Attention VGN-CS11 users and SONY!! Problem with FAN!

[Vamp1387]

Hi everyone!

If you have recently bought a new VGN-CS11 series notebook, I'd ask that you take a moment to read this post.

Since I unboxed the new notebook, I have been experiencing strange noises from the fan unit evey time it operates. Before, it used to be simply that every time the fan stopped working, it made a soft "growl" noise (probably due to some internal vibration) for a mere second or two. Recently, however, it has also begun to make a strange, barely audible "clicking sound" as the fan starts up and operates, accompanied by the "growl" at the end, like before. At first, I was led to believe that it was just the normal operating noise that the fan made (although quite annoying!), but due to these recent developments, I am more and more convinced that this is some problem or malfunction that perhaps, will only get worse with time.

Other CS11 users have already posted in the thread "Problem with fan!!" that they also experience this problem, and, from what I've been able to gather, it does not seem like an isolated problem... but this is what we need to confirm.

That is the purpose of this thread.

I would like to ask and encourage all CS11 users to post in this thread if they also experience the same "problem" with the fan (abnormal noises that are clearly distinguishable from normal operation) or anything fan-related, especially if you have experienced them since you bought the notebook and haven't done anything that could "provoke" them (like dropping the notebook or hitting it in some way, blocking the ventilation vents, etc...). This is to have a general scope that this is not an isolated problem that is only happening to a few, and that way, perhaps Sony will take an interest and take the necessary measures to correct this problem if this, in fact, turns out to be a generalised problem.

I have already created a new case with e-Support regarding this issue. Note that these are brand new laptops that have been out on sale for barely a month, and now would be a good time to correct any problems that may arise. If this turns out to be a common problem for most CS11 users, then we should all contact Vaio-Link or e-Support and report the problem, so that Sony will take this problem into consideration if enough people have it.

Remember: the sooner, the better!

Also, perhaps it would also be of interest that those CS11 users that DON'T experience this problem also post in this thread, to see how many DO and how many DON'T... it may be interesting to also know.

Ok... without taking any more of your time, I leave this thread to fellow CS11 users and to anyone that might be able to lend a helping hand. Thanks!!!

[Thalamus.]

what I thing is going on here is that they simply replaced some of the fans with faulty ones and other ones with working fans. 

I don't think that's the case, in the begging the fans were replaced with the same type, however the recent repairs that CS vaio owners, ie coral pink, BrianVAIO, etc have had the improved fans fitted..

[MetteHelene]

what I thing is going on here is that they simply replaced some of the fans with faulty ones and other ones with working fans. 


I don't think that's the case, in the begging the fans were replaced with the same type, however the recent repairs that CS vaio owners, ie coral pink, BrianVAIO, etc have had the improved fans fitted.. 

Hi Thalamus,

I'm new in this forum so I hope that it is okay, that I adress this problem to you as you seem to be the expert on this issue. I just got my Vaio CS21 back from repair for the second time - and I still have problems with my fan. It speeds up and down, going on and off constantly in a rather loudly manner. It is impossible to concentrate on for example writing on the PC when it starts and stops all the time. I'm really dissapointed as I talked to a girl at Sony about this problem before it was sent in the second time. I told her about this thread and what has been written here about replacing the fan with an improved one. But nothing has happened! It is still the same. I have talked to her again today but it didn't seem that she had told the repair center about the problem and she hadn't heard about this problem before. I really don't know what to do now! Thalamus, I hope that you have some advise for me.

Thanks, Mette

[thu2000]

From my observations, I´d say that the quality problems with the CS series highlight a general problem that Sony has with its laptops in today´s notebook market.

If you´re looking at any of the mainstream VAIO laptops of today (NS, FW, SR, CS), and compare them with the middle-of-the-road VAIOs from three, four, five years ago you´ll notice a pretty clear decline in overall build quality. I own a VAIO FS, and I´m planning to use this thing until it falls apart, because this thing, after three years of very hard use, still feels like it´s been carved from one massive block. It´s simply bomb-proof build quality.

Problem is, Sony wants to compete in the mainstream notebook market and prices in that very market have been on their way down for years now.
This looks great for customers at first glance, but it seems that a company like Sony can´t seem to continue producing the quality of the old days" when it wants to meet today´s average price points for mainstream laptops. Corners have to be cut somewhere.

VAIO designers are doing what they can to make up for this loss in build quality with visually striking designs, but mediocre quality is mediocre quality, no matter how pretty the machine´s looks are.

The CS is hands down the worst-built VAIO laptop I´ve ever seen, and I´ve seen a lot of ´em.

