Slow boot-up, scratchy sound and sometimes crashes

Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
edited April 2007 in Science & Tech
Hi all,
This one could be a few unrelated problems or one big problem, I'm not sure.
My sister has a computer with XP Pro (SP2) installed, 1.6 gig processor, 512mb ram, on board sound VIA Tech, Microstar mobo.
Just recently it has started to boot up slower than usual (almost as though it gets to a certain point and struggles for a minute or so). Once it boots the Windows Start Up tune is all scratchy, like it is competing with other applications.
When I check the Task Manager the system resources are peaking intermittently for the first minute or so then they drop down to usual usage. Every now and then, particularly when burning onto disc, the system crashes and reboots. Also, when she plays music in media player the sound continues to play scratchy.
I have looked at all of her startup items and reduced them back to the bare minimum and have also unchecked the "Reboot Windows" box when error occurs so that I can maybe get a BSOD code next time it crashes.
She has recently installed a program call CCplayer that allows you to listen to spoken word files and they seem to play OK. I have tried uninstalling the program but that did not clear up the problem...........now I am at a loss, does anyone have any suggestions???
I look forward to hearing from you.......
Cheers,
B

Comments

  • QCHQCH Ancient Guru Chicago Area - USA Icrontian
    edited March 2007
    Slow boot up could be a hardware related. I'd bet that it might be the memory. Try downloading Memtest 86+ and run it for at least 3 passes.

    A vast majority of members here have used it at least once... I personally can attest to using it well over 100 times. If the memory is dying, it will find it... :thumbsup:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited March 2007
    I will definitely try this, but I should have mentioned that I removed each stick one at a time and rebooted to see if it was ram related. Same thing happened with both sticks installed on their own.
    I also tried a working stick from one of my old boxes on it's own in each slot and same problem. Hasn't crashed during all this, but that is purely because I'm not really giving it a work out until I establish what is causing the boot up and audio problems. I should also mention that when the system first boots up the movement of the mouse pointer is quite static also.
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Finally solved the problem. Turns out it was Hardware related....it was the slave HDD. After removing each card one by one to no avail I unplugged the secondary hard drive and it now works like new.
    Hope this helps anyone experiencing the same problem.......
  • ronboronbo Connecticut
    edited April 2007
    Thats good news Byron because it will not cost much to fix it. Hard drive prices are very low now. At least over here they are....Great job of trouble shooting m8.
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Cheers Ronbo.....BTW when a conflict occurs with a HDD such as this, is it worth persevering with the drive by wiping it clean and reformatting to NTFS or just bin the sucker???
  • ronboronbo Connecticut
    edited April 2007
    I would just save what I can from it if there was anything important on it, and then just toss it. If it failed you once then you can't trust it anymore..Fair dinkum...:ausflag:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Well since we're using the Aussie slang:
    Cheers big ears :D
    :cheers:
    Down it goes big nose
    :beer:
  • ronboronbo Connecticut
    edited April 2007
    Thanks for the reply. I am just off to get a tallie from the fridge as I am as dry as a dead dingos donger.....got any coopers?
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    You've got me on the "tallie" can't say of heard that one :scratch: . But your choice of beer is impeccable......no one should go to their grave without tasting a Cooper's Pale Ale...bloody beautiful. :thumbsup:
    And it's made just down the road from here!!!
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited April 2007
    Run the manufacturer's Quick and Full tests on the suspect drive. If it passes both, check the DMA settings. You might be only a few clicks away from solving the problem without buying a new drive, Cobber. :ausflag:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    I will give this a go.
    Thanks Prof you are the duck's nuts.:cheers2:
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited April 2007
    Byron172 wrote:
    ...you are the duck's nuts...
    I've been called a lot of things in my life, but... ;D
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Glad you liked it........:D
    Anyway, back to more serious stuff, my sister has just informed me that her computer crashed yesterday. This means the initial problem was two separate things (my worst fear realised). So the bootup issue and audio problem is solved, but the crash continues. This crash happened when she was burning to DVD, so I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas?:confused:
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited April 2007
    Whenever I see multiple hardware glitches I am drawn to either the PSU or the RAM as the source of the problem. When you removed the second HD it seemed to make the problem go away, which could have been a result of having less of a load on the PSU. Do you have a reliable spare you could try? :)

    Signed,

    The Duck's Nuts :vimp:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    A spare HD or spare CPU?
    I have a spare HD that I can try but I wouldnt be confident in swapping the PSU. If it is the processor I would probably just get her another tower and whack her HD, DVD burner and PCI cards into it.........
    What do you think D.N.?

    Sorry, I should also mention that when I had both hard drives installed I swapped the drives over and booted from the faulty drive. When it booted I had no problems with the audio or delayed boot up, it did however BSOD, which led me to remove it and solve my initial dilemma..............
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited April 2007
    A spare PSU. They are quite easy to change, if that's what your wondering. Just count every connection you remove on the old one and make sure you reconnect the same number when you put the new one in. All the wires start in the same place on the PSU, so just follow them to wherever they may be connected to something and unplug them from there. The connectors are also keyed such that you can't get them backwards. Four screws on the back is all it takes to physically remove it. Make sure the voltage selector is in the right place and you'll be grinning like a shot fox.

    :ausflag:
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited April 2007
    Run the manufacturer's Quick and Full tests
    ...on the "dead dingos donger." If it still works, you too will be the duck's nuts!

    You lads have made hardware troubleshooting altogether too much fun! :D
  • ronboronbo Connecticut
    edited April 2007
    Byron, if you love your sister just give her your computer and buy yourself a new one. Then go throw another shrimp on the barbie and get a cold Coopers. If you are out of shrimp just make up a banger sanger...:D

    ps...I did get Tim Tams with my first Vegemite shipment but my wife ate them all. I only got to try one piece. She is as cunning as a dunny rat.
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    ronbo wrote:
    She is as cunning as a dunny rat.

    ;D

    Classic..........

    I'll be back with a serious reply once I pick myself up off the floor......;D
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Leonardo wrote:
    ...on the "dead dingos donger." If it still works, you too will be the duck's nuts!

    Hi Leonardo,
    "deaddingosdonger.com.au" no longer offer support for this product. If anyone has the software or knows where I can obtain it please post the link in this thread.:bigggrin:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    OK seriously now...Prof, I will try a PSU changeover, but do I need to check for compatablility with a new power supply or are they all fairly generic? I have a couple of older towers in the shed that I could rip the power supply out of....what do you think?
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited April 2007
    Newer motherboards often have additional small connectors going to the board. Check the following and you should be fine:

    1) Make sure the rated power output (in Watts) is comparable to the old PSU. (Higher is just fine; avoid using a smaller unit if at all possible - it may not work.)

    2) Make sure the spare PSU you try has enough of the right type of connections to replace the ones you disconnect from the old unit. i.e., if the old one has a small four-pin connector going to the motherboard then the new one will need the same. If the new PSU has extra connections with nowhere to plug them in, that's fine.

    Follow these guidelines and there's no way you'll come a gutster. :vimp:
  • Byron172Byron172 Adelaide, South Australia Member
    edited April 2007
    Bloody oath, that sounds like a corker of an idea...well done Prof you little ripper, your bloods worth bottlin'. I don't want to sound like a smart arse, but I reckon I can cope with that no worries..........Good on ya' mate, people like your good self are rare as rockin' horse sh*t........:cheers2:
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