XPS 15 9530 - Noise problem?

(The M3800 starts at $3K in Canada, so there isn't really any point in that option.) Swapping the HD for a SSD sounds like a decent option.   Are you certain that this is do-able?  I am tek-savvy and used to doing this sort of thing, but don't want to get into doing anything that the system wasn't designed for. Does the system come with a DVD or USB stick that would enable me to re-install Windows once I'd done this (I have access to an external DVD). I was actually about to order the Samsung - this might make me stick with the XPS.  Thanks for the suggestions.

Yes it's absolutely doable.  People do it all the time on other systems, and this one is no exception.  As long as you're comfortable reinstalling Windows from scratch, you'll be fine.  Technically you could clone your existing drive to an SSD, but Windows sets itself up differently when it's installed onto an SSD compared to a spinning drive, so I don't recommend that.  At the very least you'd want to sysprep your installation prior to migration, but I prefer a clean install.

No, this system does not come with installation media.  Some people have reported success calling Dell to get a free USB installation stick, but otherwise if you can find a Windows 8.1 ISO somewhere, you can use that to create your own bootable media.

But all that said, this off-topic conversation has gone on pretty long in this thread.  If you want more information, I'd highly recommend the XPS 15 Wiki (http://xps-15.wikia.com/wiki/XPS_15_Wiki) and perhaps the (now extremely long) XPS 15 Owner's Lounge on NotebookReview (http://forum.notebookreview.com/dell-xps-studio-xps/735403-xps-15-haswell-owner-s-lounge.html).  A few people here are also active in that thread (myself included), and lots of common questions have already been asked and answered many times over -- and the most common have become articles on the XPS 15 Wiki, some of which were written by yours truly. :)

My 3rd laptop arrived this morning. Straight away I was met with the screeching when I put my ear close. Not as bad as laptop 1 and still better than laptop 2 but none the less still audible.  I will give it a week or two then call to see about getting one of the new boards they speak of, I was meant to get one in this build but fear I got one off the shelf as it shipped within 2 days of the order.

I have taken pictures of both boards, both have the same revision but the new one has a green pcb, the old one a blue pcb, both are not made by the same company.

I will attach pictures later.

are shipping out with a completely redesigned MB from a different supplier, therefore rev number will not change.

That makes no sense. If this is redesigned MB then rev number SHOULD change.

These motherboards look the same to me. The PCB soldermask color difference means really nothing - different batch, manufacturer etc but the motherboard on these photos is exactly the same type/model/revision.

Gonzo, I just had it confirmed by Dell UK customer service that the new XPS 15 systems are shipping out with a completely redesigned MB from a different supplier, therefore rev number will not change. Can you let us know where are u from. It might be that the noise has just been reduced rather than completely eliminated. Can you also check to see if you are having throttling issues with the GPU. Many thanks

near instant gpu throttle but i really do not expect anything else from furmark on an ultrabook. I ran the test for all of 5 seconds as I do not fancy overstressing this with fresh thermal paste on (1st thing I do on my kit is put arctic silver on)

Point proven though.

 new board

http://imgur.com/xG3lSS8

old board

http://imgur.com/OsbV3CV

they have also changed the silicon palmrest material, I don't think it is silicon any more, feels more like rubber ? it is textured either way.

Hi Terry, 

Just want to know if new orders will have the new boards? I ordered mine yesterday. 

Cheers, 

One thing to note is that while Terry claim that the new board whatever 'makes quieter' the noise on both 9530 and 9330, the noise on 9530 and 9330 are different if you check youtube video and are certainly from two different sources.

I guess Terry never checked what the situation really is and thus cannot say anything for sure.  I would not be surprised to find out that Dell did not fix the noise with this new motherboard or found out that they have been lying all the way. If you search on the internet, you can find that  1530 and 1330 had already the noise.

Hello everyone,

so after I had called the DELL support line in may, describing my problems with coil whining and other issues which I think should not arise for a product at this price span, and after they had told me that the problem is known but cannot be repaired by DELL at the moment they asked me to call in again after 2 to 3 months to ask if things would have changed.

So I called again yesterday and, yet again, described the problems I had with this system and asked if there are new options to tackle this problem.

After keeping me in the waiting line for several minutes the operator told me that there are still NO possible options available and even a change of the internal motherboard would most likely not solve the issue. He then told me that I had 2 options: Call in again in 2 months to see if there will be new solutions (the same they told me the last time I called) or to get a full refund for the system as DELL is currently not able to repair a damaged system.

I then demanded the full refund because I honestly do not want to be kept fobbed off by them, telling me to call in again in a few months just to be informed that (what one can easily assume) there are still no solutions.

Out of curiosity I asked what will happen to my system after a full refund, because I wanted to know if they would just be sold again to other customers, declared as "used".

He said he wasn't sure, it might depend on the state of the device, how much it has been used, how badly it is "worn off". Otherwise they will most likely destroy the whole thing and throw it away.

I felt a sting in my heart after he had said that because apart from the (in my eyes totally repairable) coin while thing the system just works fine and is powerful. No need to throw it away, but I do not care any longer.

It's sad that DELL doesn't seem to become more active in this matter. In my opinion they never will anymore. I think it's more likely that they already proceded to design the next generation of laptops, they won't bother about this one here anymore.

So here I am with my old 1GB RAM ASUS Netbook having to start my research all over again. But it's better the way it is now, because I'm not as rich as to be able to tolerate such grave issues on a 2000€ machine. Sorry!

No need to worry about the returned machine MARVOLO, it will be sold again as refurbished machine, just at a lower price, to other customers who probably will never know about this defect. In this way, Dell still makes money.

I'm not blaming Terry, he probably is just the delivery man, but apparently a department in Dell is in charge of delivering news that a fix is on the way while nothing has been going on. The department is just afraid that we might stand together to start a law case or spread this defect to all potential customers of XPS 9530 and m3800.

If that's true and the used systems will be sold again as refurbished then it is our duty as "victims" to spread the news and make people become aware of this issue! I already linked this thread on every German computer forum where people are asking for recommendations. It was my first DELL product and probably my last. I had never had any DELL computers before I bought this one and I'm not someone who buys things hastily. I had been comparing, checking, reading reviews for weeks before I decided that this was the best system for my demands.

Who would have known that it would have such issues?! Sad, but I mentally closed this case for me!

Dell had sent a new motherboard and screen for a technician to install on my laptop.  The usual whine isn't there but there is still a scratching sound but not as loud as before.  If I am watching the TV at normal volume then I would barely hear the sound unless I put my ear next to the keyboard. It is definitely an improvement.