Bios Update - Emachines 270

[turner2000]

Hey,

Wondering if anyone else out there made the mistake of buying an emachines computer and in particular the 270 model.

I am looking for a BIOS update, currently has Phoenix Bios v.6.0 on a TriGem Imperial-GL motherboard v.1.03

I can't find anything from searching on google - the emachines site doesn't even list this computer.

Got this as a cheapy first computer for my nan - wouldn't make that mistake again but hoping someone can help as the CD drives won't read some CD's and I think it is the BIOS.

Many Thanks

-turner2000

[Miz]

If the CD drive sounds like it's spinning up, then down, then up again, then down again and does this a few times before giving up, the chances are pretty good the drive is going bad.

If it starts having the problem only after the computer's been running a while, that's another indication the drive's going bad.

In addition, you say it won't read "some CDs"...another indication the drive is going bad.

The only way to know for sure is to put that CD drive in another computer and see if it does the same thing. If so, a new CD drive is in your immediate future. If the computer is less than a year old, the drive should be replaced under warranty.

Be forewarned...if eMachine says the computer will have to be sent in to have the CD drive replaced, it's not unusual for them to just send you back a whole new tower...probably refurbished from the last customer who sent one in for warranty work. That new tower will have a new harddrive, of course, so the owner will lose any data.

[turner2000]

Thanks for your reply,

I originally thought that it was the CD drive that was going bad so I tried a drive from my own computer that I know works fine but that did the same thing. It spins up and then stops. Then the computer will freeze until you remove the CD.

I don't know what else it can be other than the BIOS - and unfortunately it is over 1 year old, the CD drive has always been touchy but it seems to have become worse.

-turner 2000

[Miz]

I'd suspect the power supply isn't up to the job. Older eMachines shipped with 75 watt power supplies, barely enough to run what what was originally installed on the computer. In addition, those power supply units went bad on a regular basis. eMachine has done a much better job with their system in the last year or so but if yours is older than that, I'd swap out the power supply for at least 250 watts, preferably more.

[turner2000]

Would a power supply cause the CD drive to only read certain CD's or would it not work all the time?

Thanks

[Zglitch]

Yo hear ya there ..... i got emachines 2646 with MoBo-TriGem Computer, Inc. Imperial 1.02 ..... horrble bro ..... dosnt work wit mbm .. or speed fan nothin .... cant figure out temps .... prob dosnt even have sensors for anything the HD however does i got seagate 40 gig ... most decent thing in this system and i put nvidia .. pci 256mb .... gpu .. but im having power problems bottle necking the system thats what i get for buying POS!!!! yo if u find anything get back to me