*HP 2510p Owners Lounge*

I will try that (stupid cd's can't write is dos) the 2510pcix.exe file must be loaded in the bootloader??? i use win xp pro will it work without a reinstallation? or run it in windows??



and another tip for overclocking is crystalcpuid
I have tried to undervolt my cpu to 0.975 volt @1496 mhz and have 1330.0 mhz @ 0.963 volt (thats minimum)
battery time is longer as original 1200 mhz @1.025volt vs 800 [email protected] volt
You can not set fsb with it but you can modify intel speedstep settings
multiplier options are 6.0x 7.0x 8.0x 9.0x
my setup is
6.0x @ 0.962 volt
8.0x @ 0.962 volt
9.0x @ 0.975 volt

http://crystalmark.info/software/CrystalCPUID/index-e.html

 

2510pcix.exe is a compressed memory dump file used by pt.exe to load the pci-e memory space using the DOS USB bootdisk. This is what I do prior to chainload Windows to ensure it works. I believe loading the *complete* dump using r-w everything from within Windows using rw-everything will crash your OS. If could identify the key data that turns on/off the pci-e port, then could do perhaps just do those writes within Windows using r-w everything, then do a scan New Hardware to detect the card. Pease do share if you can figure it out.

2510P Owner's Lounge

Asked a mod to make it so. Also have summarized links on the first post and deleted/editted some of my older posts that have been superceded with new information. Others may want to do the same??

 

Hi Nando

I have my Samsung HM160 drive and am waiting for caddy to arrive. Now thinking of stepping up to the Runcore ProIV ZIF SSD.
Is it straightforward to get the cable off the original HDD and put it onto the Runcore or do I need another cable?
Are you still happy with the Runocre ZIF??? AM I right in thinking I can simply install Windows XP onto the new SDD without any further software tweaks?

Finally can anyone recommend a supplier for the UK?


Thanks

Tudorlaptop

 

Very easy to disconnect the 1.8" ZIF HDD and connect the Runcore ProIV. The 2510P's ZIF cable is foil backed so has been resilient to multiple disconnected/reconnects so far.

The Runcore ProIV gives incredible performance for the money and comes highly recommended. Not sure on UK distributor, suggest perhaps just buying it from MyDigitalDiscount.. the largest US Runcore dealer and have it shipped? Their latest units have the 1819 firmware for maintenance free garbage collection in Windows 7.

The HM160HC giving the extra storage capacity *without* additional battery consumption if kept in standby idle mode. The Runcore ProIV + HMC160HC combo is really one of the ideal overall storage solutions to give speed, capacity and battery life. When add overclocking to help the single-channel X3100 graphics along, it's seriously transforms the 2510P into a different beast

 

Many thanks Nando. I am sorry to trouble you with niaive questions, but I am new to this!

I now have the Samsung HM160 and the caddy. The drive did not come with jumpers. Do I have to set the drive to slave?? In other words do I need to buy a jumper for the pins?

Can you confirm that it is the RunCore 64GB Pro IV 1.8" 5mm PATA Zif Solid State Drive SSD that I should order. Is PATA ZIF the same a ZIf?

If I run XP, will I need to do something about garbage collection?

Thanks once again

Tudorlaptop

 

Hi nando4 i'm trying to get it work again but when loading xmsdsk in your script I get the message

*** XMS RAMDisk v1.91 (FU - 08-98): XMS manager required.

dos memcorrupt, first_mcb-0292
prev 2424:0000:4d (more hex)
motM2242e:0000:00 00 00 00


PANIC: MCB chain corrupted
System Halted

I have tried to run 2510p.bat and whitelst.bat
in both cases I get that message
mem timings are normal and overclock is back to orgiginal 133Mhz using setfsb


What am i doing wrong ???

 

The error is from the ramdisk (xmsdsk). The ramdisk is used to compress/decompress the pci-e configuration register dump to speed up the process and when comrpessed. only occupy a tiny amount of space on your usb/floppy. It works fine using the freedos base files for me. If not for you, consider editting whitelst.ba/fdconfig.sys/autoexec.bat to use a different ramdisk setup.

 

Thanks one step further
I had to change fdconfig.sys my usb stick is c: not a:

I have taped pin 20 from the card but is isn't working (104 at boot )
pin 20 is the 2nd pin on the back site from the card near the mechanical key
++++++++ ++++++++++++++++
---------- -+------------------
PIN 20 ???

when taping pin 20 104 message should be gone as I beleve
the usb stick is for unabling the pcie card

Or how is it done???

