Ready to 
UPDATE: Phenom II X3 core unlock is real
Robert Hallock
March 2, 2009 10:52 AM ET in Tech
Just a few days back we brought word that a certain Biostar motherboard was unlocking the fourth core on a Phenom X3 720. First off, the fourth core is real. It is not a BIOS bug.
Here are the juicy bits that you need to know:
- The chip must be a Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition.
- It must come from batch number 0409 (Week 4 / 2009).
- Your motherboard must have the “Advanced Clock Calibration” option. DFI, Biostar, Asus and Gigabyte boards typically have this feature.
- This chip is sold out virtually everywhere.
It’s possible that 720s produced after batch 0409 can also do the voodoo that 0409 do, but there’s no guarantee.
In other news, TheInq is running a short op-ed on the merits of leaving this technique well alone. They say that letting enthusiasts do their thing will build a groundswell of much-needed goodwill:
The small amount of cannibalisation that occurs will be more than made up by word of mouth sales. Would you rather have one up-sell, or three new customers? Short story, let it be, and don’t ever ‘break’ the hack in a later BIOS. 99 per cent won’t ever do it, the other one per cent will be great ambassadors. All you will ‘fix’ by blocking this is their enthusiasm and pent-up good will.
RSS