Sony Vaio CA Official Owners' Thread

If it helps, I am having the exact same issues on a VPCCA190S purchased in August with an unofficial bios and 11.8 AMD driver.

When I connected my TV via HDMI for the first time, my laptop screen started breaking up, like as if it was getting a poor tv signal. Somehow I managed to stop it by changing the HDMI resolution in the Vaio Control Center. I say somehow because now when I even think of going near resolution settings while connected via HDMI, I get a BSOD.

I don't think it can be related to third party equipment personally, but I cannot be bothered to make an issue out of it with Sony, I only use HDMI out to watch video streams and as long as I don't touch display properties it works flawlessly.

 

I know the resolution option you mean, my machine never crashes from the Vaio resolution setting, but 1080 is always unselectable. Changing resolution via the Intel options etc and I get a crash. I also had that screen break-up. The thing is I sent them a fairly detailed e mail about the problem, and she referenced that in the phone call and said that none of those scenarios are making the computer crash in their testing, so what could it be? One person on this board mentioned they have none of these problems when running the machine in Ubuntu.

I'll try out my friend's TV / cable. I need to be able to use the machine in this way for retouching. What screen are you using by the way?

 

My laptop connects to a Samsung LE32C580 TV. I have tried 2 different HDMI cables with the same result.

Because of the unofficial BIOS I can switch off the dedicated GPU completely, I will do that and test resolution switching, you never know...

Also the Ubuntu point is an interesting one, I have zero experience with it but I understand that you can boot straight into it via a USB stick for demo purposes. Not sure what driver would be loaded by default but I guess it could be worth a shot.

 

Does anyone here NOT have a problem connecting to a monitor / TV through HDMI with this model? Please let us know and tell us what equipment you have...

Yeah I'm gonna read up a bit on Ubuntu, seems I'd be able to run Photoshop through an emulator. If I set up a partition, I could boot the computer on either operating system right? So if I needed to work I could run it in Ubuntu as retouching is the only scenario that I'd need the 1080 output, not bothered about watching videos in 1080.

I also read that a clean install of Windows rather than a factory reset could have a change. Another alternative is to try Vista...

Another option is I have a USB to HDMI adapter that I used for my old machine, was processor intensive but with the power of the new machine, might work better. Of course best of all would be if I could just plug the f##king cable in the HDMI slot and have it work!

my TV is an LG 26LU5000, I'll contact LG, post messages on Windows 7 and Intel forums.

A.

 

I *think* you can boot into ubuntu just via a usb stick without even having to install it on any partition. I am going to try that this weekend and see what happens. Also I should note that I am running a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate on a SSD so at least in my experience a clean install has not helped.

I have tried looking up this issue on many forums and it is defeinitely not limited to Vaio's. In some cases even just connecting via HDMI would cause a BSOD, at least like I said it's stable if I don't try to configure anything. Annoyingly no one can provide a clear solution outside of updating drivers which seems to have worked for some people, but not me. The other solution people have given is taking it in for repair to get the GPU or motherboard replaced, another option I am not willing to consider.

 

Well it's good to cross off possible causes and as you say it's stable. I've checked and it's not possible for it to be the TV or cable either. Just completely confuses me that they had no problem in the lab...

There's application called Wubi that you can use inplace of a partition to boot in Ubuntu, but yeah you can try a demo of Ubuntu without installing. Let us know how you get on! I think my computer gets back today.

A.

 

Same HDMI BSOD here, I think is driver related.
After I did the bios trick and fresh windows 7 install the BSODs started, previously i didn't get a single problem with HDMI.

By the way, i can't find where to set the multiple display preferences in ati drivers(clone, extend,single) those settings are only on intel app(even when i set dedicated ati).

 

well, nothing strange here... intel is working as a mux. so everything getting to intel first include multiple display preferences

 

When hdmi is connected there is no way to get out of clone mode without BSOD, when intel is set it kind of works, but if you set ati the notebook display shows a constant flickering.

I was looking for a newer intel driver, but have no luck with model check.

Any ideas?

 

Sony eSupport - VPCCB290X - Software & Drivers

try the link above... seems to be no models check... just be sure to pick united states in the country options

 

... Be sure to pick United States if you're in the United States!

 

Well, that drivers didn't solve the hdmi issue, same thing only clone displays available(BSOD trying to change it). That alone wouldn't be so bad, but when i set the ati card (or dinamic change) the laptop display flickers like crazy.

 

Intel have just released a new driver for our chip, I hope that means Sony will be releasing their version soon. This could be the solution...

 

So whats the verdict on this laptop? Does it have too many issues to be a solid buy?

 

There is no Stereo Mix option on my VPCCA290x. And it is clearly an issue that other people should be experiencing too, since sony support told me that sony's "aren't shipped with stereo mix." Does anybody know a way around this? The simpler the better for me. On my last laptop, it didn't come with stereo mix, but there was a driver update that eventually enabled it. Does anyone know if that is the same case with the CA series laptops and/or Vaio laptops in general?

 

i bought vpcca15 a month ago and update all sony vaio driver via VAIO update include graphic card(6630).

now amd release a new graphic driver for 6630 card that have much better performance also when play crysis2, but sony as usual doesn't prepare this driver for vaio laptops.
i only want to upgrade the 6630 radeon not intel.


so if i download ccc and graphic driver from amd.com can i install that on my vpcca? does it work properly after install a driver that is not officially release from sony? how can i update or upgrade graphic driver to new one?

tnx in advance

 

yes you can...

