*HP HDX DRAGON Owners Lounge, Part 1*

PassMark Disk Mark for ST9500420AS on the Dragon (625 Disk Marks):


Repeat (this time 633 Disk Marks - difference not significant):

 

Cool deal. But since it's out of the range of the posted composite passmark scores, you'd have to drop a 640GB drive in your system there for a relative comparison. It will also post higher scores than the posted composite for the 640GB drives.

And though you say that some of those scores for the 500GB 7200rpm on passmark are from eeePC, the thing is what percentage of them are? If it were 25% of the composite score, considering the number of samples, it wouldn't drag it down significantly. Even 40% likely wouldn't drag it down some 120 pts.

And not for nothing, you keep your system in far better and optimal shape than most of us. That'll surely play a factor also.

 

.....THIS↑ do it and get back with us, kindheart. curious to see the results. either the samsung or the western digital.

sucks...you're so adamant on justifying the buy, that you are willing to dismiss all other data except the data that you accept and skew it your way by not doing the stats proper.

if it was me, i'd say something like...oh that sucks i just bought the slower and less capacitive drive...oh well.

 

http://www.harddrivebenchmark.net/graph_notes.html

 

That was fun. Passmark system test seems to add a little too much score for SSDs. If not, which actually seems to be the case, then I really like having re-gauged this bottleneck

 

hey 2.0, can you test the newest hwmonitor 1.16 and tell me/us if it's better/improved/accurate than the 1.07 version i and you presumably have been using? thanks!

 

Using version 1.09.

Tested 1.16 64bit and GPU temp is fine. The CPU cores report about 5 degrees lower than other temp monitoring programs.

EDIT: Figured out how to fix it. Run the 1.16 so it will make a config setting file. Open the file and change:

CPU_0_TJMAX=100.0 to CPU_0_TJMAX=105.0

Now CPU temps will be accurate.

Enjoy.

BTW, if you use HWmontray, you will need version 1.5 or 1.6

You can find it here: http://sfkilla.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=25&Itemid=64

 

For some reason everything started working like a day after I had problems.. What caused that? I have no idea. I told the HP tech it must have been because I tilted my HDX to the right.

One thing that is MAJORLY making me want to switch back to Vista is, how come in Vista I could overclock to the 615 level via NvidiaSystemTools, where I could game, have my browser up, whatever.. but with Windows 7 I can't even do the first setting at 550mhz without it crashing when pushed? Am I missing something? Is it because of the WEI and everything else is kinda pushed up in terms of how Windows 7 registers things? If the 600mhz setting in Vista is equivalent to the stock 500 in Windows 7, I guess my question would be what would one setting above the stock 500mhz?

 

LOL. What?

That shouldn't happen. Whatever clocks you were able to achieve in Vista will work in 7. Are you using system tools 6.03, 6.05 or 6.06?

I'm using 6.06 which has performance 6.05.13.

Also which driver are you using?

 

oops me too, that's what i meant.

how do i do that?

lastly, i am using the standalone/portable version of hwmon, because i don't know that there is any difference, except i was just reading on their site that admin priveleges are NOT needed for the setup version. did i read correctly?

all this time i have been manually starting it, as opposed to running it when windows loads, because i have uac on and it would prompt me (uac) every time i start....so if just installing it resolves/bypasses this, then how would i set it and hwmontray to run on startup again?

thanks.

 

EDIT: nevermind the green part, i guess i just start it, that's all. so i found the file right after.

wondering about the installed version like i asked as per their site, and how i'd start that. again only because of uac, otherwise i would use the standalone version.

btw, how do you test to see if the temps are accurate or not, as you did?

 

Don't know, would have to look into it since I don't run UAC.

As for how I test to determine; I use another other program - Real temp. 1.09 matches Real temp. While 1.16 did not.

 

ok i see. except for the gpu, correct, and the cpu as well after config file correction? so effectively it does?

ya i just went to hwmon site CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting and at the bottom under Installation (setup only) is where i saw the priveleges info.

i can try it, but how do i have it load at startup with montray?

 

Yes, once you make the edit to the config file, the temp for CPU in 1.16 is correct. GPU was always correct.

You have to put HWMonTRay in the same directory as HWmonitor. Then you make a shortcut for HWmontray. Right click that shortcut and give it admin privelege under properties. Then drag that shortcut into the startup folder on your windows start menu.

To test it out, log off and then on again.

 

will try it out, thanks.

 

Finally caught up on reading every post since my last post in February .....bloody took forever....

