ASUS U Series Bamboo Collection Owners Thread (U33JC/U43JC/U53JC)

formated flash drive NTFS and copied the files over. Finally worked.

 

Thanks Quatro. This is awesom

 

Well, to my embarrassment, I now know the cause for both my low WEI processor score and the slight choppiness to my WiDi: the Super Hybrid Engine. I could have sworn I had tried both WEI and WiDi before I installed the Power4Gear utility, but turning off SHE did the trick. Quatro, thanks for dropping that line about SHE restricting the CPU. Too bad I can't give you any more rep.

My processor score now went up to 6.4, which is slightly lower than it should be but much better than 3.6. CPU usage while using WiDi in extended desktop mode averages around 40% now and playback is very good.

Unless I'm mistaken, SHE is supposed to be able to overclock the CPU 11%, which was my reason for enabling it. I know it is a power saving utility but I was under the impression that it could also boost performance.

 

SHE on my eeePC netbook can increase performance by o'cing the processor a little.

The SHE on the U33/35 series is clearly an entirely different animal. I was under the impression that the U35/45/33/43's SHE only helped to save on battery by slowing down the processor (via the BUS?).

UPDATE: No, I'm wrong. Here's the quote from the ASUS U35 ad page:

"ASUS’ exclusive Super Hybrid Engine pushes them beyond their conventional limits—by as much as 10%*—ensuring that the U35 runs CPU-intensive tasks like games and high definition movies without breaking a sweat."

So you fairly had every right to expect SHE to speed up your processor by 10% when needed. Beats me. On the eeePC's SHE, I had to manually tell SHE when to speed up (much like I do with P4G's templates.) Perhaps SHE works with High Performance to spped things up a bit? Wish I could play with it & see.

HERE is an interesting ASUS page on SHE (& a "legal disclaimer".) Hmm . . . all of their test units had i5's. Perhaps it only speeds up those processors that have turbo boost, which the i3 doesn't. But it can slow them all down.

 

Thanks for the info ! Perhaps the problem is that I don't have any control over SHE. All I have is a desktop gadget that turns it on or off. The Power4Gear utility only has the same option to turn SHE on or off.

With SHE turned off, according to CPU-Z my core speed is 2568MHz, which is about a 7% increase over the standard 2.4GHz. In the BIOS there is a setting for Easy Overclock which has normal, turbo, and extreme turbo options. I have extreme turbo selected by default. I am assuming this is responsible for the slight speed boost.

I ran the WEI over and now my CPU shows 6.8. That is more like it.

On another note, the U33 touchpad supports a 3 finger press that will launch an application. I set it to open the Optimus tool to see the GPU status. I couldn't figure out what program would be practical for a 3 finger press but I am loving being able to launch that tool with a simple press.

 

Wasn't your core speeds earlier somewhere in the 1100s? wow...so SHE can really tune that chip down? So is that a bonus? You can get some nice power...2.5Ghz with SHE off. Then turn her...i meant SHE, back on for some long time fun. hehe

 

How well does the U33JC handle Starcraft 2? Is there much / any difference in battery life compared to the U30JC? I'm trying to decide between the 2 and I have about 30 minutes before I can no longer get the U33JC for next day shipping on Amazon. I have a business trip on Saturday and I HAVE to get a new laptop to bring. I can't bring my enormous M17x to the client's office and ask him to wait as I look around for an outlet.

 

Battery life has consistently been better on the U30Jc, however a site or two have shown the U33Jc to be about on par. If you aren't doing any graphic or CPU intensive things, the U33Jc can last 8+ hours. I have been bringing it with me all day (usage of about 6 hours) and I always have battery left when I get home. I usually use a high-performance setting too since I know I won't go through the whole battery, but usually I'm also not doing anything that power intensive.

Anandtech's Review actually has the U33Jc edging out the U30Jc in a couple battery tests, but it is the exception rather than the rule.

How much battery life do you practically need? If an extra hour or two will make all the difference, go for the U30Jc. It also has the bonus of having the disc drive, if that appeals to you, as well as superior cooling (not that my U33 gets uncomfortably hot on the lap but it is a little warm).

Starcraft shouldn't be a problem with the settings dialed back a bit. I haven't heard anyone on here comment about playing it but I know people with similar models have had good results.

