How many of you have had problems with your adapters?

Hey guys, I am just trying to get a gauge on whether or not there is an adapter problem with the M17XR4's or not. I have a few posts buried in these forums regarding my last computer and failing AC adapters and unfortunately i am having problems yet again .

My first M17XR4 started having adapter failures right out of the box, I remember it happening the first time within the first day or two. At the time I didn't know any better and just unplugging the computer and plugging it back in fixed the problem. Several months in it started happening again and more frequently and after doing some research it just appeared to be a faulty adapter. I gave tech support a call and they gladly switched it out and I went on my merry way. About 3 months later the adapter again started to fail ever more frequently then the first so i again called tech support to request a new adapter. Tech Support was helpful but ultimately determined that a motherboard replacement was the next step as another adapter had already been issued and he figured the board was causing the adapters to fail prematurely. A board was shipped to a tech and my appointment was scheduled. What followed was for lack of better terms a nightmare but more so on the techs part then Alienware's. The tech was actually know to me as he does work in my companies data center ... ( I am a tech as well, but due to the fact that if their tech breaks it they have to fix it I have just let him do the work while he tells me I am more qualified then him ) and came out and told me he had no idea how to work on an M17X as he had never seen one. He ended up breaking the power cable to powers the back Alienware head on the LCD. Dell gratiously shipped a new LCD out but something was not done right on the board and the speakers shorted out so I had no sound. Alienware decided it was time for a depot service and I shipped the computer up and sent it out. After about a week and a half the computer came back but although my sound and alien head were working, my alienware name logo was not....it would power on when you first turned the computer on and then promptly shut off and not come back. I called in again and the tech apologized and told me that because of all the trouble they would be processing a brand new system for me, so I was happy with that. I got a few upgrades, better CPU due to the 3610-3630 newer chip and a bluray reader this time instead of just DVD :thumbsup:. The new system was ordered off the website and I waited a few weeks for it to get to me upon which point I shipped the old one back and continued on with the new one.

I should also point out that the replacement system never came with a webcam....it was just an empty hole...and when Alienware dispatched the tech he mangled the bezel and left it full of chips and dents where he pried the bezel away from the LCD . Alienware shipped me a new screen and bezel and I changed them out myself...but still not all that awe inspiring from the tech.

Fast forward to now and I am again.... getting adapter errors as of the last week and a half. I just got off the phone with tech support..and unfortunately this rep was not very helpful or knowledgeable but I will let it pass. After a long time on the phone most of which was spent in silence as she read through prompts we managed to get it up and going again after restarting and unplugging and plugging back in several times. She is going to call back in 2 days to see if it has stabilized although usually it does stay working for a few days before causing grief again.

Basically at this point I am more annoyed then anything else. I am not mad to the point where I am going to lose my cool and start bashing the company because that won't get anyone anywhere but after so many bad service attempts I am really dreading having to get any work done on it again and if they insist on another motherboard replacement I will probably insist on doing it myself.

I guess the point of all of this is to find out if the adapter failure is a common thing? Because this is adapter number 3 for me on 2 different systems.....

When I got my replacement system I hung onto the original adapter from that computer and used it as my spare as I take my laptop back and forth between work and home so I have the option of just using the spare if the original goes dead but at what point do I say enough is enough.

If they chose to replace the system again should I feel justified in asking for an upgrade? Not sure if the people that ended up with upgrades had to ask for them of it they were offered.

Honestly all in all the support over the phone with the exception of the last call I just made has been really top notch, I can't complain at all....unfortunately the tech and depot work has been a little spotty.

 

the original one i got with my r3 is still alive and working just fine. It's starting to get old though and gets pretty warm.

 

I have a M17X R1 with the original 240W adapter it came with. It is working perfectly with no issues and I have been using since day 1 with a QX9300 Extreme CPU Overclocked and had a 260M SLI setup which was overclocked until I upgraded to a 5870M in mid-2012. I have owned this since 2009 and it has been my main gaming rig until I built a desktop a year ago, so the power adapter has seen some heavy usage. There was even a time when I used to play MMORPG's that I would have the laptop running 24/7 and just leave my account logged in the main city lol... would only do a really quick restart every time I got back to game

Do the R3/R4 come with a power adapter lower than 240W? That may be the reason they keep failing, not enough power output I guess. If the plug of the R1/R2 adapter is the same for the R3/R4 then try that out.

 

Nope still the 240W adapter. The only thing I can fathom is that I do move the laptop a lot, back and forth to work so maybe the adapter is getting bumped? I don't know....only thing I can come up with for so many failures.

 

R4 here, never had any problems after approx. one year of ownership. It doesn't even get that hot, even after a couple of hours gaming. It mainly sits still, as the computer is a desktop replacement.

 

I ordered a second power supply to leave at work so I wouldn't have to lug that extra weight around every day and I have had no issues with either one for my R3 that is over 2 years old now.

 

Yeah I have a second adapter for work as well, I leave it at work during the days I work but I bring it home on my days off so that I can use it at friends houses and what not.

As of now, I have just got off the phone with tech support again as the adapter is fubar again. I phoned in with a bit of a chip on my shoulder this time and told him about all the past problems , but explained I wasn't mad at him so he didn't go on the defensive. He immediately offered me a new 17 and assured me they would get this looked after. They don't even want to try to put me through all the depot repair and or hassles that I went through last time. SO chock one up for support, they came through fairly quickly and he assured me that they would look after me.

Hopefully this time I get a problem free machine lol......3rd times a charm right?

EDIT: Does anyone know if the adapters for the M17X and the new 17 are the same? I still have a spare adapter that would be awesome if it would work with the new system.