memory issue on eMac

gallantman

My eMac is hanging a lot recently - though it might be a memory issue. eMac says I have 512 mb of memory on a 1.25 GHz PowerPC G4.

I also used the scan function on crucialmemory.com and it confirmed I had two slots i.e. 256 x 2.

When I opened the eMac up I have two different brands of memory - one is KTA-G5333/512 (and the other clearly states its 256 of memory).

When I google tKTA-G5333/512 it seemed to indicate this is in fact 512mb of memory. I removed the 256 of memory, left in the KTA memory, booted up the eMac and re-scanned - again said I have 256 of memory.

Could half of my memory card be corrupted i.e. 256 of the 512 KTA card is broken or can it only be a case of "all or none" ?

gallantman

Thanks Betafrog, so it looks like I do not have a memory issue.

Not sure where to go from here. Yesterday I had to reboot it about 6 times as it seemed to freeze ever time I got in - couldn't even open an application.

Today, after I took the memory out for a look, it seem to work better. I could open Firefox and scan the memory. But later when I opened Disk Utility it froze again. Also froze when Mail was downloading new emails.

What else might be causing this problem ? Or what can I do to identify the problem ?

-gm

Sad Professor

gallantman wrote: »

What else might be causing this problem ? Or what can I do to identify the problem ?

Do what betafrog suggested above. Definitely sounds like a RAM issue to me. Make sure both chips are installed correctly as well - i.e. that they fully click into place.

gallantman

Hi,

Took me awhile to get back to this again. Tried as suggested and played around with the RAM. Tried the RAM in different slots, on their own etc but it still hung !! No one piece of RAM stood out as being a problem or a particular slot.

So to be on the safe side I ordered a new stick of RAM - 512 MB. Installed it but still haveing the problem. For example, booted up eMac and opened MAIL and it hung. Or went into System Profile and it hangs.

So if you have any other suggestions it would be appreciated.....

gallantman

And back to this again !!.....ended up bringing it into a shop to get fixed - apparently the logic board is gone and not worth fixing...

Not sure what to do....I guess I can do without it as I have a Powerbook but I was a bit suprised.

Is it hard / costly to replace a logic board myself ?

Also how hard would it be to get the info off the HD ? I have done something similar before with a PC - i.e. put it in another PC as a slave drive etc but not sure how to go about this with an eMac.

Any comments would be appreciated.

GM

Sad Professor

gallantman wrote: »

Is it hard / costly to replace a logic board myself ?

Very costly, yes. Usually not worth it, probably more than the machine is worth.

Also how hard would it be to get the info off the HD ? I have done something similar before with a PC - i.e. put it in another PC as a slave drive etc but not sure how to go about this with an eMac.

Getting the HDD out of an eMac is a bit of an operation unfortunately. See here (further down the page):
http://lancej.blogspot.com/2006/01/macintosh-upgrading-700-mhz-emac.html

But once it is out you could put it into an external enclosure quite easily.

Is the machine dead? If not, could you start copying the data to an external drive?

gallantman

Thanks,

Its not dead but its hit and miss as to when it hangs.....I'll try to copy.

I'm in a bit of shock !!!.......its a great m/c and suddenly gone !!!!

GM

Sad Professor

Yeah, hard luck. There was a lot of logic board problems with the 2003 and 2004 eMacs. Apple had a repair programme, but it's almost certainly over now.

If you have trouble copying files, try booting up in safe mode by holding shift on startup. It might be a bit more stable.

Have you had the eMac since 2004?

gallantman

Thanks for that tip.

2004 ? Probably - its our second m/c - the main one is the Powerbook so it does not get a lot of use but handy to have in the corner....both used in the business.

The Powerbook is great - I don't think it has ever hung on me or any of the usual Window type issues - only issues are hardward issue due to bumps and knocks !!

Presume its too late to go chasing Apple ? Probably not worth the hassle - but they might give me an iPad for my troubles !!!

GM

Sad Professor

Well, if you have had it since 2004 that makes it about 6 years old. It's unfortunate that the logic board problems showed themselves when it was too late, but even if they hadn't, 6 years is a great run for any machine. I have a Dell in the other room whose logic board died after a year and half.

Way too late to go after Apple. 3-5 years is the reasonable expected life-span of any computer. I'd be very happy with 6 years.

I would recommend always having a backup drive, especially if you are using it for business.

ZENER

You could try booting the eMac in Target Mode ? Hold down the "T" as soon as you switch it on. Then connect it to the Powerbook with a Firewire cable. The drive in the eMac should appear on the desktop of the Powerbook. You might be lucky enough to get it to operate long enough to get your data from it ?

The eMac suffered from dried out caps causing the supply lines to fluctuate or carry noise to the logic. It's a pain to dismantle though ! Best left to someone who knows what they're doing.

Hope this helps

Ken

Iomega Man

I'd safely say that this is your problem,seen it before.
Can,t remember which caps are to blame,I think it was two of them.
From what I remember,if you take off the cover you'll be able to see the offending caps(usually the tops of the caps will be bulging).

http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=2071244