Disappointed in Gigabyte, they refuse basic repair info

[FlappyBoobs]

6 minutes ago, Boby said:

It is well known fact that manufacturers use cheap thermal paste that has around 2 years of life by specification (the warranty period), are you seriously telling me that i should throw out my GPU after two years when warranty expires because of the thermal paste life is over? I said already that the paste was ROCK solid meaning it needed replacement just after 4 years of use. BTW, Microsoft are servicing my 6 years xbox just fine and replace fans and thermal paste just fine.

 

YOU experienced an issue with thermal paste. there are MILLIONS of other customers that don't.

 

You call something a "well known fact" but it's not a well known fact, it is only known to people who are interested in this sort of thing, and that's what you don't seem to get, it's not just enthusiasts and experts using these components everyone is using them these days and very few people are encountering the issues you are claiming are so common that manufacturers should support them. 

 

The point is that you are arguing about something that is a non issue for the vast majority of people. Your GPU paste dries up after 2 years (despite the fact that you told us just before that it was a 4 year old card) that points to your over/wrong usage of the GPU, I suspect that you overclock and adjust the fan curve down as well, in other words I suspect that you fuck with it and that breaks it sooner than most people or the manufacturer would expect.

 

Perhaps your definition of "over heating" is different to other peoples, maybe you see a 5 degree rise and panic. I don't know, but what I do know is that something isn't adding up with what you are saying and what my experience has been over the last 30 years in this industry. Maybe I am just out of touch with modern thermal solutions and they really are as bad as you say, but I highly doubt that. 

[Dedayog]

1 hour ago, Boby said:

You guys don't get it, thermal pads and paste are "consumables" with expiration date, they are meant to be replaced regularly (every 2-4 years), just like the oil in your car, imagine if car manufacturer hides the information of what oil you should use and only change it for you while you are under warranty...

No they're actually not.  If they were like oil, they'd be a wear part and covered under warranty. Changing oil doesn't void warranty.

 

They are not meant to be replaced regularly.  If so regular people would know to do it and there would be places all over that advertised the service.  Thermal paste and pads are designed to last the life cycle of the part, even when dry the paste still works.  

 

For example, if you were right, my parents would have a maintenance plan with their PC.  No PC comes with a maintenance plan, not even the high end boutiques offer a service to change paste and pads annually.  

 

 

[Leanora]

38 minutes ago, Boby said:

They are laws in US concerning cars from 2018, they recently included consumer electronics and will be enforced in US and EU soon.

WHat you say and what is written differs. It's not set in stone yet. Maybe in 2019. Till then they are following laws and you're sadly out of luck. 

[Boby]

I don't OC my GPU, and i have never did, but this particular one is OC by the manufacturer by default. I said that normally they use a paste that is with specification up to 2 years of life by paste manufacturer it was not with connection to my card, i have no clue what paste they used, but the fact that it was rock solid dried after 4 years of usage mans that it is not meant for 4 years of usage of that paste. And the card overheated to the point that driver throw error and screen was black, and it restarted just to do the same. its not that i freak on a 5 degree over.

 

And you are missing the point:

1. GTX 970 is quite capable card even today, and that being out of warranty dosn't make the card too old to use or obsolete.

2. The manufacturer Gigabyte does NOT offer out of warranty repair service (payed or not) or provide any repair/service information(payed or not), they are not obliged to, but it is bad for me as customer and i will stay away from them because i don't think that i should throw my perfectly working card after its being out of warranty just because it needs some thermal paste...

 

[Boby]

12 minutes ago, Leanora said:

WHat you say and what is written differs. It's not set in stone yet. Maybe in 2019. Till then they are following laws and you're sadly out of luck. 

"While not passed at the federal level, the major automobile trade organizations signed a memorandum to agree to abide by Massachusetts' law in all fifty states starting in the 2018 automotive year.^"

[Boby]

Just look at EVGA.

Quote

" Due to the large number of requests and misinformation posted in various locations, we're going to add all the information about the pads and locations to put thermal pads, if you'd like to try this yourself. "

 

https://forums.evga.com/tm.aspx?m=2586299

 

They kindly provided all information for everyone officially by their staff member. Ofc this is due to that they failed with he pads and send customers pads to replace them

 

5 minutes ago, Mr. horse said:

That is good to hear, but in all honestly the info you want is likely something support does not have. The pads and TIM used is likely a part the is changed mid production so they might not be able to tell you what your card used.

They could say so or they could also suggest "compatible" ones within the spec

[Boby]

Quote

That's just it, the folks on the support line likely do not know what is compatible, the heatsink could have changed slightly production. So giving a compatible recommendation is not something they could do. 

 

Well that's just bad support for me as customer and i will try other company next time i choose components for my builds.

