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Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

X60/X61 and X60t/X61t Series
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nachetb
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Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#1 Post by nachetb » Fri Sep 25, 2020 5:25 pm

Hey guys! So this is the last part of my x61 upgrade questions. After reviving this 13 year old laptop and replacing or upgrading almost every single component on it, I still got two upgrades to do on it.

1. About the fan sound. Mine has the same issue as this onehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXm6ilpAdFg sounds and vibrates a lot. Ive read online its a common issue with this laptop, but havent found a common solution. The fan on my machine is the black plastic one with 3 holes/vents. Ive read here using the all copper heatsink+fan can be a solution?

2. More or less the same thing with the screen upgrade. Ive read here and there different ways but havent found clear solution. Is the most common way to go for an x61t higher res ips screen? what would be needed for that, an inverter and modifying the screen? if not whats the best way to upgrade the screen both in res and non cfl backlit?

axur-delmeria
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#2 Post by axur-delmeria » Sat Sep 26, 2020 4:45 am

For the high-res IPS, you need:

* modified LCD cable, or adapter

* flash SXGA+ BIOS

* modify LCD's mounting frame -- basically remove those mounting tabs that stick out from the sides

Regarding the fan: if it rattles, replace it. If you can't, lubricate it.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

nachetb
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#3 Post by nachetb » Mon Sep 28, 2020 8:25 am

axur-delmeria wrote:
Sat Sep 26, 2020 4:45 am
For the high-res IPS, you need:

* modified LCD cable, or adapter

* flash SXGA+ BIOS

* modify LCD's mounting frame -- basically remove those mounting tabs that stick out from the sides

Regarding the fan: if it rattles, replace it. If you can't, lubricate it.
is the fan issue then an aging problem? i thought new fans could have the same issue due to design

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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#4 Post by dr_st » Tue Sep 29, 2020 12:09 am

nachetb wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 8:25 am
is the fan issue then an aging problem? i thought new fans could have the same issue due to design
Of course it's an aging problem, or has your fan been rattling all 13 years? :wink:

The rattling is a result of the fan's bearings wearing out. Different fan designs are more resilient to it, others less; however, a 13-year service life is always respectable. On almost every Thinkpad I've had, I ended up replacing the fan every 5 years or so. For some of them I've done it twice (T42 and T60). And for T60 I additionally lubricated the replacement fan after it started rattling again. If these machines had seen heavier use in the past 5 years, I'm sure I would have needed another fan by now.

Regards an X61 fan, based on a friend's experience, I can say that lubricating the fan will probably mask the issue for some time (just like on my T60), but eventually it will have to be replaced.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

nachetb
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#5 Post by nachetb » Mon Oct 05, 2020 5:16 am

dr_st wrote:
Tue Sep 29, 2020 12:09 am
nachetb wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 8:25 am
is the fan issue then an aging problem? i thought new fans could have the same issue due to design
Of course it's an aging problem, or has your fan been rattling all 13 years? :wink:

The rattling is a result of the fan's bearings wearing out. Different fan designs are more resilient to it, others less; however, a 13-year service life is always respectable. On almost every Thinkpad I've had, I ended up replacing the fan every 5 years or so. For some of them I've done it twice (T42 and T60). And for T60 I additionally lubricated the replacement fan after it started rattling again. If these machines had seen heavier use in the past 5 years, I'm sure I would have needed another fan by now.

Regards an X61 fan, based on a friend's experience, I can say that lubricating the fan will probably mask the issue for some time (just like on my T60), but eventually it will have to be replaced.
Yeah, thats what I thought at first. Its just that after reading somethig online, I thought even new fans had rattle, cause of design issues. Thing is, I bought a new fan, but ive just realized the fan is somehow connected to the heatsink, will it be possible to replace only the fan or do I have to buy an entire heatsink?

nachetb
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#6 Post by nachetb » Mon Oct 05, 2020 5:28 am

axur-delmeria wrote:
Sat Sep 26, 2020 4:45 am
For the high-res IPS, you need:

* modified LCD cable, or adapter

* flash SXGA+ BIOS

* modify LCD's mounting frame -- basically remove those mounting tabs that stick out from the sides

Regarding the fan: if it rattles, replace it. If you can't, lubricate it.
After reading here in the forums I tought about this one https://es.aliexpress.com/item/710816705.html. I know that chinese screens arent as good as original ... Im just looking for a screen with higher resolution and better looking colours than the original one. Does anyone have any experience with these screens and if they are worth it

axur-delmeria
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#7 Post by axur-delmeria » Mon Oct 05, 2020 6:19 am

