Have a quick look here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/hardware-components-aftermarket-upgrades/485524-t2310-upgrade.html
At the end I decided to go for the T2390. Same core and bus speed so no need to figure out how to bugger about with multipliers, essentially a straight swap. About 27% faster in theory, in reality the upgrade has made quite a big change on CPU intensive tasks such as digital audio, and flash video playback.
May I recommend some posh thermal paste. I used Arctic silver 5 paste, and the ArtiClean kit (which you will need no matter what). Idle temp is about 49C now (53C earlier), light usage, eg browsing etc is about 54C (60C earlier) and full on brutal mashing around 60C (65C earlier). The posh thermal paste and the general cooling system cleanup has made a nice difference.
So, the procedure might be the same on other MX series laptops as they all look similar.
Tools:
* Tiny Winy screwdriver.
* Proper thermal paste
* Thermal compound removal stuff. ArtiClean works a treat.
No pics, sorry, but it's so easy they're not needed anyway.
* Battery out, power cable out, turn the laptop upside down.
* Remove the biggest plastic cover by unscrewing the 7 screws that hold it in place. You'll see the fan and the heatsink with the processor underneath exposed.
* Remove the two screws that hold the fan in place, take it off (comes off easy), including the cable.
* The heatsink is held in place by 4 screws around the processor socket. Unscrew, then wiggle gently the heatsink horizontally, might be slightly stiff and not willing to move at the beginning but it's only held in place now by the thermal compound. Should come off easy.
* Turn the little screw on the CPU socket by 1/4 of a turn (as far as it goes really).
* Gently, with a tiny flat head screwdriver and levering on the protruding part of the CPU socket (where the screw is located), gently lift the processor. Do not force this, just be patient, small moves. It will come off.
Okay so now the laptop is brainless. Now it's time for cleaning up stuff. Be meticulous and patient here.
* Old processor: I'd leave the thermal paste on and put in a plastic bag to sell on ebay or something. The reason to leave the remnants of the paste is to protect the die from scratches
* New processor: if it has thermal compound on (ie second hand), you'll have to remove it with ArtiClean. Put a couple of drops of liquid 1 on the die, leave to soak for a minute or so, remove gently with a bit of very soft tissue. Repeat as necessary until all the crap is gone. Put a couple of drops of liquid 2, and using one of those cleaning cloths you get with your glasses, clean the die up. If the processor is new, just use liquid 2 directly.
* Heatsink: take the chance to clean up the grill by blowing the living crap out of it; if ya got some compressed air, the better. Brush also recommended. Do the same with the fan btw. Once that's out of the way, remove all the thermal compound leftovers the same as you did with the processor.
Fitting it all back:
* CPU: make sure no pins are bent. It can only go in one way, align the corner with pins missing with the same thing on the socket. VERY CAREFULLY slide it in, should be a bit tight but shouldn't require any any force, if it doesn't go in straightforward, have a look at the pins again as some might be slightly bent. Use a flat head screwdriver to straighten them up and be VERY gentle.
* Turn socket screw back where it was.
* Making sure no dust has landed on the CPU's die (the little shiny square in the middle), add a pea sized amount of thermal paste on it (only on the die). Use a plastic card to gently spread it out as uniformly as you can on. Make sure ALL the die is covered.
* Gently put the heatsink back in place. Screw it back, first one corner (but not all the way), then the corner diagonally opposite, then the one opposite and its diagonal, start over. Do not go nuts here, no herculean pressure is needed, just needs to be firmly in. Essentially, the same thing as you'd do when fitting a wheel on a car.
* Put the fan back, plug it back to the motherboard, screw in.
Now you're ready to test, just plug it into the mains, have a play, watch a few vids, look at temps, and if it's all good, turn off, replace back cover, and away you go.
Sorry it's a bit verbose for most laptop ninjas here, this ain't aimed to them anyway as if they'd actually need this guide, their kung fu ain't too good to start with.
The end.
Packard Bell Easynote MX37 / ALP-AJAX C3 CPU upgrade procedure
Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by NabLa, Nov 19, 2010.