[Leanora]

1 hour ago, Boby said:

"While not passed at the federal level, the major automobile trade organizations signed a memorandum to agree to abide by Massachusetts' law in all fifty states starting in the 2018 automotive year.^"

And your point is?   You have  GPU, not a car. It is also a memorandum, which is not bound by law, what is bound by law is what you call a memorandum of understanding.  

Now again this is just the car industry, not the GPU.   One of the articles talk about putting it into law in possibly 2019.  

 

For now the whole world might not like what they are doing but for now that does not mean that they are doing something wrong. 

 

They told you why they can't provide it, too bad.  Don;t buy from there again if you don't like it. Having said that, what they are doing is not wrong.

[Mick Naughty]

Could just measure and buy any paste and be done. Doesn’t matter what the company says. Get a new card or do the foot work. That’s how most products are in the world. 

[Boby]

@Leanora

It is a law in Massachusetts, you are not reading, and yes i know it is about cars, but it is expanding to consumer electronics too, the point was that many people feel the same way not that Gigabyte are obliged by law, Jesus i have to spell everything ready for digestion this days.

 

@Mick Naughty

As i said already i fixed the card.

 

 

All i wanted to say is that a company that does not provide out of warranty service or information on how to service its really bad in my opinion. Most companies provide out of warranty service or at least will give information required to service it (third party partner centers, manuals etc) and this is additional income for them.

If you expect your products to be thrown away just after the minimum government enforced warranty period it means that you don't believe yourself in your products or you don't care enough about your customers and as the topic title said, I'm disappointing in this company Gigabyte and i gave my reasons. You are free to disagree of course.

[LOST TALE]

How cna you tell your vram heat dissipators need replacement? can it bring a dead gpu back to life?

[Boby]

2 minutes ago, LOST TALE said:

How cna you tell your vram heat dissipators need replacement? can it bring a dead gpu back to life?

In my case, as i said, when i removed the heat sink to replace the PASTE, some of vram pads were torn, that's why they needed replacement. If your GPU is dead i don't think this could bring it to life again

[Ravendarat]

This might sound like  dumb question but when you had the card apart why didnt you just measure the thickness of the pads and order replacements?

 

EDIT I see this was asked and answered above, just ignore me.

Edited June 18, 2019 by Ravendarat
Didnt read the entire thread carefully

[Mick Naughty]

What companies have you contacted and got thermal pad sizes? Never seen anyone on here who has asked, actually get the info. So I don’t see how most companies would be used in that context. 

[Boby]

15 minutes ago, Mick Naughty said:

What companies have you contacted and got thermal pad sizes? Never seen anyone on here who has asked, actually get the info. So I don’t see how most companies would be used in that context. 

I have asked a couple of years ago Asus for thermal pads and fan part regarding an Asus laptop cooling, and they gave me the part numbers and third party vendor where to buy them. There is even https://www.asusparts.eu I have also asked Samsung for main board and battery for S7, they have dedicated website where you can purchase any part for their products directly from them, even with use instructions. Couple of sites i know are https://www.samsung-parts.net/ , https://www.sparessamsung.com/gb/  , http://www.genuinesamsungparts.com/ but i forgot which one specifically they gave me.  I have asked LG to give me information about my old LG G3 screen holding pads, and they told me the part number and send me to a local store where to find them. As i have shown MSI is showing their pads and sizes in their forum topic about some cards, i'm not sure tho if you ask for specific card if they will give it, but they should.

I have many electronics repaired over the years, and Gigabyte is the first company to refuse to give me spare parts information or vendor or anything. In fact Gigabyte also refused to give me the latest bios available for that GPU and the link on their website was not working... absolutely worst support ever.

[Mick Naughty]

13 minutes ago, Boby said:

I have asked a couple of years ago Asus for thermal pads and fan part regarding an Asus laptop cooling, and they gave me the part numbers and third party vendor where to buy them. There is even https://www.asusparts.eu I have also asked Samsung for main board and battery for S7, they have dedicated website where you can purchase any part for their products directly from them, even with use instructions. Couple of sites i know are https://www.samsung-parts.net/ , https://www.sparessamsung.com/gb/  , http://www.genuinesamsungparts.com/ but i forgot which one specifically they gave me.  I have asked LG to give me information about my old LG G3 screen holding pads, and they told me the part number and send me to a local store where to find them. As i have shown MSI is showing their pads and sizes in their forum topic about some cards, i'm not sure tho if you ask for specific card if they will give it, but they should.

I have many electronics repaired over the years, and Gigabyte is the first company to refuse to give me spare parts information or vendor or anything. In fact Gigabyte also refused to give me the latest bios available for that GPU and the link on their website was not working... absolutely worst support ever.

Again, who did you contact for gpu pads prior?

[Boby]

1 minute ago, Mick Naughty said:

Again, who did you contact for gpu pads prior?

Read the message again, you quoted it and you somehow still missed the part where i told you i asked Asus for gpu thermal pads and fan.

