Bluetooth not working or showing up in Device Manager

[sharpnova]

Sorry if this is the wrong forum. Wasn't clear to me which one was correct.

I have the ASUS Rampage IV Extreme motherboard. One of its features is onboard Bluetooth.

I have it enabled in BIOS. I flashed my BIOS to the latest version, I updated my chipset to the latest driver. I installed the latest Bluetooth driver. I started Bluetooth Support Service in Windows Services.

I've tried disabling Bluetooth in BIOS then enabling it.

I have never once seen anything in my computer that hinted at Bluetooth whatsoever. No Bluetooth Radios in Device Manager or anything Bluetooth related.

I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit
ASUS Rampage IV Extreme
3930k
16 GB RAM

I have never tried to use it so I don't know if it ever worked before, but I have no system restore points set anyway, so that test isn't viable.

 

[TVeblen]

It looks like a lot of people are having this problem with that motherboard.

One solution was to remove and reconnect the Bluetooth dongle from the motherboard port after installing the driver (yes it is removable, but it clips into the port).

Another was to make sure that the Bluetooth service was enabled in Windows.

Another solution that worked was posted by Necrosan over at ROG:

"You need to install AI Suite II - specifically the Mobilink component - on your PC. (You can obtain the most recent version from the R4E ASUS website.)
Turn on bluetooth, pair the phone, open RC bluetooth, hit menu->devices. Choose previously paired device.
At this point it should "just work" if you are about 1-3 feet away from your computer. Any more distance than that and you likely will experience issues. (Yes, the range really does suck this bad.)

I just tested these exact instructions and they worked fine. Feel free to ask any follow up questions.
Enjoy. "
​

But I think that last one was only if it shows up in Device Manager but does not connect. Can't be sure.

 

[sharpnova]

I will give the remove/reconnect dongle method and the AI Suite II method a try this weekend. (already enabled the service (and disabled and re-enabled a bunch of times with reboots in my first troubleshooting campaign)

Thanks

 

[sharpnova]

I wasn't able to get it to work. I contacted ASUS and they tried to give me the run around, but I cited other cases and how this motherboard has a falsely good reputation. Still uninterested, I dropped the fact that I have a tech blog that is read by thousands.

Suddenly they were happy to swap for a rampage 5 or a refund.

Needless to say, I took the refund.

Haven't had issues with them in the past but this was an infuriating waste of time.