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My Sager Tech Support Experience...

post #1 of 5
9/26/03 at 11:28am
Thread Starter 
I talked to Sager tech support last night. So far I am not to impressed with them. First it took them 48hrs to get back to me. They did mention that they tried a few other times and it was busy, but still...48hrs is a LONG time to wait when you have a problem, and I have called my house several times during that 48hr period and didn't get a busy signal once. Anyways, as luck would have it I didn't have the laptop with me when they did call me back. I told them about the flexing keyboard and they said to just pop it out and back in...I did that later with no luck. Then I told em about the clicking noise I was hearing and they said it was probably the HD which I assured them it wasn't. (I can hear the HD, this is a diffrent noise...Much louder than the HD). Then the guy said that whatever noise I was hearing was just the regular fan noise...I am not a newb...I have built +20 PCs from scratch, and my own personal PC has +10 fans in it. I know what a fan sounds like and what a fan doesn't sound like, and this my friends is no fan. Several other people are having this same exact problem and so I am sure that it is a design/install flaw. The guy then refused to do anything until I had my laptop and could put the phone upto the laptop so he could hear the noise...THe problem is, for me anyways the noise is somewhat intermittent. It only makes it when the fans are running at mid speed, and it doesn't do it all the time. It normally goes away after awhile. So I asked if there was a number I could call them back once I had the laptop in my hands and it was making the noise. He said to call the same number...I guess I just have to call and then keep the laptop in my sight 100% of the time until they call me back, 1-48hrs later...

PCTorque has been excellent, but Sager...Sager hasn't. I hope this is just a me problem and other people are doing better with Sager. I hope that I can figure out how to fix these two issues. Needless to say, if it proves to be to big an issue for me I can always cash in on the 30day return policy, but I really like my laptop to much to return it unless I have to.
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post #2 of 5
9/26/03 at 5:16pm
an old trick we used to use with tractors and noise is to use a dowl rod, wood, 1/2 dia (get a stethescope (sp)) and when the noise reappars, use the rod or other device to narrow down on where it is comming from. Not sure but I think the HD is in a different area than the fans. Should make it easier to pinpoint the location.
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post #3 of 5
9/26/03 at 5:43pm
Quote:
Originally posted by nagam
an old trick we used to use with tractors and noise is to use a dowl rod, wood, 1/2 dia (get a stethescope (sp)) and when the noise reappars, use the rod or other device to narrow down on where it is comming from. Not sure but I think the HD is in a different area than the fans. Should make it easier to pinpoint the location.
A screwdriver works just as well. This is, in fact, the method I used to determine the noise originated from the large bottom cooling fan farthest from the edges of the case.

It is most assuredly NOT the hard drive. It is also, as Blackbeard mentioned, only present when that fan is on, and then only extremely noticeable when it's at low speed. Once the voltage is increased in response to increased cooling needs, it becomes a whine which increases the overall dB output of that fan, but is no longer a distinct click.

I'd really like to hear Adam comment on this clicking, as several people have it, and possibly get someone rational (i.e., willing to accept the possibility that something's coming in contact with the fan blades) from Sager to address it.

I'm assuming the noise will disappear eventually as use causes wear. However, that wear may just as easily occur on the object the fan blade is hitting, rather than on the fan blade itself. In that case, something in the notebook may well fail.

And if it fails out of warranty, and Sager wants to stick to its story that it's the hard drive, I'm going to fully expect a fee-free repair, shipped at Sager's expense.
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post #4 of 5
9/28/03 at 2:09pm

loose flexing keyboard and fan noise

Saw this post and noted that my 5860 also has the same problems. Received mine on 9/26. My unit also came with the keyboard popped out. Had to pop it back in but it flexes when you type. A grating/clicking sound is also coming from the cooling fan. Very noticable at low speeds. Gets drowned out when it speeds up. In addition my wrist rest pads are getting loose around the touchpad frame. You can actually see an air gap where they meet.
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post #5 of 5
9/28/03 at 4:27pm
Just a suggestion on the clicking noise problem. Rather than carrying your laptop with you continuously and hoping when SAGER calls it will be making the problem noise, maybe just get a little recorder, perhaps even use the sound recorder in the machine, in conjunction with one of the various stethescope apparatusi or a good mike, and make a recording of the sound. Then, when they call, you can play it back to them.

Might also be a good idea to make several copies of the recordings and send them via both email and snailmail to both your reseller and SAGER along with a letter of explanation. That would short-circuit the process and hopefully get you some answers sooner.

I can tell you from personal experience, trying to diagnose nearly any problem over the phone is very difficult, even under the best of conditions. If whomever has a good recording of the problem noise in a calm, quiet environment along with a good written explanation, the odds are they will be much more likely to figure it out.

One thing you have to remember is that its highly probable that both your reseller and SAGER want to solve your problem. The best approach to take is one in which everybody is working toward the same or similar goals.

Now, on the other hand, if your are trying to cancel your AOL membership, particularly one that you never signed up for, its an entirely different matter. They don't want to solve your problem.
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