Yes, SHE really dialed back the performance which should help battery life. I have been using the U33 with SHE enabled for the last few days, and while it hasn't been surprisingly fast, it never felt slow either. Now everything does feel noticeably faster without SHE on, everything happens almost instantly.

I did have SHE enabled, but I also had Power4Gear in high-performance mode. If I kick it down to battery saving mode this thing should last a very long time on a charge.

 

The battery life isn't a huge deal. I got concerned because I've read some posts about people complaining about poor battery on the U30JC. Do I need to update my bios when / if I get it?

I know that the U30JC has a better video card than the U33JC (same card, different clocks) and it is a little more oriented towards gaming. I want something I can use to work on the go with, but also sit around and game for a few hours if I have time (SC2 and maybe WoW when Cata comes out). I think the U30JC might be a better bet?

 

You can easily overclock to the U30JC freq, it's the same silicon. Probably the same cooling solution. virtually no risk in taking up to the U30JC clocks. You can probably safely go much higher.

The U30JC lacks USB 3 & WiDi, you'll probably really wish you had USB 3 in a year or so.

 

The U30Jc-B1 actually has WiDi and the i3-370M, but not the USB 3.0.

So I'd think the main difference internally is USB 3.0 vs an internal DVD drive, if a person wants one, and slightly faster clocks on the GPU. It seems the extra thickness of the U33 (1.22") is helping it stay cool like the U30 (1.2") so I'll be interested to see how far some U33 owner can push their GPU clocks.

Externally, they are very different builds, each very nice in its own way (though I admit I'm partial to that lovely wood & chrome look). . . but I like my aluminum touchpad & gun-metal gray aluminum palm rest. I'd be hard-pressed to choose between them. The USB 3.0 is very tempting . . . yet I've grown accustomed to my ODD after going for 2 yrs w/o an internal DVD drive.

And I do like the U30's no air vents on the bottom. Hours on my lap and even bare legs and -- nothing. No heat beyond a slight warmth.

I set up my old Dell Vostro 1000 15" for a friend and found myself sweating. It was just too hot for my legs! I've been spoiled!

 

Did you order the U30Jc-B1? Was it from GenTech or who? Were you able to confirm that it was the gun-metal gray version?

Oh, and don't expect more than 2 hrs on any of these machines if you attempt to higher-graphics game while on battery. Watching video on the nVidia GPU while on battery will also reduce the battery life to quite low.

 

I wouldn't even attempt to game on battery. I ordered the U30Jc-B1 on GenTech like you told me They did confirm it was a darker, gun-metal gray.

 

Now, now. I didn't tell you anything. I merely suggested, esp if you were in a hurry and wanted no mistakes and the ability to double-check things.

And I say this as a person who buys most of his stuff on Amazon. I like Amazon a lot. But if I can, my next notebook will be from them. GenTech's responsiveness to my every email & query has be amazing.

Oh, and did they accept Paypal?

 

Yep! They did. Paypal is great because I trust them to handle my money and it makes the verification process easier. GenTech doesn't need to spend a day verifying my credit card information if I already spent weeks doing it with PayPal (takes time to confirm addresses / make deposits on bank accounts / credit cards in order for you to reinput the codes to verify you have access). Lets move our conversation of my U30JC to the U30JC discussion. I hate to derail a thread!

 

Fair enough, though the U30Jc's thread is pretty quiet since that model has been out 5 months.

 

I have a post there I'd like you to look @.

 

Looking . . .

 

Here is the picture of wireless card on U33JC that Quatro asked me about it, yes it's very easy to pull it out:

 

Frankly, I think everyone should be buying computers from you. I have never known a more helpful & involved ASUS or notebook reseller/authorized repairman in my life! That's not an ad. I'm just really impressed.

Ken Lee & GenTechPC definitely rock!

 

Totally agree and that's the reason why I bought my U33JC from GentechPC

 

I got my U33JC today (finally, should have ordered from Gentech instead because they ship faster!). In regards to some of the issues you guys have been having...

- My power button appears to be fine. When I press it, I feel it registering and it works. Nothing odd about it.

- USB boots fine for me (I use Grub, format fat32). I just go into the bios and select the usb drive. I use it for Acronis True Image iso's (v13 does not work, but v12 works fine)

 

So I tried to get a 1080P video to display on my TV through HDMI last night and discovered the inherent flaw in optimus - everything is handled by the intel drivers except 3D. first the video wouldn't resize when going into fullscreen. then after switching down to 720P it wouldn't fill the whole screen... intel drivers really suck for all of this. nvidia drivers handle multiple displays with multiple video feeds at different resolutions perfect... intel does not.

