Official VAIO Z Core 2 Duo Series Owners Thread

What does anyone of you think of the following thread, especially post #5?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=357407

 

my discount worked just fine?

 

Do you guys know how to get some of the drivers after reformatting? I have 4 exclamation marks and I know 2 of them are the webcam and the fingerprint sensor. I also have 1 SM Bus Controller and an Unknown Device (which might be the Verizon card). It seems like there are no drivers for these on the 690 support site. Getting some off the 590 site doesn't work because it knows I have the 690. Thanks!

Hm, the hybrid system doesn't work either yet...eek.

 

I see no price change between signing in with my student discount vs not in terms of components and overall price of the CTO. (However, when I sign in I do immediately notice the reduction by 10% on pre-configured models, and on the CTO once in the cart.)

 

It's true I did a lot of tweaks to my system. I did most of the SSD tweaks from OCZ forums and Vista tweaks from NBR. I also edited running processes by my own...so right now I'm having 68 processes running with Logitech SetPoint and AV KIS2009. And I found few more...so I can disable 2 or 3 more. But as I said the main difference is probably in the single SSD as it consume much less than the HDD before...

To make it run silent even with a bit more intensive tasks I'm thinking about exchanging the thermal paste for AS5 and do undervolting with CPUGenie, when they'll repair the bug with my processor...

 

Ooo...if you don't mind, could you link me to some of these tweaks? I'd appreciate it! My biggest problem now is that some of my stuff like the camera, fingerprint scanner, and hybrid graphics don't work after my reformat. You'd think Sony would put all the drivers on the website =(. I hope my computer isn't partially bricked now...at least that makes the decision to keep the other one easier .

 

Tell me about it, there's no possibility to download official drivers for Japanese Vaios. If I would know, how easy it is, I would probably hack the US one...but at the end I went with OS install from recovery discs and uninstalling crap + cleaning registers...and I have to say I'm quite happy with such setup

First what I did were SSD Tweaks. I wouldn't bother with the RAMDisk (the last part), as I don't have really good experience with that and it slows down startup (but it's on you).

Second are Vista Tweaks, here from NBR.

As a special part of tweaking is playing with services, where I'm using great great BlackViper's page...where you can see description of nearly all of them. You can safely use that 'Safe' profile and after that play with that 'Tweaked' profile. Don't forget to turn off also some Vaio services, which you don't use.

Last but not least, download CCleaner, clean your SSD and registry and disable everything at StartUp, what you don't need (for me except the ones, which are needed by OS, I'm letting Logitech driver and AV).

I would also recommend to use latest graphic drivers from Sorg.

At the end, don't forget to turn off Vaio Media indexing and Windows Defender, if you use another software (I'm using KIS2009).

Howg

 

Wow, thanks for the info!! I'll try them. After the reformat, my battery life got better though. It's now showing 6 hours of life but I don't know how accurate that is yet.

Aw crap...I didn't make a recovery disc because I thought it would be useless if I'm never going back to the Sony install anyway. I usually never make recovery discs because Dell and HP put all the drivers on the web!! =(

I did copy the drivers folder from the old set up onto my external HDD and used those to get rid of the exclamation points, but the camera, switching, and fingerprint sensing still don't work. That could be a problem...anyone have any ideas? How did you go about doing it Bob? I know you reformatted when you got your 690.

 

I made a copy of the executable 'VAIORecv' (Program Files>Sony>Vaio Recovery) and put it on a flash drive.
I re-booted and hit F10 to access Vaio Recovery Center.
I chose 'Restore Complete System'
Once it started to install software I hit Ctrl+Shift+Esc
I ended the process of installing VAIORecv
After the system re-booted, I popped in the flash drive and put the folder back where it was supposed to be.
I ran VAIORecv and installed all the programs I needed/wanted.
I installed them all one at a time and re-booted after each install. Kind of a PITA but I only wanted to do this once so I figured I might as well take it slow.

Are you sure you re-installed the drivers for the biometric fingerprint sensor and web cam? I missed these 2 initially cuz I didn't recognize the names at first. The fingerprint sensor is something like 'Protector Suite SQL' and I forget what the web cam driver was called. As far as graphics switching, that all worked fine. Good luck.

 

Thanks! Well I screwed that up because I didn't do that at all =(. I just did a clean install and deleted the second partition on the hard drive. The fingerprint scanner works now with the program you told me, but the webcam still doesn't. Now the webcam and hybrid don't work. Otherwise everything is good.

 

And you've tried downloading the Camera and Video drivers from here?

 

Web cam driver is called ArcSoft WebCam Companion 2.

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=VGNZ690&upd_id=4234&os_id=36

 

Yeah I've tried those. The software installed fine for the webcam but it can't find the webcam for some reason. Also, I installed the nVidia driver, but the computer isn't recognizing the nVidia card, only finding the Mobile Intel 4 Series Express Chipset thing under display drivers. Do I have to activate the webcam or hybrid stuff somehow? Thanks! At least battery life is better now.

I've also noticed Vista Aero isn't on...

 

Update: Got the webcam to work. Found out the WWAN doesn't work though and neither does hybrid switching still. I tried installing the Gobi software off the Sony webpage and that works fine supposedly, but then the Verizon software doesn't pick up on anything and neither does the connection utility. Sony has made this process way too complicated...

 

Is anyone noticed any issues with WiFi on the Z690?

I get intermittent dropped wireless connection right out of the box; 2 days old.

I also noticed that in the Network and Sharing Center the signal strength is 100% and all looks normal. BUT, I am not able to do the Windows Update, it just stays at 0% complete, just sits there. But I can browse the web. Sometimes I can't even do that.

My second old laptop no issues at all, but it is running WinXP Pro.

 

The hybrid graphics switching function comes from installing those Sony Utilities, not from the Nvidia driver.

And you need a mobile broadband subscription for the WWAN to "work." No?

 

Got them all to work!! Yeah, I read the Vista 64 bit Business thread this afternoon and I realized that. Now everything works! I wanted the WWAN because it is also a GPS radio that can be used. That works now too. Yay! The number of processes right after a restart went from 93 to 57 with the clean install, still more than the Dell but oh well.

It took me 5 hours to do the whole thing, so it does take a while. Anyone who does want to do a clean install, however, here are the steps:

1. Download the drivers on the Sony website onto a flash drive
2. Install Windows Vista SP1 (If you don't have SP1, upgrade to it before installing drivers)
3. Install the Firmware Extension Parser AND the I/O Control Device Driver
4. Reboot
5. Install the Intel Chipset Driver
5. Reboot
6. Install the Shared Library
7. Reboot
8. Install the Notebook Utilities and reboot when prompted
9. Turn the switch to "speed" and install the nVidia drivers
10. Reboot
11. Go through the Device Manager and point the exclamation points to the driver folder on your flash drive
12. Install the Gobi Image, Driver, and Connection Utility
13. Reboot and done!!

Now I can see if this 690 really is worth the extra money without being bloated by useless software.

 

I corrected his mistake.

 

Yes.

Long story short, if you don't want to read through the whole thread: culprit=router (for me anyways). Haven't had any trouble since. You are talking about WLAN right and not WWAN? If not, never mind

 

Would going to Win XP Pro fix it?

 

No idea. Were you going to do that anyway? If so, might as well give it a shot and see. If not, you may want to ask over in the 'Wireless and Networking' forum. Good luck. Hopefully Synchro will see your thread and help you out. He was a big help to me.

edit: Never mind, looks like he found you.

 

I would also recommend to download latest wifi drivers from Intel webpage..they're newer than the Sony one and I don't have any drops or any other problems with them...

 

I did that too and my wifi works fine.

 

I havent gotten my z yet so I cant exactly do it yet but i'm surprised nobody has compiled am updated driver package for the other members in the forum to make fresh installs easy.

 

Just got back from the mall, and I saw the Shadow Border Design lid on the Z690YAD at the SonyStyle Store and it looks better in person than it does in photos. It's textured so there's an unevenness when you slide your fingers across the lid.

As for the 1600x900, I'm glad I got the lower res. Text was tinnnnnnny.

 

The only problem is that there are no custom 600 series builds atm, so I'm hoping 1600 x 900 can scale up to be the same, with some power tweaking.

