HELP! I'm so close to getting a Mac It's not even funny

[Christopher Lindsay]

I've always been a Windows guy but I'm so fed up with my Surface Book and Microsoft I don't even know what else to do. I need my computer to do audio work at home and for weeks now I've been plagued with Surface Book issues one after another. I do music production and my SB kept crashing every single time any notification would come in. It would crash my audio drivers. It would crash my audio software. Just left and right crashes for no reason. I think I must've reset my computer 10 times with no results so I contacted Microsoft and they sent me a refurbished SB. The refurbished one never even booted up. I had to send it back and wait for them to process the return to get them to send a second replacement. They sent another replacement. It's been a week and haven't even fully set this new one up with my software and it's having ridiculous issues. The shutdown option in Windows suddenly just stopped working. It takes 5 minutes for it to boot. It takes like 30 minutes for it to reset and usually it BSOD with a power failure before it finally shuts down. The keyboard and touch pad completely stop working on it and occasionally come back on but only after about 20 minutes or so after the computer has been running. I reset it already twice and the power issue still persists. I'm tired of contacting Microsoft only to be sent broken refurbished SB's. I feel like Microsoft is doing everything in It's power to push me over to Apple. What should I do?

 

[tgp]

There are other devices that are similar to the Surface Book. Maybe you could get a refund from Microsoft and try something from an OEM. I don't really follow hybrids so I'm not sure what the latest devices are, but we've seen hybrids from them like HP Envy x2 or Dell XPS 12.

Or get an Apple device. There's nothing wrong with that either. The choice is yours!

 

[Christopher Lindsay]

Got another replacement. It's also broke in one day. Ok done. Anybody want to buy a Surface Book?

Sent from mTalk

 

[unmorphed]

Sounds like user error.

 

[Ryujingt3]

Did you update all the drivers and Windows itself to the latest versions?

 

[Christopher Lindsay]

Well Microsoft couldn't fix it. They're calling it hardware error. The Surface Book keeps disconnecting and reconnecting by itself. Nothing they could do stopped it from doing that. I decided to escalate it up to their escalation team to see if they can offer an alternative solution.

Sent from mTalk

 

[Christopher Lindsay]

Did you update all the drivers and Windows itself to the latest versions?

Yes.

Sent from mTalk

 

[Christopher Lindsay]

I'm convinced they're refurbishing QA is trash. Entry refurbished unit I've received has been returned within a very short period. I've also started looking online at mac options which is sad because i wasn't even interested in mac until i got a Surface Book.

Sent from mTalk

 

[xandros9]

Honestly, unless you want to try Mac OS I'd fight for a refund and go to a different PC manufacturer first.

 

[hopmedic]

Honestly, unless you want to try Mac OS I'd fight for a refund and go to a different PC manufacturer first.

Agreed. There are lots of great PCs out there these days, and you won't have the learning curve of learning a whole new OS, which could be a detriment since it sounds like you do business on your PC. I mean, two years ago, there was no Surface Book. Did you switch from Mac to PC just for the Surface Book (I doubt it)?

 

[Christopher Lindsay]

Agreed. There are lots of great PCs out there these days, and you won't have the learning curve of learning a whole new OS, which could be a detriment since it sounds like you do business on your PC. I mean, two years ago, there was no Surface Book. Did you switch from Mac to PC just for the Surface Book (I doubt it)?

No. I've always been a Windows guy. I'm just fed up with the products I've gotten from Microsoft as of late.

Sent from mTalk

Honestly, unless you want to try Mac OS I'd fight for a refund and go to a different PC manufacturer first.

I've been trying to do that but so far no success.

Sent from mTalk

 

[baandoptager]

I had my Surface Pro 3 since it was released. After Windows 10 came out, which i technically love, i have had so many hardware issues, some of them being: Extreme heat, battery drainage, wifi card stops working, can't wake up, can't sleep, can't power down, keyboard stopped working, extreme lag in Office programs (couldn't type in real time) etc etc.... It bugged me soo much that i ended up selling it (Because MS couldn't help) and jumping a cheaper built Dell Inspiron 5000 instead.

In many ways it really pissed me off that i had to resort to inferior hardware to get a working computer and now ironically liking Windows 10. It's not without it's issues i mean, photo editor is terrible, email app doesn't work well, Edge has issues etc etc, but atleast i'm free from hardware issues.

