Resources:
- http://repair4laptop.org/disassembly_sony.html - Provides a comprehensive list of Sony VAIO 505 enthusiast information. However, it's mostly in Japanese. Use translate.google.com to read the page in english.
See Sony VAIO PCG-N505VX support.
Specifications
- Release Year: 2003
- Mobile Intel® Pentium® II Processor 333 MHz, 256K Cache, 66 MHz FSB
- 128 MB RAM
- 10.4" XGA Active Matrix (1024x768) LCD
- NeoMagic MagicMedia 256AV with 2.5 MB Video RAM
Some other things I'm considering is getting an PATA IDE SSD.
Some helpful tips to get the computer to perform marginally better:
- In BIOS, enable the 32-bit transfer mode for the primary and secondary drives.
32-bit tranfer mode enabled
32-bit transfer mode disabled
The original external CD-ROM drive died so I had to swap out the CD-ROM drive with a DVD drive. I meant to get a DVD drive with a standard flat bevel, but ended up buying the HP Pavilion dv4000 series replacement DVD drive.
The original floppy disk drive failed as well, so I swapped out the FDD drive inside the original Sony VAIO N505VX case with a different external USB floppy disk drive.
2012-03-06 Update
I tried to setup the Sony VAIO N505VX as a music jukebox, but I had trouble getting Windows XP SP3 to interact with Windows 7 Ultimate. After several days of goofing around with settings found splattered all across the internet, it turned out that McAfee SecurityCenter Beta Personal Firewall was blocking all Windows XP filesharing. I didn't realize there was a difference between Windows 7 and Windows XP filesharing, but apparently there is. Even turning OFF McAfee SecurityCenter Beta Personal Firewall doesn't actually stop the firewall. It was still blocking the traffic. I actually had to uninstall McAfee SecurityCenter Beta to open up the traffic. I couldn't even figure out which ports I needed to open up because I couldn't find the logs.
Needless to say, I've COMPLETELY removed McAfee SecurityCenter Beta from my network and I'm going with Avast.
2012-04-25 Update
So I took the plunge. I purchased the Compaq Armada m700 mainboard with the Intel Pentium II 400 MHz BGA processor and looked for a BGA rework service to replace the stock Intel Pentium II 333 MHz BGA processor with the 400 MHz processor.
First off, let me say, finding this kind of service in the US was a major pain. I contacted 5 different vendors before I found one that would even attempt the work. I did find 2 different eBay vendors that listed BGA rework service, I did not end up using that service. See here for the eBay reballing services. I considered wpbcomputertech and MTEK (eBay listing here). Ultimately, I went with SRR Manufacturing. I contacted 4 other vendors: Ztronics (no reply), Circuit Technology Center (no reply), eTech-Web.com (they do not work on consumer electronics), and Notebook Tek/The PC Pitstop (declined to work on specific laptops, especially Sony notebooks, because of complexity).
Sony VAIO N505VX Intel Pentium II 333 MHz processor
Compaq Armada m700 mainboard Intel Pentium II 400 MHz processor
I requested a quote to replace the Sony VAIO N505VX Intel Pentium II 333 MHz processor with a salvaged processor from a Compaq Armada m700 mainboard Intel Pentium II 400 MHz processor. The quote amount was for $75, and if all goes wrong, there will be an additional $35 to replace the original chip.
As of 2012-04-25, I have shipped my Sony VAIO N505VX notebook and Compaq Armada m700 mainboard to SRR Manufacturing. Stay tuned for developments.
Cost breakdown to date:
- BGA rework/reballing service: $75
- Compaq Armada m700 mainboard (plus shipping): $23.94
- Shipping to SRR Manufacturing: $35.58
2012-06-06 Update
I've received my laptop and all the accompanying parts back from SRR Manufacturing today. I have some good news and I have some bad news. I plugged everything back in and I turned it on and it booted! On the boot screen I saw the new Pentium II 400 MHz processor accepted and I tried to go into BIOS and it hung. I turned it off and turned it back on and this is where things got wierd. The boot screen came back MUCH slower than before and the VAIO startup logo was really slow.
At this point, I opened up the laptop to make sure that all the pads were there and the heatsink assembly was reassembled incorrectly. The original heatpad on the CPU was missing so I replaced that with Artic Silver and fixed the CPU heatsink assembly and the bad news is that it's not even booting anymore.
