Xref: utzoo comp.sys.mac.misc:10378 comp.sys.mac.hardware:9868 comp.sys.mac.system:3888 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!noose.ecn.purdue.edu!en.ecn.purdue.edu!tmattox From: tmattox@en.ecn.purdue.edu (Timothy I Mattox) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc,comp.sys.mac.hardware,comp.sys.mac.system Subject: Re: BROKEN-MAC STARTUP-DIRGE..WHAT DOES IT MEAN? Message-ID: <1991Mar31.181247.8974@en.ecn.purdue.edu> Date: 31 Mar 91 18:12:47 GMT References: <2934@randvax.UUCP> <1991Mar30.221152.8323@hawk.cs.ukans.edu> Organization: Purdue University Engineering Computer Network Lines: 42 In article <1991Mar30.221152.8323@hawk.cs.ukans.edu> chai@hawk.cs.ukans.edu (Ian Chai) writes: >In article <2934@randvax.UUCP> clark@randvax.UUCP (John Clark) writes: >>On startup, my Mac plays an ominous, rising-chord tune for a couple of >>seconds, then promptly goes inert. [...some symptoms deleted...] >>Any ideas what this means? A hardware failure? A RAM chip fault, >>perhaps? >> >>John Clark >>clark@rand.org > >I have experienced this problem several times in the last few months, >and it *always* occurred after I've mucked around with the SCSI devices >I've attached to the IIx and so I've concluded that it's a "Your SCSI >setup is messed up" announcement. And it goes away after I've fixed the >SCSI up right. >-- >Ian Chai Internet: chai@cs.ukans.edu > Bitnet: 2fntnougat@ukanvax Well, Ian, you are close. The startup chime on a Mac II style computer is the result of a hardware test. You hear the standard chord when everything checks out ok. If the self-diagnostics find something wrong, the mac plays a sequence of chords to indicate the particular area of trouble. The original Mac II had a total of 8 startup chord sequence, one being the "all ok" chord. I don't know if newer Macs have additional chord sequences. I have a little program (6K) that demonstrates the chord sequences. I found it on the original Phil and Dave's Excellent CD. I would offer to e-mail it to anyone who asks, but it does not supply any detailed information on what each chord sequence means. It only says things like, RAM test 1, RAM test 2 and Initial Check. One might wonder why Apple would have your computer play music when its broken rather than display an error code. I speculate that it is because on a Mac II, you might not have a working video card and monitor connected, so rather than display a "sad-mac code" the same way as a Mac Plus or SE, it plays the chord sequence. -- Live long and prosper. - Tim Mattox - (email: tmattox@ecn.purdue.edu) (talk: tmattox@en.ecn.purdue.edu)