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Tip - Mac Pro fails to boot up, no chime.

I have a Mac Pro (Intel, 2008). Within the last 6 months, a situation with the Mac Pro has occurred twice.

While asleep, or shut down, I press the Power button to start up the Mac Pro leading to the following events:

the graphics card fan runs at full speed.
the LED indicators on the RAM cards all light up red.
the HDD's begin to spin.
the startup chime does *not* sound.
the screen does *not* turn on.
the fan does *not* slow down.

several seconds after pressing the Power button to start up the Mac Pro, it shuts itself down.

it is not possible to reset the PRAM. (the startup sequence does not proceed far enough to allow this to happen.)
resetting the system via the reset button on the mother board does not affect the situation.
replacing the PRAM battery does not necessarily correct the situation.
removing every HDD, RAM card, PCI card and cable does not correct the situation.

this is what has worked for me.

assuming that the Mac Pro is not powered up:

unplug the power cable.
press the Power button for 5 seconds to drain any residual power from the system.
let the Mac Pro sit idle for 12 to 24 hours. (10 minutes simply doesn't do it!)
plug the power cable in.
press the Power button to boot up the Mac Pro.

removing the HDDs, RAM cards, PCI cards and cables may or may not affect your situation.

the first time my Mac Pro booted after this procedure, only 4GB of RAM was recognised by the system. I shut down the Mac, removed and re-inserted the RAM cards and booted the Mac up again. the Mac then recognised all of my RAM (20GB).

hopefully, we'll see a new generation of the Mac Pro this year with *both* firewire and thunderbolt.

cheers all.

Mac Pro, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2), 20GB RAM, ATI Radeon HD 4870

Posted on Jan 20, 2013 1:41 AM

36 replies

Dec 28, 2016 3:59 AM in response to ashley karyl

Here you go Using Apple Hardware Test - Apple Support

wms44

Level 1

21 points

Dec 28, 2016 2:01 PM in response to ashley karyl

I have tried every keyboard shortcut going. Nothing shows on monitor, still no chime.

i am currently desperately trying to create a bootable DVD, because the DVD drive of the broken Mac Pro does try to spin. Just having major issues trying to create a bootable DVD.

Went through the process of creating a bootable USB drive. After following instructions ended up with OS sierra installer on USB drive. I am now installing. Just need to transfer that onto DVD assuming I use ISO method...

Dec 28, 2016 2:25 PM in response to wms44

If you have bootable USB drive, why do you need a DVD?

wms44

Level 1

21 points

Dec 28, 2016 3:35 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I Still don't have a bootable DVD, after trying all night to create something bootable I just couldn't work out how to create a bootable USB drive or DVD. After installing I was advised to reboot and that my iMac may reboot a couple of times. This was a little worrying as I was concerned about my current OS on my fusion drive.

As mentioned in my previous post when I power up my Mac Pro I can hear the DVD drive, as if the Mac Pro is searching for OS. Because key board shortcuts don't have any effect I thought perhaps there was an issue with the USB inputs.

AT the end of the day I failed to create anything bootable because I'm not even sure if I am following the correct instructions to insert a DVD that hopefully my Mac Pro will eventually start up from.

Dec 28, 2016 3:47 PM in response to wms44

Just a thought but if you are using a wireless keyboard it may not be connecting in time when you try to startup. Switch to a wired keyboard if possible.

Dec 28, 2016 7:43 PM in response to wms44

If you have another Mac, you use DiskmakerX, a freeware .app that does all the heavy lifting for you. You supply an 8GB or larger USB stick, and a downloaded (but not yet installed) version of MacOS to be placed on the stick. Directions are included on DiskmakerX web site and in the DiskMakerX Application.

The sounds you hear may be caused by the micro-controller in the DVD reader, not by anything the CPU is doing. Put the DVDs away. They are slower, and much more complicated to make and have them turn out correctly (for example, it is really easy to copy the disk image file onto the DVD, rather than making an actual bootable DVD.) A USB stick installer is the way to go, unless you know your USB pathways are not working.

Tip - Mac Pro fails to boot up, no chime.