[NW] Upgrade the C90S to a 9600M GT 512MB DDR3 [FIXED!]

Me again,

i once again read through this thread. And i found there where some other having problems with getting the speeds up.

Nightwalker wrote this:

"Sorry I didn't finish answering your questions about the 9650 card not working. I am willing to bet heavily that the reason your 9650 didn't upclock was because the performance tables were not adjusted correctly in the vbios.

This was exactly the same problem I encountered with my 9600 at first. If someone has a copy of a "Zepto Samsung chipped 9650m GT", send me the vbios and I'll tweak the settings and we can test it out."

So maybe my problems are also because of uncorrectly adjusted performance tables. Nightwalker never wrote how to fix it. Does anyone know what the tweak is?
Here is my original .rom :

old.rom

And one i found that seems to be the same:

acer.rom

 

@King I'm afraid you are right, the X6800 is a very decent processor, I wonder if throttlestop would work with it (I used in my x9000 to unlock multipliers).

@mj12bot I had never a 9650, but I found that 9600m GT didn't need to mod performance tables, just the amount of performance tables to "2" maybe "3" would work also, (since the GT 240 has 3 and it works).



With this mod I was able to overclock with afterburner or evga precission. So I think is better than mod performance tables, maybe it works to on your 9650.

 

Hi Phoenon,

thats a nice idea. I tried with reducing from 4 to 3 levels and it didnt work.
But as i see the Thrtl level falls out when changing to 2 levels.

Since my 9700m GT (this is what i have) seems to run in Thrtl level, i wonder what will happen when i kick it out?

Like i posted earlier this will come from the MXM Error on bootup (which Asus Notebooks dont show as far is i saw). This is the reason for making Thrtl to full settings what i did via Nightwalkers Guide and not worked as expected.

 

OK so test with 2 level profiles, and If you did a backup of your original BIOS, I would reflash with it before, maybe the tables are corrupted.
Good luck!

 

Sounds very promising, i will try that!

By the way, i always use "nvflash.exe name.rom" to flash.
But there is another way i saw: "nvflash.exe -5 -6 name.rom".

Is there any difference or maybe one of both better?

 

Well I always used -5 -6 options, right now I don't remmeber what do they do exactly, but If I'm not wrong, are basically override options for missmatching vendor ID and so. You have the help just typing nvflash or nvflash -h maybe...

cheers.

 

Ok done first step and it works.
Now it switches (saw it in gpu-z) between 2D and 3D levels.



Now i should set 3D to 575/1450/800 @ 1.05V (what was originally Extra) and see if it is finally working.

Update:
No it does not. The same since the beginning.
Without Driver installed it works. But as soon as a Driver is installed i have these scenarios:

-With 575/1450/800 @ 1.05V (the original full clocks, no OC) i get this when the Login should appear:



-With 575/1450/600 @ 1.05V i get a Bluescreen with nvlddmkm.sys

-With 575/1450/550 @ 1.05V it works with Artefacts sometimes on fresh & cold boot (on second boot all is fine).

I`m getting grazy on this...

 

Hey Mj12bot.

Perhaps your driver isn't recognising the card in its re-flashed state.

What you could try is to install the driver first then reflash just the voltage to the maximum amount (I am guessing 1.05V).

Perhaps then you can use rivatuner for example to pull your clocks up when you need them.

 

Hi King.

Ok will try that, thank you!

Update:
No it is simply not working. Everything higher than 550 (1100 DDR) is causing errors/artefacts/crashes like i posted before.
Although it should run originally at 800.

I begin to wonder if the voltage of 1.05V can be correct that is given by the original vBios...

 

Ok, so what is your PSU power?
according to NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT - Notebookcheck.net Tech the card is 45w, and maybe your main problem is how to feed it.

We King and me were just talking abaut the C90S / C90P power consumption, and I just think maybe you are still using de 90w PSU wich probably can't handle it, is it?

Cheers

 

Hey Guys,

you are both great! I really appreciate your help.

Well, yesterday i was thinking about all i have done and tried. There is nothing more left that i could try. And i ended up excactly as you do. It has to be not enough power from the PSU.

Its interesting, according to the part-number it has to be a 180W PSU. This may come from my Alienware being SLI-ready.
BUT from the beginning this PSU became a bit "noisy" here and there. So it could be it is not delivering the full 180W anymore (and Alienware PSUs are known for being not 100% reliable). I will search for a way to find out how much it actually gives.