My guess, the reballing wasn't done properly. I don't think the CPU overheated and broke the solder joints. I would think the CPU would shut down first. Oh well. Right now I'm considering my options. I sent my laptop in on 25 April and just now got it back 6 June, which would make it 6 weeks to get the service complete and delivered to my home. I'm not excited about the prospect of having to wait another 6 weeks for a another repair job. To make matters worse, I think they may have mutilated the touchpad ribbon cable, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. I picked up a new one here on eBay, but it's way too long and pricey for a ribbon cable, but the original won't stay in anymore.
Note to anyone out there reading this, this is WAY harder than it is in other countries. There are lots of BGA services in the UK and India, but in the US, there are large scale vendors that won't do this kind of work and there are lots of hobbist and repair shops that try to do the work. I'm a little bummed out, but I'll try again. There's another reballing service that I haven't tried to contact yet, B.E.S.T. Otherwise, there's always, Anh.
2012-06-08 Update
I'm fed up with reballing services that don't usually deal with notebook computers, so I went with Anh. We exchanged a few emails to discuss my situtation with a potentially poorly reballing service. For my particular situation, he quoted me $150. So, my Sony VAIO N505VX went back in the box it came out of and back to the UPS Store and off to Anh. Stay tuned for developments.
If this goes well, I'll ask if maybe he can replace the memory chips on the proprietary memory modules. I'm guessing the system won't be able to take much more than 384 MB RAM. The memory modules only have 2 memory chips per module, so I'll be happy if I can upgrade it to 256 MB RAM.
2012-08-05 Update
Things are not looking up. After receive no word from Anh regarding the Sony N505VX, I called him. He gave me some pretty bad news. The CPU reballing didn't work. He said the the other side of the mainboard was burned and that the mainboard is probably dead. When I originally sent the laptop to SRR Manufacturing they said that the board was burned when they received it. I didn't take the laptop completely apart after receiving it from SRR Manufacturing so the mainboard may have been a lot worse off that I originally thought.
I looked around online for a replacement and the last fully functional Sony VAIO N505VX was last sold on eBay on May 2011. Since then, apparently, there has been no other postings. Interestingly enough, I managed to find parts by searching for "n505". The parts however, are specifically for the Sony VAIO N505VE. The N505VE was the Intel Celeron 333 MHz version of the notebook. All the other specifications are exactly the same. I don't have any information other than that the specifications are the same so I purchased an available Sony VAIO N505VE mainboard and I've sent it to Anh and hopefully everything will work out just fine.
Keeping my fingers crossed.
2012-12-23 Update
After about a month of trying harass Anh over forums, telephone calls, and emails (I guess he's more stubborn than me), I've been officially ripped off. He hasn't responded to any of my inquiries regarding my Sony VAIO N505VX. I guess you can't trust these forum guys after all.
For anyone looking for a review of Anh Nyugen reballing/BGA service (http://www.micropctalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5468) (notebookreview.com forum profile name ngvuanh and micropctalk.com forum profile name anh), I would definitely say that he's not legit and you'll lose your equipment.
It's sad that I've lost my Sony VAIO N505VX, but at least I didn't lose my Sony VAIO TXN27N.
2020-05-02 Update
- Sony Application Recovery CD PCG-N505VE/N505VX Version G23.0
- Sony System Recovery CD PCG-N505VE/N505VX Version G23.0 CD#1
- Sony System Recovery CD PCG-N505VE/N505VX Version G23.0 CD#2
I created the floppy disk image using PowerISO http://www.poweriso.com/download.php. To write the image to disk, Start PowerISO -> Tools -> Write floppy disk image file.
- Sony CD-ROM Drive PCGA-CD51 Installation disk Version1.00
Thanks for sharing this! I, too, have a N505VX. The system itself (hardware ergonomics) even today looks pretty nice, but it's slow, slow, slow (I haven't even done the upgrade to 128Mb RAM). Running xubuntu.
ReplyDeleteI just picked up a Vaio N505VX tonight, I was intrigued by how compact and ultra thin it is for a portable nearly a decade old. The battery appears to be dead but it still runs off the wall charger.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit turned off that it's a Pentium II with only 64 MB RAM, but it has a great screen and keyboard. And more than that, hardware FM music synthesis! (remember the days of AdLib and SoundBlaster?). And like you, it is indeed now the most compact and smaller of my portable computers. That has some appeal.
