~VX2S Owners' Lounge~

This ram works for me with NO issues:

2x CORSAIR CalueSelect 2GB PC2-5300 (4gb total) Notebook Memory $129.99 Newgg.com part # N82E16820145172

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Is there any advantage running Vista 64-bit on a VX2s (besides 4gb RAM)? I mean: Is there a REAL noticable benefit?

_____

I asked this before: Can VX2S owners post their experience with the fan? Mine never turns off; even with very low CPU settings. I do not mind to much because it is quiet. I just want to know...

 

Asus has just updated VGA and Intel Active Management Technology Driver.

http://dlsvr01.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/Drivers/VGA/nVidia/Vista/V7.15.11.5654/VGA_Nvidia_vt.zip (Vista 32bit)

http://dlsvr01.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/Drivers/VGA/nVidia/vt64/V7.15.11.5654/VGA_Nvidia_vt64.zip (vista 64bit)

http://dlsvr01.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/Drivers/AMT/VT/V2.5.7.1101_V5.3.0.1083/AMT_IAM_LMS_VT32_64.zip

 

I justed contacted asuslaptop. They have tried to burn blu-ray on the vx2 model VX2S-AK002G and they say it only burns DVD. They said there is a new model coming out in a month or so that can burn blu-ray. Has anybody tried to burn blu-ray on the VX2S-AK002G/1G model successfully?

Regards

 

For those who want to upgrade RAM of VX2S:

1GB DDRII 667 PC2-5400 SO-DIMM

Unifosa UNIFOSA/GU331G0AJEPN6E2L4GG 04G001617652 New (Elpida new package chip)

Nanya NT1GT64U8HB0BN-3C 04G001617635


2GB DDRII 667 PC2-5400 SO-DIMM

HYNIX HYMP325S64AMP8-Y5 04G001618610 DDRII667 SO-D HYNIX 2G 200P

 

The nVidia 8600GT offers the clock speed settings which are setup by the bios.

2d, 3d low, 3d perf.

I went trough all the energy settings (high perf, entertainment, quite office, battery saving) that are set up by the power for gear software but the 2D settings are never active. The settings only switch between 3d low and 3d perf. Even without the aero UI and on battery, the clock speed of the GPU never goes to 2d mode.
Uninstalling the power for gear software has no effect.

I wonder why this is the case. At least for "quiet office" and "battery saving" I would expect the GPU run as low as possible to reduce power consumption and heat emission...

Does anyone have a clue why it is like that?
(Using latest laptobVideo2Go drivers 163.75)

 

Hey guys,

Anybody knows how to flash VBIOS to use 580/500 frequency rate ?
Mine is running quite stable, same as Jorlin mentioned.
Anybody has the procedure ... perhaps a link ?

Thanks,
sasovics

 

I have an oc version of bios 208 with these settings.

 

In this manual from nVidia:
http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_26269.html
page 8 states something about the power settings within Vista that might be the reason for my finding.

 

Does anybody has service manual for VX2S ?

 

Can anyone with the HD-DVD version of this notebook confirm whether they can watch HD-DVD movies or not?

Mine won't play them so Asus RMA'd my VX and replaced the optical drive without success. They say they are waiting on another optical drive to try, but I have a feeling this isn't the issue, so would like to know if anyone in the world has had any luck playing a HD-DVD movie on this notebook.

Cheers

 

I have the HD-DVD version, however I haven't have a chance to watch a HD-DVD movie on it yet... Once tried, will let you know

 

Folks,

Anybody knows how to mod VX2S BIOS in order to hardware OC the VGA ?
I have read the guide here at NRW, but that is for flashing VBIOS. Our VBIOS is integrated in main MB BIOS...

If anybody knows how to, or has a guide, please let me know

 

Blu-ray writing capabilities on selected models

Blu-ray writing capabilities on selected models

My VX2S (manufactured 2007-07) purchased early August in the UK has a Blu-ray drive Mat****a BD-MLT UJ-210S that can pretty much read/write anything except HD DVD discs. I think it was retailed in the UK under reference VX2S-AK001G. (Brand is M a t s h i t a - the forum hides it for some reason...)


Using Nero 7 Premium (version 7.10.1.0), I have been able to burn data at 1X speed on a Sony BD-RE Blu-ray Disc Rewritable BNE25A 2X single-layer 25GB (bought for £20!!! from John Lewis). Yes, it's slow... but better than nothing and quite a unique feature at this point in time.

According to Nero InfoTool 4, you will not have any problems burning any types of DVDs or CDs, except HD DVD (not sure about LightScribe compatibility). As mentioned by Ib14132302, you'll have to be patient as this is not the fastest burner. I don't remember who asked, but there's no reason why DVD writing wouldn't be stable/reliable...

