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3 beeps on a 486 computer with an American Megatrends bios?
How do you put a 286 in Protected Mode?How to use the “darker” CGA palette using x86 Assembly?What's the fastest way to ignore keypresses?What was the first Intel x86 processor with “Base + Index * Scale + Displacement” addressing mode?Parity error under DOSThe IBM RAM with non-standard pin layout
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So far I've figured out that means something about the ram bit I haven't been able to figure out what the problem is
Edit: video link
x86 ram
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
add a comment |
So far I've figured out that means something about the ram bit I haven't been able to figure out what the problem is
Edit: video link
x86 ram
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
1
Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41
add a comment |
So far I've figured out that means something about the ram bit I haven't been able to figure out what the problem is
Edit: video link
x86 ram
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
So far I've figured out that means something about the ram bit I haven't been able to figure out what the problem is
Edit: video link
x86 ram
x86 ram
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
edited Aug 5 at 20:25
yanagibashi
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
asked Aug 5 at 20:08
yanagibashiyanagibashi
806 bronze badges
806 bronze badges
1
Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41
add a comment |
1
Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41
1
1
Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41
add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
Here is a reference to BIOS beep codes. For American Megatrends, look under AMI. 3 beeps means the low 64K failed - a very basic test - which probably means the RAM isn't working at all.
You should first check whether the RAM is compatible with your machine. At that time, there was a lot of variation - 5V vs 3.3V, 30-pin vs 72-pin, EDO vs FPM, not to mention response latency grades from 60ns to 150ns. Usually 70ns FPM will work in a 486.
Watching the first few seconds of video I see you have quite an early board with 30-pin SIMMs, which each provide 8 bits width to the data bus. Since the 486 is a 32-bit bus CPU (unlike the 386 it was never made in a 16-bit bus variant), you always need 4 identical SIMMs together. If you had a board that took 72-pin SIMMs, which have 32-bit width each, you'd be able to try just one like you are.
The effect of fitting just one SIMM in this machine would be to provide storage only at one out of every four bytes in sequence. Software just isn't written to cope with that on the PC.
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
|
show 3 more comments
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Here is a reference to BIOS beep codes. For American Megatrends, look under AMI. 3 beeps means the low 64K failed - a very basic test - which probably means the RAM isn't working at all.
You should first check whether the RAM is compatible with your machine. At that time, there was a lot of variation - 5V vs 3.3V, 30-pin vs 72-pin, EDO vs FPM, not to mention response latency grades from 60ns to 150ns. Usually 70ns FPM will work in a 486.
Watching the first few seconds of video I see you have quite an early board with 30-pin SIMMs, which each provide 8 bits width to the data bus. Since the 486 is a 32-bit bus CPU (unlike the 386 it was never made in a 16-bit bus variant), you always need 4 identical SIMMs together. If you had a board that took 72-pin SIMMs, which have 32-bit width each, you'd be able to try just one like you are.
The effect of fitting just one SIMM in this machine would be to provide storage only at one out of every four bytes in sequence. Software just isn't written to cope with that on the PC.
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
|
show 3 more comments
Here is a reference to BIOS beep codes. For American Megatrends, look under AMI. 3 beeps means the low 64K failed - a very basic test - which probably means the RAM isn't working at all.
You should first check whether the RAM is compatible with your machine. At that time, there was a lot of variation - 5V vs 3.3V, 30-pin vs 72-pin, EDO vs FPM, not to mention response latency grades from 60ns to 150ns. Usually 70ns FPM will work in a 486.
Watching the first few seconds of video I see you have quite an early board with 30-pin SIMMs, which each provide 8 bits width to the data bus. Since the 486 is a 32-bit bus CPU (unlike the 386 it was never made in a 16-bit bus variant), you always need 4 identical SIMMs together. If you had a board that took 72-pin SIMMs, which have 32-bit width each, you'd be able to try just one like you are.
The effect of fitting just one SIMM in this machine would be to provide storage only at one out of every four bytes in sequence. Software just isn't written to cope with that on the PC.
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
|
show 3 more comments
Here is a reference to BIOS beep codes. For American Megatrends, look under AMI. 3 beeps means the low 64K failed - a very basic test - which probably means the RAM isn't working at all.
You should first check whether the RAM is compatible with your machine. At that time, there was a lot of variation - 5V vs 3.3V, 30-pin vs 72-pin, EDO vs FPM, not to mention response latency grades from 60ns to 150ns. Usually 70ns FPM will work in a 486.
Watching the first few seconds of video I see you have quite an early board with 30-pin SIMMs, which each provide 8 bits width to the data bus. Since the 486 is a 32-bit bus CPU (unlike the 386 it was never made in a 16-bit bus variant), you always need 4 identical SIMMs together. If you had a board that took 72-pin SIMMs, which have 32-bit width each, you'd be able to try just one like you are.
The effect of fitting just one SIMM in this machine would be to provide storage only at one out of every four bytes in sequence. Software just isn't written to cope with that on the PC.
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
Here is a reference to BIOS beep codes. For American Megatrends, look under AMI. 3 beeps means the low 64K failed - a very basic test - which probably means the RAM isn't working at all.
You should first check whether the RAM is compatible with your machine. At that time, there was a lot of variation - 5V vs 3.3V, 30-pin vs 72-pin, EDO vs FPM, not to mention response latency grades from 60ns to 150ns. Usually 70ns FPM will work in a 486.
Watching the first few seconds of video I see you have quite an early board with 30-pin SIMMs, which each provide 8 bits width to the data bus. Since the 486 is a 32-bit bus CPU (unlike the 386 it was never made in a 16-bit bus variant), you always need 4 identical SIMMs together. If you had a board that took 72-pin SIMMs, which have 32-bit width each, you'd be able to try just one like you are.
The effect of fitting just one SIMM in this machine would be to provide storage only at one out of every four bytes in sequence. Software just isn't written to cope with that on the PC.
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
edited Aug 5 at 20:51
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
answered Aug 5 at 20:43
ChromatixChromatix
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
1,1169 silver badges8 bronze badges
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
|
show 3 more comments
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
3
3
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
Thanks, that did the trick. One a sidenote, is there a way to tell who manufactured this board there isn't any indications on the board
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 21:02
5
5
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
The most reliable reference will be the FCC certification ID, which should be printed on the board somewhere. You can look that up in the FCC's database.
– Chromatix
Aug 5 at 21:04
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
@yanagibashi MB ID is usually printed on a sticker placed on the lowest PCI or ISA slot (closest to the edge of MB). In some cases its not visible without side view (by using mirror or by removing the MB from case)
– Spektre
Aug 5 at 22:48
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
If you got the BIOS running, look up the BIOS ID which should be printed after POST.
– Igor Skochinsky
Aug 6 at 6:03
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
@yanagibashi That "sidenote" would have been more valuable to all if it was posed as a separate question.
– Keeta
Aug 6 at 11:55
|
show 3 more comments
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Base 64K RAM failure. Try a different memory stick in the lowest memory slot.
– Mick
Aug 5 at 20:30
@Mick Already tried that :/
– yanagibashi
Aug 5 at 20:32
Does the motherboard look OK?
– wizzwizz4♦
Aug 5 at 20:41