Studio 15 media sensitive button problem

Yes. They probably decided to completely remove it.

On a side note, my brothers 1525 has touch sensitive media buttons as well, so it's a bit weird for me, they couldn't fix this issue for months now. Weird..

 

It's true, the Studio 1555 has no touch-sensitive media buttons. All of their previous functions have been re-mapped to Fn and the F-keys.

 

My 1537 is going back to the depot for repairs.
I got it March 19th and after:

1) reseating hinge cover
2) updating bios to A08 and QuickSet A00
3) replacing hinge cover with new one from dell
4) re-applying bios A08 and QuickSet A00

same problem with Media buttons/Keys, ie they don't work
initially on cold startup or returning from an extended sleep mode.
Volume diplays and spikes or eject button lights up and ejects a
few times. After that, all is fine.

I'm giving them one shot, and if it comes back with the same
problem I am demanding a 1555. I only had the thing 5 weeks!

 

All Studio 1535's and 1537's have that sticking eject button on startup. My hinge cover has been replaced twice and I have A06, the latest 1535 BIOS.

Tip: before you start up, remove the battery and unplug the AC adapter. Press and hold the power button as though you were going to turn the system on, and hold it for 30 seconds or so. Plug everything back in, and when you start, it should not stick that time.

 

I wouldn't say ALL... I hear mine eject *twice* on a cold boot, but beyond that, the light never stays on or sticks.

*knock on wood*, I might have gotten lucky

Just my .02...
--Eric

 

That is really lucky, then. I don't think I know anyone else who doesn't have this.

 

Yeah. Now thats not to say it won't creep up at some point, but for now, I seem to have been spared. *knock on wood*. I've had this machine now for, what, 3-4 weeks... and so far so good (except for the hard drive noise still bugs me, but I'll get around to replacing that at some point).

Just my .02...
--Eric

 

Hard drive noise...do you have a 5,400 or 7,200 RPM?

 

5400, a Hitachi 320gb drive. I posted a thread about it when I first got the machine, I thought it was the fan running constantly, cuz its a "whirrrr" noise... but after further investigation, I realized it was the HDD. Its not *that* loud, but in a quiet room (like when Im trying to do homework), it starts to get on my nerves after a while. Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Just my .02...
--Eric

 

Have you tried enabling HDD Acoustic Mode in the BIOS? Costs a bit of performance, but then again, 5,400RPM is not exactly a performance-oriented drive anyway.

My 1535 has a Western Digital 320GB 5,400RPM drive. I'm thinking about buying an e-SATA enclosure and putting this drive into that, and using it as an external. Hard drive noise doesn't really bother me, so I would like to upgrade to a 7,200RPM drive.

 

Yeah, you mentioned that BIOS option in the other thread, and I looked for it -- unfortunately my BIOS looks very different from yours, and I have a lot less extra features that I can enable. Which is very very bizarre. I still haven't figured that one out yet.

Regarding access noise, this Hitachi drive is VERY quiet... I never hear it being accessed, even when I am hitting it really hard. It just has a constant "whirrrr" sound it produces... which, I read reviews of this drive on NewEgg, and some other people report the same exact thing. So, it must just be a peculiarity with this particular model.

I have some graduation money coming in pretty soon, and I've been thinking about blowing some of it on a SSD. Then my roommate can buy this 320gb off me and put it in his PS3. We both win, in that situation

Just my .02...
--Eric

 

That's a really neat idea...I wish Microsoft weren't so stingy about their hard drives. With a PS3, you can just use any 5,400RPM SATA hard drive. On the 360, there's only three models that work; the 20GB, 60GB, and 120GB models that Microsoft chose to support, and they charge close to $200 for the 120GB model!

It's possible to change it yourself, but you have to buy the exact model hard drive that Microsoft uses for the 120GB (it's a 5,400RPM Western Digital SATA drive, costs maybe $50 on the 'Egg.), and then you have to flash it with a custom firmware to make it Xbox-compatible, and then disassemble the existing enclosure, remove the current 20GB drive and put the 120GB in.

