K70 RGB Rapidfire: LED noise

Hi guys,

I was looking forward to today for over a week and now it's finally here, my first personal mechanical keyboard. And it makes a noise when the LEDs are turned on... Great.

The internet suggested to plug the keyboard into every USB port available and see if the problem persists. It does... Ugh. Looking deeper into the interwebs someone says it's a defect and advises to RMA it.

 

Now I would not have an issue with RMAing if it would be possible to send the keyboard out on Monday and receive it back on Friday the same week. In the last months I've sent my mouse (not from Corsair) back twice and both times it took from Money to Wednesday the next week and I really did not pay over €100 (in this case close to €200) to have constant issues with my devices. To add to that, I have nothing to replace them with leaving me a week and a half doing nothing productive.

 

Has anyone experience with this issue? What did you do? If you sent it in, how long did it take Corsair to send a flawless unit back? Did they charge for shipping (EU)? Any information on this is welcome.

 

Oh and a last, maybe stupid, question: is there any chance this noise will "go away" after a couple weeks? That would be the ideal "solution". Thanks!

Another question came to mind: If I just endure the high pitched noise and just leave it, might my LEDs die soonish? Or might the thing even explode/catch fire or short something out (itself, my motherboard and other components)? I'm kinda serious - no, I'm fully serious. I don't want to risk other parts "just" because I'm not in the mood of sending it in and having no keyboard for a while.

Am I blind or is there no edit function here? My bad if I'm missing it and now am just spamming this thread.

 

I tried recording the noise but my phone is not picking it up. It's very high pitched and noticeable even when sitting at a little further from the desk/keyboard than normal range without headphones. It sounds like the first second (0:05-0:06) in this video here: [ame]

[/ame] maybe even higher.

And as said, it's completely gone when I turn the LEDs off (through CUE or with the LED button on the keyboard itself).

 

I don't want to rant but I'm super bothered by this..like how much bad luck (not that I believe in luck) am I having this year? I bought my mouse in February and it also had a defect from the start. Just a few weeks ago I was being told how much less of a chance of failure there is in todays hardware because of all the testing manufacturers now do and how easy it is for them. Yeah... right.

Have you tried the keyboard on another computer? Is the noise still present?

Have you tried the keyboard on another computer? Is the noise still present?

 

Yes I did and it's still present.

 

 

I asked some colleagues, who I know do more electronic tinkering than I do, whether they have heard anything about LEDs making a high pitched noise and none of them have.

I'll return the keyboard tomorrow. They don't have it in stock so they can't offer just a quick swap. Also, when doing the RMA through them it would take 2-4 weeks apparently.

Amazon.at doesn't have it in stock either... Ugh. Guess I'll pick up something else if they don't have it in a few weeks together with one of the new Nvidia cards.

When I got up today Amazon had 6 in stock! Immediately ordered one. It says it's here on Monday but I'm not buying it lol. They haven't even sent it out yet and it's standard shipping... weird.

 

Hope the next one doesn't have the same issue. Else I'll be back :)

Welp. Same thing again.

Hi Finnlae,

 

Please file a ticket with our support team and be sure to include the lot code.

Finnlae,

 

Please include your RMA # whenever you get the chance. We will take a look into your situation.

Finnlae,

 

Please include your RMA # whenever you get the chance. We will take a look into your situation.

 

 

Haven't submitted a RMA ticket because I'm not interested in RMAing it through Corsair. It simply would take to long from what I've read (haven't gotten an answer here). I rather send it back to the reseller and have them deal with it.

 

Hi Finnlae,

 

Please file a ticket with our support team and be sure to include the lot code.

 

Same thing. Just for the future, what is a lot code?

 

I found a serial number, product number, a "M/N" and 3 different barcodes on the packaging with different numbers beneath them (one of them I'm guessing belongs to the P/N and one belongs to the S/N, the third unknown is below "Made in China").

You may be eligible for a prepaid shipping label if the product is less than 30 days old.

 

You will need to request this via Customer service though.

Any closure to this issue? I am also having this problem with my brand new K70 RGB rapidfire keyboard.

 

I tried exchanging the keyboard through the retailer (NCIX) that I purchased it from. They gave me a brand new K70 RGB rapidfire. I took that keyboard to work to try on the same PC as I tried the other one, only to hear that same very high pitch wining/ringing noise.

 

My friend purchased a Strafe RGB (brown) and his RGB keyboard does not make this noise. I also tried my keyboard on his high-end PC thinking the noise could be caused from my not so high-end work station PC...His PC did not eliminate or reduce the high pitch noise.

 

The noise its self is more intense when certain colors are being displayed and it seems strongest around the backspace/ F9-F12 area of the keyboard.

 

Note: The noise is high pitch enough that it drives my dog crazy and some older adults cannot hear it as it is above their audible frequency range.

 

I'm not sure where to go from here. I want the metal K70 and its features, especially the Rapidfire keys but I'm worried another K70 RGB will still make this noise.

 

I've also opened a ticket with corsair but its been a few days with no reponse...

 

Hopefully they can figure this out.

Finnlae,

 

This may be an combination of your specs for your computer. We would have to look into your issue. Please create a ticket fill out your computer specs and provide us with an RMA number. We will look into your case.

Finnlae,

 

This may be an combination of your specs for your computer. We would have to look into your issue. Please create a ticket fill out your computer specs and provide us with an RMA number. We will look into your case.

