T61/X61 SATA II 1.5 Gb/s cap - willing to pay for a solution

THe T9600-T9900 cpus set a BSEL of 266/1066Mhz. The 965PM chipset will halt upon detecting a non-supported BSEL. Officially the 965PM only supports 133/533Mhz and 200/800Mhz FSB.

Can use cpumark to compare a T7300 and a T9300. Ie:

T7300=1137
T8300=1503
T9300=1671
X9000=1950

 

Don't forget the T7xxx (Merom) processors uses the 65nm process while the T8xxx/T9xxx (Penryn) processors uses the 45nm process. The 45nm process enables them to be far more energy efficient per clock than their 65nm counterpart. In other words, you will find the system much cooler with a Penryn processor inside compared to a Merom processor without sacrificing any performance.

 

I felt there was a noticeable performance improvement when I upgraded the T7300 to the now used T9500. But you shouldn't await wonders.

Also the temperture is really okay, the current idle consumption (display min., WLAN on) is ~12,5 - 13,5 watts. With an Intel graphic chip the idle consumption is about 8-9 watts, the nVidia Quadro needs (and has) more power.

Over all I am really happy with my T61, I don't need to upgrade it in the next few years, thats fix.

Greetz,

XStoneX

EDIT: wPrime 32M; T7300: 40,218 sec., T9500: 35,225 sec.

 

if you want the best price/performance ratio I think a t9300 will do. I don't think most will notice the 100mhz. The great thing about the penryn besides the 45nm and cooler processor is the 6mb l2 cache. That I noticed. Oh and they underclock really good. I've got mine at .95v from 600mhz to 2.4ghz

 

Just wondering what CPU temperatures you got after undervolting, i'm guessing they be in the low 30's as my stock T9300 is running around 39~46c in power source optimized mode.

 

yeah that's what my temps are. But I have it set differently. Mine is running 12x = maximal performance, 9x = performance on demand, 6x super LFM = power saving.

I hate the constant switching (and I see no temp difference for super lfm and max at .95v, actually I saw 1c lower when not constantly have the machine switch speeds) so if I'm testing out VMs, doing development work I set it to max performance, performance on demand if I'm doing random things, super LFM if I'm just surfing the net or at barnes and noble. I'm at 39-50c, though I'm also using TPfancontrol and have it at 2 or 3 (I can't hear it). Also since the t61p gpu card is a known issue I way way underclocked mine. I think I had it at 140 core/280 shader core/280-400 for memory. I think default for 3d apps is 475/950/950 and if you check in cpu-z for some reason before I forced the underclock it ran 475/950/950 even in 2d apps which is overkill (clean win7x64 install).

Also I think you probably run much cooler than my setup because I'm also using an Antec laptop cooling pad, and I have the ultra bay dvd writer removed (though I see no temp difference but I assume that's a decent size hole for heat to escape).

Next I'd like to underVolt the gpu, but I'd need to find a cheapo t61p extract the bios and flash it. A guinea pig t61p of sorts. I'm not willing to do it my machine yet as it's still current and useful to me.

Another really useful thing I've done in the past is attached copper shims or pennies, attach thermal pads, stack a few so they are touching the back of the keyboard (a huge metal surface area). I literally had a 9c drop in temps by doing this on a dell. Also keep in mind the cpu/gpu/chipset all seem to be connected to the heatsink fan assemply. So if you undervolt, underclock, cool any of those parts it helps the other. I also have some really interesting ideas on building a more efficient heatsink/fan cooling options but work has been too busy too lately.

edit: I see you have the intel integrated GPU, could explain why your cpu temps are lower, they share the same heatsink.

 

"Note: WINUPTP.EXE was also patched. You won't get the message "BIOS image file is same as BIOS ROM. An update is not necessary at this time." anymore.
ISO CD-Image was changed with the same goal. Now BIOS update CD is able to flash firmware even if the new and the current versions are the same.
Important note: When you boot from this CD, BIOS update will start automatically."

I have a question that I', emarased about.

I have a 64 bit T61P running Win 7. Is the bootable bios included with the t61P package or where do I find it?

Renee

 

Download and extract the package for the T61p (2.27-1.08). You will find an ISO image (7luj26uc.iso) there, burn that to disk and boot from it to flash the BIOS.

 

Will this sata II cap solution work for:

Thinkpad X60 Core 2 Duo T7200 2.0Ghz

... as the X61 uses the same processor?

 

As I know, there are no X60 with Core 2 Duo CPUs on market. Please verify it or tell us your detailed model-no (like 7663-CTO).

Greetz,

XStoneX

 

Hi XStoneX

Check your PM

I just googled the specs, I think the model is: 1706-QFG:

http://willyfogg.com/p19178799/lenovo_thinkpad_x60_t7200_1706-qfg/

model 1709:

http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-ThinkPad-X60-1709-fingerprint/dp/B000K8FRFK

 

Okay, that was new for me. But I'm sorry, you can't use the BIOS because the chipset isn't SATA II capable.

 

I tried to read through much of the thread but didn't find anything regarding the second HDD bay. Does this patch affect it? Should I get the same speed there as the first bay?

