Help Upgrading presario c500 series notebook - Page 6

bccpucallpa,

Welcome to the forum!

Unfortunately, a Core Duo will not work in board 441696-001 as far as I know. Everest, PC-Wizard, and CPU-ID all report "i943/940 GML" as the North Bridge on boards 441696-001 and 445605-001. This is technically correct as they are in the same family (hence the "/" meaning and/or). Unfortunately, it is misleading.

Board 441696-001 is equipped with i940 GML. I have visually inspected mine and know this for fact (if I could take a clear picture of it, I would, but the print is so small. I needed a magnifying glass to make it out). i940 GML seems to support ONLY single core, Yonah based (32-bit) CPUs. The max I have gotten working is a Core Solo T1350 (one core, 1.86 GHz, 533 MHz bus).

That being said, I was not able to pull together funds to test a Core Duo PERSONALLY. Based on what OTHERS have said, I gather they do not work. All the information I've found elsewhere and in posts here from what I remember suggests that even Yonah based Pentium Dual-Cores and Core Duos (which are the same core, just different amounts of L2 cache if I recall correctly) will not boot on 441696-001.

If you have the money to spare and want to TRY a Core Duo (they're really not that expensive at this point), I would say that's your call. Worst that happens is it doesn't work and you have a chip to sell. The information I've seen and worked with so far says the Core Solo T1350 is the top you can get for that board.

I hope that helps answer your question. Corrections are always welcome. Being wrong just means you know more now than you did before. I love being wrong.

OShadowFoxO Hello, thanks for the reception!

Unfortunately, taking into account the value of the notebook is not worth risking a wrong processor.

Thank you doubt the information they are great!
I intend to replace the motherboard and processor so finding a place cheap, reliable, and send it to my country.

Once you have the motherboard in hand, post detailed pictures of what's different.

Extras:
Here is running 2gb DDR2 800
Use the notebook to media center, plan to mount it in a small office, without a monitor and keyboard.
Using XBMC it has little hiccups with. RMVB

Thank you for your expertise answers this notebook is awesome!
Greetings!

Edited by bccpucallpa - 6/9/11 at 7:40pm

OShadowFoxO,

 

Thanks a lot for your posts. It helped me to successfully upgrade my mother in law's Presario C500 notebook. After a bios update I replaced a Celeron M 440 CPU with a (used) Core 2 Duo T7600. The information on this page was also helpful: http://www.cpu-world.com/Sockets/Socket%20479%20(mPGA479M).html . According to this webpage the T7600 is the fastest possible upgrade for Socket 479 mPGA.

 

Processor calculations per second going up from 3.5 to 5.6 is not bad at all; but that doesn't  reflect the real improvement of the user experience  going from a single core to a dual core when using multiple applications simultaneously. Memory operations per second have also improved from 4.5 to 5.5.

 

 

 

 

 

Hello Matty75

What is the model of your motherboard?

Thanks !

 

hi people. Yesterday I've bought an Intel core duo t2300 processor (1.66 Ghz, 667mhz FSB, 2MB Cache...) in order to upgrade my Compaq C500EA (european version, france).
(I had an Intel Pentium Mobile D 430, 1.73 Ghz)

So I dismounted the laptop, and etc. When I wanted to start the computer nothing happened... black screen, no BIOS...
So I put back the old processor.

I've read all posts in this thread, and now i'm so dissapointed that my beloved (3years old) c500 laptop can't have a 2 core processor ...

I've also bought 2*1Gig ram @667 Mhz, and now i'm wondering if they will work?

Before buying ram, i've run a 'Crucial' (for choosing rams) test and it told that the laptop can handle 2*2Gig ram.

but people are blocked @2gig ram...

 

what's wrong with intel's chipset?

 

><

Hello!!!
Look under the sticks of RAM has a label with the number of the motherboard, buy only the number with the information posted here that will know what happened.

As for RAM, I already used a 2gb ddr 800 without any problems

I've already looked and I have the 441696-001 version ... which means the Intel 940GML chipset...
and I havent received RAMs yet, maybe in two days. I'll let you guys know

Hello Truva55,

As bccpucallpa noted: Look under your RAM sticks for the motherboard label. My guess, from your information, is that you have board 441696-001. The board is equipped with Intel chip i940GML. As I've noted elsewhere in the thread, this board and chipset will not support any dual-core CPUs as far as I am aware, and only 32-bit at that. In other words single-core, Yonah-based CPUs.

If you want to run a dual core CPU, the only way I've found is to purchase and install board 445605-001 which is equipped with the i943GML. This will support 64-bit, 667 MHz bus, dual-core CPUs (including Socket M Core 2 Duo chips).

