Dell Inspiron 1520 – Windows 7 64 bit drivers
I have installed the new Microsoft Windows 7 64 bit on my Dell Inspiron 1520 Laptop. I can only say that it was worth installing it. Because of the lack of support from Dell (although this laptop is fully 64 bit capable), one has to find some of the drivers itself. I will list here the incompatible drivers that you need, in order for the laptop to work properly with Windows 7 64bit:
1. Missing driver for Ricoh R5C833, R5C847. Corresponding driver can be downloaded here.
2. Synaptics Touchpad / Pointing Stick driver can be downloaded here.
3. Dell Quickset program can be downloaded here.
4. The NVIDIA GeForce 8600M driver can be downloaded from this site. Just download the latest driver, and you are set to go. (Hint: This site and the drivers on it can be actually used for any NVIDIA Graphics card.)
5. If you have problems with the external microphone, or some kind of audio problem, and your audio card is: SIGMATEL STAC 92XX C-Major HD Audio, then please download the driver here.
I hope that this post will help others that encountered the same problems with Dell drivers on their Dell Inspiron 1520, but want to use the new Windows 7 64 bit.
Thanks a lot
I have too installed Windows 7 on my 1520
Windows 7 found the Ricoh driver from Dell all by itself, which is amazing
Thanks for providing the touchpad, quickset drivers.
I have the 8400 GS graphics chip, which I couldn’t find drivers for – I went to nvidia’s page and they offer mobile drivers there which are working perfectly!
Gurdain
October 27, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Hi Gurdain,
just use the same website that I’ve put in the blog for the NVIDIA GeForce 8600. The same driver actually supports all NVIDIA cards.
mileski
October 29, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Phew thanks a bunch :O)
I have just installed windows 7 x64 over my vista x32 and its suprising how annoying it is to get these drivers from dell.
I was told that a good way to get the drivers is to also choose a x64 windows 7 laptop off of the dell website and use them, but im not entirely sure that this will work owing to the drivers probably be for that particular model of laptop.
The drivers you listed helped me out loads so thanks again, but to get the rest of the drivers would you suggest me to use the windows update option or go by my previously stated option of downloading the drivers off another x64 laptop?
Richard
October 31, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Hi Richard,
I suggest that you install everything that Windows Update offers you, and after that, if there are still drivers missing, you should find a newer Dell Laptop with windows 7 support, and compare the devices on it, with the ones on your laptop. If they are the same, you can download those from the newer Laptop. If you have problems finding some of them, just post here which drivers do you need, and we’ll try to help you.
mileski
November 5, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Hey guys,
Just wondering if anyone has a link to dload the win7 64-bit drivers for audio on the inspiron 1520 coz my mic (ext and int) are not being recognized
Previously i used the dell site to get the soundmax drivers but now i’m clueless…
Please help!
Anonymous
November 5, 2009 at 8:34 pm
Thanks for this man, you just saved me a lot of time
Jaun
November 6, 2009 at 8:11 am
Hi Anonymous,
if your sound device is SIGMATEL STAC 92XX C-Major HD Audio, then please check the driver under point 5 in the post (I have updated it). If not, then please tell us what sound device you have, so someone can help you.
mileski
November 9, 2009 at 2:06 am
hello i have a same problems. can i driver for window 7 on dell inspiron 1520 32bit. can this one’s work on 32 bit ?
sticko213
November 10, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Thanks a lot u guys for givin ur xperiances on 1520 inspiron win 7.
I have 1520 inspiron with 32 bit vista & de laptop is 64 bit capable so do I need to perform a clean install or do I just install win7 on vista. I’m plannin to do the install tommorrow so ur views will be appreciated.
Vish
November 10, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Hi sticko213,
this is only for a 64 bit Windows. Not for a 32 bit. For a 32 bit Windows on your laptop you already have drivers on the Dell website. The laptop actually comes with Vista pre-installed 32 bit. So the same drivers work also for Windows 7.
mileski
November 10, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Hi Vish,
an Upgrade from a 32bit operating system to a 64bit cannot be made. You have to make a clean install. So, that is the answer of your question.
Just go with the 64bit. It’s worth it.
mileski
November 10, 2009 at 5:48 pm
thank mileski,
ive done the clean install as soon as i read your reply.
i am currently downloadin the drivers from ur blog….. i’ll let u know if i need ur guidance….
thanks
vish
November 11, 2009 at 12:53 am
thanks man. nice and clean. thaks a lot
vdc
November 12, 2009 at 12:56 pm
how about the Bluetooth driver?
kevin
November 18, 2009 at 9:45 pm
What about the Dell Media direct?
Let me tell you what did i do.
i bought a new 500 gb HDD and pu it inside.
Then i insert the Media direct DVD then i split HDD with that DVD.
Then i installed Win 7 x64. After all drivers had installed, i installed Dell Media Direct Software.
