Sony Vaio Z i5/i7 (VPCZ1) Official Owners Thread Part 2

That's the exact drive in the Z. I forgot who bought and installed it though...

 

Mine doesn't use that drive. Mine uses a different one that ISNT blu ray. So I could buy that and have no issues?

 

Oh sorry, i meant that's the same model blu-ray drive that sony uses. Yeah it should work fine. There are many posts in the Sony forum of people taking apart their Z, so you can refer to those.

 

Freak, I've got a stuck pixel Not sure if to return it and wait for sandy bridge (my old notebook is still plenty fast with the intel SSD ) or just keep it.

 

Does anyone have a clue as to what kind of webcam (mega pixel) is on these machines?

 

I'm wanting to say 0.3megapixels.

 

It looks like your ClearType settings are set for an BGR panel, not an RGB one which the Sony has. You might want to look into fixing that, as it should make your fonts looks more clear and sharp.

 

Here, try the things they describe here: 5 Ways To Fix A Stuck Pixel On Your Screen

Hopefully they work (unless you want to return the lappy)

 

TY for the tips, didn't work. Damn thing is red so it's clearly visible against light backgrounds which is most web-sites, office, etc

 

Under the Vaio Control Center -> Power Management -> Power Options -> Thermal Control Strategy:

What should I leave that on? Keep is Balanced? I hate to have to turn it back ontop Performance every time I'm plugged in, then have to change it every time I go on battery.

Also, when I switch between power / battery it keeps wanting me to exit out of Vaio Messenger, but the damn thing is never open to begin with!

 

I'd probably keep it on balance Don't want to run it all the time. Also, there's a utility to turn off DVD automatically when you go on battery, I wish it'd turn off webcam as well (at least on my old laptop, webcam ate a few watts even when it was not in use)

BTW, anyone knows if I can use HDMI to output to 30" LCD at native res (2560x1600 res)? Without DP, HDMI is the only proper digital output. I wish they had DP on this thing, DP is really inexpensive and doesn't take space as much as hdmi and even VGA.

 

@IntenseIGFX: And Anyone else!

Try uninstalling some of the crapware that comes pre-loaded onto your notebook, you will benefit a reduced start up time, better resources, and Less-nags about running applications when you change from STAMINA to SPEED.

I wrote a list of safe-to-uninstall crapware some where in this thread, and here is a reduced one, it might help you make the system snappier.

Decide for yourself what you use and what you don't.

Doing so I managed to free up 9 GB, and reduced running services from 112 to 77.

Will

 

Anybody know if the Incase sleeves for the macbook are compatible with the Z...they should be?

Canvas Sleeve for 13" MacBook : Products By Incase

 

I think the largest resolution supported by the HDMI on the Z is 1900x1200, however, i think the VGA can output 2560x1600 though. This was discussed earlier, but i forgot who tested it. I think someone mentioned that the irony of it all is that the Vaio's LCD display is powered by DP... again, i forgot who said this =(

 

vga can't handle such bandwidth, only purely digital dual-link outputs can handle it. HDMI latest rev 1.4 can do it but I doubt that z12 has that, prolly still 1.3.

 

In addition to a stuck pixel, I'm finding that the left edge of the screen is suffering from uneven backlighting I think I'll be returning this notebook, it's not acceptable to have these sort of defects for a notebook in this price range.

 

the macbooks are actually 13.3 so theres a little extra space to fill with your charger.

ive seen vga do 2048x1536 and it theoretically should handle 2560x1600
edit: found link -> http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...ng-vaio-z-2560-x-1600-external-monitor-5.html
some on the fifth and sixth page claim they have it working over vga. be wary though. manual says 2048x1536 max

 

Is there a way to change the speed of the touchpad independent of the mouse?

 

messenger is running alright! check your 100+ processes in task manager lol. you can uninstall that or prevent it from running.

btw, you are better off creating your own power plan, setting to save power when unplugged and to go crazy when plugged.

 

you can fool with the momentum settings in the synaptics tab of the mouse settings. otherwise, i dont think so.