 

OK. Bought Samsung HM160HC. Ordered Pata133 IDE caddy from yewelong on eBay as recommended. Initially fooled by the extra connector that has to be removed from the back

Caddy does not slide into bay at all easily. With some considerable force I got it almost home, but not enough to connect. Then almost impossible to remove without pliers. Surely this is not right? No way could ever hot swap! HAs anyone else bought their caddy from yewelong on eBay.?

Tudorlaptop

 

Thats beter, I think to try that because the pin 20 mod is not working for me
the original wlan card is an 4965agn from intel and the one wanted is an ubiquiti sr71-e long range
when disabling wlan in the bios it boots (even with no cellotape on pin 20)but when executing whitelst it gives an error by the rule "pt MEM writefromfile 1 %MCFG% E:\%FNAME%.DMP"
the laptop freezes (remove battery and restart)

maybe an workaround is required for addcc

 

I'm stuck on finetuning my bios notation is 8680294286800111
addcc finds it with 100% match
after clicking ok the sting is not filled in
original BIOS ID byte String field is blank
whitelist detection is set to decompressed whitelist on patched bios

 

The same chassis with sata-to-pata chip does hotswap if modded as shown below. If the plastic isn't shaved then the caddy becomes jammed. Only way I could force it back out was by pushing it with a screwdriver from the backside, accessible via the 1.8" HDD bay. Once the plastic is shaved on the left side, it fits and can be removed without such herculean effort.

modded ebay caddy to allow hotswapping

Same here. semi has added that feature yet it seems to need to work off the uncompressed whitelist.

 

Okay so you dont have it working either copy paste dos'nt work for me I get an error message when I try to change in file

Find
The specified search string was not found

 

is there someone who has already done it on a 2510p WOKING ????

 

Comparison: ebay versus newmodeus 9.5mm sata-to-pata and pata caddy
Linked from INFO: Using a optical bay caddy to install a 2.5" SATA or PATA SSD/HDD

REF also Uli's comparison for a second opinion.

I've acquired both the ebay and newmodeus caddies to compare performance with a 500GB HDD, appearance, build quality and overall function below. Included too are some other 2510P owner's benchmark results with both a sata SSD and a PATA HDD. The latter useful to those trying to decide whether the more power efficient pata caddy is for them. Both ebay and newmodeus offer pata equivalent caddies with identical chassis appearance to those shown below.

Update: ebay vendor notebookelite has revised caddy with stronger metal chassis and faceplate to one pictured and commented on below. Click linked review to see photos.

Top=newmodeus Bottom=ebay
.

newmodeus caddy (linked review) sata-to-pata bridge chip: Sunplus SATALink Pros - great faceplate: contoured, tapered and textured - stronger chassis build quality - screws ssd/hdd securely to chassis bottom - does the job out of the box without mods - delivery takes days Pros [only for sata-to-pata] - has slave jumper, works with a master 1.8" ssd/hdd - 0.2W lower ACTIVE power consumption Cons - almost twice the price of ebay caddy Cons [only for sata-to-pata] - SSDs with win7 require trim disabled, explained here - 30s bios hang with bios F.0E, see solution - more details on these cons are here

ebay_caddy (linked review+mods) sata-to-pata bridge chip: Marvell 88SA8040 Pros - a third of the price of the newmodeus caddy - OEM looking faceplate, though not tapered&contoured - 0.7W lower IDLE power consumption since the bridge chip implements SATA slumber mode. Cons - underside gap (pro: useful latch point for hotswap) - pins, rather than screws, hdd down via mounting tabs - faceplate flex unsuitable for hotswap [mod fixes this] - delivery takes weeks Cons [only for sata-to-pata] - can't get it to function as slave with a 1.8" master. Though can do the slave_mod & which works with the topda branded ebay caddy. - hdd activity LED only on faceplate [mod fixes this]

Performance

The UDMA5/ATA100 interface will cap reads to 100MB/s and writes to 88.9MB/s, which in real life appear to be around 88/67 as seen by the OCZ Vertex benchmarks. In order, from fastest to slowest:

SSDs

Drive	Caddy	Bench: CrystalDisk|hdtune|PerformanceTest|atto
Renice X3 (SF1222) 64GB 1.8" sata SDD + newmodeus 1.8" to 2.5" adapter	Native AHCI sata-II (Inspiron 1440)
	ebay 9.5mm sata-to-pata
	newmodeus 9.5mm sata-to-pata^12
OCZ Vertex (Indilinx) 60GB sata SSD from here	ebay_ 9.5mm sata-to-pata

