Intel's E7205: Granite Bay Hits the Streets

Tyan S2662: Tech Support and RMA

For your reference, we will repost our tech support evaluation procedure here:

The way our Tech Support evaluation works is first we anonymously email the manufacturer's tech support address(es), obviously not using our AnandTech mail server to avoid any sort of preferential treatment. Our emails (we can and will send more than one just to make sure we're not getting the staff on an "off" day) all contain fixable problems that we've had with our motherboard. We then give the manufacturer up to 72 hours to respond over business days and will report not only whether they even responded within the time allotted but also if they were successful in fixing our problems. If we do eventually receive a response after the review is published, we will go back and amend the review with the total time it took for the manufacturer to respond to our requests.

The idea here is to encourage manufacturers to improve their technical support as well as provide new criteria to base your motherboard purchasing decisions upon; with motherboards looking more and more alike every day, we have to help separate the boys from the men in as many ways as possible. As usual, we're interested in your feedback on this and other parts of our reviews so please do email us with your comments.

The following is Tyan's RMA policy, listed directly on their web site (http://www.tyan.com/support/html/faq_rma.html):

RMA / Repair / Replacement FAQ

1. What is Tyan´s RMA procedure?
   If the motherboard(s) you have is defective and requires a repair or replacement then please contact your distributor or place of purchase. Normally, they will be able to assist for a RMA. However, if the motherboard(s) is out of their warranty or for some reason your dealer is unable to support you, then please contact Tyan Tech Support in order to start the RMA process through Tyan Computer. Tyan Computer DOES NOT ADVANCE REPLACE or CROSS-SHIP in the event the motherboard(s) become defective. The average turn-a-round time for RMA repair/replacement is 2-3 weeks. Tyan Tech Support can be reached by email at techsupport@tyan.com.
2. I have a dead board, now what?
   DOAs should be returned promptly to your dealer for replacement.
3. I need a BIOS replaced.. where can I get one?
   BIOS replacements can be purchased from your dealer. If they do not carry them, have them order one for you. Tyan is not able to sell replacements directly to the end user. BIOS World regularly stocks BIOS replacements for our motherboards. Please see their procedure for BIOS replacement orders.
4. Who do I talk to for a replacement or refund?
   Contact your reseller for replacement, refunds or repair orders.
5. Who do I talk to to get my product repaired?
   Contact your reseller for RMA procedures.
6. Who do I talk to to get support?
   End users should contact their place of purchase for technical support. Engineering level support is available from TYAN directly on a pre-arranged basis with your local reseller.
7. What if my dealer can't help me?
   If your dealer is not able to help you, have your dealer contact us directly on your behalf to arrange for engineering level support. We also recommend that you search the site for your problem or study the FAQs for possible solutions before contacting our support team.
   

This policy isn't too bad at all, though, like most other top tier motherboard makers, Tyan wants you to first deal with your vendor before you go to them. We should mention that a very important part about an RMA policy is that it's made clear. In Tyan's case, they list their RMA policy clearly and explicitly on their web site, while other motherboard makers simply don't list it at all unless you email them. Tyan is crystal clear about their other policies as well, including warranty and tech support.

Tyan has a three-year warranty. Normally, if a user experiences a problem within 30 days, they can take it back to point-of-purchase and get a new board. Tyan's national distributors have a policy in-place with them, as well as with their customers.

Actually, Tyan's tech support works much like Intel's in several ways. One example is how Tyan sends an auto reply message once you've sent out your question to tech support, which is exactly what Intel does. This auto reply says, among other things, that your question will be answered within the next two business days, which is yet another feature that mirrors Intel. In general, this is a good tech support procedure, as sending an auto reply ensures that the company in question is aware of the user's questions and needs.

Tyan's technical support department is a bit different compared with our experiences with other motherboard makers. The main differentiating factor is that Tyan makes it very clear from the start that they want users to review their FAQs thoroughly before sending off an email to their tech support department. This is made abundantly clear by reading this page on their web site. It's completely understandable why Tyan is emphasizing their FAQs; they don't want to waste time with tech support emails that can be adequately answered by reading their FAQ sheet, which would give Tyan's tech support staff more time to answer the questions that can't be answered by reading the FAQ sheet.

Knowing these facts, we decided to email Tyan a question that wasn't answered in their FAQ. However, since we received Tyan's board a little bit later than the other Granite Bay motherboards, we were initially going to mention in this review that we couldn't give Tyan 72 hours to respond to our tech support email, which indeed we were unable to. However, since Tyan responded to our email within 5 hours, well, we think this speaks for itself. This is the best response time we've seen out of any tier one motherboard maker. In addition, the tech support fellow was quite helpful in answering our question.

Tyan's RMA procedure is very similar to other ones we've encountered in the past, although what makes Tyan stand out is how clear they are about their RMA policy on their web site. Tyan's tech support is some of the most impressive we've seen, with great response time and exceptional organization in general.