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

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Hmm, interesting so do you imply that if i have a pair of 4gig x2 -13333mhz RAM chip, I can use it to replace the existing pair of 4gig-1066mhz chip?

Would it considerably improve the performance of my VPCZ1 ? Can I do the same with the graphics card...?

 

He implies that it will run at exactly the same speed and latency. The Z does NOT make use of the faster clock.

 

The conclusion then, is .. that it does not make any difference and its better to retain the existing RAM in Z.

Thanks!

 

No need to change the RAM in your Z.

 

I ran the regular Performance Report in Windows 7.

When I go to Device Manager, there are three devices under Storage Controller. MagicISO SCSI Host Controller, Intel ICH8M-E/ICH9M-E/5 SATA RAID Controller, and A6M6BP0X IDE Controller. The first two appear to be functioning fine, the last one says "Windows cannot load the device driver for this hardware. The driver may be corrupted or missing."

The problem is, I don't know how to find the appropriate replacement driver.

Thanks

 

In device manager you can delete that entry. If there is a piece of hardware that needs it, then it will get reinstalled by the normal plug and play mechanism. If nothing needs it then your good to go that way also.

 

I tried deleting the driver, and I thought all was well. But upon rebooting the computer, it reinstalled the device, but renamed it.... this time it's called AHNIVNXG IDE controller. But the driver still doesn't work. Question for you...how many devices are listed under Storage Controllers in Device Manager on your VAIO Z? I have three (including the problem one).

Thanks again for your help.

 

Two:
-Ricoh PCIe Memory Stick Host Controller
-Ricoh PCIe SD Bus Host Adapter

Edit. oops. You said 'Storage Controllers'

In that case 1:

-Intel(R) ICHM8M-E/ICH9M-E/5 Series SATA RAID Controller

fwiw, this is on a Z11

 

question... I'm looking at this model VPCZ137GX
how hard is it to change the SSd yourself? any DIY?

 

I haven't done it but I've seen the instructions and I've been inside the Z many times. Looks pretty easy.

 

Thanks, I fixed it. It was a virtual drive. Mine is a Z11 too.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/511578-how-replace-ssd-vaio-vpcz11-vpcz12-non-sony-ssd-14.html

read that... in short... you're going to either have to pay a hefty price to Sony for their SSD's (not recommended... and you might have to buy more cables) or you're going to have to buy aftermarket SSDs and take them out of your casings (and possibly have to buy some cables), but it's doable. Best solution, IMHO replace the ODD with a HDD/SSD

 

I am seriously considering doing the upgrade... Is Intel still the best option? Crucial has better prices for more capacity. Ulitmately I want more capacity, faster would be cool also. I am already quite happy with the speed of the dual Toshiba drives, but the 119GB formatted is cramping my style a bit. I would also like to dual boot with some other OS.

 

Intel is reliable. It has slower sequential writes (~140MB/s compared to ~200 MB/s) but it doesn't fail as much as the sandforce ones. Also, the important numbers for daily usage are the 4k random write/reads because in daily usage you aren't going to be copying large files but instead accessing many randomly assorted small ones and Intel still has the highest, i believe (but don't quote me on that, check out some benchmarks/reviews). In any case, whether you go for a Sandforce drive or a Intel drive, both should work good. (i'd personally avoid any other Indillix, Marvell, Samsung or Toshiba controllers...).

Of course Gen 3 drives are coming out, so expect the current Gen 2 drives prices to fall. Personally, i'm just waitiing til a Gen 2 Intel drive or reputable Sandforce drive falls to about ~$1/GB.

I wonder if OSX will even run on the Z...

 

I was told by a Mod in another thread that we are not supposed to talk about running OSX on non-Apple hardware.

I did not know that new drives were coming out. $1 per GB sounds nice it is closer to $2 per GB for the quality products now.

When are you expecting the prices to fall? Is it like a month away or like 3 or more months. If it is gonna be a long time I'll probably just get 2 Intel drives and call it a day. Still almost $1K for 320GB! It's a bit high. I guess better than when it was around $1K for 32GB, and that wasn't that long ago.

 

Hi ! I receive my vaio few days ago !

I did a fresh and clean install. Everything's going fine except for the light sensor.
Where can I find driver for it?

Thanks !


Edit: Problem Solved !

 

Hey all, are your Z's protected with a screen protector?

For some reason, the employee that helped me configure my Z told me that they wouldn't recommend using screen protectors for the Z, but I sneeze quite often and I want to have a screen protector that can absorb all that damage and prevent liquid damage. Is it a sensible choice?

How much do one of those screen protectors cost from those known brands (in USD)?

 

I don't think that sneezing on your screen will hurt it, just clean it

 

So it's not completely necessary to stick a screen protector is it?

 

Hi !

As I said before, I did a clean reinstall. Evrything's work perfectly.... Except for the S1 Button. I can set a function for this key by using Vaio Control Center but not the initial function that allow to set the windows side by side....


Any ideas?




Edit: I did a screenshot for those who can understand French !


Edit 2: Can't we set parameters of the S2 "Vaio" button?