Legendary LED kit maker Xiphmont wrote a bit about the SXGA+ screens that pop up on Aliexpress: viewtopic.php?t=125590

Take the time reading the entire thread, as Xiphmont revises his opinion regarding the screens in a later post.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

nachetb
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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#8 Post by nachetb » Thu Oct 08, 2020 6:09 am

axur-delmeria wrote:
Mon Oct 05, 2020 6:19 am
Legendary LED kit maker Xiphmont wrote a bit about the SXGA+ screens that pop up on Aliexpress: viewtopic.php?t=125590

Take the time reading the entire thread, as Xiphmont revises his opinion regarding the screens in a later post.
I read that, so, summary, their okay as long as you know they arent original -100s?

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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#9 Post by axur-delmeria » Thu Oct 08, 2020 9:34 pm

nachetb wrote:
Thu Oct 08, 2020 6:09 am
I read that, so, summary, their okay as long as you know they arent original -100s?
You may have to adjust VR1 (I don't know where it's located honestly) if you experience the issues that he did. Some of them won't look as good as the original due to the replacement polarizer being of lower quality.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

nachetb
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Location: Madrid, Spain

Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#10 Post by nachetb » Sat Oct 10, 2020 12:48 pm

axur-delmeria wrote:
Thu Oct 08, 2020 9:34 pm
nachetb wrote:
Thu Oct 08, 2020 6:09 am
I read that, so, summary, their okay as long as you know they arent original -100s?
You may have to adjust VR1 (I don't know where it's located honestly) if you experience the issues that he did. Some of them won't look as good as the original due to the replacement polarizer being of lower quality.
Thats good enough for me as long as it looks better than the lower resolution one im using. May I ask what VR1 is?

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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#11 Post by rkawakami » Sat Oct 10, 2020 4:14 pm

nachetb wrote:
Sat Oct 10, 2020 12:48 pm
Thats good enough for me as long as it looks better than the lower resolution one im using. May I ask what VR1 is?
Yes, you may :).

edit: Okay, enough of me being a smart@ss. VR typically stands for "voltage regulator". It would be the system inside the laptop which provides power for the circuits in question. How one adjusts it is another story. I don't know enough about that to provide accurate advice other than to say it probably does NOT involve using a screwdriver to tweak a potentiometer.
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X22 X24 X31 X41 X41T X60 X60s X61 X61s X200 X200s X300 X301 Z60m Z61t Z61p 560 560Z 600 600E 600X T21 T22 T23 T41 T60p T410 T420 T520 W500 W520 R50 A21p A22p A31 A31p
NOTE: All links to PC-Doctor software hosted by me are dead. Files removed 8/28/12 by manufacturer's demand.

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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#12 Post by axur-delmeria » Sat Oct 10, 2020 8:38 pm

rkawakami wrote:
Sat Oct 10, 2020 4:14 pm
edit: Okay, enough of me being a smart@ss. VR typically stands for "voltage regulator". It would be the system inside the laptop which provides power for the circuits in question. How one adjusts it is another story. I don't know enough about that to provide accurate advice other than to say it probably does NOT involve using a screwdriver to tweak a potentiometer.
Uhh, I hate to say this but you got it the other way around. It is a variable resistor that needs to be tweaked. Here's a link to Xiphmont's post on that same thread.

For the TL;DR, here's a quote at the end of that post:
it sure looks to me right now that this is an adjustment to balance panel drive in the center versus the edges of the screen. It's normally fixed after adjustment at the factory with a little lacquer, but it's not the slightest bit surprising it might get knocked loose or dissolved during rebuilding or modding.

VR1 probably can't mitigate a genuinely frotzed polarizer but it's obviously worth trying it just to see if it was never the polarizer at all.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

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Re: Upgrading an X61 (Part 3)

#13 Post by rkawakami » Sun Oct 11, 2020 2:29 pm

Sorry about that. That's what happens when I've been away from the forum for the last two years :oops: :eek:

My electronics background tends to see VR as voltage regulator, rather than variable resistor.
Ray Kawakami
X22 X24 X31 X41 X41T X60 X60s X61 X61s X200 X200s X300 X301 Z60m Z61t Z61p 560 560Z 600 600E 600X T21 T22 T23 T41 T60p T410 T420 T520 W500 W520 R50 A21p A22p A31 A31p
NOTE: All links to PC-Doctor software hosted by me are dead. Files removed 8/28/12 by manufacturer's demand.

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