T61p CPU Upgrade Recommendations

[DaElderGeek]

Hey All:

I've got a T61p coming in this afternoon with a T7300 which I'm thinking of upgrading to either a T9300 or an X7900. I'm not for sure yet because I don't know if I'm getting a Merom or Penryn board. The GPU is the Nvidia FX570 (512MB). I see several CPU's advertised on "FleeceBay" but I'm a little leery of buying a CPU from there because of the problem of counterfeits. I also understand that the X7900 will produce more heat. I have a docking station and my current T60p is driving two monitors; a Samsung EX2220 (LED) on the digital port running at 1920 x 1080 and a Acer S202HL bd on the analog port running at 1600 x 900. My questions are:

1. Where is a "safe" place to buy a CPU upgrade and how much should I expect to pay for each?

2. Has anyone had a good experience with any eBay vendors?

3. How much of a heat problem will the X7900 + Nvida GPU cause?

Thanx! Any input will be appreciated.

[hoax32]

I recommend the T9300.
I myself have upgraded from a t7300 to a 9300....besides the temperature drop you are also gona see a nice performance increase in resource intense programs.
To untilize the full power i also recommend buying 2 of the same RAM modules for Dual CHannel performance.

[ZaZ]

CPU failure rates are very low. Most likely it'll work fine, but on the chance that it does not, you've got 45 days to dispute it with Paypal. Paypal almost always sides with the buyer. I'd say for most uses upgrading to a SSD is far more likely to produce a noticeable speed improvement than the CPU.

[DaElderGeek]

I recommend the T9300.
I myself have upgraded from a t7300 to a 9300....besides the temperature drop you are also gona see a nice performance increase in resource intense programs.
To untilize the full power i also recommend buying 2 of the same RAM modules for Dual CHannel performance.

That's good to hear because I do a fair amount of video work which sends the temperature on my current t60p/T7400 soaring.

[DaElderGeek]

CPU failure rates are very low. Most likely it'll work fine, but on the chance that it does not, you've got 45 days to dispute it with Paypal. Paypal almost always sides with the buyer. I'd say for most uses upgrading to a SSD is far more likely to produce a noticeable speed improvement than the CPU.

I've got my eye on an SSD upgrade in the near future as well. Probably a 256 after I move "My Documents" to the secondary drive. Has any consensus emerged as to which one is best?

[DaElderGeek]

I recommend the T9300.
I myself have upgraded from a t7300 to a 9300....besides the temperature drop you are also gona see a nice performance increase in resource intense programs.
To untilize the full power i also recommend buying 2 of the same RAM modules for Dual CHannel performance.

I already have two matched Crucial 2gb sticks in the t60p which I plan to put in the 61. I bought them before I realized that 60 could only see and use 3gb of memory. I'll give the 60 to my daughter who runs a Mac in her business but needs the occasional windows machine. Is there any benefit to pushing it up to 8gb? I do some Photoshop work as well as video.

[RealBlackStuff]

Only if your OS is 64-bit.
And Photoshop just LOVES RAM!
http://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/opt ... out_on_RAM

[DaElderGeek]

Only if your OS is 64-bit.
And Photoshop just LOVES RAM!
http://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/opt ... out_on_RAM

I'm running W7 x64 which has been running fine in 3gb. I just cloned my main HD, sysprepped it, and stuck it in the new machine. Let's see what happens

[DaElderGeek]

I recommend the T9300.
I myself have upgraded from a t7300 to a 9300....besides the temperature drop you are also gona see a nice performance increase in resource intense programs.
To untilize the full power i also recommend buying 2 of the same RAM modules for Dual CHannel performance.

Well it arrived today which was a surprise. With the holiday and all, I didn't really expect it till next Monday. I installed it, spread a little Arctic Silver around, fired it up and it booted and is running with no issues. I'm a happy man and thanx to all for your suggestions.

Regards,