Hope this helps...


Further reading:
Blu-ray Disc recordable on Wikipedia

 

Hi there, I am now a member of the club and happy owner of a VX2S. Does anyone has experience with installing Windows Vista 64 bit on a VX2S? My questions are:

1. Can it be done and does it run stable?

2. Asus does not provide 64 bit drivers for some of the VX2 hardware components (no audio, chipset, LAN, drivers)

3. Does anyone has hands on experience with the installing process, any problems, tips etc?

Your help is very appreciated.
Thanks

p.s. I have seen a Vista 64 bit Laptop with half of the VX2S's hardware specs (it had a 2.7 windows experience score compared to my 4.6) and everything under windows was extremly fast - much faster than my VX.

 

I tried x64 windows....have some driver issue with the video card. It would boot-up to a rainbow....so I moved it down to x32 xp.

 

Thanks for your reply. Did you have issues with Vista 64 or XP 64?

 

Just interested to know if you have encounted any issues with XP - do all of the drivers work??

 

Hey Folks,

Thought I can share with you my first experience with this top-class notebook.

I have received it just day before yesterday. I have the Ultimate package - VX2S-B2B, ordered it from PROVANTAGE for 3093USD

This version comes with Toshiba HD-DVD drive and T7700 Centrino Pro CPU.
I would prefer to have the BluRay drive as it is capable of writing BD disc not as my HD-DVD drive, that supports only reading HD-DVD disc. But I can live with that.

The notebook is perfect from every aspect, but one. When I first turned it on,
I've noticed a huge light leakage on the bottom of my LCD. I knew from the start that this must be the same crappy LCD I used to have in my old Acer TravelMate 8204WLMI. I was very desperate about it. I called-up Asus customer support to complain and hoping to get an exchange, but their answer was that this is quite normal for these types of LCD. Pretty satisfying answer isn't it ?

So I was more in despair, and was searching various forums what other people says. Finally I ended up here, and I noticed posts from Jorlin
stating that there are versions built with different LCD. There are VX2S built with Samsung LCD and versions built with Chi Mei Optoelectronics LCD.
Also read that actually those users having Samsung LCD have these light leakage and contrast problem I have. So I fired up Everest and the results:

Monitor Name Samsung LTN154P1-L03
Monitor ID SEC3346
Manufacturer LTN154P1-L03

I have seen Jorlin's posts that he decided to replace his LCD to Chi Mei on his own. I decided to do it as well. I have ordered a Chi Mei CMO N154Z1-L02 and has replaced the LCD just yesterday. When I turned the PC on after replace I could see the difference right on the spot! The picture with Chi Mei display is brilliant, no light leakage at all, no dead-pixel, colors are more vivid, as well contrast is much better. Seeing this I do not regret spending additional $195 for this LCD as it is like heaven 'n hell compared to my old crappy Samsung. I'd say this is the best LCD screen I ever seen on laptop computer!

I have heard that ASUS was mounting these LCDs to the older version V2 and V1, so don't really understand why they've made a step back by choosing crappy Samsung LCD. I am glad I did not send my PC in for repair, as they would just send it back to me with another Samsung LCD. As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, my old Acer has the same leakage as my original VX2S screen. So I launched Everest on it and gues what ? Samsung.

So the bottom line is: if you are in despair because of light leakage or crappy LCD as I was, do not hesitate, do the same what Jorlin and I did. I am now another happy VX2S user..

If you have any questions PM me.

Best Regards,
sasovics

 

Folks,

I have read many many threads regarding VGA overclocking and 3DMark scores so I though I will share mine.

First of all I am not a big fan of Vista, so I removed it from my VX2S and istalled Windows XP Pro. (and I can tell it from my experience guys, that you will get better 3D performance with XP as with Vista.)

I was playing arround with VGA clocks to find the most stable and I ended up 600/475. With the latest modded drivers 167.26 I have managed to get 4182 3DMarks
which is I thing not bad at all

Here is the link to compare:
http://service.futuremark.com/compare?3dm06=3493013

btw. I like these new drivers a lot as they allow native driver-level overclocking. No more issues that your clocks default back after hitting OK in Riva Tuner or ATITool

If you are interested in downloading these new drivers,

Here is the link for Vista:

http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15587

and XP:

http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=15611

 

@sasovics: Thanks for sharing your experience. I am sure this helps quite a few VX2s users.
I still do not understand why ASUS uses the Samsung screen in their top latop model...

Anyway, I do not bother anymore as I use the CMO lcd panel

 

For anyone of the VX2S users here who hate Windows Media Center as I do and are frustrated with the fact, that you cannot change the funtion of Asus hotkeys, I recommend this thread/tool for you:
Asus notebook keys, v1.1
Latest Version: AsusNbKeys_v1.2.zip


This is a little tool that runs in the background and allows you to individually specify the function of your hot keys.

