Can't POST (No Display) due to "Expert Advice"
Jeff34Buff
Lakewood, CO
I am about to get pushed around by three big companies & need some experienced advice - so I don't end up paying for parts I didn't ruin.
<<<<< Those who appreciate brevity should skip to after the colored paragraphs >>>>>
I was using HP's online chat with a tech about my brothers DVD player which has gone dead. I commented that it was almost 4 years old & might have just died a natural death & that he should feel lucky it lasted that longbecause the Lite-on DVD-RW in my HP a730n only lasted about 3 months. Eagerly the HP Tech said it was still under waranty & we could take care of it quickly if I didn't mind staying on line a couple more minutes while he e-mailed me & walked me through the fix.
I had removed it a couple of months ago & stuck in a DVD player I had lying around. I wasn't that hot on the idea because when the DVD-RW died it took the CD-ROM at the same time. So, following the instuctions of the expert I managed to do it again. The tech said it was an easy thing & he knew how it quick and easy. This time the system power-up took-out both optical drives within 2 seconds and then shut down completely. Mr tech generously suggested that there was something wrong with the DVD-RW and I could have it replaced. He told me that if I had managed to kept my reciept I could swap out the DVD-RX at the local COMP America. No big deal.
Upon presenting the DVD-RW to the store, I waited about 20 mins while the guys tested it. Sure enough, it was dead & I was eligble for a replacement (I'd known this for a couple of months). I think as part of the job training the guys in Red Polo shirts are taught to ignore any information not provided by someone with the same shirt. I objected claiming with my reciept from his store, and a print-out of the chat with the HP tech, there was no reason to inconvenience me further. I said the replacement didn't need to be new, just compatible. I didn't feel like driving for another 90 mins and burning up expensive petrol for no reason. He smiled and said that store policy demanded this action. I was even granted a brief audience with the manager who simply repeated the same words (as if they were being read off a card in the palm of his hand). I said OK, I'll be back glancing back to see them congratulate themselves about the speed and efficiency they used in solving this "Customer Service Issue".
I will admit here among friends that the real reason I dreaded returning with the box was that there weren't many parts in it at present. Within a month or so of my purchase I'd added a new Video Card, my Sound Card, my 3.5 Floppy Drive (some of us still use them), 2 Gig of ram I had sitting around, replaced the inadequate power supply & CPU fan & put it into a decent case. The HP case was "somewhere in the basement". I like to re-assemble the stock version & take it in for any needed work a few weeks before the warranty expires. (Y' know it should benchmark as well as the day I brought it home - or somethings wrong with it - right??)
Nevermind the fact that I knew the sensible thing was to simply buy another DVD from New Egg or somewhere for $40 rather than spending all afternoon swapping parts & driving. I couldn't get the vision of those smug faces and polite B.S. I hate to get pushed around like that and couldn't bear the thought of those jerks gloating over how easily they had gotten rid of the ignorant amatuer (Yours Truly). I had 4 hours and figured I could work at a comfortable pace - AND BE BACK BEFORE THESE CLOWNS PUNCHED OUT FOR THE DAY!!
I hadn't troubleshot the crash before leaving to exchange the DVD. After all, the modifications had really worked out well & they hybrid I made had been running almost perfectly since January. The ASUS P5GD1 Overclocked to 3.6 Gig & run for as long as I wanted, the G-Power fan kept the CPU at about 55 Celsius. I had a pretty nice box, my first non-laptop in five years - and I'd spent about $1,000 on the whole package.
But this time it wouldn't boot, wouldn't go into Setup, wouldn't even POST. There was a great deal of anxiety and gnashing of teeth. Lesson #2 "Don't Panic, a COOL Head and calm demeanor will Serve you better in your hour of need."
I believe it won't POST because there is no Video Signal. The MOBO has no integrated graphics so I'm guessing the defective DVD somehow blew out my new X700Pro. I still want to call back ASUS & see if I'm making a simple error that a pro (I've had either good luck or ASUS has some of the best customer service and technical support I've ever experienced). But deep down I know it's the video card. It was the new PCI-Express that got me to open my wallet last winter. I honestly don't know whether I should laugh or cry. I haven't contacted ATI yet to ask about a warranty replacement (?). Nor have I shared this info with the guy from HP yet.
