Will the new Phenom II's work in this M/B?

[brett174]

Hi Everyone,

Long time reader, first time poster

I'm hoping someone here can help answer this question for me, I've been scouring internet forums and I'm still not sure at all.

Basically, I'm looking at getting a Phenom II 920 and putting it into a Gigabyte GA-MA78GPM-DS2H (rev. 1.x) motherboard. Now the Gigabyte website, lists the 920 and 940 under supported CPU's. However, I've been told the BIOS may require an update for this to work. But how would you upgrade the bios if it can't recognize the CPU?

This has got me really stumped. I was all set to go out and buy these components, but now I'm worried it might not work.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

 

[tcsenter]

Buy the cheapest older AM2 processor you can find and use it to flash the BIOS. You can pick-up an older AM2 model for less than $30, even free with some mobo/CPU combo deals. e.g.

Athlon 64 3200+ AM2 - $20 + shipping

 

[brett174]

Is it possible the CPU would still be recognized and work without the bios update, except it would only operate at a lower speed and not be fully supported? Once you applied the BIOS update it would then be fully supported?

Bit of a gamble to take though...

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

Originally posted by: brett174
Is it possible the CPU would still be recognized and work without the bios update, except it would only operate at a lower speed and not be fully supported? Once you applied the BIOS update it would then be fully supported?

Bit of a gamble to take though...

Yup. The 780g chipset is new enough that mobos built around it should support the PhII w/o a BIOS update. The mobo might incorrectly identify the CPU, but should work just fine.

 

[gammaray]

Originally posted by: Flipped Gazelle

Originally posted by: brett174
Is it possible the CPU would still be recognized and work without the bios update, except it would only operate at a lower speed and not be fully supported? Once you applied the BIOS update it would then be fully supported?

Bit of a gamble to take though...

Yup. The 780g chipset is new enough that mobos built around it should support the PhII w/o a BIOS update. The mobo might incorrectly identify the CPU, but should work just fine.

I agree, you should be able to boot, update the bios and be fine with it even if the phenom II isn't supported by the first bios version.

 

[brett174]

I was hoping this would be the case, thanks for putting my mind at ease.

 

[tcsenter]

Actually, the 780G chipset isn't going to be any more Phenom II 'ready' than any other chipset would be. The BIOS must still be minimally functional with Phenom II.

I just saw a case involving a 780G board that would not POST with Phenom II until the BIOS was updated, but I can't remember which forum it was on (out of the four that I frequent).

 

[hans007]

sometimes it will say something like "unnamed cpu" or "unidentified cpu".

some motherboarsd just wont post. i've seen it happen both ways on various brands of boards.

 

[Pierre40]

I have one of these coming in soon, so it's good to hear additional comments that it will support the Phenom II's.

I don't recommend the @BIOS program on Vista 64 for the BIOS update... The reason I have one of these boards inbound is due to my motherboard being BRICK after an apparent @BIOS update....

So I am *hoping* that the mobo arrives up to date, but I am *excited* about another shot at the bios update... This time it will be DOS based...(sigh)

So - Be careful if you use @BIOS... this is the first board I have bricked in about 8 or 9 years! and I have flipped a few boards, trust me.

HTH

 

[PCTC2]

I'm looking to acquire a cheap linux dev box with the 780G chipset and SB700, but it will most likely not have a BIOS update as an unknown OEM board.
Currently it has an Athlon-LE in it but I'm looking to toss in a PII 920, but we'll have to see. Maybe I'll just pick up an Athlon X2 7750. Are the 7750's supported as the old X2's are? I don't remember when the 7750's came out compared to the 780G.

 

[hans007]

Originally posted by: PCTC2
I'm looking to acquire a cheap linux dev box with the 780G chipset and SB700, but it will most likely not have a BIOS update as an unknown OEM board.
Currently it has an Athlon-LE in it but I'm looking to toss in a PII 920, but we'll have to see. Maybe I'll just pick up an Athlon X2 7750. Are the 7750's supported as the old X2's are? I don't remember when the 7750's came out compared to the 780G.

be careful with the 780g though.

most 780g boards are 95 watt tdp max. IT should work ok with a 920 or 940, but technically those are 125watt tdp cpus (though in practice they use less than some 95 watt 9750 or 9850 phenoms)