Convert Athlon II X3 425 to full Phenom II X4 925 with quick unlock instructions
There have always been such components on the market that, with a certain approach to them, provided the user with much more performance than he paid for them. Such processors or video cards, and sometimes even motherboards, are scraps from top-end products. It happens that with a successful combination of circumstances, a flagship processor can be made from a budget processor.
The employees of the PCShop Group computer store carried out an interesting experiment-study on unlocking a three-core Athlon II X3 425 processor and turning it into a real quad-core Phenom II X4 925 chip.
As you know, AMD uses only three types of crystals for the production of its processors: a four-core Deneb from it by cutting the L3 cache get Propus and a dual-core Regor. Athlon II X3 4XX processors can be both on the Deneb crystal (the version for Athlon II X3 4XX is called Rana) and on the Propus core.
NucleusDeneb
Propus core
In other words, with some luck, you can get a cut from a Deneb crystal (Phenom II). And you can always get a physically clipped Propus that just doesn't have an L3 cache. AMD makes no warranty of any kind as to the performance of an unlocked cache or core. You buy exactly the model and with those characteristics that are printed on the box or processor cover.
At the disposal of the PCShop Group were Athlon II X3 425 processors on the most "correct" crystal - Deneb, which made it possible to unlock, together with the core, 6 MB of L3 cache.
After
Comparing the characteristics of the unlocked Athlon II X3 425 with the production model Phenom II X4 925, you can notice some differences:
Athlon II X3 425 |
Phenom II X4 B25 |
Phenom II X4 925 |
|
Frequency, MHz |
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Number of Cores |
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L2 cache, KB |
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Cache memory capacity L3, MB |
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Technological process, nm |
Of course, you can find fault with the fact that the frequency does not match. But here it’s like in the popular saying about a gift horse. Although, we will return to the frequency later and show that it is possible to get a more efficient processor from the Athlon II X3 425 even than the Phenom II X4 965 BOX Black Edition (3400 MHz). Besides unlocking, overclocking has always been an effective method of increasing performance. The newly minted Phenom II X4 B25 (Athlon II X3 425) was overclocked to a stable frequency of 3600 MHz (33% overclock.). Thus, the Athlon II X3 425 processor became equal in speed to the yet unrepresented Phenom II X4 975 (3600 MHz).
Recall that to unlock the processor, at least, you must have a motherboard based on the south bridge SB710 or SB750. You can also use some models of motherboards based on NVIDIA system logic to unlock, which we have already reported in the news.
In this case, the processor was unlocked on the GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD3P motherboard. All that had to be done to convert the processor was to find the “Advanced Clock Calibration” setting in the BIOS and set the value to “Auto”. Save BIOS settings and restart your PC.
Then, in the same Advanced Clock Calibration section, find “EC Firmware Selection” and select the “Hybrid” option.
Testing
Test stand:
Cooler - Zalman CNPS 9700 LED + ZM-CS4A
Motherboard - GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD3P;
RAM - GOODRAM PRO GP900D264L5
Video card - MSI Radeon HD 4890 (R4890 Cyclone);
Storage - Samsung HD252HJ;
Power supply unit - Seasonic S12D-850.
It is significant that the performance gain from unlocking the Athlon II X3 425 processor in the 3DMark06 test was 25% and is practically equal to the Phenom II X4 925. The overclocked and unlocked Athlon II X3 425 shows excellent speed, which will become available for ordinary users only after the release of the Phenom processor II X4 975. Also noteworthy are the results of the SuperPi 1M tests, for which the amount of cache memory is important. In it, the unlocked and overclocked Athlon II X3 425 with 6 MB of L3 cache went beyond 20 seconds!
Finally, we note that do not forget that unlocking is a lottery. There are times when the kernel is unlocked, but does not function stably. Or it may turn out that the Athlon II X3 processor is based on the Propus die.
PCShop Group
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The article will discuss the possibility of including the third and fourth cores, and also the practical results of such an action will be given - that is, tests. It's very tempting to get a platform with a top-end processor for a hundred dollars.
Regarding, but one of the main consequences of AMD's "poverty" is RATIONAL use of the crystal area.
AMD much earlier than Intel, and even on the old process technology, still managed to create the first quad-core processor on one die (Intel made its quads by soldering two dual-core processors).
So - the processor is done, but the marriage is still present from time to time even in a rich intel (fresh news - ). So AMD, for example, has suspicions that one core is not working. It is simply blocked and you buy some kind of three or even dual-core processor AMD Phenom II 560 X2 Socket AM3 3.3GHz 7MB 80W box or Athlon II X3 445. But physically - it is FOUR-CORE!
How do I unlock / enable AMD processor cores?
Save changes and reboot - if everything goes smoothly, then the first step will pass. But only the FIRST.
Do not forget that the cores for Athlones and Phenomas are blocked for a reason and they can be faulty. Next, you MUST test ALL processor cores for stability, for example, as described in the article.
PRACTICE
An Athlon II X3 425 processor was taken and with the help of AsRock's cheap motherboard option - Bios Unlock CPU Core, the fourth core was enabled.
This is how the processor looked BEFORE unlocking:
As you can see, the CPU-Z utility determines that the processor has three active cores and each has half a megabyte of L2 cache.
Now we turn on the fourth core ...
Disappointment awaited. The very first test revealed the inoperability of the included kernel. It was functioning, but failed under load. Looking closely at the picture, you will also see artifacts of the desktop image. But another thing is noteworthy - the Athlon II X3 processor turned not into a quad-core Athlon, but into Phenom II X4 !!!
