Athlon 64 and Athlon 64 X2

[Ddraig85]

I am thinking about upgrading my CPU, but I have a question about compatability. I currently have this Mother Board:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813186037

It says the CPU type is Athlon 64 FX / Athlon 64 but I want to upgrade to a duel core processor. Here is what I am interested in:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103045

Will the Athlon 64 X2 series work with that Mother Board? Thanks for the info.

 

[wahnula]

Ddraig85,

Foxconn has the list of supported CPUs here:

http://www.foxconnchannel.com/EN-US/upload/Compatibility/200603210954407167NF4UK8AA-8EKRS.htm

As I read it X2 is supported, but I'm not sure that exact model is on the list. It may work, (list may be out-of-date) but I would not take the chance, get the exact model numbers that are supported. Or contact Foxconn directly with your question.

Tony

 

[Ddraig85]

wow, thanks for the list! I will contact them to be sure.

 

[cdogg]

The list wahnula posted a link to has the Athlon 64 X2 shown in the far-right column. Maybe it was jsut missed when you two glanced at it.

The key is to make sure you only get a Socket 939 X2 that is within the range of speeds listed.

~cdogg
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[wahnula]

cdogg,

As I read it X2 is supported,

Maybe it was just missed when you two glanced at it.

Which two are you referring to???

Tony

 

[paparazi]

Typically,
The bios will need flashing so that the otherboard will recognised the microcode of the new processor.
DO THIS BEFORE THE SWAP! with the old CPU installed.

If you go onto the motherboards bios "history" chart, the information about which CPU'S are supported is more accurate.
Which bios revisions were introduced for which new cores/speeds etc
The CPU support listings are often NOT updated andare often innacurate, the bios notes on the other hand are updated by necessity.
Martin

We like members to GIVE and not just TAKE.
Participate and help others.

 

[cdogg]

wahnula,
It's easy to miss someone's tone when reading text. All I was getting at was that there seemed to be some uncertainty when there shouldn't be. The Toledo X2 is the only socket 939 version rated at 4400+. And since that speed shows up in the list at Foxconn's site, well there you go...

There shouldn't be any reason to check for exact model numbers, but I suppose it couldn't hurt.

~cdogg
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884

 

[paparazi]

I was just going to add the Foxconn were one of the companies that were late into the fray with their Nforce4 motherboards.
There motherboards arrived after Asus/Gigabyte/MSI/DFI/ who tend to be the early adopters of new chipsets.
What this means is Foxconn's first bios release MAY cover the later released X2 AMD's.

Still: I would check your bios version against the bios release "history" ie: which were supported and from which bios release.

Typically it will say something like: X2 3800/4200/4400/4600/4800 Toledo core supported since bios version.............. whatever.

I've absolutely no doubt that this board supports a Toledo 4400 X2, it's just wether or not your bios version does or not.
Martin

We like members to GIVE and not just TAKE.
Participate and help others.

 

[Ddraig85]

Wow, thanks for the awesome information. I went to the website and I see that there is a new bios file that was released at the end of last year. Does the BIOS act like any other driver? Just download and install, then I should have no problem with the new CPU?

 

[paparazi]

If only it were that simple.
The bios file equipts the motherboard with all the information it needs to fire the system into life.
Newer bios releases not only allow the motherboard to recognise the latest CPU's but they often contain fixes for reported customer issues.
So a later bios often makes the board more stable than the imature original.
Bios flashing in the past was a rather complicated and unforgiving undertaking, thankfully most modern motherboards have much more "user friendly" ways of updating this code.
I'm not familiar with exactly what that is on your NF4 Foxconn, you will need to go on their website and do a little reading up.
It could be that you need to install a bios software utility so this upgrade can be carried out in a Windows enviroment.
All makes are different so take your time and be sure you fully understand the procedure, not to be too alarmist but a "bad flash" can be terminal for your main board, so don't rush into it without fully understanding exactly what to do.

Martin

We like members to GIVE and not just TAKE.
Participate and help others.