^1 requires TRIM disabled in Win7 with "fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify 1" otherwise doesn't work
^2 causes 30s boot hang requiring F.0A bios as a workaround or run it as slave

HDDs

Drive	Caddy	Bench: CrystalDisk|hdtune|PerformanceTest|atto
WD3200BEKT (Scorpio Black) 320GB sata HDD from here (ICH8M Dell Vostro 1400)	Native AHCI sata-II
	ebay_ 12.7mm sata-to-pata
Fujitsu MJA2500BH 500GB sata HDD	ebay_ 9.5mm sata-to-pata
	newmodeus 9.5mm sata-to-pata^2
Samsung HM160HC 160GB pata HDD from here	ebay_ 9.5mm pata
Toshiba MK8009GAH 80GB 1.8" ZIF HDD	N/A

^2 causes 30s boot hang requiring F.0A bios as a workaround or run it as slave

The Marvell-based ebay caddy shows atto/performancetest results with slightly faster maximum sequential read speed and otherwise is on par or performs slightly better overall than the newmodeus caddy.

Lack of AHCI's Native Command Queueing (NCQ) on the 2510P's PATA interface means the same SATA HDD has lower random read/write performance in a sata-to-pata caddy as those read/writes are not grouped to minimise seeks as they are on AHCI sata. Eg: Changing the Vostros native SATA AHCI to legacy IDE (SATA) mode saw PerformanceTest's result drop from 623 to 393.

From the newmodeus or ebay caddy, which would I recommend?

newmodeus' sata-to-pata or pata caddy has the better build chassis quality and contoured faceplate so it's virtually a clone replacement of the optical drive. Recommended hassle-free solution if your budget allows for it. Note: Win7 + sata SSD trim issue con above.

The ebay caddy also looks OEM. It just doesn't taper on the bottom right corner nor is it contoured. It's build quality is certainly satisfactory for the task when the fit & faceplate modifications is applied. It is the budget recommended choice for all instances except when running the 2.5" sata SSD/HDD as slave which it cannot accomodate.

So overall value-for-money recommendation is:

• standalone 2.5" sata or pata SSD/HDD: ebay caddy
• 1.8" SSD^1/HDD^2 (slave) + 2.5" sata or pata SSD/HDD (master): ebay caddy
• 1.8" SSD (master) + 2.5" pata HDD (slave): ebay caddy
• 1.8" SSD (master) + 2.5" sata HDD (slave): newmodeus caddy as has slave jumper

^1 Runcore ProIV ZIF SSD can run as master (default) or slave as set by resistor at position R49. Empty=Master, 10kΩ=Slave. Pls refer to Runcore Tech Support.
^2 Supplied Toshiba MK8009GAH ZIF HDD can be made slave by bridging pin1+pin2 as shown here.

If the ebay sata-to-pata caddy could be made to work as slave then it would be the overall bargain hunter's choice. The capability does exist.

 

I just bought a case to take the DVD drive that I removed from my 2510p. I bought it from an eBay Hong Kong seller. It does not take the optical drive. With the drive tray open, I can push in the metal tray until it is home, but then cannot close the drive's door. If I push it in with the drive door shut it does not go all the way in. Yes I did remove the little widget that takes the screw when the drive was in the laptop
http://www.photobox.co.uk/my/photo?album_id=262589587&photo_id=621190417

Tudorlaptop

 

Yeah, I know. This external case is hardly plug and play... I bought one too and it required quite a "shave" before everything fit properly. I needed to shave off quite a lot around the opening, and there is a piece of plastic inside on the right side that I took away completely. Also, I needed to take it apart to make the connectors mate.

Basically, just shave off everything that's in the way and you'll be fine. I have the exact same case and it worked for me.

So far, I have installed the Samsung HM160HC with the PATA caddy, removed the 1.8" Toshiba MK6008GAH, used the external USB case for the DVDR-drive, installed the modded video driver and I have a working overclock at 1.5GHz - all thanks to this guide. I have also upgraded to 2GB of 800MHz RAM. I am very happy with this system running Tiny7. My only wish is that it would be lighter, current weight is 1540 grams.

If anyone else having weight considerations, I have weighed some of the components used and I could list them.

