Phenom II x2 at 1.575 volts? Safe?

[dpk33]

I'm building a rig for a friend with an unlocked (to x4) Phenom II cpu in it. It's under a Hyper 212+ with a dual push/pull fan config and seems stable enough under gaming and video editing environments. The thing is, I was told 1.55 volts is the maximum safe volts that I should be using. Would the extra 0.025 volts be a bit too much for 24/7 use? Also, how long would this chip be expected to last under these volts?

 

[BD231]

No, intense degradation starts at about 1.5v for Phenom II CPU's, you want to be in the 1.4X voltage range or that chip will die quickly.

 

[Joseph F]

No, intense degradation starts at about 1.5v for Phenom II CPU's, you want to be in the 1.4X voltage range or that chip will die quickly.

No, the chip won't die quickly if the voltage is at 1.5-1.55. I've heard of people pumping 1.6 through them on water.
As to OP's question, Personally, I wouldn't take it over 1.5V for 24/7 operation on air.
You should be able to get a good OC around 1.475, though.

 

[Ewanqbl]

But how much voltage does your friend require to stabilize it under load unlocked? My older Phenom II 550BE only needed 1.4 from the stock 1.35v. There is something seriously wrong if you need so much voltage. Stock or overclocked?

 

[BD231]

No, the chip won't die quickly if the voltage is at 1.5-1.55. I've heard of people pumping 1.6 through them on water.

Took two years on a crap 4+2 phase @ 1.475v so yes, it very well can.

 

[veri745]

anything over 1.5V is bad news.

Like BD231 said, even voltages in the high 1.4's can drastically shorten the time until Fmax degradation is noticeable.

 

[SickBeast]

It depends on the chip.

My Phenom II is bizarre. It likes 1.5v to run happily at 3.75ghz, but it's hard to get it stable at other frequencies aside from the stock 2.5ghz at 1.2v.

No matter how much I pump through the thing I can't make it go any faster. I'm not sure if I'm limited by the FSB of my motherboard.

IMO 1.4v or so is a good voltage for these chips. I would take it to 1.45 but no more than that.

 

[StrangerGuy]

I don't get it. Is an extra 200MHz or so with that much voltage really worth it in the grand scheme of things? No.

Don't forget OCing wise AM3 CnQ isn't nowhere as good as Sandy Speedstep. At 1.575V the Phenom II chip will be burning a shitload of power even at idle.

 

[SickBeast]

I don't get it. Is an extra 200MHz or so with that much voltage really worth it in the grand scheme of things? No.

Don't forget OCing wise AM3 CnQ isn't nowhere as good as Sandy Speedstep. At 1.575V the Phenom II chip will be burning a shitload of power even at idle.

That's not true. You can use K10stat and you can run it at 400mhz at 0.5v if you want to when it's idle.

 

[Kevmanw430]

I'd be pressed to say thats a bit high, but all chips are different. The last AMD system I had was a 555 BE, which unlocked, and ran 3.8GHz 12 hours Prime95 stable at 1.38V.

 

[jihe]

I don't get it. Is an extra 200MHz or so with that much voltage really worth it in the grand scheme of things? No.

Don't forget OCing wise AM3 CnQ isn't nowhere as good as Sandy Speedstep. At 1.575V the Phenom II chip will be burning a shitload of power even at idle.

Yes, yes it is. I have a need, the need for speed!

 

[SlowSpyder]

I ran a PhII form one year and eight months at 1.5v without even a hint of a problem or instability. But I'm not sure you'd want to go above that.