Somehow I don't feel like I should be out $200 for a new card.
Any Suggestions, Strategy, or even a Prediction as to what the future holds for me as I attempt to save my butt. My mortgage is already past due & it will be a month or two before I can save enough to buy a new card. Stepping down is not an option, I'd rather do without for a while than see my performance suffer.
I'm gonna cruise ATI's website & hope they are shocked that their rock solid, durable, reliable X700Pro has failed me and arrange to replace it quickly. I know they wouldn't want their customer switching to nVida (6600GT?) if I have to buy a new card I'll buy it from the other guys.
After all, the main reason I bought the ATI was because I found one in stock, not because I considered it superior. Come to think of it, they even have a trade up program. HHHmmmm, I'm starting to feel more optimistic about things already.
If anyone actually made it through a post this lengthy will probably be to bored to respond, but I'd love to read them - I can use the help.
Keep On Foldin'
Thanks,
Jeff
<<<<< Those who appreciate brevity should skip to after the colored paragraphs >>>>>
I was using HP's online chat with a tech about my brothers DVD player which has gone dead. I commented that it was almost 4 years old & might have just died a natural death & that he should feel lucky it lasted that longbecause the Lite-on DVD-RW in my HP a730n only lasted about 3 months. Eagerly the HP Tech said it was still under waranty & we could take care of it quickly if I didn't mind staying on line a couple more minutes while he e-mailed me & walked me through the fix.
I had removed it a couple of months ago & stuck in a DVD player I had lying around. I wasn't that hot on the idea because when the DVD-RW died it took the CD-ROM at the same time. So, following the instuctions of the expert I managed to do it again. The tech said it was an easy thing & he knew how it quick and easy. This time the system power-up took-out both optical drives within 2 seconds and then shut down completely. Mr tech generously suggested that there was something wrong with the DVD-RW and I could have it replaced. He told me that if I had managed to kept my reciept I could swap out the DVD-RX at the local COMP America. No big deal.
Upon presenting the DVD-RW to the store, I waited about 20 mins while the guys tested it. Sure enough, it was dead & I was eligble for a replacement (I'd known this for a couple of months). I think as part of the job training the guys in Red Polo shirts are taught to ignore any information not provided by someone with the same shirt. I objected claiming with my reciept from his store, and a print-out of the chat with the HP tech, there was no reason to inconvenience me further. I said the replacement didn't need to be new, just compatible. I didn't feel like driving for another 90 mins and burning up expensive petrol for no reason. He smiled and said that store policy demanded this action. I was even granted a brief audience with the manager who simply repeated the same words (as if they were being read off a card in the palm of his hand). I said OK, I'll be back glancing back to see them congratulate themselves about the speed and efficiency they used in solving this "Customer Service Issue".
I will admit here among friends that the real reason I dreaded returning with the box was that there weren't many parts in it at present. Within a month or so of my purchase I'd added a new Video Card, my Sound Card, my 3.5 Floppy Drive (some of us still use them), 2 Gig of ram I had sitting around, replaced the inadequate power supply & CPU fan & put it into a decent case. The HP case was "somewhere in the basement". I like to re-assemble the stock version & take it in for any needed work a few weeks before the warranty expires. (Y' know it should benchmark as well as the day I brought it home - or somethings wrong with it - right??)
Nevermind the fact that I knew the sensible thing was to simply buy another DVD from New Egg or somewhere for $40 rather than spending all afternoon swapping parts & driving. I couldn't get the vision of those smug faces and polite B.S. I hate to get pushed around like that and couldn't bear the thought of those jerks gloating over how easily they had gotten rid of the ignorant amatuer (Yours Truly). I had 4 hours and figured I could work at a comfortable pace - AND BE BACK BEFORE THESE CLOWNS PUNCHED OUT FOR THE DAY!!
