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PowerPC G4 starts to launch, then shuts down

L

LoNicot

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 22, 2012
2
0
My desktop G4 has been working great for years. I recently powered down, then when I powered up, fans turn on, I get the chimes, the grey apple screen, the spinning wheel, then, a minute later, the fans turn off and the whole thing powers down.
With a safe boot, it has the black screen with white lettering and says several things like (forgive me for not being exact - it happens fast) "can't complete .... " and has a few screens of this, then pauses, then says "killing all processes" "cpu done" and powers down again.
I've tried booting from the install disk, and it powers down again. I've removed all peripherals, including extra memory and extra usb ports, same thing. I've plugged into different outlets, same thing. I've reset the little PMU switch, same thing. The little battery measures 3.6V.
Any advice would be appreciated.
 
PowerPCMacMan

PowerPCMacMan

macrumors 6502a
Jul 17, 2012
800
1
PowerPC land
I don't think its CPU.

I think what the problem could be is a faulty power supply.. What G4 do you have? If you have the MDD, then it could be a faulty Front Power Module.. I suspect PSU at this point.

If the CPU was the problem, nothing would come on... no grey screen, no Apple, no chimes, nothing... or you could still get chimes, but a series of chimes, I think 5 of them which means: PROCESSOR IS UNUSABLE.
 
L

LoNicot

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 22, 2012
2
0
so what do I do?

Thanks for all the input.
So, if the CPU is overheating, how do I prevent it from doing so? All the fans seem to be working.
 
rabidz7

rabidz7

macrumors 65816
Jun 24, 2012
1,205
3
Ohio
LoNicot said:
Thanks for all the input.
So, if the CPU is overheating, how do I prevent it from doing so? All the fans seem to be working.
Click to expand...

This might not be worth it, but a liquid cooling system would work wonders. But you can just reapply heatsink paste. If applying thermal paste does not work, then it is time for a new fan or liquid cooling system.
 
Lil Chillbil

Lil Chillbil

macrumors 65816
Jan 30, 2012
1,322
99
California
rabidz7 said:
This might not be worth it, but a liquid cooling system would work wonders. But you can just reapply heatsink paste. If applying thermal paste does not work, then it is time for a new fan or liquid cooling system.
Click to expand...

a liquid cooling system on a g4 would not be a good idea

however I have jerryrigged many a fan system on a g4 using super glue and a clearence fan from fry's electronics:p
 
Zotaccian

Zotaccian

macrumors 6502a
Apr 25, 2012
645
7
Does the situation change if you disconnect the hard disk and then try to boot from install disk?
 
MisterKeeks

MisterKeeks

macrumors 68000
Nov 15, 2012
1,833
28
rabidz7 said:
This might not be worth it, but a liquid cooling system would work wonders. But you can just reapply heatsink paste. If applying thermal paste does not work, then it is time for a new fan or liquid cooling system.
Click to expand...

A liquid cooling system would offer no improvement over air cooling whatsoever. With proper air cooling the system runs fine, so why take the risks of liquid with no possible gain?
 
rabidz7

rabidz7

macrumors 65816
Jun 24, 2012
1,205
3
Ohio
MisterKeeks said:
A liquid cooling system would offer no improvement over air cooling whatsoever. With proper air cooling the system runs fine, so why take the risks of liquid with no possible gain?
Click to expand...

It would run cooler and that would make the entire system last longer and it would allow for overclocking.
 
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