The screenshot clearly shows from the utility readings that not only the kernel was turned on, but also the extra 6MB of L3 cache.
I decided not to give up and go all the way. Through trial and error, it was revealed that the PHYSICALLY faulty locked core is the second in a row. What if the L3 cache is healthy? To verify this claim, the processor was again unlocked, but the second core was disabled from the application manager.
We are passing the test ...
The test worked flawlessly. And at the same time, we also found out the practical benefits of a large cache. In the 3D Mark 2006 test, its presence, other things being equal, in some places added + 10%. This is certainly not an extra core, but still an increase. Smart motherboard manufacturers, even specifically for such cases, provide for the associated shutdown of faulty cores.
That is, first we will forcibly unblock everything that can be unblocked, and then we block what is inoperable)))))))))))))))
There is still a fly in the ointment in all this. Even in spite of the fact that the cache and cores are inactive, such processors still have a large die size and are noticeably heated. Consider this.
WHICH PROCESSORS ARE SUITABLE FOR UNLOCKING?
Three-core Athlones and two-three-core Athlon-II-X3 and Phenom-II-X2-3 are suitable. There is also a rumor that some quad-core models will unlock six-cores, but there is no such experience yet. Then look for Phenomes on the Thuban core and it is quite possible to be lucky.
OUTPUT
In general, in this case, I was not lucky, because I could get a 100% working copy. In that case, I would get a $ 150 quad-core Phenom II X4 out of a $ 65 processor. Agree - this lottery is worth it. And it is especially pleasing that even penny motherboards can do this.
I remember that processor manufacturers were tormented by the question of how to make multi-core CPUs. In the beginning, two crystals were "cut out" and placed side by side on the wafer. Then, two different chips were selected in one package, matching each other in frequency. But in the end, the more honest way of multicore architecture won out, when the maximum number of cores was designed on one monolithic die. And then a curious situation developed. On the one hand, it is expensive to design and develop different logic for dual-core and quad-core chips. But on the other hand, you need to release processors with a different number of cores in order to "work" in all price categories.
AMD decided to “save money”. We made a successful Deneb crystal on four cores and got carried away with cutting. Carrying one nucleolus - we get Heka (known as Phenom II X3), carrying the second - we get Callisto (known as Phenom II X2), carrying a third-level cache - this is the basis for the Athlon II processor family. However, American marketers miscalculated, because you cannot get under the crystal cover with a hacksaw / scalpel / soldering iron (underline the necessary) and physically disable unnecessary nodes.
To exaggerate, then all the key information about the processors is hardwired into them, but in order to recognize the whole essence of the CPU, the motherboard must have comprehensive information. Remember the triumphant appearance in the spring of 2005 of the first dual-core AMD Athlon 64 X2 processors. They were compatible with any motherboard supporting Athlon64 and Athlon FX CPUs (Socket 939). And at the moment of starting the PC, the CPUID-number of the processor appeared on the screen, and next to it was an inscription like Model Unknown - as before, everything was kept on one core. Then AMD sent the corresponding microcode to the platform manufacturers and the second core started working with the new firmware in the operating system.
Now about the secret behind seven seals. At the time of system initialization, the so-called function map from the same code for the CPU is loaded into the internal memory of the processor, depending on the CPUID. There are keys that activate certain components of the crystal. The smartest motherboard makers have figured out storing different microcode variants. As a result, at your own risk, you can enable locked cores and L3 cache. According to our information, the most daring pioneers were engineers from Gigabyte, and it was their GA-880GA-UD3H board that served as the basis for today's experiments.
But don't think that core unlocking is available to users only on Gigabyte motherboards - this is not the case. That's just, different manufacturers have different names for nuclear unlocking technologies. For Gigabyte this is Auto Unlock, for AsRock, Biostar, DFI, Foxconn, Asus the function is called Advanced Clock Calibration, for MSI you need to use the Unlock CPU Core method, etc.
Looking at AMD's second generation 45nm desktop processor product line opens up the following avenues for enthusiasts. You can take the AMD Phenom II X4 820/810/805 models and "increase" the L3 cache from 4 to 6 MB. By purchasing AMD Phenom II X3 740/720/705/700 models, you should try to unlock the fourth core (complete with 512 KB L2 cache). And with AMD Phenom II X2 555/550/545 processors, you can work on unlocking two cores at once, and at the same time increase the total volume of L2 caches to 2 MB. As for the AMD Athlon II X4 grouping, there is a chance to enable 6 MB L3 cache. The most profitable business seems to be working with AMD Athlon II X3 models. Here you can activate the fourth core, with the attached 512 MB L2 cache, and enable the L3 cache (if physically available). By the way, there is nothing superfluous inside Athlon II X2 - these processors are built on a special Regor crystal.
Now about why in the paragraph above we are narrating with some degree of doubt. First, in the process of manufacturing crystals, AMD specialists weed out "expensive" CPUs from "cheap" ones after qualification tests, although they do it selectively. Second, some time ago at the AMD factory they launched the production of simplified crystals on four cores without L3 cache. Thirdly, motherboard manufacturers can easily exclude working with locked cores in the latest versions of their firmware.
How we tested
For experiments on unlocking the cores, we purchased four AMD Athlon II X3 425 processors from the same batch (marking the first line as ADX425WFK32GI, the second - AACYC AC 0923EPMW). The CPUID-number (hexadecimal) of the crystal is the same for all - 00100F52. CPU # 1 had serial number 9063917F90048, CPU # 2 was 9063917F90033, CPU # 3 was 9063917F90050, CPU # 4 was 9063917F90046.
