Rant: Asus has the worst support by far in NA.

[deanjo]

OK guys just wanted to share a little experience with you about Asus. Over the last few years I have stuck with Asus boards, not because they are "the best" (how I miss Abit) but they are readily available. For the most part the product is good stuff but their support in North America absolutely is horrid. Everytime I've asked for support they have told me to RMA their product, here is the thing, not once has the product actually been defective. They just have really shitty BIOS devs and getting a replacement product does nothing to improve the situation but increase downtime. Anyways here is one such example of their support that took over 5 months to resolve. It finally took me calling to Asus in asia to get it fixed.

 [Problem Description]
   I just installed your new BIOS for this board 3106. Like the previous BIOS
  3001 it is
   not utilizing the lowest powerstate on the AMD 1090T as expected (800 Mhz
 instead
   the lowest the processor will clock back to is 1600 Mhz). This has been
  verified in
   linux as well with it's logs. Please forward this information on to your BIOS
  engineers.
  
   powernow-k8: Found 1 AMD Phenom(tm) II X6 1090T Processor (6 cpu cores)
   (version 2.20.00)
   powernow-k8: Core Performance Boosting: on.
   powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
   powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
   powernow-k8: 0 : pstate 0 (3200 MHz)
   powernow-k8: 1 : pstate 1 (2400 MHz)
   powernow-k8: 2 : pstate 2 (1600 MHz)
   powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
   powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
   powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
   powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
   powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
   powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
   powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
   powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer

----------------------------------------------

  On 07/02/2010 03:40 AM, Jany Xiao wrote:
   Dear Valued Customer,
  
   Thank you for contacting ASUS Customer Service.
  
   My name is Jany and it's my pleasure to help you with your problem.
  
   Sorry for the delay due to the error of the mail system.
   May I know what the situation now?
   Do you mean that with the BIOS 3106, the ratio of the CPU 1090T is X4? If yes,
  have
  you disable such as the options C1E and Cool n Quiet to test again?
   If the problem still remains, please help to finish the feedback info I paste
  to you and
  send back to me for a further check.
  
   Welcome to refer Troubleshooting& FAQ for ASUS products in ASUS website:
   Troubleshooting -
  http://support.asus.com/troubleshooting/troubleshooting.aspx?SLanguage=en-
us
   FAQ - http://support.asus.com/faq/faq.aspx?SLanguage=en-us
  
   If you continue to experience issues in the future, please do not hesitate to
  contact
  us.
  
   Best Regards,
  
   Jany
  
   ASUS Customer Service
  


  [CASEID=TM2010070300184]
 
 
------------------------------------------------ 
 
  Hi Jany,
 
  With the AMD Phenom II 1090T it has 4 p-states for Cool'n'Quiet. The
  lowest p-state is that it runs the cores at 800 Mhz but the current
  bios's for this motherboard do not allow the processor to drop to that
  speed. Disabling Cool'N'Quiet and C1E do not resolve this issue. Also
  even though this is a unlocked processor, none of the manual adjustments
  in the BIOS effect the processor speed. Manually setting the multiplier
  or bus speed has zero effect on it and even adjusting the processor
  voltage has no effect. The bios simply ignores any of those changes.
 
  Dean

 ------------------------------------------------


From:ASUS TSD

  Date:2010-07-07 21:41:59
 
  Dear Sir/Madam
 
  If you are seeking an rma repair
 
  You will need to send your product in for rma repair. You will need to fill out
  an online
  case number forma and an online rma request form, Please use the links below.
If
  you would like to speak to our customer service, please call 812-282-2787
 
  Case Number http://vip.asus.com/eservice/usa_techserv.aspx
  Rma Request http://vip.asus.com/eservice/usa_rmaserv.aspx
 
  Monday thru Friday 8:30 AM to Midnight EST
  Saturday and Sunday 8:30 Am to 6:00 Pm EST.
 
  Thank you for your support of our products!
 
  Sincerely,
 
 
 
  Sonny Brown
 
  Level 2 Technical Support
 
 
 
  ASUS Technology Inc.
 
  http://www.asus.com

------------------------------------------------

  Sent : 7/9/2010 3:33:16 AM
  To : "tsd@asus.com.tw"
  Subject : Re:Re:Re: Motherboard M3N-HT DELUXE
 [ID=RTM2010070300184-045]
 
  [CASEID=WTM201007093356324]
 
  I might also add that the "turbo" function on the X6 chips are not being
  utilized as well.
  With a single threaded app, the Phenom 1090T is only ramping up to 3.2 Ghz
 instead
  of it's designed 3.6 Ghz clock speed when only 1-3 cores are under load.
 
  Dean Hilkewich

------------------------------------------------

  Dear Sir/Madam
 
  Please follow my previous suggestion.
 
  Sincerely,
 
  Sonny Brown
 
  Level 2 Technical Support

 [CASEID=TM2010070900270]

------------------------------------------------

 So what you are saying is that every single M3N-HT deluxe that we have
 has to be sent in for RMA? I find that incredibly hard to believe.