 

Folks,

Anybody knows how to completely disable/turn off Intel Active Management ???
It is causing me issues with my XP Pro installation.

Thanks,
sasovics

 

That is good to hear. The VX2S-AK001G & VX2S-AK002G come with the same optical drives. I will get my VX2S-AK002G soon i will let you know if it will work for me.

 

Folks,

All of you who are looking for a procedure how modify your BIOS image to adjust your VGA clock speeds in VX2S, G1S or G2S, you might be interested in reading this thread

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=182458

 

For the gamers here: I tried the Crysis SP Demo. Medium settings and 1280*720 pixels give you a decent framerate. Not perfect but OK. Did not really try playing much yet. Medium settings look much better than expected.
There is a noticable drop in framerate with the cut scenes though. Running it on 1024*768 will be better - I prefer to have a widescreen setting.

 

Hi guys,

2 questions :
- tried to install bios 209 -> it did not install and the asus recovery thing installed 205 instead. Did you have problems with that bios ?
- I bought a jack-optical adapter to gat that spdif out. I have the red light at the end of the cable so I assume hardware is of, but can't get spdif output work, it does not appear in the sound panel

than

 

@Kador:

1.) Did you try the Bios application - using the F4 button on startup? If not, use this one and make sure you select the right file. I did not flash the 209 bios because it does not state any improvement. But this should work.

2.) I have not tried SPDIF out yet... This is really odd, it should appear in the sound settings... I cannot find it either. And the realtec driver tool does not indicate it as a possible audio port.

 

I do have 209 BIOS installed, and I flashed it with F4 function while POST just as Jorlin described. Make sure your BIOS image is not corrupted (I suggest to download it from ASUS support again and try to flash it again).

 

Sasovics, thank you for the very informative description of the display issues with the Samsung LCD.
After my initial delight with the specs and quality of the VX2S-B2B I was very dissapointed to see a low contrast display with uneven intensity and light leaking along the bottom of the screen, particularly noticeable with a dark background. Ran Everest and it detected the Samsung LCD model.

I sent the unit to Asus repair with their assurances the LCD will be replaced. Despite trying to persuade them to replace with a different model LCD, I am concerned Asus will try to force me to accept another Samsung LCD with the same problems. In that happens I will try to get a refund.

A few questions please:

Was the LCD replacement fairly easy? Would you mind sharing a brief explanation how to replace? I have some computer building technical skills but not enough time to make a weekend project out of it.

Where did you purchase the ChiMei LCD?

Thanks again

 

@Bradford:

Sent you a PM with how to replace the lcd panel. Well, I sent you the one that I sent Sasovics

It is not so difficult, you just have to be careful. I bought my lcd panel at ebay express where the seller is smartmicrousa.com
( Current Ebay Express offer) The exact model is: CMO N154Z1-L02

BTW: Asus told me that the Samsung lcd panel is meant to be in this model and that the specifcations of it are as they are... therefore they would not exchange it. Maybe you have more luck...

 

@Bradford,

I don't want to duplicate Jorlin's post, just to confirm that I bought my Chi Mei LCD from the same retailer as Jorlin and I am very satisfied with the service the've provided.

As for the LCD replacement, you can look at various web pages providing LCD disassembly procedures.

Definitely look at one of these:

http://www.screentekinc.com/lcd-removal-instructions.shtml

http://repair4laptop.org/notebook_lcd_display.html

Best Regards,
sasovics

 

File was ok.

I got it working using the flash tool in the bios itself, the thing is : it does not work if the file is on the windows D: Drive. I moved the file and then it worked.

 

You're not lucky with your models, I got the brilliant chimei screen "stock" with my vx2s. Maybe iot depends from country ?

 

@Kador:
Where did you buy your notebook from ?

 

Hello Guys,

I got my vx2s a couple days ago. All looking good. Although the LCD is again the samsung type. There is lots of while light coming from the botton especially when the background is black. its shame they put such quality screens with this notebook. Am not sure there is anything i can do about it other than buy the other lcd screen.

The optical drive indeed seems to the same one that sony use in their laptop range that can burn blu-ray.

 

France, where I am. the model is AK025G, it seems to be replaced by another one now.

 

@Kador:
If you found out what is going on with this SPDIF optical out, please let us know. When I come back to Germany. I will definitely use it for listening to music etc.

 

I know this post is probably too late but stay clear of the 8510p, we ordered three of them and they all BSOD when using a second monitor, either docked using DVI or undocked using VGA, the BSOD points to the video driver.