Anyway, I've upgraded to the new version of Linux 10.04 LTS - Lucid Lynx just a few days ago (dual boot with Windows), but I was using Ubuntu 9.10 for quite sometime. It took a little "playing around" to get the sound/web cam working but I was eventually able to get it to work-at least both output jacks, laptop speakers as far as sound is concerned (which is fine for me).

Its a bit late but if you want, I can try to list "sound preferences", etc. tomorrow.

 

Samsung 640GB 5400RPM 8MB Cache:
PassMark Software - Hard Drive Benchmark Charts

Samples increased from 10 (on May 25, 2010) to 13 (on June 1, 2010), and score dropped by 12 points from 566 (on May 25, 2020) to 554 (on June 1, 2010).

 

Ah I was using the first one that came up on a yahoo search, 6.02 the old one. I'm using the newest Nvidia Driver bleh and the newest SystemTools, but how come it won't let me save profiles? The Save to profile option is greyed out..

EDIT: Hmm weird.. it only gave me the option AFTER I clicked ACCEPT. Lets see how this works..

EDIT: Ok I ran through several settings, but it isn't exactly how it is on Vista. On Windows 7 the best one with no lines, distortion, flashing, skipped frames etc is the recommended 610 setting, where as on Vista the best and highest I could go with no problems was the 615 setting. In contrast, one of the worst ones on Windows 7 was the 615 setting. If I do the 625 setting that's the highest I can go with no problems EXCEPT that there are three feint lines when the ships three cannons open up in the flying sea dragon part of the 3D Mark benchmarks. Are those lines a big deal especially if the rating is higher than the recommended setting? Or should I just keep it at the recommended 610 setting?

 

never seen em this low...ever...so here are the links to newegg, get em while supplies last.
SAMSUNG Spinpoint M7E HM641JI 640GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Spinpoint M7E HM641JI 640GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive -Bare Drive
it's $84.99 cuz of an instant rebate AND when you enter EMCYSNW44 and apply, it takes an additional $10 off for a grand total of $74.99 shipped

Western Digital Scorpio Blue WD6400BEVT 640GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Newegg.com - Western Digital Scorpio Blue WD6400BEVT 640GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive -Bare Drive
t's $84.99 cuz of an instant rebate AND when you enter EMCYSNV28 and apply, it takes an additional $15 off for a grand total of $69.99 shipped

deals end tomorrow and the next day depending on the drive, but i have a feeling they may sell out, yes i got a couple (more) myself. hard drive junkie i guess, and cannot pass up a great deal. one will go in my dragon, and will keep the other in an enclosure with the wd 640gb i already had.

 

Nice thanks for posting. I wasn't clear on which is fastest and a better deal, or are they pretty much the same?

 

The Samsung would be the fastest of the 640GB 5400 Drives.

If you want the fastest HDD, the new Seagate Hybrid drives would hold that rank.

 

I've never seen a line(s) while running that benchmark. When it's bad, as in overclock is too much, it simply crashes. You should probably play a real game and see what happens. I've gotten higher benches with certain drivers but in game(s) not as smooth as a driver with a lower bench.

 

Hmm I tried the 3rd setting above recommended and while playing Mass Effect it started acting all crappy. At recommended it works pretty ok. Usually on the ones above the recommended I get a lost frame, a line or two, and or a flash on the sea dragon part. Maybe 615 will be ok.

 

Any specific recommendations as far as model numbers are concerned? How high up does the capacity go for the Seagate Hybrids?

 

500GB is the highest. Called the Seagate Momentus XT ST95005620AS.

Newegg has it as well as a few other places.

 

Also here--among the cheapest stores around for those on the other side of the Atlantic:
Seagate Momentus XT ST95005620AS - ST95005620AS | Internal Hard Drive | IT247.com

The key is in the firmware algorithms that decide what content from the main 7200RPM drive to mirror "cache" in the built-in 4GB SSD for extra speed. For this feature you are paying almost double the price of the equivalent 7200RPM 500GB drive from Seagate (58GBP vs. 108GBP), but I expect the latter price to drop to maybe ~85-90GBP in a few months, if you can wait.

 

Agreed. And there should be more competition in a few months too. Let alone improvements.

