[Rygorn]

Hi I just ordered a new custom build computer with a AMD Phenom™II X2 555 Black Edition Dual-Core CPU with a GigaByte GA-870A-UD3 AMD 870 mother board. The mother board has an "auto unlock" feature, does this mean it will automatically unlock my 3rd and 4th core when I boot up my computer? If not is there a process to unlock these other two cores?

Thanks Rygorn

[jack-o-bytes]

Hey there. That motherboard that you have will need to have a setting in the BIOS changed to allow it to attempt to unlock the 3rd and 4th core as far as I am aware. However, Not all AMD CPU's will unlock to a triple or quad core from a dual core. You may get none able to unlock or you may get 2 unlocked it is all luck really. If it doesn't work first time you may be able to slightly raise the voltage to see if that helps unlock them. If you take a look at this website it shows just below the 2 side by side photos the core unlock setting under the advanced BIOS settings menu.

Jack-O-Bytes

[Rygorn]

Thanks, I just ordered my build a few days ago and it just happened that I bought the right motherboard and CPU to do this "unlocking". So hopefully i will be lucky enough to unlock those other two cores. I only have a 600 watt PSU so I don't know if that will sufficient.

[jiml8]

600 watts is plenty.

[Rygorn]

Thanks, one more thing

After unlocking the two cores should I be able to overclock it? Here is my build an price, do you think I would be able to overclock it safely with this hardware set up?

*BASE_PRICE: [+609]
BUNDLE: None
BLUETOOTH: None
CD: 24X Double Layer Dual Format DVD+-R/+-RW + CD-R/RW Drive (BLACK COLOR)
CD2: None
CAS: CoolerMaster Elite 430 Mid-Tower Gaming Case with Side Panel Window
CASUPGRADE: None
CS_FAN: Default case fans
CPU: AMD Phenom™II X2 555 Black Edition Dual-Core CPU w/ HyperTransport Technology [+56]
FAN: Asetek 550LC Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan (Advanced Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA) [+18]
FREEBIE_VC: FREE Blacklight: Tango Down Coupon with purchase of ATI Radeon HD5670 video card or above
FREEGAME_VC02: FREE Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
FA_HDD: Vigor iSURF II Hard Disk Drive Cooling System [+21] (1 x System)
FLASHMEDIA: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLOR)
FLOPPY: None
GLASSES: None
HDD: 1TB SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 64MB Cache 7200RPM HDD [+24] (Single Hard Drive)
HDD2: None
IEEE_CARD: None
KEYBOARD: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
MOUSE: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
MONITOR: None
MONITOR2: None
MONITOR3: None
MULTIVIEW: Non-SLI/Non-CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
MOTHERBOARD: GigaByte GA-870A-UD3 AMD 870/SB850 chipset support DDR3 Ultra Durable™3 Socket AM3 ATX Mainboard w/ 7.1 Audio, GBLAN, Support 6-core CPU, CPU Auto Unlocker, USB3.0, SATA-III, ON/OFF Charge for IPod, RAID, 2 Gen2 PCIe, 2 PCIe X1, & 3 PCI
MB_ADDON: None
MEMORY: 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3/1800MHz Dual Channel Memory Module [+18] (Corsair or Major Brand)
NOISEREDUCE1: Power Supply Gasket [+5]
NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
OS: None - FORMAT HARD DRIVE ONLY
POWERSUPPLY: 500 Watts - Standard Case Power Supply
PRINTER: None
PRINTER_CABLE: None
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYS
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
SPEAKERS: 600Watts PMPO Subwoofer Stereo Speakers
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
TEMP: None
TVRC: None
USB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
USBHD: None
USBFLASH: None
USBX: None
VIDEO: ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [+50] (Major Brand Powered by ATI)
VIDEO2: None
VIDEO3: None
VC_PHYSX: None
WNC: None
_PRICE: (+801)
_view_: d
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Coupon: MYSPACE ($30 MySpace Rebate) $-30.00
SUBTOTAL $771.00
Sales Tax (N/A) $0.00
Shipping: UPS Ground $65.00
Shipping Discount $-65.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------
GRAND TOTAL $771.00

[jack-o-bytes]

Well you have a nice CPU cooler so you probably have quite a bit of voltage headroom but remember only overclock things that you can afford to replace. There is no guarantee that your CPU will overclock however. The reason that AMD disabled the 3rd and 4th cores could be due to demand for Dual cores or because they wouldn't function correctly under normal working conditions. How ever upping the voltage may unlock and possibly even overclock the 3rd and 4th core. It is just a matter of luck really and how far you are willing to push your CPU. I wouldn't advise more than a 0.1v increase to be honest. Also keep a very close eye on what the temperatures are like using Speedfan or CPU hardware monitor. Downloading and installing both will often give you more reliable temperatures as sometimes they get errors such as -129c and silly temperatures like that.

Jack-O-Bytes

[jiml8]

If you really want those additional cores, AND you really want to overclock, just spend the extra money to get a processor with all cores guaranteed to work. Otherwise it is a crapshoot.

[lewmur]

So long as you are spending someone else's money, why don't you just tell him to buy the new z196 IBM processor?

[jack-o-bytes]

yeah it is hard when it comes to overclocking though as sometimes it costs more to acctually get a good enough cooler and motherboard to allow overclocking than it does to just buy the faster model in the first place and fit it into a cheaper motherboard and have a cheaper cooler. All in all it may be possible for you to overclock your processor once the cores have been unlocked but I doubt that you will get much more than an extra 100Mhz if you unlock both cores as well. You may need to overvolt the CPU quite a bit to get the cores running in the first place. In which case it will leave no room for overclocking.

Jack-O-Bytes

[Rygorn]

Haha Thanks for all the replies guys, I will most likely try to do both overclock and unlock when I get my computer in a few days. Its not just about increasing my build's performance either, I kinda get a kick out of researching these types of things and attempting to do them. As long as I am careful I shouldn't ruin my computer.... hopefully.

Rygorn

[Rygorn]

Also, does anyone know of any good guides that would give me explict directions on how to perform these opperations?

[Alex1337]

I'm sure if you google something like "how to unlock cores on an AMD phenom II x2 processor" you'll find a decent guide, also, if you're planning to overclock, there's a good guide here http://forums.techguy.org/hardware/8...ad-before.html

[crjdriver]

Just remember; do not overclock with parts you cannot afford to replace. There is no safe overclock.

If you do decide to OC the system, go slowly and test for stability after each bios setting change. I use prime95 however both OCCT and amd overdrive will work as well for testing stability.

If it is not prime95 stable, it is NOT a stable overclock.

[jack-o-bytes]

Also, Don't get carried away at upping the voltage to try and unlock the cores. That may be the reason they are disabled because they couldn't run at those voltages. If you are lucky you will get one that has had them disabled to compensate for supply and demand on the dual and quad core processors.

Jack-O-Bytes

[Rygorn]

On this website http://itshootout.com/r-336/amd-phen...dition-review/ they were able to unlock and overclock to 3.6 on the Phenom II X2 555. Hopefully I can achieve results like this but most likely not.