Phenom II X2 550 BE Unlock - CPU Temperature Sensor

b3mor · 16 Jan 2010 at 12:58

Hey,

I have read that when an attempt is made to unlock the above CPU by enabling ACC that the core temperature sensors are disabled? Does anyone know whether they will start working again if ACC is switched off? Also are there any other side effects of unlocking I should be aware of?

And, probably a foolish question, but if you disable ACC how does the chip 'know' which cores to switch off to return it to its original state?

I want to have a bash at unlocking my CPU (have an ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO) to see if it will work; if it does I'll buy a new cooler if it doesn't I'll stick with the stock cooler and overclock it! :cool:

Phatzy · 16 Jan 2010 at 13:07

its a hit n miss unlocking the extra 2 cores, yea the temp sensor wont work but prime95 passes then i say its ok.
As for going back to 2 cores just by turning off ACC is fine.

Skillmister · 16 Jan 2010 at 13:12

Mine worked with that mobo, and yes you can no longer see the temps. Check your temps on load when locked and see how they are doing.

Mine locked is 42 degrees max on load and i estimate is was going about 55 when unlocked (with stock cooler)

Gl unlocking

el Kuarlos · 16 Jan 2010 at 14:33

One thing I would like someone to try is to add a tad more voltage, to see if that brings back the temp sensors- I get this issue overclocking my 965 when I am too conservative with the volts and it seems logical that these chips have something wrong with them- maybe it is that they need more than their specified voltage?

Taziir · 16 Jan 2010 at 15:34

It's common for all successful unlocks to lose the regular CPU temp reading, but it does work again if you revert the chip to dual core.

I've just unlocked this chip myself, but most people have reported that unlocked chips don't o/c as well in quad core compared to o/c the same chip in dual core.

It seems that most 550's were locked for QC reasons, which most people resolve through extra volts to stabilise the dodgy core(s), so bear in my that extra volts + 2 more cores = much more heat.

On a stock cooler my unlocked chip went to 63c in less than 2 minutes of stress testing, so a decent cooler is a must imo.

b3mor · 17 Jan 2010 at 14:26

Tried unlocking the additional cores but the computer crashes as soon as it starts to load Windows, so, what can I try next?

Would upping the VCORE slightly make any difference?

Other than that I guess the next thing is to try each additional core one at a time to see if it will work as a triple core?

lemzip · 17 Jan 2010 at 15:04

yep, if you get to the boot screen and it crashes you need more volts.

Atom · 21 Jan 2010 at 13:32

b3mor said:
Tried unlocking the additional cores but the computer crashes as soon as it starts to load Windows, so, what can I try next?

Would upping the VCORE slightly make any difference?

Other than that I guess the next thing is to try each additional core one at a time to see if it will work as a triple core?

Sounds the same as mine, I tried 1.5 on the cpu and 1.3 on nb and still wouldn't boot as a quad. Sitting at 3.69 as a tri-core thou...

lemzip · 21 Jan 2010 at 13:54

perhaps these new batches of chips are pritty bad? You guys know your chip details?

Atom · 21 Jan 2010 at 15:16

0924EPMW

eddyc · 22 Jan 2010 at 12:21

Since the temp sensor is disabled does this mean that the automatic cut off of the chip when it reaches dangerous temperatures is also disabled?

I have read that if you add 10 to the CPU mobo temp sensor then that should be around the real temp of the chip. Does anyone think that is reasonable. Clearly it is best to overclock it in dual mode and see how the mobo and cpu temps are related but it is hard to know whether adding the extra 1 or 2 cores will alter that balance...

Taziir · 22 Jan 2010 at 14:08

Use HWmonitor to stress test the chip at stock values to get an idea of how hot the various sensors go. You will find one of the TMPIN temperature readings tie itself to the same increase/decrease in temps of your cores.

For my board it's TMPIN1 and that stays about 10c higher than the core readings.

When I unlocked the cores I only allowed 5c, figuring that 4 cores put out a tonne more heat and so a large safty margin is helpful.

As a dual the cores max temps according to AMD is 62c. At that temp my TMPIN1 will read 72. In quad as I'm allowing 5c, it becomes 62c+5c=67c ceiling TMPIN1.

buttkinz · 24 Jan 2010 at 14:21

more voltage wont enable the temp sensors on mine, tested upto 1.55v. on the upside it will run 3.6ghz IBT stable on 1.35v, TMPIN1 is also my chip temp, i would agree that adding around 10 degrees gives the right reading for the cores

b3mor · 25 Jan 2010 at 21:51

Been too busy to try unlocking but finally had a bash...

Tried upping the VCORE to 1.425v, which I believe is the maximum recommended by AMD, and it continues to crash as soon as Windows starts to load. So one core at least is borked.

So...

Now to see if I can get it to run as a triple core... :cool:

Uriel · 30 Jan 2010 at 01:15

On my Athlon X2 5000+ 45nm unlocked to Phenom x4 it took a bump up in CPU-NB voltage and frequency to get it stable.

Temp sensors don't work on unlocked AMD chips. Use speedfan, everest or something like that.

cavemanoc · 30 Jan 2010 at 14:04

Anyone tried the old trick of threading a temp probe under the chip between the pins like we used to with the old Socket A / 939 stuff? Is it still possible?

Uriel · 30 Jan 2010 at 14:46

No need. The overall cpu temperature is still reported. It's just the individual cores that can on longer be read.

cavemanoc · 30 Jan 2010 at 15:25

gotcha - at least we still have an indication to work from - can't wait to get mine built and have a play!

b3mor · 3 Feb 2010 at 20:57

So far I've had no luck unlocking either core on my 550 BE, it might be that they are unuseable but I'm not giving in just yet...

Can anyone clarify what settings I need to run it as a triple core? Should ACC be set to Auto or do I need to change it to All Cores or Per Core for trying it as a tricore?

I'm then picking either 0,1,2 or 0,1,3 from the options that appear beneath unleashing mode.

I've got the VCORE set to 1.425v for this, which is the maximum recommended by AMD (using the stock cooler at the moment).

Uriel · 3 Feb 2010 at 21:10

It worked on ACC to auto for me. I needed nb-cpu voltage boosted a little to get my Athlon X2 to Phenom FX unlock usable enough to load Windows. Maybe about 1.25 CPU-NB voltage and step up a slightly if you need to? I think boosing the NB-Core and NB-PCI-E voltages slightly helped too.

You do have unleash mode enabled don't you?

Also try dropping your RAM to 1:1 or (400) with timings set manually at the loosest rating set by the manufacturer. Also drop HT multiplier right down. Keep CPU-NB speed between about 1800 - 2200. If you get it working, you can bring them up gradually, one at a time until something makes it unsable again.