I'm going to try the new "run with graphics processor" option in the new drivers but i'm not sure what success I'll have. The intel chip will still handle all the timing and handshaking with the TV through HDMI, right? and I'll still end up with not fullscreen video(uderscan or overscan) and a feed that occasionally breaks up.


sigh...

 

Case1,

Since you mentioned earlier about reinstalling windows a few times, I assume you were in a similiar boat as me.

I have the U35JC, and after reinstalling windows, my CPU is only running at 1150mhz. I know this is symtomatic of SHE being turned ON. BUT, I've never downloaded anything from ASUS that turns it on.

Do you know how to turn it off? (without having to download the power4gear software - or am i stuck w/ having to use their asus software...)

 

Got the last U43jc-a1 in stock from Ken and Gen Tech PC. He's a great guy and was helpful from the first time I called all the way until I ordered. I got lucky he had 1 left after all pre-orders were processed. I'll be looking forward to getting my tracking number today.

 

Ok,

I managed to do a fresh install, many thanks to your guys for your help.

Now for the drivers, I noticed on the asus website driver download page, there are drivers from different manufacturers. e.g. such as the driver for the USB, wireless lan, bluetooth, and the camera.

Can someone tell me which specific driver to install, or doesnt it matter?

 

djcheeze, can you do a test of your windows experience score and let me know what your CPU score is?

Also, can you download CPU-Z to see if your processor is running with or without SHE on?

 

Is there anyway to force optimus to use the Intel gpu for programmes?
I do see I can set what I'd prefer, but it doesn't seem to make a difference, for example, I have a 4 year old laptop with Intel integrated graphics, plays 720 fine and standard definition great, yet with this it turns the nvidia gpu on for standard definition which it doesn't need to, it shouldn't even need to for HD either as the Intel gpu should deal fine with this.

 

Jungliste and Lordfreaker, I updated the bios, then installed the lastest Nvidia drivers from Nvidia's website (works fine). I even updated the intel drivers from Windows Update (works fine). Open the Nvidia control panel. and add all "desktop context menu, run with graphics processor context menu, display gpu activity icon in notification area." This way, you can simply right click on a program and choose "run with graphic processor" of Nvidia or intel and also see if Nvidia has kicked in by just hovering over the taskbar tray icon. Alternatively, you can go into the "manage 3d settings" and change the default graphics card for each program. I tried this with random programs and it works fine except for some microsoft programs such as paint and windows media player... I still haven't figured out why yet, but maybe because there are optimized settings that override the switch. I am not sure.

 

yeah, that right click context menu method works but I just launch all my apps through the pinned items on taskbar, I'd prefer it if I could just have my media players and browsers set to do it automatically, as I like the clean desktop with no icons on it, I have set up my popular programmes in the Nvidia control panel, but thats for preffered graphics, It still turns the Nvidia gpu on.

 

Just to let you know I have gotten the latest Nvidia 310m and intel HD drivers from their own sites, the Nvidia optimus drivers however refused to install.

 

I would probably just play around with the 'manage 3d settings' to setup new defaults for those programs. I have rarely seen the switch to Nvidia other than Photoshop, but I don't use intensive programs.

 

Im not sure if she is on or not cause i think im missing the installation for it. However usually the processor is on 1ghz when idle and would go up to 2.5ghz when in use

in the windows experience, i got 6.8 for processor, 5.9 for ram, 4.4 for graphics, 5.6 for gaming graphics, and 5.7 for hhd

 

I have no issues installing the latest Nvidia drivers from Nvidia. Have you updated your bios?

 

For those who already did a clean install, is there anything I should be aware of? Can I just erase all partitions and create 2 partitions, one for system and one for data?

All I need are the drivers, available on the CD provided by Asus or on Internet, and Windows 7. Correct me if I'm wrong!

Thanks

 

Now THAT is surprising. Perhaps I did run the WEI test before I downloaded Power4Gear, as there is now evidence that some setting can underclock the CPU besides SHE. I would say this has to be some power management setting. I currently am on batter and have SHE disabled, yet my power setting (Power4Gear High Performance) allows the CPU fall to about 1400MHz. I doubt your default power setting would have the CPU drop that far, but just check what the minimum processor state is in the advanced power management settings (right now mine is 5%).

I don't really understand what is going on here. So you are saying that through HDMI, Intel drivers handle all video output settings with no way for the Nvidia drivers to adjust settings? And your are having problems with video playback and setting different resolutions?

In my one experience hooking up through HDMI, everything went quite smooth. HD video playback was full screen and very smooth. I did have to adjust my TV to expand the picture so it would fill the whole screen.

So are you also saying programs that can utilize GPU acceleration don't allow Optimus to kick in when hooked up to HDMI? Most of my experience with external monitors involves WiDi, and Optimus seems to work fine.

Sorry if I'm not understanding everything correctly here. The switchable GPU technology confuses me when it comes to issues like yours.

For USB I used the NEC driver. You may want to try the Fresco driver though as the NEC one installs a worthless Host Controller Utility.

Use the most recent Intel(R) WiFi Wireless LAN Driver V13.2.0.30.

I use the newest BlueTooth driver and it works, although Windows Update suggests a newer driver that I haven't installed. My bluetooth does work now though.

The camera driver has to be the last Azureware Camera Driver V5.8.54000.205. I guess there are different camera mftrs and that is the one that matches our cameras.

Any other questions please ask. I have done a lot of trial and error with drivers and clean starts.

I had problems with the Nvidia drivers before I updated the BIOS. They installed fine for me but my computer would freeze up every time after the login screen.

 

I have the latest Nvidia drivers and it has not once frozen on me yet. I have been installing programs, multiple boots, multiple logins and everything has been smooth with the latest Nvidia drivers.

 

Have you updated your bios? I have them installed too and they work fine but before my bios update they were a no go.

I believe the new Nvidia driver actually boosted my WEI score but I don't know for sure.
Processor: 6.8, Memory 5.9, Graphics 4.4, Gaming Graphics 5.8, Primary Hard Disk 5.8. I think my gaming graphics were at 5.6 but I am not certain.

 

Case1, yah, I misread your comment. Yes, with the new bios, Nvidia installs fine.

 

Just to let everyone know, I just had a window pop up saying there was a problem activating my Windows license online. I had to call a number and go through an automated system to get my license certified genuine. Took maybe 4 minutes but if you do a clean install and use your OEM license, you may be looking at the same thing. Not that it is a big deal or anything, just FYI.

 

I don't know if anybody will have any idea why my laptop continues to "beep" randomly, but if anyone has a suggestion, I'd really appreciate it.

Problem:
Brief, single "beep", or "chirp" at seemingly random times.
Pretty sure it is being made by the motherboard because I heard it while in the BIOS screen, and it has that weird tinny sound of a BIOS beeping.

Setup:
Updated bios to 209
The upgraded HD, "Seagate XT 7200rpm Hybrid Drive 32MB Cache SATA II"
(I don't think anything else is relevant)

When:
I have HD Tune monitoring the HD activity and a CPU/Memory gadget monitoring that.

It beeps whether or not it's powered or running off of battery.

Annoyingly, it tends to beep when I'm not paying attention, but the times I have caught it, HD activity, read/write, is 0. However, it does not beep every time activity is 0. IOW, a condition of the beeping appears to be no activity, but not necessarily the cause.

It happens with programs running or after a fresh start. Seems unrelated to any applications.

The beeps can be two within a couple seconds of each other (i.e., not rapid), or 5, 10, 15, etc. minutes apart. No pattern as far as I can tell.

My theory:
The HD is shutting down (power saving?) and the motherboard/HD doesn't like it. The BIOS is beeping because it's an error of some type. However, I can't seem to find where to make that adjustment if it's possible, and I can't see anywhere in the BIOS to shut the noises off. Also haven't seen a list of BIOS error codes.

Again, any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

NBB1. Try playing around with the HD turn off options in Windows Power options, letting the drive turn off even faster or not at all, to see if it that is the culpit. You should also consider getting some tests on your memory and hard drive, to see if they are functioning fine. Also, turn off defrag for now too because Windows have a habit of auto defragging when you are away.

 

I just got the U43JC and dealing with a two video card laptop is pretty frustrating. I did the right click and set my programs to run with the nvidia gpu but the view state tool shows that none of the programs (IE, Office, games) will activate the gpu. The only time I can get the gpu to turn is when I turn go into the intel graphics control panel. Is there a way to always have the nvidia gpu on while plugged? This optimus thing doesn't seem to work at all for me.