[Boby]

Just to give you additional information, manufactures often offer instead of separated parts like pads or fans, they offer the entire cooling block as replaceable part, with the pads and fans and everything mounted, so you can easily replace the entire cooler on your GPU. In fact Nvidia themselves instruct you on how to do this here: https://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/24/~/graphics-card-fan-replacement

And Gigabyte did not offer any replacement parts at all.

[LOST TALE]

3 hours ago, Boby said:

In my case, as i said, when i removed the heat sink to replace the PASTE, some of vram pads were torn, that's why they needed replacement. If your GPU is dead i don't think this could bring it to life again

could the gpu have died from vram pads?

[Mick Naughty]

1 hour ago, Boby said:

Read the message again, you quoted it and you somehow still missed the part where i told you i asked Asus for gpu thermal pads and fan.

That isn’t a gpu. So what other companies have given you gpu pads to not warrant the same treatment?

 

Just need to know so when people ask what card to get, I can give them your opinion on it. As people as everyday and I haven’t seen a company give the info for obsolete cards. 

[Boby]

Just now, Mick Naughty said:

That isn’t a gpu. So what other companies have given you gpu pads to not warrant the same treatment?

 

Just need to know so when people ask what card to get, I can give them your opinion on it. As people as everyday and I haven’t seen a company give the info for obsolete cards. 

It is GPU, CPU and VRAM cooler in one block with fan, so it is GPU and Vram.

And there is no difference if i ask for GPU replacement part or any other, if the part is replaceable and serviceable there is no difference so please stop with this. I even told you that they refused to give me the last official GPU bios.

Quote

"I haven’t seen a company give the info for obsolete cards"

GTX 970 its far from obsolete, and it is still around 25-30% faster than the current gen 1650. I don't ask them for internal info, i ask for replacement parts, if you have not seen companies give replacement parts information, i don't know where you live and i'm too afraid to ask

[Mick Naughty]

2 minutes ago, Boby said:

It is GPU, CPU and VRAM cooler in one block with fan, so it is GPU and Vram.

And there is no difference if i ask for GPU replacement part or any other, if the part is replaceable and serviceable there is no difference so please stop with this. I even told you that they refused to give me the last official GPU bios.

GTX 970 its far from obsolete, and it is still around 25-30% faster than the current gen 1650. I don't ask them for internal info, i ask for replacement parts, if you have not seen companies give replacement parts information, i don't know where you live and i'm too afraid to ask

Just because it can be used doesnt mean it isn’t obsolete. 

 

Well plenty of people say Asus has the worst customer service. So from what I can tell, there’s always something to complain about. So you had one company supply info for a laptop. So that means all the other will do so for every gpu they make and no one should talk down about the company. That’s all I wanted to confirm. Don’t wonna get the quote wrong in the future. 

[Boby]

@Mick Naughty

There are still new GTX 970 sold in stores this means that it will be under warranty at least another two years and you call it obsolete. Nice!

https://www.newegg.com/gigabyte-geforce-gtx-970-gv-n970wf3oc-4gd/p/N82E16814125685

Its pointless to speak to you anymore good luck.

[c00face]

4 hours ago, Leanora said:

And your point is?   You have  GPU, not a car. It is also a memorandum, which is not bound by law, what is bound by law is what you call a memorandum of understanding.  

Now again this is just the car industry, not the GPU.   One of the articles talk about putting it into law in possibly 2019.  

 

For now the whole world might not like what they are doing but for now that does not mean that they are doing something wrong. 

 

They told you why they can't provide it, too bad.  Don;t buy from there again if you don't like it. Having said that, what they are doing is not wrong.

Not wrong to give no helping hand to a person who needs it. It isn't required by law. Doesn't mean it's correct morally or ethical, that's a total different subject. If you want to label things wrong and right by law, you're going to find yourself in a big bad of hurt.

 

It isn't wrong for insurances company to deny you compensation for an injury until you take them to court and prove them liable. Here's a question for you, is it hard for someone to give out a 2 cent information on "pads" size? You're telling me that's liable for a customer to sue Gigabyte? Lol...

 

Don't mistake it, it's douche-bag status on what some of these manufacture's are doing. I know this first hand.

[GMart84]

I think this in general is an interesting discussion, while I wish all manufacturers would make information about this kind of stuff available, I think we will continue to see this type of behavior even after right to repair is fully in place across the country.  My understanding of Right to Repair, was that it was geared towards protecting us, the consumers, from service or warranty denials due to having it serviced by a third party or by attempting repairs ourselves.  Additionally it seems to imply that a manufacturer does not have the ability to prevent 3rd parties from manufacturing replacement parts in order to keep the part cost high.

 

Both of these things do not mean that manufacturers need to make the repairs easy for us to repair, I can see them arguing that Thermal Paste and Pads are fairly common items and that they are already available from 3rd parties and that they do not need to provide details on it or sell them because of the wide spread availability.