Hi there,... I think I've been very very silly......

First my specs:

Athlon xp 3000+
2 x 256Mb DDR SDRAM
MSI 6712 KT4AV Series Mobo
120Gb HDD
64 Mb Nvidia 4200 Ti with 8x Graphics card
350W PSU
DVD +/- Burner
Running Windows XP Pro with SP1

I have recently put this computer together but as a bit of a newcomer I was worried when
I saw that the processor speed was listed as 2500+ upon boot up.

The CPU FSB clock was set to 166MHz and when I increased it to 200MHz the system still registered as 2500+ and crashed pretty soon after boot up so I changed back down to 166MHz. After that I changed the CPU ratio from auto to x12.5/13 after seeing something on a website. This seemed to bring the CPU to 2800+ at boot up. Rashly, before even going into windows I went and put the clock speed to 200MHz and reset it thinking this may take it up to 3000+. Since then my computer won't even boot up and I'm worried I've done something very stupid and costly!

Can ANYONE help???? PLEASE?!?! :-(

Thanks
Andy

Try removing the CMOS jumper on the motherboard for a few seconds. That should set the system back to factory defaults, resetting your FSB back to default.

If you're looking for stock performance, I'd check to see if your motherboard has AUTO settings for everything, including FSB. If not, I'd check the AMD website for the exact multiplier ratio and the FSB settings for the chip.

A check of MSI website indicates to me that the 6712 is in fact a KT4V motherboard, not a KT4AV. Could this be correct?

The KT4V requires BIOS update Revision 1.8 to correctly recognise and identify an XP3000+ processor.

http://www.msi.com.tw/program/suppor...il.php?UID=362


The BIOS update page for the KT4AV indicates that those updates are not suitable for the 6712

Think the bugger who sold me the chip on ebay has diddled me!
I noticed on my mates chip you can see a code which tells you the chip type - his is 2500+.

I took mine out to see what nu,mbers it said and noticed that the code was covered by a bar code.
I pulled off the bar code and the numbers which are white on a black background had been coloured in black with a magic marker. Upon looking REALLY closely you can see ALL the writing etc clearly EXCEPT the 4-5 digits which tell you the type - which has been scratched off. Although when I look it seems to look like a 2500 not a 3000!!

What a b*stard. Does anyone know a 100% method to tell me if its a 2500+?? I'm gonna get a magnifying glass before I go accusing this guy but I'm 99% certain that he has done me over. The combination of covering with sticker, blacking out the info and also scratching off the vital info.

I'll let you know how I get on.
Andy

If your motherboard is up to date with its BIOS revision, and the CPU identifies as an XP 2500+ with BIOS default settings, then you can be certain that the processor is in fact an XP 2500+.

It sounds like you've obtained one of the 'illegally altered' processors which were included in some systems that were sold overclocked, and were the reason for AMDs decision to 'lock' the clock multiplier on more recent Barton CPUs.