I'm dying to get back on microsoft hardware for the build, feel and looks. But i'm gonna hold back for some time before i jump anything in that hardware ecosystem again.

SB2 maybe, if they can fix their problems!

 

[Gunbust3r]

Marvell Avastar WiFi/Bluetooth. The worst performing, buggy, feature devoid, did we get the driver right? 27 times in a row chip available since the original surface. Still in all the new Surface products. Even in a $3000+ Surface book or $4000 Surface Studio. That right there tells you what Microsoft thinks about support.

 

[Tjalsma]

I love my MS devices as well - including my Surface Pro.

However, I also record, mix, and master music. There is nothing that MS, or any other PC manufacturer for that matter, offers that can compete with the stability and ease of use of a Mac. I won't go into detail here but I'll just say that, strictly from an audio production standpoint, it's night and day. It's a generational leap in terms of ease and usability.

In 2007, I switched to an iMac strictly for music production. We have multiple PC devices I try to record on and it's just cumbersome and really ruins the creative aspect for me - there are too many barriers and annoyances. And this isn't coming from someone who just dabbles with Windows.

Again, I love my Surface but I wouldn't even think of using a PC for music production anymore.

 

[Narr]

I've had a Surface Pro 3 and Surface Book and haven't had issues with them but now I only buy from places that have a good record in taking products back if they aren't working. In the UK if you buy from the Microsoft Store they will send out refurb'd products even if you have a problem with a brand new item; I had this with my Surface RT and vowed not to buy from the Store again.
If possible I would look to replace with a Surface Pro if they are adamant they will not give a refund.

 

[Shawn Garvey1]

This is really odd, as I just did an EP project on my base-level Surface Book and had no issues at all. I used ASIO drivers, shut off WiFi during recording and editing, and used Reaper with 40 - 50 plugins on a 16 track project with no issues at all. Never a crash, no audio issues...nothing. What DAW are you using? Which audio drivers? Plugins? Do you turn off your WiFi while working? What buffer rate are you working with?

 

[Si Ko 1]

Just to understand from a technical standpoint.
Do you use an external soundcard? Could it be a third party driver problem?
Did you do a full reset, via the defender security center?
Are you running latest version of Windows?
What settings do you have on 'non default' settings?
Did you do a clean boot to isolate the problem?
Thanks, I care for my SB and audio very much too, so happy to help resolve this!

 

[Tim Stone]

Because my clients are always buying new devices, I stay very current with hardware, usually updating one or two devices per year. I use a Dell desktop, and currently a MacBook Pro (touch bar ) and a Surface Book. However, I've had devices from most major manufacturers.

My observation overall is that none of them are without problems, and the support from all companies exists for only the most basic of services from untrained script readers, and when you have serious issues, no one will actually take the time. In addition, documentation is severely lacking so it is very difficult to do your own troubleshooting.

I would NEVER purchase a refurbished unit, nor will I accept one in exchange for a defective unit. Those units have a known defect which may, or may not, have been repaired. One defect can usually weaken other components, so if it failed, and they replaced one part, others will likely not have a full life expectancy.

The key here is your software. Contact the publisher and find which machines function best with it. Then, get the same computer. The software publisher wants you to succeed because then they keep you using their product and buying updates.

I had a Surface Pro 3, and a Surface 3. In both cases I sold them to clients who have been quite happy and they work fine.

 

[GitBoxer]

The wireless/Bluetooth hardware broke on my sp3 twice. Before receiving the second replacement I had support write me an email confirming that if the same problem occurred at ANY time (including after warranty expiration) that I am to receive a replacement unit at no cost to me. I was not going to accept another SP3 unless they included this stipulation. I understand that hardware sometimes fails but a repeating identical failures are a sign of production issues.

 

[Tim Stone]

I buy from the Microsoft Store, and usually the one located near me. I had a very cheap computer that they sold me for my granddaughter, and it couldn't be repaired. So they gave me a new Surface 3 for her. I had a Band when they discontinued them and they exchanged it for a Blaze. I had an HP tablet from there that they exchanged for a newer, larger, model. I've found them to be very cooperative at the local store, and they will also handle purchases made from the Microsoft on-line store.