Mine came with Windows 2000 but it is slower than slow. I'll try to bump up the memory after I look in my parts box, I wonder if it can go beyond its 128 MB limit. Definitely want at least double that if I try Windows XP. I have some PCMCIA Wireless-G cards, I'd like to try installing one.
Well, opened up the N505VX this afternoon. Looks like the memory expansion is via is some proprietary socket-type; so much for using my old SDRAM SODIMMs. About the best I can do is upgrade the hardisk, but without more than 64 MB I don't think it will (capably) handle anything higher than Windows 98 SE which makes that upgrade pointless. All I know is the copy of Windows 2000 on there now is chocking with so little RAM.
ReplyDeleteAlso noticed the built-in speaker is very distorted, even at low to moderate levels. Is mine defective or did it just come with a very poor quality speaker?
At this point I'm thinking of turning it into an ultra portable legacy PC, for playing old DOS/Win98 games with FM synth. :) My NEC Versa VX notebook apparently has FM synth (as well as it's unique Yahama wavetable synth) but I've yet to find a driver to support it, so maybe this Vaio can fill that gap.
Without the propietary system drivers, the volume on the VAIO N505VX defaults to MAX volume. You have to set it manually via the Windows volume control and set it to almost nothing so that it's not crazy high. In terms of memory, I got an extra set when I bought that replacment N505VE board. I'm not sure if it was the set that puts it up to 128 MB or what you have that puts it up to 64 MB. I'll probably throw it up on ebay since I don't need it. I'll respond to your post once I get it back from Anh with the details. Have fun with the laptop :) I'm considering popping in a PATA SSD drive. www.mydigitaldiscount.com sells PATA SSD drives. Be warned though, Windows XP and SSDs don't get along very well. I've heard that you have to get a version of Windows XP with a later service pack already on it just to get Windows XP to install otherwise it blue screens.
DeleteJumping ahead some 8 years later, I thought I'd finally try restoring my N505VX this afternoon. First problem is I cannot get it fully opened to swap in a larger hardisk! After removing all the screws on bottom, detaching the keyboard and removing the shielding/heatsink over the NeoMagic GPU, the back end WON'T lift off. I see you were successful in disassembling it by your photos, any tips? Can't find a service guide or take-apart videos unfortunately.
DeleteNext issue are the drivers. It seems Sony doesn't have them available on their website any longer, and I'd like to reinstall Windows 98 (the previous owner installed Windows 2000 and it makes it nearly unusable). I'm someone, somewhere, has archived a service guide and drivers, the question is where to find it decades later.
Let me dig around. I think I have the original CD somewhere! If I manage to find it, I'll post the ISO.
DeleteIn terms of disassembly, do you have some photos that you can post somewhere? I'm trying to remember if there was a screw hidden under a label or something like that.
DeleteThere are 11 screws (all clearly marked by arrows) on the underside. Hiding more screws under a label would go counter to those arrow indicators.
DeleteI was thinking maybe the screen needs to be removed, but in your photos above it's still attached. I can post up some photos of where I'm stuck if need be... I didn't want to force anything meantime.
If you have the original CD that would be *fantastic*, especially if it has the Windows 98 drivers. Please let me know if you find it and can post it! I'm still trying to find the CD (or just drivers) for my NEC Versa VX and just about given up, which is why I moved to getting this Sony computer restored!
Well, finally got it opened! There are two disc-shaped caps on either side of the battery that pry off, releasing the back of the case.
DeleteI was able to upgrade the hardisk from a 6 GB to a 40 GB, however the plastic clip fell off making the both the new and old drives undetected! (it must secure the ribbon cable's data pins). It was a pain figuring out how to get it reattached and required tweezers and a magnify glass, but thankfully it's fixed.
I definitely will need that ISO of the Sony CD, I'm having no luck getting Windows 98 installed so far (what the Sony originally shipped it). I'm currently trying to install Windows XP for testing purposes, but without the graphic drivers the screen is unreadable and I likely won't have sound either. Please let me know if you can make the CD available!
