XPS 435 Owners Thread

I got my new Dell Studio XPS 435T/9000 late this morning.  So far so good and it is pretty quiet except for a high pitched noise which seems to be coming from the PSU.  I think others have mentioned this too.  Other than that, this is the biggest/heaviest case I have ever owned.  Even the box it came in was gargantuan.  All I can say is WOW. 

This noise and the always lit green light (even when the pc is off) at the back are the only two issues which are in the back of my mind right now.  I've been spending hours getting my software installed and setting up the system to my tastes but it's hella fast so far. 

Now to order the Win7 upgrade disc.  Done.

PS Yes it is huge but did you notice the lack of expansion space. One of my PCI slots is hidden by  my video double width card and I had two hard drives. not much room in such a HUGE case for much else, had a $400 Acer that had space for 6 or 8 drives!

I would call about those two items ASAP. The leds are POST diagnostic fault indicators. I don't have the info to decode them, someone else on here might or may you might find it is the online manual. Mine has been in operation a couple months and other than being a small furnace it does not make a single sound. So before you fall in love with it I would have it looked into. PS I ALWAYS open every Dell I get and make sure ever wire connect and card is properly seated. Have found QOS on the assembly line does not exist, and a loose card or memory chip could cause mystery problems for years to come, Do yourself a favour and makes sure that everything is properly in its place

Hello again everybody,  I have a question which has probably been answered already but searching through the Dell forums isn't really user friendly. 

My current BIOS say A13 which is the current version I think.  However the date of the BIOS on the system itself is 7/28/09.  On the Dell update/driver page, the BIOS is A13 with a date of 8/18/09.  Does anybody know what that means?  Do I need to update or should I leave well enough alone and just relax on this one.  Thanks to all the peeps out there that help their peeps.

That's because the date the BIOS was built is 7/28/09. It usually takes a couple weeks for them to do internal testing, packaging the BIOS and putting it on the website for general availability (which is the 8/18/09 date is when it was actually posted to the website for GA).

As far as the LED light and the high pitch noise.... All of the power supplies in the 435T/9000 have a green LED on the power supply, it just means that the power supply is getting power, it's not a diagnostic LED. However, I would still be concerned with the high pitch whine coming from the unit and still raise an issue with Dell about that.

I also have whine/high pitched noise.  I called dell a few days after receiving it, tech came out w/ new power supply which made the SAME EXACT NOISE when he plugged the PSU into the wall and his tester.  I told him not to bother installing it.  3 months later it still makes the same noise, no better or worse than initially.  To "fix" the problem I have the computer hooked up to an surge protector with a handy switch and just flick it off after shutdown.

If i were doing it all over i wouldn't bother calling Dell, waiting for the tech, etc.

I got my new Dell Studio XPS 435T/9000 late this morning.  So far so good and it is pretty quiet except for a high pitched noise which seems to be coming from the PSU.  I think others have mentioned this too.

I have the same high pitch noise as well.....

ANYWAY.. this is my spec... i7-920 1.66ghz
12GB ddr3
GTS 240

Shouldnt this beat my previous q9300, 4gb a little more than i expected?

Mine is absolutely silent  and I have 4 collaborative computing programs running maxing out my system 24/7 while it is under warranty and until I need all this power. As I said it is a small furnace, but silent and the processors are running flat out.. I can't hear a thing, not even the hard drives (RAID1) or the cpu fan. I7 3.06 12GB DDR3

Hello XPS435 Owners,

I am the proud owner of a new XPS435.  It's a great PC, but I have been having some small problems.  Has anyone else experienced these?

1. Has anyone experienced a start up problem with Windows Vista where the Microsoft Progress indicator freezes right before it fades up and plays the scanning animation?  It freezes for a short while and then fades up and Vista starts normally?

2.  I have had a couple of problems with my mouse where suddenly it sticks on the upper left of my screen and can only be moved a couple of inches diagonally?  Tapping my mouse on the desk fixes this.  Do I need a new mouse?

3.  On occasion, after Vista starts up and the desktop loads, I start up my browser and another application.  As the second application (which I open on my seconday monitor (I have a dual monitor configuration) opens, my mouse hiccups when I move it.  By hiccup I mean it freezes and moves and then freezes and moves.  This happens just a little bit and then goes away after a few seconds.  What's going on here??

4.  Has anyone experienced in Vista the recycle bin not responding when you are in the middle of working with an application and you try to open it to delete it's contents?  The cursor twirls for a long time and eventually the recycle bin opens to show it's contents.

5.  Has anyone experienced Vista's Sidebar starting up with a solid white background instead of it's normal translucent one?  Logging off and then on Windows fixes this.

Does anyone expect that problems 1, 4 and 5 are just glitches with Vista?  Does anyone expect that Windows 7 will be a better OS?

Any input appreciated!

- Michael88R

Do you run Real Temp, or anything to show the temperature?  I'm very interested in your experience, since I've not yet run any CPU-intensive jobs.  Since the i7 920 runs hot, and since Dell only has the "stock" Intel heatsink/fan, I was worried about heat and the fans going into "leaf-blower mode".

