0x0124 BSOD during Win7 install after 4 months of smooth sailing!

James7679 said:

Howard, we haven't heard back from you, just wondering if you got your issue resolved.

Hi James!
Thanks for checking back. I sent back my CPU last week and should receive a replacement within the next few days. I'll post the news once I've tried it out :)

Cheers

Hi guys!

GOOD NEWS! I got my CPU replacement yesterday and installed it as soon as I got home and... it works!

No more BSOD during Win7 installation. Finally!

So I guess what I learned from all this is that you can have a defective CPU that still passes all benchmark tools but which crashes during Windows bootup and Windows instalaltion.

Many thanks to all of you for helping me out!

Also, below is a little story about Intel's customer service if you are interested.

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So I sent Amazon an email saying that my CPU was defective and I wanted to replace it. They wrote back saying no problem, you can send it back to us, and we will send it to Intel for repairs/replacement. It will go faster, however, if you just sent it directly to Intel yourself. So I called Intel and told them the story about my BSODs and so on, and that I had strong reasons to believe that my CPU was defective. What the guy told me kind of shocked me. He said that the failure rate on these processors is so low, it is very hard to believe that my CPU is defective. It is nearly impossible, he said. He told me I was going to have to take my CPU to a shop to have it professionally tested. Naturally, I would have to pay for this test myself (insert outrage here). The shop would then have to give me a written confirmation that the processor is indeed broken, and then I would be able to send the CPU, together with the written proof, back to Intel. At that point I flipped out a little. I mean, the CPU has a 3-year warranty, is only 4 months old, and I am supposed to invest my time and money in doing some test that they should do themselves?

After hanging up the phone I said, screw this, I'm sending it back via Amazon. So I did. One day later I received an email from Amazon: we are very sorry about your defective CPU, here is your money back. O_O And that is why I love them. I simply ordered a new processor, exact same model. I installed it last night, works flawlessly. I almost feel like calling up Intel again: hey, how is this for a written proof you idiots? :)

/endrant

Understand your frustration, but Intel is mostly right. Processors do not commonly fail without user error involved, i.e. bent/broken pins. However, I still remember the "customer is always right" slogan. Unfortunately, that seems to have been thrown out the window as the economy has dwindled. At least you found a solution to the exchange problem. I've been getting the short end in some deals lately myself, so I know how you felt. Most of my complaints have only been mostly resolved rather than entirely, but that is a whole other can to open, and I do not feel like having worms everywhere.

All in all, I am very happy to see you have a working system again. Enjoy!