Hi all, im starting V2 thread because V1 has exceeded 2500 posts. This thread is in full swing status and i'll try to update the driver list from time to time. once again to all 1520 fans, thanks for supporting this thread!

Disassembly guide
============

Introduction

There are several reasons why one would want to disassemble their 1520, and the two most important ones that i could think of are
1. To clean the internal fan and heatsink that get clogged up with time and can cause severe overheating issues during gaming or high cpu load.
2. To replace the factory thermal compound (CPU, GPU) with a high performance ones, ie. like the one i use in the picture (Artic Cooling MX2 or Artic Silver 5)
3. Replace some parts (ie HDD, RAM, CPU, WiFi Card, Turbo Memory, etc) with something more powerful and updated.

Before proceeding with disassembling your 1520, i must first remind you that no one here except yourself is responsible for any damages or data loss during the process, so please, perform this at your own risk.

Tools you may require
1. 1 Philips head (medium size) screw driver
2. Discharge yourself by touching any metal contact so you won’t statically damage the electronics
3. Optional: some small boxes for you to put the myriads (yes, it’s a lot!) of screws that are about to be removed.
4. A working space big enough to put all the disassembled components
5. A flat plastic tool / small flat head screw driver
6. Thermal paste/ thermal compound
7. Anti static brush


Ok, let’s get started. First picture is pretty straight forward.

You get a flat plastic tool or flat head screw driver, pop it into the small dent on the right side of the LCD hinge and the right side of the cover should pop right up. Be careful not to use too much force and do it slowly, else you might damage the wires lying underneath.


Once the right side cover is popped up, simply use your hand and pull the rest of the cover open. Again, be gently, don’t use excessive force and do it slowly. The rest of the locks are plastic locks, so if you bend it too much, it will break.


Highlighted with red circles are the screws/connectors you need to remove.


Picture 4 shows the connector of the Bluetooth module, which can be a tad difficult to remove because of the constraint in space, and also the LCD connector, which can be removed by pulling it straight up.


Now, slowly, remove the ribbon LCD cable from the plastic holders and work all the way from right to left. Notice there is a secondary connector (for webcam, mic) somewhere in the middle of the laptop. Remove that as well.


Now back to the screws. Please note that there are different screw sizes, so please don’t mix them up. Organise them in a correct way so you can easily find the right screws later.


When you are done with the above steps, it’s time to move to the bottom side. Secure the wires and cables and close the LCD. Turn your laptop. We are now at picture 7, which is the cover at the upper left. Removing the cover is pretty straight forward. Underneath the cover will reveal the WiFi card and if you have one installed, the intel Turbo Memory (as shown in picture). Remove the antenna cables by pulling it upwards while holding the cable close to the connector. Remember the correct colour and pattern for WiFi. Don’t mix them up with the WWAN/Cellular cables as shown in the red highlighted circle.


Now move to the back (as shown in picture) to remove the screws for LCD hinge. There are 4 screws in total. Two on the left (one back, one bottom close to the hinge), and two on the right.



After removing the LCD, turn your laptop to the front, and slowly and carefully, remove the LCD. Do NOT pull it up with force, make sure all cables are detached before doing so.


Once the LCD is removed, you can remove the keyboard. Unscrew 2 screws at the top to the keyboard. The keyboard may sit firmly behind the plastic holders at the sides. AGAIN, DO NOT use excessive force to remove the keyboard. Do it slowly because there is a ribbon connector just below the keyboard.


When you are done removing the keyboard, look to the middle (a bit to the right) and you will see a connector underneath called MB something (refer pic). Remove that in advance.

Ok, it’s time to turn to the back again. Now, remove ALL screws you can possible detect/find. Double check again and again until you are sure all screws are removed. To remove the DVD drive, just use the flat head small screw driver and push it out. It should slide out from the left.


The hard drive (handle with care) should slide out from the right. When you are done, turn the laptop to the front. The plastic arm rest cover should be loose enough to dismantle now. Careful not to use excessive force. If something is stuck hard, double check behind if the screw has been removed.


Phew! We are half way through. Now all the electronics should be revealed as shown in the picture. Proceed to unscrew the CPU and GPU screws.




Those screws are not removable, so don’t bother. Just loosen them up enough. There are 7 screws in total. After that, you should be able to remove the heat sink with ease. The GPU sink is removed together with the entire GPU module, so please so it carefully. With the heat sinks removed, you should be able to see just how much dust is accumulated. Brush them off accordingly, vacuum them clean if you have to. Don’t use water!



If you feel like it, you can also remove the fan and clean it as well. Notice that the fan is not removable unless you unscrew the entire motherboard.


Clean other dust around the motherboard if you want to with a brush.

