I got a faulty motherboard unit with missing pins on the CPU Socket. Since it would take months to fix it and the whole thing had to be replaced, I opened a ticket. They encouraged me to attempt a manual repair. Following their suggestion, I tried to adjust the pins, but the process led to further accidental damage. During the process I bent some other pins of the socket, now they claim the warranty does not cover the repair. Lost many hours in the process and ended up paying ~50 EUR to get it fixed.

This is the picture of the motherboard. Under the green line there are three missing pins:

This is my first message, it was in Spanish, I translated it using AI:

Yesterday I was finally able to install the motherboard in the computer. After many attempts configuring the RAM —trying different slots and checking forums— it only works with one module. I saw that one possible cause could be that some pins on the motherboard are bent. I’m sending you a photo of the CPU socket. It seems to me that there are three in the central area that are not working properly. I’ve updated the BIOS and only a single RAM stick works in slot A2. I live in Ireland; that’s why it took me several more days to check its operation, since I returned from Spain a few days ago. I would like to be able to use the computer—if this is the cause, could I try to fix the pins myself?

For unknown reasons they replied in English:

Regarding your concern, firstly we have translated your mail by translation software due to language limitation. I want to say sorry if I have mistaken your meaning. The pins would affect the memory function. Is it possible to double check if the pins are missing or just bent? You can try straightening the bent pins. If not, we think that the motherboard need to be repaired. Thank you ! Thanks for your cooperation in advance!

They understood the situation and instructed me to “try straightening the bent pins”. I’m not an expert, but since it would take months to go back to Spain and the whole part would need to be replaced anyway, I decided to give it a try. I messed up and bent some other PINs by accident trying to fix the original issue, so I quickly gave up.

A few months later, I went back to Spain with the motherboard, and shipped it from Spain. It was not possible to do it from Ireland. When the warranty service received the part, they were probably not aware of what happened, so they saw the bent pins and replied (Translated with AI):

The following unit shows damage caused by the user. Please review the attached photos. In this case, we can repair it for a cost of 38 euros. Please let us know as soon as possible if you would like us to repair it, and if so, please send the details required to issue the invoice. Thank you very much. IMPORTANT NOTE: If no response is received within 48 hours, the unit will be returned unrepaired.

I tried to explain the whole story, that the socket was faulty from the beginning and I asked to try to fix it myself, etc. The part had to to be replaced anyway. No success, they say this is not covered by the warranty. I tried to get back to the original ticket, but they had closed it and I can no longer add messages or reopen it.

Desperately, I opened another ticket with MSI Spain, asking them to explain to the warranty service that it should be under warranty because the unit was faulty. They rejected everything, and by the way, the final price was 46.74 EUR, not 38 EUR, because of 23% VAT. Adding insult to injury, the quoted price didn’t even include VAT. They pressured me to pay within 48 hours or have my broken device sent back. They even claimed at one point that I had refused the repair, because I was trying to explain the situation.

Let me copy two of them here, translated with AI, they were originally in Spanish:

After reviewing the case again and the unit received, we confirm that the reported issue is not covered by the manufacturer’s warranty. The type of damage observed on the pins does not correspond to an original defect or a manufacturing fault, so it is not possible to process a repair or replacement under warranty. Since you have decided to reject the repair quote, we will proceed with shipping the unit back unrepaired to the address indicated in the case file. If you need additional information about the shipment or wish to reopen the case in the future, we will be happy to assist you.

And this other one, It is worth noting that the whole chat with the warranty service took around 24h in total. They ignored all my explanations and only asked for money.

Dear customer, We are awaiting your response; otherwise, we will proceed to return the unit unrepaired within 48 hours.

Finally, I had to pay and wish that it will work when it arrives. Have you had a similar experience with MSI?

Update 28/01/2026: I got this email explaining that I should have contacted them before doing anything. Which is exactly what I did. As you can see on the picture, at the time of creating the ticket, there are exactly three missing/bent/malformed pins.

Translated using AI:

Dear Customer, Any tampering with the product by an unauthorized person will automatically void the warranty. In this case, the customer should have contacted us directly if they received the unit in poor condition, which unfortunately they did not do. You have damaged the socket, as you indicated in your messages and photos. Our technicians suggested you try straightening the pins, as the product warranty has already been voided due to the damage caused.