 

Uhh... The "side-by-side" windows thing is the "organize windows" option of S1. Also you can't set S2 if you've got Vaio Media Gallery as it opens that, but since you reintalled windows... i dont think you installed it, and sony just turns that into a mute button. You can follow pyr0's work here and use his program to map applications etc to that key:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/538942-how-use-all-your-vpc-zs-s-buttons-your-purposes.html

have fun!

 

Hi, I bought a Vaio Z138 series, but the graphics and gaming graphics are in 6.3 score. I've read and seen Vaio Z138 with graphics and gaming graphics which is in 6.4 score. Could anyone help me how to make it into 6.4?

 

upgrade your drivers

 

The scores differ by a little depending on each machine... the WEI scores are more of a guideline as opposed to a set-in-stone ranking of performance. As long as you're in the ballpark you're fine.

Same thing as running benchmarks, you can run benchmarks back to back, but I'm almost certain you'll get different scores (but fairly equal) each time.

 

hi Guys
I bought a Z136 (128GB SSD) about 2 months back. I am thinking of using the expresscard slot to increase its storage space.
Would appreciate if someone could recommend something.

 

Don't get a Syba one from newegg, I got one recently and it is crap.

I am looking at this one Newegg.com - SIIG SC-SAEE22-S1 2-port eSATA II ExpressCard/34

It works for Windows and Mac, a plus for me!
Price is steeper than others but it looks pretty good!

 

How can I upgrade my drivers? Please help me with these, noobie here.
What driver should I need to upgrade, is it my nvidia driver?
By the way, the version of the nvidia is 190.24 is this the latest one or do I need to upgrade this to something newer?
Thanks

 

That's the latest Official drivers from Sony. If you want you can try the community ones here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/342947-my-discoveries-vaio-z-s-hybrid-graphics.html

The community ones on the front page are a little outdated as Andrew has come out with newer ones (look for him near the end of the thread and click on the links in his signature)

I think he was asking about expresscard SSDs... i think.

 

Hi. Thats right. Any recommendation? Hoping to get something that doesnt stick out too much at the side.

 

Hello guys
Recently my VPCZ1 just hung up while I was multitasking and I can hear a loud humming sound which really worried me. I pressed the start button to close the system as its not responding anymore to CNTRL/ALT/DEL or even the ESC button.
When I pressed the start button again the windows went to the repair mode and restarted by itself before it run normally.
I would like to know what is the likely cause of such a scary event.
I am sure its not a malware caused as this system internet security is regularly updated and was suspicious its a hardware fault but I don't know where...

Does anybody experience this before and how did you sort it out?

 

Mappy,

I came across this thread because my Z1 just developed the exact same problem and I was trying to Google for a solution. My vertical white line is also in the exact same place as yours. Like yourself, I use it for work and can't be without it for weeks, so I'm a bit unsure how to proceed from here.

Any progress and resolution on this?

Thanks,

Deronw

 

Ok, if I upgrade it to the community version, will it also be upgraded from 6.3 to 6.4? I dont wanna mess up my drivers.

 

I have recently got a Vaio VPCZ128GG. It has a full hd display and a HDMI output.

When I try to connect my full HD TV via HDMI, I get very low quality display with the edges "cut out". The display setting is full hd 1920x1080.

It works fine for 1600 x 900 and 1400x1050 and other lower settings.

The "Vaio control centre" does not allow me to set the HDMI output above 720. The other options are grayed out. This effect is there even when not connected to the TV

The TV is capable of displaying full HD via the VGA, so its not the problem with display capability of the laptop or the TV.

I have an old LG laptop (purchased 2 years ago). It has an HDMI and it is able to nicely display 1080p on the same TV. I recall having a similar problem on that laptop but it disappeared after I installed the latest driver from ATI.

There are no latest drivers for my Vaio video card (Nvidia Geforce gt 330m), so what could the problem be?

Is the laptop incapable of displying full hd via hdmi? that would seem very unlikely that it is not, when my slow LG laptop does just fine.

Is it possible that the "vaio control centre" is messing up with the drivers? Any fixes would be appreciated

 

^i can't check now (on cell phone)... But there is a setting inside the Nvidia Control Panel that adjusts the full-screen... Pls try to find it and try it...

 

I could not find "Nvidia control panel". Can you tell me where I can find it/download it from?

EDIT: ok found the control panel.. Now trying to play with the setting

 

Sound like this:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/473103-strange-crash-z1190.html

or this:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/484807-sony-vpc-z11-crashes-youtube-1080p-vids.html

It'd help to list your model's specs in your sig as this problem seemed to only affect Z11/Z12's and not the Z13's with the updated video drivers. As for the "start" button i assume you mean the power button right?

I've experienced it once, it was just black screen and a buzzing noise coming out of the speakers on speed mode and you couldn't do anything but hard shutdown (hold power button for 5 sec). If this is NOT what you experienced, than just ignore me. If you have a VPCZ13, ignore me. But if you have a Z11/Z12 and experienced what i described above... go update your graphics drivers on the VPCZ1390X Sony Support page (dont go to any Z11/Z12 support page as they dont have the updated driver) or from the thread by Nautis on these forums

No guarantee... but according to your question, no. If i were you i wouldn't update because like i said the windows experience index means nothing as long as you're in the ballpark... =.= Upgrade your drivers if you use graphic intensive applications and believe that updated drivers mean better performance or it unlocks some feature you need. Not because you want to boast to your friends about your "higher" score...

 

No guarantee... but according to your question, no. If i were you i wouldn't update because like i said the windows experience index means nothing as long as you're in the ballpark... =.= Upgrade your drivers if you use graphic intensive applications and believe that updated drivers mean better performance or it unlocks some feature you need. Not because you want to boast to your friends about your "higher" score...[/QUOTE]

Im just curious why does some vaio Z's out there is like that, and why mine is lower, well anyway, thanks for your support for the "noobies" here.

 

Can you check and tell me the exact setting. I had no luck there.

Has anyone been able to use the laptop with full hd external display over hdmi?

 

I do it all the time and it works, but let's see... right click your desktop go down to screen resolution, select the external display... then change the resolution?

just the way the benchmarks are run. If you really want an indicative test, run like 3Dmark which takes hours on just your CPU/GPU as opposed to a 5 minute tests that tests everything.

 

Thats the first thing I tried. I get 1080 resolution but the display is all low quality and the fonts are messed up.

I am able to get the full HD working on another laptop, so I think its an issue with the Sony/Nvidia drivers.

 

Thanks for that input!
What really happened was not a black screen but just a normal one with the everything suddenly stops running and its noisy like loud fan whirring..
The graphics was set in automatic mode..

Yes really had to push hard the shutdown button for nearly 5 seconds before the thing was controlled.
My notebook model is VPCZ128GG and would have put this unit specs on my sig but can't find the knobs to do in my profile.. would you please teach me how to do it too?

I would like to update the drivers is there a specific link for this and supposing it won't work can I just use system restore to remove the incompatible driver?

 

Hey there... here it is on mine, in the nvidia control panel (attached pix).
But I didn't have to adjust mine though. We do have to plug it in and then the driver will detect the TV and we'll see these options. Also if we plug in a (different) desktop 1080p monitor it will actually show different options. If it doesn't work... does your HDTV support HDCP? (may need this feature(?))...

 

I was nervous about the Hybrid Homebrew drivers until I tried them, I got performance improvements and new features.

YOU NEED TO QUIT CARING ABOUT WEI, it is a stupid ballpark figure.

You could also take it to the next level and do the BIOS hack then you can install the latest nVidia and Intel drivers easily the minute new ones come out.

I got the 270.51 and the features keep getting better and better. I can use 3D apps in windowed mode now and they work great.


You WILL need some small INF tricks with the BIOS hack to get the latest and greatest drivers. But it is super easy, I mod two lines in one INF to put the correct SUBSYS value in and I'm ready to install.

The BIOS hack doesn't prevent you from using the Community Hybrid drivers either, it just puts you in control of how the computer works.

 

You are probably right, those Sony packaged hybrid drivers suck in many ways. I ditched them a long time ago.

Also I don't think the drivers from esupport.sony.com come with the nVidia control panel. I could be wrong, it's been a while since I used them.

I am pretty sure these are about the latest official drivers from Sony, maybe give these a try
Sony eSupport - VPCZ1390X - Drivers & Software

Other option is the Community Hybrids or BIOS hack + whatever driver you feel like running. The only warning I have about the last two options is that it leads to endless tinkering. A new driver comes out, I have to play with it, never satisfied.

 

I tried this setting. I am able to get it to fit on screen using this and other settings on the monitor. What I cannot do is get good quality in the full HD display. At 1080 resolution, the fonts are fuzzy, colors are poor -- basically the display is not what I'd expect. Yes the TV/monitor supports this resolution and HDCP.

 

Have you tried just selecting one of the presets? If you do it manually there is a good chance you will stretch it in a way that will mess up the fonts, the presets might do the trick. From what you said before I think you want underscan.

 

I don't have this setting on my Vaio. I am attaching the screenshot of my control centre.

 

I tried the above driver with no luck (I tried em even though my Vaio is VPCZ128GG).

Can you kindly provide some details on the BIOS Hack + using the latest drivers from Nvidia ?
Thanks

 

Long time lurker, first post...

I'm the not so proud owner of a Vaio VPCZ13Z9. I will spare you the details (for the time being)...
With the laptop I also bought a docking station that recently (also) broke down. As soon as I plugged a network cable in the docking station the whole network goes down (laptop not even docked). Without the docking station (same cable) all is working well.

I have the following question:

The docking station has two RJ45 connections which made me wonder what will happen if I connect the docking using both connectors.
Will the laptop receive two IP addresses and would it increase the network performance? I'm disappointed because the network adapter doesn't support Jumbo frames and maybe this way I can increase the network performance.
Does the docking has its own NIC by the way? I cannot find it under the Device Manager but maybe that is because my docking station broke down.

Thanks for your answers and have a nice day!

Werner

 

Sounds like there is something wrong with the docking station. If it's still under warranty why not let Sony have a look at it and fix it.