 

I have a slight concern: If I put the thermal settings on "performance" within the Vaio Control Panel I actually get better FPS. Is there a way to make a profile so that it will go to "balanced" when I unplug? Same with the power plan settings. If I unplug it automatically goes to Stamina but it keeps it on high performance power plan. Can I have my power plan and Thermal control Strategy go to balanced when I unplug? Does the thermal control strategy even really matter for battery power or would it be better just to keep it on performance all the time? I definitely get better frame rate on Performance mode in thermal control strategy.

EDIT: Occasionally I'll have this really odd slow down for a few seconds. Usually the mouse will just be kind of stuck / slow for a few seconds but some times if I'm scrolling through program files the whole machine will give me this weird lag.

In addition, when I open up some applications (when I opened up the file I downloaded to update my video drivers) it / they take an unusually long time to actually open. I mean, a really unusually long time. It only happens occasionally and with some apps.

Also, what is the refresh rate of my machine? Its a VPCZ12LGX. My Nvidia control panel has my refresh rate @ 59 hz and my intel control pannel has it @ 60. What should I put it @ for everything consistently?

EDIT: I tried to change it in my NVIDIA pannel and it wouldn't change.

 

Uhh I think you *might* be getting the Thermal Control Strategies and the Power Plans mixed up.

The Thermal Control Strategy determines how your vaio controls the temps. Under Silent mode, the Z will throttle itself in order to keep temps low enough that it doesnt have to run the fan a full speed(and therefore keep itself silent and result in lower FPS's when gaming). High Performance tells the Z that you're going to want to max out all your components and allows the Z to spin that fan to it's own delight and resulting in a HUGE rush of warm air and a pretty audible whoosh. And balanced is a moderate between the two.

The Power Plan however, is different from the Thermal Control Strategy. The Power Plan tells the Z how to act whereas the Thermal Control Strategy gives the Z guidelines on how to act. So if you want to save power, modify the Power Plan.

In short, if you don't want throttled performance or a heated notebook and dont mind the sound, keep the Thermal Control Strategy on High Performance, because it "allows" the Z to go full power on the fans to dissipate heat, but if it isnt generating all that much heat, then it wont turn on the fan as powerful. And yes, "silent" mode does lower your FPS's because it throttles your components so that the Z can stay as silent as it can(there have been a few times where i thought a game was unplayable, but discovered much later that it was because my Thermal Control Strategy was on "silent") I don't think there's a way to change the Thermal Control Strategy along with the Power Plan with the use of the switch(and hence, me trying to game with "silent" mode on after switching to Speed/High Performance Power Plan)

 

Have you actually benchmarked it? Have you used any utilities like MSI Afterburner or Everest to check where that perceived performance increase might be coming from (increased clock speeds?) My guess is video performance between balanced and performance is identical, the only differences between the power plans are when things like the screen and hard drives get turned off and a few other things, but I doubt there is any direct modulation of GPU clocks.

 

Having the Thermal Strat on high performance isn't a bad thing at all though is it? It means that if it NEEDS the fans, it'll use it, but if I'm on battery and just surfing the web, it won't need the fans as much therefor won't turn them on as high. This seems like it wont be an issue for the battery. I think I'll leave it on high performance all the time so that when I AM plugged in gaming, it'll keep it optimal.

I added a lot to my post so if you could address some of those issues I'd be really grateful!

 

The official value of the refresh rate is 60, an approximation. The real value would be somewhere betwen 59 and 60.
I dont get these lags you speak of, however, im guessing you are still running all the default sony stuff in the background. Have you even turned of defrag? IMPORTANT!

I reiterate. save yourself the guess work an just create your own power plan.
general question: what temperatures do you run on your thing though?

Idle - 70C
Average (Gaming) - 85C <-- fifa 11 demo
Maxed - 90C <-- running gtaiv on high

room temperature here is about 28C

 

What do you mean turn off defrag? Is it running a defrag in the background?

Edit: Also, how / what processes should I stop running in the background?

 

It seems when I download a program and try to open / install it is when it takes a while to get the program started. It really seems like what's taking the most time is when the screen dims and asks me to authorize the program.