 

Hi Oxyd,

Can I just check that the link you posted is still valid - did you get the Blu-Ray version?

I've seen elsewhere a post saying you had the Chi Mei screen?

I'm desperate to get one of these, but am holding back because ASUS can't seem to standardise their spec!

 

Ok, spent the better part of the whole afternoon reading this thread. I must admit it has almost talked me out of buying the VX2S. I'm not getting it for me but for the CEO of my company, the most important things he cares about is brightness, being able to use it outside and stable and fast.

We are looking at this because it looks perfect for the guy who buys everything top notch, unless of course this isn't top notch. You guys tell me.

Also, where the heck do you buy a spare ac brick and docking station here in the US should I go ahead with this?

He won't be playing intensive games, just your typical power user who wants it to work like a $3,000.00 machine should.

 

I own this laptop now for over a month.


If it is about style and performance, this laptop is definitely doing the job. If you set it up with all the software, get rid of some pre-installed stuff, it will fly. Definitely oversized for office only applications... but if it is about style, too - go for it!
It only gets warm when heavily used (games), and remains quiet with the fan barely noticeable when turining on (if you are not using high performance mode with heavy cpu load).

The only flaw that made me almost cry when I turned it on the first time was the lcd panel. I will not repeat myself since you read my posts. If you need a laptop which has a bright and very good screen, this one is a no-go if you do not replace it(as I did). Everything regarding the VX2s is great but the lcd panel. Why Asus went from the ChiMei to the Samsung Screen remains a mystery to me...

I am not aware of any lcd panel for laptops which is really well readable outside in sunlight. I have not tried this using mine though...

2,5h is how long the battery will last in office mode.

Keep in mind: This is a laptop - it probaly performs like a $1,200 desktop (Haven't had a desktop pc for over 6 years now). And you pay for the style, that's for sure... This laptop performs like some $2,000 latops out there. Do not get me wrong: The components are almost all top-notch (besides the mobile GPU which is third or forth right now in nVidias mobile portfolio [still great for gaming and 3D apps]). But you can get those for $2,000 already (maybe not with a HD- or Blueray drive though - e.g. Asus V1S).

I hope this helps.

 

I believe samsung's less expensive than chimei ... I was wise ordering my vx2s as soon as it appeared

Bt, I still can't solve my spdif problems. Do you guys have a spdif working ? What did you do exactly, which drive did you use ? How does this driver offer you to switch to spdif ?

 

A thought just struck me when looking at this product: -

http://www.trustedreviews.com/tvs/news/2007/10/31/Blu-rays-BD-Encryption-Cracked/p1

Could it be that the Samsung panel is HDCP compliant, whereas the Chi Mei one isn't - and as a result Asus are putting the Samsung panel on all machines with BluRay and HD-DVD... but are using the Chi Mei panel on those with just a bog standard DVD drive?

Is everyone who's got the Chi Mei screen got a standard DVD drive? And are all those with the Samsung panel using a HD DVD or Blu-Ray machine?

 

I have the HD-DVD version: VX2S-B2B and got it with crappy Samsung LCD

 

Got the regular one with DVD drive only and the Samsung lcd panel. So... nope!

 

How to get SPDIF working

I finally managed to get the SPDIF working 2 weeks ago.
The only way I could get this working was to select the HDMI output as my default sound output device, and then I would plug the mini-Toslink cable to either the laptop or the docking station. Even if you can still see the red light, SPDIF seems not to work when the speakers are selected as the default sound output device.
I'm using the latest 1.80 drivers from Realtek, that Asus just provides without any customisation or repackaging (verified for version 1.69 from July)

Hope this helps.

Oxyd

 

I cannot really tell if you'll get the same machine as me, but it seems that the link is still live. They don't mention the docking station anymore as part of the accessories though... I can only recommend that you call them and get confirmation of the content according to the sticker on the box.
(Knowing if the Blu-ray drive is going to be a burner is a bit of a gamble...)
As Kador said in a previous post, I guess we were extremely lucky as early adopters because we really got what seems to be the best available parts (screen, blu-ray burner). I'd have been happy to get a T7700 like some recent owners though

I do have a Blu-ray drive and a Chi Mei screen. I would invite you to click on my username and select "Find More Posts by Oxyd" to read all my previous posts (that I try to design as answers to specific problems or recurring questions) - I trust you should find lots of valuable stuff there.

Hope this helps,
Oxyd

 

Many thanks Oxyd!

I have e-mailed them to see if they can tell me whether the screen is the Chi Mei varient - so will wait and see if they reply.

Blimey: it really does sound like you got the best package.

It makes me wonder how many sales Asus must be losing by people being concerned about just what they're parting their cash for!

Let me know if you get bored of it and feel like selling it!!