Upgrading Vaio Tx

hii, i own a vaio tx57gn with vista business sp1.
is it possible to upgrade the cpu from the celeron solo 1.33ghz to a dual core???
wt is the maximum ram that can be added to the 1gb that came with the laptop when i bought??
the performance currently to sluggish
can someone please advice me on how to improve the performance!
thanx in advance

 

I believe it holds or recognize up to 1.5gb ram - 512mb onboard and 1gb ram. Also, you might try vista's readyboost, marginal but better than nothing. I don't think the cpu is upgradeable at all. You might need to do a fresh install and remove the bloatware that comes with most sonys or downgrade to XP.

 

I've read in many posts that it can recognize 2 gb.

 

If your tx comes with 945 chipset, I can do the CPU upgrade for you with Core2Duo U7700, ram may be also upgraded to max of 2GB only.

 

Dear ngvuanh,

I have a Vaio TX57 GN. I would be interested in knowing more about upgrading to core2 duo processor (1.33 if possible). Could you please advise cost? My email is [email protected] if this is any easier. Many thanks.

 

thanx a lot

 

I bought a 32GB Samsung SSD drive yesterday to upgrade my Sony TX. I have been wanting to get one for a few weeks now. I will sell of my 100GB drive to make back some of the money. I don't need more than 32GB seeing as this is not my main laptop. The SSD should give me a nice little performance boost.
Upgrading does not seem that hard as well which is good.
http://www.r3uk.com/index.php/tech-tips/34-disassembly-guides/47-sony-vaio-vgn-tx2xp-disassembly
http://home.comcast.net/~nw_systems/vgnTX.pdf
I am also going to buy a Intel N wireless card and upgrade my wireless card as well whilst i have my laptop open.

 

Hi how do you do clean install on the TX57GN? Does it come with a recovery disc? I cannot exactly remember when the time we bought if it came with the recovery or not.

it would be also interesting on how to upgrade the internal memory, does it came also with SODIMM memory (the internal memory).

Thanks

 

I probably sure your TX57GN did not come with recovery discs. However, there is hidden recovery partition in the hard drive by factory default. You could create recovery discs by running VAIO Recovery Wizard if the partition is still there.
About RAM, you can find any DDR2 SoDIMM PC2-4200 or PC2-5300. I think both work.

 

from the instruction manual > http://home.comcast.net/~nw_systems/vgnTX.pdf
< can you mark up which page or the drawing of the internal RAM (Built-in)?

Thanks a lot

 

Built-in RAM is soldered so you can't do anything on that.
However, you can put another stick in extra slot. Right at second page, it is showing how to open RAM cover at bottom of the laptop.

 

ah I see, I have installed a second 2GB stick into the extra slot, so now it makes 2GB plus 512 MB ram. It has no effect though, I think the vista loading is way too slow. Might want to try with using MemoryBoost and reformating it. Thanks.

 

I own the same model as the TX57GN (1.33 processor etc) and have done a few upgrades, see my sig.

The best upgrade that i found for this model to be is getting an SSD drive and downgrading/upgrading to XP.
I saw marginal improvements with the SSD with Vista.
This thing is really lighting fast with XP. I saw a big increase over the 4200 HD that i used in XP also.
Or may be you could try Windows 7 in the future, the TX/TXN should be able to handle that ok.

 

do you use the recovery disc when you upgrade to SSD?

 

Yes you can use the recovery discs that you burn if you install an SSD drive.

 

Hi guys,

I just registered here b/c I found the forum on google while searching for Sony Vaio TX upgrades.

I have a slightly inferior model, I think. It's the TXN15P. I'm also wondering what the possibility is of upgrading to the 1.33 Core Duo. Ngvuanh, could you provide me with a cost of labor and a cost of materials please? How much battery life could I expect to have with the new CPU? Also, would it be possible to "underclock" the CPU when I'm just doing internet browsing, in order to save the battery, and then bring it back to normal speeds for heavier things like Photoshop and music editing?

Another question I have is... is it possible to upgrade to a SSD for this model? I searched around a bit but couldn't find anything related to the TX model, except for the few posts above.

You may send me an email response at "dan the man 8888 AT hotmail DOT com" if you prefer. no spaces.