Windows 7 Experience Index for my system:
@1.2 GHz / @1.5 GHz / @1.6 GHz (experimental, not stability tested, higher overclock result in bluescreen)
Processor: 3.7 / 4.2 / 4.4
Memory: 4.2 / 4.5 / 4.6
Graphics: 2.8 / 3.2 / 3.2
Gaming: 3.0 / 3.1 / 3.1
Hard drive: 5.5 / 5.5 / 5.5

 

Your WIN7 WEI @1.5Ghz matching mine with the modded X3100 driver. 5.5 a great HM160HC HDD result.

Yourself and tudorlaptop are the first to provide any feedback on the DVD-USB enclosure . So is there any chance you could post a DIY Guide on the shavings/mods necessary to make the 2510P DVD fit and work, pictures to show whats required as well as the final result? Would be a great inclusion to link off the first post for other 2510P users to consider replicating?

12/12/2009: thread has had > 70,000 views. Could HP have sold so many 2510Ps?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
losdrivare

EDIT1: Even though you have PC2-6400 RAM you'll need to write CAS=5 to your 266Mhz RAM table used on bootup with ThaiPhoon Burner like shown here. The >1.5Ghz OC means you need 333Mhz RAM timings (CAS=5). So RAM is likely your current OC wall, at least that's what I found. Also consider using RMCLOCK and set *ALL* the divider's voltages to maximum while testing stability. The upper limit of OC is system specific. I tested one 2510P which could go up to 1.75Ghz with CAS=5, running a stable 1.65-1.7Ghz overclock with CAS=5.

EDIT2: To alter fan threshold switch on points would require adapting 8710w - fan works all the time post. If experimenting and have some success, please post an update. Others may wish to use the resultant modified ACPI table.

EDIT3: Pics are great. My bad was using an external LCD which wasn't showing the blacks correctly. You're now linked off the first post twice. Great effort in taking the time to do this.

 

Guide: Converting the internal 9.5mm pata optical drive to external USB:
using an ebay US$17-delivered DVD enclosure

First, I made this guide after my drive was modded and done, so unfortunately I don't have any "before" pics. But if you need this guide you probably have a brand new unmodded case to compare with.

There are two connectors on the DVD enclosure, one mini-USB and one external power. However, the USB is sufficient to power the enclosure on its own, at least with the 2510p.



Start with removing any mounts from the optical drive. If you previously used a 2.5" HDD caddy, you probably used the mounts for the caddy already. The optical drive should be clean like above.



Then take apart the plastic case. Shave away plastic from the marked areas until the optical drive fits all the way in. I simply used a pocket knife for this. Cut away the plastic piece in the marked area. I had to to put the drive together and test a few times before I had shaved away enough material. Trial and error.



You need to connect the circuit board to the drive before putting everything together.



Then put the drive with the circuit board attached into place in the case. Make sure the holes of the circuit board goes the their designated knobs in the case, as marked in red.





When putting the case together, make sure the microUSB-connector slides into the hole of the case and then clip the case shut. Result should be something like this. The drive door should be flush with the opening of the case and the drive should be able to eject on its own. Note that the plastic case has a fair amount of flex to it and the drive won't be able to eject if there is any pressure to the case, eg if you're holding it instead of having it on a table.

nando4: Thanks for the help with embedding images, this is exactly how I wanted it.
EDIT: My camera unfortunately has trouble with focus in close-ups without flash... This is as good as it's going to get. Updated my previous post with WEI @1.6 GHz. Happy to contribute as I've found this thread extremely useful. Will make a post with some minor additional ideas on the 2.5" PATA mod later when I have more time.
EDIT2: Actually, my RAM is PC2-6400 so I think the wall is either voltage or heat. I have a Zalman ZM-NC1000 Notebook Cooler so I might be testing this out later, just did a quick test now for fun. I don't really think I'd use any higher settings than 1.5 GHz anyway, but it would be cool to know how far my U7600 can go. RMclock is on my list for testing, mainly for undervolting. Hoping this will lower the temps and fan noise some. You know of any fan control tool for the 2510p?
EDIT3: Ok, might be checking out my RAM timings then. Thanks for the info.

 

Nando4 -

Earlier on this page you detailed your solution to the low write speed for your runcore ssd. You were getting around 30 mb/s. I have a latitude xt and I believe the chipset in the laptop is different. I believe my computer is also running at too slow of a speed on the ide channel. Have you talked to anyone with a dell xt, do you have any idea if the same type of fix might work, and if so would there need to be any changes to it?

I know your on a different subject at the moment but it didnt show a way to directly message you about this.

This page has other people explaining the issue I am seeing
http://www.gottabemobile.com/forum/...titude-xt-chipset-limits-pata-interface-speed

"The computer in the article linked to seems to use an ICH8 Southbridge. The Dell uses an ATI solution, the SB600, I believe. I don't think the same fix would work on both, but I could be wrong. "

It looks like the chipset might be making the baredit not look exactly like what you saw.

 

Update: newmodeus caddy review with new contoured and texture matched faceplate. See

Comparison: ebay versus newmodeus 9.5mm sata-to-pata and pata caddy​

 

Great comparison, you do amazing work with keeping this thread updated and informative!


Right now, I'm trying to lower the fan noise. I'm sensitive, I used to have a completely passive Dell Latitude X1 but gave it up for performance reasons. My CPU temps are 52-56 centigrades as read by CoreTemp during normal use (browsing, messaging, mp3 playing in background) and this makes the fan speed up noticably. Fan goes to acceptable levels when temp goes down to 50-51 degrees.

Here's what I've done so far:
- Cleaned out all the dust and gunk from inside the fan (made a world of difference)
- Reseated the heatsink with Arctic Silver 5
- I have the laptop on a Zalman Notebook Cooler, though it's turned off it provides some more clearance and air
- Reduced overclock to 1400 MHz to allow for undervolting all multipliers to 0.962V (minimum) with CrystalCPUID
- Removed some (about half) of the bars covering fan intake and exhaust for better airflow
- Place for 1.8" HD is empty, no HD to add heat to CPU area
- Adjusted power settings (Power State 5-100%, Passive cooling policy)
- Adjusted BIOS settings regarding fan

Additional ideas:
- Increase clearance under laptop to improve airflow
- Try to find new, better thermal pads to use for the graphics chip (I re-used the old one)
- Perhaps research how to change the fan speed temp tresholds (bit out of my league)

Any more ideas?

(And a big THANKS to you, whoever you are, who gave me the rep power. It's really nice to know that it gets appreciated when putting together guides and stuff! )

 

INFO: Almost silent fan using a custom ACPI dsdt table

The fan can be quietened to almost silent operation for most normal admin activity with process below. This will also decrease power consumption and ever so slightly improve battery life.

I've had a look at the 2510P default DSDT table, my analysis finding a reason why there is unnecessary fan noise: - XP boots up, fan on between 0-30% rotation speed - When cpu temps hit 60 degrees fan goes into a noisy 50% speed - Once temps fall back to 50 degrees the fan quietens to 30% speed	dsdt_disassembled.dsl (original - 50% fan speed) fan_30pct.dsl (low load) fan_40pct.dsl (medium load) Name(C3A4, Package(0x6) // fan spd { 0x64, // 100% 0x5A, // 90% 0x46, // 70% 0x32, // 50% 0x1E, // 30% 0x0 // 0% }) { 0x64, // 100% 0x46, // 70% 0x37, // 55% 0x1E, // 30% 0x14, // 20% 0x00 }) { 0x64, // 100% 0x46, // 70% 0x37, // 55% 0x28, // 40% 0x1E, // 30% 0x00 })

The problem I'm seeing is with warm ambient temperatures my system's cpu goes > 60 degrees then temps never get down to 50 degrees for the fan to slow to 30% mode. They hover at 51-52 degrees with fan spinning at a loud 50%. One not so practical solution to quieten it down again is to lift the system to allow fresh cool air to enter in the fan vent.

The better solution? After experimenting with trip points and different fan speeds I found the simplest fix is to set the 50-70 degree fan to rotate at a slower 40% or 30% as shown in RED. Now 70 degrees triggers a 55% fan mode and dropping to 60 degrees goes back to 40% or 30% mode.

With a 40% fan the system will now sit around 56-60 degrees under same warm ambient temps doing basic web surfing in Win7. This is OK since the CPU tjmax=100 degrees and only a low hum can be heard. The slower fan speed also means less current draw providing a small battery life improvement.

XP/Vista/Win7 installation instructions for quiet_fan modified DSDT table

1/ Boot into your XP/Vista/Win7 OS you want to alter fan operation for.
2/ Download 2510P-dsdt-quiet-fan-V4.rar
3/ Extract to c:\dsdt
4/ 'cmd' into c:\dsdt
5. run 'fan_30pct' (30%) or 'fan_40pct' (40%) depending on your preferred fan speed. It will report "Table overloading succeeded" indicating this dsdt is loaded in the registry successfully.
5/ Reboot system and enjoy quieter operation.