All core unlocking and processor tests were carried out on the basis of Gigabyte GA-880GA-UD3H motherboard (F1 firmware). Used memory Transcend TX2000KLU-4GK (DDR3, 1333 MHz, 4 GB, 9-9-9-24, dual-channel mode), video card Sapphire Toxic Radeon HD 5850 1 GB, hard drive Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX (2 GB, SATA 6 Gb / s, 64 MB cache, 7200 rpm), Plextor DVDR PX-810SA optical drive, Tagan SuperRock TG880-U33II power supply unit (880 W). The test work was carried out with a connected Samsung SyncMaster PX2370 monitor with a graphics resolution of 1920x1080.
Software tests were carried out under Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit. We used measuring complexes PCMark Vantage 1.0.2, SiSoftware Sandra Pro 2010 SP2. The multithreaded code execution was monitored using WinRAR x64 version 3.93 within the SmartFPS.com CPU v1.9 and. Crysis, Serious Sam 2, The Chronicles of Riddick: EFBB and Enemy Territory - QUAKE Wars were used as gaming tests. The gaming applications were launched using the SmartFPS.com v1.11 utility.
"Mom" is an important word
Processor innovation tests are only possible with modern motherboards. And not necessarily the most expensive ones.
So today's tests are built around the affordable Gigabyte GA-880GA-UD3H platform, which features an AMD 880G chipset with integrated ATI Radeon HD 4250 graphics. Other options with graphics cores could be GA-890GPA-UD3H, GA-880GMA-UD2H and GA- 880GM-UD2H.
The main differences between expensive platforms based on AMD 890GX chips from those available on AMD 880G are in improved characteristics of graphic nodes and a different scheme for using PCI Express 2.0 lines.
The Gigabyte GA-880GA-UD3H model is built on a combination of AMD 870 and AMD SB850 system chips, manufactured at TSMC factories using the 65 nm process technology. It has two PCI Express x16 ports (one works in x16 mode, the other in x4 mode), two PCI-E x1 interface connectors and three outdated PCI ports.
The four DIMM slots on the GA-880GA-UD3H can accommodate up to 16GB of RAM (in dual channel DDR3 mode). The Hyper Transport bus has a throughput of 5200 MT / s.
The Gigabyte GA-880GA-UD3H platform can be connected to 8 SATA hard drives with a bandwidth of up to 3 Gb / s and 2 SATA hard drives with a bandwidth of up to 6 Gb / s. Plus one familiar connector for a PATA cable.
The GA-880GA-UD3H is particularly proud of the two blue USB 3.0 ports on the rear panel. The trendy "feature" became possible thanks to the certified NEC D720200F1 microcircuit.
What the tests showed
Let's start with the main thing. Out of the four purchased processors AMD Athlon II X3 425, we were pleased with three copies - the fourth core was unlocked without any problems. Moreover, we were doubly lucky, since the test subjects were produced relatively long ago (23 week of 2009) and a full-fledged Deneb crystal was hidden under their lid. As a result, the third level cache was added to the extra nucleolus.
Note that the upgraded processors worked for several days without any complaints. Apparently, these crystals were “discarded” by AMD specialists in vain.
As for the "failed" CPU with the serial number 9063917F90050. There were no difficulties in working with it, as long as the CPU Unlock switch was in the Disabled position in the BIOS program of the GA-880GA-UD3H board. In this normal mode, the operating system saw 3 working cores without a third-level cache - as planned by AMD engineers. Switching the CPU Unlock to the Enabled position crushed any hopes - there were no signs of the life of the test bench, you had to reset the BIOS settings to the initial ones. Manipulations with the items CPU Core Control and CPU core X do not help - it is obvious that processor # 3 was locked in place.
Let's close the sad topic and move on to the reborn crystals numbered 1, 2 and 4. All the tables with the results of numerous tests show a stunning performance increase. In the set of PCMark Vantage test tracks, let's highlight Data compression –- + 100% performance, Windows Media Center - + 76%, Video transcoding - + 71%, Memories - + 44%, Web page rendering - + 40%, CPU gaming - + 29%, etc. A similar picture emerges in the results of outright "synthetics" of SiSoftware Sandra 2010 - pay attention to all processor tests, including tests of inter-core efficiency. Moreover, individual tests of SiSoftware Sandra for latency in data transfer between cores demonstrate the usefulness of the included nucleolus - no lapses in time or clock cycles.
The results of gaming tests at low graphics resolution, which load the processor, are very indicative. Even in the outdated hits (without hints of multi-threaded encoding) Serious Sam 2 and The Chronicles of Riddick: EFBB, we see amazing progress - + 24% and +30, respectively. And all this became possible thanks to the opened cache of the third level.
Also, pay attention to the curious picture in the results of the multithreaded algorithm of the WinRAR program. Here the script module SmartFPS.com CPU has created a certain number of parallel computations. In the normal operating mode of AMD Athlon II X3 425, there is a step-by-step progress when switching from thread 1 to threads 2, 3 and 4. If we go further and switch to threads 5 and 6, we get a regression. All three cores of the crystal were fully loaded on 4 more threads, and the extra branches of calculations interfere with the executor (in terms of the final performance). In "unlocked" mode Athlon II X3 425 stalls when switching from 5 threads to 6. On the face of it, there is a benefit not only from the presence of a 6 MB L3 cache, but also from the "free" core in the CPU.
