3 beeps on Startup, but runs perfect on Target Mode?

Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
Trying to work this one out.

MBP ~2011 13", has had a spill on keyboard BUT, will boot perfectly from another Mac's firewire'd target mode hard drive. The only broken hardware appears to be a usb port and the trackpad. It otherwise functions fine. :Cool:

If I try to boot it from its own drive or a Snow Leopard DVD, it gives the 3 beeps.

So I've replaced the hard drive, and went to install from the DVD but still giving the 3 beeps.


I mean, if it works fine over Target Mode, doesn't that prove that everything is fine except the HDD? :Confused::|


(I am aware 3 beeps is a RAM issue, have tried every configuration of RAM/slot and the pattern is the same, no boot from own drive or DVD but ok boot over firewire)
 

bobtomay

,
Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
26,561
Reaction score
677
Points
113
Location
Texas, where else?
Your Mac's Specs
15" MBP '06 2.33 C2D 4GB 10.7; 13" MBA '14 1.8 i7 8GB 10.11; 21" iMac '13 2.9 i5 8GB 10.11; 6S
If it works in Target Disk Mode and you can see the hard drive and copy from it to the host computer, it is not a hard drive issue.
That's what it is for, to allow you to get data from an otherwise non-functioning machine.
As the beeps indicate, it is a RAM issue.

My best guess based on the spill, would be the slots or the path from the slots have been affected rather than the RAM modules themselves.

You can test that by trying the modules in another computer to verify they are working or not.
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
If it works in Target Disk Mode and you can see the hard drive and copy from it to the host computer, it is not a hard drive issue. As the beeps indicate, it is a RAM issue. My best guess based on the spill, would be the slots or the path from the slots have been affected rather than the RAM modules.

When I tested the MBP in Target Disk Mode, I actually meant the reverse of that, in order to test if the the MBP was in good shape I had it Host another Mac's HDD with no problems at all. The Mac mini's HDD booted fine over Target Mode on the MBP hardware.

The part I don't understand is, if it was a true RAM or Logic Board issue, why would it be faultless at hosting another Mac's HDD over firewire?
 

bobtomay

,
Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
26,561
Reaction score
677
Points
113
Location
Texas, where else?
Your Mac's Specs
15" MBP '06 2.33 C2D 4GB 10.7; 13" MBA '14 1.8 i7 8GB 10.11; 21" iMac '13 2.9 i5 8GB 10.11; 6S
Now that is a good question...

???

You could boot it repeatedly in that way - e.g. not a one time fluke?

Perhaps a response from one of our members that do hardware repair on a regular basis may have more insight.
 

pigoo3

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
May 20, 2008
Messages
44,210
Reaction score
1,418
Points
113
Location
U.S.
Your Mac's Specs
2017 15" MBP, 16gig ram, 1TB SSD, OS 10.15
MBP ~2011 13", has had a spill on keyboard BUT, will boot perfectly from another Mac's firewire'd target mode hard drive. The only broken hardware appears to be a usb port and the trackpad. It otherwise functions fine. :Cool:

If I try to boot it from its own drive or a Snow Leopard DVD, it gives the 3 beeps.

I mean, if it works fine over Target Mode, doesn't that prove that everything is fine except the HDD? :Confused::|

Liquid spills can be VERY VERY unpredictable. Accessing a computer via Target Disk mode...and booting the computer from it's own HD or optical drive are different. Accessing a computer via Target Disk mode is sort of treating that computer as an external hard drive (which is VERY different from booting a computer from it's own HD). Apparently this difference was effected by the liquid spill.

I agree with bobtomay...the problem is probably not a hard drive issue.

Something electronic on the logic board was most likely damaged with the liquid spill...and this "electronic thing" must be a requirement in the startup/booting process. There are 1000's and 1000's of circuits on a logic board...and this is something that cannot be repaired by a user. This is why liquid spills almost always result in the need for a replacement logic board ($$$).

- Nick
 

pigoo3

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
May 20, 2008
Messages
44,210
Reaction score
1,418
Points
113
Location
U.S.
Your Mac's Specs
2017 15" MBP, 16gig ram, 1TB SSD, OS 10.15
Looking at this situation logically...this computer experienced a liquid spill. If liquid wasn't spilled on it...the computer would still be working fine. After the liquid spill it is not working fine. Thus the liquid spill caused damage.

Yes the liquid was spilled on the keyboard. But directly under the keyboard is the logic board. And powered on logic boards are VERY easily damaged by liquids.

Sorry to hear about this. But if I was a betting person...I would bet that the logic board was damaged...and a replacement logic board is needed.

- Nick
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
Cool, just set up a 10.8 install on a USB drive, and it boots to that install just fine, tested Target mode again, boots just fine. Tested reverse-firewire boot mode, also boots fine.

Tried to boot to Snow Leopard DVD = 3 beeps

So I took the SATA drive out of the external USB 10.8 drive and put that in the MacBook and its booting up fine now out of it's own HDD.

