DFI: Not for the enthusiast!

[dave87]

I feel some here are putting DFI in the position of a system integrator rather than an OEM supplier.

If I had ordered a DFI computer, with the specification which caused issues, had paid them to build the system and found it didn't work, then I would expect what a lot of people are asking here - for them to either engineer a solution or to offer a significant gesture of goodwill.

However, the problem is that all System Integrators build a margin into their products to ensure they work with the selection of equipment they have chosen (i.e. not aftermarket additions by the end user) and can afford to support it. This is one of the very reasons many people will only buy preconfigured machines. The OEMs, in contrast, do not, and though they can publish a list of tested hardware, it will not be comprehensive compared with the number and variation of products which can be placed in the various slots in the board. This is further exacerbated if you are using older hardware (PCI for example has been around for aaaages, and as such do you think it reasonable to expect every PCI device ever made to work with Vista?).


So whilst I applaud DFI's honesty, I'd also look at my own expectations of what that board is supposed to do.

[McPhee]

Ever thought there was another path these manufacturers could take? One where problems are FIXED? Wouldn't you prefer to buy from a company that didn't just presume a faulty product could not be fixed? As I said, I had Areca issues with Asus and they fixed them with a BIOS update.......hell, even ABit released a BIOS to fix the issues I reported with the 4870x2, even after they had shut half their operation.

It's quite simple really, if one customer reports a problem then it's not a problem. If 100 people report it then it's now a problem and needs investigating. This is normal, if it's just you experiencing the fault then it might turn out to be your exact board, or your exact expansion cards (not the models, the actual physical product) that is the problem. It'd cost DFI a lot of money to look in to it (many times the retail price of your board) and even then they might not find a solution because, unless more people report the fault, then there's no proof it's actually a BIOS issue.

Asus, ABit, Gigabyte, Biostar, MSI et all would give you exactly the same result in your scenario. Your other problems only got fixed because they were substantially wide-spread.

[TooNice]

@scaryjim: I would be equally concerned if a motherboard wouldn't play nice with 3 different SATA devices (e.g. an optical drive, a traditional hard drive drive and an SSD drive). The three PCI-E slot *should* behave independently of each other. If they somehow conflict with each other, then there might be something more fundamentally wrong with the board design. Something that can be improved upon in the future. [Not fact - obviously this is something that would require investigation to get to the bottom of it]

There are two expectations here: what I consider 'right', and what I realistically think is going to happen. Yes I do expect shipping charge to be refunded (or something) at the very least as the 'right thing' for them to do. Based on my experience though, that is not likely to happen. Hence if they do 'compensate' for that in one way or another, I would still see it as a gesture of good will relative to what I expected them to act.

I presumed when you said 'demanded' that you really meant 'asked' but wanted to use a stronger term to get your point across. Indeed, I would not personally 'demand' simply because it's not my style. I do not believe that I've used that term myself but didn't want to get into a battle of semantics over the word you chose. The point being, I find it perfectly reasonable to contact the manufacturer about a glitch (while you did not say otherwise, I had the impression from the post I quoted that contacted by itself is already 'too much' and you would just leave the card at the store), just as I find it perfectly reasonable to highlight a bug in a game. The way you communicate that you would like a fix to be found is up to you. Plead, ask, demand, request, beg, etc. I think that's dependant to one's personality, but the end result is the same. They'll either fix it or won't, and it's probably sane to assume the later to avoid disappointment. But having to make that assumption doesn't speak greatly about customer service in general.

I suppose what I am a little curious about, is what DFI had done if Scan did not decide to take back the board themselves. As I've said before, offering to take the board back would have been enough to stay on my good side. It won't be enough for me to sing praises, it's the middle ground I'll accept.

Anyway, I guess I'll just have to carry on with my dual-expectations when it comes to customer service (the what should/what will happen; and while I set my 'what will' expectations quite low, I bet I'll still encounter situations where a company manage to dip below that).

[PwnDirect]

you mean "any motherboard manufacturer not for the clueless"

[scaryjim]

@scaryjim: I would be equally concerned if a motherboard wouldn't play nice with 3 different SATA devices

Personally, I would be more concerned; SATA ports don't renegotiate into different electrical configurations as you put more devices on them: they are *always* SATA ports. The 3 PCI-e ports are sometimes X16, sometimes X8, and potentially sometimes X4. I wouldn't expect a PCI-e X16 card to work correctly in a PCI-e X4 slot, personally...

I presumed when you said 'demanded' that you really meant 'asked' but wanted to use a stronger term to get your point across.

No, I chose the word very specifically because I feel shaithis is demanding a solution. He has already asked for a solution, and DFI have replied: promptly, personally and politely. I understand his frustration, and I think it would be perfectly reasonable to get back to DFI asking for a full refund / some other compensation as the board doesn't meet his requirements, but his first reaction came across as "how dare they not fix my unique problem", which seems (to me) to be rather unreasonable.

while I set my 'what will' expectations quite low, I bet I'll still encounter situations where a company manage to dip below that.

Regrettably, I am in complete agreement with you on this point... ;(

[Thorsson]

I have to agree with this. The board isn't a professional product. It's an enthusiast one. There is a difference in price and a difference in the level of support. You can't expect unique setups to get individual TLC on a £100 prodct IMO. Sure it would be great to get more, but it's not good business. It's a good way to go bust.

[Antagram]

A slight bump, but I was interested to know if the alternative motherboard performed as expected?

[shaithis]

Yes, using the P6T6 WS Revolution now with 4870x2 @ 16x, 8600GTS @ 16x, Areca 1210 @ 8x and an Asus Xonar @ 1x (all at their max PCI-E speeds).......all with a 920 overclocked to 4Ghz via the new 21x multiplier.....running under Windows 7 x64 with physx working off of the nVidia card

There is an issue with the board I have (that scan failed to replicate somehow) that I have had to place a fan blowing on the chipset to fix but I will live with the fan for now, although I may try and getting a better heatsink for the NF200 chip which seems to be causing the heat issue.

[scaryjim]

Good to hear shaithis. Did DFI refund without quibble on the old board then?

[shaithis]

Scan actioned a refund on the DFI board after I forwarded on the response from DFI.