Z61t, getting the most power out of it....

[PandorasThinkpad]

Hey!

Just have this model and i like to know which possible ways of modding there would be....

there's already the release 3 mainboard so there should even work the T7600.

At the moment i have the T7200 and i'm running elementary os on it...there's also already 4gb Ram, just to get running the supported 3gb in dual channel mode...


Well, SSD, i don't really trust such drives,....

Any other suggestions....what else would i be able to do?

Thanks a lot,

sincerly,

Pandora

[brchan]

Why don't you trust SSDs? They are superior to HDDs in speed, reliability, power consumption, almost everything. Even prices for good SSDs have come quite down. Also, the issue of wear on the SSD flash cells and performance degradation is not a problem anymore. TRIM and much better firmware has made this a non issue.

Other than that, you could switch your OS to something like Linux mint or Lubuntu which use ~30% less resources in my experience. If you want to go further, Crunchbang Linux (Debian derivative) and Arch Linux will use even fewer resources ( idle at ~56mb ram) and be very fast. Bootup with my relative's T60 with HDD on Arch linux took 7 seconds, while my T23 took 11 seconds (this includes all installed wireless, drivers, applications I used)! However, you basically will have to build Linux from scratch with Arch Linux, which can be a bit challenging. Crunchbang with similar performance will be usable out of the box, but will also need some configuration to squeeze out even more performance, but both will be faster than the OS you currently have.

[jronald]

My personal machine is a Z61t with T7200 and a Lenovo SSD. Im running W7 and while Im not a huge fan of Windoze, Im impressed. Boot is fast, I installed it and other than the finger print reader, it loaded all of the drivers.

As a fluke I also loaded Zorin on a Z61t, and like Winblows it ran just fine.

If your not into SSD's by a name brand 7200 rpm SAT HDD, and load the OS of your choice. Mine has done everything I have ever asked it to do with no complaints. Im not a gamer, but normally have numerous windows open, listening to music much of the time.

Ron

[HarryWild]

I have done all the mods on my z61t and it is rocking. The SSD made all the difference in the world. Added a Sumsung Pro Drive running Windows 8. Boot up time is like lightning! Maybe 10-12 seconds? Before it would take maybe a full 1 1/2-2minutes??? Web browser is instantaneous too! It like wow!

You need to get past your bias and get with the new technology that been around for about 6 years! It been a life saver.

Here is my link on my upgrades on the z61t: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=107842

[600X]

The T7600G has an unlocked multiplier, so you can easily overclock it to 3GHz if you wish to. An SSD is essential, the performance boost is tremendous, however, a fast, high density spinning drive is still better than nothing, in case you don't want an SSD. (500GB 7200rpm)

[dr_st]

I don't see anyone here mentioned T7600G. Does that even work in a Z61t? Assuming it does - will it not burn the hell out of the cooling system at those speeds? And won't it cost more than a new, more powerful laptop, like 3 times over?

[PandorasThinkpad]

First thanx for all given answers,

well, the cpu is the T7200, so it wouldn't make much sense to upgrade to an T7600 or am i wrong. This cpu will cost about 99 Euro, the price of the T7200 was 25 Euro.

What i will do, buy an 500 GB 7200 Drive....

Ram is already 4GB working in dual channel mode....

so there is no other way of tuning?

Kind regards,

PT

[ZaZ]

I'd agree with others that a SSD more that any other part has the potential to make your system seem faster, but you're right in that if the SSD goes, you're done. With a hard drive it can sometimes gives signals it's going, though not always. All of this points out a good back up is essential for anything you can't afford to be without.

Perhaps another option if you're distrustful of SSDs, would pick up a small one, say 60-120GB to use as a boot drive, then modular caddy for the bay where you can put your hard drive for storage. That way if the SSD goes, the hard drive and your important files wouldn't be effected, though the failure rates for SSDs, across the board, are very low.

I can't see the CPU making any practical difference, even if you're running it at or near capacity all the time.

[dr_st]

Max out CPU, drive and RAM - what more can there possibly be?

[PandorasThinkpad]

So there has no one until now done a real mod on such a machine? Such as making an franken-z-pad, for example?


This is what i am interested in, what anyone might have made and how he or she has made it....


Such answers are very welcome....


Kindly best wishes,

Pandora

[dr_st]

Franken-z-pad may be difficult, since I don't know of any other laptop that shares the Z61t chassis (except the older Z60t).

[RealBlackStuff]

The Z60 and Z61 are lookalikes, but that's where the similarities end.
Z60 is based on the T43
Z61 is based on the T60.
T43/T60 do not mix and are not Frankenpad candidates.
Apart from that, both Z6x are also ordinary widescreen models, so who gives a hoot about them?

[Saucey]

I was gonna see if I could toss a W500 mobo onto a Z60m chassis but a lot of the ports were different and then there was the fan, Z series is a lot different then the T and W.
After just opening it up to clean the machine, I decided it would be too much of a task to do. I didn't have a dremel either, I didn't want to just hack away with a saw. So I resold em.

[ajkula66]

Love the Z series, especially in the Titanium guise.

With that said, the major parts such as planars for the higher-end models are next to impossible to come by and their overall failure rate is pretty darn high.

They were Lenovo's unloved child, created in a hurry with not much afterthought and nowadays those facts are coming to haunt their owners.

I'd be absolutely floored if one could fit a later board in any Z-series unit without severely endangering/compromising the solidity of the structure.

[PandorasThinkpad]

Hi ajkula66 and all the others,


the Z61t i own reaches out the limit what might be able, just with parts and not with any modding indeed. For now it has only 2GB Ram in, but that's just cause i needed it otherwise, the palmrest has two scratches in the surrounding of the touchpad and then this big breach at the right under the keyboard (just watch this out, there are pictures of my Z61t....http://kleinanzeigen.ebay.de/anzeigen/s ... ?ref=myads). Take a look at picture 3, 4 and 5. There is absolutely no way to find an fitting palm (FRU 41W4842) in good condition here in europe (there are only some in us, but they want to be payed with paypal,..).




So i thought, hmmm try to sell it on the ebay small advertisements, but the battery isn't really that good anymore and just the 75 Euro i want to get isn't anyone willing to pay, until now there's no really interest in it.

Just get back to modding, might it be possible to overclock the T7200 or T7400, the T7600 produces to much heat, just in normal function, so this wouldn't be a good candidate for such an experiment...

Greetings,

Pandora

[Saucey]

I would guess that the Z61 would cool better than a T60 because of the small vents on the bottom of the fan.
But exhaust area seems smaller than a T60... Bah who knows.

[ajkula66]

Just get back to modding, might it be possible to overclock the T7200 or T7400,

No.

The only "overclockable" CPU from that era is T7600G, and that one would run you more than the machine is worth.

[PandorasThinkpad]

I've searched ebay, the only dealer offering such an cpu is an american one.....http://www.ebay.de/itm/Intel-Mobile-Cor ... 233c7b805c

With 4GB of Ram and the T7200 it's quite a fine machine, so i will watch out for some cheap dual channel modules of 2GB and i will stay with my little bid wrecked Z61t.

But any mods on this type of thinkpad are always very welcome...

Kindly,

Pandora