 

I just ordered one of these (190x) from the outlet. So what are the things i'll probably need to do to get everything working correctly??

Can the 190x be flashed w/ the 290x bios to fix the graphics card problem?

 

yes it can... flashed it and get the newest sony library and SFEP drivers and youre done

 

check this out??

Orange Sony Vaio CA i7-2630QM 8GB 500GB 1G 6630M BluRay | eBay

Does this mean the CA can take a quad?

 

i download auto upgrade app from AMD site and the app recognized the graphic card and find update and download that but get this error when installing....

AMD Catalyst Mobility cannot be downloaded due to incompatible hardware/software on your computer
the version of your graphic adapter is not supported...??!

what should i do??

 

please don't use the auto update... use individual download

 

where is the latest graphic driver link on amd.com site?
vaio vpcca 6630m
i must uninstall the old graphic driver and reinstall the new one or install new driver on old driver??
tnx

 

the release note 11.9 say these:

The following notebooks are not compatible with this release:

Any notebook launched after this driver release
Switchable Graphics enabled notebooks using Intel® chipsets.
Toshiba® notebooks (please contact the notebook OEM for driver support for these notebooks)
Sony® VAIO® notebooks (please contact the notebook OEM for driver support for these notebooks)
Panasonic® notebooks (please contact the notebook OEM for driver support for these notebooks)


???????????????

 

it works fine for me after bios update... excepet the CCC is not updating, but i have the newer version of drivers

 

anyone have an idea?

 

yes it can... as long as it is sandybridge processor with the same architecture

 

so there shouldn't be anything in the bios that's preventing a 2920xm from going in correct?

 

do you mean 2920QM? yes it should be compatible

 

Is there any specific instruction to installing 290x's Bios on a 190x?? I tried installing the bios updater of the 290x, but it won't let me. Thanks in advance.

Nvm, just used th e CB Bios provided in the zip a few patches back and ran the batch file. Thanks

 

anyone found a way to get the backlit keyboard option back in control center?

 

how can i update the bios?

 

there's a zip file w/ the bios and a batch file a few patches back hosted on rapidshare. Use that to update your bios.

 

does anyone have a calibration profile for the 1600x900 screen? Mine has a blue tint to it.

 

anyone ever install xp on this laptop?

 

i've done it!! 10k 3dmark6



Runs quite cool at 63C Max

 

I am wondering if anyone every tried the modified intel driver for SA/SB/SC?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/592418-discoveries-vaio-sa-sb-sc-switchable-graphics.html

I still don't have any option in CCC other than power play whenever I open it.


Also for anyone wondering if this laptop is sata II or III, I just upgrade my HDD to Crucial M4 64gb and I get a 470+ mb/s read in HD tune pro so I believe it is sata III.

 

Greetings, all, I am now a fellow CA owner.
If anyone remembers the whole Shiphunt ad campaign a few months back, they had laptops as potential prizes to win. I managed to snag one and they just shipped them out last week. While not my original favorite, the Bolt Black they shipped is a very nice color. The "textured" pattern on the black and white models is a really nice touch, along with the deep blue glow of the black.

Ironically, I received the Bolt Black not long after putting an order in for the Neon Green. I always had loved the green color and decided to jump on it when I saw they weren't coming back on the CA3.

 

i'm trying to replace the odd w/ a hdd(caddy), but i have trouble removing the bezel to the ODD, any tips?

NVM figured out : )

 

Hi, has anyone find a fix for this HDMI issue, or maybe a new or modded Intel driver.

 

So wait, I've gotten confused looking at the past few pages of posts.

1. For AMD graphics card updating you can or cannot use AMD's site? And even if you can, is it really what you should use in securing compatibility?

2. Is there anyway to get stereo mix on here? It's so lame that copyright issues and such have lead to computer manufacturers taking it off....

 

i've tried updating the drivers w/o any luck.

My CA is now up for sale at NBR Marketplace, been fun, but it's time to try something else : )

 

has anyone played Rage on this lap , its not working for me , when i try to open the game , this error comes up ( GL_ARB_draw_elements_base_vertex not available ) btw i installed Rage Performance Driver and 11.10 preview driver 3 and also nothing happens , the same error comes up .
Any ideas what should i do to make it work ??
Thanks in advance

 

For me working like a charm after installing: amd_catalyst_rage_performance_driver.exe

If sometimes you have some problems with textures just put Rageconfig.cfg (you need to google, because I don't remember URL) into X:\wheres your game\Bethesda Softworks\Rage\base

 

it doesnt work fork for me , even after installing the config file .
How did you make it run on the very same laptop ? on AMD 6630m ?

FYI ... i didnt update my laptop bios .

 

Yap, 6630 1gb

You installed directx and msvc2010 (vcredist_x86.exe) which are in game directory?

If that will not help, try to install Rage Update 1.

 

still no work , i guess i have to re-install the windows .
may be thats the problem.

 

Today my sony messenger popped up hd6300 updates. Does anyone know what;s new with it? Thanks in advance.

Never mind, I found the information here..
http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?upd_filename=A2DVID-00256107-1042.EXE

 

It sounds like this might fix the HDMI BSoD problem that some of us have had, but it's for the Americas only! Damn!

Can anyone confirm whether this is the solution?

A.

 

you can try it... it works on any CA laptop