XL201 Video Card Upgrade

[grahamjb33]

I have recently started using my Sony XL201 MCE 2005 running on WinXPSP2 for playing games and all was well until I installed MotoGP 2007. Whilst the graphics on this game are extremely good and even with the resolution set to its lowest, the CPU can reach over 90% power usage and the screen 'sticks' occassionally which makes it difficult to play.
I am thinking that as the standard card fitted namely the Nvidia Geforce 7600 GTL with 256Mb on board could be struggling with this game, the main CPU is trying to compensate and this is causing the high power usage.
If I am correct in my diagnosis I would appreciate advice on what video card upgrade would resolve these problems, eg a Nvidia Geforce 8800 GT? By the way... the XL201 is bog standard with 1Gb ram and no upgrades to date.
Great forum for info, keep up the good work everyone!
Thanks... Baler

[Wheeker]

Just to update, I went ahead with an upgrade from stock 6600GT to ATI 4550: Sapphire Radeon HD4550 Thanks for the offer of a 2nd-hand one Supermackem, but it was cheap enough & I could collect it the next day. Anyway, so far so good- I have had no MC crashes at all since installation :smileygrin:

As regards my previous queries:

- to have some S/PDIF audio it must have socket on card to enable S/PDIF passthrough?

- NO, s/pdif audio will carry-on through the motherboard regardless. The 4550 gets hdmi audio through the PCI-E slot i.e. no need to connect s/pdif cable to card.

- all upgrade cards lose firewire & component video out AND/OR front panel A/V connection functionality (not an issue for me as long as headphones still work).

Does anyone know which connections are lost as I am hoping to still be able to use the front panel A/V connections?

One other issue though, I am still trying to get my head around the HDMI audio. I am ok(ish) with using the existing Sigmatel s/pdif for audio BUT the Vista Sigmatel driver is a bit ropey & I get popping & crackles every so often. I am not sure where to get a W7 Sigmatel driver, as Sony are not supporting W7 for the XL-100. So I routed my HDMI through my A/V receiver: got video fine but the audio was 2-channel only. Do I need to disable the s/pdif in the BIOS? Do I need an additional (Realtek?) audio driver?

As regards ward3550 queries: I managed to download a W7 compatible Vaio update utility from the Sony website, but it doesn't seem to function correctly. Post-W7 upgrade I wanted to try & reinstall Sony Sonicstage Mastering Studio from the XL Application Recovery discs but couldn't even run the recovery disc.

[C13UGG]

Hello All,

This thread seems to be getting large and takes a while to read through.

I like many others am also looking to upgrade my card. Have a XL 302 with the stock 7600. I have issues getting the picture to go through my new amp and constantly have to reboot it when swapping over from sleep mode as the picture isn't displayed.

Has anyone considered or upgraded to the ATI Radeon™ HD 5450? I'm thinking of getting one but know how much of an issue it can be to configure etc........

Really looking for sound via the HDMI rather than the SPDIF, and since I have a blu ray player, would like DTS HD sound etc. which I don’t believe you can push via SPDIF as is only supports 1.5mbps, where as HD sound is more like 4mbps.

Any feedback would be much appreciated,

Or a recommendation to a different card?

Regards

C13UGG

[C13UGG]

Hello All,

If anyone is interested, I did upgrade my card to http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?psn=000101&pid=316

The new one is much better that the 7600GTL as you would expect. With films its far more crisp. no messing about with SPDIF as the 5450 has audio via HDMI as HD DTS etc.

10 minutes to install, 5 minutes to install drivers, few reboots and was working fine. Have just installed so will have to wait and see if the annoying issue bringing out of sleep is fixed. This card however works fine with my amp, previous 7600 wouldn't pass the signal for some reason.

If anyone is considering upgrading, maybe consider this card.

[super_mackem]

Intereating card C13UGG. That wasn't around when I was looking. Low profile and passively cooled, so ticks those important boxes. However from the specs it says:

400 Watt or greater power supply recommended (500 Watt for ATI CrossFireX™ technology in dual mode) - The XL-201 only has a 300 Watt supply. Have you noticed any issues?

For best cooling performance, a chassis installed with at least one 120mm or 90mm fan is required - Not sure the XL-201 has that either, so will be interested to see what happens !

[C13UGG]

Hi Super_Mackem.

I haven't noticed any issue yet.

Watched Batman Dark Night (Blu Ray) with no issues. So a good 2 half hrs plus. Played in 5.1 via the HDMI. Only really use the 302 for video and browsing. Never play games on it.

I was getting mighty miffed with the 7600GTL. Was thinking about upgrading to WIN 7 soon so will see what happens there too.

As you say, went for that one after reading about 10 reviews which say its prob one of the best HTPC cards out there now. The sapphire version means no fan, that said, the reviews stated the gigabyte was v quiet anyway, but didn't want to take the risk. Also much smaller heat sink than the ATI reference, so fits snug into the slot. I ended up buying the 1 GB as it was only an extra £10. most sites say 512 should be fine. couldn't find any reviews that detail the performance difference between 1GB and 512mb.

I let you know if it freaks out by getting too hot etc. I suspect hard gaming might send it hotter, but will wait and see.

[chalkywhite]

just bought a Sapphire Radeon HD6450 card to replace the 7600GTL in my XL201.  A full evening of movie watching saw no problems, although i now have to manually switch audio from optical to HDMI myself within Win7 Sound applet.

There is plenty of room in the PCIExpress slot for this card, it's passively cooled and sports DVI and VGA connections, which i can use to connect to my Sony projector.

Thanks, Tony

[olistone4]

Hi,

For all upgrades to the Sony VAIO VGX-XL range including video cards, visit...

VGX-XLpedia www.vgx-xl.com &

VGX-XLforum forum.vgx-xl.com

I'm sure these sites will offer all the support you'll need, hope to see you there

Happy upgrading