 

No, the second bay is attached over a PATA interface and is thus unaffected by the patch.

 

So I guess there is a hardware limitation after all. Darn, was hoping for dual SSD's. better than nothing though. Thx.

 

Hi, I know this is a little off topic but since we are talking about unlocking hardware potential, can the t61 run DDR2-6400 ram at 400Mhz. I ask because I have DDR2-6400 right now and it's running at 333Mhz. Btw, props to middleton and others for unlocking the sata II speed on the thinkpad although I don't have a SSD

 

That would also affect my T61, I am also using two sticks of 2GB DDR2-6400. With FSB800 it would be fine to use its full potential.

 

Hi guys, has anybody experienced elevated CPU/GPU temperatures after SATA II BIOS patch? My Thinkpad X61 Tablet seems to be running about 5-8'C hotter than usual. It is considerably faster, but hotter, too. Do you think this is normal?

Thanks,

K.

EDIT: Nevermind guys, apparently I forgot the power setting at High CPU power. Back to normal now...

 

First of all, I'd like to thank Sodhi for the help.

I have the CD disk made up but am having trouble remembering how to boot my t61 to boot the patch disk itself to patch the bios.

Also how do I get the thinkpad boot screen back after I've patched the bios on my 64 bit T61p?

Renee

 

Middleton:

Thanks for doing the awesome job you have been doing for all the Thinkpad Users out here. I'm new here and this being my first post, I'm trying not to ask what has been asked many times before, so forgive me if I have.

I recently upgraded my Thinkpad T61p 6459-CTO from an T7100 to an T9500. I now get the thermal sensing error and i downloaded your modified bios, burned the ISO to an cd and booted. It loads then errors out with the following:

Start flashing . . .
Error During Flash. Error Code = 99 (179)

Any ideas or help would be great.

 

Renee:

When booting up and hitting the ThinkPad splash screen, press the F12 key to get into the boot devices menu. From there you should be able to select which drive to use. If only your HDD is shown, you may have to enter your BIOS (F1 @ splash) to edit the list of boot devices.

Once you've selected the optical drive to boot from, the BIOS CD will automatically launch into updating the BIOS. You will hear a loud beep when its done. Make sure that the machine is on AC power and wait it out as it may take several minutes to complete.

I'm not 100% sure if the machine will attempt to reboot itself when it's finished or whether you'll just have the DOS screen with the flashing cursor.

In any case, remove the CD and reboot the machine when the flashing has completed.

 

What about the t6600?

 

You may need to turn on "Flash Over LAN" in the BIOS before you can get it to flash. Access the BIOS then go to Config -> Network section -> Enable Flash on LAN.

 

We need to make this kind of support worthwhile for the programmers who can do this. I've just sent a contribution today, and I haven't even bought my SSD yet!

Thanks for all the great work Middleton!

DFH

 

I read through the thread and couldn't find any answer:
Does whitelist disable both WLAN and WWAN whitelists? I saw a reference to WWAN but nothing about WLAN.

 

All the patches disable both WLAN and WWAN whitelists.

 

Sodhi,

I tried the DVDram option on the boot. Although the Driver was installed successfully I received the following errors:

I received an MSCDEX status of drive C: = Driver TPC001 Unit 0
CDR101: Not ready reading Drive C:
Abort, Retry or Fail
When I tell it to retry, we go through an endless loop.

Im wondering if the iso is on the disc. I put it on with Imgburn and I did recieve a success.
When I tell it to abort I receive a C> prompt. When I respond with a "dev" I go through that same endless loop.
Renee

 

Renee:
At this point I'm in over my head and will leave it to other more experienced members to comment. One thing that stands out is your driver comment. Are you using the Ultrabay drive or an external? IIRC, this method only works with the ultrabay drive. Anyone?

In the past, I have gone to the lengths of swapping in a spare HDD, running a Win x86 install to use a 32bit BIOS flash - not that I'm suggesting you do that.

 

"At this point I'm in over my head and will leave it to other more experienced members to comment. One thing that stands out is your driver comment. Are you using the Ultrabay drive or an external? IIRC, this method only works with the ultrabay drive. Anyone?

In the past, I have gone to the lengths of swapping in a spare HDD, running a Win x86 install to use a 32bit BIOS flash - not that I'm suggesting you do that."

I am using the stock inboard Ultrabay drive. Everything is stock. Once again I have 64 bit Windows 7.

Renee

 

Renee, can you check to see if the following is setup on your BIOS?

* On Windows = Bitlocker Encryption = Off

= Config =
- Network - Ethernet LAN Option - Enabled
- Network - Flash Over LAN - Enabled
- Intel AMT - Disabled

= Security =
- Security Chip - Disabled
- BIOS Update Option - Enabled
- I/O Devices - Ultrabay - Enabled

 

Heast,

I sent the t61p in to be worked on for dimness of all things. It's still on warranty for another couple of months, so I am afraid that I'll have to take up your questions when it returns next week.

Renee

 

Hello Middleton,

some users in german ThinkPad-Forum ask for a X61 SXGA+ bootable ISO BIOS. Is there a possibility to write it?

