AMD Phenom II X3 720 BE - New sample at Madshrimps
 

We just recieved our new X3 sample, ready to be tested on the two AM3 motherboards we have:

from AMD ?

From hardwareversand.de

From [M] :D

Haha, straight from the [M] manufacturing labs :p

No 4 core unlock possible, apparently :-/

This seems to be a very weak overclocker ... 3.5GHz at 1.425v seems to be the maximum stable on air cooling.

3.2GHz on stock voltage: 1.325v ... only 400MHz more :(

at the same time it gives you an idea of an off the shelve product, not hand picked , CPU
more valuable than all X3 reviews done with ES/sponsor provided units

It's as valuable as "not every cpu does 4GHz on air cooling".

I may just have a very bad sample

Better freeze it fast than |D

I just tested this chip on the dfi DDR2 board and there are a few sidenotes to make.

1/ DDR2 or DDR3, it doesn't really matter
2/ The IMC seemed to crap out on the AM3 motherboards (>2.5G not possible), but I managed to run 2.9GHz with memory at 600 CL4 with the DDR2 board
3/ Instead of maxing out at 340/350 htt, I managed to run 360HTT with the ddr2 board
4/ This chip is not capable of running 4 cores, setting ACC to auto leads to a non-bootable configuration
5/ CPU overclock didn't increase: 1.45v for 3.6G is what it does. Which is crap, to me at least.

3.6Ghz for http://www.tones.be/shop_product.php?idx=106569 €139 CPU is not bad my book.
ideal to pit against: INTEL CORE2 Duo E7500 45nm (2.93) 3MB Socket 775 1066FSB Boxed with cooler for €139

I think I've read that AMD is asking the mobo manufacturers to implement a bios 'fix' to prevent unlocking unused cores.

Don't know if this is true?

It may be possible, but I'm not entirely sure both msi and dfi already have that kind of fix implented.

I agree. Massman, you just got a bad sample. I also have a 720 BE and it does 3.87GHz with stock cooling. Since the Phenom II's frequency escalates almost directly to the way it's cooled down, I wanna see hoy it behaves once I mount the TRUE on it :D.

I actually changed to a more high-end air cooler. Even with 1.5v, it doesn't seem to be that hot.

You seem to have a pretty decent sample. Have you been able to unlock the fourth core?

Yep. I've been able to overclock it even with the 4th core enabled. I'll post here the tests once I get an AM3 motherboard from any of our sponsors.

By the moment I got the Foxconn A7DA-S for quick tests. I didn't like the board to be honest, since it can't give more than 230MHz for the base clock. I managed to get 302MHz of BC from the ASRock 790GX; but once again, I want the 720 BE to be tested on a new AM3 mobo :).

Regards!

What AM3 board will you be going for? I'm at the moment not really convinced by the overclocking quality of the AM3 motherboards ... to me, it seems that they (well, the two I'm testing at the moment) are not yet mature enough to get the most out of your chip.

For now I'm going for the Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P. I agree with you, the BIOS are not mature yet, but I'm just testing hardware here.

I'm not a professional overclocker, since I don't have the right tools yet. I'm missing a pot for LN2 or DICE; so am I a Cascade. Maybe by the end of the year I'll be going for a Cascade cooling set, I've already looking for some local options :D.

All of my overclocks have been done on air cooling. And most them were done for the hardware reviews >.<. Now it's time to play rather than to work, and that's why I'm feeling ready to jump to extreme cooling :P.

Haven't seen that much results of the Gigabyte board, let me know how it turns out (so I can get my sample if it's good :D).

What hardware reviewing website are you reviewing for?

Overclocking on cascade is real fun since it's easy to run for hours and really maximize the gear you're testing ... but it doesn't beat LN2 or dry ice, in my humble opinion. The thrill of having to pour liquids to keep the setup running is just awesome

It's hardwaremx, a mexican site. I also would like to start to play with DICE and LN2, but as I told you before I need to get a decent pot and DICE or LN2.

The main problem here is that, in Mexico, is not that easy to get these (I'm not saying that it would be easier somewhere else, I'm just talking about my local situation). I know some chemists that may help me out to solve this issue :D. It's just a matter of time.

Once I get a decent mobo I'll share with you all of my experiencies :D. So we can all grow together :).

http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=550964

On DFI AM2+ board

645MHz DDR2: http://valid.canardpc.com/show_oc.php?id=550964

The low memory overclocks don't seem to be cpu related. 645MHz is very good for an AMD setup!

Hey Massman, good news :D: A friend of mine (Kain) did manage to get a bus clock of 350MHz with an ASRock M3A790GXH. That sounds incredible, so let's aim at ASUS and ASRock for the overclocking sessions on the AMD side.

If you've heard any other results from Gigabyte or any other brand, please let me know :).

With MSI's latest bios I'm able to reach 355 quite easily, but 360 is unstable. I reckon as the boards mature, the frequencies will get higher.

Now, I'm focussing on the memory overclocking capabilities of these boards. Here's a link to the non-review related worklog: http://www.madshrimps.be/vbulletin/f...timings-63851/

Awesome stuff you've got there :D. Are you able to reach 3000MHz for the HT or NB? What's the max Vcore that you can set on the BIOS?

3GHz NB is a no-go for this cpu, it seems. 2.7-2.8G is possible, though. The HT Link can be increased to 2.6G quite easily, but didn't test any higher. The real benefits of the HT Link overclock lies in the IGP overclocking, but appart from that, there's close to nothing to gain by increasing this frequency.

Max Vcore would be 2,18v

Nice :D. BTW, I remember you were having problems to reach high frequencies with the last 720 BE. How's it going with the current one?

Mine stopped at 3.8GHz with the Foxconn A7DA-s, but that was coz this motherboard could supply only 1.52V (Even if the BIOS had more VCore options).

Last one = this one. I want to get rid of it, but might hang on to it for future reviews.

Oh, LOL. Thought you had already changed it. Anyway, the X4 955 is A PIECE of HW and you already have one :D, Congrats.

Regards

Sadly enough, my first and only 955 died after 30 minutes of LN2. Just finished a 6G 3DM06 and system died :(