Let's look at the technical specifications of AMD processors. Without even touching the frequency of the triple-core Athlon II X3 425 CPU, after unlocking all the cores and cache, the $ 80 processor turns out to be similar to the $ 155 Phenom II X4 925 CPU. That is, thanks to the useful Gigabyte Auto Unlock technology and "myopia “AMD marketers get a double win in both performance and price. In our opinion, this approach to overclocking is much more interesting than alternative paths, such as AMD OverDrive / Gigabyte EasyTune (see the article "Abusive" technologies are wanted ") and AMD Turbo CORE (see the article" AMD Turbo CORE: the successor of the turbo button ").
At the end of the article, we will retell some associations with the results of the experiments. This year the BMW S 1000 RR sports bike appeared on the world market - the first BMW sports bike in the history of the company. Unlike Bavarian cars, BMW motorcycle products are notorious among experienced motorcycle enthusiasts and in the two-wheeled world have been fueled by Japanese manufacturers Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki and Kawasaki for the past 30 years. So what have German marketers come up with to quickly enter the competitive sports bike segment?
First, the price of the BMW S 1000 RR was made very affordable. Secondly, the novelty was stuffed with all kinds of electronics, such as integral racing ABS and dynamic traction control. And thirdly, they made a cut-off version of the S 1000 RR, in which they offered only 107 hp, instead of 193. Of course, the "strangled" BMW costs less, the annual taxes are at a minimum, it consumes "nothing at all" gasoline, and even break into it is difficult. But most importantly, the S 1000 RR control module is easily re-asked for by a new program and a BMW motorcycle turns into a full-bodied sports bike in just five minutes. Doesn't it look like anything?
Apparently the idea of \u200b\u200b"free" overclocking is so popular with consumers that soon "locked" TV sets and "strangled" air conditioners will appear in stores. And experienced PC users can be proud of this, because it all started with computer hardware.
Just the facts: AMD processor specs
Feature \\ Processor | AMD Athlon II X3 425 | AMD Athlon II X4 620 | AMD Athlon II X4 630 | AMD Phenom II X3 720 | AMD Phenom II X4 925 |
Nucleus | Rana | Propus | Propus | Heka | Deneb |
Frequency, GHz | 2,7 | 2,6 | 2,8 | 2,8 | 2,8 |
L2 cache, MB | 1,5 | 2 | 2 | 1,5 | 2 |
L3 cache, MB | not | not | not | 6 | 6 |
Syst. bus, MTransactions / s | 4000 | 4000 | 4000 | 4000 | 4000 |
Memory type | DDR3 / DDR2 | DDR3 / DDR2 | DDR3 / DDR2 | DDR3 / DDR2 | DDR3 / DDR2 |
Memory frequency, GHz | 1333/1066 | 1333/1066 | 1333/1066 | 1333/1066 | 1333/1066 |
TDP, W | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 |
Connector | AM3 | AM3 | AM3 | AM3 | AM3 |
Revision | C2 | C2 | C2 / C3 | C2 / C3 | C2 / C3 |
Technical process, nm | 45 | 45 | 45 | 45 | 45 |
price, rub. | 2400 | 3200 | 3300 | 3700 | 4600 |
PCMark Vantage benchmark results
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | |
6588 | 7704 | 16,9 | |
PCMark Memories 1, points | 16,81 | 18,67 | 11,1 |
4,999 | 5,748 | 15,0 | |
56,502 | 60,627 | 7,3 | |
PCMark Memories 2, points | 3,22 | 4,04 | 25,5 |
3,217 | 4,044 | 25,7 | |
4,08 | 5,17 | 26,7 | |
0,566 | 0,903 | 59,5 | |
29,429 | 29,588 | 0,5 | |
40,11 | 53,06 | 32,3 | |
53,952 | 95,062 | 76,2 | |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -1160,724745 | -1344,6768 | 15,8 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -1457,222582 | -1689,712509 | 16,0 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -1753,720418 | -2034,748218 | 16,0 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -2050,218255 | -2379,783927 | 16,1 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -2346,716091 | -2724,819636 | 16,1 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -2643,213927 | -3069,855345 | 16,1 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -2939,711764 | -3414,891055 | 16,2 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -3236,2096 | -3759,926764 | 16,2 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -3532,707436 | -4104,962473 | 16,2 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -3829,205273 | -4449,998182 | 16,2 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -4125,703109 | -4795,033891 | 16,2 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -4422,200945 | -5140,0696 | 16,2 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -4718,698782 | -5485,105309 | 16,2 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -5015,196618 | -5830,141018 | 16,2 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -5311,694455 | -6175,176727 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -5608,192291 | -6520,212436 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -5904,690127 | -6865,248145 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -6201,187964 | -7210,283855 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -6497,6858 | -7555,319564 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -6794,183636 | -7900,355273 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -7090,681473 | -8245,390982 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -7387,179309 | -8590,426691 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -7683,677145 | -8935,4624 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -7980,174982 | -9280,498109 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -8276,672818 | -9625,533818 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -8573,170655 | -9970,569527 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -8869,668491 | -10315,60524 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -9166,166327 | -10660,64095 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -9462,664164 | -11005,67665 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -9759,162 | -11350,71236 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -10055,65984 | -11695,74807 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -10352,15767 | -12040,78378 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -10648,65551 | -12385,81949 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -10945,15335 | -12730,8552 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -11241,65118 | -13075,89091 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -11538,14902 | -13420,92662 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -11834,64685 | -13765,96233 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -12131,14469 | -14110,99804 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -12427,64253 | -14456,03375 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -12724,14036 | -14801,06945 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -13020,6382 | -15146,10516 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -13317,13604 | -15491,14087 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -13613,63387 | -15836,17658 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -13910,13171 | -16181,21229 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -14206,62955 | -16526,248 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -14503,12738 | -16871,28371 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -14799,62522 | -17216,31942 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -15096,12305 | -17561,35513 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -15392,62089 | -17906,39084 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -15689,11873 | -18251,42655 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -15985,61656 | -18596,46225 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -16282,1144 | -18941,49796 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -16578,61224 | -19286,53367 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -16875,11007 | -19631,56938 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -17171,60791 | -19976,60509 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -17468,10575 | -20321,6408 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -17764,60358 | -20666,67651 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -18061,10142 | -21011,71222 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -18357,59925 | -21356,74793 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -18654,09709 | -21701,78364 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -18950,59493 | -22046,81935 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -19247,09276 | -22391,85505 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -19543,5906 | -22736,89076 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -19840,08844 | -23081,92647 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -20136,58627 | -23426,96218 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -20433,08411 | -23771,99789 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -20729,58195 | -24117,0336 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -21026,07978 | -24462,06931 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -21322,57762 | -24807,10502 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -21619,07545 | -25152,14073 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -21915,57329 | -25497,17644 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -22212,07113 | -25842,21215 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -22508,56896 | -26187,24785 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -22805,0668 | -26532,28356 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -23101,56464 | -26877,31927 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -23398,06247 | -27222,35498 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -23694,56031 | -27567,39069 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -23991,05815 | -27912,4264 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -24287,55598 | -28257,46211 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -24584,05382 | -28602,49782 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -24880,55165 | -28947,53353 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -25177,04949 | -29292,56924 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -25473,54733 | -29637,60495 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -25770,04516 | -29982,64065 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -26066,543 | -30327,67636 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -26363,04084 | -30672,71207 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -26659,53867 | -31017,74778 | 16,3 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -26956,03651 | -31362,78349 | 16,3 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -27252,53435 | -31707,8192 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -27549,03218 | -32052,85491 | 16,3 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -27845,53002 | -32397,89062 | 16,3 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -28142,02785 | -32742,92633 | 16,3 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -28438,52569 | -33087,96204 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -28735,02353 | -33432,99775 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -29031,52136 | -33778,03345 | 16,3 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -29328,0192 | -34123,06916 | 16,3 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -29624,51704 | -34468,10487 | 16,3 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -29921,01487 | -34813,14058 | 16,4 |
HDD - Windows Media Center, MB / s | -30217,51271 | -35158,17629 | 16,4 |
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
General assessment of PCMark Suite, points | -30514,01055 | -35503,212 | 16,4 |
PCMark Memories 1, points | -30810,50838 | -35848,24771 | 16,4 |
CPU image manipulation, MB / s | -31107,00622 | -36193,28342 | 16,4 |
HDD - importing pictures to Windows Photo Gallery, MB / s | -31403,50405 | -36538,31913 | 16,4 |
PCMark Memories 2, points | -31700,00189 | -36883,35484 | 16,4 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to WMV9, MB / s | -31996,49973 | -37228,39055 | 16,4 |
PCMark TV and Movies 1, points | -32292,99756 | -37573,42625 | 16,4 |
Video transcoding - VC-1 to VC-1, MB / s | -32589,4954 | -37918,46196 | 16,4 |
Video playback - VC-1 HD DVD with SD commentary, fps | -32885,99324 | -38263,49767 | 16,4 |
PCMark TV and Movies 2, points | -33182,49107 | -38608,53338 | 16,4 |
SiSoftware Sandra Professional Home 2010 Benchmark Results
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
CPU arithmetic test | |||
Dhrystone ALU, GIPS | 28,85 | 34,56 | 19,8 |
Whetstone iSSE3, GFLOPS | 23,33 | 31,19 | 33,7 |
Multimedia processor test | |||
Multi-Media Int x16 aSSE2, MPixel / s | 94,14 | 126 | 33,8 |
Multi-Media Float x8 iSSE2, MPixel / s | 58 | 77,12 | 33,0 |
Multi-Media Double x4 iSSE2, MPixel / s | 31,57 | 42,12 | 33,4 |
Multi-core efficiency | |||
Data transfer rate, GB / s | 3 | 4,5 | 50,0 |
Latency, ns | 101 | 99 | 2,0 |
Cryptography performance | |||
Cryptography speed AES256-ECB CPU, MB / s | 415 | 554 | 33,5 |
Hash speed SHA256 CPU, MB / s | 373 | 498 | 33,5 |
Memory bandwidth | |||
Int Buff "d iSSE2, GB / | 12 | 12,48 | 4,0 |
Float Buff "d iSSE2, GB / s | 12 | 12,54 | 4,5 |
Cache and memory | |||
Cache / memory bandwidth, GB / s | 35,79 | 45,66 | 27,6 |
