EFFECTS OF BUS AND MULTIPLIER:
Black Edition users wont have a hard time overclocking. The value "Multiplier" only affects the Processors and nothing else in your computer and can thus be raised without problems. Users of normal Processors such as the X6 1055T have to use BUS. BUS is the basic frequency of the RAM-Memory and data transport in your pc. Raising the Bus to overclock your processor, will thus overclock your RAM and the data transportation aswell. But thats not entirely a bad thing: Up to a certain degree, BUS overclocking gives you more extra speed, as your entire PC gets a speed-up. After that certain point however, your system will run into trouble - imagine you use 1333mhz RAM.

When you overclock your BUS from 200 to 250mhz, your RAM will be overclocked to 1666mhz. Most RAM's will now cause errors, so your PC doesnt work properly anymore. But theres an easy remedy to that. The RAM clock also has its own equation and a Multiplier, which all users can adjust. In the case of 250mhz BUS, you will lower the RAM Multiplier by one step, so you are at exactly 1333 again.

The same applies to the Northbridge and Hypertransport (Figure2). Having raised the BUS, they are overclocked to 250x10 = 2500mhz and thus cause problems. You either have to raise the voltage of the Northbridge to ensure that 2500mhz works, or you reset its Multiplier as follows:


250 x 8 = 2000mhz Northbridge

Doing the same with your Hypertransport is advisable, it does not have to be overclocked.

250 x 8 = 2000mhz Hypertransport

So keep in mind that whenever you raise your BUS, you increase all the other mentioned values in your computer as well. To ensure stability, make sure to lower the MULTIPLIER in their equation to get results that are close to the default speeds. Being +/- 150mhz off the default is not a huge problem for the Northbridge or Hypertransport.

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WARNING: Guide still in work. Before you get started as unexperienced user, wait for the end of this guide.

Overclocking Phenom II: My Experience from 4years

A Guide for Beginners and everyone else aswell:
Phenom II, still a widely spread CPU among PC users, is known for its good overclockability. Being a user of Phenom II since 2009 starting with an X2 555BE, and today an X6 Version, I collected a lot of experience and knowledge on how to get the most out of your CPU.

In this explanation we will work with the Phenom II X6 (1055T and 1100T), as the sixcores are the most powerful and versatile of the entire series. Before you overclock, its important to think about the negative effects: Overclocking can cause harm to hardware and/or shorten its lifetime. I dont recommend doing this without any help or experience. When you know what you are doing and have realistic expectations however, there's not much you will have to fear.

Before we get started also: What kind of cooling do you use? If you have the original AMD-Box fan, you should not overclock too much. If you use an aftermarket fan, chances are high you will be able to overclock more without issues. If you use water-cooling however, you have the perfect setup for a huge amount of overclocking.

And lastly: Is your cooling system clean or eventually obstructed by dust? If the latter applies, you will have to clean it before starting. Also make sure that your CPU Thermal Paste is in a good state. It should be replaced at least every 4-5years.

The typical temperature range for PhenomII is 30C (idle) to max 63-68C (load). Above 68C, most mainboards will reboot the computer and reset to the stock clock eventually. To make sure your system is within the typical range right now, download the tool >CORETEMP< or >Speedfan< and check what they say about your temperature. While you overclock, you should have one of these programs running to monitor your temperature and prevent damage.

In this guide we overclock using the BIOS. Make sure you get acquainted with your bios, in particular where you can find the "RAM Settings" and the "CPU Frequency" section. In order to access your bios, you might have to press ESC, DEL, F2 or F10 after turning on your pc depending on your mainboard.


BASICS:
The Phenom II X6 1055T is a sixcore processor running at 2.8ghz. When you want to overclock, the first thing you need to know is: Which values do I have to change for overclocking? The point is that those 2.8ghz are made up by an equation as follows:

Figure1:
200mhz BUS * 14 Multiplier = 2800mhz (X6 1055T)
200mhz BUS * 16.5 Multiplier = 3300mhz (X6 1100T)

Having this in mind, its obvious that you can overclock by raising one or both of these numbers in the equation. The BUS-Speed can be overclocked on EVERY existing PhenomII Processor, whereas the Multiplier is only adjustable on so called "Black Edition Processors".
In the case of the X6 1055T, the value "Multiplier" is locked, so users are forced to overclock solely by BUS. Note: The BUS Frequency is always 200mhz on default


Figure2:
200mhz BUS * 10 Multiplier = 2000mhz Northbridge (All PhenomII)
200mhz BUS * 10 Multiplier = 2000mhz HyperTransport (All PhenomII)

As shown in Figure2, your processor does not only have its core clock. It also contains the Northbridge, which transports its information with the Hypertransport. Overclocking the Northbridge will give you a performance increase, but the Hypertransport should never be raised above 2300mhz - it doesnt have benefits.

Figure3:
Core Voltage 1.35V (Most PhenomII Processors)
Northbridge Voltage 1.15V (Most PhenomII Processors)
Hypertransport is only a speed, not a hardware and has no voltage.

Moreover, for high overclocking results you may have to slightly raise the operation voltages inside your processor. The faster you let your processor run, the more power it will consume. Therefore, the voltage is the power control. In many cases, you can still overclock about 100-300mhz without raising any voltage at all.

Now you have to understand the effect of these values on your computer (Continue reading PART2)

Intel just released the Haswell 4000-Series, but processors of the 2000 and 3000 series are very popular and can still be bought.

