Upgrade T40 Banias 1.5G to Dothan 2 or 2.1G?

[rush242]

After reading any number of threads on this topic, I think I've got a bit too much in my head right now. Each time I cram something new in, I feel other things squirting out...

I added a WTB in the Marketplace, because I think I'm looking for at least a 2Gig Intel Pentium M Dothan for a T40 2373-8U0.

Right now I have, according to CPU-Z, an Intel Pentium M Banias 1.5Gig running Windows XP SP3. Yes SP3. I get the impression (ebay) that the CPU I want will be ballpark $100.

Does anyone know where I can find the exact part number I need, or do you guys have any thoughts? I think, other than the thermal paste, this will be a plug and play swap--anyone disagree? I really don't want to destroy this little guy.

Thoughts? Comments? Disagreements? Glaring errors I've made?

Thanks in advance!!

[ulrich.von.lich]

The Dothan 2.0 or 2.1 will run much hotter than the Banias 1.5Ghz you have. A forum member just upgraded the CPU to 2.1Ghz and reported back with the highest observed temperature of 81C. Of course the performance increase will be quite noticeable. If you can't bear the heat, a 1.8 or 1.7 Dothan CPU would be a good choice too.

For more inforamtion about the upgrade, please take a look at:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... t40+dothan

I'm assuming the part number you are talking about here refers to the Intel sSpec number. They can be found on wikipedia. Remember, you are looking for a 400MT/s Dothan. (PM765 2.1Ghz, 755 2.0Ghz, 745, 735 etc..).

Btw, make sure the sSpec# of the CPU is made of 5 letters starting with SL(SLxxx) instead of 4 letters starting with Q(Qxxx). The latter means the CPU is an engineering sample. Here's an example

[rush242]

The Dothan 2.0 or 2.1 will run much hotter than the Banias 1.5Ghz you have. A forum member just upgraded the CPU to 2.1Ghz and reported back with the highest observed temperature of 81C. Of course the performance increase will be quite noticeable. If you can't bear the heat, a 1.8 or 1.7 Dothan CPU would be a good choice too.

Thanks for the heads up, I found that thread as well. I think I will look for a 1.8 or 1.7.

I'm assuming the part number you are talking about here refers to the Intel sSpec number. They can be found on wikipedia. Remember, you are looking for a 400MT/s Dothan. (PM765 2.1Ghz, 755 2.0Ghz, 745, 735 etc..).

Perfect!! Good old Wikipedia!! I DIDN'T come across that one, I kept trying to find a site like Crucial that would tell me what I needed.

That will make it MUCH easier to search eBay. I know I can't use the 533MT/s and now I know exactly what was out there.

But what am I missing with "stepping?" For example, the M 745 and the M 745A, there are FIVE versions on the Wiki, each with exactly the same specs across that chart, two stepped B1 and 3 stepped C0? Will that make any difference other than whatever changes Intel made?

Thank you so much!!

[ulrich.von.lich]

You are welcome!

I'm not 100% sure but I would say C0 stepping CPUs are more desirable than B1 stepping CPUs. (Newer technoloy, less bugs, less power consumption or something like that.) You might have noticed those 400MT/s C0 stepping CPUs were released in Jan 2005 while all B1 stepping CPUs were released in 2004.

However, you shouldn't worry too much about it. I think the performance difference among same frequency C0 and B1 CPUs is small enough to be ignored. And high-end 400Mt/s Dothan CPUs (765, 755) still use B1 stepping.

Hope it helps!

[ThinkPad]

I believe he was referring to me. I upgraded my CPU to a 2.1 and the computer dissipated alot more heat than the 1.8.

I think the best option would be a 1.8, between efficiency and performance. (which i have for sale BTW )

[ulrich.von.lich]

ThinkPad, YES I was referring to you!! Sorry I couldn't remember your name, which is in fact not that hard to be remembered. I didn't find the thread where I posted just a couple of days ago. I wanted to update that thread with a higher temperature of PM780 I witnessed: 86C, with fan at full speed (>4000RPM)

[rush242]

You are welcome!

However, you shouldn't worry too much about it. I think the performance difference among same frequency C0 and B1 CPUs is small enough to be ignored. And high-end 400Mt/s Dothan CPUs (765, 755) still use B1 stepping.

Hope it helps!

That's sort of what I figured, but I wasn't sure.

Thank you again!