Internal data cache, GB / s | 130,33 | 175,2 | 34,4 |
Built-in L2 cache, GB / s | 72,9 | 84,54 | 16,0 |
Built-in L3 cache, GB / s | n / a | 33,3 | -- |
SiSoftware Sandra Professional Home 2010 Memory Latency Test Results
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | |||||
Core 0 | Core 1 | Core 2 | Core 0 | Core 1 | Core 2 | Core 3 | |
Benchmark Results | |||||||
Memory latency, ns | 94 | 93 | 92 | 89 | 87 | 87 | 87 |
Speed \u200b\u200bfactor, units | 85,1 | 83,6 | 83 | 80 | 78,4 | 78,4 | 78,3 |
Test breakdown | |||||||
1 KB range, ns / clock | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 |
4 KB range, ns / clock | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 |
16 KB range, ns / clock | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,1 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 |
64 KB range, ns / clock | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 | 1,1/3,0 |
256 KB range, ns / clock | 5,8/15,7 | 5,8/15,7 | 5,8/15,7 | 5,8/15,6 | 5,8/15,6 | 5,8/15,6 | 5,8/15,7 |
1 MB range, ns / clock | 63,4/171,9 | 63,6/172,6 | 62,9/170,5 | 18,5/50,1 | 18,5/50,2 | 18,5/50,2 | 18,3/49,7 |
4 MB range, ns / clock | 71,7/194,4 | 72,0/195,2 | 71,2/193,1 | 26,0/70,5 | 26,0/70,4 | 26,0/70,5 | 25,7/69,6 |
16 MB range, ns / clock | 79,6/215,8 | 79,8/216,4 | 78,8/213,8 | 81,1/219,9 | 81,0/219,6 | 81,0/219,7 | 80,7/218,8 |
64 MB range, ns / clock | 94,3/255,8 | 92,9/251,8 | 92,4/250,5 | 88,7/240,5 | 87,2/236,4 | 87,2/236,4 | 87,1/236,3 |
Results of gaming tests SmartFPS v1.11 in SVGA mode (800x600), fps
Game \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
Crysis | 60,6 | 68,8 | 13,5 |
Serious sam 2 | 119,7 | 148,7 | 24,2 |
Enemy Territory - QUAKE Wars | 81,7 | 90,4 | 10,6 |
The Chronicles of Riddick: EFBB | 135,1 | 175,9 | 30,2 |
Archiving results in WinRAR x64 version 3.93 in multi-threaded modes of the script SmartFPS.com CPU v1.9, s (the less the better)
Challenge \\ Mode | Normal mode (3 cores) | Advanced mode (4 cores) | Increase in productivity,% |
1 stream | 84 | 69 | 17,9 |
2 streams | 79 | 64 | 19,0 |
3 streams | 54 | 44 | 18,5 |
4 streams | 46 | 39 | 15,2 |
5 threads | 53 | 35 | 34,0 |
6 threads | 50 | 40 | 20,0 |
If you have a computer equipped with a modern processor manufactured by AMD, then this means that you have a chance to significantly increase the performance of your PC without spending a penny on this purpose. This is a technology called “unlocking the cores of AMD processors”. This technology increases the number of processor cores available to the system - usually from two to four or three.
Of course, such an operation is very tempting. Indeed, as the tests show, in some cases the performance of the updated processor almost doubles. Moreover, for the successful implementation of this operation, you only need a little knowledge of the BIOS options, and, by the way, a little luck.
First of all, let's try to figure out why AMD needed to "hide" the processor cores from the user at all. The fact is that each processor manufacturer has several models within a certain line that differ both in price and in capabilities. Naturally, cheaper processor models have fewer cores than more expensive ones. However, it is in many cases irrational to specifically develop models with fewer cores, therefore many manufacturers, in this case, AMD, do it easier - they simply turn off unnecessary processor cores.
In addition, many AMD processors may have defective cores with a number of drawbacks. Such processors are also not thrown away, and after disabling unnecessary cores are sold under the guise of cheaper versions of processors. However, the discovered disadvantages of disabled kernels may not be critical for their functioning. For example, if the processor core has a slightly increased heat dissipation compared to the standard, then the use of a processor with such a core is quite possible.
It should be said right away that the success of the core unlocking operation largely depends not only on the AMD processor line and its model, but also on a specific series of processors. In many series, only the cores in individual processors can be unlocked, while in other series, almost all processors can be unlocked. In some cases, it is possible to unlock not the kernel itself, but only the cache associated with it.
AMD's unlockable processors are from the Athlon, Phenom and Sempron lines. Usually unlocking is possible for cores # 3 and 4 out of the four available cores. In some cases, you can unlock the second core in a dual-core processor, and in some cases, 5 and 6 cores in a quad-core processor.
Features of unlocking various series of processors
Here are some examples of AMD series of processors that can be unlocked, as well as their characteristic features of this process:
- Athlon X2 5000+ - cores # 3 and 4 (individual copies)
- Athlon II X3 4xx series (Deneb / Rana type core) - core 4 and cache
- Athlon II X3 4xx series (Propus type core) - core # 4
- Athlon II X4 6xx series (Deneb / Rana core) - only L3 cache
- Phenom II X2 5xx series - cores # 3 and 4
- Phenom II X3 7xx series - core # 4
- Phenom II X4 8xx Series - Only 2MB Level 3 Cache Unlocked
- Phenom II X4 650T, 840T, 960T and 970 Black Edition - cores # 5 and 6 (selected copies)
- Sempron 140/145 - core # 2
Which chipsets support unlocking processor cores?
It should be noted that not all motherboards support the ability to unlock AMD processor cores. You will only be able to unlock cores if your BIOS supports Advanced Clock Calibration (ACC) technology or a similar technology.
ACC technology is used in the following chipsets:
- GeForce 8200
- GeForce 8300
- nForce 720D
- nForce 980
- Chipsets with south bridge type SB710
- Chipsets with south bridge type SB750
There are also several AMD chipsets that do not support ACC technology, but instead support similar technologies. These chipsets include chipsets with south bridges such as:
- SB810
- SB850
- SB950
The methodology for unlocking cores on these chipsets varies depending on the motherboard manufacturer.
Unblocking technique
To unlock the cores, the user needs to access the BIOS tools. If the motherboard supports ACC technology, in most cases it is enough to find the Advanced Clock Calibration parameter in the BIOS and set it to Auto.
In the case of motherboards from certain manufacturers, some additional steps may also be required. On ASUS motherboards, in addition to ACC, you need to enable the Unleashed mode option, on MSI boards - the Unlock CPU Core option, on NVIDIA boards - the Core Calibration option. On Gigabyte boards, find the EC Firmware Selection option and set it to Hybrid.
