New iMAC keeps Crashing!!!

[anthp]

Hows it going?? New member here with first post!! Sadly not a good one :(
I just purchased a new iMAC G5 (17in screen, superdrive) computer. Its my first apple computer. Unfortunately the dam thing keeps crashing on my like crazy and sometimes when it crashes it makes a REALLY loud noise that you can hear in the next room. This has been happening at least once a day and its not good. I thought it was memory so i installed 2 gigs worth and that didnt solve the problem. The thing is brand spanking new so there isnt anything installed on it that screwed it up.

It happens whenever it wants. Either the computer is just sitting there with no apps open or at the most a couple of safari windows. It also seems to happen when i leave the computer alone and then the screen turns off. When i go to turn it back on it totally freezes up and you cant do anything.

I should mention that my definition of "crash" here is that the everything freezes and you cant move the mouse cursor or anything and then the loud engine noise comes on. I have been forcing a restart on this thing more then i would have to with windows and i know thats not supposed to be...

I updated the mac software to its latest version and that didnt fix it either. Any help is greatly appreciated seeing that this first experience with apple isnt going so well and it sucks not to be able to utilize the system to its great potential i know is possesses!!! thx in advance!!

[anthp]

And i have no clue whether or not this is software or hardware related hence the reason why its in the general tech section. thx again

[Lacero]

2 things I know that I do will solve this problem 90% of the time. Replace the RAM (again) and do a complete clean re-install of Panther. Do not use any third party apps that mess with system systems.

[jeremy.king]

Fist, take out the memory you added and see if problem persists. You find by searching, that the newer macs are particular about their memory.

Second, if the problem was happening before the upgrade, call Applecare or if its that new, perhaps you could exchange it.

[anthp]

ya it started before the memory upgrade and this problem is the main reason why i even bothered getting more memory in the first place. And for sure im going to call apple, just thought id give a try here seeing that they only work until 9pm here in Canada!!!

[PlaceofDis]

take out the ram as others have said and see if that fixes the issue

you can also boot up from the hardware test cd to see if there are any other hardware related issues

good luck, i hope you get the problem fixed!

[anthp]

i would pop the thing open again but the problem happened before the memory upgrade so it cant be the problem.
but ill give the hardware test a try and ill wait until tomorrow after i call apple to see if ill reinstall panther

[IJ Reilly]

I'm surprised nobody asked you about the sound you report. I've never heard of such a thing, and so I'm extremely curious to know what this sound is. Please describe it and where you think it's coming from.

Also, do you know how to restart in single user mode and run fsck on the disk? This is essential if you've locked up the machine, especially more than once. Disk damage does not heal itself, no matter what kind of computer you're using.

Your problem is almost certainly hardware-related. It could be bad RAM as suggested, but if any sort of mechanical noise is heard I'd strongly suspect a faulty hard drive.

[anthp]

I performed the extended hardware test and it took an hour and 45 minutes to complete but there were no problems with any of the hardware. Took awhile to test the 2gigs of ram. I dont know if thats normal but it did say time will vary depending on how much ram is installed.

And the noise sounds like the fan going nuts and a high pitched noise which im assuming could be the harddrive going crazy too. It actually freaked out my dad cause he thought the thing was going to blow up cause the thing was reving so high. Next time it happens ill try to record the sound and if possible post here in the forum.

[sja]

anthp,

The fan sound you hear is normal. When an iMac G5 crashes with an OS panic, there is no software control of the fans. They will run at high speed, and sound as loud as they do with the Hardware Test CD.

It is entirely possible that during 'cloning' of the hard drive at the factory, something went amiss. You may want to do as others have suggested and reformat the hard drive, tehn re-install the OS from the CDs. Also, remember to repair permissions before AND after loading any additional software

S

[IJ Reilly]

The Hardware Test CD is a good start, but only a start. If it detects a fault, then you know you've got one -- but the opposite isn't necessarily true. Authorized dealers have a much deeper test they can run. I presume you're still under warranty, so I'd go that route.

First, I'd still try running fsck on the disk because almost without a doubt the crashes have caused directory damage -- which as I said, doesn't heal by itself.

I have to disagree with the OS reinstall advice. This almost never fixes any problems, except possibly by blowing them away with a big canon that you didn't need to fire.

[Artful Dodger]

Hi, the time it took to do the test sounds like a long time (almost 2 hrs.). I know with my first iBook (maybe because it's different) but the test only lasted about 10-15mins when I was at the Apple store and I had the ram maxed (see my sig.) and nothing showed up after that just sounds off :confused:
Hope you get it fixed, whatever it is :rolleyes:

[iGary]

RAM

I'd bet my lunch money on it, and I'm hungry. :p

[rainman::|:|]

He installed the RAM after the problem started!

AFTER...

AAAAA
FFFFF
TTTTT
EEEEE
RRRRR

Can anyone read around here anymore. Does anyone bother. Every thread where people ask for help, the responders ignore info in the first post.

