IBM 770Z 9549-8BU

[cmarti]

I am currently working at my new project the laptop stated in the subject, but i was wondering does it has a mini pci slot? So i can install a wireless card?

I also want to install a PII 800mhz on it.

Wish me luck!

[pkiff]

I am currently working at my new project the laptop stated in the subject, but i was wondering does it has a mini pci slot? So i can install a wireless card?

This is one of my favorite ThinkPad models. No, it does not have a min-PCI card. Easiest way to get wifi is to use a PCMCIA/CardBus wifi card.

I also want to install a PII 800mhz on it.

You mean PIII! I'll be doing some work on my 770Z this week, replacing the motherboard. To replace the CPU in the 770Z, you really have to take apart the machine quite a bit, so be ready with that Hardware Maintenance Manual. I'd recommend replacing the memory on the motherboard with a tested, good 128MB PC-100 chip, as the current PC-66 will not work with your new PIII.

Good Luck!

Phil.

[cmarti]

pkiff


Question, Can i replace the ram with a 256 ram? Will it work? I have three 256 PC100 8 chips rams at hand right now.

And thanks for your advice, Good luck to you too!

[cmarti]

I am currently working at my new project the laptop stated in the subject, but i was wondering does it has a mini pci slot? So i can install a wireless card?

This is one of my favorite ThinkPad models. No, it does not have a min-PCI card. Easiest way to get wifi is to use a PCMCIA/CardBus wifi card.

I also want to install a PII 800mhz on it.

You mean PIII! I'll be doing some work on my 770Z this week, replacing the motherboard. To replace the CPU in the 770Z, you really have to take apart the machine quite a bit, so be ready with that Hardware Maintenance Manual. I'd recommend replacing the memory on the motherboard with a tested, good 128MB PC-100 chip, as the current PC-66 will not work with your new PIII.

Good Luck!

Phil.

Sorry, Yes i mean a PIII that was a typo.

[JHEM]

Question, Can i replace the ram with a 256 ram? Will it work? I have three 256 PC100 8 chips rams at hand right now.

No. And IIRC nor can you put more than 512MB RAM in the machine, e.g. 128+128+256, as one of the memory slots is shared with the "hidden" slot.

I went through this with an old 770Z more than two years ago and was never able to get it over 512MB regardless of what combination of memory sticks I tried.

Regards,

James

[cmarti]

Question, Can i replace the ram with a 256 ram? Will it work? I have three 256 PC100 8 chips rams at hand right now.

No. And IIRC nor can you put more than 512MB RAM in the machine, e.g. 128+128+256, as one of the memory slots is shared with the "hidden" slot.

I went through this with an old 770Z more than two years ago and was never able to get it over 512MB regardless of what combination of memory sticks I tried.

Regards,

James

Thanks James,

The i have to go and look for the two 128mb rams.

[pkiff]

No. And IIRC nor can you put more than 512MB RAM in the machine, e.g. 128+128+256, as one of the memory slots is shared with the "hidden" slot.

[...]The i have to go and look for the two 128mb rams.

Just a clarification here. I don't think James is saying you have to use the 128+128+256 config. I think he is saying that you can't get over 512MB, even if you try to put a 256 module on the motherboard.

There are other users who have left the 66MHz 64MB memory in the motherboard and installed two 256MB PC-100 low density chips in the two standard memory slots. That configuration I think would work for you and you wouldn't need to locate any additional memory -- and you wouldn't need to disassemble your machine the extra amount required to replace the motherboard memory. In such a config, I think the 66MHz on-board memory is disabled automatically during bootup with any PIII, since it is not compatible, though it is possible that you need to adjust the BIOS to disable this memory manually.

I personally use the 128+128+256 config because James had identified it as a working memory config way back a number of years ago, and at the time, two 128MB chips were a lot cheaper and easier to find than a 256MB chip.

Phil.

[cmarti]

I will go anyway with the 128 + 128 + 256 If that is already proven to work.

Another question, do you all think I will encounter any problems upgrading the cpu to PIII 850?

Thanks again...

[JHEM]

Another question, do you all think I will encounter any problems upgrading the cpu to PIII 850?