Please keep in mind that this is based on information I've found by experimenting. I have a C503WM that I performed that very procedure on and it is currently running a Core 2 Duo T5600 without complaint. BUT, it had to be board 445605-001.

As far as RAM, both boards support up to 2 GB. This was with either 2x 1 GB sticks, or ONE 2 GB stick. At least, mine functioned that way.

All this information is based on my own tests and experiments. I don't mean to step on anyone else's toes here by trying to sound as if I'm THE guy, I just want to share what I know. If anyone can provide more information or a counter-point, I welcome it. I'd love to learn more!

Regards,
OShadowFoxO

Whoop, you snuck your reply in while I wasn't looking. Heh

Thank you anyway for your answering, and yes we need testers like you ...

I just wanna know, where can I find that board? can you please tell me the place where you get it.

Thanks again.

Hello Truva,

The place I get my replacement boards from is this online shop:

http://www.getpartsonline.com/

They have many different boards for many different brands of laptops. You can also find some CPUs and other assorted parts at fairly decent prices. Just make sure any boards you find are labeled N or NP rather than R (which stands for Refurbished). You might get a decent board from an R, but I prefer not to risk it myself.

I got my 445605-001 there as well as a replacement board for my DV9700. Both work beautifully. They're showing NP 445605-001 in stock for $50 right now.

I hope this helps.

Hello Truva,
The leading expert on the C500 is OShadowFoxO.
Everything he wrote works perfectly here on my C503us.
Best of all is the empirical evidence about what he has, can do what he says is right!

 

I would do what he did, replace the motherboard and buy a new processor but I bought a Pavilion dv4 for U.S. $ 70.00 dismantled and all I'm concentrating on it at the moment.

 Hi all,

 

I have registered here to give my feedback about the "third" mobo featured in C500's. I have a 4-year-old C540EA (French version) that is built on a 441695-001 board. But unlike the 441696-001 it proved to be compliant with dual-cores since it came with a Pentium Dual-Core T2060 (actually it is a 1.6 GHz Core Duo (Yonah) with 1 MB of L2 cache instead of 2). I don't know what chipset is installed on this board (i940 or i943 ?) and I couldn't find this information on the web. I haven't tested any other CPU.

 

441695-001 board can probably run any other Yonah dual-core processor with 533 MHz FSBs (as far as I know, up to T2450)  but I don't know if it can handle a 667 MHz FSB and Merom CPUs, like the 445605-001. Too bad because I was planning to buy a T7200 to put inside my laptop ... Have you got further information about this board ? Thanks a lot.

 

qapmoc

Qapmoc,

Welcome to the forum!

If the board is running a dual-core already, in my experience it's likely it's running an i943GML. This is interesting to me as 441695-001 is the only board I have no experience with yet.

If it is already running a dual-core, it's POSSIBLE it will support a Merom based dual-core. It's definitely Socket M still, at least. Of course, there's always a chance it will only support Yonah single- and dual-cores, but again I can't provide any other information on it since I haven't used that particular board. Either way, before you test, I would make sure it's running the latest BIOS version (F.24 I believe still). I would be VERY interested in two things if you decided to test it out yourself as an experiment:

A)Whether or not it does support Core 2 Duos, and B)If it will post with 3 GB of RAM or more. As you might've read from previous posts, my 441696-001 will post with 3 GB (though Windows only said it would use 2 GB of it), but my 445605-001 will not. This seems somehow incongruous to me with the higher chipset involved, but I've seen stranger things in computers.

If you decide to test it out, please do let us know what your results are. If board 441695-001 proves more capabable than 445605-001 in the right ways, I may just upgrade again. Heh Of course, once my next paycheck hits I may decide to take the plunge myself for the sake of experimentation. In the mean time, I will see if I can find any information beyond the (obviously flawed) information on HP's parts website.

Regards,
O Shadow Fox O

Aaaaaaand speed update,

So far all the information I've found quotes the (unreliable) HP parts website. That information is, as far as I know, wholly inaccurate. Fortunately, the shop I go to online for my replacement motherboards quotes a new 441695-001 at only $50. I may also go ahead and snag a cheap Yonah Pentium Dual-Core from another site for further testing, depending on how brave I get. The chief problem I face is that right now my C500 is being used as my work laptop since I don't have a company machine yet. This means I cannot disassemble it until I actually HAVE a company machine since I NEED it for that purpose and can't risk a disassembly that might render it useless.

Even if I wind up not using it, if only for the sake of the information, I may just go ahead and buy one at the end of this week once all my bills clear and at least LOOK at it to tell you all what NB chip it has (i940 or i943). I am GUESSING right now that the primary difference between them would be international requirements (Since qapmoc stated C540EA was a French machine). However, since it DOES support a dual-core Yonah, there's obviously more to it than that.