 

Whilst this is a nice suggestion I don't think that is the issue. I myself tried it on three different computers one of which was my laptop and the problem occurred on all three. We are now 6 people (including myself) with the same issue here and on reddit (

) and more than likely we have no more than two components in common. One of them being the keyboard.

 

Coming back to my 3 computers, one is brand new, one 5 years old and the laptop 3. The devices have absolutely nothing in common (well, the desktops both get power from my wall sockets lol).

 

______

E: My thinking RN is, isn't it more plausible these keyboards all come from one production batch that just so happens to have an issue with the LEDs? If so, is there a way for Corsair to figure out from which day/"LED-set/switch-set" they came from and maybe call all of them back (assuming they're all defect)?

 

It seems these keyboards are sent out randomly to resellers, as in not in order of production? I'm guessing so. As said, the people on Amazon.at who bought from the same single shipment that Amazon.at got don't have the issue I have. Can you confirm this?

 

My computer specs are:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For €343.20)

CPU Cooler: Corsair H115i 104.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Purchased For €142.89)

Motherboard: MSI Z170A GAMING PRO CARBON ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (Purchased For €147.99)

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory (Purchased For €63.44)

Storage: Crucial BX200 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For €65.53)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For €49.07)

Power Supply: Corsair RMx 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply

GPU: AMD Radeon HD 7850 from Sapphire

Hi i have same issue here.My new corsair k70 rgb rapidfire have annoy high pitch sound when turn the led light on,Then i go to the store where i bought it and asking for claim my keyboard,They put out a new box and test it but there new keyboard have high pitch noise same too.I think it is production failure :{

Guess we're seven now.

 

Quick update: I'm getting my money back. Wizard I'd be happy if you keep on this and 'investigate' the issue.

I really want this keyboard. Amazon.at is out of stock and ETA is beginning July to beginning August. I'll order the keyboard again, most likely from Corsair themselves and if I then get a fourth, defect keyboard I will go through the RMA process, and try to get them to check the replacement keyboard before they send it out. I am frustrated but as long as there is no extra charge for the working keyboards we ordered and want I am fine.

Any news about if its a production failure?

Hi everyone,

 

I had the exact same problem, i ordered the k70 rgb rapidfire from a reseller. Ended up sending it back 3 times! Every keyboard had the exact same issue, a high pitch noise from the led's.

 

The pitch noise changed when i changed the led brightness and even the color.

 

i guess its a production failure. Quite sloppy....

Any news about if its a production failure?

 

Yes. I found this.

 

Update:

 

I called into the technicians at corsair and they have told me that they are aware that batches have gone out with faults and that they know about the horrid buzzing noise. They claim that they are now in the process of calling distributors to send them keyboards to then start testing to see which batches have or don't have the buzzing noise when the brightness is changed. He claimed that you all should just put a support ticket in and that they will not send a replacement until they have fixed the issue. May take a few weeks hopefully.

 

I'll cancel my return request with Amazon and open a RMA ticket now.

 

E: Derp, you are the same person. LMAO. Thanks for calling them.

 

 

"...have the buzzing noise when the brightness is changed." not only when the brightness is changed. The entire time. Did you just miswrite that?

Same issue with the K70 LUX RGB, lot code 16228432. Got a replacement from Amazon with the same lot code, same problem. Did RMA it through Corsair, got lot code 16238950, and... same problem. :(

Now I'm tempted to return it for good and go with a different manufacturer - but I actually like the keyboard otherwise...

Same issue with the K70 LUX RGB, lot code 16228432. Got a replacement from Amazon with the same lot code, same problem. Did RMA it through Corsair, got lot code 16238950, and... same problem. :(

Now I'm tempted to return it for good and go with a different manufacturer - but I actually like the keyboard otherwise...

 

Might I ask where the lot code is located? I have yet to figure that out.

 

I have yet to open another ticket. Don't want to send the keyboard back RN and wait potentially weeks for the replacement to arrive. Worrisome to hear that though, someone on reddit reported to have finally received a fully functional one through RMA.

The sticker on my box looks roughly like this one

 

In that case the lot code is 12467127, i.e. 2012, week 46. (don't know what the last four digits refer to). At least that's what I concluded from asking myself the same question and looking at a bunch of search results, and Corsair hasn't indicated that I'm wrong so far.

 

I'll suggest trying another round of RMA to them. I did request the Express RMA process where they send you the replacement unit right away instead of waiting for yours. Started the RMA on Sunday, requested the Express RMA on Monday (since you have to call them, and they are not available over the weekend), received the keyboard on Tuesday (they are in Hayward and I'm in San Francisco, so shipping is fast).

They did put a hold for ~$160 on my card (you have to provide the card info over the phone) in case I don't return my keyboard within 10 business days of them shipping the replacement, but I'm fine with that.

I hope they accept if I send them back the replacement instead of the original, so I can hold on to my O rings a little longer :-D

Corsair created and approved a new RMA yesterday. So I called and requested the Express RMA process again, and the keyboard arrived today, just one day later. It has lot code 16238950 (like last time), but this one actually doesn't have that annoying sound! Hooray!

Maybe somebody put an older keyboard in a box with that lot code last time, who knows. I'm just happy this one is working flawlessly now! Thanks, Corsair!

Meanwhile, the email with the shipping label from UPS to return the old one has not arrived yet. ^^

The Express RMA process is great, especially if you live close to Hayward.