[rush242]

I believe he was referring to me. I upgraded my CPU to a 2.1 and the computer dissipated alot more heat than the 1.8.

I think the best option would be a 1.8, between efficiency and performance. (which i have for sale BTW )

I saw that thread, I think. It helped a lot.

How much do you want and which one is it? 8^]

[rbena]

I agree, as I have T42's with both the Dothan 1.8 and the Banias 1.5.

Everything else is pretty much the same in the T42's, and the 1.8 runs as cool as the 1.5. The 1.8 has more processing power, and this is more noticeable when video editing and virus scanning, and less noticeable with normal office apps.

[Tim M]

ThinkPad, YES I was referring to you!! Sorry I couldn't remember your name, which is in fact not that hard to be remembered. I didn't find the thread where I posted just a couple of days ago. I wanted to update that thread with a higher temperature of PM780 I witnessed: 86C, with fan at full speed (>4000RPM)

Yikes, that's toasty. Are you undervolting the CPU at all (e.g. with NHC)? I recently upgraded my P-M 1.7GHz to a 2.0GGz (~$150 on eBay) and with fairly aggressive undervolting, I max out at 70 C full load, with idle temperatures 38 C - 45 C (when the fan comes on due to GPU warming).

GPU will get absurdly hot under intensive video load and I can't seem to get NHC to properly increase fan speeds (always around 2900 rpm).

[ulrich.von.lich]

Tim M: No I didn't undervolt the CPU at all. Actually I wasn't aware of the difference between undervolting & underclocking until today. I didn't want to sacrifice the speed (or else what's the point of buying a faster CPU?). Now I know I don't have to. Today I installed NHC but hasn't yet figured out how to set up the correct voltages for the PM 780.

You have the Radeon 9600 right? May I ask if the fan used to kick out before the upgrade? My friend told me his T42 was completely quiet but he had the 7500. How hot is the 9600?

I can't seem to get NHC to properly increase fan speeds (always around 2900 rpm).

I didn't see any options to control fan speeds in NHC. But the TPFanControl will do the job. I somehow failed to get both to work together.. I posted the issue here:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=56754

I always use TPFanControl to manage the fan speed. Can't really trust the BIOS. If I let BIOS to manage the fan, it would still be at level 4 when the CPU runs at 86C, then speed up to level 7 when the CPU is somewhere around 90C. I had to set up the fan manually at level 7 so that the CPU won't go beyond 86C. Spooky isn't it? I kinda have a feeling that the X300 can run at somewhere near 90C too.

[Tim M]

You have the Radeon 9600 right? May I ask if the fan used to kick out before the upgrade? My friend told me his T42 was completely quiet but he had the 7500. How hot is the 9600?

I don't fully recall how the fan behaved before NHC and the CPU upgrade as I didn't pay too much attention. I don't think the GPU temperature ever exceeded 100 C, which I can easily now doif I stress test it with "Video Card Stability Test."

I can't seem to get NHC to properly increase fan speeds (always around 2900 rpm).

I didn't see any options to control fan speeds in NHC. But the TPFanControl will do the job. I somehow failed to get both to work together.. I posted the issue here:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=56754

I always use TPFanControl to manage the fan speed. Can't really trust the BIOS. If I let BIOS to manage the fan, it would still be at level 4 when the CPU runs at 86C, then speed up to level 7 when the CPU is somewhere around 90C. I had to set up the fan manually at level 7 so that the CPU won't go beyond 86C. Spooky isn't it? I kinda have a feeling that the X300 can run at somewhere near 90C too.

For NHC to manage fan speeds through its ACPI Control Panel, you need to obtain a script as discussed in the later pages here. I believe running both NHC and TPFanControl causes a conflict with the Embedded Controller, which is probably what you noted. For me, when NHC manages fan speeds, it will report different levels being applied but always the same rotational speed.

I don't think it's a fan issue; I think it may be either NHC not actually changing fan speeds or not correctly reporting the current fan speed when it does change it.

If I could get NHC and TPFanControl to play nice together, that might allow me to undervolt and manage fan speeds, though it would be better to do this with a single piece of software. It would be great if NHC's script could be modified to fix this; I recall others on the forum having fan speed management problems with NHC. I suspect that some machine types are for whatever reason not compatible with the current script. Unfortunately, I lack the expertise (and time) to do a thorough examination and the necessary coding.