 

I can confirm that I had to do this too (twice due to two installs). So if you do a clean install & use your OEM key, you'll probably have to phone in to get it activated. Not difficult, unless you live outside of the US, Canada or Europe.

 

Same with me, yesterday the activation window popped up, it was done in 5 minutes without any trouble.

 

Are there any rumors about the potential for a backlit keyboard mod?? I love my U33 but that would put it over the top for awesomeness...

 

I had a Seagate 7200rpm 500gb with an accelerometer that would stop disk access when it detected sudden motion. Whenever it did this, it would emit a short beep-like sound, along with an audible click as the heads locked into place and froze HD activity for a few seconds. Unfortunately, there was a firmware problem with certain lots that caused the sensor to go crazy and lock the hard drive randomly.

I'm not sure if the XT hybrid has an accelerometer, but if the beeping is accompanied by a momentary freeze in HD activity, this might be the culprit.

 

Thanks! That's an interesting suggestion since it would cover the "symptoms." When I was testing the memory last night, which took hours, it would randomly beep sitting by itself across the room (i.e., it was completely stationary). Assuming this is the problem, is there any solution to it other than sending it back to GenTech for a new HD? Do you think I could just upgrade the firmware at home to fix it and avoid the hassle?
...

In a related problem, I tried some of isosunrise's suggestions and went to test the memory (particularly since the AMI BIOS listing of error codes says a single beep is memory related; I tried "reseating" the memory and it didn't do anything) with Windows 7 memory testing application. On reboot, it said in part, "Windows failed to start. ... [insert installation disc and repair].
File: \boot\memtest.exe
Status: 0xc0000225
Info: The selected entry could not be loaded because the application is missing or corrupt."

I guess I'll have to put a Windows 7 ISO on a USB key and try repairing with that? (I don't have a portable CD/DVD drive).

I tried using Memtest86+ bootable USB to test, but couldn't get the U33JC to boot from the USB even with it as the first boot device in the BIOS (I didn't try too many options).

Eventually, resorted to a Windows-based memory tester, which is a method I'm suspicious of. After several hours, there were no memory issues.

I also adjusted settings to make sure the HD didn't turn off.

However, "Also, turn off defrag for now too because Windows have a habit of auto defragging when you are away." I couldn't find that setting.

Ultimately, bigdoof's suggestion seems most likely at this point.

EDIT: Seems like this is an "issue". Found on the Seagate boards is this video of the "sound": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsg84yqzvhs
I use the laptop only for typing, web browsing, so I don't notice any momentary freezing that you would see in video/audio.

 

On a side note, NBB1, so you have the Momentus XT 500GB installed?

How are you finding it? I'm considering eventually upgrading to the 500GB Momentus XT drive (I wish I could wait until that NAND 4GB flash becomes 8GB!).

 

I wouldn't recommend it now that I found this 135 page thread at the Apple forums that describes the same problem I'm having: Apple - Support - Discussions - Hard drive click + beep ...

I've checked the Seagate message boards as well as Apple's and there's no solution. It's basically a crapshoot whether you get a good one or not (I don't know what percentage are affected, maybe it's really rare).

Since I'm convinced this is a Seagate problem and not an U33JC problem, I won't pester anyone else about it here.

Other than the beeping and freezing of the HD, the laptop is pretty snappy. I just ran a couple benchmarks comparing it to the oldish Velociraptor (WD1500HLFS) I have on my desktop, and it was pretty competitive.
For example, on a HD Tune read test, the U33JC was:
Transfer Rate:

• Minimum: 30.3 MB/sec
• Maximum: 104.4 MB/sec
• Average: 76.5 MB/sec

Access time: 17.0ms
Burst rate: 95.6 MB/sec
CPU usage: -1.0%

The Velociraptor:
Transfer Rate:

• Minimum: 59.0 MB/sec
• Maximum: 124.9 MB/sec
• Average: 102.0 MB/sec

Access time: 7.2 ms
Burst rate: 164.3 MB/sec
CPU usage: -1.0%

Sure, it's no 10k RPM drive, but not too shabby.

But after a couple weeks of it, the beeping/chirping drives me BONKERS. Other than that noise, it's almost completely silent.