Unlocking AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition cores - what are the risks?

Posted by Vilx- on Super User See other posts from Super User or by Vilx-
Published on 2010-03-30T09:45:07Z Indexed on 2010/03/30 9:53 UTC
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overclocking

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amd

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phenom

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core-unlock

I've got the above mentioned CPU and a GigaByte GA-MA790XT-UD4P motherboard, which should be capable of unlocking the extra two cores - if I'm lucky and they're not faulty. The Internet is full of instructions on how to do that.

What I don't have is spare money to buy new hardware if I brick something. What are the risks when attempting to do this? Is it completely safe, or can I be left with an expensive pile of junk? What should I keep in mind when doing so? Bigger cooler maybe (I'm running with the default box cooler)? Should I lower the frequencies too? I've never done any OC before.

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