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!
(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!