• Competitor rules

    Please remember that any mention of competitors, hinting at competitors or offering to provide details of competitors will result in an account suspension. The full rules can be found under the 'Terms and Rules' link in the bottom right corner of your screen. Just don't mention competitors in any way, shape or form and you'll be OK.

Best CPU for £120 new build.

Big.Wayne said:
iXBT Labs - AMD Athlon II X3 425, 435 Processors - Page 1

amdathloniix3425.gif
Click to expand...

Thanks

What about the Asus M4A785D-M Pro some DDR2 6400 and AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz (Socket AM3)?

That would cost him £180

The X3 425 i can't find on overclockers...How much are they and whats the difference in performance between an AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition 3.2GHz (Socket AM3)?

Cheers big ears :)
 
955 all the way for gaming :D 20-30 fps difference in gaming yes you could overclock the 425 but you can also clock the 955. a 955 at say 3.7 is abut same as i7 at stock
 
Last edited:
What are the chances of unlocking the two extra cores on AMD Phenom II X2 Dual Core 550 3.10GHz Black Edition (Socket AM3)?

Does the Asus M4A785D-M Pro allow unlocking of cores?

Thanks!
 
For the mobo look out for the southbridge that is the SB710 or SB750 chip as those allow unlocking. The Asus M4A785D-M Pro is fine.
 
Why don't you make a pot of coffee and sit down to do your own research . . . you have a lot to catch up on, if you get stuck just holla! :)

An AMD socket AM2+ processor has a onboard DDR2 IMC so can only work in a DDR2 motherboard . . . An AMD socket AM3 processor has a onboard IMC that is both DDR2/DDR3 therefore it can work in either a DDR2 motherboard or a DDR3 motherboard . . .

  • AM2+
    • DDR2 Board Only

  • AM3
    • DDR2 Board
    • DDR3 Board

* * * * Propus * * * *
athloniix4die.png


I am using a modern AM3 processor in a modern AM2+ motherboard (785G) with my stash of DDR2, any motherboard with a SB710/SB750 southbridge has the *unlocking* tech . . . the Black Edition chips are suited to either a nOObzilla looking for an easier route into over clocking *or* benchmark professionals and people with uBer cooling that wanna make a name for themselves in the records books . . .

The Athlon II's are suited to nOObzilla's on a budget who just wanna get on with fraggin *or* old school overclockers who can juggle several BUS's and like a good challenge! :cool:

p.s: The term nOObzilla is entirely friendly and not demeaning in anyway!
 
Last edited:


Have you tried unlocking your cores on AMD Athlon II X3 425?

EDIT: only works on Phenom II x2 and X3 cpu's

Surely though if the x3 425 is 50 quid the extra 20 quid on the 550 would be worth it for the chance to unlock all 4 core's?
 
Last edited:
easyrider said:
if the x3 425 is 50 quid the extra 20 quid on the 955 would be worth it for the chance to unlock all 4 core's?
Click to expand...
Your figures are way out and the Phenom II X4 955 has no chance to unlock any extra cores I'm afraid! ;)

The Athlon II X3 425 is half price . . .

AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955
CP-254-AM_400.jpg

£120.55 inc
 
What about the AMD Phenom X3 Triple-Core 710 - 2.6 GHz?

These can be had for 79 quid

Better chance to ublock the 4th core than the 550?
 
Probably as they are binned as three cores with only one being defective in the eyes of AMD.

Its all about luck. If there are loads of demand for 550s then AMD might just lock two perfectly working cores of a quad and sell them as the duals to keep up supply or they could actually have a problem.

With the 550 you could get a tricore if only one core is faulty as in the bios you can choose to only enable one though its how much you really want a quad core :p
 
Theres a lot of good choices, I went AII X3 425 because I have been using a dual core for 4 years and fancied something new to play with . . . I'm also not that lucky with gambling as otherwise the Phenom II X2 550 would have been bought . .

As it turns out the AII X3 I am testing didn't unlock but thats ok as its still a sweet triple core. If the PhII X2 550 didn't unlock I would be a bit naffed off to move from a 3GHz Wolfie dual to a 3.1 Deneb Dual :D
 
Big.Wayne said:
Theres a lot of good choices, I went AII X3 425 because I have been using a dual core for 4 years and fancied something new to play with . . . I'm also not that lucky with gambling as otherwise the Phenom II X2 550 would have been bought . .

As it turns out the AII X3 I am testing didn't unlock but thats ok as its still a sweet triple core. If the PhII X2 550 didn't unlock I would be a bit naffed off to move from a 3GHz Wolfie dual to a 3.1 Deneb Dual :D
Click to expand...

Athlon II's cannot unlock can they?

"First we would like to remind you that the idea of unlocking blocked cores is only valid for Phenom II X2 CPUs. Its younger brother, Athlon II X2, is based on a dual-core die right from the start and there is nothing to unlock there."

:confused:
 
Ah it gets more confusing ;)

The Athlon II X3s are made from the X4 die with one core disabled so the X3s can unlock to the AII X4s. The AII X2 are pure dual cores so cannot unlock unlike the PII 550 which is just a cut down PII quad. The difference between them is that the AIIs do not have the 6mb L3 cache in the PIIs so if you do a lot of stuff cache intensive then a PII would probably be a better bet.

In early versions the Athlon II X3s could even unlock the L3 cache as they used faulty PIIs though I think chances are very low now for that to happen.
 
Last edited:
Azza said:
Athlon II X3 can unlock to Athlon II X4 [or Phenom II X3 or Phenom II x4]

Phenom II X2 can unlock to [Phemom II x3] Phenom II X4
Click to expand...

Fixed! :)

P.s: A Rana based X3 will have more chance of being a Propus die than a Deneb die but the chance is still there! :cool:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom