RIP - Anyone have experience with Crucial RMA?

[chizow]

Well, one or both of my 1GB sticks of Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1000 has gone bad. Rig was cruising along for almost 2 months at 1500/1000. Then I started getting random reboots overnight. Then weird BSODs. Then total freezes anytime I tried playing a game or even watching a DVD. Did all the usual troubleshooting, un-OC'd everything. Re-installed all drivers.

One of the last things I tried was changing the memory settings, because these sticks are rated to run at 1000MHz 5-5-5-12. Lowered my memory speed to 800MHz and got some stability back. Was able to run some games without locking up instantly. But inevitably the instability came back. So I finally took the last resort of running Memtest86 and I'm getting tons of errors in Test 6 and 4. Pretty safe to assume its a problem with one or both of the memory modules right?

Anyways, does anyone have experience with Crucial RMA? Looks like they're pretty good about it. Never had memory go bad on me before, just wondering what to expect. Do they offer advance/cross-ship RMA if you didn't buy from them? Just wondering how I can minimize system down-time without buying more RAM, although I wouldn't mind 4GB total. I just can't justify spending to match 4 GB of Ballistix, espeically after these went bad on me.

 

[ELopes580]

I can tell you first hand experience that Crucial's RMA dept is excellent. They do not care if you bought the RAM from them directly or not. Unfortunately AFAIK, I do not think they offer cross-shipping/advanced RMA. Not to worry though since their turn around is quick. Last time I did it back in July of2004; I was up and running in a week.

This is one of the very few companies I trust 100% in quality, compatibility, and service. I use Crucial RAM in every machine I own.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: chizow
Well, one or both of my 1GB sticks of Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1000 has gone bad. Rig was cruising along for almost 2 months at 1500/1000. Then I started getting random reboots overnight. Then weird BSODs. Then total freezes anytime I tried playing a game or even watching a DVD. Did all the usual troubleshooting, un-OC'd everything. Re-installed all drivers.

One of the last things I tried was changing the memory settings, because these sticks are rated to run at 1000MHz 5-5-5-12. Lowered my memory speed to 800MHz and got some stability back. Was able to run some games without locking up instantly. But inevitably the instability came back. So I finally took the last resort of running Memtest86 and I'm getting tons of errors in Test 6 and 4. Pretty safe to assume its a problem with one or both of the memory modules right?

Anyways, does anyone have experience with Crucial RMA? Looks like they're pretty good about it. Never had memory go bad on me before, just wondering what to expect. Do they offer advance/cross-ship RMA if you didn't buy from them? Just wondering how I can minimize system down-time without buying more RAM, although I wouldn't mind 4GB total. I just can't justify spending to match 4 GB of Ballistix, espeically after these went bad on me.

why make a post out of this?
Just do it.....then report back if you have issues..lol

 

[Shimmishim]

Actually... I need to RMA my crucial 10th anniversary kit as well... as 1 stick completely died on me.

I was reading through their RMA and I do believe they have advanced RMA (I think)... they charge your credit card and then credit it after you return the bad kit...

Read through their webpage, it explains it all. I will be doing one with them as well since I know newegg no longer has the 10th anniversary and don't want to risk them giving me some plain ballistix 5300.

 

[Roguestar]

Let us know how it goes, Shim. I had wondered if after stopping selling it when they had sold out, if they had kept some behind for RMAs. It'd be interesting to see how much thought (and care) they put into the whole "limited-edition memory" thing.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda
why make a post out of this?
Just do it.....then report back if you have issues..lol

Why reply if you have no relevant experience? As I stated in my post I was looking for experiences with their RMA and whether or not they offer advanced RMA for people who didn't buy directly from them. If they're fast or they cross-ship, then there's no need for me to buy more RAM in the meantime. If they're slow then I can either have my main system down for 1-2 weeks or get new RAM in a day or two to hold me over.....

Thanks for the reply from the others who do have experience with Crucial RMA. I'll call them later today to get an RMA number.

 

[Shimmishim]

Originally posted by: chizow

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda
why make a post out of this?
Just do it.....then report back if you have issues..lol

Why reply if you have no relevant experience? As I stated in my post I was looking for experiences with their RMA and whether or not they offer advanced RMA for people who didn't buy directly from them. If they're fast or they cross-ship, then there's no need for me to buy more RAM in the meantime. If they're slow then I can either have my main system down for 1-2 weeks or get new RAM in a day or two to hold me over.....

Thanks for the reply from the others who do have experience with Crucial RMA. I'll call them later today to get an RMA number.

Yeah, I completely understand.

unfortunately my backup rig is down as well hehehe... one of my older raptors died on me

 

[kef7]

In my experience RMA'ing with Crucial has always been among the least painful of all companies to deal with.

I once had to RMA four sticks of the ballistix DDR400 within two weeks and they never questioned me over it.

 

[Shimmishim]

Well guys... if you decide to RMA the 10th anniversary special... they do not have any in stock nor do they plan on placing an order for any any time soon...

therefore these will be replaced with the ballistix pc2-5300 which of course uses the micron d9's...

Kind of sad about this but that's all they can do...

 

[WAZ]

Yeah, I had to RMA some Ballistix a month or two ago, and it was perfectly seamless. No questions asked, they gave me an RMA number.

And yes, you CAN cross-ship if you want to avoid PC downtime. They'll charge your credit card the price of the RAM and send you the new stuff (BOTH sticks -- RMA'd in pairs even if only one is bad), and you'll have the new pair in just a few days. Then you send back your original pair -- you do have to pay shipping -- and they refund your credit card when they get the goods from you.

Whether you send first and wait for the replacement, or do the temporary charge cross-ship, you should have no trouble with them.

