Install a 1066MHz FSB CPU on T61 (including Core 2 Quad)

[Thrakath]

Any links for the hacked 2.29 Bios´s? ASPM possible or not?

Anyone knowing if the 2.27 Versions really do have DUAL-IDA enabled?

Thx

[Pete B]

I sure wish that there was a stable place for the 1066 files.

[jcvjcvjcvjcv]

I sure wish that there was a stable place for the 1066 files.

I've got some spare webtraffic budget

But I got to get them first ofc.

[Pete B]

Great, so we have to find them first. Does the wayback machine store files?

[danikayser84]

This mod is tempting (a 4:3 14.1" "T62" with a Core 2 Quad? Wonder how it would run in the 14.1" standard form factor though )

Surprising that nobody has gotten the Core 2 Quads to work on the W500/T500/T400, at least to my knowledge, yet they have gotten them working on the T61 after BIOS/hardware mods (the 1066 mod is especially great for 14.1" standard T61 fans)

[StefanKo]

Surprising that nobody has gotten the Core 2 Quads to work on the W500/T500/T400

In the german thinkpad forum the user el-sahef has experimented a lot with quad core support.
He got a quad core to run on a T500 board, but only with one core active.
It doesn't boot with "core multiprocessing" activated in bios.
He thinks it's a bios issue, and not so easy to solve...

[el-sahef]

It is a BIOS issue.

With coreboot, it works: https://thinkpad-forum.de/threads/199129

But I did not have the time yet to test or experiment with it further.

[Gulash]

Following your guide I managed to upgrade my T61 with T9900 CPU.

CPU-Z shows everything is fine: core speed 3.2GHz, bus clock 266MHz, FSB 1066MHz, RAM 354MHz.
https://abload.de/thumb/t9900_cpuz47s1h.jpg

However when I switch back to my Ubuntu I-Nex says the CPU clock is 2.3GHz. This is also confirmed by 2.3G value found in scaling_max_freq.
It seems that 2.3GHz value comes from 800MHz/1066MHz multiplier for T9900 core speed of 3.2GHz.

If BSEL mod deceives MB chipset into thinking it's clocked with 800MHz while it gets 1066MHz then is my understanding correct the deception is further propagated into Ubuntu so it thinks the CPU runs at 2.3GHz while it runs at 3.2GHz ? How comes CPU-Z gets correct values ?

Anyway CPU stress tests yield nice 98 C on both cores ...

[Pete B]

I'd like to know which BIOS you used, do you have a link to it?
Did you modify the RAM sticks?

[Gulash]

Followed el-sahef's procedure exactly as described here.
Flashed T61-BIOS(1.0)_ASPM.rar and Samsung 2GB DDR2-533 SPD profile as adviced. Mobo modification was the last step.

I played a bit with BIOS settings and found out disabling SpeedStep enables 3.06GHz frequency, but the CPU performance drops by 50% and temperature barely hits 50 C deg during a stress test.
Tests performed with Phoronix - it uploads result to openbenchmarking.org and each test case include a lot of system logs, including system temperatures, cpuinfo, cpufreq-info etc.

T9900@2.301GHz vs T9900@3.06GHz vs T9300@2.5GHz

Conclusion: reported 3.06GHz with SpeedStep disabled is not 3.06GHz at all. And T9900@2.3GHz yields ca. 20-30% performance increase vs T9300 in my R61i. This coincides with CPU-Z and other benchmark results. Also BogoMIPS for T9900@2.3GHz is 6117.86, for T9300@2.5GHz is 4987.18. As BogoMIPS is 2 NOPs per clock tick, clearly T9900 is clocked with 3.06GHz.

[Pete B]

Thanks, that helps, I've seen that page but wasn't sure if those were right and/or up to date.
If they worked for you I might just try them.
I see that there are various versions with various degrees of under volting and a some other
options.

[SaskFellow]

I'm wondering why just going to a 1066FSB is having such a boost to the benchmarks.

Can someone run PCMark7 or such, and post the scores. I'm wondering if there will be such a noticeable kick in the butt in that kind of a benchmark.

[axur-delmeria]

I'm wondering why just going to a 1066FSB is having such a boost to the benchmarks.

If I had to guess, it would be due to the greater I/O bandwidth from CPU to RAM due to the faster FSB.

[SaskFellow]

I'm wondering why just going to a 1066FSB is having such a boost to the benchmarks.

If I had to guess, it would be due to the greater I/O bandwidth from CPU to RAM due to the faster FSB.

I guess that would be possible indeed.