Will continue testing. I know liquid spills can have random effects on computers, fair enough. I hope somehow now it holds steady for a while. It's just weird that it would have very selective start up troubles, depending on source.
 

pigoo3

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
May 20, 2008
Messages
44,210
Reaction score
1,418
Points
113
Location
U.S.
Your Mac's Specs
2017 15" MBP, 16gig ram, 1TB SSD, OS 10.15
So I took the SATA drive out of the external USB 10.8 drive and put that in the MacBook and its booting up fine now out of it's own HDD.

Well...maybe this is the rare situation where the hard drive did get damaged by the liquid spill. In many many cases the HD survives a liquid spill.

If the MBP is booting fine from an external HD that was transplanted into it...hey that sounds great!

- After installing this HD (that was formerly an external HD)...are you still getting the 3 beeps?
- Are you able to boot from the Snow Leopard DVD (no beeps)?

Congrats so far,:)

- Nick
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
Well...maybe this is the rare situation where the hard drive did get damaged by the liquid spill. In many many cases the HD survives a liquid spill.

If the MBP is booting fine from an external HD that was transplanted into it...hey that sounds great!

- After installing this HD (that was formerly an external HD)...are you still getting the 3 beeps?
- Are you able to boot from the Snow Leopard DVD (no beeps)?

Congrats so far,:)

- Nick

Just to confuse things further, the drive i took out of the usb caddy was the original drive in the MBP, I took it out for testing and thats the one that's gone back in now.

So it wasn't even a HDD fault :Confused::\

straaaange
 

pigoo3

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
May 20, 2008
Messages
44,210
Reaction score
1,418
Points
113
Location
U.S.
Your Mac's Specs
2017 15" MBP, 16gig ram, 1TB SSD, OS 10.15
So it wasn't even a HDD fault :Confused::\

Are you now saying everything is fine? Boots from the internal HD?...and no beeps?

- Nick
 
Joined
Jan 13, 2007
Messages
4,773
Reaction score
166
Points
63
Location
Central New York
Your Mac's Specs
15in i7 MacBook Pro, 8GB RAM, 120GB SSD, 500GB HD
Might be an issue with the SATA port on the logic board or SATA ribbon cable in the MBP if I'm reading correctly.
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
Are you now saying everything is fine? Boots from the internal HD?...and no beeps?

- Nick

Yep, so I took out the original HDD and put it in a USB caddy, formatted and installed 10.8 over USB (via a different Mac), and put the drive back in the MBP and now it boots fine without 3 beeps.

I'll check if it now accepts booting off the Snow Leopard DVD, as that was consistently giving the 3 beeps before.
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
Oh yeah, still hates booting to Snow Leopard DVD, but boots fine to Mac OS in internal drive.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2013
Messages
88
Reaction score
2
Points
8
3 beeps

3 beeps on startup means RAM problem: wrong RAM, Ram failure, or reseating necessary.
No software problem, no main board problem, no disk problem (that's why it still works in Target Disk mode)
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
3 beeps on startup means RAM problem: wrong RAM, Ram failure, or reseating necessary.
No software problem, no main board problem, no disk problem (that's why it still works in Target Disk mode)

Except, it's booting from its own internal drive now repeatedly without errors or beeps

Only beeps on DVD boot
 

bobtomay

,
Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
26,561
Reaction score
677
Points
113
Location
Texas, where else?
Your Mac's Specs
15" MBP '06 2.33 C2D 4GB 10.7; 13" MBA '14 1.8 i7 8GB 10.11; 21" iMac '13 2.9 i5 8GB 10.11; 6S
Can only guess at this point that you're interpreting something differently as POST beeps. The POST codes are produced while checking the system board and are before it gets to the point of selecting a boot device.

If you're able to press the option key and get to the point of selecting a boot device, whatever you are hearing is well after the time you would be getting the POST code beeps.
 
OP
MDJCM
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
211
Reaction score
0
Points
16
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
2009 13" MBP with SSD
You're right, it is after POST, I didn't think of it that way. Here is the sound that I hear:

MacBook pro 3 beeps :( - YouTube

But I get it about 5 seconds after selecting the DVD drive as the boot.
 

bobtomay

,
Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
26,561
Reaction score
677
Points
113
Location
Texas, where else?
Your Mac's Specs
15" MBP '06 2.33 C2D 4GB 10.7; 13" MBA '14 1.8 i7 8GB 10.11; 21" iMac '13 2.9 i5 8GB 10.11; 6S
Need to get a tech that works on these things for a living to take a look at this.

I did find a few old posts about beeping superdrives - I'd tend to agree with Stretch's analysis at this point.
The only fix I found on those old posts was replacing the system board.
However, it might be worth opening it up and unplugging/replugging the ribbon cable (cleaning the ports ?) or replacing if it's cheap enough.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2013
Messages
88
Reaction score
2
Points
8
That is Ram problems. Starting from the DvD is much slower thus it comes somewhat later. Maybe just re-seating the ram is enough.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top