James Kerr wrote:

> Here a weird one I have built a few systems at this point with the DFI
> 586ITBD Mainboard cause it supports the K6 266 with no problems but I got
> one the other day that when I booted up the machine it worked fine but when
> I booted it up the second time the was a song playing from the PC speaker
> and I mean it was playing as soon as I turned it on! I believe the name of
> the song is "fur elisse". Anyway the Mainboard works fine I just have to
> disconnect the speaker before I start having nightmares of ice-cream trucks,
> anybody with any insight as to why the board is doing this would be a great
> help.
>
>     James

  Per

http://www.dfiusa.com/music.htm

(which seems to be poorly indexxed in search engines, but linked
to from DFI's "service and support" page (second item from the top)):


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Help, my computer is playing music, what's going on?

For 586ITBD, 586ITXD, and 586ITOX based systems, see the section below
titled:  "Damage Free Intelligence (D.F.I.)".

For 686IPK based systems, see the section below titled:
"Musical Warning".


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Damage Free Intelligence (D.F.I.)

(586- ITBD, ITXD, ITOX Only)

Damage Free Intelligence (D.F.I.) is a feature we have added
to our newer motherboards to warn users of some classes of hardware
related problems.  It is a warning system on the motherboard that
plays a warning tune if certain hardware problems are detected.

Some users hear strange music coming out of the PC speaker and think
they have been hit by a virus - they scan the hard drive multiple
times and reformat it, but it just will not go away.  The user now
thinks that they have been infected by a virus that no virus scanning
software can detect today.  This is not the case at all.

The standard alarm/tune/music that they may hear is a
variation on "Fur Elise." Our production motherboards use this
tune whereas pre-production/prototype boards may use other
sound chips.

There are three main sets of reasons that the alarm/tune is
playing - Processor, Heatsink/Fan and Power Supply related:

Processor related:
1) processor is missing (insert the processor and set the jumpers), 2)
processor is not seated correctly (check and be sure the ZIF
   socket lever is down), or
3) processor has bent/broken pin (fix or replace processor),
4) processor is malfunctioning/bad (replace the processor).

Heatsink/Fan related:
1) processor does not have a heatsink or fan (add a heatsink with
   fan - all modern processors need it)
2) processor has a passive heat-sink only (add a fan),
3) processor's fan/heatsink simply isn't cooling sufficiently
   (use a larger or more efficient heatsink/fan), or
4) processor is overheating because the fan stopped (replace the fan).

Power Supply related:
1) power supply's voltages do not meet the ±10% specification (use a
   voltmeter to check the +5V and +12V lines, or change the power
   supply to a different model/brand/type)
2) power supply's wattage is too low and cannot meet the system's
   continuous power requirements (use a power/wattmeter to check the
   system's power consumption, or change to a power supply with a
   relatively larger wattage, e.g. 250W or 300W), or
3) power supply cannot meet the transient/instantaneous demand, e.g.
   happens when HDD motor, etc. turns on (use an oscilloscope/DSO to
   monitor the 5V and 12V lines for/during those transient stages).

If they have an AMD K6 or Cyrix/IBM/SGS-Thomson 6x86 processor running
in there, the reason is most likely due to #3 in the Heatsink/Fan
section above - the heatsink/fan may not be sufficient for today's
fast and hot running processors (such as those from AMD and
Cyrix/IBM/SGS-Thomson). Intel's Pentium MMX (and also most classic
Pentium processors) do not run that hot since they are manufactured
under the 0.35 micron process - these require less power and they
generate less heat. Also, Intel's VRT (Voltage Reduction Technology)
further reduces the power consumption (to 2.8V) - so overall, these
Intel processors can use a relatively smaller heatsink/fan combo than
the other processor brands/types.

This sound can be intermittent or continuous. If there is one or two
quick beeps/notes, typically at boot-up, it is safe to ignore it. If
it is not during boot-up or if there's a continuous music/warning,
then there is something that is definitely not correct and it must
immediately be checked or serviced. (See above for the troubleshooting
info.) (Revised 10/6/1997)


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Musical Warning

(686IPK Only)

The 686IPK of course supports the Intel Pentium II processor. The
Pentium II processor comes in two packages: Boxed Processor and OEM
Processor. The Boxed Processor (BP) is the one that we always ship in
our systems (we do not use the OEM type). The BP type comes with a
built-in heatsink and fan - all from Intel's factory, whereas the OEM
type does not and companies have to select the right heatsink and fan
separately. The BP's fan has 3 wires - power, ground and fan signal.
If the fan stops spinning, then the fan signal/line will be asserted
and our IPK will play a warning tune/music through the small PC
speaker. Yes, it plays music and this is not a virus. So when
customers say they hear sound/music from the IPK system, ask them to
check the processor fan. (Revised 8/14/1997)

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David G