I just installed PCMark07 on the T61 in my signature and looks like Nvidia just released updated drivers for Windows 10 x64 for the Quadro.

With the glitchy NVidia drivers my PCMark 07 Score is: 1850-1900pts, with the new NV drivers, not much difference at 1950pts.

Just for comparison:

On a AMD FX8320e(no OC) Win 10 x64 system with 16GB of DDR3-1866, 500GB 7200RPM HDD, HD5830 GPU it scores: 2800-2900pts

The T420s i7-2640M, 16GB DDR3-1333(CPU limited), 480GB 850 Pro, what ever NV GPU it has, and scores around 5200pts IIRC.

Dell Venue 8 Pro Tablet running 32bit Win 10, makes my T61 look slow in the Video stuff, and it scores: 2414pts

[Gulash]

Here you are:
2266 pts - bare Win7 64, PCMark7 basic install (no update)
2174 pts - Win7 64, all drivers via Lenovo System Update v5, PCMark7 updated to newst version

Same story for Windows: 2.3GHz reported.

[SaskFellow]

Definitely doing something right. lol

Windows 10, shows the T9300 boosting to 2.65Ghz. So you are getting a pretty handy bump to the performance scores.

Here's the individual reports from a run scoring: 1969pts

Video Playback: 5.89192 fps
Video Transcoding + Downscaling: 598.76564 kB/s
Graphics DX9: 5.46939 fps
Image Manipulation: 10.1807 Mpx/s
Web Browsing: 7.36797 pages/s
Data Decrypting: 42.54123 MB/s

Storage gaming: 16.92394 MB/s
Storage pictures: 30.51019 MB/s
Storage defender: 5.72818 MB/s

Edit:

I just checked your link, looks like your T9900 is boosting to 3.2Ghz while it's everyday clock is 2.3Ghz. According to FM, my T9300 is sitting at 2.5ghz with a maximum turbo of 2.7Ghz.

http://www.3dmark.com/compare/pcm7/1068695/pcm7/1068837#

Ugh... The NVS140M is way faster at rendering, 5fps vs 1fps, but gets destroyed on video compared to the iGPU, 5fps vs 24fps and 600kB/s vs 1,200kB/s.

If I can't find my CrystalHD, I'm going to have to order a new one, and see if it works under 10, because that's depressing. Guess I should be happy the difference is only around 11%, that T9900 is definitely showing it's speed advantage off.

[greybot]

Hello all,

I'm new here and have been reading this thread with great interest. I have so many questions regarding this mod to get my t61p running at 266Mhz to get a little extra juice out of my t9300 processor, so will try and keep it as brief and to the point as possible.

Ideally my goal is to have 8GB RAM running with the t9300 at 266Mhz with throttlestop to acheive 3.2Ghz+, as I like the idea of turning on the extra processor power with software when needed.

Specfication: t61p 6460-DVU 15.4" running
NVIDIA Quadro FX 570M - 256 MB*
Motherboard: FRU 44C3931
OS: Windows 10 Pro x64
CPU: T9300 2.5Ghz (throttlestop sometimes used for 2.7Ghz)
Bios: Middleton 7LETC9WW (2.29-1.08) - 18/3/2011
RAM: Hynix 8GB 2X4GB PC2-6400 DDR2 PC6400S 800Mhz


If someone could help me with my first questions, that would be really helpful.

1) a) Is my RAM unlocked (I presume it isn't as Hynix) and if I did the mod tutorial all the way through to take the quad core QX9300, I would bypass the need to flash the RAM with SPD tool?

b) Where can I find a list of unlocked 4GB RAM modules? I've only found one mentioned (CSX 4GB RAM) but can't find it for purchase anywhere.

2) I read on another thread that this mod doesn't work with the middleton bios I have. Will it be possible to use a bios that allows the mod pin hack and keep SATA II speeds and the possibility of using 2x4GB RAM modules as is my current set up?

*Please note that I have the dreaded GPU issue where a hairdryer is needed to get the laptop to turn on from a cold boot. To combat this I use my t61p with the 2503-10U advanced dock and a GT 610 pci-express card inside it.
^^^Which brings me to my second question!

3) This wouldn't affect my attempts at overclocking my t61p would it? (my bios has PCI-Express as the main source to boot and laptops GPU is not listed under Display Adapters in Device Manager then)



Thanks for looking!

[RealBlackStuff]

Welcome to the forum.
I can't answer any of your questions, since I don't believe in overclocking.
But I have to correct your ThinkPad perception.
The real T61p had nVidia FX570M GPU, yours with NVS140M GPU is "only" a T61, same as the ones with Intel GPU.