Regards,
Bot

 

Hmm maybe it just doesn't like the 9700M GT. I recommend going for a HD 3870

 

Yes this would be sweet.
Maybe i get a cheap one in near future, i will try it then

The good thing with the 9700 is that it stays below 57° with 3dm06, the sad thing that it is hanging far behind its potential it would have with stock clocks.
That 500 memory clock insteed of 800 is killing mass of performance...

 

Hey king what are you using to monitor wattage consumption? I'm very interested.

 

Just a basic killawatt device. Nothing special. Costs around 20 euros probably. It plugs into plug then you plug a device into it. It then displays how many watts you are using in real time. Also has other options that it can display instead.

 

Bad news, my GT240m died, lol! That is durability. Talking with the seller for a refound, I'm afraid I will just get a replace. What abaut your 4850 king?
cheers

 

hey phenon real sorry to hear that. I just purchased a GT240M 1GB DDR3 and installed it yesterday... was hoping it would not have the same issue as the 8600 it replaced.

How long did yours last? Was it new? What temp was it running at?

 

@damanic, well the truth is I stressed well the card these days. The temps were abaut 85ºC under load, with long time stress tests. But anyways, somenthing strange happened, one RAM module died to, and I used the notebook one night, and the day after just black screen. Something very strange.

I don't think you would have any trouble (more than any other card). I'm from spain, and we are getting very high temps actually, so as I said don't think is a model problem. I'd prefer the refound just because I'm waiting for the King's 4850 tests, a replace is a good option thought.

Good luck.

 

Back from holiday. Got the card and assorted heatsinks. Seems like I might be off for next 4 days lol so hope to get cracking tomorrow.

Watch this space.....

 

I can't wait for the ressults. Did you test if the card boots up? fits?
lol I hope read good news soon!
cheers

 

Not the best of news. The card doesn't yet fit. Need another 1mm of space as I thought...

Going to take a few more weeks I am afraid. Need to order a new CPU thermal module so I can get to work modding it to make space. Don't want to mod my existing one further presently as I need my laptop working on a day to day basis lol. Once I have the new C90P heatsink I will be taking it to a waterjet place to remove the necessary metal although I am going to need to remove the top left screw hole on the CPU heatsink if the card is to fit who knows what will happen to the CPU cooling...

On the other hand also found that my original plan to remove the heatpipe and transfer it to the new larger plate to fit the new card would be impossible as the pipes are VERY fragile and would just bend and snap if forced.

I have already thought of a new idea to get around this problem I am thinking to weld the C90P thermal module to the larger mxm 2.1 III heatplate then to drill screw holes though the welded together part from the back where they are needed (the freshly welded together part might cover up the screw holes so can just open them up again).

Then the more "simple" matter of fixing it to the card and voila upgrade complete! lol a theory is all it is now but I think it should still be possible with much work and of course deliberation

edit: CPU and VGA thermal assemblies ordered now for another wait... here are some tantalising pics of the 4850 beast


Uploaded with ImageShack.us


Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

haha, some news, great. Now I can see this upgrade closer. The weld solution sound right. I wonder how hot can this card make.
Now is time for hadmod that new parts.
good job.

 

Yeah I wonder too more interested in seeing the thing booting with it first

I think today I will prepare the mxm 2.1 III heatsinks for use (gets the metal saw out)

As you can imagine this upgrade is becoming costly with all the bits I need plus customs charges I had to pay too lol but I won't be defeated now!!!

 

Hello everyone ,

I've been away from this forum for a long time, sorry: (.
I have no C90S in running order, so I come to you to submit my question.

All C90 owners want to run the fans at full speed, and at their request.
It is not possible with a soft mod, only possible with a change on the hardware as King of Interns did so well .

But I found a thread in a french forum where you may have your fans to run at full speed on ASUS "G" with a soft.
I don't know if it is working on C90.
So I suggest you have a try ?
Here is the link : P4G / [TUTO] Augmenter la vitesse des ventilateurs sur les ASUS G-series

Let me know if you have any result?

In case where you already know that, just tell me and I'll edit or delete this post.

Thanks alot.
@+

 

Hey 9800xpv. Comment ca va?

I would try the soft mod if I hadn't already hard-modded them

An update on the card upgrade. The parts I need supposedly are to arrive early August.

 

Hello King,
Nice to see you ,

My 2 C90S are in their boxes, I should repair them soon, I think so.
I've ordered a DC Power Jack Power in Port Socket.

Thanks alot, I'll try to come here soon,
@+

 

LOL! It's very courious, many C90S dead right now. So 2007 - 2011, 4 years is a nice time for the first repair. I finally got the refound for the GT 240m. Waiting for the King's results. I wonder if a 3870 would be a nice choice to.
cheers.