Edit: I ran 3dmark 06 and got a score of 6012. Is that about what this thing should be?

Edit: I ran 3dmark 06 again but instead of thermal control strategy on performance (like it was for the first test: 6012) I ran it on balanced and I got 5870.

Edit: After doing some more testing I've definitely determined that I have some weird lag occasionally. I'm watching a video on Netflix online and every once in a while it will just lag up. Oddly enough I'm getting lag on this machine as I am typing this sentence. Its only here and there, but its really annoying. Is that a latency thing? Any help?

 

well within error margin. You can get same range of scores with or without changing the thermal strategy

 

I ran several tests. I don't think the thermal strategy has much to do with the 3ds score. I felt that way initially because I felt that I was getting a higher FPS in SC2 with performance mode. I really can't tell if its "smoother" or not.

 

Now that's a benchmark that's telling you something

 

Proud owner of Vaio Z11 that I received today.

This is my third Vaio Z since january. Can't get enough (Vaio Z720, Z790 SSD)

Three questions:
1) What manufacturing/ part changes Sony has made to distinguish between Z11, Z12? I mean is there a noticeable difference in manufacturing process, quality control?That is what I would like to learn.

2) Could i make a backup of the Win7 partition on a blank cd JUST to do fresh install? Or will it load all the junk?

3) From a scale of 1-10, what is the difficulty of installing the AdvancedBios for Z11?

Thanks guys

 

I checked out that site and the prices on refurb Zs are truly remarkable. I have two concerns:

1) Who does the refurbishing?
2) I have never heard of all the warranties they offer (for sale) - do you know if Square Trade will provide a wtty on these?

Thanks

 

As menioned in another thread Sony Canada sells the Z1290X starting at CAN$1220 here: http://www.sonystyle.ca/webapp/wcs/...LBomId=8198552921666186150&catgroupId=1000883

 

1) Nothing, except of the addition of the color choice "black" which according to some looks like cheap plastic.

2) AFAIK, no, the recovery partition copies all the bloatware that sony comes with as well as all the drivers, etc. However, i've heard of people getting a prompt asking them if they wanted to install the extra bloatware or not during a restore, but i'm not sure, in my opinion there really isnt A LOT of bloatware, so i'd just uninstall. If you really wanted clean install, just borrow someone else's win 7 disc and enter in your key when prompted.

3) i've got no clue sry, hopefully one of the other NBR members can help you there

 

Enny:

This is really as frustrating as it gets, I paid more than $1000 for my exact CTO Config, than on SonyStyle Canada price.

I HATE SONY - RANTING FOREVER!!!

and why there is a Huge difference between Prices of USA and Canada? Not to mention that SonyStyle Canada does not charge sales TAX, which I paid like $300 for it?

Damn those lucky Canadians!

btw, You cannot chose a shipping address outside Canada when you order from them.

EDIT:

Are these People crazy or What?

Look at the Upgrade price from 4GB to 8 GB RAM, its $140 - ?

and more astonishing:

Upgrade Price from regular LCD to FHD = $577 - again, what the hell is going on?

Please enlighten me

 

I have a Z12 with an Orange sim inserted behind the battery. I've contacted Orange (UK) who've taken all the details over the phone and registered the SIM card.

I run Orange's 'Internet Everywhere' included on the laptop. It says 'No Mobile Broadband device found.'

I install Gobi's 'WebtoGo - OneClick Internet' WWAN drivers and software from the Sony site but this also says 'Insert / Connect the Device'

I've downloaded WLAN drivers but on install it says I already have the most up to date WLAN drivers.

So, what am I missing?

I've cleaned the card and tried other cards too.

Thanks!

 

Do you have the wireless device turned on? There is a hardware switch on the front, and (at least on my machine) the SmartWi Connection Utility that turns the various wireless options (mobile broadband, wifi, bluetooth) on and off.

 

I have too many posts with my issues too spread out. I've compiled a list to get resolved. My main problems are as follows:

-I get an occasional "lag" on the computer. I'll be typing something and it will stop displaying the text, then all of a sudden the text will all reappear. Same lag pertains to mouse slow downs.

