs seem to have their issues, too!
Apple is focusing too much on design and aesthetics, rather than longevity of their products, I feel now.
A Mac isn't going to last 7- 10 years anymore.
I don't have stats and numbers. Just common sense.
This is my story and I am sticking to it. For what it's worth.

My 27 inch 2013 imac has intermittent static sounds on the right speaker. Is this common?

My imac has intermittent static sounds coming through the right speaker. Is this common? Is there a fix? Should I request a replacement?

Give AppleCare a call.
You have 90 days free telephone support... 3 years if you bought the AppleCare Protection Plan.

Time Capsule power shutdown

There was a power shutdown, and the time capsule is not working when power came back. The light is orange. What do I need to do?

Tell us the model number of the TC.. eg
A1254 Gen 1 A1302 Gen 2 A1355 Gen 3 are moulded into the rubber base mat first line. Gen4 is A1409 and written on the paper label where it always should have been.
Is the LED flashing at all.. if it is solid orange (amber) then the TC has failed to boot.. this is due to faulty hard disk or faulty power supply.
Try power down the TC and leave it off for several hours.. then power up again. Place your hand on it to feel or listen to the fan spin up immediately on power on.. and hard disk spin up after about 20sec.
Tell us the exact sequence the LED and ethernet port leds go through.
This is the normal sequence.
It should flash green.. then go solid amber.. the ethernet port leds will flash very quickly.
After about 1min (bit less or more depending on the model) the LED should go to flashing amber.. then if everything is good, green.

HT1750 I tried to change the memory and now my Imac will not power on. and there are no beeps. what did I do wrong?

I tried to change the memory and now my Imac will not power on. and there are no beeps. what did I do wrong?

Don't know. Could be any number of reasons. Re-read the how to install RAM manual again for your model iMac. Double & triple check to make sure you purchased the right RAM chips. Make sure they are seated properly. If you didn't hear a snap when seated, the RAM is not properly seated.

TS1587 My iMac will not power on .

My iMac will not power on

Hi I have some weird problem related to this and unfortunately either or apple or APS able to solve.
I have picked a 27 iMac late 2012 model 2 montsh back and a APC Back up UPS 700.
Whenevr I turn on the Main power> Turn on APC> Turn on iMac, the iMac doesn't turn on. I will have to unplug it and plug it back it works. It happens only when I start the UPS for the first time in the day. After that how many ever times I remove my iMac plug and plug it back to APC, it turns on.
Initially I thought, it is the problem with the UPS and contacted APC where they replaced with a new UPS and its the same problem.
Unfortunately, Apple is not able to tell that its the problem with the Apple iMac as it works fine when directly powered without using APC.
So, the problem lies working with APC and iMac together.
Could someone please help. The last option I have is to carry the UPS to a Apple store and see if it works fine with any other iMac.
Also to mention, I did try SMC reset adn PRAM reset.

IMac G5 Intermittent power shutdowns?

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