Mine is absolutely silent  and I have 4 collaborative computing programs running maxing out my system 24/7 while it is under warranty and until I need all this power. As I said it is a small furnace, but silent and the processors are running flat out.. I can't hear a thing, not even the hard drives (RAID1) or the cpu fan. I7 3.06 12GB DDR3

Same noise here.  I have the desktop on the floor, and it is only noticable when I get my head close to the power-supply.  It is VERY high-pitched, so the ability to hear it may be a factor of age and your ears.

When reading about the cheezy power-supply Dell uses in this computer (which I otherwise am quite happy with), I learned that the type of power-supply used (PFC?) is actually a "power supply within a power supply".  Essentially, to smooth-out the power-draw, these power-supplies (required in Europe) add a second "switching" layer around the core power-supply.  I'm guessing that the "outer layer" is always on, and the conversion of 50/60Hz to a higher frequency is what we're hearing.

To those who didn't see the earlier posts, remember, Dell says you have to use a "true sine-wave" UPS with this computer...

I have the same high pitch noise as well.....   ANYWAY.. this is my spec... i7-920 1.66ghz 12GB ddr3 GTS 240 Shouldnt this beat my previous q9300, 4gb a little more than i expected?

Wow I am not a tech but really odd problems. First as I often suggest, open the case and make sure everthing is seated/inserted nice and tight.; No QOS on the assembly line. If that does nothing I thing you need to re-install vista BUT don't listen to me. I am not that much of a techie.

To answer your questions, 1 Yes, to avoid this use the original Dell keyboard that came with the computer, save that keyboard. It is the only keyboard that seems to allo you into the setup scree, I live with the delay and use my awesome backilite keyboatd, In fact I have two keyboards, bith from logitech. 2. I have mouse problems, but the are lightech wireless and I get RF gremlins in my apartment no and the. I suggest againt you use the original Dell mouse and see if it works 3.Never happened, sounds like the mouse, but are you sure you have installed the hundreds of Vista upgradaw. Keep running widiws up date, restarting afeter every bunch, till there are no mor. Also if it is noe a Dell mouse looks for the latest drivers. There are hours and hours of Vista upgrades to install. 4. Again I am not a techie. Sounds like you have a memory leak. Run a good cleaning program like adaware or Registry mechanic or I think crucial may have a freebie on their site. Try to defrafment you memory. Sounds like something is not releasing your memory when it is done. 5 Never

Wow I am not a tech but really odd problems. First as I often suggest, open the case and make sure everthing is seated/inserted nice and tight.; No QOS on the assembly line. If that does nothing I thing you need to re-install vista BUT don't listen to me. I am not that much of a techie.

To answer your questions, 1 Yes, to avoid this use the original Dell keyboard that came with the computer, save that keyboard. It is the only keyboard that seems to allow you into the setup screen, I live with the delay and use my awesome backlit keyboard, In fact I have two keyboards, both from logitech. 2. I have mouse problems. also running two, but they are logitech wireless and I get RF gremlins in my apartment no and the. I suggest again you use the original Dell mouse and see if it works 3. Never happened, sounds like the mouse, but are you sure you have installed the hundreds of Vista upgraded. Keep running widows update, restarting after every bunch, till there are no more. Also if it is not a Dell mouse looks for the latest drivers. There are hours and hours of Vista upgrades to install. 4. Again I am not a techie. Sounds like you have a memory leak. Run a good cleaning program like ad-aware or Registry mechanic or I think crucial may have a freebie on their site. Try to defragment you memory. Sounds like something is not releasing your memory when it is done. 5 Never

FYI, a new headline

Dell said Wednesday that it would close a manufacturing plant in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where it manufactures desktop PCs.

Closing the facility will result in Dell laying off about 905 employees, the company said, when the site closes in January 2010. The company will pay the affected employees an undisclosed amount of severance.

Dell currently manufactures PCs at four U.S. sites, including Miami, Nashville, and Austin, Texas. Dell also manufactures PCs at six sites elsewhere around the world, including plants in Brazil and China. It also partners with ODMs.

"This is a difficult decision, especially for our North Carolina colleagues, but a necessary one for Dell customers and our company," said Frank Miller, vice president, of the Dell Public Business Unit Supply Chain, in a statement. "The efforts of our team members there have been significant and we're committed to helping them through their transition. Of course, we'll continue to honor all agreements with North Carolina, Forsyth County and Winston-Salem."

Dell beat expectations in its most recent quarter, but the company has also aggressively cut costs. "Our cost reduction programs have never been more crucial than during this weaker demand environment," Brian Gladden, Dell's chief financial officer, said during the call.

More importantly, desktop unit sales at Dell were down 23 percent, with revenue declining 33 percent, Gladden noted.

Overall, however, the balance of PC shipments have favored notebooks over desktops since 2008, when more notebooks were sold, versus desktops, for the first time.