-> Run 'unload.bat' to undo this change and revert back to original bios ACPI dsdt able. If you get a BSOD on reboot hit F8 and select "Last Good Menu".

Should I use 30 or 40 percent fan rotation?

- fan_30pct is for less loaded systems and will give a quieter system. Eg: WinXP or Win7 without Aero. I've set XP and Linux to use this as the default using a fan_30pct modded bios, both of which only run 2D graphics.

- fan_40pct is for more loaded systems with a slightly noiser fan to keep temps lower. Eg: Win7+Aero, or XP systems running multiple USB devices and a HDD. The Aero interface activates 3D acceleration which raises temps. I'm using this for my Win7 installation as it keeps the average temps lower so the noisier 55% fan at 70 degrees is triggered less frequently.

Linux instructions to install the same modified dsdt table are here.

Prefer to have an altered DSDT table in your bios instead?

Can flash a modded_bios with the same changes to the DSDT table as shown above BUT are in the bios instead. Means no need to do any Windows or Linux DSDT overrides.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Changelog

(10-29-10) V4: fan speeds altered as recommended by e&i

 

This is unbelievably awesome work. I'm at work now but will try this as soon as I get home! THANKS!

EDIT: Applied it and it works. Fan doesn't ramp up as eagerly and temps are still OK. I get 60 and some degrees if I stress the system, but temp stays well below 60 during normal use and fan keeps quiet. Great job and thanks again!!!

 

The link to 2510P-dsdt-quiet-fan.rar seems broken. I too would like to turn my fan down/off

TudorLaptop

 

I am being a bit dim now. I have (now) downloaded the 251-p-dsdt-quiet-far.rar file and know where it is. I do not understand how to load.bat. I did do cmd and run and load.bat. Can I have more explicit instructions? Do I have to put the path into the cmd line?
Thanks
TudorLaptop

 

Run CMD, go to the directory you extracted the files to, run 'load.bat'. It's final completion message will say "Table overriding successful" alerting you that the modified DSDT table is now loaded in the registry. Just need to then reboot the system and enjoy the quieter fan.

 

Sorry,

Went to run and then CMD, changed directory to the one containing the .rar file then typed load.bat after the prompt... I get the message that load.bat is not recognised as an external or internal command or batch file

Tudorlaptop

 

You'll need to install winrar to extract the files from the compressed 2510P-dsdt-quiet-fan.rar file to a directory. 'CMD' into the extracted directory and run 'load.bat' as described in my previous post.

 

I never bothered with going into command prompt, I just extracted the files, double-clicked load.bat and then rebooted. But I am running Tiny7 and I think this OS lets me run all processes as Administrator as default, without any nagging questions. One of many things I like with this OS, it assumes I actually knows what I'm doing instead of the other way around...

Nando4, when studying your modified table, I reacted to your last temp threshold. Assuming I understood the table correctly, 95 degrees seems awful high for the full-speed threshold, as original is 70 degrees. Maybe 80 degrees would be more safe? I know the tjmax is 105 degrees, but at this last point in the fan table I prefer safe rather than sorry... =) The difference would probably only be academic for us with healthy fans since we won't see those temps anyway, but for someone with a fan full of gunk it might be a life-saver. What do you think?

EDIT: Thanks for the update, feels safer now!

I cannot express how extremely pleased I am with this mod, it really made the 2510p quiet. Though I am sensitive, the fan is not disturbing any more. Both thumbs up!

 

So finally made the decision to buy the newmodeus sata2pata bay.

So im searching now for a SSD (2.5'') with good 4k read/writes, anyone have any good suggestions ?

 

There's a lot of crystaldiskmark threads out and about which would show an Indilinx-based SSD to be on par or have slightly better 4kb reads than a Intel X25M. Crystaldiskmark is a single threaded application. When the OS does it's work, it's multi threaded with the Intel X25M G2 have a very clear lead. "AS SSD" shows this, as per http://club.myce.com/f138/ssd-faq-297856/

AS SSD Benchmark

AS SSD benchmark is a new benchmarking tool, specifically designed to test SSD drives. The application tests sequential reading and writing performance, 4K random reading and writing performance.