It's a real pain in the butt compared to the PS3, and there is no way to use any drive larger than 120GB because Microsoft has not officially supported it. I think I may try to do this mod myself, though. If you look at the model on Newegg, like 90% of the reviews are about modding it to work in a 360.

 

Oh my. I am now frustrated. After installing the 64-bit OS, neither of the eject buttons work 2 minutes after I am at the desktop. I have to go to my computer and click eject. At that point in time my computer has a cow and locks up. I now have to force shutdown by holding the power button. Yay. Great fun. Unfortunately, since I do not have the AMD board anymore, I can't get technical support. Looks I am on my own delving into the world of eject problems. Wish me luck. -_-

 

So basically it's doing the exact same thing as mine?

 

Good news! I spent the last 45 minutes with a kind rep who decided to help me just this once. We disabled some startup programs and voila! Oddly enough, no more eject problems. I am now going through the list and it appears that Windows Defender and Software Manager could be the culprits. At this point I am not going to find out which one it is because I can live without either of them. Before doing this, she updated my Quickset software which did not help. It is nice to have the most recent software though. I hope someone else might find this helpful. I never would have thought that a software conflict would stop my hardware buttons from functioning. Go figure.

 

What is this "Software Manager"? I ran msconfig and looked into my startup processes and disabled Defender, but I'm not seeing any Software Manager.

 

It was news to me also. I have NO CLUE what that program is. At first I thought it was spyware. It is by a company called Macrovision. I don't recall seeing anything like this on my install. Weird. You might check your Program Files folders for Macrovision.

 

No Macrovision folder in either Program Files or Program Files (x86).

I suppose if this actually turns out to be a software conflict, then I'll feel pretty bad about Dell coming to replace my motherboard this week.

Although if I end up getting an updated 1537 motherboard, I suppose I won't complain. ^_^

EDIT - so much for that. I disabled Windows Defender and everything else I could think of. The only processes I have selected to start up are these:



I know for a fact RightMark doesn't make a difference; this started happening long before I ever heard of it.

 

There were links posted at post #189 by KingRaptor and at post #191 by BigD that pointed to pictures of tape covering over certain contacts of the ribbon cable in order to block out the media direct buttons but not disable the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Hard Drive activity lights. These two people, however have the tape over different contacts. Which of the links has the correct contacts to cover up?

 

The media buttons require several contacts to work. If only one of the several are covered, none of the buttons work. The idea is to leave the right ones exposed (i.e. the indicator ones) and cover up some/all of the ones that related to the media buttons (which then disables all of them completely.)

 

Interesting...so if you cover one of the button contacts, then all of the buttons will cease to function?

 

But there is still a question/problem then, KingRaptor. In the link you posted, where the original poster had labelled certain of the contacts as the Wi-Fi, Blue Tooth, Hard Drive, and ground, he obviously avoided covering those contacts as he wanted those indicator lights to still function. In the other link given by BigD, the original poster is covering up the contacts for the Blue Tooth and WiFi (that is if your original poster was correct). Have you verified which picture to follow for covering up contacts which still maintain the indicator lights for the Wi-Fi, Blue Tooth, and Hard Drive?

 

shroom: Yes, that is correct.
zajacz: I actually didnt do either. My cable broke when I rerouted it. However, it only broke one of the 10 wires inside. It was one of the wires covered by the poster I linked. My WiFi, bluetooth, and hdd lights are all still working although none of the media buttons work anymore. This supports my observation that breaking one of the contacts for the buttons disable all the buttons.

 

I talked to Dell Tech Support and had them send me a replacement "Hinge Cover" for my Studio 1537. I installed the replacement cover and it fixed my audio problem. Now it just keeps the EJECT icon lit up until I boot into Vista. Then about 5 minutes later, it tries to eject my drive about 3-4 times and then I regain control of the panel. I already did 2 cold boots to test it (waited at least 2 hours for it to "reset") and the audio no longer increases by itself. Dell didn't even want the old cover back.

