My discoveries on Vaio Z’s Hybrid Graphics

Glimpsed a small bit of information on Russian NVidia forums: it appears sound over HDMI has been broken in NVidia drivers for a long time (since early 185.xx versions). Apparently 190.89 seem to have fixed that and there are modded earlier drivers with fixes for HDMI sound.

 

I am looking for Windows 7 64bit Vaio Z user to help test a new driver that is not working for me. I need to check if the following is just an issue I am having or if it is one that affects all Vaio Zs. This has happened with the past 7 drivers I have tested.

Namaiki has confirmed that it works fine on BenQ Win7 64bit

Preferably an advanced user who wont panic too much if the following happens:

Note: Switching to Stamina/Intel and/or reinstalling previous working Hybrid Graphics drivers fixes the issue.

BTW Sorry for not responding to posts, Somehow I was not getting notified of new posts here by email like usual.

 

I've had about the same beauty on my and right part of yours screen fits all screen area on my - not half like this ))

 

It seems to happen only with the newer drivers for me. The odd part is even newer "Hybrid Graphics" drivers cause this issue. As per my hunch Namaiki has confirmed that the BenQ S42 doesn't seem to have this issue. I have to assume ASUS and Acer Hybrid Graphics notebooks don't have this issue either, since the newer Hybrid Graphics drivers are for those systems. So I wonder if it is just my machine or if it is a Vaio Z specific issue.

For example (to my frustration) 186.88 Hybrid Graphics drivers were just released by ASUS for Windows 7 and still cause this issue for me.

So if anyone wants to test them let me know.

 

mine is the same as Vovus.
the right part of your screen fits all of mine.
even when after reboot, there is an obvious sign that the wallpaper have a lot of "vertical and horizontal scratches sign"


using windows 7, x64, z16

 

Interesting. Which drivers were causing this? Vovus/Firestone?

 

It seems that i don't have this issue, stange, i thought my z have everything it can=))))
So it's definately due to 64bit version

 

Is it possible to change the inf of this asus drivers to run with our z? Maybe the brightness control will working?

 

The picture was taken using 186.88 with a modified INF. The driver is here with the modified inf but its very USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. If you try it and have the same problem let me know. Make sure you have a working driver set to install in case of any issues though.

To clarify again, 186.88 causes the problem seen in that picture for me. Don't download this if you are using a Vaio Z and want a working driver unless you are testing it.

 

Nvidia Version: 190.38 | Intel Version: 1825

 

sorry but is there a solution to the "blank screen on startup issue"? im running vista x86 with 190.38 and the signature enforcement overrider but i still get the issue of a blank startup screen every now and then.

laptop: benq s42

 

Get Driver Cleaner and make sure all previous references of the drivers are completely gone before you install Nautis' driver.

 

yes i did that before installing the drivers.

 

this cannot use on my win7 32bit, can you do one is 32bit?? plss..

 

i have the same situation.

 

Hi

I install the last version of hybrid drivers on my SZ71XN with Windows Seven 64bits, and my score rat stay on 2.8 on graphic... this is normal?

if not normal, some one have an solution?

best regards

 

Is that on Speed or Stamina?

 

Hi

in speed mode, my grphic is an nvidia 8400M GS.

you don't have this problem?

why I only can install hybrid graphic and not only nvidia 8400M GS drivers? is normal?

best regards

 

Yesterday i´ve updated my drivers and tools to the the versions on the sony ftp server. Now the brightness control is also not working in stamina mode. i hope there are 7 drivers soon for the z, there are some hybrid drivers from asus and fujitsu but not for the 9300m gs...

 

Yeah... SirRobin.. I haven't gotten any of the more recent releases to work on my Vaio Z. I posted a 64bit set a few posts back and haven't really heard much feedback so I assume they don't work for anyone else really either. I am not sure what would make them work for the other hybrid graphics notebooks and not the Vaio Z. I am the one that has been posting about the new Hybrid Graphics drivers on LV2G btw.

 

Oh . So you think its not possible to modify the 32 bit sets to work with the z?

 

It's a catch22 situation, I haven't kept Win7 64 bits on my Z when I tried it (with RTM) because of the lack of drivers / instability...

By the way thanks for all your good work, I've just installed the 190.38 on my Z (Win7 32bits RTM) and they work perfectly well (apart from the brightness issue, and some problems when trying to switch speed mode if docked with an external monitor connected).