Laptop is off and when i click the Media Direct button which is near the power button it seems to open the media direct ( the image bla bla) but it opens Win 7.
I have got no idea. What should i do? Did u solve that?
Thanks by the way…
Tuna
November 25, 2009 at 7:37 pm
Hi Kevin,
Bluetooth should install alone without any problems.
What problem do you see with your bluetooth device?
mileski
November 25, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Hi Tuna,
The problem is with the formatting of your drive. I think that you have to make first partition to be FAT32, something around 100 mb size, and there you should install your DirectSoftware. But, it is better to read the guide on the Dell website about installing the software.
mileski
November 25, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Well i had read the instruction and do it that way. But i just want to know that are you using Dell Media Direct properly on your system?
Tuna
November 25, 2009 at 11:07 pm
Thanks alot for the help. You are awesome and a major time safer. Much appreciated!!!
Scott
November 26, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Hi Tuna,
I actually don’t use Media Direct on my Laptop, but considering the problem you are experiencing, I’m pretty sure it has nothing to do with the Windows installation.
mileski
November 27, 2009 at 7:53 am
You saved me a ton of time and money. Thank you!
Trevor Demerse
November 28, 2009 at 12:18 pm
The Info you Posted was absolutlly the Best and complete.
Great Post….and greatly Appreciated.
Take Care
Bash Vancouver, BC
December 8, 2009 at 9:22 pm
hi,
i have an inspiron 1520 and upgraded to windows 7 32 bit and ecountered a problem with the usb ports and the bluetooth device – it was recognised despite having updated the drivers a number of times on the device manager. there are no drivers on the dell website either so was wondering if u coculd pleaseeee help me.
Suban
December 10, 2009 at 10:01 am
Hi Suban, I don’t understand now, were the drivers recognized or not?
I’ll assume they weren’t. There is some kind of a problem with the Windows 7 installation itself. There are no Dell drivers for the USB Ports. They should be just recognized by Windows automatically. And the Bluetooth device, it should be also, but for it you do have drivers on the Dell website. I suggest you reinstall your Windows 7 from scratch, and see what will happen.
mileski
December 10, 2009 at 10:32 am
Does your remote control work? Because mine doesn’t and I don’t know if it needs a special driver or maybe software. Any suggestions?
iernei
December 19, 2009 at 4:47 pm
Hi mileski, thank you for this post, it has been very helpful. I have installed all the drivers listed in your first post and this cleared up almost everything except one issue I’m having. It is telling me that there is no device driver for “Base System Device.” I am not sure exactly what this means or if it’s necessary but the only information that it’s offering is under Location it says “PCI bus 3, device 1, function 3.” Any thoughts or ideas on this one?
aghockey
December 22, 2009 at 1:22 am
Hi iernei,
yes my Remote works without any problems. Actually it should work without any driver, because the communication goes through the Infrared port. Check your Device Manager, whether there is some device, for which no driver is installed.
mileski
December 22, 2009 at 2:55 pm
hi aghockey,
can you check the device under Device Manager, and then under Details -> Hardware Ids, and post it here?
mileski
December 22, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Hi mileski,
All it says under Details is “Base System Device.” It’s not giving me any other information other than that and what I posted in the previous question
aghockey
December 23, 2009 at 6:24 am
Hey Mileski & Aghockey: Have very similare issue. Have just upgraded 1520 to Win 7 32bit and the two drivers missing are ‘Bus 3 Device 1 Function 2′ and ‘Function 3′. Any ideas?
John
December 28, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Mileski, John & Aghockey: Just installed the Ricoh R5C833 drivers and this solve the “Base System Device” problem, try it…
Kaballo
December 28, 2009 at 7:01 pm
Many thanks Kaballo. Tried Ricoh drivers and although it told me I was already using the best driver for the device (and the SD card reader was working) this has solved the issue!
John
December 29, 2009 at 11:15 am
I have also installed Win 7 64bit on my Inspiron 1520. Until I installed the Ricoh SD Reader my Windows Experience Index would not complete. Now it will complete but it the CPU subscore is only 3.0. My processor is Core 2 Duo T7500 2.20 GHz. My memory subscore is 3.8 with 4GB RAM. My video card is Nvidia 8600M with subscore of 4.7 for graphics and 5.9 for Gaming graphics. It seems like the CPU and Memory subscores were a couple points higher atleast with windows 7 32bit installed, but I didn’t take close note of that. Can any of you tell me what your WEI is? My system seems to run well, just want to know if it’s consistent with others
Ryan
January 7, 2010 at 7:07 am
Processor (T7300 @ 2,0 GHz): 5,1
Memory (4 GB): 5,1
Graphics (same Nvidia): 4,7
Gaming Graphics: 5,9
Primary Hard Disk: 4,9
So yes, you have unusually low score for processor and memory.
iernei
January 7, 2010 at 8:03 pm
Hi Ryan,
here is my score:
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T7700 @ 2.40GHz 5,9
Memory (RAM) 4,00 GB 5,9
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT 4,7
Gaming graphics 2047 MB Total available graphics memory 5,7
Primary hard disk 82GB Free (198GB Total) 5,2
mileski
January 7, 2010 at 11:17 pm
Thanks for your replies. Something ain’t right with my system it seems. Any ideas at all?
