Zepto Znote 6x24W - BIOS z14005

Just uploaded the new BIOS today.

ftp://ftp.zepto.dk/Znote6224W/BIOS/6x24_z14005.iso

Changelog contains:

 

CPU fan control updated: more effective cooling or just DTS calibration now set disabled in default settings ?

 

Meaning better control of the fan and the fan not running full speed. We've been testing it for about 2 weeks on a couple of machines and the fan hasn't been running full speed for no apparent reason on them (as it did before the new BIOS).
If it disables DTS calibration by default i don't know as i don't test the the BIOS's but only upload them

 

okay thanks.
some people zepto forums confirm that
http://www.zeptoforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=534&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
however it seems (I used google translator) that a few posts report higher temps under full load. Anyone willing to translate the key messages ?

 

I've updated to the new BIOS.

The CPU temperature of my 6024W is now idling along at 63C (it used to be below 50C) and the left palm rest feels warmer.

There's no change in my 6024W's battery life.

I've noticed occasional short-duration changes of fan speed - it speeds up for one or two seconds and then slows down again. There are no significant temperature changes in RMclock's temperature graph. The fan seems to have two speed - fast and slow - when it also needs a medium speed.

John

PS: The short surges of fast fan speed are very noticeable and annoying. I think I will be looking to downgrade my BIOS.

 

Sorry to hear that John...
I gues you don't recomend the uppdate ?
Overall its not more quiet than before ?
THX

 

At the moment the fan is off but the extra warmth of the left palm rest is getting unpleasant. RMclock is showing the CPU at around 64C.

However, sometimes I am getting the short bursts of fast fan speed although not yet since I started my latest session (from hibernation and plugged into mains power). Yesterday evening I was running on battery. I wonder whether the fan rules are different for mains and battery (I just pulled out the power cable and got a couple of short bursts of fan activity).

John

PS: Note that I have the X3100 GPU which I hope is producing negligible heat.

PPS: Now my computer is well warmed up (CPU temp ~65C) I am getting more of the short bursts of fast fan activity. It seems that the fan is off between these short bursts.

 

I got a 6324w, at 44° while typing this (thank for the hint to RMclock, John), but I'll wait until someone tells it helps. Also is it also possible to flash the bios back to an older version?

OT: whenever I have the sound not muted, it plays a redundancy sound. Though this is barely audible through the speakers, it's more than annoying when trying to use speech recognition with a headset. It's connected to the video output, since I can hear it change whenever I move the mouse, regardless of external monitor or not. Anyone had the same experience or a possible fix?

 

I've now downgraded back to the previous BIOS 004. The BIOS update software has now difficulty doing a downgrade.

Apart from the short bursts of noisy fan, the higher fan trigger temperature meant that the underside of my 6024W was getting somewhat hot. The CPU is now cruising along at around 48C and the steady slow fan is less intrusive.

I await with interest to see what the next BIOS update brings. I hope it will be emerging from testing anytime soon.

John

 

I have had my 6224 for about two weeks now, and it is working like a charm. The fan however is indeed very audible, but bearable (my former desktop was a 747 at takeoff in comparison).
I downloaded notebook hardware control 2.0, and it keeps saying that my idle cpu (2.2ghz) temp is 74-78° celcius (hd temp 43°C).
Whenever I'm actually doing something (even if it's just watching a streaming video or flash game) the fan kicks in higher gear and i get a warning saying cpu temp is 80°C or higher.
The underside of the laptop never really feels hot though, warm at best.
I've nevertheless decided against changing any of the bios fan settings, and certainly against upgrading to this bios version, if it can heat up John's 6024 ( sans 8600gt), it'll probably grill mine

 

That 74-78C temperature is a symptom of the 004 BIOS bug. Something gets confused, reports a high temperature an the fan goes to a fast speed (but will be blowing out cold air).

Reboot, press F2 at the Zepto splash screen, then F9 to reset the BIOS defaults and F10 to save. This will clear the bug. I make one other change between F9 and F10: Go to boot order menu and put the HDD second on the list.

After the BIOS reset your notebook should be much quieter under light load. The reason for BIOS 005 causing higher temperatures is that they deleted the stage with the slow fan speed. The fan cuts, at medium speed, in at around 64C. The 6224W probably gets more fan activity, but not higher temperatures.

John

 

what does the HDD boot order got to do whit the fan-speed ?

anyway.. looking forward to next bios uppdate !

 

Absolutely nothing. But, for me, the default boot order has the Broadcom network card above the HDD on the list so my computer sits for a minute trying to boot off the network (Esc will make it move on). So it's the one thing I need to remember to change after resetting the BIOS.

John

 

I can tell you as much that an option to disable the PXE Boot ROM message completely has been added to the next BIOS.

 

Thanks a lot, John, the results are spectacular.
I've read about resetting the factory settings, but i thought that would merely downplay fan speed, i did not realize it also caused false cpu temp readings.
The thing's so darn quiet now it just feels wrong
And thanks also for the hdd tip, i did notice the computer was looking for something at boot-up for a solid 15-20 seconds, but i'm too much of a noob to know what it was, so thanks again for helping out on that one.

 

Thanks for the heads up, but I say, if it works why update it?
I will stay with the original bios, till there is something I need in an update.
My 6224 2.4Ghz Dual is still working a treat.

 

Sorry. You can now take out the ear plugs.

I had the temperature / fan speed problem several times in the first few days and nearly put my 6024W back in the box. The occurrence seems to reduce with time.

Anyway, I'm hoping that Rene will soon launch the next revision which helps extend the battery life.

John

 

I see Zepto have recently posted instructions about how to upgrade the BIOS.

There is one very useful piece of information in the document which I hadn't see elsewhere.

Repeatedly pressing F10 while the Zepto splash screen is showing will bring up a one-time boot menu of the available boot devices. I had previously tried pressing various keys but hadn't found this one. It means that the HDD can be put at the top of the list in the BIOS setup (for fastest boot) and then press F10 a few times if you want o boot from a CD.

John