Thinkpads Forum

My X60s docked to a X6 ultrabase has started beeping randomly. It's the alarm beep you get when you try pulling the undock lever on the base before pressing the undock/eject button. I've checked the contacts on the base and laptop and have pressed the laptop down firmly when docking but does not help. This seems to happen randomly and may not happen for a couple of days and then suddenly while working it would just start beeping as if the base lever is being pulled. It's weird as it would do just one or two beeps then nothing for a while then beep a few more times then nothing for a while then just start beeping continuously until I shut it down or eject it. Pushing down on the laptop does not stop it so I am not sure it's a contact problem. I just completely rebuilt the laptop from the restored factory image (for other reasons) and that hasn't cured the problem so it doesn't seem software related either.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it likely to be a ultrabase or motherboard problem?

Edit: The laptop is running XPSP3.

Possibly a silly question, but are you sure that it isn't caused by the battery running out? Maybe the problem is with your AC (aka "mains") connection being loose, or with your battery being loose, and not being recharged when you are in the ultrabase like you expect.

Phil.

I'm sure it's not battery. I just swapped the ultrabase with the one from my office and the problem moved with the ultrabase. So it seems it's the ultrabase that may have developed a fault.

I'll try cleaning all the contacts and open it up and see if there is anything loose. It's strange in how the problem manifests itself. This morning the laptop just made a single beep. then 15s later made a series of beeps then stopped. Approx 90mins later it made another 4 beeps then stopped.

If it was a bad contact I would have though the beeping would continue, not come and go. The beeping is definitely like alarm when the undock lever being pulled before the eject button was pushed. Maybe the lever contacts are dirty or worn. Do any service documents for the ultrabase exist?

CyberDude wrote:Do any service documents for the ultrabase exist?

No, they do not exist.

OK thanks. I'm sure I'll figure out how to strip it apart. Incidentally, the OS in use makes no difference as it beeps in XP and Linux. Not that I really thought it could be the OS but it's another possibility eliminated.

I have the same issue with Ultrabase X6. It just randomly starts constantly beeping. I have X61s running W7 64bit.

Any new thoughts on that matter?

I had a ultrabase for the X20 that was working, then one day dropped it, and it has been randomly doing the nonstop beeping on its ever since.

I'm extra careful now with my X6* ultrabases