 

I do have another issue on my Z-690 64 bit...when I do the Windows update via the System Maintenance, just sits at 0%...I did attempt also on an Ethernet cable, same...so not wifi issue.

I have no idea if this is a MS site issue or Z-690 problem.

Followup- It is actually any download...just tried to download a Vista Sidebar Gadget, just sits at "Starting".

 

Took the plunge and ordered a CTO Z690 on the 25th. Says estimated ship is march 10th cause out of stock. First time ever ordering a computer for Sony, do they ship out much earlier than that or do they usually do it on their ship dates.

Thanks guys!

 

I spoke to a sales rep and was told that order processing thats 48 hours and then building o the actual comp takes 5 more days, Thats not counting for any minor delays in-between. I ordered mine on the 26th and got the same march 10th date. I was told there is a back order on certain proc's and also the premium carbon fiber.

 

Finally went to the Sonystyle store today. 1600x900 is awesome. Bout to pull the trigger. =]

 

Yeah its the 1600x900 that sold me. Been looking everywhere for a 13inch or smaller with a high res screen, main reason I spent the amount of money i did.

 

Hello all,
is anyone of you experiencing problem with hard disk S.M.A.R.T ?
My Spin Up Retry Count has a value of 107 (i don't understand why it increase instead of decrease) and Active Hard Disk Monitor reports to me 53% health status because of this.
Anyone?
Anyone can explain me why if the threshold is lower than 100, the initial value for uncollected data is 100 and my value is 107 ...this should be a problem?

 

can someone point me towards a Z keyboard protector?

is this one??: http://www.g-wholesale.com/shopexd.asp?id=2499&bc=no

i can't tell if that's the current Z or the old Z

 

my god, i just saw your Z config.. holy ! that thing's like a brick of gold

 

It's a hard counter -- it can only increase, and never decrease. Every time the HD doesn't spin up in time, and a retry is issued, the counter is increased by one, permanently.

The reason for the value starting at 100 is that there are two values:
- A raw value, which is the actual byte written to the drive's attribute counter, and which doesn't tell you anything.
- A a normalized value, which is manufacturer-dependent, and the difference between the raw value and the manufacturer-dependent "normal" value.
The normal value the drive manufacturer has picked for this counter is 100. It could have been 0, and it could have been 200. It varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and even model to model.
Since they chose 100, it is a counter that goes from 0 (100 raw) to 155 (255 raw). When the drive is brand spanking new, the raw counter is at 100, which translates to 0 spin-up retries and no warnings.

Any spin-up retry indicates a problem with the drive that could cause it to die prematurely, so if the normalized value increases to 1, good S.M.A.R.T. tools will warn you. Every time, until you replace the drive. That's S.M.A.R.T.'s job.

In your case, your drive has failed to spin up 7 times, which is a really strong indication that something is wrong with either the drive or the power, and that it is very likely to soon fail in other ways. Contact Sony and get your laptop repaired under warranty before the drive is dead.
And be glad you had S.M.A.R.T. warn you.

 

Is S.M.A.R.T and Active Hard Disk Monitor 3rd party software or is this stuff pre-loaded from the factory. If we've all got it, could you point me to it? Thanks.

 

S.M.A.R.T. is built-in to the drive. It consists of firmware that can run self-tests, and maintain counters for various conditions. The purpose is to catch a drive failure before it happens.
Most BIOS startup routines query S.M.A.R.T. capable drives upon booting, and alert the user if any thresholds are exceeded.

Apart from that, there are many 3rd party utilities for queriying S.M.A.R.T. drives, and for initiating self-tests and read the results. I don't think Sony bundles any such software, but ICBW.

 

I guess if I'm not getting any kind of error messages then I shouldn't worry about it huh? Thanks for the feedback.

 

So what's the word on this vaporware of a Z640, anyone know?

 

I got the silicon keyboard cover from the following ebay seller:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...56162&_sacat=See-All-Categories&_fvi=1&_rdc=1

It takes around 14-20 days to receive it though. Item ships from Hong Kong.

 

thanks for the reply! however, i've decided to go with a TPU keyboard protector from http://www.kuroten.com/shop/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=330

 

So I think I've decided to go with the 610. The 690 is not worth the extra $1000 in my opinion and if I ever need to upgrade, I can do it pretty easily for the HDD and CPU. I haven't opened the 610 yet though so we'll see how it goes!