I recommend you play musical hinge cover with Dell until you get one that works the way you want it, because it seems to me like an engineering flaw.

 

I'm on my third hinge cover right now, and they've all behaved identically. They all have have sticky eject buttons on startup, and none of them have had the volume button stick too.

 

That's the exact reason why I'm not gonna bother asking Dell to send me a replacement. I honestly don't think it will make any difference.

 

It fixed my audio button issue, so I considered it fixed. It's either that or go back to getting surprised by loud audio in the morning.

 

I think the volume button glitch only affected very early models of the media panel. I've had four different panels, none of which ever had any issue with the volume. It was all in the eject button. And I've got a fifth on the way.

 

How do you get them to keep sending you so many hinge covers? They are sending me my first replacement right now but they want me to return my old one once I receive the new one and at first wanted to send my whole computer to a repair depot in order to replace the DVD writer but I refused.

 

I just use the online chat with tech support...I told them my issues, and they asked me if I wanted a technician or if I was comfortable installing myself, and I had them just ship the part. The box didn't have a return label, and the invoice said no defective part return was needed.

Anyway, the new panel didn't fix it, so I told Dell, and they thought I just got another defective panel, so they sent me another media panel to install myself, once again with no request to return the defective one. And once again, it didn't work.

So, after telling tech support about it, they agreed to send out a technician with a new DVD drive and another freaking media panel. Anyway, the tech was here yesterday, and swapped the stuff, but this time he took back the old DVD drive and media panel to ship back to Dell. The box of parts did have a UPS return label this time.

So, the issue is still not resolved, and now Dell has another technician on the way sometime this week with yet another media panel, DVD drive, and this time, a new motherboard.

 

Ah great! I should really do more research before buying things, but the problem is - there is no equivilent spec for the price point. I got my Dell 1537 from TESCO for £479, last Monday.... I experience the volume problem which affected my ability to reboot, so I forced a shut down which caused Vista to repair and go back to last known good config!! I had it 3 days and it done it twice. So Day 4 I took it back and exchanged it for a new one.

(I hadn't come across this thread, only the one about the volume!)

It seemed that the first laptop they gave me had already been used, as there was some wear on the media bar and no plastic covering on the rest, like this one I'm on now...

Today, Day 3 of the new laptop - and I've just experienced the Eject problem a couple of times.

WHY WHY WHY!!!!

I bought this laptop because of the spec. 4GB RAM with this processor is hard to come by! AND with Firewire!!

I'm going to Ibiza next Sunday for Summer so really don't have time to mess about. I'm hoping to get some DJ work which is why I opted for this machine. But now I'm not confident the laptop will do the job!! I could go back to TESCO and get a full refund.... BUT what would I spend the money on!!?? I need a decent laptop!!!!!! (Also going to be doing some filming and video production, plus web/graphic design on the side....... Hence needs FW & big RAM nice screen big HDD)

TBH, I think I would prefer to completely disable the media bar I don't like it anyway... and I don't require any of the functions. But I would certainly want to keep the WIFI & HDD status lights working...... Any thoughts???

 

The laptop will be just fine. The eject button sticking only happens on startup, and I've never seen it last more than 10 minutes. It affects virtually all Studio 1535 and 1537 models. It's annoying, but certainly isn't a dangerous issue.

If you bought the Studio 15 for the specs and price, then keep it. It's why I bought it, and the closest thing I could get for my needs besides this is an XPS M1530, which is far more expensive.

If you want to disable the media buttons and leave the status lights, check out this: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=4740021&postcount=189

There's a link to the Dell community forums there, with details on how to alter the ribbon cable to block functionality of the media buttons but still allow the status lights to function.

 

The DVD is a PITA to swap.

 

Yes, I heard you basically have to dismantle the entire thing to get access to the optical drive.

 

Yep, the reason is the chassis (magnesium?) blocks the access to the DVD drive. In order to remove the chassis, you have to dismantle everything. IMHO, this is the most idiotic thing I've ever seen. The slot load is also a POS. They should have retained a modular optical drive design ala the Inspiron line.