SO anyway.
I would suggest it's a hardware problem, you need to have Apple swap some parts out here. I really doubt reinstalling Panther would help, as long as you haven't installed any haxies or nasty system modifications, and it sounds like the only peripherals are mouse/keyboard.

[iGary]

I still say it's the RAM. :p

Seriously, though, give Apple a call, or take it into a reseller/Apple Store.

[vouder17]

maybe you have a lemon..bitter:D. I reckon you should return it to applecare and get a new one.

Peace
DjVoTeZ

[toaster_oven]

sounds like a HD controller (most likely, because of the noise and the fan) issue - the computer needs to be sent in to apple care ASAP... i'm not sure how installing the memory yourself affects your warrenty - does anyone know if it should be taken out before getting apple service? I've always just bought my own memory and taken it in to the apple store to get it installed so i don't know if this is a problem.

but you should definitely take it in...

-TO

[CanadaRAM]

Reinstall the Apple stock RAM before taking it in for warranty - that way there won't be any "excuse" that it's a third-party problem.

[IJ Reilly]

He installed the RAM after the problem started!

AFTER...

AAAAA
FFFFF
TTTTT
EEEEE
RRRRR

Can anyone read around here anymore. Does anyone bother. Every thread where people ask for help, the responders ignore info in the first post.

SO anyway.
I would suggest it's a hardware problem, you need to have Apple swap some parts out here. I really doubt reinstalling Panther would help, as long as you haven't installed any haxies or nasty system modifications, and it sounds like the only peripherals are mouse/keyboard.

Well some of us do read. Though I doubt it's the problem here, good RAM certainly can go bad. It happens (it's happened to me, twice.)

At least we agree on the value of an OS reinstall. That wastes time and almost never helps.

[Sun Baked]

I wonder if he also upgraded to 10.3.8 right before the crashes to rule that out as a cause.

[BakedBeans]

Im not sure how much more i can take of this calling it MAC thing by newbies - this must be the tenth time this week

its clearly a Mac not a media access controller

[/rant]

[blodwyn]

It's tempting to automatically jump to blaming the RAM, but it could be something else. My new iMac was crashing about once per week, and after a bit of browsing I found that there can be a problem with high current USB devices causing the USB driver to freak out and crash the system. I checked panic.log and sure enough, each of my crashes named the USB driver. I now keep my Canon scanner unplugged while I'm not using it, and I haven't had a crash for 2 months.

[mattraehl]

It's tempting to automatically jump to blaming the RAM, but it could be something else. My new iMac was crashing about once per week, and after a bit of browsing I found that there can be a problem with high current USB devices causing the USB driver to freak out and crash the system. I checked panic.log and sure enough, each of my crashes named the USB driver. I now keep my Canon scanner unplugged while I'm not using it, and I haven't had a crash for 2 months.

When I lived in Morocco, the only way to get anything besides a dialup connection was an ADSL connection that used a USB modem. The only time I ever saw my friend's PowerBook kernel panic was if the modem was unplugged while shutting down.

[Vector]

Im not sure how much more i can take of this calling it MAC thing by newbies - this must be the tenth time this week

its clearly a Mac not a media access controller

[/rant]

Wow, i think this is the longest it has ever taken for someone to get mad about a newbie calling it a MAC instead of a Mac. When i clicked on the thread i figured it would be in the first couple of replies, but it took till #21. :rolleyes:

[IJ Reilly]

We're getting more patient. ;)

But not much.

[Les Kern]

Under system prefs go to energy saver and UNCLICK the "put hard disk to sleep when possible. Set the hard drive to sleep either NEVER or after a few hours.
If that doesn't help:
Remove the 3rd party RAM, Do a restore from the original disks. (Change the energy saver settings!)
If the problem continues WITHOUT adding any 3rd party apps or those dreaded "widget" junk piles from download.com, run, don't walk, to an Apple store near you. Being able to reproduce the problem is important, and a call to Apple or even a visit to a store will NOT yield much if there is junk-apps on it and weird ram in it.
You might check out maybe the best Mac site there is, macfixit.com. Look through the forums. I can't count how many times they helped me out.
Good luck, and we're here to help. And by the way, call it a MAC if you want. It's your damn computer. Life's too short to deal with anal retentives. :)

[Mechcozmo]

The fan sound you hear is normal. When an iMac G5 crashes with an OS panic, there is no software control of the fans. They will run at high speed, and sound as loud as they do with the Hardware Test CD.

Right. Macs control their fans rather closely and if they can't, they auto spin at max speed just to be sure.

[Mechcozmo]

Wow, i think this is the longest it has ever taken for someone to get mad about a newbie calling it a MAC instead of a Mac. When i clicked on the thread i figured it would be in the first couple of replies, but it took till #21. :rolleyes:

I wrote this linkety (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=102527) in the hopes that it would help. It has... kinda....

