After going back and forth between a T60 and Z61 I decided to build a Z61 from scratch. I've already purchased a new motherboard (42W7741) and now I'm building upward. I'm about to purchase a base but I'm hesitating because something just doesn't look right so I'm looking for a little help from those more experience than I in the Z line.

According to the Z61 HMM the FRU of the base corresponding to the mobo I purchased is 41W4882.

I found a base on ebay with that FRU from someone who sells IBM parts but it doesn't look right.

From notebookreview here is the picture of the bottom of a Z61:

http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/12914.jpg

Note - There are 3 openings on the base, one for the HD, one for the battery compartment, and a 3rd for the docking station.

Now here is picture that is listed with this auction:

http://i11.ebayimg.com/03/i/001/43/d3/51f3_35.JPG

Note - This base only shows two openings, one for the HD and another for the battery compartment. I don't see any opening for the docking station. I asked the seller and he confirmed that there are only two openings on the base (HD & battery) and that the part number is 41W4882.

Can anyone explain that? Am I looking for the right type of base? Did IBM make bases without the dock opening?

I'm puzzled, and I don't want to waste his time and mine by purchasing something that I can't use as I plan to use the Z61 with a docking station.

I also spied another new Z60/Z61m base on ebay and this one has all three openings (lister didn't post FRU). This one looks more correct, though I think I might have to alter/cut it to fit a Z61 mobo in there, but I'd prefer to purchase the one above because us grad students are poor and this one would be $20 less

Any help is appreciated.

Let's downshift for a second and go back to basics:

Z60t and Z61t are 14" widescreen models.

Z60m, Z61m and Z61p are 15.4" widescreen models.

Which one are you interested in building since the boards are *not* interchangeable amongst different screen sizes?

AFAIK, some bases for models with Intel graphics (Z60t, Z61t and possibly Z61e...maybe others...can't recall) do not have the opening for the dock...

I'd like to build a 15.4 and the mobo that I purchased is a 42W7741 (Intel 950 OA2) listed as a Z61e Z61m Z61p. Why does my inner voice tell me that I already screwed up and purchased a board that can't use a dock?

That sounds correct to me, I'm sorry to say...but let's wait for someone with more knowledge of Z series than myself ( Earth to Ed, can you hear us ??? ) to chime in...stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed...I hope both of us are wrong this time around...

When you can buy a Z61p off of ebay for $200-250, why would you want to waste the time, effort & aggravation building your own?

While these are nice little laptops(I own several and am typing this text on one), their time has come and gone and are best used for trivial tasks, such as web surfing, minor documents and misc. apps.

Plus, they come with WinXP, which is getting way too long in the tooth...that said, are you gonna have to pay for a copy of WinXP + the laptop parts?

I built a A31 last year and found it a good diversion from my studies. XP works for me, I can probably grab a set of recovery disks from somewhere and go with that. If not I can get student version of Win 7 or just throw a mint distro into it.

Z61e is the only one with no docking support. All others had it.

Looks like it indeed. Your board FRU is listed in the HMM as "entry", which suggests it may be the low-end board. Also, all the non-CTO configurations it is listed in are Z61e configurations (067x) with no docking support.

It makes sense that for models with no docking connector there will be bases with no opening for it, otherwise there would just be a hole...

15.4" Z6x can be called anything, but not little.

Drat, of the docking station isn't a deal breaker as I can just connect it to my monitor via VGA.

Before I go any further though, what are my limitations with the e board?

Am I married to the specs on the Z61e wiki page?

http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:Z61e

For instance am I limited to a T5500 CPU or could I use a T7200? The screen is a killer for me, am I limited to a 1200x800 display or can I go 1600x1050?

Finally the wiki says no ultrabay, by that does it mean this board isn't capable of using any of the ultrabay devices at all?

Thanks.

Well, if it runs T5500/5600, it will run T7200/7400/7600, I'd be willing to bet on that one.