 

Thank you,
i didn't imagine this could be a "really strong indication"....
And if none else has a number bigger that 100 in spin-up retry...then i'm scared....

 

The only other cause for as much as 7 spin-up retries is if you routinely use your computer all the way until the battery is drained, or you have an extremely bad source of power (we're talking flickering-lights bad here).
Then the drive might not get enough juice to spin up properly, and have to retry.

But chances are that your drive is suffering from stiction, bad bearings, a bad motor, or other problems that likely will cause it to fail more permanently, possibly quite soon.

The drive in my Z (a 7200 RPM 320 GB Seagate) has a threshold of 97 for this value, meaning it will alert when the count hits 103 ((103 - 100) >= (100 - 97)), or 3 failures. It's currently at 0 (100), which is the expected value.

At the very least, watch the drive, and if the counter grows further without you noticing a power related problem, have the drive replaced. You might want to run smartmontools or similar to keep an eye on it.

 

I just bought a Vaio Z 590 from Sony's outlet (meaning it's a refurb). So I have my fingers crossed that it won't have any crippling problems when it arrives to me on Wednesday.

Anyway, the configuration I bought was w/ the P9500, 2GB DDR3 (I assume it will be one module), and a 5400rpm 200GB HDD.

I'm planning on upgrading the RAM to 4GB immediately, as well as switching the HDD out w/ a 320GB 7200rpm one. I understand that changing the hard drive may be a pain on the Vaio Z, but I'm comfortable with this as a custom PC builder and from having changed out the HDD on various Macbook Pro's for friends.

So I was wondering if anyone who's upgraded their RAM on the Z could tell me what the manufacturer and specs are on the module inside? It's possible that Sony may use multiple vendors over time (though Apple had been known for pretty much exclusively using Hynix RAM), but I'm still curious about the Cas latency on the stick (specifically if they're CL7) so that I can try to get another 2gb stick that will match.

Also, would anyone with a 7200rpm drive in their Vaio care to comment about how the noise/vibration are with it (and battery life)? I'm going to try to find the quietest one to install.

 

Yes, Sony switches RAM vendors at times. The memory I got in my Z590 was 7-7-7-20, which is the best available at present.
If you mix different CAS/RAS settings, you will still get dual channel, but may lose symmetric access, and a tiny bit of speed.

No vibrations that I notice. As for battery life, tweaking how often the drive spins down is key here -- you don't want too many spin-ups, and you don't want it running needlessly either. If handling large amounts of data at infrequent intervals, a 7200 rpm drive can be more power efficient than a 5400 rpm drive, because it finishes quicker. Otherwise, a 5400 rpm drive will usually be more power efficient.

 

Thanks for the quick reply. I did some research and decided to go with a 4GB (2x2GB) pair CL7 from Crucial that's selling on Newegg for $53.00 w/ FS and the Western Digital Scorpio Black 320GB 7200rpm HDD ($80 w/ FS).

If my Z looks to be in good shape, I'll switch out the RAM and hard drive and sell the old ones on ebay. I can't wait to get a hold of this thing (I haven't owned a laptop in over 3 years). Looking forward to giving it a clean Vista x64 install and tweaking to get 5+ hours of battery life.

What kind of options are there (in the BIOS or in Windows) for tweaking hard drive spin down?

 

Control Panel >> Hardware and Sound >> Power Options >> Edit Plan Settings
Click "Change advanced power settings"
Expand "Hard disk", then "Turn off hard disk after".

Don't set it too low, because excessive spinning up will also zap the battery life (and reduce the lifetime of the drive, which is only rated for a certain number of spin-ups).

I have mine at 7 minutes for battery, and never for AC, which appears to work well with my usage patterns -- if I'm away or don't use the HD for 7 minutes, chances are it won't be used for a good while longer.

 

I received an Intel X25-M 80gb SSD today and I'm getting unbelievable performance even compared to my other OCZ SSD.

Windows 7 boot time (button to full boot): 30 seconds
Windows 7 complete reboot time (shutdown to full reboot): 41 seconds

Average read speed: 185 MB/sec

 

Does the fan still run with the SSD?