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mctin

11 Posts

5358

December 9th, 2017 10:00

Dell XPS 15 9560 coil whine - is a motherboard change worth the risk?

Hi everybody,

Five days ago I got a Dell XPS 15 9560 (via Dell Netherlands) with the following configuration: i7-7700HQ, 256GB NVMe Toshiba, 8GB RAM, FHD.

In a few months I will be relocating to another country well Dell does not provide service support therefore, I am trying to make sure this device is suitable for the long run (i.e., 3-4 years, no gaming use).

I think I was unlucky and got a defective unit:

  • the left fan makes a scratchy noise that becomes more prominent whenever I change the angle of the laptop
  • coil whine
  • some back light bleeding

I contacted DellCares via Twitter and they are sending in an engineer to:

  • change the power supply
  • change the left fan
  • eventually change the mother board if the engineer deems fit

Here are two pictures and a recording of the sounds it makes: drive.google.com/open

I would like to get your opinion on three things:

  1. Would you say the coil whine and back light bleeding on this unit are in normal limits?
  2. Is it advisable to agree to a motherboard change on a brand new laptop?
  3. The engineer is coming equipped with the following parts---do you how can I find what they all represent:
    • V363H - ADPT,AC,130W,CHNY,4.5,L6,V2,E5
    • VJ2HC - ASSY,FAN,LEFT,9560/5520
    • YH90J - ASSY,PWA,NBK,T,D,I7-7700,9560
    • PC0XY - CRD GDE,W8P/10P/10H,SERVICE
    • 0M5DH - SVC,ALSOSHIP,06335,N6370

I am really looking forward to hear your opinions on this and I highly appreciate any input!

ejn63

1 Rookie

 • 

87.5K Posts

December 9th, 2017 11:00

You may want to give serious consideration to returning the system for replacement -- tearing apart a brand-new system makes no sense.  it's as if you bought a brand new car and immediately needed the engine and transmission replaced.

Further, I'd think twice about keeping the system if you're taking it to a place where there is no warranty support -- either purchase a system that IS supported where you're going, or at minimum DO NOT have the parts replaced - have the system replaced with a new one that works to your satisfaction.

Notebooks are not designed for easy repairabilty and the potential for something going wrong with such major surgery on a brand new system isn't trivial.

ieee488

4 Operator

 • 

11.1K Posts

December 9th, 2017 12:00

I would absolutely return for a refund!

mctin

11 Posts

December 10th, 2017 05:00

So, I decided to wait for the engineer to come and replace the AC adapter and the left fan.

Regarding the back light bleeding:

  • I will put up with it. It's only bothersome on complete dark environments at 75%+ brightness.
  • An interesting thing is that after a while there is a slight chance to get more bleeding in the spot where you open and close your laptop lid from. I noticed that even gently touching the bezels (i.e., dark room and 100% brightness) generates more or hides some of the bleeding. It seems that dark slim bezels have they pros and cons.

Regarding the coil whine:

  • I won't go with the motherboard replacement option because it's simply a lottery thing.
  • I mainly use my laptop for office tasks and programming, and only rarely for simulations---that's the only instance when I need full power. Given this usage pattern I managed to reduce the coil whine slightly by:
    • disabling Intel Turbo Boosting
    • disabling the Nvidia card in Device Manager
    • limiting the processor state to 95% in Windows
    • 5 minutes of mindfulness meditation each morning to cope with the noise for the rest of the day (acceptance and commitment meditation works too). I'm serious.

All in all, functionality-wise it works flawless. Managed to fix the only software related issue it had (audio cracking due to poor audio card power management). It gets the job done and the point for me is to be able to return my investment in this device.

Thanks IB for your valuable input.

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