AS SSD benchmark also tests 4K threaded performance. This is very exciting, as this test is the first available test that I am aware of, that simulates how a PC operating system actually works. A modern PC and OS, such as Windows Vista does not just run a single thread at a time, it runs many threads. The AS SSD benchmark "4K 64Thrd" tests run 64 threads simultaneously throughout the test. If this result is good, then you can be pretty sure the drive will perform extremely well as a system drive.

See comparative X25M G2 versus Indlinx based 4kb-64thread results here. Image below reflective of performance if you went a Indilinx based SSD in your Sunplus sata-to-pata caddy, since the Runcore ProIV ZIF SSD uses the same chips:



Recommendation: Intel X25M G2. I've added AS SSD results to my ZIF SSD reviews. I believe the X25M G2 in the sata-to-pata caddy would see double or more the Runcore ProIV (Indilinx) 4k-64thrd results making it an exceptionally good performer. Now if only the 1.8" X18M G2 was not so hard to find AND was available with a sata-to-pata bridge..

EDIT: Results here of the X25M G2 in IDE mode show far lower performance than AHCI mode. Our systems can only do IDE mode since it's a pata interface. So appears Indilinx-based SSDs are the better choice.

 

sounds reasonable, I think im gonna go for a second Intel 80gb G2. One thing with the newmodeus caddy is that it had a jumper for master/slave setting (according to the website), if I put it to master, do I still have to put the 1.8 pata drive to slave with the pin mod ?

 

Two options of how you can set this up:

1/ Intel X25M G2 (master) + Toshiba 1.8" ZIF (slave) / [ using newmodeus or modded ebay caddy ]
-Provides full SSD performance without any workaround.
-Requires pinmodding the 1.8" Toshiba ZIF HDD as slave.

2/ Intel X25M G2 (slave) + Toshiba 1.8" ZIF (master) / [ using newmodeus caddy ]
-Requires the slave speed capping workaround to see full write performance.
-Could still swap in the optical drive to be used with the 1.8" HDD.

I've suggest performing (1) and do the DVD to external USB conversion if needing an optical drive.

Am quite curious to know how your X25M G2 will benchmark, particularly AS SSD's 4k-64thrd.

 

ill provide benchies when I get everything setup. the caddy will arrive in a couple of weeks, then have to order the ssd. but eventually ill get there ^^

 

@w0lla - Revised recommendation. found some updated info that may favor the Indilinx based SSDs installation in the 2510P. The X25M G2 outperforms the Indilinx on AHCI sata interfaces, but on a IDE interfaces the Indilinx performs better. Consider the IDE (non AHCI, no NCQ sataII) benchmarks below:

X25M G2 - AHCI	X25M G2 - IDE	Indilinx - IDE

Saying that, if going the X25M G2 then we'd have some comparative benchmarks when used in a sata-to-pata bridged setup, plus it's the performance option if intending to use that SSD in a future AHCI system. I believe the 4k-64thd read difference in performance b/w the Indilinx vs X25M G2 will hardly be noticable during normal usage.

 

thanks for the info, thing is that where I live ( sweden ) the Intel 80gb is priced below equivalent indilinx ssds. I think im still gonna for the intel 80gb, and if I ever buy a new laptop with native sata support it will be nice. The caddy has arrived, now I Just have to get my hands on a ssd.

 

so I received everything home now. Whenever I try to install win7 on my ssd it just get stuck and eventually a error pops up, if I restart and try again it wont find it or any the 1.8''. I have to shutdown the laptop and start it up again to get the harddrives to show up. With no changes to the 1.8'' and newmodeus set to slave, I get the ssd listed in windows without problems. I have also tried without the pata disk and same problem..

 

Great news in obtaining the Intel X25M G2. Am quite interested to see it's performance benchmarks so will help as best as I can to get this solution working.

The Runcore people have identified a problem with their ZIF SSD during the initial Win7 installation as I've summarized below from their draft solution. Since you are seeing the exact same behaviour the likely culprit here is some Win7 incompatability when the Jmicron JM20330 sata-to-pata chip is set as master on either product.

Symptom
=======
Attempt to install Win7 from CD or USB. During the partition/format phase the SSD will disappear.

Workaround
=========
Install SSD into USB enclosure. Run Win7 setup to create and format your partitions on the SSD. Abort the installation at that point. Swap SSD back into primary bay. Run Win7 setup, skipping the partition creation/formatting phase and complete the installation. Note: in allowing Win7 to create the partitions they will align to a 1MB boundary. This is recommended for best performance.

How to do this workaround on the 2510P *without* using a USB enclosure?

