Lots of Unlocking Info. Needed

[BrettJRob]

I have a Duron 1.2GHz system with an ABIT KG7 mobo. This is my first system, and my processor is the retail version with the default HSF. It came with a "thermal pad" (or whatever it's called) on it, and being the "noob" that I am, I didn't try to unlock it before I installed it. Now I have a CPU that I need to unlock. I know there are lots of articles explaining the "pencil trick," so I don't need help with that. The real problem is that I haven't the slightest clue on how to get rid of all the mess that will be left behind by the used thermal pad if I rip the CPU out of the mobo. I have some Arctic Silver III thermal compound ready to apply. If anyone can tell me (or post a link) in detail how to get rid of the remnants of the thermal pad without damaging the CPU it would be great.

 

[Willamette_sucks]

you should first scrape off as much as possible with an exacto knife/razor blade, being cautious of course, but really you shouldnt hurt it, then after youve got as much off as you can use "Goo Gone" it is very good at removing stuff like that and arctic silver, man those thermal pads suck as3 is way better, dump the standard cooler man, get a dragon orb 3 for 25 bucks its way better! talk to me man im on msn my email is leemspencer@mindspring.com

The first LAN party I went to was at a PETA convention. They booted me when I shot a crab in HL!

 

[SidVicious]

Be a brute and send this so called Thermal Interface Material low life in goo heaven, i'll even tell you how ! You'll need a rasor blade ( yeah, you heard me right ) a disposable CD cleaner cloth ( or any paper like material that won't cover your precious CPU with paper dust ) a fine grit sandpaper ( 600 grit I think )and some isopropyl alchol. First expose the sucker to the world by gently removing the HSF from the socket and remove the CPU with as much tender loving care, be carefull, both the HSF and CPU are in shock from their encounter with the notorious "TIM" ! Scrape the goo off the HSF and CPU with the rasor blade, apply some alchol on the cloth and rub off the remainings. Next, use the sandpaper to polish your HSF contact area ( some freaks won't stop until it's shiny as a mirror ) and clean it again. Do your pencil trick, put on some high quality thermal paste, sit the CPU in it's socket, put the HSF back on et voilà !

Fok Speling Misstake

 

[BrettJRob]

Thanks a lot for the information, guys. I pretty much get that you first take the HSF off, then clean off both the CPU and HSF with the razor blade / kinfe / etc., then wipe the rest off with a cloth and alcohol, apply the Arctic Silver III, and re-assemble. One last question, though: you said to use the razor blade / knife to scrape off most of the material from both the CPU and HSF. Being a n00b, this may sound like an insanely dumb question, but what parts of the CPU could be damaged by the razor blade? I don't want to scratch the thing up and put it out of business.

 

[SidVicious]

Don't worry, as long as you keep your common sense to the ENABLED setting ( so you won't try to run the blade THROUGH any CPU components ), your hardware is safe, just keep the blade in a 45 degree angle relative to the core, here is a crude side view _/ ( / = blade _ = core ) don't apply any pressure on the blade, most of the stuff will come right off, scrub the remains with a cloth and alcohol and this operation will be sucessfull.

Fok Speling Misstake

 

[BrettJRob]

Thanks for all the information, Sid and Crash. Anyway, I decided to try to pull it off last night. I took the HSF off, cleaned it, used a toothbrush to clean out the "valleys," cleaned off the CPU, put on arctic silver, and slapped it back on. Despite the fact that I applied the AS3 in a rather uneven way on the CPU core, I am getting 43C idle / 51C load now, as opposed to 47C idle / 54C load with the thermal pad. One little problem: I was so worked up about the cooling that I didn't take much time and rushed the pencil trick, and as a result, the multiplier is still locked (I could've killed myself for being so stupid after I first discovered this). New question: if I decide to try to "re-do" the pencil trick tonight, will I need to go through the same crap again (clean every bit of arctic silver off of the CPU and HSF then re-apply), or will I be able to just use the compound I already applied?

 

[SidVicious]

Don't worry, you won't have to clean off that fresh AS3, just make sure you even the "crests" and "valleys" that will form before putting the CPU back in it's socket.

Fok Speling Misstake

 

[BrettJRob]

Okay, I just took the CPU out, did the pencil trick correctly, and replaced it and the HSF. Temperatures have either stayed the same or risen about 1 degree idle, so no problems there. The problem is the result! My CPU is a 1.2GHz Duron which runs at default at 12 * 100FSB. As soon as I discovered the multiplier was unlocked, I did what I assumed was the obvious choice: I bumped the FSB up to 133MHz, and turned the multiplier down to 8.5, yielding 1133MHz (underclocked just to test). I made sure to turn the CPU:FSBCI ratio to 4:4:1 after doing this, and relaxed my PC2100 RAM to CL2.5 just in case. As soon as I booted into XP, it was less than a minute before my system locked and rebooted itself, so I guess it was VERY unstable, despite the fact that it was actually underclocked! So now I'm back to 12*100 until I can figure out the problem. Why can't I run at 133MHz FSB?

Oh, as for the voltage, I had been running at 1.675 for a month at 105*12 without a hitch before this. I tried bumping it up to 1.75 (default) when I ran at 133*8.5 and it was still unstable as hell.

 

[BrettJRob]

UPDATE: I am now getting it to boot and stay up long enough to dial up and type this at 133MHz FSB / 8.5x multiplier = 1.13GHz. Game performance is ever so slightly better than 100*12=1.2GHz. Unfortunately, my idle CPU temp is back up to 47C or so, and under load I think it'll hit 53C. I think I'll run a stress test overnight to see how it fares, and may attempt to try 133*9 tomorrow.

With my Duron/Morgan 1.2GHz, does anyone see a problem with an idle temp in the high 40s and load temp in the mid 50s (what I get at 133*9)? Also, being that I'm so new and uninformed, how risky is it to run my Duron at 133MHz FSB for a long period of time?

 

[cakecake]

Worse things have been done to processors. Just keep in mind that the highest quality stable overclocks are done with water cooling (besides vapochills). So don't be too aggressive.

1° of separation between my monopoly and yours. That's business with .NET

 

[MeTaLrOcKeR]

Dude...max out ur Voltage....put it right to 1.85 Volts...and run that sucker at 9*133 = 1200MHz....if she works....try 9.5 and so on.......

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=13597" target="_new">-MeTaL RoCkEr</A>