Optional (Perform this ONLY if you have thermal compound/paste ready with you, otherwise skip this step or you will damage your CPU and GPU)



Now with a clean tissue, wipe off the factory (dried and hard) thermal compound from both the heatsink and cpu. Be gentle with the CPU. When they are clean, apply just a dot of thermal paste onto both cpu and heatsink, and wipe them off again. This should clean the surface and remove old impurities. Leave the chipset. when the surface is clean, apply a smooth THIN layer of thermal paste on the CPU's surface as shown in the picture above.


As for the GPU, you need a star head screw driver. If you do not have one, u can skip this entirely. The internal of the GPU should look the picture above. The procedures to change and reapply thermal paste are the same.

Finally, attach and screw everything back accordingly and properly. If you need to change any parts, you can do it now. The entire process should take about 2-3 hours depending on how familiar you are with the laptop, so do it with patience. The end result can be rewarding.



OC Test results by Demonic Wrath
======================
Specification: Intel C2D T7250 2.00GHz, 2GB DDR2-800, 256MB NVIDIA 8600M GT, 250GB Hitachi SATA 5400RPM, Windows Vista SP1, Forceware 180.84.
Note: OC'ed NVIDIA 8600M GT is clocked at 650/1300/550.

3DMark 2006 (1280x800; Default Settings; PhysX in Control Panel OFF):
Default: 3649 3DMarks
OC'ed: 5019 3DMarks
*Note: PhysX is turned oFF because it will cause the GPU to throttle to 2D Clocks if enabled. Not sure why this happens though.
*Note: If I have time, I'll tryout Vantage.

Dead Space (1280x800; Max Settings; Vsync OFF) Measured using FRAPS.
Default: Min 23FPS; Avg: 31FPS; Max: 40FPS
OC'ed: Min: 32FPS; Avg: 44FPS; Max: 50FPS
Maximum measured temperature: 78°C for CPU, 72°C for GPU
*Note: Vsync causes the game to capped to 30FPS. I don't think Vsync is required since it already runs below 60FPS.

Counter-Strike: Source Video Stress Test (1280x800, Max Settings, 4xAA, 16xAF)
OC'ed: 133.84 FPS
Default: 96.65 FPS
*Note: Video Stress Test is not a good measurement if compared to practical gameplay session.

Counter-Strike: Source 16 Bots (Same settings as above)
Default: Min 35FPS; Avg 57FPS; Max 68FPS
OC'ed: Min 44FPS; Avg 65FPS; Max 84FPS
Recommended Settings: 1280x800, Max Settings, 2xAA (4xAA if overclock), 16xAF
*Note: Minimum FPS happens when there are heavy actions. If you're playing in a server less than 16 players, then you can go for 4xAA without OC.

Need for Speed™ Undercover (1280x800, Everything High, No AA, No AF, Reflection On)
Default: Min 22FPS; Avg: 27FPS; Max: 34FPS
OC'ed: Min 25FPS; Avg: 30FPS; Max: 42FPS
Recommended Settings: 1280x800, Everything on High, Shadows OFF, No AA and AF, Reflection OFF)
*Note: Maximum measured temperature: 61°C for GPU

Crysis® (1280x800, Custom Config, Shadows OFF, Godray ON, No AA, No AF, Volumetric Effects OFF, Motion Blur OFF, HDR ON, Default view distance, DX9-codepath, SSAO OFF, LowSpec Texture (Not enough VRAM))
Default: Min 24FPS; Avg 32FPS
OC'ed: Min 27FPS; Avg 36FPS
*Note: It's very playable with the custom config. And definitely I think the GodRay is a better choice than enabling shadows.
*Note: Maximum observed temperature is 77°C.

Unreal Tournament III Deathmatch 7 Bots (1280x800, Sliders on 5, Hardware Physics OFF, FOV 100)
Default: Min 26FPS; Avg 36FPS
OC'ed: Min 34FPS; Avg 45FPS
Recommended Settings: 1280x800, Sliders on 4, Hardware Physics OFF, FOV 100 (Widescreen)
*Note: Since this game uses Unreal Engine 3, the setting and performance guideline can be used for Gears of War too. Remember to turn off PhysX for this game too. It will likely to take up the resources of the graphic card if enabled.

Command & Conquers 3: Kane's Wrath (1280x800, Settings on High, Shaders Ultra High, Shadows Ultra High, No AA, No AF)
Default: Min 24FPS; Avg 27FPS; Max 30FPS
OC'ed: Min 29FPS; Avg 30FPS; Max 30FPS
*Note: This game has a frame limit of 30FPS. Therefore, the max FPS is 30FPS only.

Fallout 3 (1280x800, Custom Config, Lowest view distance, Shadows ON, HDR On, 2xAA)
Default: Min 31FPS; Avg 39FPS
OC'ed: Not tested
*Note: I don't have the game with me now. So, I forgot the custom config settings.



