AMD Phenom 8750 Triple Core 2.40 Ghz

[JerryB]

I did this upgrade and it is great!
That was 6 months ago...

[JCB]

nice, what OS are you running?? What processor did you have before?

[detox]

with the right motherboard, you can unlock the forth core.

[JerryB]

Widows 7 Pemium Home Edition
An AMD Sempron is what came with this HP computer. It wasn't a very good processor...
I can only add another Gig of memory and thats all I can really upgrade on this machine.
But, for what I do, this set-up is more than adequate.
I like to keep it lean and mean...

Originally Posted by detox

with the right motherboard, you can unlock the forth core.

I'm interested in hearing more...

[detox]

Originally Posted by JerryB

I'm interested in hearing more...

Google it. The triple cores are actually quads with a locked core. AMD had some problem with them and chose not to fix it,(i don't know what the problem is/was) but instead locked it and pushed out with the release.
A friend was telling me about it. sometimes it works sometimes not.

[Indigo]

It's an HP computer. It's highly unlikely that you can unlock the fourth core without a motherboard upgrade.

[Aastii]

Originally Posted by detox

Google it. The triple cores are actually quads with a locked core. AMD had some problem with them and chose not to fix it,(i don't know what the problem is/was) but instead locked it and pushed out with the release.
A friend was telling me about it. sometimes it works sometimes not.

Generally it isn't that there is a problem, it is to do with making money.

With the exception of the Sempron and Athlon dual core processors, AMD only make quad core processors, they just lock off the other cores. As I say, it is for money. Say from a sample of 1000 processors they need to send to a supplier 250 dual cores, 250 tri cores and 500 quad cores. They would send 500 out as they are, 250 with 1 core locked, 250 with 2 cores locked.

What you said about some being defective is where that money saving comes in. If they were producing dual, tri and quad core processors with 2, 3 and 4 physical cores per die respectively, say there is 50% yield (half of all processors are up to the right standard, half have some sort of problem that makes them below the standards expected), that would mean to supply those 1000 processors, there would actually have to be 500 dual cores produced, 500 tri core and 1000 quad cores. By locking off cores, you greatly increase the yield.

Say on a quad core chip 3 of the cores work perfectly, but the other either isn't stable at the required clocks, produces too much heat or uses too much power, rather than scrapping the chip, which is what would happen if they didn't lock off cores, locking off that core will allow them to still sell the processor, just under a different name as a tri core, effectively increasing the yield from the original 50% to say 80%, so now to produce those 1000 processors, only 1200 would have to be made, therefore much less wasted resources, and wasted money.

The reason you can unlock the cores and they work though is for 1 of 2 reasons. Either the cores had a defect, only it wasn't a major one. AMD work to certain, strict guidelines of quality. Each chip can only put out a certain amount of heat, use a certain amount of power and must reach a certain clock speed. If it falls even slightly short of these, they won't be used. If 1 core works perfectly, but produces more heat than AMD allow, it will be shut off, thereofre the user can still use it, but that core will be slightly hotter than the others, which isn't a problem at all.

The other reason you can unlock cores is due to supply and demand. Say with the 1000 sample every single chip can be used because only 300 CPUs had only 1 or 2 deffective cores, that means that there are 200 dual/tri cores processors in that sample that are perfect quad cores that weren't sold as quad cores because the company AMD were selling to didn't want an extra 200 quad cores, they wanted an extra 200 dual/tri cores.

For the OP though, unlocking the cores almost certainly would not be an option because of what og said about it being a HP computer. OEM systems don't have the option to overclock in anyway, which is what unlocking cores is seen as, because it is gaining performance by making the chip perform over what it was sold (that means unlocking cores voids warranty). Also, it should be pointed out that of the 8750's, so far as I am aware they are unlockable, but very, very few could actually be unlocked