Well, yeah! The 770Z MB doesn't support Speedstep, so the CPU will only run at 600MHz IIRC. Also, you get an error on BOOT which can be cleared by hitting Esc, but it's a PITA.

You're better off with a PIII 500MHz MMC2. That's what I wound up putting in my 770Z, it runs flawlessly and without the BOOT error.

Just a clarification here. I don't think James is saying you have to use the 128+128+256 config.

Kinda' yes and no Phil. In this instance, he needs to upgrade the onboard memory to PC100 or there will be all kinds of problems with the CPU upgrade not playing nice with the original PC66 memory. If the project is just to MAX the RAM and leave the CPU alone, then two 256MB sticks work just fine as the onboard memory is mapped out.

Regards,

James

[pkiff]

Another question, do you all think I will encounter any problems upgrading the cpu to PIII 850?

Well, yeah! The 770Z MB doesn't support Speedstep, so the CPU will only run at 600MHz IIRC. Also, you get an error on BOOT which can be cleared by hitting Esc, but it's a PITA.

I'm going to be trying a PIII 800 in mine and see if I can get rid of the various PITAs by using some of the techniques from the folks working on upgrading their 600E's to PIIIs. One of the first things I'm going to try is simply using Win 2000 SP4, as some people running that OS on upgraded 600E's seem to have managed to get their PIII to run at max speed by using some kind of built-in CPU throttling that is not exactly the same as the SpeedStep throttling. This is something that does not make sense to me, so I want to test it myself and see exactly what happens on my machine.

If that doesn't work, then I think the only way to get a SpeedStep CPU to run at max speed will be to do some fancy soldering of resistors and/or cutting traces on the MMC-2 module itself -- this is again something that is already being done by some adventurous folks working on their 600E's.

You're better off with a PIII 500MHz MMC2. That's what I wound up putting in my 770Z, it runs flawlessly and without the BOOT error.

That's what I've got currently, and I agree with James that it is a great upgrade choice. No mods to the CPU required, and no worries about SpeedStep throttling -- the PIII 500MHz is not a SpeedStep enabled CPU. However, I think you still need to edit the BIOS to get rid of the L2 cache initialization error and then run the PowerLeap utility on startup to re-enable the L2 cache, but once you've got that set up it boots smoothly without any errors or additional key presses required.

Just a clarification here. I don't think James is saying you have to use the 128+128+256 config.

Kinda' yes and no Phil. In this instance, he needs to upgrade the onboard memory to PC100 or there will be all kinds of problems with the CPU upgrade not playing nice with the original PC66 memory. If the project is just to MAX the RAM and leave the CPU alone, then two 256MB sticks work just fine as the onboard memory is mapped out.

Oops. Right. Got it.

Phil.

[pianowizard]

This is one of my favorite ThinkPad models.

Why?

[cmarti]

Intel didn't made any NON speedstep enabled MMC-2 800mhz modules?

What is the fastest speed of the non speedstep modules?

[pkiff]

What is the fastest speed of the non speedstep modules?

PIII 500MHz is the fastest non-SpeedStep MMC-2 CPU module made by Intel.

[cmarti]

What is the fastest speed of the non speedstep modules?

PIII 500MHz is the fastest non-SpeedStep MMC-2 CPU module made by Intel.

In that case i will use a speedstep 650mhz module i think it will be the same because it wil run at 500mhz.

Too bad, but anyway please keep us updated with your project.

[pkiff]

This is one of my favorite ThinkPad models.

Why?

Mmmm....well, let's see. Mostly it's just personal preferences -- the 770Z is by no means "the best" ThinkPad model. My daily use computer is a 600X and I consider it a "better" computer than the 770Z in most ways. I think they were even released close to the same time. But there are some nice design touches of the 770Z that I like, and there is something about the overall design that appeals to me.

