Cpu multiplier clarification

[maziar321]

If the Amd phenom II 965 has a base clock of 200mhz but has a multiplier of 17 so that it has a clock of 3.4ghz, are we basically just buying a 200mhz processor that has been pre overclocked? So in theory, is the amd 955 the exact same chip as the 965, except it only has a clock multiplier of 16? So are we just spending extra money on Amd increasing the clock multiplier slightly? SO in theory, could i just buy a 955, Overclock it slightly, and i get a 965?

 

[xaira]

uh duh, but some with a 965 will get a better overclock than with a 955, you see, amd buys huge slabs of silicon with many dies on each slab, each die is tested to see which will clock higher, the ones that clock the highest become black editions, so a 955 becomes limited around 3.8 and the average 965 can go to 3.9, lucky ones get to 4.0

 

[Lmeow]

^ That's only with the C3s I believe.

 

[simon12]

Yes you can get a 955 and increase the multiplier and you would get a 965 thats the point in overclocking. I don't think anyone knows how AMD choose which chips to put at what setting it must be based partly on quality and partly on demand and I suspect its not an exact science. Its certainly not as simple as a 955 will always be limited to 100-200MHz lower than a 965 when overclocking.

 

[Raidur]

Gotta love how they sell 2 CPUs (with the same stepping C3) of an enthusiast overclocking unlocked multiplier chip at different multipliers/costs! *facepalm

But yeah, go for the 955 unless you don't know how to open bios.

 

[maziar321]

Best answer selected by maziar321.