I had an issue with Powerpoint 2007 not working with accelerated graphics selected (using the Sony Vista drivers), it's now working fine in speed mode thanks to 190.38, and it allows me to play mkv clips in my presentation without stuttering.

I hope Sony will soon release official drivers (x86 and x64) for Win7 on the Z, but in the meantime your work has made the wait bearable !

 

i use the driver you modified, but it had the same problem on my vaio z16.
but thank you to test the new driver.

 

Anything is possible. I can build you a 32bit set to test if you would like. Do you have any preferred version?

Yeah official drivers are always preferred over modified ones. Glad they have at least worked somewhat for you. At this point we may have to wait for Sony to release newer drivers. The last ones I have gotten to work albeit with a bunch of problems (those we already know about and have discussed) are 190.57 & 190.62. All of the newer ones have given me the split screen issue I posted about previous.

Thanks s0910187 you were the only person to give me any report on those drivers with a Vaio Z. So a big thank you again for testing them for me.
-

I guess I need to release 190.62 and 190.57 for you guys. For those who can not wait there is an old 64bit version of 190.62 up for testing here. I think I may redo it though. As always be aware of heat and other issues that come about using unofficial modified drivers.

 

Ok I am currently downloading 191.07 to test myself. If it functions at all (even with the garbled split screen) I will package it for 32bit to test. If it doesn't work at all (like 191.00 did for me) then I will package the latest that functioned even somewhat.

I will also try to get the 190.57 & 190.62 packages together when I can. I do all of my testing exclusively on Win7 64bit currently, so 32bit or vista may not have the same issues I am running into. 190.57 is technically from a newer build than 190.62, not that that really means anything.

 

I´ve checked the infs again and again to find out what is the problem with the brightness issues. But i don´t find an answer

 

Nautis
So, as i understand the conversation, you still can't assure overheat, photoshop and brightness issues solved in newer?

And also it'll be cool if Nvidia scaling panel works + additional resolutions added

Please, say if something of this issues will work on newer drivers 32bit win7, then i finally can install and test them, coz i can't stand with this 75C in idle..
That's really suck(

 

Which drivers would you recommend for stability in Win7 32bits?

I haven't tested the heat issue with 190.38 (what's the easiest way to do so?). I have noticed the fans are on all the time, but they were on as well with Sony's Vista drivers (in speed mode).

My Z is a production machine, which I need to be a stable as possible, so as long as I can switch between speed and stamina (and get full perf in speed mode) I'm happy.

 

Yeah, I dont think we will have a fix for the brightness/backlight issue until we see new Nvidia drivers released by Sony.

I will try to get back to you in more detail point by point in a little bit. Good question though

I keep seeming to go back to 190.57 personally. I am not really sure why. Sadly, my machine is also my primary/work machine so I understand your concerns.

-

More later. Sorry everyone really busy today.

 

Nautis, when you have a package ready for testing, i will do this

 

It would be great to have hybrid graphics with OpenCL support: http://news.developer.nvidia.com/20...ant-gpu-drivers-and-performance-profiler.html

I can help in testing on my VAIO Z11 in Vista & Seven 32-bit

 

I found a problem .....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJ_DB0e6qzk (Upload by me)

When I moving window,Manifested is not smooth...

Why?

And the other problem is original Vista x64 driver Installation Unsuccessful in Win 7 x64....

 

190.89 eh..

Which GPU were you using, and which driver version and 32 or 64-bit?

 

nVIDIA 9300M GS

Nvidia Version: 190.38 | Intel Version: 1825

Win7 x64

But GMA4500 is normally working smooth....

 

The original driver is probably not up to date with the Windows 7 desktop composition thing..

 

Maybe...

But other drivers all Operating normally....

 

@Nautis and ZugZug

Just stumbled on this forum in my search to lock the grahics output of the nvidia card to

internal LCD only when booting into OSX. OSX has buit-in Nvidia driver support but as far as

i understand the VGA output is enabled first and it's not possible to switch. This is a well

known problem for Vaio users in the OSX86 scene but no fix has been found in ages. Apparently

the only way to fix this is to port the SonyPI driver to OSX but i was hoping to find another

way. I thought i found something when i enabled the advanced bios options (Z720) but

unfortunately no go...

I was also a little worried about playing with the VGA and video options but decided to just

try it out after reading ZugZug's post on page 56. You probably know this already, but if you

switch 'VGA Switching Policy' to 'Static' and reboot with SPEED switch you'll get different

'Video Config' options which refer to the Nvidia card. Unfortunately the only thing you can

change is aperture size and power managment whereas i was hoping to change the output as you

can on the Intel side.