 Dean Hilkewich

-------------------------------------------------

 Dear Sir/Madam

 No sir , what im saying is if you have cpu's that are supported on this board,
 and the
 bios is updated to run them and there not being recognized properly, you will
 need to
 rma unit for repair or contact the cpu manufacturer.

 Sincerely,

 Sonny Brown

 Level 2 Technical Support

 [CASEID=WTM20100820233955883]

-------------------------------------------------

 Here is another user experiencing the same thing.
 http://vip.asus.com/forum/view.aspx?
id=20100820081656015&board_id=1&model=M
 3N-HT+DELUXE&page=1&SLanguage=en-us

 The bug exists
Dean Hilkewich

-------------------------------------------------

 Dear Sir/Madam

 We do not have access to those links. There is not a known problem with this
 board. Please contact AMD to see if there is a known problem with that cpu.

 Sincerely,

 Sonny Brown

 Level 2 Technical Support


 ASUS Technology Inc.


-----------------------------------------------


[CASEID=TM2010082100184]
You don't have access to links in your own company forum? I find that
hard to believe. I have contacted AMD engineering and they say it is,
without any doubt a bug in your BIOS. The CPU is perfectly fine. The
board is fine with the exception of your BIOS and it is reported by
other users as well in your own forums.

Dean

--------------------------------------------

Dear Valued Customer,

Thank you for contacting ASUS Customer Service.

My name is Stacey and it's my pleasure to help you with your problem.

Sorry, I did not receive this e-mail immediately because of the server.
In this situation, please clear the cmos to load default settings.
If the system can work normally then, please update to 3106 again for a test.
If no effort, have you tested your CPU on another computer?
If yes, I will report this siuation to our related department as soon as possbile.

Welcome to refer Troubleshooting & FAQ for ASUS products in ASUS website:
Troubleshooting -
http://support.asus.com/troubleshooting/troubleshooting.aspx?SLanguage=en-us
FAQ - http://support.asus.com/faq/faq.aspx?SLanguage=en-us

If you continue to experience issues in the future, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Best Regards,

Stacey

ASUS Customer Service

-----------------------------------------------

[CASEID=WTM20100910154113088]
CMOS has been cleared many times (Jumpered and with battery removed as well),
the motherboard has been using the 3106 BIOS for quite some time, CPU has been
tested on other boards (MSI NF980-G65) and C'n'Q works as expected as does Turbo
mode and no invalid P-states are reported. The issue has been confirmed by AMD
engineers as a BIOS issue on this motherboard.

Dean


----------------------------------------------
Date:2010-09-17 14:16:16

Hello Sir/Madam

Do you still have your older CPU to test with just to see if you have similar issues?
Also have you tested that CPU in another system to make sure this is not an issue
with the CPU being defective. If not then I would recommend calling into the call center
and request a test report. We can then try to duplicate the same issue you are having.
Our number is listed below.

If you need further assistance, please contact
Technical Support at 812-282-ASUS option 2
M-F 8:30 AM - 12:00 AM EST
Sat-Sun 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Thank you,
Krisenda
ASUS Tech Support/L2 Support

----------------------------------------------

[CASEID=WTM2010091873153841]
Hi Krisenda,

The CPU is not defective, as I said earlier it works fine in another board. Also this
board works fine with a AM2+ AMD 4200, 6400 BE, 9850 and a 955 BE. It is only on
the X6 core Phenom II's that it happen on. I have even tried a 1055T and the issue is
there as well. This is not a CPU issue, the CPU is fine. The issue is replicable on
other M3N-HT's. We have several of these boards and all exhibit the same thing and
even went to a local dealer to have him pull out a brand new borad and the issue is
the same there as well. This is a BIOS issue. Last time I tried calling your tech
support line they were fairly, excuse the term, useless. They simply did not have the
knowledge to even fathom what I was talking about on the previous issue of AMD-V not
working (again BIOS issue that was however finally resolved with the 1701 release).
To get that resolved I had to call over to Asia in the wee hours of the morning before
someone actually would look at it and of course it wasn't a cheap call at all.

Dean Hilkewich

-------------------------------------------

Hello Sir/Madam

You should not have had to call Asia, our support center is here in the US. Call into our call center
at 812-282-2787 opt 2 opt 1 and request to submit a test report. If the tech that answers the phone
cannot submit the test report then ask to be sent to someone who can.

If you need further assistance, please contact
Technical Support at 812-282-ASUS option 2
M-F 8:30 AM - 12:00 AM EST
Sat-Sun 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Thank you,
Krisenda
ASUS Tech Support/L2 Support
Phone : 812-282-2787
http://livesupport.asus.com

------------------------------------------

FYI, After reporting the issue well over a 1/2 a year, basically did every damn process of elimination 
and getting fed up with your US support I FINALLY got hold of someone that gave a damn (overseas again)
and the issue has been fixed in the 3202 BIOS. Please stop treating your customers like idiots.