 

If I can get the card to fit and boot and keep it cool! Even if the card doesn't run on internal LCD (an apparent issue with msi 4850s) we will know we can upgrade to any mxm 2.1 III card. Will open up plenty of upgrade possibilities. Mainly from nvidia but also the 3870 would be an option.

The 3870 though I hear isn't that much better than the 4670 512mb GDDR3. Especially with AA and antialising enabled it is in fact worse. Would be better at the C90 native reso though thanks to highly memory bandwidth and more ROPs - 16 vs 8.

 

Right, the only problem with the 4670 is that they are more dificult to find than an unicorn, otherwise for sure lot of C90 users would have one
Cheers

 

Hello,

I'm very happy to tell you that it works on C90S.
Approved by Angel Marinov himself :
http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus-reviews-owners-lounges/472325-c90s-unleashed-angel-marinov-15.html#post7761421

@+

 

Good stuff! Maybe I should reverse my mod now

 

oh wow. it's been a while since i've heard the 4 jet engines working at full power...and since they've all been replaced with the 11k rpm fans, i am now deaf.

fun fact, my laptop is placed on a table that can move a bit like a door, and if i unlock the mechanism, the fans actually push enough air to make it move.
useless trivia, but amusing nonetheless. and as for my mod to put the fan controller inside the battery compartment...well the battery itself is really hard to open without breaking, and i'll need the outer shell to close the compartment. so i'm pretty much stalled here.

 

you upgraded to 11K fans too! you legend It is true such fans at full volume is quickest route to tinitus

 

Hey Guys,

I haven't been participating much in this forum, but I'm still reading this topic from time to time. It's great to see there is still progress in optimizing this notebook!

The new utility to control the fan speed is something I was looking for since the beginning the c90 was there. Since my c90 vga is also broken again at the moment I can't try it. From what I understand from it at this point it is only possible to run the fans at full speed with it? If the utility makes it possible to manual control the fanspeed it would finish the job. Nevertheless great and really usefull find! Thank you 9800xpv!

Then really really nice work bij King in taking the effort and investing the time in testing the mxm 2.1 III card. When you get this card to work in the c90 it would be awesome! Like you said it would give us c90 owners so much more upgrade possibilities. I'm really interested on the outcome. I really hope you will get the card working and I wish you every success with it!

Thanks to everybody for contributing all this really usefull information to the community!

 

Hey Trecu,

Yes, it is only full speed.

But I must say I don't know more about this utility.
There are lots of tests to be done on this utility, to discover all of what it can offer. Because unfortunately the site gives virtually no information.

Enjoy the C90
@+

 

Hey Trecu. Long time no see! I have not been able to carry out my mod and the chances of doing so are now unfortunely next to zero I am moving country lol and the upgrade needs much work which I am not sure I can do where I am going. Nevertheless I will take all the bits including the card with me and see if I can proceed at some point

 

it's completely unrelated to the topic, but has anyone managed to enable AHCI for the internal sata controller? i just noticed it's only installed for the esata port and the bios option is only for the latter...it's been cutting on my SSD performance quite a bit. that and it only supports udma5 and not 6.

 

I also have the same problem. I cannot change from IDE mode. I have even tried different BIOS version and no change.

Another mess up from asus with the C90! Typical that they give us AHCI for e-sata but not for internal drive. Half baked as always...

What I would like to know is the e-sata sata II or just sata I?? Perhaps could plug in a fast SSD into e-sata if it is SATA II...

 

@ Artvaark and King on Interns,

I don't know if this is the fix for your SATA configurations.
I think I had something similar once and this fixed it.
Error message when you start a Windows 7 or Windows Vista-based computer after you change the SATA mode of the boot drive: "STOP 0x0000007B INACCESSABLE_BOOT_DEVICE"

I installed Windows in IDE mode and then applied this fix. Re-booted: going through SBIOS and changed IDE to SATA and all was fine.

 

Don't think so. They don't seem to have a SATA mode, i think that is the problem.

Looking forward to seeing about the 4850 kingofinterns!
Why don't you just stick it in there, put some copper on it and see if it boots?

 

I would if I could but unfortunately presently it will only fit if I remove the cpu heatsink which is definitely a no go. Until I modify the CPU heatsink to allow a snug fit all round I won't try it Leaving a desktop 3.16ghz core 2 quad heatsinkless would be a bad idea even for 30 secs or so!!

The card is so big that it literally (as in less than 1mm apart) touches the CPU chip! Very delicate so unless I can do it properly I won't do it at all. On the up side the spare heatsinks arrived yesterday. Great timing as I leave the UK today. Taking all the parts with me so we will see if I get the chance to continue work on it

If people know of a waterjet cutting place in north of Switz lemme know!