 

I already have the western digital, which ranks the 2nd fastest of the 3 640gb 2.5" drives. The samsung is 1st (even though it has 15 entries for scores or so), i went and bought one of those, and bought another western digital (which by the way has about 150 entries to comprise the #2 score....reasoning is that it works splendidly for me already.

i'm just not sure which one i will use to replace my dragon main drive. i was thinking the western digital, and keep a western digital i have for backups and the samsung as a backup for that, thinking if something goes wrong with one manufacture drive, that i will have redundancy but with a diff manufacture....i dont know.

not sure it really matters but we'll see. maybe i'll just use the samsung for the main drive, and report my passmark scores for real world dragon purpose for you doubters. mind you my specs are t8100 and 4gb ram, and vista 64 bit, and 8800gts. i have a feeling to image my drive and try both the western digital AND samsung, just to see the difference once and for all...then wipe one of them afterwards to use for external.

 

I wouldn't go through all that trouble with passmark benchmarking. The info is already out on the web. 15 entries, 100 entries, 1000 entries is not going to dramatically change the score. It's a consensus and is all relative. And likely by this time next year if not later this year, all this will be obsolete anyway.

 

Nice, I think I'll wait, then again I may just get an SSD. Would be nice to have 640GB-1TB in the second drive though.

 

probably right. still not sure which to put in the dragon.

would it be better to have 2 different manufacture external drives (if i am mirroring them (effectively...not raid style but manually) or 2 same models? or no difference. i see a pro and con to each, but probably insignificant.

what would 2, do?

i think i might market bracelets instead of wwjd, ww2d for the geeks. maybe sell em on thinkgeek. lol.

since i already (will) have 3 640gb 2.5" i don't think i will be waiting for the hybrid to come down in price. still the best bang for the buck GB per dollarwise are these 2 models i mentioned in earlier post. the only next investment would be an ssd if/when they come down drastically.

 

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LOL! That is too funny. WW2D? Classic.

I would do what you were thinking. One brand in each slot. Statistically, it wouldn't matter since hard drive failure rate is more or less the same across manufacturers. But it just feels like a smart thing to do.

But I would put the faster drive in slot 1.

 

June 2010 Laptop ( Mobile Solutions for......) magazine has a clear abc on SSDs. It also points out that it's just the OC, etc., that significantly benefits. (apology if I plagiarized you, 2.0)

Ergo, SSD cache.........which will make it interesting to see if OS's continue as software. It'd be real nice to just Flash your OS, wouldn't it?

=

 

as for what i am going to do...what i mean is...i want to replace the stock hard drive with one of the 2 new 640gb drives...either the samsung or the western digital.

and in rocketfish enclosures i will have as currently the western digital and either the samsung in another or another western digital...

so what i am wondering is which 2 would you have in rocketfish enclosures if i were to basically have the same info on each of them.....

wd and wd in enclosures and samsung in slot 1 of hdx, or wd and samsung in enclosures and wd in hdx? i hope that makes sense.

and i just thought of something...i only have 1 esata port, so if i were to mirror all the data manually, i guess i would have to use usb2 for one of the externals and esata for the other, unless i get maybe a expresscard slot, but i dont know if that's the same as the buillt in port, or worth it.

hmmm.....so WW2D?

 

When choosing between two used drives that are very similar in every respect to decide which of them to install as the primary drive, I would go for the one with the lower 'load cycles' figure, as this implies it is the one with a longer lifetime ahead.

 

this does not even apply, if you are referring to my questions to 2.0, for the upteenth time...these are new drives coming in and the question is regarding brands and external...neither "primary" NOR "used" designations apply....i have no clue who you are trying to help, if at all.

 

It wasn't really a reply to your queries and I didn't even quote any of your messages. It was just an 'orphan' tip I remembered and wanted to share with the community (esp. for those who are about to buy used mechanical drives).

 

ahhhh orphan...now it all makes sense...everything...i understand now. :yes: little orphan i see.

 

New Hardware

 

orphan post = has no parent post/thread

 

on a 20" HP HDX notebook?

 

[/QUOTE]

 

Teaser.

Details?

 

Samsung, slot 1. WD & WD in enclosures.

You can get an eSATA expresscard. Otherwise USB max transfer rate will be capped around 20MB/s.

 

Tomorrow I will be tested, then I give more of information. I have a graphic card from a friend from his point of service, if everything will work, then i will buy brand new from RJTECH.

He said that he will probably need to change any voltage

sorry 4 my english

 

Will wait patiently for details then.

 

Holy moley! Now that's what we've been talking about. Wait, isn't that the same one you tried 2.0? I also wonder how cooling would work, if it passes testing that is.

 

So RJTECH installed this for you? I'm also eagerly looking forward to the details on how long it took, how the process worked, the cost etc.

 

Yes it is. That's why exact details are needed.