As for your GPU problem, read this: http://theboardroom.info/t61motherboard.html

[greybot]

Strange. THe case has it branded as a t61p which I always thought it was

Or maybe I do have that GPU.

I will get the hairdryer out and check it later. It doesnt get used much since the docks GPU took over. (But still turns on with the hairdryer trick!)

Edit: I do indeed have that GPU! Have updated my original post

[el-sahef]

1) a) Is my RAM unlocked (I presume it isn't as Hynix) and if I did the mod tutorial all the way through to take the quad core QX9300, I would bypass the need to flash the RAM with SPD tool?

You can only find out if you flash the RAM with the SPD tool and check afterwards (new read) that the SPD values were really updated. Before doing anything, always back up the original content to a file.

b) Where can I find a list of unlocked 4GB RAM modules? I've only found one mentioned (CSX 4GB RAM) but can't find it for purchase anywhere.

I do not know if there is such a list, but the CSX modules can still be found here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/360733514315 Quite expensive though.

2) I read on another thread that this mod doesn't work with the middleton bios I have. Will it be possible to use a bios that allows the mod pin hack and keep SATA II speeds and the possibility of using 2x4GB RAM modules as is my current set up?

The BIOS files in the table linked here: https://thinkpad-forum.de/threads/172581 have all the features of middleton (besides the Ctrl-FN-Swap) and work with the mod, rendering middleton basically obsolete. But if you want to overclock your T9300 only, you do not need to flash the BIOS. This is only needed if you want to use a CPU that was made for FSB 1066, e. g. P9700, T9600, QX9300.

But because of the FX 570M GPU I recommend you to flash 专门网论坛_T61-BIOS(0.95)_ASPM.rar or 专门网论坛_T61-BIOS(1.0)_ASPM.rar anyway because that will undervolt the GPU which will reduce the temperature.

If you want to use Ctrl-FN-Swap with one of these BIOSes, you have to flash middleton CD1 first, then CD2 and after that 专门网论坛_T61-BIOS(0.95)_ASPM.rar or whatever you are going to use.

3) This wouldn't affect my attempts at overclocking my t61p would it? (my bios has PCI-Express as the main source to boot and laptops GPU is not listed under Display Adapters in Device Manager then)

No idea. But I do not think that the probabillity of the T9300 running at FSB 1066 without raising voltage is very high anyway.

[greybot]

Thank you very much for answering all my questions. It makes me hopeful of having middleton bios features with the potential to overclock (should I want to). I will look into my RAM modules and whether they are locked or not tonight.

With regard to undervolting FX 570M GPU , is this necessary when I'm using a pci-express GPU in the advanced dock and have just PCI-express graphics selected in the bios Display option? Or is FX 570M GPU still drawing the higher voltage even when disabled in bios?

Aida64 reports my GT 610 in the dock is running at 1.04V under load and at 0.90V when idle. Would the 0.95V bios make it run at that for both or is it strictly related to the FX 570M GPU?

Update: I just fired up the FX 570M via hairdryer trick to compare , and its at a constant 1.20V according to Aida64 but as I have it turned off and am using just the GT 610 via the dock, am I right in thinking I should just stick with the BIOS I have? (the FX 570M is turned off completely via BIOS and not drawing any power?).

[triturbo]

Greetings guys,

Long time no see. I'm still not a ThinkPad owner, but I'm looking to modify another memorable machine - the HDX Dragon (the 20" monster). Can someone give me exact guidance of what, where and how? So far I've tried with wire between AD26 and D22 and wire from A20 to B23 (for FSB downclock, since I don't know what to modify to fool the system as shown in some pictures). Tried to install Windows, but it hangs, it wont boot into already installed one either. Which leads me to the next request - as I see the BIOS you use is Chinese. Is there someone around here that can modify the Dragon's BIOS with the appropriate APIC table? Or can someone of you ask the original modder?

Thank you very much!

RAM: Hynix 8GB 2X4GB PC2-6400 DDR2 PC6400S 800Mhz


1) a) Is my RAM unlocked (I presume it isn't as Hynix) and if I did the mod tutorial all the way through to take the quad core QX9300, I would bypass the need to flash the RAM with SPD tool?

b) Where can I find a list of unlocked 4GB RAM modules? I've only found one mentioned (CSX 4GB RAM) but can't find it for purchase anywhere.

Didn't see or missed your follow-up on the RAM, but I'm giving you an answer anyway: I had these exact modules - they are locked, but feel free to try and modify them. I used Elpida modules (EBE41UF8ABDA-8G-E) with stock heat-spreaders (they are the only 4GB modules to have these). They were easy find back in the day, but I don't think that you'll find them now.