 

LOL!
I agree man, the report for the card to be able to boot is just the first part. We must know if the C90 is able to read tables and switch clock rates right, and if it can feed the card, and after that check the temps, I just can't understund how easy is to think abaut it, and how hard should be making it real, hahaha...

So having all you need is a nice update, keep going.
Cheers.

 

Well well well. I finally got around to moving forward with the upgrade to the 4850. This morning I switched on and nothing came onto the screen so it seems my 4670 is dead completely without warning too. I played on it yesterday and temps never exceeded 70C and there were no tell tale signs of imminent death.

On the plus side it spurred me into action! do or die right haha. Long story short the 4850 works. As niffcreature foretold it only works on an external screen the internel lcd remains grey. I used the old C90P gpu heatsink fastened with one screw as the other holes don t match up for testing.

I booted up and GPUz fully recognises the card interestingly even so I haven t yet reinstalled the graphics drivers usually a necessity. So I could read the temps and clocks speeds currently locked. The clock speed correctly reads 500-850 and the temps on the three sensors vary between 47-57C not bad at all considering only the die is covered. The memory modules sit lower down on this card so not in contact with the heatsink at all.

Unfortunately I have no time for further testing and work on this project for at least 2 weeks. As soon as I have time I intend to put together a new heatsink for the card, an amalgamation of c90 heatpipe and m860tu plate to fit the card. I am quite confident I can separate the heatpipe from the c90 plate without damaging it but there is one thing I am unsure about what kind of solder do I need to use to resolder it onto the new copper plate (a question for you perhaps niff!)

With these improvements to the cooling complete I intend to permanently remove the internal lcd and purchase a decent flatscreen monitor which I shall plug in via hdmi which I shall get working once I get the drivers freshly installed. All in all the upgrade will be successful in the end. Shame about internal but hey I can trade that in for performance increase the 4850 will bring!!

 

Just been talking to other prominent members on here and it seems there is still an option to get the lcd to work. Microcode insertion. Most probably the system bios doesn t recognise the card to display properly on internal. So I will be giving this option also a try. Fingers crossed it will be as successful as the e7500 microcode data entry for the c90s!

This mod in NOT for the faint hearted lol.

 

Hey King

How are you ?

As I don't know how to solder as well, I should use Arctic Silver™ Thermal Adhesive.

About your others questions, sorry but I don't know.


It seems your C90P is going farther and farther from the original laptop ?

So long King,
@+

 

Hey 9800 I am well thanks! How about yourself? You are right the machine is pretty much a different machine now but it still carries the C90 name

I use ICD 7 24 thermal compound which is good stuff but I will need to solder the heatpipe onto the copper plate to keep it mounted. Thing is I am absolutely inexperienced with soldering and although I have access to a workshop and the correct equipment I need to know what solder I should use.

 

Hey King, glad to hear news!
I could solder two heat pipes with iron solder and tin, but with an 130w one, wich is pretty hard. You could also try a heat gun 600ºC (like I own) wich probably could do the job.
I wish you could make work your LCD, but I'm afraid the microcode inject wont work. Good luck anyway, I wonder the performance of your beast now.
When you are able, please post pics of your mod, I'm very insterested how did you mod the CPU bracket and heatsink.
Thank you for your work, cheers!

 

Hello all!

Today I tried to flash the MSI 4850 to a different bios in an attempt to get the internal LCD to work. The worst outcome occurred so the card is now bricked.

As a result I have now decided to finally throw the towel in and call it a day

It was a fun and at times costly exercise that I now just don t have the resources to continue: both time and money.

I have already parted it out and am going to stick the X3380, 8GB ram and UJ 220 drive onto ebay. The HDD will follow once I have found a way to wipe it.

Long live the C90 it pains me to leave the group. Signing out!
KoI

 

Damn mate, I hate to hear that. You had the the greatest C90 ever, and you gave us all very interesting stuff abaut our beloved machines. I'm afraid at this point the right step is get a brand new system, we spent a lot of money, and we had a lot of fun tunning it, but probably you could get a better notebook for not much more...
If you can't sell your motherboard, maybe in a near future I could (right now I'm unable), so I hope we will be in touch!
Good luck KoI!

 

Hello King,

All good things come to an end, but you probably did not think it was so close :/ .

Go ahead, do not look back, you'll find your way.
Upgrading the C90 was the Holy Grail, and you were the last Knight.
But in fact you are The King.

So long KoI,
Alain