[Solved] Is it worth a try to unlock 4th core on Phenom x3 720?

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs [Solved] Is it worth a try to unlock 4th core on Phenom x3 720?

Im getting a new processor and I can get a good deal on the Phenom II x3 if I pair it with this motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA790GPT-UD3H AM3 AMD 790GX
The articles Im reading seem divided on the effectiveness of unlocking this 4th core successfully and Im just wondering how viable it really is. I know it has everything to do with the type of motherboard you have too. Is there anyone out there who was successful at this (and if so, what motherboard did you do it with?)

Reply to zach377

Never tried it but you can't do any harm trying as far as I know. Give it a go - if you're successful run rigorous tests to check if it's stable. If it is nice one! If not, lock it back up and enjoy the chip.

All I will say is don't by a tri core expecting to unlock it - if you want a waud-core then spend the cash on a quad core. If you're happy with a tri-core and fancy getting a freebie then bargain.

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to LePhuronn

You see the 720 is the best of both worlds in this instance, it has an unlocked mult, clocks well, has plenty of cache, and can be unlocked and even if it can't then you still have a great CPU.

Message edited by AMW1011 on 12-15-2009 at 12:45:34 AM

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Reply to AMW1011

LePhuronn wrote :

+1

Couldn't say it better my self.

Reply to warmon6

I have the same MOBO and CPU. core unlocked successfully. My bro's core unlocked successfully too.

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Reply to alextheawesome

alextheawesome wrote :

I have the same MOBO and CPU. core unlocked successfully. My bro's core unlocked successfully too.

this sounds very promising to me Did you try overclocking at all with the unlocked core? Also, when did you buy the cpus, because I know that might be a factor..

Message edited by zach377 on 12-15-2009 at 02:40:44 AM

Reply to zach377

I also have the same mobo and CPU, unlocked the 4th core and overclocked all to 3.2GHz and ran Prime95 for 4 hours no problem. This is on stock fan and temps didn't get above 57C-ish.

I just bought my system parts on black friday

Message quoted 1 times

------------------------------ GIGABYTE GA-MA790GPT-UD3H, AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz (SUCESSFUL unlocked 4th core!), G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 F3-10666CL8D-4GBRM, Windows 7 Premium, PC Power and Cooling Silencer 610, ATI Radeon 4850
Reply to mposson

mposson wrote :

I also have the same mobo and CPU, unlocked the 4th core and overclocked all to 3.2GHz and ran Prime95 for 4 hours no problem. This is on stock fan and temps didn't get above 57C-ish.

I just bought my system parts on black friday

awesome! So overclocking was straightforward with 4 cores then? Also, do you have any idea if you can go higher than 3.2 with 4 cores or did you just stop there?

Message edited by zach377 on 12-16-2009 at 12:06:05 AM

Reply to zach377

I was able to unlock the 4th core on a MA770T-UD3P and it was totally stable. Except for one thing, the temp sensors went out while the cores were unlocked. You could still check it in bios but coretemp wouldnt pick it up. But other than that it was 100% stable.

Reply to bige420

Best answer

I just pretty much stopped there and have been running it like that for days. I did get a 3.6GHz OC and got a CPU-z shot of it, but it wasn't stable when I started up Prime95, so I just went back to 3.2 and have been thrilled with it.

mposson,
Are you using stock cpu heatsink or after market one???

Reply to waynebattle

Just using the stock heatsink and even the stock thermal paste

Reply to mposson

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