[el-sahef]

If the HDX does not hang when you use table loading with GRUB2 bootmanager, you do not necessarily need a modified BIOS. Before the chinese modified BIOS that contained the C2Q APIC table was available, I used this method to load the APIC table for C2Q (and a modified BIOS which was also of chinese origin that contained only the C2Q microcodes). The instructions are still in this post in section 4).

The first thing you should do is install Windows 7 with all drivers, then install Linux (I used opensuse 13.2 with KDE at that time) so that you have a dual-boot configuration. You should test with Linux first because it is more fault-tolerant related to ACPI tables. When it works under Linux, getting it to work stable under Windows is the next step.

Make sure that you can get into the BIOS with a Core2 Quad and boot Linux. If the stock BIOS does not contain the microcodes for the Core2 Quad, you must flash a modified BIOS that has them integrated.

On the hardware side, the modifications should be the same. Insulate pins AA7, AA8, AC8, AE8 and D8 on the C2Q (or remove them), connect pins D22 and AD26. You have to find the place on the HDX motherboard where you can do some soldering to trick the chipset into thinking that it still runs with FSB 800. For a start, it will probably be easier to tie BSEL1 high to force FSB 800. This way you do not have to worry about RAM timings and the chipset.

When you can boot Linux with the Core2 Quad installed it is time to deal with the APIC table stuff.

[triturbo]

Thank you very much for your input! Greatly appreciated! Yes, I totally forgot about the pins - I've removed them. My friend was asking me if I'm certain with a very scared look, I was just as scared After all if the mod doesn't work, we have a paper-weight of a CPU. Anyway, pins - check; D22 to AD26 - check; forced FSB to 800MHz - check (the easy way for now - A20 to B23). BIOS with microcode - not sure, since Ricky gave me a pack of BIOSes and I don't know what microcodes are inside, I'm certain that there are for QX9300, but would they work with QX9200 as well? BIOS loads and the CPU can be seen there. Now I'll try to boot into Linux and see what happens.

[FryPpy]

After all if the mod doesn't work, we have a paper-weight of a CPU

After cutting these pins on Q9000 it worked normally in W700 but it have "??? MHz" on BIOS screen http://postimg.org/image/insci3ubd/.

[theterminator93]

Just did this to my trusty T601F this afternoon with a T9900. I have 2x Axiom PC2-6400 4GB DIMMs with Micron chips which I have flashed SPDs for DDR2-667 (they wouldn't boot with no SPD reflash) so they can be added to the "works" list of memory.

After doing the mod, I was running in to issues after booting into Windows initially - random coded BSODs almost immediately after logging in (most of which pointed to CPU issues when looked up online) - but only when SpeedStep was enabled. With SpeedStep disabled I saw 1.6GHz at 1.0V in CPUz - then remembered I had been using IBM_ECW to undervolt the T9300 to 1.05V at full clock speed. So I disabled management in IBM_ECW to see if the system would come up stable with SpeedStep reenabled... and sure enough, it's running like a charm now. I may play with voltages later on after I'm positive the T9900 is stable under all conditions.

Long story short... make sure you aren't undervolting your old CPU BEFORE you put in the new one!

[RMSMajestic]

After all if the mod doesn't work, we have a paper-weight of a CPU

After cutting these pins on Q9000 it worked normally in W700 but it have "??? MHz" on BIOS screen http://postimg.org/image/insci3ubd/.

This didn't happen to my QX9300 on 8730w though (5 pins insulated by nail top)

[SaskFellow]

Well I just plopped down for a QX9300...

Maybe I can get away without hacking the board to run 1066mhz FSB.

Just set the multi, underfoot it a little and plug along at 2.2Ghz.

[fourthree]

How much of a difference between C0/E0 stepping for X9100?

[triturbo]

Significant. Well at least it was. On the same machine I was able to get X9000 (SLAZ3 - the better sample, same as SLB48) to 3.2GHz where the QHBQ got to 3.6GHz at slightly lower temps. It was worth the ~50% price premium. Nowadays I don't think that you'll find an E0 and if you do, I don't think that it would be a good deal (last time I've seen QHBQ, was a couple of years ago and it was $200).

After cutting these pins on Q9000 it worked normally in W700 but it have "??? MHz" on BIOS screen http://postimg.org/image/insci3ubd/.

This didn't happen to my QX9300 on 8730w though (5 pins insulated by nail top)

I see, thanks.