I hadn't troubleshot the crash before leaving to exchange the DVD. After all, the modifications had really worked out well & they hybrid I made had been running almost perfectly since January. The ASUS P5GD1 Overclocked to 3.6 Gig & run for as long as I wanted, the G-Power fan kept the CPU at about 55 Celsius. I had a pretty nice box, my first non-laptop in five years - and I'd spent about $1,000 on the whole package.
But this time it wouldn't boot, wouldn't go into Setup, wouldn't even POST. There was a great deal of anxiety and gnashing of teeth. Lesson #2 "Don't Panic, a COOL Head and calm demeanor will Serve you better in your hour of need."
I believe it won't POST because there is no Video Signal. The MOBO has no integrated graphics so I'm guessing the defective DVD somehow blew out my new X700Pro. I still want to call back ASUS & see if I'm making a simple error that a pro (I've had either good luck or ASUS has some of the best customer service and technical support I've ever experienced). But deep down I know it's the video card. It was the new PCI-Express that got me to open my wallet last winter. I honestly don't know whether I should laugh or cry. I haven't contacted ATI yet to ask about a warranty replacement (?). Nor have I shared this info with the guy from HP yet.
Somehow I don't feel like I should be out $200 for a new card.
Any Suggestions, Strategy, or even a Prediction as to what the future holds for me as I attempt to save my butt. My mortgage is already past due & it will be a month or two before I can save enough to buy a new card. Stepping down is not an option, I'd rather do without for a while than see my performance suffer.
I'm gonna cruise ATI's website & hope they are shocked that their rock solid, durable, reliable X700Pro has failed me and arrange to replace it quickly. I know they wouldn't want their customer switching to nVida (6600GT?) if I have to buy a new card I'll buy it from the other guys.
After all, the main reason I bought the ATI was because I found one in stock, not because I considered it superior. Come to think of it, they even have a trade up program. HHHmmmm, I'm starting to feel more optimistic about things already.
If anyone actually made it through a post this lengthy will probably be to bored to respond, but I'd love to read them - I can use the help.
Keep On Foldin'
Thanks,
Jeff
0
Comments
Just call there tech support and rma it
(Ive delt with there rma department before its very fast)
lmao. That's gotta be a front page quote surely
After working with ASUS over the phone for quite some time. The Video Card is highly suspect. I was going to move it over to another mobo to test it, but didn't have any thermal paste & didn't want to risk moving the CPU without it. Stores were closed, so the next day I thought instead of buying thermal paste I would ask the techs at Comp USA if they would test it for me, after all I did buy it there.
They wanted to charge me $19.99, but after whining for a while I got lucky and was recognized by the guy who was in on the DVD disaster 2 days before. He said it might take a while, but they wouldn't charge me for it. No problem. I ran a few errands, got back a couple of hours later.
Drum Roll..............He said:
"I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm sorry we don't have the equipment to test a PCI-Express card".
I said "You've got to be kidding me, you've been selling them for at least six months".
His explaination was that the store hadn't been open very long & they weren't completely set up in the tech department yet.
So I said "thanks for nothing", smiled and left. Bought some thermal paste at Best Buy (I cringe even worse there). If you want something done, you have to do it yourself.
Personally, I think I was being lied to. I think the just blew me off & didn't even try to test it. I don't understand how they expect to stay in buisness because:
They get their butts kicked pricewise on the internet, so what do they have to offer? Convenience & Service. The service is worse than poor. They claim to have on site service, but they don't.
Unless you want to call charging someone $20.00 to install a RAM stick service. Anything more complicated than that gets shipped to Texas.
That leaves only convenience as a market advantage. That too is can be questioned because New Egg, Tiger Direct et. al. will deliver to my house. No driving, parking, waiting in line.
Remember when Radio Shack was a market leader in the industry? I'm old enough. Maybe their corporate goal is to sell cheap toys & compete in the cell phone market.
Maybe Comp USA wants to become the 7-11 of computers - overpriced, poor selection, but if you need a loaf of bread & the grocery is closed that's the only option.
The people who run their businesses like that should be ashamed of themselves.
:shakehead