Sony Vaio SZ: Intel T7400 Processor Driver Re-install

Hi,

Not too long ago, I made a mistake of trying to uninstall one of the drivers for my processor. The processor inside my VGN-SZ48GN was shipped with a T7400 processor, but once I made that error it seems to have downgraded itself and is now listed as a T7200, depriving me of 0.16 Ghz of processing power. I just tried a re-install of the OS, but I was once again disappointed to find that it was still listed as a T7200 with 2.00 Ghz. I know I shouldn't be too worried, but could this driver mishap disable my SZ from reaching its potential? Or is it just a name, and my processor is still running at the 2.16? I'm a little bit of a perfectionist, and it bugs me to death when little things like this happen. Thank you so much in advance.

Regards,
Snoopster J

 

Download cpu-z and check if it's actually running slower

 

I tried it out, and even though I can only select one of the dual cores (the drop-down box is grayed out), I do think that the performance has been decreased as one core shows as running at 1000.1-1000.2 GHz, rather than I'm guessing 1008.x each. Any suggestions please?

 

So the core speed reads as 1000.1 MHz?

Thats a pretty big downclock!

Are you running on power saver mode? That would be the easy answer

Could you attach a screen of cpu-z for reference plaese

 

I get two readings - they swap in between one another.

The first is where under "Multiplier" it says "x 6.0" and the Core Speed reads 1000.1, where the .1 jumps around up to .6 sometimes.



The second reading I get is where the Multiplier is x 12.0, and I get around 2000.3, where the .3 jumps around from .1 to .6



Your help is very much appreciated, WILLY S.

Regards,
Snoopster J

 

Very strange. It's not under-volted and the fsb is even at the T7200 clock speed.

Try downloading wprime and running the speed test.

Since you re-installed the os i guess there is no system restore. have you tried updating the driver from the sony website?

 

I ran the wprime speed test (where it says "32M (speed test)" and under that by clicking "Run 32M Benchmark" I'm assuming) and my Best Score is 118.387 sec. I'm not sure if it would make much of a difference, but I had Firefox and Windows Live Messenger open in the background, although I didn't even touch the mice or keyboard during this time.

That's the thing! I've looked (and Googled) high and low, both on the Sony site and off, and I can't seem to find the Intel Core 2 Duo drivers anywhere! I even looked at my dad's SZ, pinpointed where the driver configuration file is and inserted it into my own, but I kind of already knew that that's not how it works =P

Thanks for sticking it out with me for so long and not leaving me in the dust, WILLY S, I really appreciate it; I just wish I could solve this once and for all so we can both rest easy. Thanks again.

 

Are you sure about this? I can't see how CPU-Z can be wrong in identifying the CPU as it shows it's a T7200. Press F2 while the VAIO logo appears when you turn on the notebook and it should briefly show what type of processor you have. If it says T7200 then it's probably that. You can also remove the CPU heatpipe panel and heatsink and read what's on the CPU just to be sure.

Intel SpeedStep is causing your processor to run at 1GHz and it's perfectly normal. It's a feature on Intel CPUs that allows the processor to run at a lower clockspeed during low usage to conserve power.

 

I know that there seems to be room for doubt, and I may even start doubting it too but I am willing to bet anything that my SZ was shipped with a T7400. If you Google "Sony Vaio VGN-SZ48GN" and look at the specs, it'll say T7400. My dad purchased this laptop for me in Hong Kong, so it's an Asian SZ even though I'm running English Vista on it.

I don't feel comfortable at all opening up my very expensive computer. Nintendo DS yes, but Sony Vaio no. Once again, I'm 150% sure it was shipped with a T7400. And yes, I know it doesn't make sense. I was just stupid to try uninstalling the driver for one of the cores.

 

There is no point in trying to find the driver for the CPU as Windows natively supports it. What processor does it show immediately after you press F2 when the VAIO logo appears after turning on the notebook?

 

118 seconds is pretty long, mine does it in 45. Somethings up

I'm not entirely sure but i think it takes more than bios and driver changes to make a processor both read as and perform as a different one.

I wouldn't remove the heatsink unless your going to re-apply the thermal paste.
I took mine apart and it's by farmore complicated than my old toshiba, but if you feel up to it there are plenty of guides around, just make sure to buy some thermal paste first. Or maybe just send it in to sony if you can.
As bogart says check the bios.

 

I checked my bios and it says T7200. Maybe the wrong driver was installed on there when I got it, or something =S

It's not that big of a problem - I guess I'll just live with it. Thanks for your help, bogart and WILLY S. I really appreciate that. Something small and silly like that I don't think really constitutes taking the machine apart (not to mention I have always had bad luck with taking electronics apart) or using that much time/effort/money to send it in to Sony.

Thanks so much once again!

Snoopster J

 

If it says T7200 during POST that's what you have. It seems that VGN-SZ48GN is configured with a T7200 as well. Try searching for "VGN-SZ48GN T7200" (without quotes) on Google and see how many results you get. It's more than "VGN-SZ48GN T7400".

 

Ya, i came across alot of SZ483N with a T7400 but no SZ48GN with T7400

It's anybodys guess..

Are you sure it was running at 2.16 GHz before?

 

I am quite positive, as I remember very vividly panicking and repeatedly trying to update my driver. I also Googled for quite a while on this topic. That's okay though, I don't think it's worth delving into too much. Thanks once again, WILLY S. Your help has been awesome, and now I know what to do in the case that my processor is REALLY going through some problems.

However, you said that the speed test return time was unusual for my processor? Can I kindly ask you to go into a little more detail about that?

[EDIT] I checked the manual that came with my SZ, and on the specs sheet it's listed as a T7200. I still hope you don't think of me as delusional, as I assure you that for one reason or another, it was listed as 2.16 Ghz on my computer before the driver mix-up, and I apologize for all the craziness this has caused. I guess it's nice to have a round number =) [/EDIT]

 

No prob

Yeah your score is low. Make sure your power adapter is plugged in or intel speedstep will drop your multiplyer to 6X. Make sure to be in high performance mode, or turn power managment off altoghther. Also if it's not at least below 50 seconds then try running it in safe mode to minimise background processes.

Maybe it may be worth taking it to a local technician to have the problem properly diagnosed.