Barring any other posts to reply to before then, I will let you all know what I may find once I make the order and have the part in my possession to inspect.

Regards,
O Shadow Fox O

Hi OShadowFoxO,

 

Thanks a lot for your reply. Effectively I've read that i940 can only handle single-cores so it should be an i943. Also, I would be really interested to know whether it's possible or not to install more than 2 GB of RAM on this board. For the moment I have 2x512 MB installed and I plan to buy more chips very soon. Finally I think I'm not gonna try to change the CPU right now since it is the machine I'm writing my PhD thesis on so it will be safer to wait until the defense before dismantling it ;)

Please let me know if you do some experiments on this particular board.

 

Best,

qapmoc

Qapmoc,

I will definitely be doing the experimentation before TOO much longer. The board is fairly cheap, I just need a free weekend to mess around with it. The single hardest part of the disassembly is making sure that the cooling pad on the NB chip stays in one piece during removal.

What I am interested in seeing, primarily, is if it is simply a matter of an international board versus American or if there's something else in there. Generally speaking, so far the boards I've seen in HP's numbering system get HIGHER in capability the higher the number of the board is. (IE 441696-001 equipped w/ i940GML, 445605-001 equipped with i943GML - 461068-001 equipped with GeForce 8400M GS, 461069-001 equipped with GeForce 8600M GS - Last two boards are DV 9000 series boards, by the way).

That means that, if you're running a T2060 in 441695-001, that it's an oddity from that. Is it running i943GML? Or could it, and I hesitate to say this before I've had a look, but... Could it POSSIBLY have even a 945? THAT would be perfect, as it would definitely support higher than 2 GB of RAM. Odds are it's the 943, but I want to have a look all the same. Plus, it never hurts to have a spare board laying around (especially since my only current spare is the less capable 441696 and either my Celeron M 430 or my Core Solo T1350).

And this is why I want to check it personally. XD

Anyway, I will definitely report back in a week or two once I have the board in hand and have had a chance to look at it with my magnifying glass.

Regards,
O Shadow Fox O

OShadowFoxO,

 

The only thing I'm sure is that my board doesn't have a i940GML chipset since I've read everywhere that this chipset cannot handle any dual core. I also really doubt it is a i945, primarily because of its product number, and also because in Europe we usually get the same products as americans, only the price is higher, hehe.

 

In this topic you will read that any i943GML mobo can only support 2 GB of RAM. A guy reported to POST with 2 GB + 512 MB sticks but it doesn't seem to work for everybody, and maybe it explains why you could POST with 3 GB but couldn't use them in Windows - hardware has specifications that you can sometimes overpass, and sometimes not. So, I plan to buy 2x 1 GB of RAM (the laptop came with 2x 512 MB installed) and to swap the original 80 GB 5400t hard drive with a 500 GB 7200t Samsung MP4. It will be a nice upgrade for as low as 70 Euros

 

 

Best,

qapmoc

Qapmoc,

Yup, that's basically exactly right. I've found most of that out on my own through my experiements. That's why a portion of the last two pages are me elaborating on what I found. I just thought it odd that the i940GML (which supports only single-core and 32-bit) would POST with 3 GB (and report it as such in the BIOS) but not utilize it in Windows while the i943GML (which supports dual-cores and 64-bit) wouldn't even POST with it let alone boot into Windows.

And this is why I want to experiment and get the board you have. Maybe, for whatever reason, that board will post with more than 2 GB AND support dual-core, in which case it's win-win for me. Heheh If not, then like I said at least I have a capable spare handy.

I sincerely doubt it's the 945 myself, for the record, but either way I want to have a look at it and see what's up. After all, as you can read from my sig. MY C500 was a C503WM, which HP's parts website lists as being built with 441695 but in fact came with 441696. Stuff like that makes me scratch my head and wonder what's up. I will be ordering the board tomorrow when I get home from work so hopefully by the end of the week I'll have some answers for you!

Those sound like great upgrades, by the way. I am sorely tempted to pop a cheap SSD in mine. If I can't have 3 GB+ of RAM, that might all on its own make the system sustainable for some time to come.

Regards,
O Shadow Fox O

 

 

Well, my opinion is that HP (like other vendors) is not interested in providing exact specifications to allow users to upgrade their machine, as they wouldn't need to buy a brand-new one anymore, hehe. Another explanation: the factory ran out 441695, so they just mounted what they got at hand, and didn't report it in the specs.

 

 

That's really cool ! So I'll wait for some news before buying something. It is exactly right that a SSD could erase the need for more than 2 or 3 GB of RAM, as swapping would be a lot quicker. The only drawback is that a GB on a SSD costs the same than a dozen of GB on a classic hard drive ...