Some of you who've read the Motherboard section of The Workbench may know I'm having an issue with an ASUS M4A785-M board I was using in my parents' new computer. When I originally called into tech support, the tech politely listened while I explained the issue and what I had done to test for certain problems. After a couple of quick tests, he concurred that I had a corrupted BIOS chip, transferred me to the department where I could get a replacement, but they were not available, so I left a message. (Thus far, it has not been returned.) All in all, a relatively pleasant tech support experience.
<rant>
Later, I called into support again because the tech never gave me a case number. Turns out one was never created, and no record of my previous call existed. However, this new guy, whose English was barely understandable, insisted that the issue was because I was not using a 600W+ power supply. Having already tested this problem with my 650W Corsair PSU (which is less than 6 months old) and still encountering the exact same problem, I knew this was not the issue. After I explained this to him 3 TIMES, he then insisted it was a memory issue, which I had also already tested with the last tech support guy. Long story short, after 95 minutes on the phone, he finally told me I would have to RMA the board for "unspecified technical problems." After I politely mentioned that all I really needed was a new BIOS chip, he claimed that they were not user-serviceable (despite being clearly removable and there being a section of the support site dedicated to replacing them). I asked for his supervisor, but he claimed it would be a 45 minute wait due to call volume. At this point, I just accepted the RMA number, because I didn't want to deal with the guy anymore. But at least he gave me a case number!
So, it appears I will have to RMA this motherboard, after all. This means at least another 2-3 weeks before I can finish this build for my parents. At this point, my mom just wants to "buy a computer from Wal-Mart that works" and that hurts me as a modder. So, to all you tech support people: I realize you have a script you are supposed to follow, but when the user tells you that they have already done these tests and they didn't fix the issue, listen to them. When you blatantly lie to the customer, it undercuts your credibility. When you assume that your customer is technologically-illiterate and he/she proves otherwise, stop treating them like they are.
</rant>
Thanks for your time & patience.
EDIT: I believe I forgot to mention that I checked with every reputable power supply calculator I could find, and even at max load, the system I'm building for my parents should never pull over 400W of power. Why I would need a 600W+ PSU is completely beyond me; the 520W Antec I'm using should be more than enough.