Latest Nvidia Driver for all Windows
============================
nvidia's 186.81 driver

here's the link for win7
http://us.download.nvidia.com/Windows/186....tional_whql.exe

and for vista users
http://us.download.nvidia.com/Windows/186....tional_whql.exe

and lastly, for xp users
http://us.download.nvidia.com/Windows/186....tional_whql.exe

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Oct 21 2009, 08:21 PM

yeah, u r right, i start this thread in a hurry and made a mistake. anyway, i will copy the user list over and make some changes and enchancements 3 weeks from now when i have time. hang in there guys. 1720 and 1525 users are welcome to join.

the fan is most probably working if u can feel hot air coming out of the vent. the problem is that the heatsink and fan have been clogged with dust, causing very high temperatures at little load. happened to me once.

i will get the details up in V2 thread in a couple of weeks. i think i did post a rough and basic instruction in V1, probably i'll make a detailed on for V2. signs of heatsink and fan clogged with dust are overheating and high temperature at full load and idle.

err... fyi, my warranty is still intact. in fact, there's actually once i get the green light from dell to change the motherboard all by myself, so they just have to send me the replacement board.

you can use either artic silver 5 or artic cooling mx 2, either one is good. i personally use mx2 and i got it from lowyat plaza. mx2 does not conduct electricity, does not require run it time and has a claimed life span of 8 years. performance is similar or better than silver 5. instructions will come soon on this V2 thread... haha..

i use for like over 10 months already, i do have a little bit of that problem, but just a little bit. wont even notice if you dont look HARD at it. the thing is, i do clean-up my laptop from time to time. probably that is just dried sweat, try to wipe it off with warm water cloth, see if it works. i did use force to wipe the palm rest area when i clean my laptop, cause the stain is really tough to remove.

mine (toshiba 320GB) is relatively noisy with the seek and write noise. if i use the samsung 320GB, it's much more quite, BUT, will click from time to time, which is annoying.

the CPU can definately be changed. it's not soldered on the mobo.

yes, as long as u have the right CPU (right socket). our 1520 supports all merom and penryn (before montiviena release) processors. not too sure about intel extreme processors though,..

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Nov 5 2008, 08:38 PM

you can upgrade the GPU to 8600MGT. try looking at ebay, make sure u get the part number right. i dont think dell will sell you the part. as for CPU, you dont need to buy it from dell, because unlike the GPU used in 1520, it's not dell specific. any intel (santa rosa & santa rosa refresh) chips can be used in 1520. just make sure u have the latest BIOS. i will be posting a guide on diassembling 1520 soon, so you guys can see what is actually inside 1520.

it is not required

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Added on November 7, 2008, 6:43 pmyour heatsink and fan could have been clogged with dust, or the thermal pad has reached near end of service life

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Nov 7 2008, 06:43 PM

both? the only 2 components that gets dedicated cooling system are cpu and gpu. so they are (IMHO) equally important.

u can install the 800MHz RAM, but our santa rosa platform will not take advantage of the extra speed bump. it will be downclocked to 667MHz

your GC is just fine. i had the same problem with 180.48 driver. try 180.44 instead

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Added on November 24, 2008, 7:25 pm1520 with 8600MGT can play NFS undercover. after OC, i can easily get 30FPS at 1440x900 and almost all settings at high (other than shadow, AA, etc.) so i assume non OC can probably lower the resolution and eye candies to play

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Nov 24 2008, 07:25 PM

it's most likely the resolution has gone off course. i see the nvidia icon on the system tray which notifies u a resolution that is not optimum has been set.

OC will reduce ur GC life, but who needs it to last forever anyway? im making full use of my GC before it's totally obselete for gaming in the coming year. just make sure the temp is in the "cool" range when gaming and u should be fine with OC. the way to test it is to run 3DMark06 multiple times, and it's pretty time consuming, BUT u only need to perform this once, because once u know the limit of ur GC, u can set it to that speed to game. every GC is unique, so i cant advice u on how much u should OC. but u can try to increase 10MHz at a time and run 3DMark06 twice to make sure it's stable before moving on to the next 10MHz.

what i meant was increasing the clock speed step by step, 10MHz at a time, test with 3DMark06, check for artifacts and temperature, then go for the next 10MHz until u reach ur GC clock limit.

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Added on November 25, 2008, 7:10 pm
u can use rivatuner, v2.20

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Nov 25 2008, 07:10 PM

well, i still prefer to OC, because i dont need my GC to last forever, as long as i can use it for at least 3 years is more than enough for me. the performance boost i gain is huge. from 3Dmark06 barely touching 3k (without OC) to almost hitting 5k (with OC), now that's a big number. and i can basically game at higher resolution with more eye candies switched on, which are added bonuses. temperature remain under control, max at 69C, which is pretty good. if only 1520 is equipped with GDDR3,..

but that's just me.. sometimes i take too much risk.. haha

This post has been edited by alexnvidia: Nov 25 2008, 11:16 PM

artifacts are screen corruption that happen randomly during 3D benchmark or gaming that you can easily see. it can be in the form of spots, patches, etc..