random 3-second beeps, not from speakers

[scarmichael]

Hi - I checked out the archives and couldn't seem to find anything on this, so apologies if it's been discussed before, but...


I have a new (2 week old) IBM Thinkpad T43.

It make a loud mid-range BEEEEEEEEP (approx 2-3 seconds long) every 20 minutes or so, sometimes more, sometimes less, sometimes not at all. This beep seems to come from the back of the machine - sort of in the area by the power cord, not from the speakers. When I mute the machine, the beep still sounds. It doesn't affect the programs I'm running, I get no error messages, everything else is fine. It's just annoying.

I've called the IBM Support Center and they weren't very helpful.

I looked through the archives and over the past few days have turned off the USB power-saver options in the device manager, and changed the accessibility options so that it doesn't beep. This hasn't helped either. In fact, it just did the same BEEEEEEEP about 5 minutes ago.

Other possibly useful into: running Windows XP Pro, Microsoft Office Pro, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop etc. I don't think this is a software problem, although it does seem to be more common if I've got a lot of windows of high-memory stuff open at once (Illustrator, for example). But it's not all the time. And it'll also happen if I'm not running anything at all.

I've also got an external hard drive that's usually attached (USB) and a USB mouse - these things do not affect the beeping. Same for the AC adaptor or wireless or ethernet connections - still beeps regardless of use/disuse.

Thanks for any help you have!

[scarmichael]

OK - I take it back -
it DOESN'T beep when I'm running on battery power, just when the AC Adaptor is plugged in.

What do I do now? Replace the AC Adaptor, or bring the whole thing in to get looked at? Or just fix something in the BIOS or preferences or something?

Thanks again...

[smugiri]

Sounds to me like it MIGHT be the bios level "Low battery"warning gone berserk. You can try turning this off by right-clicking on the desktop, pick properties, screen saver, then the power option. In the tabs, pick ""Beep/Alarms" and disbale that option. Let us know how that works.

[pipspeak]

Sounds like a loose connection triggering some sort of warning beep. Is it a beep you can replicate by connecting/disconnecting the power cord while the computer's running? Does it do it with the battery removed while on AC power?

My T40 occasionally made a loud "boop" sound from somewhere deep within the machine, usually when the HDD was spinning down. I never found out what that was.

[usual]

my T43 has the same probelm with you

have you found out the problem?

if you have worked it out, please tell me how to fix it.

my email is wanghui1225@gmail.com

thanks a lot!

[davidspalding]

There is an optional BEEP when you change power state ... I think that's controlled in Power Manager.

I second the suggestion ... do you get the same BEEP when you unplug the power brick cord from the TP, then plug it back in?

[usual]

this beep is different from the power switch beep. it hasn't any indication before the beep occurs. Sometimes it happened when I was browsing webpages or something else, and sometimes it just beeped when I was doing nothing to it. Evene I turn off the pc speaker, it dosen't work, the beep must come from the motherboard.

There is an optional BEEP when you change power state ... I think that's controlled in Power Manager.

I second the suggestion ... do you get the same BEEP when you unplug the power brick cord from the TP, then plug it back in?