 Some of us actually do know what the fuck we are talking about. Output from 3202 boot now is:

[ 13.164828] powernow-k8: Found 1 AMD Phenom(tm) II X6 1090T Processor (6 cpu cores) (version 2.20.00)
[ 13.164836] powernow-k8: Core Performance Boosting: on.
[ 13.164873] powernow-k8: 0 : pstate 0 (3200 MHz)
[ 13.164874] powernow-k8: 1 : pstate 1 (2400 MHz)
[ 13.164875] powernow-k8: 2 : pstate 2 (1600 MHz)
[ 13.164876] powernow-k8: 3 : pstate 3 (800 MHz)

Next time someone sends you a bloody report with output like this:

powernow-k8: Found 1 AMD Phenom(tm) II X6 1090T Processor (6 cpu cores) (version 2.20.00)
powernow-k8: Core Performance Boosting: on.
powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
powernow-k8: 0 : pstate 0 (3200 MHz)
powernow-k8: 1 : pstate 1 (2400 MHz)
powernow-k8: 2 : pstate 2 (1600 MHz)
powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
powernow-k8: invalid pstate 3 - bad value 3.
powernow-k8: Please report to BIOS manufacturer
Forward it to your damn BIOS engineers as requested so your customers don't have to call overseas for proper support!

Dean Hilkewich

[Smorg]

Asus' (AMI) bios do tend to be shit. I lol'd reading your logs - that's pretty bad. Tech support is basically an idiot filtering wall placed between you and the devs you actually need to get a hold of. We could really use a secret code to bypass that.

Asus boards are weird too in that they include a lot of undocumented features with Windows-only drivers such as some of the interfaces for controlling clock speeds and voltages (In addition to ACPI P-states/C-states). There's actually a chip on my board supposedly responsible for controlling power management features that I've scoured the web for info about and find nothing but references from Asus' own press releases and advertisements. I almost feel like doing some reverse engineering of their windows software because there seems to be quite a lot of it which controls proprietary non-standard hardware features.

[bridgman]

http://xkcd.com/806/

[deanjo]

Asus' (AMI) bios do tend to be shit. I lol'd reading your logs - that's pretty bad. Tech support is basically an idiot filtering wall placed between you and the devs you actually need to get a hold of. We could really use a secret code to bypass that.

Asus boards are weird too in that they include a lot of undocumented features with Windows-only drivers such as some of the interfaces for controlling clock speeds and voltages (In addition to ACPI P-states/C-states). There's actually a chip on my board supposedly responsible for controlling power management features that I've scoured the web for info about and find nothing but references from Asus' own press releases and advertisements. I almost feel like doing some reverse engineering of their windows software because there seems to be quite a lot of it which controls proprietary non-standard hardware features.

Well it's actually a Phoenix BIOS in my board. As far as the "chip to control power management" I assume your talking about the ATK0110 chip. This has actually been documented but unfortunately only the sensors part of it has been utilized in linux. I know the lmsensors guys got the docs a few years back but like most of those "windows only" features it's not so much that they can't get documentation but more a case that someone has to be motivated enough to make it worthwhile to develop for that feature. It is sad though, I would love to see apps like AMD's overdrive available in linux.

[deanjo]

http://xkcd.com/806/

LOL, oh how I wish there was a password.

[deanjo]

I have to say out of the whole debacle my favorite response was that they could not even access their own bloody forums.

[Kano]

Well when i reported a bad fan with a V7700 deluxe card i did not get even a response by em. I tried the same with a Club3d 9400 gt and got a replacement without a problem. I guess asus is so big that they do not really care about everybody - maybe oem/reporters.

[d2kx]

I once reported a problem to ASUS regarding their BIOS a few years ago and didn't get a reply either.

Just buy Gigabyte motherboards. They deliever and for quite some time now.

Let's see what the 2011 push of UEFI brings.

[deanjo]

I once reported a problem to ASUS regarding their BIOS a few years ago and didn't get a reply either.

Just buy Gigabyte motherboards. They deliever and for quite some time now.

Let's see what the 2011 push of UEFI brings.

Unfortunately Gigabyte isn't readily available locally. I prefer supporting the local mom and pop shops here. Their prices are competitive to the neweggs of the world and as long as that is the case I will continue to support them. I've had a few Gigabytes and MSI's in the past and my own personal experience is that I have had better luck, hardware quality wise, with Asus. My only real beef with Asus is that to get proper support you have to beat your head against a brick wall before getting to someone who doesn't try to RMA at the first sign of trouble. That is one thing that I really miss about Abit. They used to not only have some of the finest BIOS engineers but they would actually troubleshoot and if it did not work out, fire the support request off to their engineering before saying "send the board in".

[devius]

@deanjo Hey, I only saw this today. I must congratulate you on keeping your calm through most of those unbelievably irritating responses from "tech" support. I hope I never need to contact Asus tech support. So far everything seems to be working properly with my lone motherboard made by them.

The philosophical conclusion to draw is that tech support is the same anywhere in the world.