 

[pm]

Over the years, I've RMA'd several sticks. Both times, they did a cross-ship, shipped 2nd day Fedex on them for me, and included a pre-paid, pre-labeled box for shipping back to them for me. As I recall, the were even going to arrange for a pickup, but I told them I'd take care of it.

The last time that I did this was several years ago though.

 

[xfile]

I also had to RMA some sticks years ago. They cross-shipped and I was pleased overall.

 

[Roguestar]

THREAD - I GIVE YOU LIFE!

I've had to RMA my pair of 10th Anniversary sticks . 20,000~ memtest errors before completing test 1! I've just sent off my memory to them today, special delivery.

Any word from Shimmishim or chizow on how the RMA went?

Specifically I want to know if Shim got DDR2-533 back or anything higher than that (to reflect the fact that we paid more than DDR2-533 price at the time). Thanks for any feedback at all.

 

[chizow]

Haha, sorry I didn't update, but Crucial RMA is great as others stated above. They gave me the option to cross-ship (they charge you, then credit upon receipt) but I had already ordered some Buffalo to move to 4GB and hold me over during the RMA. Tech Support/RMA dept. was really good, no hassles, friendly people.

They replaced my sticks with 2 new identical sticks, although it wasn't the 2 stick kit which is no big deal. Only took one or two days before they were sent out. Total time took about 1 week including a weekend. Very pleased with their RMA and customer support. Turns out btw the culprit was my mobo (it killed my Buffalo too) and Asus' RMA is definitely a step down from Crucial and other companies I've had to do RMAs with.

 

[coolpurplefan]

Does anyone know how well OCZ RMAs their stuff? Sheesh, it's been almost a year and I finally discovered what was driving me nuts. One of my 1GB sticks of OCZ Platinum RAM was defective and I got an RMA number from NCIX. They told me it was too late to exchange it for another brand. They also told me it only qualifies for a repair RMA. How do they REPAIR RAM?

Imagine that I had decided to build another computer as a backup and replace the motherboard because of all the problems I had. Sheesh. Lots of money and headache.

 

[chizow]

No idea on OCZ RMA. I'd check out their site directly but I'd imagine their RMA policy is pretty good. The RAM industry almost dictates this as its so competitive and you have companies like Crucial leading the way. I always double-check before purchasing RAM, but I expect a lifetime warranty on RAM nowadays.

Also, I did actually go with a different board. I don't see how they're going to fix my board's problem with killing RAM, so I'm not going to risk it. The P5N-E SLI has been flakey with slots 1 and 3 since launch and I doubt they'll be able to fix it if they do anything with it at all. I'm not going to risk a 3rd kit in those slots, that's for sure. Could be the board design, a BIOS flaw or the 3-phase vs. 8-phase power regulation, but again, not something I can rely on Asus RMA to fix.

 

[gobucks]

Crucial's RMA department is very good, but i guess you have to be when your ballistix line of RAM is absolute garbage that can't run stably to save its life. I had to RMA my ballistix PC4000 sticks like 3 separate times before just giving up and returning them for a refund. I've heard the DDR2 version isn't much better.

Personally, if you have the option, I would return them and buy some Corsair XMS instead. I've had much better luck with their products, both their value ram for my laptop and their XMS for my desktop. I've also heard OCZ is good, but i had a bad experience with them since their old DDR2-800 modules had problems with my gigabyte DS3 mobo (their chips required really high voltages to run at their SPD timings.

 

[Thor86]

Typical memory RMA procedure, usually applies to most manufacturers/brands, but some may require you to do further testing with them. So far I have had no issues with OCZ/Crucial RMAs.

1) Test your system with Memtest at default settings/timings and make sure nothing errors. If it errors on any tests using default settings, then it's most likely a memory issue.

2) Test memory sticks individually to determine if it is just one stick or not.

3) Forward your test findings to any of the support@(brand).com addresses, and you should receive either an RMA # + instructions, or more instructions for further testing.
Check their websites for further support details/information.

4) Ship back the defective memory units with PROPER packaging and TRACKING.

5) Wait patiently, as most RMAs take up to 5-6 business days.

 

[coolpurplefan]

I know I just shipped it directly to NCIX following their instructions.

Really, I don't know if it's better to ship it to OCZ or to the online retailer you bought it from. The only thing I know is I followed all the instructions on the NCIX website. But, I asked for signature required for the package. I just don't trust NCIX enough. Tigerdirect always paid their rebates to me. NCIX did not claiming I had sent my letter too late. This was not the case since it was sent two days after I got my RAM.

 

[Shimmishim]

Originally posted by: Roguestar
THREAD - I GIVE YOU LIFE!

I've had to RMA my pair of 10th Anniversary sticks . 20,000~ memtest errors before completing test 1! I've just sent off my memory to them today, special delivery.

Any word from Shimmishim or chizow on how the RMA went?

Specifically I want to know if Shim got DDR2-533 back or anything higher than that (to reflect the fact that we paid more than DDR2-533 price at the time). Thanks for any feedback at all.

Yeah. I was given 5300's in return but not 10th anniversary. Even though the cost of the 10th's were more than that of the ballistix 5300's. I think the best thing to do is hold onto the 10th's and call crucial once in a while to see if they have the 10th in stock. if they do , then RMA. if they don't then just wait. other people after me have reported RMA-ing their 10th anniversary and getting 10th in return.

overall though the process was very easy and quick.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: Shimmishim
Yeah. I was given 5300's in return but not 10th anniversary. Even though the cost of the 10th's were more than that of the ballistix 5300's.

I hope I don't get the PC5300s. I clearly picked the 10th anniversary and spent more because it performs better than the vanilla PC5300.