AMD Phenom 9600 Black Edition: New Hope?

Features
By The Editors of Tom's Hardware
published

Overclocking - Newer Versions From Other Sources?

It can prove very worthwhile to check other motherboard companies' websites for newer versions that may offer better compatibility.

Version 2.07 from the MSI support website

Version 2.0.14 beta from the ASUS site

Sometimes newer versions of the tool find their way onto the Internet through other channels. With just a little searching, we were able to find much more recent versions of the utility than those offered by the motherboard makers.

AMD OverDrive version 2.09

Other applications have been available for a while, such as CrystalCPUID, which allows you to change AMD CPU's multiplier from within Windows. For now, though, CrystalCPUID does not support Phenom CPUs.

CrystalCPUID version 4.14.2.404 (December 2007)

We find ourselves rather disappointed by the way AMD is supporting this tool. On the one hand, the OverDrive tool is one of the advertised features of the Phenom CPU, but on the other hand, AMD does not offer the tool itself - users have to dig through the motherboard makers' support sites. Even here, the versions differ from one company to the next, and it is hard to tell which is the most recent. In the end, it is up to the user to search and find the newest one.

The Editors of Tom's Hardware
3 Comments Comment from the forums
  • ShadowKai
    I think on page 14 the author meant:

    "When Cool'n'Quiet is deactivated, idle power consumption rises to 51 watts. The jump in power consumption at 2.70 GHz is a direct result of the core voltage increase from 1.250 V to 1.400 V."

    And the bars for Phenom 9600 BE and Phenom 9600 BE (CnC) should be switched around.
    Reply
  • I think it's also important to mention the fact that Vista SP1 includes it's OWN TLB fix which overrides the bios setting of many boards. I used an app that works in conjunction with Crystal CPUID to change the MSR directly to deactivate this secondary TLB fix. It caused a dramatic improvement in performance; the quick and simple WinRAR bench went from 232 to ~1300 after the fix. Just think it's worth mentioning!
    Reply
  • I think I may have found a new problem with this bug. I have a Phenom X4 9600, and have tried two different motherboards. The problem occurs when running Windows 7. BSOD with a message stating that the operating system did not receive an clock interupt signal from the second processor. At first I thought it was a bios problem, but have since had to replace the motherboard. Tried Windows 7 again after replacing the motherboard and still having the same problem.
    Reply