Brand New M17X R4 and no sound

I'd ask for a refund seriously........ When they replaced my MOBO i got nvidia issues. Now I'm waiting 4 weeks (probably) for my replacement to come.

Funny that you say that... in Australia I can easily return my purchase . which is something that I have done just last week. Full refund, though the store manager was not to happy about it but after a number of phone calls I got a full refund. Dell has failed to fix this issue with one of the two M17's I purchased. With the refund I purchased another brands computer and I am not having the issues I got with the Dell. Now I am having issues on this one and Dell yet again does not have a fix for it. I do the test and get a "A diagnostic category was specified and the applicable device does not exist." but it does because I had sound this morning and after a reboot get sound back. I demand a fix or this one goes back for a refund.

There will not be refunds, recalls, or compensations. We will simply fix the issue. See the data in my next posting.

Below is what I received from the Alienware Team...

Audio not detected (M14x-R2, M17x-R4, M18x-R2)

Problem = The Audio codec will disappear from the device manager and the computer stays without an audio device. There is a red X in the device manager and the "No Audio Output Device is installed" message is shown on the taskbar. The behavior appears randomly. Rebooting or reinstalling the sound driver will make the sound card show up again and work for awhile until the problem reoccurs.

Discussion = In order to correct this, we recommend you to update the bios to the latest version available and reinstall the sound driver.
M14x-R2 Bios = A11, 2/21/13, M14R2A11WIN.exe
M17x-R4 Bios = A11, 2/21/13, M17R4A11WIN.exe
M18x-R2 Bios = A10, 2/21/13, M18R2A10WIN.exe
Audio Windows 7 = A01, 4/30/12, Creative Labs CT9570, Audio_Creative_W74_5NJ7K_A01-Setup_ZPE.exe, 6.0.100.2033
Audio Windows 8 = A00, 10/26/12, Creative Labs Sound Blaster Recon3Di CT9570, Audio_Creative_W84_X03_A00_Setup-W39M6_ZPE.exe, 6.0.100.2039 
If your bios and sound driver are already up to date and this behavior persists, it indicates that your motherboard will need to be replaced.

For USA and Canada customers still inside of the purchased warranty period, go here to schedule a service call via email:
awcc-resolution_experts@dell.com
Please choose: Onsite service or Return to Dell Depot service
Service Tag:
Full Name:
Best time to reach you (include your Time Zone):
Phone Number:
Alternate Phone Number:
Alternate Contact Name:
Full shipping address, City, State, Zip Code
Problem Description: Alienware Laptop Intermittent Sound, No Audio device is installed or Soundcard not detected. Submitting this email to get the motherboard replaced

Once you email the team, you will be contacted within 1-5 business days by an Alienware Support Representative.

For customers in other regions still inside of the purchased warranty period, please contact Technical Support for your region. Explain what we are doing for USA/Canada customers. Ask them to setup a motherboard replacement.

NOTE: For USA and Canada customers who have allowed the purchased warranty to elapse, we will do a one time only motherboard replacement, but you will need to find a local PC repair store to do the motherboard swap. For customers in other regions who have allowed the purchased warranty to elapse, contact Technical Support for your region. Explain what we are doing for USA/Canada customers. Ask them to setup a motherboard replacement per their regional rules.

Sajin1337,

If dell/alienware repairs the machine 3 times (three different motherboards) and it fails to correct the problem you can ask for a refund on the third attempt as long as your within your warranty period.
* That is false. A refund is only allowed within the initial 30 days from the invoice date. You may however ask for a new system exchange after three repairs fails to correct the issue.

Sajin1337,   If dell/alienware repairs the machine 3 times (three different motherboards) and it fails to correct the problem you can ask for a refund on the third attempt as long as your within your warranty period. * That is false. A refund is only allowed within the initial 30 days from the invoice date. You may however ask for a new system exchange after three repairs fails to correct the issue.

True, you're not suppose to be able to get a refund after the first initial 30 days, but if you have been having tons of issues with your system and let the higher ups know about your situation you can and will be granted a refund. I know as I've done it.

NOTE: Never take "No" & "That's not possible" for an answer and you WILL succeed in getting your refund.

Called Tech Support and he was able to show me the link.  Downloaded and ran the install for A11.  Seemed to go in fine.  But I still have the red X over the speaker and the only audio devices listed are the bluetooth connections.   Going to try a re-install of the Intel(R) Display Audio controllers and see if that helps.

Well, I have this problem again and my BIOS is at A05.  I am still within warranty.   But I cannot seem to find a link for the A11 BIOS update for my M17xR4.   Anyone have a direct link for it?

Guys the comp is a .  And support is clueless in how to fix it.  I have been able to "fix" by restarting the computer.  If it still shows the X, then close the lid wait for it to power down, then open it again.  That should give you sound again.  

Well, that fixed it for me.  I had to uninstall the Intel(r) Display Audio controller and reboot.  Now let's see if this is a lasting fix.  

The gentleman with tech support I was on the phone will said that this process fixes it in 90% to 95% of the time.  (Fingers crossed)

Thank you so much! It worked for me too! So ridiculous though...lol  

Well, I guess I didn't keep my fingers crossed long enough.  Just booted  up and am showing a big red X next to my volume control, "no speakers or headphones are plugged in."  :-(  I'm stil lunder warranty.  Any suggestions?

LCannon1999,

Do me a favor, open the DM (Device Manager). Is there a reference to Intel audio anywhere? If yes, right click it and disable it. Close the DM and restart. Does the Creative audio then appear in the DM without the red X?

I tried deleting all lisitings under "Sound, video and game controllers" and rebooted.  The sound did not come back.  Then I re-ran the A11 BIOS file I downloaded on the 8th, rebooted, and the sound/audio returned.

I even tried reinstalling the audio drives as well as taking out the battery and holding down the power button (saw that somewhere).  Neither worked.

I've been in contact with Luis Porras w/ Dell about this.  He was in the process of scheduling for a tech to come out when I was able to restore the audio.  Per him, even though I'm coming due on my warranty, if this happens again, I just need to reply to the emails from today for help with correcting the problem.  

Hopefully this issue will not return, but if it does, the first thing I'm trying is re-running the BIOS file.