Appears you have the SSD appearing as slave OK. So one potential solution would be to just do the Win7 setup with it as slave, then jumper it as master upon completion. To have the caddy be able to run as master you'll need to either disconnect the ZIF HDD or pinmod the ZIF HDD to be slave.

I've can confirm jumpering my bootable XP/Win7 HDD in newmodeus sata-to-pata caddy as master or slave has with no problems booting and running as either.

 

Tried to format the ssd in my main computer and then switch to the SSD to the 2510p, doesnt work. either in slave or master mode (with&without 1.8'' installed). I successfully installed win7 on it on my desktop computer. going to try ubuntu next

 

When you load Win7 on your desktop system, ensure it's bios is set to IDE (legacy/compatability) mode, not AHCI/native mode. Win7 uses different drivers for each mode, the latter driver will likely BSOD when you run it on the 2510P. I personally wouldn't load Win7 on a different host, then switch drives expecting it to work.

Another thing you can try. Given you already have an OS on the ZIF HDD, and I assume you have a USB optical drive, can you try to boot Ubuntu and do a block-for-block copy of the ZIF HDD to the X25M G2? Then see if the X25M G2 boots? This would confirm if the X25M G2 works and we are just seeing a Win7 installation glitch. The Win7 setup.exe can be launched from within XP/Vista as well. This is the cloning technique I used. Ie:

Code:

hdparm -i /dev/sda     # confirms the drive is recognized
hdparm -i /dev/sdb     # confirms the drive is recognized
dd if=/dev/sda of=/dev/sdb bs=4k

Lastly, if no joy could try either a different SSD with the newmodeus caddy or could try the ebay Marvell based caddy with the X25M G2. The Marvell based caddy has been proven to work with a X25M G1 in a Lenovo X60s here. newmodeus have a pretty good return policy. Though you'd have to wait up to 2 weeks for the ebay caddy to arrive.

 

So I tried to install ubuntu now, No problems, it detected the SSD and formatted it, everything installed. Noticed that if I set the caddy to master bios takes a very long time to boot, if I change it to slave it goes in a instant. (this is without 1.8'' installed). Will try the clone method

 

Great news!! I too noticed some delays when switching SSDs. My fix was to flash bios F.0A. I suppose the fix is either because of some specifics in the bios version or the bios downgrade erases disk IDs stored in the eeprom.

 

do you know of any benchmark program for ubunto to test the drive with ?

 

Can do a sequential read timing test with hdparm. As long as the SSD is in UDMA5 mode should in the vicinity of 70-85MB/s. Not sure of any other tests that can do the equivalent of CrystalDiskmark or AS-SSD.

Code:

hdparm -t /dev/sda
hdparm -T /dev/sda

 

hdparm -t gave me a read speed of ~80mb/s

Vista installation gave me the same problem as win7.

Trying to clone the 1.8'' content on the ssd now on ubuntu live cd.


The newmodeus caddy came with 2 jumpers installed, with one on slave (both pins) and one on only of the pins for master. Been using just one jumper though, either on slave (both pins) or master (both pins). Does it require to have 2 jumpers installed to work properly :S

 

newmodeus sata-to-pata caddy just needs the 1 jumper on either the master or slave position.

 

thats what I thought, well, seems windows 7/vista is a ***** to try to install with this caddy but, Ubuntu went in with no probs at all. I now have the caddy set to slave (to avoid the bios hickup at the start) and the 1.8'' pata as master. Have to search for a benchmark program which gives me some numbers now.

 

Benchmark program links as used in the ZIF SSD reviews: CrystalDiskMark| PerformanceTest| atto| AS SSD

May I suggest either jumpering the caddy as master OR do the baredit slave workaround to get results reflective of best performance. If you cloned XP, rather than did a fresh Win7 install, then the SSD is also not aligned to a 4kb page which *some* say has a negative affect on write performance. Win7 creates partitions aligned to 1MB boundaries (divides down to 4kb OK).

One other thing.. if you are using a USB optical drive with a pata optical drive, it may be possible to dismantle it using it's JAE50-to-USB circuit board to connect and power your newmodeus caddy. That way could use Win7 setup to do the partition setup. Alternatively, could just do the Win7 setup onto your ZIF HDD (after backing it up), then clone to the X25M G2 in the caddy.

 

win7 (on pata 1.8'' drive), caddy in slave mode with Intel G2 SSD.

even these numbers are way better than the pata harddrives