[anthp]

UPDATE:

It is official, my brand new iMac refuses to be fixed. I have done absolutely EVERYTHING and it still wont work. I even did a clean reinstall of the operating system and still nothing. I know get kernel messages telling me to reboot my computer!! It was hilarious actually. Just finished the reinstall and 5 minutes later the kernel message pops up. Ive been on the phone for hours with apple and they even had to upgrade me to a specialist because ive called so many times. Cant be software seeing that ive reinstalled panther and the hardware tests are not coming up with anything. My guess it is hardware but something besides memory or harddrive. Bah, either way its out of my hands now. Hopefully a new one is on its way!

[Platform]

Well after all that troubble and that message only after 5min then I really hop that you get a new one as soon as possible.

Also hope that whatever this problem is, it will be fixed in the Rev B models as well as the other noise issues as well ;)

[BornAgainMac]

When the fans kick off before a crash then that wouldn't be a memory problem so much as a heating problem. It sounds like a lemon. Take it in to be replaced or fixed while it is still under warranty. Memory won't resolve this problem. Usually it fixes problems like crashes if the memory is bad but in this case, it is a heating problem. Probably a defective iMac.

Once the iMac gets replaced or fixed then having 2 GBs is a good thing.

[IJ Reilly]

Like I said, reinstalling OSX is a waste of time. It almost never cures any problems, and not especially the kind you described. The Mac is not like Windows -- OSX hardly ever hoses itself. Honestly, why do so many people insist on going through this step themselves before they'll believe it? <Sigh.>

I tried, anyway. At least you're getting Apple to deal with hardware problem.

[anthp]

ya and the only reason why i reinstalled panther was to make sure it wasnt a software related problem. so its gotta be hardware. oh well. the wait continues...

[anthp]

new update
seems that my brand new computer came with a screw up mid plane assembly......ive got no clue what the hell it is but it has been replaced. Going to go pick it up tomorrow and hopefully all will be well.

[Agathon]

new update
seems that my brand new computer came with a screw up mid plane assembly......ive got no clue what the hell it is but it has been replaced. Going to go pick it up tomorrow and hopefully all will be well.

There's a lesson here.

If your brand new computer doesn't work out of the box, do not mess around with it, do not try this and that. Take it back immediately and save yourself the grief.

[IJ Reilly]

Hear hear! And whatever else you do, do not reinstall OSX.

[Malbase]

I have been using Macintosh computers since 1988 or even before,
(Franklin).
Crashes on OS X.
Apple does not indicate, but from experience if anything was trashed from the original installation such as software, games, other a crash may occur.
You get a bomb noise, and down it goes.
The Computer message is restart but that does not help.
Possibly go to the safe mode, and erase the the disk.
Then reinstall everything, a clean installation.
This is What I know has caused crashes.
Trashing the Quicken Program.
Backup Quicken to anywhere other than My Documents.
Trashing a Backup Quicken.
Other Applications that were dumped. Such as Data material from
Entourage, the Microsoft for Macintosh mail program.
The upgrade 2004 has not caused any problems.
Recommended from one magazine article create a file called a dump file
To determine if the item has any effect. If it does then restore the item.
Also do not move anything out of the Applications File, else you get an alias file.
Possibly 10.4 may correct the problem. 10.3 corrected some problems.
In addition, some software which you may have installed will not work
with a G5 machine. Go over the manuals and specs of anything you added.
I believe Virtual PC which I use for Chess programs not available for Macintosh will not work on a G5 machine. What the effect is on the machine if added has never been indicated.
There are others.
Also Back up your data either daily, or weekly the least. Use an external hard Drive, at least equal or greater to the size of the hard drive on your
computer.
The BEST BET, i am assuming that the product is under warrenty.
So take the machine to an authorized Apple Repair service or to an Apple Store. Let them test the product.
Other damage: Although there are few viruses and hackers on macs,
add a router to your internet connection. Or get Norton's firewall.
I use both. Someone on my cable system, damaged World Book, Quicken.
Fortunately I backed up my documents, and World Book told me how reinstall. My brother gave me the router product.
In effect a break in to your computer from the internet could cause a crash.
Apple techs will know.

[geese]

UPDATE:

It is official, my brand new iMac refuses to be fixed. I have done absolutely EVERYTHING and it still wont work. I even did a clean reinstall of the operating system and still nothing. I know get kernel messages telling me to reboot my computer!! It was hilarious actually. Just finished the reinstall and 5 minutes later the kernel message pops up. Ive been on the phone for hours with apple and they even had to upgrade me to a specialist because ive called so many times. Cant be software seeing that ive reinstalled panther and the hardware tests are not coming up with anything. My guess it is hardware but something besides memory or harddrive. Bah, either way its out of my hands now. Hopefully a new one is on its way!

I reckon its the Ram. Or a dodgy OS X install.