Will Dell send someone out to fix headphone jack noise problem?

Will they??

 

Not sure they can.. From what others have expressed on this forum I am inclined to think the issue is a design flaw in the MOBO. Dell themselves have included a creative sound card on the 1520 configuration web site. That would be setting up some kind of alarm bells if I had just received a 1520. Sorry I can't offer something pleasant to offer.. But everyone on this forum is generally just going to either deal with it, or go another option, such as expresscard soundcard, usb, bluetooth etc.. I think one person actually did get a replacement for this issue and the issue remained.. Its kind of catastrophic at this point.. it seems.

 

Gold Plated Connectors Are The Answer!

 

If their product is not working correctly, then shouldn't Dell fix it?

 

Dell will send someone out. They sent a tech out with a motherboard and a set of speakers, but after replacing those parts the feedback was still there. A member of there callback team agreed to send me a dedicated audio card to try to solve the problem.

They tried to tell me that the problem was a result of the audio drivers and they should have a new version out soon.

 

That isn't true. You yourself said you don't even have a 1520. I have gold plated connectors on my cheap headphones and it still buzzes.. I have expensive Sennsenheiser headphones that have silver plated connectors and it still buzzes.

 

Theres not much they can do short of desoldering the jacks and replacing them, And even that might not fix the problem, As its effecting everyone Its not like they can just give you a new one because it will have the same issue unfortunately. Your choices are send it back (You have a 15 day grace period) Or buy a USB/Expresscard sound card.

 

Dell will replace the motherboard as a whole, but it didnt solve the problem for me. If you push dell should give you an express sound card. The model number that i received is X-Fi Extreme Audio Notebook Sound Card, dell part number A1164635

 

Nothing a class action lawsuit couldn't fix.

 

Class action lawsuits are pricey, And against a massive corperation like Dell probally would cost a metric assload of money. Push for the expresscard if you decide to stay with the dell, Personally I would rather USB to keep the one decent expansion port on these machines free for something better.

 

That seems a little extreme. The problem is apparent right away and not occuring after the warrenty period is up. You have the option to return it or deal with it.

 

You also have the option to call Dell and tell them that their product is faulty. Don't sit there and deal with it. You paid a lot of money for you laptop and you deserve to have every component working properly.

 

Well, I don't think that Dell really wanted any of this. And their customer support has been excellent for me and many others on this site. There is no doubt, that Dell knows about this now. And that they will fix the problem. Hopefully for those that have bought early, it can be fixed with a driver. But if its the MOBO, then using other options is the way to go. I would also agree that asking Dell nicely for the express card soundcard is the way to go. If it were me, I would ask for that or tell them I will send the system back since they cannot correct the sound. I think if you put it that way, they would rather give you the express card then go through the pain of you sending back the notebook.

However, it does seem odd that they did not discover this issue in development. Is it possible that the prototypes did not have this issue? And when they went into production something else changed? Since I have not heard this buzzing sound myself... and probably never will, its hard for me to know how serious it is. But it does seem quite serious.. I know I probably would not like it since I am into music listening etc.. that would drive me nuts.

 

Will bluetooth headphones solve the problem?

 

You can fix the issue if you turn on the option "run hlt command when OS is idle" in RMClock.

 

IDK what makes my radioshack headset different, but they get no interference at all, they are about a year old and were $20.

 

ok i don't mean to sound rude, but can you stop with that crap answer? you posted it so many times... i, and many others, are using high quality gold plated headphones and still have the issue. just because one of your gold plated headphones works, doesn't mean it's everybody's answer.

 

The RMClock fix does get rid of the morse code sound for me. There's still static, but I'd call this bearable.

 

Hows the decision between the G1S and the 1520 going Stella?

 

I'm really leaning towards the 1520, honestly. The Asus has a slightly faster processor, better graphics performance, no headphone jack noise, and a better DVD writer (it also has Bluetooth and wireless N, which are completely optional bonuses for me). The 1520 wins in price, keyboard, solid feel, warranty, HD size, and webcam. The screens are identical as far as graininess but the G1S screen has much worse light leakage. I may go to Best Buy this weekend and see who manufactured that gorgeous screen I saw there. I can overclock the 1520 and get the same performance as the stock G1S, but I would be scared to overclock the G1S since it wouldn't be covered by warranty if I blew up the GPU. The 1520 has complete care.

 

the complete care covers accidental damage, It probally wouldnt cover intentional damage like overclocking, Though its tough to prove you were overclocking in any case. I didnt realise the G1s has a poor quality screen. Dosent the G1S come with 2 year warranty with free express shipping to repairers?. Also out of curiosity have you considered the V1s? It will be the same price as the G1s and I expect the graphics cards performance to be about the same as the dells if not better considering the 512mb of Vram.

 

For me the noise only happens when I am not doing anything that really uses sound. Like lets say I'm sitting on the desktop with AIM open and I have my headphones on, then I hear it. But, when I am playing a game, it's perfect. When I listen to music, I don't really notice it either but I think it's still there. So it doesn't seem like too much of a problem for me. I just won't have my headphones on while I'm not using sound... Makes sense!

 

So, has anyone had the noise, called up Dell, and a guy came over to fix/try to fix it?

 

My understanading is that damage from overclocking would still be accidental, since of course I didn't intend to damage my notebook. I was also told that damage from replacing parts/upgrading would be covered. Basically, unless you are intending to damage your notebook, an accident is an accident. Maybe it would be a bad idea to take my notebook with me snorkeling, but if I did, and if I wasn't intending to damage it, it is covered. That's why the Dell warranty is so darn appealing! The Asus does come with a two year warranty with overnight shipping, but I've heard they have the typical issues with a mail-in warranty, such as having the computer come back scratched or missing screws, so I'm reluctant to mess with that for something like replacing the screen.

Yes, I was *very* disappointed in the G1S screen, especially after seeing a really nice one. However at this point I'm inclined to think that 99% of 1680x1050 screens are grainy so I'm just going to have to live with it. I expect the V1S to have the same screen issues. Unfortunately, even if it doesn't, I can't wait for it. I have to be available for my work just about 24/7, and sharing my boyfriend's laptop for a month just wouldn't cut it (believe me, we tried for two days and it was not fun, lol).

 

Could you please show me how to get to the step below? I am using Vista Business, and the sound is really annoying. Thanks.

 

Thank you very much.

This is a dramatic improvement although it means that RMClock must always be running, or at least as long as I'm using headphones/external speakers.