Thanks,
-Dan

 

The only way that your laptop is different is because it came with XP installed and it has a 1.2 core solo processor.
Hardware is basically the same.
Another TXN1 owner has managed to install an SSD drive into their laptop.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=283599

Sandisk drives seems to be the one that should be avoided.

Also on another unrelated note about upgrading the TX/TXN.
I did try and upgrade my laptop with HSDPA wwan using various wwan boards. The SZ6-7 board seemed like a good fit but i didn't account for the height of the wwan module itself. I couldn't actually shut the casing after i installed it so i have given up on that project now completely. It might well work if i was prepared to remove the dvd drive but i'm just not prepared to do that.

Another forum member also had some success in upgrading an older TX model's wifi card.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=402708

 

Hi all, glad to finally find some info about upgrading TX laptops, been looking every where.

I currently have a TX1XP, is it still possible to upgrade the HDD to SSD? From what I've read so far, will the Samsung ones work?

Also Rachel, I notice you have 2.5Gb on your TX, I thought the maximum amount of RAM you can have is 1.5Gb? Or is that only on the TX5?

Thanks for any info on this

 

anti5580, the actual limit is 2GB. My laptop recognises 2.5GB though but probably does not make use of the extra 512MB.

Some forum members have updated older versions with 2GB of ram.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=344919

That same forum member also upgraded their TX HD to a 1.8 zif 120GB 8mm 5400RPM drive using a pata-zif adapater. It was a tight fit but they managed to get it to work. I asked them over PM if it worked and they said that it did. They own a Japanese model that has a 915G chipset.

Also, you can upgrade to an SSD drive. There appear to be other options as well.
In these articles here an older version was upgraded with a Mtron SSD drive. Again they had to use a pata-zif adapter.

http://kunkoku.livedoor.biz/archives/51681541.html

http://kunkoku.livedoor.biz/archives/51681986.html

http://translate.google.com/transla...=s&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&hs=kO3&sa=G

http://translate.google.com/transla...=s&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&hs=m4N&sa=G


They also did a feature using the latest Photofast IDE drive which would be a direct fit for the earlier TX versions. If i can find it i will post it. They had some problems using this drive though and i don't know if these issues have been fixed by Photofast.

The Samsung 50 pin drive should work.

Edited to add
This is what i could find
http://kunkoku.livedoor.biz/archives/51687883.html
http://kunkoku.livedoor.biz/archives/51691623.html

http://translate.google.com/transla...=s&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&hs=k5N&sa=G

http://translate.google.com/transla...=s&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&hs=CR3&sa=G


The Kingspec drives look interesting as well. Although with older models you will need to buy an adapter.
http://cgi.ebay.com.hk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270419438963

 

Not having one of the high end versions that Europe, Asia and Japan market; the TX670P that I use runs XP and has a 915GMS chipset, 1.20 Ghz CPU, and 1.5Gb RAM.
I have considered upgrading the 60Gb HDD to an SSD to speed up accessing information, but I am not sure if I would need an adapter cable or whether it would be a plug and play.
Does anyone know if the installation of an SSD would be a plug and play; and if it is.... what would you recommend... I Need at least 60Gb.....

 

CharlesS have a look in your device manager to determine what part your HD is. Run a search on the part number and determine if your drive is a zif or an IDE drive. I suspect that it is an IDE drive.
If it is an IDE drive you can still use a zif drive if you buy an adapter.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1-8-ZIF-LIF-S...in_0?hash=item3ca4fef421&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

 

YES.... It is an IDE.....
I have searched around and found 1.8" SSD IDE drives available....
Hadnt checked on prices until today.... $240 for 64 Gb and $450 for 128 Gb.
Figuring that the 64 Gb would be the minimum.....
What makers do you suggest and what ones do I stay away from..... ?
I have read that SanDisk is one to stay away from......

 

In post 21# I pointed out the possible issues that Photofast drives getting the recovery discs to work. Runcore is an unknown drive in terms of its compatibility with the TX series. Choices are very limited when it comes to 1.8 zif/ide drives.

I like Samsung drives but getting hold of the 64GB zif drives is not easy. I managed to pick up a Samsung 64GB zif drive for £140 for someone else but i got very lucky. These drives are very power efficent. If you want faster speeds though there are better drives to go for.

The Photofast V3 drives use an Indinlinx controller which is one of the better ones. If you have problems with your recovery discs you could always get hold of an upgrade disc or upgrade to W7 anyway.

http://www.mydigitaldiscount.com/Ca...:RunCore:RunCore+1.8+Inch+Pro+IV+PATA+Zif+SSD

 

great thread here.
My sister uses an older Sony Vaio TX2HP/W (Germany) with the Intel 915 chipset and a 80GB Toshiba ATA (no ZIF) drive.

The HDD is getting pretty old now, free space is getting lower and lower, so I thought about buying a new HDD.

ATA hard drives are difficult, if not impossible at all, to find, especially with a larger size than 80GB.

So I thought about a ZIF drive. I also found an adapter and after reading those posts here I'm confident that the adapter will fit:
ADA-HDD-1.8-ZIF-CF-SM

The HDD I would like to buy is the largest Toshiba ZIF drive available yet:
MK2431GAH with 240GB
From the US importet the drive costs around 180 Euro which is cheap compared to 1.8" hard drives I can buy in Germany directly.

But I'm afraid that it won't work, that's why I'm posting this:
Has anyone tried this before?
I'm afraid that the 240GB will not get recognized, that the notebook has the common 137GB limit because Sony hasn't enabled the 48-bit LBA mode.
There's an program to test if it's enabled or not, Intel® Application Accelerator 48-bit LBA Test Program for Windows* Me/98 SE/98, however to test it I must have a HDD larger than 137GB connected already.

Sony europe released a new BIOS for this model on 21/02/2007 for a Vista Upgrade, it's possible that they've enabled 48-bit LBA with this update but I don't know it.

So has anyone any experience with hard drives that large in a VAIO TX?

 

A TZ owner tried to install that drive into their laptop and they ran into problems.
Have a read of this thread, you will see some posts that seemed to suggest these drives are not meant for laptops.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=379947

 

Thanks a bunch!

The reply from Toshiba was clear: incompatible with notebooks.
And together with the fear that this older notebook has a size limit of 137GB I'll try to buy a 120GB HDD somewhere.

Thank you.

 

Hey Anh,

I have the TX850p/b model. If you could e-mail me the costs of upgrading to the max and have a few things fixed. Need to fix the touchpad and a few cosmetics as well. If you could email me at arbalest.m9 at gmail.com that would be awesome.

Thanks in advance
Steve

 

Has anyone upgraded to Windows 7 RTM? How has the battery life changed from XP?

Thanks.

 

I have a TXN27CN that I want to upgrade to SSD, and the stock drive is a Toshiba MK8009GAH. Toshiba says it uses LIF, but a lot of websites seem to say that the ZIF interface is what I need, are they the same?

http://sdd.toshiba.com/main.aspx?Path=StorageSolutions/1.8-inchHardDiskDrives/MK8009GAH

There aren't many options for 1.8" ZIF SSD drives, so far I'm leaning towards the Photofast G-Monster because I can get it in 128G, but I don't know if anyone else has attempted this.

http://www.dvnation.com/ZIF-SSD.html

There's also a RunCore, which is a bit cheaper but there seems to be very little information around about that manufacturer.

Can anyone give me some guidance on choosing a drive?

Thanks

 

*bump*

Anyone done an SSD upgrade on a TX?

 

Yes a zif drive will work, it was what TXN owners have used to upgrade their laptops. You ask if anyone has upgraded to a SSD drive in a TX? It is evident that people have if you read this thread or some of the other linked posts that have been linked in this thread.
As to whether the Runcore will work it may, although if nobody has tried it no one can say for sure.

 

Thanks for the reply, sorry if I was unclear. I checked out all the links, my main questions were the confusion over ZIF vs LIF and wondering if anyone has experience with the PhotoFast G-Monster or RunCore brand drives before I order one.

 

Some more searching has come up with a few people who recommend the runcore so I think I'll go that way
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=383788&page=2
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5298004

Thanks!

 

After talking with Rachel to clarify a couple questions; I purchased a 64 Gb PhotoFast G-Monster 50 pin IDE V2 SSD for my version of the TX-670.
Disassembly of the notebook was easy using the instructions on the Comcast website. Accessing the release tabs for the keyboard was a little time consuming, but the remainder the disassembly went quickly.
Found out there are several versions for the model I have depending upon build date and the disassembly of these models will vary.
The actual installation of the SSD was quick... Loading the Recovery discs required about an hour and then spent the next 8 hours loading additional software and Microsoft Updates.
The differences between the two drives (64Gb 4200 rpm HDD vs 64Gb SSD) are quite noticeable....
Accessing items on the drive is far quicker, no whirring of the HDD, less heat, battery lasts about an hour or so longer....
Specs for my notebook are 1.20Ghz Pentium M, 1.5G of RAM and XP SP3.

