Phenom II X2 550 turns into a Phenom II X4 B50

I got a phenom II X2 550, a gigabyte GA MA770T UD3P mobo, 4 GB G.Skill DDR3 1333Mhz ram, and a Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4850 graphics card for my new build. Having read about the numerous successes of unlocking cores, I really wanted to do it. But I had fears of breaking the processor or motherboard, Yet I still did it the same day I built the PC. I updated the bios to the f2c version, went into the MB Intelligent Tweaker (in the bios) changed EC Firmware Selection to hybrid, and set the ACC to auto. Then I saved the settings and exited. A message flashed that said "UPDATING EC FIRMWARE, DON'T TURN OFF OR RESET SYSTEM!" Then the computer turned off and after about 5 seconds turned back on. Windows 7 and XP both said that the processor was a Phenom II X4 B50, and so did any other program or utility like CPU-Z. Windows 7 gave it a score of 7.3 and as a dual core it was 6.5 I ran 3DMark 06 and it gave the processor a score of 4730. As a dual core 3DMark gave it a score of 2674. So when all 4 cores where unlocked it was working almost twice as good. It was Prime95 Stable and overclocking this thing was a breeze because it's a black edition and has an unlocked Multiplier. But be sure to get a good cooler if you plan on overclocking it.

(The scores above were all tested on stock speed 3.1Ghz, when I overclocked this CPU the scores were soaring higher than the sky.)

Conclusion: I bought this CPU for $102.99, but the performance I got in the end was worth way more than that. I basically got a phenom II quad core black edition! For the price this is the best CPU you can get!

way to go, you got lucky (unless they are intentionally binning more parts now)

Idk, I've read a lot of people are having success unlocking cores on this CPU.

I need to reinstall windows so I'll post the shots later...hang on there...

Try photobucket next time. I cant even get the right click show image to work

It overclocks even higher then what Tom's could do it?!? Nice...I"ll try it, stress test it, and benchmark it. Then I'll post up what I got...

Are all the cores unlocked?

I think I can hit 3.5Ghz...but I think I'll have to give it a voltage boost...is 1.4 ok?

Hi,

I was lucky my gaming rig booted on the first try...so far so good, except for an intermittent lock-up problem I am having, I'm trying to tweak my way out of this problem before I unlock all my cores.

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P AM3 DDR3 AMD 790X ATX
CPU: Phenom II X2 550 BE Callisto 3.1GHz
RAM : OCZ OCZ3P13334GK 4gb kit (2gb x 2) 1333mhz 7-7-7-ddr3
Video Card: MSI N9800GT-T2D512-OC V2 GeForce 9800 GT 512MB
PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ700MXSP 700W
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA
DVD-Rom/Rw: Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model AD-7240S-0B
CASE: Antec 900
Sound: Sound Blaster Live! 24-bit [Old]
Monitor: Hyundai 19" L90D+ D-SUB [Old]
OS: WindowsXP Pro 32 [Old]

My stock scores:

I see...well I got all cores unlocked and I managed to overclock to 3.5Ghz stable
My voltage was 1.4
I'm sure I can hit 3.6 and make it stable...I hit 3.8 and it was stable enough to boot windows and run 3DMark06 benchmark...the scores were incredible.
I'll post up a screen shot later, I'm reinstalling windows...

What's up with the lock-ups? Mine booted right after the build, I've had no problems with it at all so far...
Can you explain exactly what happens with yours?

Your on a stock cooler???

I would not do that, if anything condenses (gets wet) you can do some serious damage to your hardware. I have a 30.00$ cooler on my 550 and at 3.5Ghz it never reaches 50c (49c MAX). When i buy the CPU the first thing I do is throw the stock heat-sink in a box i use to keep all my old hardware and install an aftermarket cooler. IMO stock coolers are a piece of junk unless you plan on not doing any overclocking at all.

Have you tested with prime95? If not then its time you try that......

That is a great heat-sink, its VERY big so measure first before buying....

It should fit, I'm sure I have enough room...

32 bit windows can only recognize up to 3.25 gigs of ram but 64 bit goes way into terabytes i think (something like 128 terabytes)
So you have no problem there...

Ohh...I see...thanks for the correction...
still 16 gigs is like the max on PCs these days...

I'm gonna go do some benchmarks and post them up...just installed win XP...

Hi,.. i O.C my Phenom II X2 550 BE on my mobo with nVidia 720a chipset to 3.41GHz.. with stock cooler.....check the temp.


3DMark 06 scores at 3.1GHz


3DMark 06 scores at 3.41GHz


3DMark06 score with Athlon64 X2 6000+ at 3.3GHz

IMO that is a RAM issue... have you tested your RAM (1 stick at a time?)

Same thing happen to me with my last build, every now n then it would freeze to a point that I wouldn't be able to turn off the PC unless I reset, or hold the power button till the PC shut off. I RMA'ed the RAM back to Newegg, 4 days later I had 2 new sets that were tested for 48 hours using memtest86 and prime95 and everything was fine. Now at days it is more likely that you might get a bad stick or two, so its always good to test the RAM before you send in any rebate info.... Took me 2 RMA's till i could get 2 flawless sets of OCZ Platinum 1066Mhz memory.

Here are some scores...

For those who don't know:
Hardware/Software:

phenom II X2 550 unlocked to be a phenom II X4 B50
4gig G.Skill 1333 ddr3 ram
GA MA770T UD3P
Sapphire ATI Radeon 4850
Win XP 32

Stock settings and speeds
(CPU @ 3.1, graphics gpu @ 625, graphics memory @ 993)



CPU OCed @ 3.2, graphics gpu @ 650, graphics memory @ 1050



CPU OCed @ 3.6, graphics gpu @ 700, graphics memory @ 1200



CPU OCed @ 3.8, graphics gpu @ 700, graphics memory @ 1200



What do you guys make of this?

Hi,

Yes 1 stick at a time they both passed Mem86 again. I ran each stick in Prime95, stick #1 Passed...stick #2 Locked up my comp. I'm getting a RMA from OCZ for stick #2.

Thanks for all the help. I will advise once I have both sticks up & running

OCZ is TOP NOTCH specially with the DDR3 modules, they just have a bad batch every now n then just like every other manufacturer. I have had bad sticks from G.Skill and Patriot....as long as we can RMA it is not an issue.....