-When I download a file from the web and open it, it takes an extraordinarily long time to open. Same applies to files in the download folder. It mostly seems like what takes a while is that administrator verification step, but I'm not sure. Other applications, like the ones I use mostly - are instant.

-Every time I turn on the computer, my anti virus detects a removable drive and wants to scan it. The only thing plugged into the computer is my mouse, and no - it doesn't have a jump drive in it.

-The lag I spoke about, I hear people talk about DPC latency, is that something? It also pertains to watching videos and playing games. I'll get a few seconds of lag here and there. It'll happen at least two or three times while watching a full size video on netflix online.

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

Hardware switch turned on. Posting fine by WIFI.
Turned WIFI connection off temporarily, still no mobile broadband recognised : (

What gives?!

 

I too have lag as you describe, and don't know what causes it. I use Stamina mode (Intel graphics) exclusively, with an external monitor driven by a VGA-DVI converter. Sometime I need to try running the nVidia without the VGA converter and see if the lag still occurs. I suspect the graphics drivers, but not sure; haven't seen anything helpful with this latency checker:

DPC Latency Checker

You can change the UAC settings (administrator prompt) by running msconfig, selecting the Tools tab, and launching Change UAC Settings. It does take a while for the UAC prompt to come up for me as well. The 3rd setting from the top eliminates the screen dimming that occurs with the prompt, but not the prompt itself. The dimming seems to be causing the delay. Hmm, graphics drivers again?

Using Microsoft Security Essentials, I haven't seen the problem you describe with antivirus.

New graphics drivers are in beta so maybe there is hope. There are several threads discussing that.

 

The mobile broadband device shows up under Network Adapters in Device Manager only when it is on. My entry reads "Qualcomm Gobi 2000 HS-USB Mobile Broadband Device 9225."

 

Using the DPC latency checker I was spiking into the 1000-2000 range heavily. For a while it was all nice and low, then all of a sudden it would go really high into the yellow / red and continuously spike.

 

You misunderstood. Gerg is referring to SmartWiFi utility located in programs/sony folder, it controls which wireless hardware are on at any given time. E.g., my Z12 arrived with bt turned off for some reason and it didn't show up anywhere until I turned it on via SmartWiFi. So in your case it's advisable to check whether or not your broadband modem is on in the SmartWiFi utility.

 

It's actually just called SmartWi just for clarity's sake

 

They have a clearing out sale for the Z12 and with the exception of some add-on's it is cheaper than anywhere else.

 

So in finding that my DPC spikes pretty badly, how can i figure out what processes I can terminate / what / how do I disable them from reoccurring?

 

Make sure the Display Power Saving Technology is off. I think it may be causeing some issues.

What anti virus are you using? Try a different one, like Microsoft Security Essentials.

 

I second this as accurate info.

Yes, the VGA standard does have enough bandwidth for 2560x1600. I had a 21" CRT running at that resolution off my desktop.

 

Hahaha! I'm gonna remember this for a long time.

This whole $1220 Z12 thing is very likely a mistake.

SonyStyle.ca does charge taxes, 13% or higher.

If you think Canada has it better, go compare prices between newegg.com and newegg.ca. Not to mention we always pay taxes and crazy high shipping rates, whereas ppl from US can buy from a different state to avoid tax while paying peanuts for shipping.

 

My computer is plugged in and when I clicked on the battery drop down, display saving tech is unchecked.

I'm using Kaspersky. Its always worked really well. Also, is this machine hardware raided or software raided? If I reformat, will the raid 0 already be set up? Also, my Nvidia cpanel says my refresh rate is 59 and my intel says its 60. I tried changing the Nvidia to 60 but it wouldn't budge. Should I change the intel to 59? Or does it not really matter since the cards will kick on independently and the screen will use whatever refresh rate the gpu tells it?

My issue is DPC latency. Plain and simple it seems. How do I get rid of processes running in the background that shouldn't be there? My DPC is the same with kaspersky on or off, it seems.