 

Can you check what UDMA mode the new SSD is running at?

 

IF I understand your question correctly... it is in Multi-Word2 DMA mode.

 

Just to clarify, since I am planning to make this upgrade to a vaio tx-850, you are using a G-Monster 1.8" ZIF V2, in UDMA mode 2. Do you have any tips for doing the upgrade, beyond the instructions on the comcast website? Have you had any system stability problems?

Thanks for any help and/or suggestions! The specs on the drive I'm planning to buy are listed below.

G Monster 1.8" ZIF V2 (V3 NOT CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION)
V2 Read speed: 80MB/S Dimensions: 78.5mm x 54mm x 5mm
V2 Write speed: 45 ~ 50MB/S Operating Temperature: 0C ~ 70C
SMART Support
PIO/UDMA Modes: 0/1/2/3/4/5/6
NAND Type: MLC
Interface: Zero Insertion Force V3 has Indilinx Controller

 

No problems with the installation of the SSD or the loading of the OS and software. Mine is the IDE 50 pin; not the ZIF....., but otherwise the same.
Have been using the notebook for more than 2 weeks and the performance has been great....

 

The TZ uses ZIF I believe, but you want a micro ATA 50 pin for the TX (looks like a lot like a compact flash connector)

I got a Photofast G-Monster V4 128GB SSD with the micro ATA connector from dvnation for my TX850P/B and it works great!!! Feels very fast running windows 7! Not cheap, but less than a new laptop.

http://www.dvnation.com/Micro-ATA-SSD.html

Good luck!

 

Hi,
just found this discussion.

I plan to install an SSD soon, the reports here are promising. I need at least 128 GB - but the prices are quite high. Has anyone thought of installing a smaller SSD for the OS and an additional conventional HD replacing the DVD? Would there be a chance? I guess the problem is that the controller only allows one HD?

Thanks.

Vaio VGN-TX5XN

 

Has anyone tried one of those Kingspec 50 pin CF drives and if so can you provide a Crystal Mark of your drive.
I see 128GB versions now that are pretty reasonable price wise.
I'm thinking about getting someone one and upgrading their V2 Photofast 64GB SSD because of storage space reasons.
The V4 Photofast 128GB drives if you ask me are just too expensive to spend on older ultraportables. You can get it cheaper from Photofast direct than you can from Ebay.
http://www.photofastuk.com/engine/shop/product/GM18M128E50IDEV4/1.8+50pin+IDE+V4+128GB
I think i might contact them and see if i can get any discounts.


Edited to add:
I found something here

http://www.kingspec.com.cn/news/news.asp?id=44
So the numbers all in all look pretty decent. They did run it in 50MB though and they benchmarked a 128GB drive which should offer a bit better performance than a 64GB drive.



I got a response to my email and i also managed to get a discount. I think i will just go for that the V4 one and sell of the original drive, plus the 64GB one i bought. The cost to upgrade won't be inexpensive still but i read this one has better power consumption than the V2 and Kingspec drives so i think this sold it to me.

 

Hello all,

I've got a UK TX3XP and I'm hoping to give it a new breath of life with a SSD upgrade.
I'm a bit confused about the connector type. Is it IDE? ATA? ZIF? Sorry I'm totally clueless when it comes to laptop hardware.
Has anyone managed to upgrade the same/similar model or are all the TX models pretty much the same?

Also, it seems from the comments that Samsung is a good brand for HDs? I saw an intel one also. Are they any good?

I'd really appreciate any help and advice!

Cheers!

 

Look in the device manager to determine what HD your TX takes and run a search on the part number. My guess is that it takes a 50 pin drive but check that to be sure.

The early TX models in the US take a 50 pin drive and the later models take a zif drive. This is also most likely the case with all bar the last gen TX in the EU. Some forum members here have upgraded their TX with a 50 pin drive and they have noted their exeperiences in this thread.

Btw, i had another core solo laptop upgraded to a U7600 in the UK. As you would expect there is a real noticeable difference between a core solo and core 2 duo and especially with an SSD. I have a V4 50 pin Photofast 128GB drive at home right now but i'm yet to benchmark it though.