Maybe this is of interrest to some of you guys and obviously i'd love to hear if you have any

other ideas on how to lock the output...

 

OK so i've read through like 20 threads trying to get everything pieced together to work properly for running Windows 7 64-bit on my Z-590. I have almost everything working except what I keep seeing as the common problem - brightness can't be changed in SPEED (even with the windows slider), and in STAMINA can only be changed with the windows slider. I.E. my brightness keys don't work in either mode (they make the brightness setting pop up, showing as full).

Is there any solution yet? Have people been able to get the actual FN+brightness keys working in stamina (cuz mine don't)? I'm running the NVIDIA driver from the sony site for the Z690:

Filename :
NVDVID-00164088-64.EXE
Version :
7.15.11.7449

The version # doesn't correspond with the NVIDIA releases i've seen on this thread so I don't want to install any of them without knowing which is right since everything else works properly at least. Can someone point me to a driver that might be more up-do-date? Scanning all the threads is spinning my head around. Thanks!

 

Try Nautis' drivers. Brightness issues are still there.. it's a known issue with no fix as of yet.

 

i have two questions. i would appreciate it if anyone could help me.
1.my vaio z17 is using 190.38 driver on windows 7 and powermizer is on. but from gpu-z i can see that the clock is almost always at 580 702MHz(i am not running any programs like video playback to force the card running at that high speed). on average every several minutes the clock will go down to 450 1000MHz for only a few seconds and then go back to its original 580 702MHz. could anyone please tell me how i can do to set 9300m gs automatically run in lower frequency when idle?
2.when i was using sony's official driver174.49, the gpu clock is related to the power plan. "vaio maximum batteries" forces the gpu at 275 301MHz and "high performance" forces the gpu at 580 702MHz. i like this setting but the 190.38 is not like this. how can i manually set the clock related to my power plan?
thanks.

 

the Nvidia Version: 175.84 | Intel Version: 1608 | Packaged By: Nautis url is broken, does anyone have a working url?

does these drivers allow me to set my vaio z on 1388x resolution? (supports only 1600x and 1280x)

 

Any fix for not getting audio through HDMI?

EDIT: Whats the deal with HDMI and no sound? I downgraded to Sonys official drivers and still no sound through HDMI. Seems to be an issue with Windows 7?

 

I also don't have HDMI sound off of the Sony Vista-64 driver for the Z690 (7.15 something). I tried installing one of Nautlius's drivers but my display stopped completely so I had to roll back. Hopefully once W7 is released Sony will release a compatible driver.

 

SOLUTION FOR HDMI AUDIO:

Go to http://www.realtek.com.tw/ and download the High Definition Audio Drivers and install them. HDMI Audio should now be working on you Vaio Z in Windows 7 (it is working for me!)

 

Hi, Vaio Z21WN Windows 7 x64 using 190.38. Everything works perfect except sound coming out from computer when in HDMI (Sound used to come out from TV).
Checked out some forums that told me to activate HDMI sound by default in the audio settings but that's not possible (check screen below). Soooo that was just to say those realtek drivers didn't do the trick for me.

Otherwise, everything is just PERFECT !! I mean seriously Nautis, I would still be with XP, isn't it completely strange ? To have to go through all this underground stuff forcing drivers signatures just to get some tweaked driver ? My god I think I've never been so far in "geeking" . Oh well, I guess it's an odd way to say thanks but really, you made my life a little (read: a lot) better !
Hope this sound issue gets solved some day.

thanks agaiiiin

 

Forgot to say...
+ i don't have Physix option in nvidia panel

 

Hi Nautis,

Any chance you could post a 190.57 package (32&64bits)?
I have to reinstall my laptop because of a problem with offline files, so it would have been a good opportunity to do some testing.
Otherwise I'll reinstall the 190.38.
Thanks!

 

I'm using Nautis 190.15, try it with that driver instead. It has more options for resolutions as well.

EDIT: Just noticed on your screenshot, did you hide the HDMI device or is it not visible at all? Because for me it was always "unplugged" according to windows even when the HDMI cable WAS plugged in. Installing the High Definition Drivers from realtek solved this.

Anyone else having problems with no sound over HDMI care to try this?

 

I tried thos drivers as well, and despite the fact they DO work to output Stereo via HDMI, I can't get it to support 5.1 over HDMI.
Did you try ? I'm always stuck to Stereo signal only even conected to my Denon 5.1 Amplifier :-(