I am posting my scores for easier comparison to the your posts above.
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T7500 @ 2.20GHz 3,0
Memory (RAM) 4,00 GB 3,8
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT 4,7
Gaming graphics 5,9
Primary hard disk 5,9
Ryan
January 8, 2010 at 1:16 am
Hi Ryan,
I read your post, and the first thing it popped in my mind was PowerManagement. There is a good chance that I may be wrong, but getting so slow processor test, and I’m only theorizing, is by limiting the cpu-speed. Check your power options, go to Change plan settings, and then advanced power settings. Check the *Check settings that are currently not available*, and under processor power management, see what it says under maximum processor state. (It should be 100%). And check back here.
mileski
January 8, 2010 at 6:04 pm
I’ve done a little more troubleshooting, and findings aren’t good. I don’t know what to think, besides something is definately wrong. I downloaded PerformanceTest 7 64bit and ran it (http://www.passmark.com/download/pt_download.htm). out of 6 or 7 runs, it only completed once, with an overall score of 326.3. Similar Inspiron 1520’s are above 2300! The other times I ran it it got to about 70% (DirectX 10 2D tests) and then the application quit.
I’ve just restored (windows system restore) to when I did the clean install of win7 64bit (Dec 29th) and then loaded only the Richo SD Reader driver and the Video Driver from NVidia and reinstalled The PassMark PerformanceTest. Now the Performance test has completed a couple more times, but the overall system score is still 326.3, although it has completed in a row now.
Could you download and run the test and post back, or suggest anything else.
The system is set to full performance power.
Ryan
January 9, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Correction – running PerformanceTest 7, it gets to about 70% which is “Running [Graphics 3D - DirectX 10]and then quits.
I remember having downloaded and ran this a couple months back with Windowws 7 32 bit and seem to recall the scores where much lower than expected then too (maybe even lower now – don’t remember details from then).
Are there any “off line” (i.e. not from windows) benchmark tests to run from a CD that would give an accurate assessment??
Ryan
January 10, 2010 at 5:34 am
Well i got a problem while trying to install Windows 7 on my Inspiron 1520 , after i booted from the DvD and i clicked on (install now) the harddisk should appear so i can format, expand …. etc , the problem is it looks like windows7 cant see my hard disk i kept having an error to insert the driver media , i used my driver media cd but also doesnt work so any other driver for windows 7 which i can get to help me in this???
Btw i installed vista again and i didnt face such a problem while installing Vista.
Thanks,
predator89
January 10, 2010 at 7:26 pm
Hello.
I have dell 1520. And Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit.
Ewerything working good but my sound is not clear !!!
I have a problem with SIGMATEL STAC 92XX C-Major HD Audio. I hear sometimes “clicks”.I try yours drivers and still i hear clicks.
Please tell me witch drivers i must use? Nad which for chipsets?
Thanks
milo77
January 11, 2010 at 5:06 pm
hi
i have dell inspiron with windows 7,64bit.i have problem reading data CDs burned with nero.its reading DVDs alright..its shows the folder on the CD but not the picture files.same problem i found on similar other dell inspiron.can u plzz help.
is this problem because of windows 7? or 64bits? or CDs were burned with nero? or drivers problem?or else
dell sellers are cluless!!
thank you
tuhin
January 21, 2010 at 4:41 am
Hi milo77,
Mine opinion is that this is not a driver problem, but more likely a hardware problem. Btw, sometimes when the sound is to loud I also hear some clicks, but that is normal, because the speakers cannot withstand such a loud noise. If this is not the case (sound set too high), then you have some other problem, not a driver one.
mileski
January 21, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Hi tuhin,
I don’t think the problem has anything to do with Windows, or 64 bit. Have you updated your firmware on your DVD Drive? Try to find, if you have the newest firmware. This can help. And btw, what do you mean with picture files? As I understood, you have no problem reading DVD’s, but the problem is reading only CD’s. Right?
mileski
January 21, 2010 at 12:03 pm
Hi predator89,
I think you have a problem with you Windows 7 installation DVD. Something is wrong. Seeing a hard disk from Windows 7 is the same as in Windows Vista. You should not encounter such problems. I’m sure that the installation DVD is broken.
mileski
January 21, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Thanks a lot …
It all works well…..
Lot of other guys using dell 1520 must be loking for these drivers…lets hope they find ur site…..but why dell people aren’t helping, once solutions u suggested are working…..good job done
Moeen
January 27, 2010 at 6:05 am