 

I just noticed your post.

You could try it, if no one has tried it before then no one can say that it will work 100%. I think there would be a chance.

The TX/TXN uses a IDE ODD drive so you would need something like this.

Optical Bay Hard Drive Caddy (OBHD9-PATA-B), Black, 9.5mm [OBHD9-PATA-B] - $37.95 : NewmodeUS, Hard Drive Caddys for Notebooks

They also ship internationally.

 

Thanks for the help Rachel.

Well it appears that my HD is a MK8007GAH which according to Toshiba uses an ATA 6 interface. They don't say anything about IDE or ZIF or LIF. I'm really confused about what interfaces there are! I gather that 50 pin is an IDE drive? Is ATA 6 an IDE drive?

Did you upgrade a TX CPU to dual core? That must be a huge boost. Would you say it was much harder than replacing the HD?

Also you mentioned you were upgrading from a 64GB photofast SSD to 128GB. How did that go? Would you recommend that drive?

Sorry to bombard you with so many questions but you seem like an expert and I really appreciate the help!

 

Your TX takes a 50 pin IDE drive.

No i didn't upgrade my TX to a core 2 duo but they can be upgraded to a
U7700. I upgraded the motherboard of another laptop from a U1400 to a U7600 and Vaiorefurbs did it and you can find them on ebay.

They are based in the UK and it cost me £110. I bought a defective TZ motherboard for £27 and Vaiorefurbs removed the processor using the BGA method that was discussed earlier in this thread and used the same method to fit it on the motherboard. The Dell D430 and Toshiba R500 and othe models use the same processor.

It was worthwhile me spending that because the laptop is a very nice laptop and should last another couple of years now.

It feels like a different laptop now with the core 2 duo, SSD and W7 that i upgraded to compared to the U1400 1.8 4200 and the Vista business that it came with.

I did though upgrade my TX to an 64GB Samsung Zif SSD drive and i noticed a speed boost but thought it was more noticeable in XP than it was in Vista. I never tried upgrading to W7. I've sold my TX now.

I would recommend the Photofast drives. The 128GB drives are pretty expensive. I've not actually tested the 128GB 50 pin drive yet. I sent the motherboard away to have a sim holder soldered onto the motherboard and should get it back by Tuesday. If you don't want to use an adapter and need more than 64GB of storage then the Photofast drives in my opinion are the way to go.

Replacing the HD is pretty easy and the processor is soldered and you need special tools to remove it so upgrading the HD is easier but doing both are very worthwhile upgrades.



Edited to add:
If i still owned the TX i would probably buy a USIM and a HSDPA card and use that with the TXN daughterboard. The TXN bottom case is thicker though than the TX one so you need to buy a TXN bottom chassis if you don't own a TXN and want to try and mod your WWAN. You cannot solder a sim card holder to the TXN wwan daughterboard.

USIM SIM Card Reader Expansion Pack 3G/HSPA WWAN Module on eBay (end time 11-Jul-10 23:25:14 BST)

 

I think I will save money and go with the lower 64GB capacity.

While looking for other retailers to compare the price against, I saw on Scan an OCZ vertex 2 60GB which allegedly has 285/275 MB/s read/write speed compared to photofast's 128/90.
But it uses a SATA connection.

The difference in performance seems ridiculous to me considering the price is about the same. Are these figures likely to be for real?
Also, people have mentioned ZIF adaptors but what about SATA adaptors?

 

SATA and PATA/IDE are different. The Vaio X uses this connector that will allow a 1.8 microsata HD to used but the speeds are degraded to PATA speeds because the laptop cannot support more than this. The adapter was designed for the Vaio X though and unless you successfully hack it which no one has done yet it won't work in any other laptop.

 

Foiled by interfaces again! I suppose I will look around a bit for other photofast prices and go for the 64GB then. Thanks Rachel.

 

A quick question for Rachel. I'm looking to upgrade the CPU on my Vaio-VGN-TXN15P and I think you stated that an upgrade to U7700 is a possibility. Has anyone tested this and will this ebay one work?
INTEL CORE 2 DUO U7700 1.33GHZ 2M 533 MOBILE CPU on eBay (end time 15-Aug-10 01:59:47 BST)

Thanks, Wayne C.