It´s sort of a dilemma that Sony finds itself in right now - should the try to meet today´s typical price points in the notebook market or should they raise with their prices and deliver the old, above-average build quality?
With customers being as cost-conscious as they year in today´s economic climate, that´s a rather tough decision.
It comes down to maintaining and increasing sales volumes vs. losing a bit of market share but selling better quality again.

As along-time loyal Sony customer, I´d like to see Sony go down the latter route. Make the products noticeably better than the competition again, and go up with the prices if this can´t be avoided.
If that means that an entry-level VAIO will start at 900 bucks instead of 700 bucks, and that a machine like the CS will cost 1300 or 1400 Euros instead of 1000, then so be it. Offer convenient financing options to avoid scaring financially strapped customers away.
For that extra money, make VAIOs solid, good-looking laptops again, across the entire (!) model line.

Currently, the only VAIO models I would consider with my high expectations are the BZ and Z. The rest, not so much.

Thanks for reading this long post and greetings to all 😃

[houhai]

what I thing is going on here is that they simply replaced some of the fans with faulty ones and other ones with working fans. 


I don't think that's the case, in the begging the fans were replaced with the same type, however the recent repairs that CS vaio owners, ie coral pink, BrianVAIO, etc have had the improved fans fitted.. 

Same fan or not same one is not the problem.
I think the problem is the speed up speed down issue that make the fan damage after some months of use.
If the fan just run faster when it need will be ok but speed up for few second then slow down then speed up of course can make the fan damage.

And as i know is the bios or something else who decide this? i dont have a big knowledge about notebook , tell me if im wrong.
thanks

[MetteHelene]

Hi everybody!

Today I talked to another guy at Sony's and he told me that my Vaio could be sent in for

repair for the third time. I told him about the fan problem and this thread - and he said

that you coldn't count on, what people wrote here!! Also, he said that he couldn't make sure

that another type of fan would be put in my Vaio as he didn't have any influence on what the

engineers did to my Vaio at the repair center! I really feel powerless right now If

there is no communication between the people that you talk to and the repair center, how can

the problem be solved? I will try to contact the first person I spoke to again on monday but

it is hard to keep your hopes up.

Mette

[Thalamus.]

Hi MetteHelene,

I have sent you a Private Message, use the following link to View your messages: Private Messages

[BrianVAIO]

Hi MetteHelene.

I had a similar experience with various Sony staff at first, including being phoned by three different employees in the space of two days -- two on the same afternoon -- who did not know about the other calls to me.

Now, though, just one guy is calling me, and though no progress has been made, he says he has escalated the issue to engineers and is awaiting their feedback. He has taken note of the number of my BIOS version and listened closely to my explanations of the fan's behaviour. He phoned me at 15.00 today to let me know he hadn't heard back from them and said he'll phone me on Monday to let me know how things are going.

[Thalamus.]

Now, though, just one guy is calling me, and though no progress has been made, he says he has escalated the issue to engineers and is awaiting their feedback. He has taken note of the number of my BIOS version and listened closely to my explanations of the fan's behaviour. He phoned me at 15.00 today to let me know he hadn't heard back from them and said he'll phone me on Monday to let me know how things are going.

Hopefully the guy that contacted you on the 10th June will be able to help resolve your issues BrianVAIO..

[BrianVAIO]

The news is not good. Just had a phone call from Sony VAIO to say that there's been an update in the case. The engineers believe the fan is "working within specification".

Okay, I suppose it is. It sounds like a working fan, no longer clattering and rattling the way the orignal fan was before I sent the CS off to Sony, so yes, the fan is "working within specification" for a fan.

But, while it may be working, the repeated reminder as I type this is that the fan's certainly not behaving as I would wish, or, I believe, as any owner of a laptop would wish. In terms of how a notebook PC's fan should be controlled, this Sony CS is hopefully not "working withn specification". If it is, and Sony engineers believe that a consumer should be happy to work with a laptop that behaves this way and is as noisy as this, I would not recommend Sony VAIO laptops to anyone else.

The call today was not from my usual contact -- he's not there today -- and the guy I spoke to said that they have a CS there that they could examine, since I am still unhappy with my product, to see if it's worth them taking my CS back in....

I am not very optimistic about a satisfactory outcome to this. I suppose the replacement fan might be more robust and may be more resistant to damage, but if it starts to rattle and clatter like the original did, I think my only option then will be to scrap this PC and look to for something better made from another manufacturer (or to build up a new desktop PC myself).

[BrianVAIO]

Came across this comment on vaio.sony.co.uk:

Thanks to innovations in both cooling system and chassis design across the range, whether your VAIO ....

I am not convinced. Sounds good in a sales brochure kind of way, but I think most CS owners would tend to disagree.