On those chipsets that do not support ACC technology, the unlocking method depends on the specific manufacturer. Let's briefly list the options that must be used in the case of each specific manufacturer:
- ASUS - ASUS Core Unlocker
- Gigabyte - CPU Unlock
- Biostar - BIO-unlocKING
- ASRock - ASRock UCC
- MSI - Unlock CPU Core
Unlock check and core testing
In order to make sure that the unlocked cores of AMD processors really work, it is best to use information utilities such as CPU-Z. However, even if you verify that the unlocking was successful, this does not mean that the unlocked kernels will work without problems. In order to fully check their performance, it is recommended to thoroughly test all processor parameters. Also, the failure of the unlocking process may be evidenced by computer malfunctions, and sometimes the inability to load it. In the latter case, you will have to resort to clearing the BIOS memory and resetting it to the factory default state (we described how to carry out this process in a separate article).
If new kernels are found to be defective, the user can disable them at any time using the BIOS options. In addition, it should be borne in mind that the operation of unlocking processor cores works only at the BIOS level, and not at the level of the processors themselves. In the event that you put a processor with unlocked cores on another motherboard, they will still be locked.
And I would like to note one more point. Although unlocking the processor is not equivalent to overclocking it, increasing the number of working cores in your processor will automatically increase the heat dissipation of the processor die. Therefore, perhaps, in this case, it makes sense to think about upgrading the processor-cooling cooler.
Conclusion
Unlocking the cores of AMD processors is a simple step that can nevertheless help the user to realize the full potential of their computing equipment. This operation is carried out by enabling the necessary BIOS options. Although unlocking the cores is not always guaranteed to be successful, it is nevertheless not associated, like overclocking, with significant risk, and can be tried out in practice by any user.
- General information.
- What is ACC? What is NCC?
- Requirements for the motherboard. Setting up the BIOS of the motherboard.
- A small list of the most common questions and answers.
- Related news, articles and polls
- List of motherboards on which the ability to unlock with a certain bios version is confirmed
general information
Attention! The main condition for the normal operation of the system as a result of unlocking the processor is a normal power supply unit with "honest" 350-400W of power at least, which it really produces (and not a "veteran" of Socket 754 times). With questions like "Is this PSU enough for me?" refer to the appropriate forum "Cases, power supplies, modding".
Often, companies do not release new revisions of boards / microchips for the release of cut-down / lower-end models of their products, but use rejection that has not passed tests to work with the characteristics of older models. However, the rejection rate (which also decreases as production matures) is lower than sales of cut products. As a result, completely full-fledged products fall under the knife. Sometimes, by means of certain manipulations, you can activate the disabled.
Processors of the K8 / K9 generation (Windsor / Orleans / Lima / Brisbane, etc.) and older ones are not discussed here: there is simply nothing to unlock.
At the moment, for the release of all processors on the K10.5 architecture (these are Phenom II and Athlon II, as well as Sempron 140/145 and Athlon X2 5000+), AMD uses only four types of crystals: six-core Thuban, four-core Deneb, its stripped-down version (without L3 cache) Propus and dual-core Regor (i.e. all Semprons are originally based on a dual-core crystal, just one core is disabled).
The older Athlon X2 7750 BE can sometimes be unlocked, but in general, it is no longer relevant as outdated (the AMD Athlon X2 7750 BE can include two more cores), based on the K10 architecture.
General characteristics (with the exception of Thuban, about them - below in the text):
Addition:
- Phenom II X4 920 and 940, Athlon X2 5000+:
Connector: AM2 / AM2 + only
Memory support: DDR2 533/667/800/1066 only - The Regor core has been slightly improved compared to Deneb: added hardware support for C1E, L2 cache has become 1024KB per core (Deneb - 512Kb)
- Athlon II X2 215/220 have only 512KB L2 cache.
It should also be noted that, as you can see from the above characteristics, Athlon II X4 / X3 processors can be based on both the Deneb core and the Propus core.
Previously, it was possible to distinguish which core hit a particular processor by the CPUID of the processor: in the case of Deneb, the processor has a CPUID of 00100F42h, in the case of Propus - CPUID of 00100F52h. The CPUID can be seen at system boot on the POST screen. Also, this information can be seen from the OS environment: in the Windows environment - in CPU-Z on the "CPU" tab - the "Model" column ("4" in the first case, "5" - in the second); in Linux - by the output of the cat / proc / cpuinfo command (the model line, similarly - "4" in the first case, "5" - in the second). By release dates: from the 33rd to the 39th week of 2009, almost all processors are based on the Deneb core, later - Propus with rare exceptions. However, some processors of the latest batches with CPUID 00100F52h now also have a perfectly expandable 6MB L3 cache.
Only by marking the processor on the lid can you determine if there is a chance to unlock the L3 cache:
- Regor / Sargas (2 cores, no physical L3 cache): ** E ** series: AAEEC, CAEEC, AAEGC, NAE1C, etc.
- Propus (4 cores without L3 cache physically): ** D ** series: CADAC, CADHC, AADAC, NADHC, NADIC, AADHC, etc.
- Deneb (4 cores, L3 cache is physically present on the chip): ** C ** series: CACYC, CACUC, CACVC, CACZC, CACAC, CACEC, CACDC, AACYC, AACSC, AACTC, AACZC, AACAC, etc.
- Thuban (6 cores, L3 cache physically present on-die): ** B ** series: ACBBE, CCBBE, etc.
The list is incomplete (AMD is constantly releasing new ones), so let the author know if you have information about new ones.