For example:

• The 8AU and 8BU 770Z's are the ones with the 13.7" 1280x1024 LCD screens which is a good size for me in 2006, and it was a fantastic screen in its day -- with 8MB video!! and a dedicated MPEG2 decoder card! Nobody could touch that in 1999!
• I also like the clunky, chunky tank feel of the 770 series generally: the 770Z feels more like a solid piece of industrial machinery than a flimsy little notebook (and it weighs about as much as a large, loose hunk of metal too!).
• I like the UltraBay II design with all the interchangeable parts in their nice simple rectangular boxes with their clean lines and uncluttered surfaces. I especially like that you can use a standard main battery in the UltraBay by using a special UltraBay II battery holder (that way you can use the same spare battery either in your UltraBay or in your main battery slot)
• I like the little plastic feet clips at the back that you use to raise up the laptop (and hence, provide an angle for the keyboard and increased ventilation on the bottom of the unit) -- I find it more comfortable to type on my 770Z than on my 600X as a result, even though the 600X has a keyboard that is reknowned for being good for typists.
• I like the physical volume knob on the side instead of the Fn key volume controls on some later ThinkPads.
• I like the fact that you can replace the motherboard memory because it is not soldered on the way it is on the 600 series. And that you can upgrade it to a PIII even though it wasn't design for this originally.
• And when you put the 770Z in a SelectaDock III, it becomes a desktop replacement in the true, original sense of the word -- you can add in up to 3 PCI cards in the dock along with a full-size desktop drive, and all your UltraBay II devices can be used in the additional docking station slot (though admittedly, once you add the SelectaDock, your laptop + dock will take up about as much space as a mid-sized tower laid down sideways on your desk!). Unlike the 600X, the 770Z allows you to swap UltraBay devices while docked (the 600X probably would allow you to swap them except that you can't reach the UltraSliim Bay release switch under the laptop, whereas on the 770Z the UltraBay II release switch is in the front)....

These are all just little things about the 770Z design that I like, they are not things that make it a computer I would recommend over a 600X. And I certainly wouldn't recommend it over most more recent ThinkPads for any reason. But it is not about "better", as I say, for me these are largely just personal taste issues.

Phil.

[tfflivemb2]

WOW, excellent review. One day I will get my hands on a 770Z...I already have a 770X.

[shined]

Let me give you some additional info for make the most of the 770X/Z.

Another question, do you all think I will encounter any problems upgrading the cpu to PIII 850?

Well, yeah! The 770Z MB doesn't support Speedstep, so the CPU will only run at 600MHz IIRC. Also, you get an error on BOOT which can be cleared by hitting Esc, but it's a PITA.

My answer is NO. You can get rid of the errors on boot and cleanly boot the system without needing to push any key by doing Sharedoc's bios hack. This bios hacking works fine no matter whether the CPU is SS or not. With this hack, PIII-850 will run fine at 700MHz.

Just a clarification here. I don't think James is saying you have to use the 128+128+256 config.

Kinda' yes and no Phil. In this instance, he needs to upgrade the onboard memory to PC100 or there will be all kinds of problems with the CPU upgrade not playing nice with the original PC66 memory. If the project is just to MAX the RAM and leave the CPU alone, then two 256MB sticks work just fine as the onboard memory is mapped out.

Basically, you can max out the memory by either 256+256 or 128+128+256 if do not do any FSB overclocking. But if you are thinking about overclocking the FSB from 100MHz to either 105MHz or 108MHz by the hardware hacking, you should go to 256+256. I tried to put 128+128+256 memory modules on two of 770X running at 108MHz of FSB, and the systems became very unstable. But the systems worked just fine with 256+256 of memory and 108MHz FSB.

[cmarti]

Thanks to all for the magnific information provided now I am more prepared.

If anyone would like to add something please feel free to do so.

Thanks again to all!

( Best forum in the planet )

[cmarti]

What is the fastest speed of the non speedstep modules?

PIII 500MHz is the fastest non-SpeedStep MMC-2 CPU module made by Intel.

Ok an update of how my 770Z project has gone too far..

Well now this is my set up:

Fujitsu 5,400 80 gb drive ( Very silent and fast )
PIII 650mhz running at 500mhz
KINGMAX 512mhz pc133 Ram

The difference?? Amazing feels like another computer. So much faster than before.

Thanks!! Phil for your help!