G1Sn CPU Upgrade Question

Hey everyone

I've been checking this forum occasionally for the past two years, since I got an asus laptop.

It's been a couple years, and I'm looking to upgrade my cpu. There are a few threads about people updating the G1Sn-X1, but they aren't totally clear on whether they got max performance out of the cpu after upgrading, etc.

I have a mobile c2duo T5550 1.83ghz, Socket P (478) Memron with a 667mhz fsb, and the PM965 mobile chipset.

Having some trouble figuring out what the list of cpus I could upgrade to are. SO, I'm hoping you guys can help me navigate the bs...

I think the best cpu I could put in is either the T7800 or T9300. And actually I'm not positive which is better... The T7800 (4M Cache, 2.60 GHz, 800 MHz FSB) vs the T9300 (6M Cache, 2.50 GHz, 800 MHz FSB)? Hard to tell. There's also this thread, http://forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/276881-t61p-t7800-t9300.html which doesn't totally come to a conclusion. For Windows 7 + some games, probably not much difference right? The T9300 has 45nm construction (vs 65 for the T7800), so that would probably make it better for heat issues and be more of a concern.

It also seems like the PM965 chipset can support some cpus with an 800mhz fsb, but cpu-z says my fsb is 667. Is this because it's being throttled, or is 667 the max limit? Would I have to upgrade my ram too?

1. It seems like somebody on the ASUS forums put a T9300 in, but again I don't know about the fsb issue, or if it's operating at max speed.
ASUSTeK Computer Inc.-Forum- fastest CPU?

2. Somebody here suggests the T7800 as the best cpu to replace the T5550... Intel core2duo T5550 how to overclock - CPUs - CPU-Components

3. The best meron family cpu (of which the T5550 is a member) seems to be the T7800... List of Intel Core 2 microprocessors - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

So anyway guys... help!

 

Are you sure the T9300 is the best you can upgrade to? I thought it was the T9500 (2.6GHz, 800MHz FSB).

Anyways, the T9x00 series is better than the T7x00 series. Check out this list for a rough comparison: PassMark - CPU Benchmarks - List of Benchmarked CPUs

It's easiest to just hit Ctrl+F and then search for your CPU there.

Hope this helps!

 

You're right, the T9500 is also compatible. I think the X9000 is also compatible with PM965 chipsets, but another 200 euro for just .3ghz doesn't seem like a smart option. 800mhz ram would probably make more difference for under 1/4th the cost.

The T9300 is better than the T7800 for two reasons, it has 45nm construction instead of 65nm and so won't get as hot, and it has a 6mb cache instead of 4mb. The .1ghz clock difference is basically irrelevant.

The PM965 fsb scales between 400-800mhz depending on what chip is put in it, so that question is resolved also.

Thanks for the link, too.

My only outstanding question is: Does it actually matter if I have an 800mhz fsb and 667mhz ram? Will the ram limit the fsb in all tasks?

 

The X9000 has an unlocked multiplier, which can let you modify the clockspeed through a program like Throttlestop, so it's potentially a bit more than 0.3GHz but I agree, not worth another $200 since you can use SetFSB to achieve similar results with any CPU.

The FSB is often mismatched with the CPU. My computer's the same way, but I have a 1066MHz CPU with an 800MHz FSB. Especially if you buy new RAM, the RAM won't be the limiting factor for your FSB. It's usually the CPU voltage, which determines what speed the CPU is stable at. My CPU uses an incredible amount of voltage (1.225V) so I can OC a lot further than I could with my old CPU.

The reason why I say newer ram is because a lot of RAM is faster now, ie: the chips are faster than they were a few years ago, which is why you'll find it harder to find PC2-4200 when PC2-5300/6400 are quite abundant. I guess my point here is RAM speed won't limit your FSB. If you're paranoid about it you could spend a few extra dollars on PC2-6400 RAM, put it into your computer and let it downclock to PC2-5300 on its own, and the compare your OCs. They won't be much higher, most likely.