Sorry, digging around for it still. I know I have it packed together with the original CDROM drive. Just gotta find it :)
DeleteQuick update: With some trickery, I successfully installed a dual-boot for Windows XP and 98. I found a generic NeoMagic video driver for Windows 98, but no luck finding all the other missing drivers (no sound, no USB, etc). XP has most driver support built-in, but without the custom Sony driver, the audio is distorted unless I put it to the lowest level. Though with only 64 MB RAM, I'm best off sticking with Windows 98.
DeleteThanks, I'm anxiously awaiting the CD with all the drivers! In the meantime, I wonder if there's not MS-DOS (pure DOS) audio drivers for the NeoMagic MagicMedia 256AV chipset? My goal from 8 years ago...using this laptop as a legacy DOS gaming platform, still stands. :)
Sorry for the delay. Sony Vaio N505VE/N505VX OEM CDROM images posted. Let me know if they don't work.
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DeleteFYI, I also have the original OEM Sony VAIO N505VX CDROM driver floppy disk if you need that as well.
DeleteThanks a million! Here is what I've found...
DeleteThe two 'System Recovery CD' discs are not self-booting or user accessible, they only contain compressed raw data in *.PAC format. I need a utility to make use of them, and I'm pretty sure the OEM Sony CD-ROM driver floppy disk is needed here. So yes, please post that well is if you can.
Are there install instructions printed on the recovery discs by any chance?
The 'Application Recovery CD' requires an pre-installed OS to make use of it (you pop in the disc, a menu comes up to let you pick individual programs to install). There IS, however, a drivers folder on the disc and I pulled off what I needed to get audio in Windows 98. It stutters a bit at times, and there's still the volume clipping, but it's a start! The best solution, obviously, is if I can access the data on those recovery CD's and have it automatically install the factory shipped OS.
In the meantime, I noticed the audio drivers are marked "Yamaha YMF-744"! I downloaded the generic pure DOS drivers and at least got Yamaha's test program to partially work (I can play the 8-bit WAV and an FM MIDI sample, but not the 16-bit native WAV). More tinkering and experimenting to do!
Uploaded the CD-ROM install disk, see above. I used PowerISO to create the floppy disk image.
DeleteHad a look at the installation floppy diskette. It does not self-boot or contain any software, just DOS-based driver files for the CD-ROM. Handy for later (decided I'm going to create dedicated partitions that boot to MS-DOS 6.22!), but doesn't help with the recovery CD's.
DeleteA look in the Sony manual claims the System Recovery CD should be self-booting and bring up a restore options menu. The disc images you sent have all the files in a folder called "Image". Did you did you create an exact (byte-for-byte) ISO image of the disc, or just the individual files?
I'm using Nero and reading the .cue files to burn it back to a physical CD, but I don't think that is an issue.
I think you need to re-image the discs so they're exact copies of the originals. I'd double-check how they read if you just pop them into your computer. Thanks!
I used imgburn (http://imgburn.com/) to make the images. I can burn it and try it out on a computer to see if it'll boot. I forget if you have to go to BIOS to set the boot order for the N505VE/X.
DeleteAh hah, tried burning a new copy on rewriteable CD-RW and it worked this time! (I guess 25 year old blank CD-R's aren't so reliable! :P). Having a look, there's some hidden files in the root directory of the CD that say "BOOTCAT.BIN" and "BOOTIMG.BIN".
DeleteThe good news is it booted directly from the Sony CD-ROM and I have a recovery menu up on screen as I type this! I'll give it a try once I re-partition the drive.
I'll report back here if I'm successful in getting a factory fresh copy of Windows 98 back on my N505VX.
I just tried it on my side as well and I got a non-Sony Vaio N505VE/VX to boot of the burned System Recovery CD. I'll post the pictures. Glad you got the CD images are boot now :) AMAZING!
DeleteThank you so much for providing these CD images! Just stumbled across them while searching. In the process of restoring an old eBay find :)
DeleteAmazing! I'm glad they worked out for you :)
Delete...And jumping back in a year later. So, the install CD was a success, though not quite perfect. The internal speaker is still distorted at even low volumes (also noticed my primary IDE controller driver in the device manager has a yellow "!" symbol). Though this is much further ahead than before, the laptop is now in a functional state thanks to those recovery CD's you supplied! Thank you again!
DeleteOne very interesting thing I noticed tonight though, is under the sound drivers in Windows 98, "YAMAHA DS-XG PCI" is listed rather than NeoMagic Media (I didn't notice that last year!). So, I decided for the heck of it to install Yahama's DOS driver for the DS-XGS, and to my surprise, it worked!!
I'm also surprised to learn it offers a hardware Yamaha XG wavetable option (the real thing, not emulated!) for playing MIDI files under Windows 98! Just like my NEC laptop with a Yahama AC-XG.
And under Windows XP, I have the option for using its OPL3 for playing MIDI files with FM synth--again the real thing, not emulated! Both a real plus!
Games under pure DOS somewhat work, I'm having issues with digital sound not working at the moment, but the FM synthesis part works for music. Some more tweaking will be required...
I'm just surprised to learn after all these years my Sony 505VX has a Yamaha DS-XG sound chip inside it!
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DeleteWe bought my wife a n505vx back in 1998 for school an it still works great! I upgraded the HD to a fast 40GB and that sped it up. Also have the 128mb ram installed. Still running the original OS win 98 se. I use freeram XP to keep it sailing. Opera and chrome work well as browsers. I still have the clip on speakers, external cd an floppy drives, and the expansion dock. It all sits nestled nicely in an original Sony Viao leather carry case. I could use a new battery and charger... Dang cat chewed on it..
ReplyDeleteI am amazed that 14 years later this thing still stands alone as a beautiful example of elegant design in the CPU space.
James White is the owner of WPBComputerTech and his service is not very good. I sent 5 motherboards to him to be repaired. When I got them back 1 was DOA, 1 was good and is still running and the other 3 failed in less than 2 days. So 4 out of 5 motherboards were bad after I paid for him to fix them.
ReplyDeleteWhen I informed him of this he suggested that I return the 4 bad omes to him and send him another 80 dollars each to repair them.
Poor service. Poor answer. Stay away from this guy.
SRR seems to be a 1 man operation in a private home. I think most pictures on his/her website are "borrowed".
ReplyDeleteSRR didn't do such a good job with the N505VX unfortunately. Currently I've got another laptop, Sony VAIO TXN27N, with xmoddz.com to swap out the Intel U1500 with an Intel U7700. xmoddz.com did the work but the computer had problems (same issue as when I sent the TXN27N to mixcatcomputers.com). Going over my options with xmoddz.com, but maybe the Intel U7600 will work instead.
DeleteIt's an old thread but still...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thinkpcparts.com/sony-n505ve-motherboard-a8056448a.html
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ReplyDeleteHello, I became the proud owner of this device , but unfortunately there is no memory , I can not understand that the plug in the laptop , ask for your help ! )
ReplyDeleteThe memory is proprietary. There is a 64MB (2x32MB) memory kit available on ebay.com (http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=sony+n505&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xsony+n505+memory.TRS2&_nkw=sony+n505+memory&_sacat=0). The Sony Vaio PCG-N505VX supports 128MB.
DeleteHello! I'm wanting to buy this machine! Do you sell it ? Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for your inquiry, unfortunately, I no longer have this machine. The person I used to upgrade the processor ended up stealing the machine from me.
DeleteI have one for selling
ReplyDeleteI have one for selling
ReplyDeleteMarius popa, how much money and whats configuration have it?
ReplyDeleteHas anyone had luck upgrading the hard drive to a PATA SSD?N505VX
ReplyDeleteHi Everyone!
ReplyDeleteI know it's an old post, but maybe somebody can help me out. I have a Sony Vaio PCG-N505X (Pentium 233 + 32MB RAM). Unfortunately - after all these years, the CMOS battery went dead. Can anyone lead me to the correct one? Google gives me three types of batteries and I have no idea which is the correct one...
Thanks in advance,
Tom
I found this link and it looks right http://www.genuine-cmos-battery.com/sony-vaio-pcg-n505vx-cmos-battery.html. I checked ebay and didn't find anything there. What did you find? Another option is to pull the CMOS battery apart and buy a replacement watch battery and electrical tape it back together. It's really just a watch battery and 2 wires on the top and bottom.
DeleteDo you still have this notebook? Think to sell it?
ReplyDeleteHello, sorry, I no longer have this machine.
Deletehttps://www.mercari.com/us/item/m81739352085/
Delete