I'm also reasonably certain that you could get 1680x1050 to work, unless IBM pulled one of their dirty tricks on that one, like they did on previous T4x/R5x generation with Intel graphics...but all of these are no more than somewhat educated guesses on my end.

Good luck.

Yeah, per Lenovo's Z61e 'detailed specifications' sheet 1600x1050 and T7200 cpu are fine.

Thanks George for you help as well as the others who chimed in.

Just tuned in...it does seem that the OP picked up the most limited version motherboard. I never really understood the Z61e model, since it's hard to believe that 1) removing the dock connector, 2) removing the touchpad/fingerprint reader connector, 3) only PC Card vs. PC Card & ExpressCard slots and 4) removing the IRDA port would be so profitable, considering a new base cover that doesn't permit swappable drives, new marketing material, a new HMM, etc., would have to be created.

Anyway, luckily the Z61e isn't as crippled as prior "e" models. For instance, some R5xe machines had mono speakers, the Z61e speakers remain stereo.

Bottom line, the board should work with any Core Duo or Core 2 Duo processor that works in any other Z61m (or T60, for that matter) and any WSXGA+ or WUXGA LCD.

Of course, no webcam, since only particular ATI X1400 mobos supported that option.

I suppose the bright side of the Z61e is that it has fewer components to fail! Good luck with the build.

OK, I have to ask because maybe I'm misunderstanding this. When you say the base doesn't permit swappable drives, are you saying that I can't, for instance, swap out a CD ROM drive and use an ultrabay hdd in that slot?

Here's the thing, the Z61e will accept Ultrabay drives including the second drive caddy, however, they are not hot swappable and the eject mechanism is missing from the Z61e base. You're not supposed to swap drives on the Z61e. However, you can literally pull/yank the drive out (you're supposed to actually push it out from the connector area after removing the keyboard if you're swapping it for a maintenance reason).

The same was true for other "e" models. Basically, with the machine off, I would just eject the drive tray and gently pull the entire drive out. It's a little harder to remove the Ultrabay caddy, but since it's so slim, it's not that hard to pull it out.

Another difference with the Z61e vs. Z61m/Z61p, I do not believe there is a second battery connector for the Ultrabay slim battery.

Thanks 'clocker. Given what you and others have said in this thread, I think I'll be better off selling this motherboard and rescuing/building a T60.

What a mess.

Not sure on your original goal, but if you're OK with a 15.4" machine without a camera, then check out a 15.4" T61 with WSXGA+ and Intel GPU. Tough to beat the build, performance and price. Plus T61's support 4GB of RAM under Win 7 64-bit.

You can build/rescue any Z61 series machine you want - just don't start with a Z61e board.

T61 15.4" is also an option, if like Ed mentioned, you don't need the camera (and I would add - don't mind the ugliness).

'Clocker this is partly all your fault . I love those 15.4 WS models and went full on into 'I'm building one mode' after seeing your "the other holy grail" post with pictures of your z61m (http://forums.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=100010).

I thought I was buying an M board, as it was listed with the e/m/p designation but alas I got a dog e board. You can't even get an M board in reasonable condition for under 130 and I don't have that much money to throw into a side project. Those T61 boards are also cost prohibitive.

I found a Manufacturer refurbished T60 board (FRU: 41W1360) that I can get my hands on relatively cheaply, and with that board I'm not limited (dock & ultrabay) like I was with the z61e board. So for me, at this point, that is probably the wise course of action.

Hi guys,
I just wonder, if I can use touchpad&fingerprint ribbon cable from T61 series to my Z61m (9450-HAG).
I realized that touchpad buttons stopped working two days ago. So I tried disconnect ribbon cable connector carefully and s**t has happened, the connector fell apart from pcb harness:-( It seems to definitely can't be resoldered or repaired or etc.
Thank you so much!!!

Can you upgrade to a newer T61p 15" motherboard in a Z61p 15"?

No, the Z61 belongs to the T60 family (not the T61), a completely different generation.