Once again, thanks for your great work,

XStoneX

 

Yes, it's possible. Lenovo's flashing tool is just a wrapper which performs all the checks and runs phlash16.exe or winphlash.exe to flash BIOS. The official update utility won't recognize X61 SXGA+ BIOS due to changes made by leokim. So in case with bootable CD we need to use phlash16.exe and of course there will be no checks before flashing.

You know my email address. If there are X61 users who want to test this ISO, then they should email me.

 

Awesome work Middleton!

And thanks to s0dhi for making it easier to donate via PayPal!

T61 6465-9TU / Intel T8100 / 3GB RAM / Windows XP SP3 / Intel G2 80GB

 

Unlocking EIST bit in BIOS for Throttlestop dual-IDA overclocking

middleton - you may consider unlocking the EIST bit so users can use Throttlestop to get an extra multiplier to overclock their systems. eg:

* L7700-1.8@x9 -> L7700-2.0@x10
* T7500-2.2@x11 -> T7500-2.4@x12
* [email protected] -> [email protected]
* T9500-2.6@x13 -> T9500-2.8@x14

That's assuming the Lenovo bios locks down EIST with no option in bios to unlock it (likely). Wish the same could be done for my 2510P, decompressed bios here. Could be another set of bios mods you could get paypal donations for?

Unlocking D_LCK

If contemplating doing that, then consider also unlocking D_LCK so users can do all sorts of funky stuff. Eg: increase/decreased the X3100 VRAM allocation from system, change TOLUD.

 

nando4, it's very interesting but at the moment I don't even have time to modify R61 BIOS-es. Anyway I'll return to your offers in near future. Sorry but can't tell you exactly when it'll happen.

 

Amazing accomplishment, congratulations!

I recently upgraded my HDD using a SSD with peak transfer rates of 270 MB/s reading and 250 MB/s writing. However, I ended up with 160 MB/s reading and 100 MB/s writing speed using Windows 7 (64 bit) in AHCI mode.

Did anybody take a look into the BIOS of W700/W700ds? Would it be possible to apply a similar patch to unleash the ICH9M?

Thank you in advance.

Greetings,
Roger

 

What's wrong with W700/W700ds? I just looked at its BIOS - SATA II full speed feature is enabled by default.

 

Thanks for the prompt answer, now I'm even more puzzled. The SSD is a OCZ Vertex Limited Edition 200 GB (OCZSSD2-1VTXLE200G) with firmware v1.11. You are right, the 163 MB/s are already to fast for SATA I, so it must be another problem. I will have to test it using a desktop PC to verify the transfer speed.

Greetings,
Roger

 

Have you tried to install the Intel Rapid Storage Technology driver? It supports TRIM, so it could be a massive performance boost, if your SSD is good filled with data.

 

Can you explain the difference compared to the Intel Matrix Storage driver which I am running on my T500 with Intel G2 SSD? It runs flawlessly with this setup and even when I go to the intel site, there is no mentioning of the Rapid Storage Tech driver when going through the driver guide.

 

Hi XStoneX.

Thanks for the suggestions.

I am using Intel's Matrix Storage Manager driver, TRIM support is enabled, and there is no alignment problem.

It turned out that the benchmark tool itself was producing strange results (H2benchw by German magazine c't). When using Atto Disk Benchmark, the expected transfer rates are achieved using ICH9M and ICH10R, so everything is fine now.

Greetings,
Roger

 

Did you use Inter Rapid Storage Technology Driver on your T61? was it better than Windows drivers?

 

Hi,

I just flashed the bios with ctr-fn swap but there seems to be no swap. The flashing seemed to be ok and ended with a beep. CPU-Z states that the bios date is 04.08.2010 but I don't remember what stood there before flashing. I don't have a Penryn CPU and SSD yet so there is no way to check if the flashing did work.

What sould I do? Burn the image again and flash again?


Greets,
Nico.

 

I think it's in the BIOS as a setting. Have you checked there?

 

You should email me (I gave address in this thread). Need to ask some questions.

I didn't add CTRL-FN switch in BIOS settings. The modified BIOS simply swaps FN and CTRL.

 

Thanks, just sent you an Email

 

IIRC the SATA-II update worked but the CTRL-FN swap didn't work from image, but running WINUPTP.exe in Windows fixed it. Pretty sure I burned the correct ISO for CTRL-FN swap...

 

It seems DOS update utility flashes the main BIOS but doesn't flash Embedded Controller's firmware. Yesterday noco tried to flash it using directly phlash16.exe but without success.
So at the moment if you want to get CTRL-FN swap, then you have to flash BIOS under Windows 32-bit.

 

Hey Middleton, just wondering how hard is it to create a ROM file for the BIOS you created? I noticed some sites (such as MyDigitalLife) are distributing ThinkPad BIOS' as a ROM file along with WinPhlash. If you were able to distribute the BIOS as ROMs then it enables people to flash using WinPhlash 64 which does BIOS flashing under Windows 64 bit so people don't need to downgrade to a 32 bit Windows OS to do the process.

I seen the process work for a R61 flashing in a 64 bit environment so I don't think there should be issues, but obviously caution should still be advised when flashing any BIOS!