Unlock and Overclock AMD Phenom II x2 545

My suggestion would be to raise the Vcore or CPU voltage slightly until you can get into windows.

Download CPU-Z, HWMonitor and Prime95. They're all small and provide a wealth of information about your CPU, Graphics chip, etc.

Start Prime95 and just click OK. It will start a stress test on your CPU. If you have HWMonitor open at the same time you can see the temperature increase in the CPU. Make sure your temps don't go over ~58C to start with just to be safe. Higher temps may be safe as well but this should ensure no damage will occur. Others may have more accurate numbers to shoot for.

If Prime95 crashes your computer you may need to increase the Vcore or CPU Voltage again by 1 notch. More voltage = more heat which can be potentialy damaging but it's likely your unlocked cores just need a minor increase in juice to run stable which should be within manufacturers limits.

What kind of heatsink do you have for your CPU? Is it the one that came in the box?

Good luck!
Tim

http://www.overclock.net/amd-cpus/535501-amd-phenom-ii-...

Using the stock cooler keep a very close look at your temps as extra cores means extra heat. The stock cooler with a x4 is quite bad but you have one designed for 2. If you can't get all 4 cores stable try for 3 if not try a different 3. If you can get extra cores (and even if you can't) I strongly recommend getting a new cooler before overclocking even a cheap one will be a huge improvement.

Like Simon, I suggest not even using the 4 cores, if you succeed, for a long duration as the heat created from the chip, with the stock cooler of the Phenom II X2's is just not enough to keep it cool. Also, as coalesce said, increment 1 up the vcore 'till its possible to get in. If you can't get in it would suggest that your CPU can't be unlocked as its not a 100% chance.

Hi,I agree with the above. with a stock cooler unlocking is just to hot. something a lot of people dont mention when they talk about unlocking is how this cpu go's from a 80watt cpu to a 170 watt cpu.so even at stock vcore your still generating a lot more heat than you might think.I run a 550BE unlocked @ the stock 3.1Ghz and i couldn't be happier with it.just make sure you use a proper cooler.BTW i didn't have to change anything but acc option and unleashing to get a fully stable quad.Good luck  

Would overclocking be OK if I have a Hyper 212 Plus Cooler (One Fan)?

Yup, that cooler is pretty decent for it's price. Just watch your temperatures as you overclock.

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