From the above, you can see what can be unlocked on a particular processor model:
- Phenom II X4 8хх - 2 Mb L3 cache;
- Phenom II X3 7xx - the fourth core;
- Phenom II X2 5xx - 3rd and 4th cores;
- Athlon II X4 - L3 cache in case of Deneb core;
- Athlon II X3 - 4th core + in case of Deneb core - L3 cache;
- Athlon II X2 - there is nothing to unlock (only the model with the index 220 can be found on the four-core Deneb - see the markings on the lid).
- Sempron 140/145 - second core.
The list of such motherboards is given below.
The availability of the ability to control the unlocking function itself must be clarified either by the manual for the motherboard, or read the FAQ and user messages in the thread on the corresponding motherboard in the Motherboards section. Studying branches with reviews is more preferable: not all manufacturers update the instructions for the motherboard (and they do not always advertise such a possibility), there are also features of the implementation of this function on specific motherboards.
Settings in the bios of motherboards:
AsRock
Advanced -\u003e Chipset Configuration -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration or (on different models / bios versions in different ways)
OC Tweaker -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration.
Activate Advanced Clock Calibration, then reboot. After that, various options for activating kernels will become available.
On nVidia chipsets with NCC support
Advanced -\u003e NVIDIA Core Calibration
Core management: Active Core Setup.
L3 Cache Management: L3 Cache Allocation.
On motherboards supporting UCC technology
OC Tweaker -\u003e ASRock UCC
Core control: CPU Active Core Control.
Asus
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
Advanced -\u003e CPU Configuration -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration from Disabled to the desired position. After that, the Unleashing Mode option appears. Setting this option to Enabled activates the unlock.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
Advanced -\u003e ASUS Core Unlocker and CPU Core Activation.
On the nVidia chipset
Advanced -\u003e JumperFree Configuration -\u003e NVIDIA Core Calibration
Biostar
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
I warn you right away: for the motherboards of this company, for successful unlocking, sometimes you have to lower the HyperTransport frequency even when operating at nominal frequencies (HT is configured here: Performance Menu -\u003e Hyper Transport Configuration -\u003e HT Link Speed)
Advanced -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
Advanced -\u003e BIO-unlocKING
When the system starts, the POST screen prompts you to press F2 to activate two cores, F3 to activate three cores, or F4 to activate four. Depends on the processor. If you skip the offer (the system does not ask for confirmation, but simply starts further), everything is automatically unlocked.
Diamond Flower Inc (DFI)
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
Genue BIOS Setting -\u003e CPU Feature -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
No data. Let the author know if you have them!
Foxconn
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
Fox Central Control Unit -\u003e Fox Intelligent Stepping -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
No data. Let the author of the FAQ know if you have them!
Gigabyte
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
MB Intelligent Tweaker (M.I.T.) -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration - to Auto or another value as needed, reboot the system, then, in the same place, set EC Firmware Selection to the Hybrid position.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
Advanced BIOS Features -\u003e CPU Unlock
The CPU Unlock option, which is responsible for unlocking, works independently of the CPU core Control option and has only two positions - Enabled and Disabled. Obviously, with limited processors (some of the cores are broken), a combination of these parameters should be used. There is no option responsible for unlocking a separate L3 cache, it is always unlocked when the CPU Unlock option is activated.
MicroStar (MSI)
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
On AMD chipset: Set Cell Menu -\u003e Unlock CPU Core and Advanced Clock Calibration to Enabled.
After that, additional settings appear that allow you to selectively enable / disable the processor cores.
Detailed instructions with pictures + a list of motherboards with support for this function) is available on the official MicroStar website: MSI "s Unlock CPU Core Technology Introduction (in Russian) (be careful - traffic due to screenshots).
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
No data. Let the author know if you have them!
On the nVidia chipset
Cell Menu -\u003e Set Nvidia Core Calibration to Enabled.
Zotac, Sapphire, Jetway
There was no data on the unlock. Let the author know if you have them!
ECS (EliteGroup)
On September 8, 2009, the official technical support announced that unlock support would not be implemented. However, then the policy changed.
On the south bridges AMD SB710, SB750
M.I.B. II (MB Intellegent BIOS II) -\u003e Advanced Clock Calibration.
On the south bridges AMD SB810, SB850
No data. Let the author know if you have them!
Some unlocking tricks.
1. Try to vary the values \u200b\u200bof ACC percentages (on chipsets where ACC support is not initially supported and it is implemented separately by the motherboard manufacturer, these parameters are not available):
We started to move the ACC setting to other modes besides "Auto", using the "All Cores" option for all cores. By changing it in 2% increments, we were able to bring the fourth core back at -6%. And while the system was previously unable to pass the Prime95 test at all, in this case it worked normally for an hour without errors before we turned off the computer. It looks like a more aggressive ACC setting can stabilize the unlocking of the fourth core.
2. Increase or decrease the voltage on the processor and / or the built-in memory controller (NB Core).
3. Understate the frequency of Hyper Transport and / or RAM.
If suddenly you, after unlocking the processor cores, observe that the processor was detected as unlocked in the bios (the kernels, the cache were displayed on the POST-screen, as well as in the characteristics in the bios), but after booting into Windows the number of processor cores remained unchanged (in the CPU- Z, for example), then follow the simple procedure below.
- if the "Number of processors" checkbox is checked, uncheck it.
- if the "Number of processors" box is not checked, check it and specify the number of cores in the drop-down menu.
Save changes and reboot.
After that all kernels should be displayed.
Unlocked processor testing.
Processor tests
Prime95:
Free. English only interface.