Besides installing software or watching a movie, I have no use for an optical drive. Even my car now has a USB port, so flash drives FTMFW!!

 

Yeah, word. I only use the optical drive to install the OS. Now you can do that with 4GB flash drives...I'd much rather use the optical disc drive space for an extra battery or extra HDD. If blu-ray doesn't catch on and become cheap, there probably won't be an optical media to replace DVD's once they go the way of the floppies.

 

I watched the technician the other day as he took everything apart to access the DVD drive to replace it.

You really do have to disassemble everything. He even had to remove the entire display!

 

See, I could do that myself too but it's the putting it all back together that really gets me...

I actually completely dismantled an old hp zv5000 two years back, but that was because it was broken anyways and I really had nothing to lose. I just don't feel comfortable doing that on a current system that's mostly working.

 

Are you kidding!? I do it for fun! I love to see the innards of my computers. 2 weeks ago I completely dismantled my Studio for the purpose of changing out the motherboard. It's nice to know the computer inside out and besides, when I get sent a replacement part I like to have the satisfaction that I fixed it.

 

That's a good point...but I really don't want to void the warranty and be left out to dry. Believe me, when this warranty expires in a few months, I will thoroughly learn the parts of my Studio...

 

I don't mind taking apart an old laptop. But a new laptop that still has 18+ months on its warranty? I don't think so!

BTW so far the media panel/hinge cover hasn't given me any problems other than the 3-4 ejects after a cold boot. You don't realize how grateful I am for not having the audio maxed out on a random basis.

 

I dare you to try using a 64-bit OS and then tell us your good news.

 

Hi, new in tread ..
My laptop is 1537 Mike Mine design, CPU T9400, BIOS A03, 1 week old.
When I buy Laptop there is NO problem with eject Button. But some time FREEZE with black screen, when going on after STAND BY. Then I flash bios with A08 and laptop not freeze anymore. But now I have problem with eject button. Then I read ALL 25 pages from the forum. Make some test. Flash again with A03 BIOS and eject problem disappear, but laptop again freeze with black screen. Now flash again with A08 – no freeze, eject problem.
I think that problem is with panel with capacitive button, but decision is with bios. Now I’m going to holiday and return on 7.5. 2009. AND open laptop to fight with it . I think we must wait for new BIOS and thing is put in order.

 

Yeah, hopefully the next BIOS update will take care of things. Dell recently told me that a new BIOS revision is in the works, to be released some time next week.

 

I really don't want to ruin your hopes, but I recall reading totally the same thing, posted by a guy 1-2 months ago, maybe on Dell forums. Later today I will go check it for you.

 

Really? If you can remember where that was, would ya mind posting a link to the thread?

If it turns out not to be true, than the tech support manager I spoke to was flat out lying to me, and will certainly get a piece of my mind.

 

True. Rumored that a BIOS update was supposed to fix this issue for the Studio15 & 17 several months ago. Since that was several BIOS revisions ago, I wouldn't hold my breath on the next BIOS (If there are anymore) to fix this problem...

 

I think it's a problem with the BIOS. Let's hope for the best, the tech guy they assigned to my case told me also that some time in early May the new BIOS should be ready (this is in Dell LATAM, different from US), and it was also a customer that had a 1535 and got a 1537 as replacement, but again with the eject problem, so this was reported to the Engineering Dept in the US and the replied that the new BIOS would fix this, and it'd be ready soon (a week tops), let's just wait a bit.

 

He could be talking about me...but I'm sure a lot of people have gotten 1537s for bad 1535s. I told the guy who did my exchange that the problem was very common when one does a search online.

I was at Costco the other day and they had the Studio 1537 on display. I booted it up and lo and behold, sticky eject button... This happened at two different stores too.

 

Haha, they can't even get their display models right.

At Best Buy the other day, I booted up the Studio XPS 13 that they had on display, which was off for whatever reason. It wouldn't POST. >_<