However, it is very confusing that while the i3 3240 top entry cpu is faster than any AMD Phenom II in games, it can be up to 50% slower in rather neutral benchmarks.

To get an insight on this weird fact, we first need to look at the specifications:
The Intel i3 3240 is a 3.4ghz dual core, based on 22NM structure size, that supports Hyperthreading allowing 2C/4T. Hyperthreading is a feature that has to be supported by the software that is used, and most games simply dont use it. Modern games support between 1 to 3cores mostly (Crysis2, Crysis3, Metro 2033 etc), and a few exceptions allow to use 4cores. And even if Hyperthreading is used in a 4core-game, "virtual" cores are still slower than real ones.

AMDs Phenom II is still widely spread among most home computers. There are X2, X3, X4 and X6 processors with a different number of cores and installed cache memory. The CPUs are available from 3ghz to 3.7ghz in the performance section and are based on 45NM without hyperthreading.

In order to have a fair comparison, lets compare the i3 3240 with its 2C/4T to a Phenom II with 3C/3T. First at the same clock, then at a new clock for the Phenom to equalize the usage of Hyperthreading on the Intel processor in benchmarks (note: the performance benefit from HT in benchmarks is alot higher than in games. Most games dont use it.)

In order to check the pure processing performance, we will have a look at Cinebench R11.5 and LinX Benchmark.
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Cinebench R11.5 ( Multicore Test, Hyperthreading allowed )

Intel i3 3240 2C/4T (3.4ghz, Hyperthreading on)
Single Core: 1.40 Points
Multi Core: 3.34 Points


AMD Phenom II X3 Custom 3C/3T (3.4ghz, Hyperthreading not supported)
Single Core: 1.00 Points
Multi Core: 2.98 Points


In this first benchmark we see a typical result, with the i3 being significantly faster at Single-Core and slightly better in Multi Core. The advantage for Intel is due to the intenstive use of Hyperthreading. The use of Hyperthreading allows up to 35-40% more performance in benchmarks, without it obviously, the advantage would be very small.This is also an advantage that most games wont be able to use, while the entire performance of the Phenom can be easily used, if a game supports 2 or 3 cores. To equalize the results, we will now overclock the Phenom to catch up to the exact result of the i3.
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Cinebench R11.5 Second Run ( Multi Core Test, Hyperthreading allowed )

Intel i3 3240 2C/4T (3.4ghz, Hyperthreading on)
Single Core: 1.40 Points
Multi Core: 3.34 Points


AMD Phenom II X3 Custom 3C/3T (3.8ghz, Hyperthreading not supported)
Single Core: 1.12 Points
Multi Core: 3.35


In order to reach the same Multi Core result as the Intel i3 3240, we require three Phenom cores running at a speed of 3.8ghz. We should now have a more useful result on the Phenom, since it was achieved without using Hyperthreading, which means games using 3cores can utilize it easier.

In LinX we now get 38GigaFLOPs on the custom Phenom and about 33GigaFLOPs on the Intel. These result reflect the pure mathemical rendering power of the CPUs. The higher clocked Phenom is now clearly ahead.

Yet, even the overclocked X3 3.8ghz is still significantly slower than the i3 in most games that use between 2-3cores. With the only available online results that we can use to compare, the i3 3240 is 27-35% faster in most games than a Phenom X4 980 at 3.7ghz, which comes close to our X3 3.8ghz test setup. Note: The games tested in the "pcgameshardware.de" article dont use more than 3cores, so the fact that an X4 was used here doesnt matter.
To give a short overview, here some of the results:
Anno 2070:
Intel i3 3240 (127%)
Min. FPS: 28
Average FPS: 33.6

Phenom II X4 980 (100%)
Min. FPS: 18
Average FPS: 26.4

http://www.pcgameshardware.de/Core-i3-3240-CPU-255216/Tests/Test-Core-i3-3240-Pentium-G2120-1024257/

4) REMAINING PARTS: Since we have talked about the most important components, lets sum up the rest. The RAM-Memory is like the short time memory of a humans brain. If you run a program, the information about that is stored in your RAM. If you often run many programs at once, you will want more RAM to avoid that your computer gets stuck. An amount of 4GB is standard today, 8-32GB are for people who do alot of multi-tasking.
The Powersupply (PSU) powers all of your components with electricity. If you run a normal pc with 1videocard, about 500Watt should be fine. If you use multiple videocards or processors, you might need 750W - 1000W or even more.

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Choosing the next computer:
Now you have to ask yourself the questions: What do I want to do with my computer? How much money do I have to spend?
Pick one of the following:

Type 1: I want to use my pc for media-entertainment and office tasks (watching videos, browsing the internet). Games are unimportant, but basic things should run fast.

Type 2: I want to use my pc for media-entertainment (including multi-tasking) and games from time to time. Im a casual gamer, and graphics dont matter that much for me. Playing games at medium quality is enough for me.

Type 3: I want to use my computer as gaming-machine and prefer using high quality graphics on one or several large (+)HD screens. I want the ultimate gaming experience.

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Examples for your new Computer:

By now you should be sure about what exactly you want to do with your computer. We will now continue and look at what kinds of hardware you will need for each of the three types, and how much money you will have to spend. Therefore we will give you a list with a typical setup example for each of the classes. All given examples show a reasonable price range that should not have to be exceeded in order to meet the requirements for each of the classes. Especially for fast gamer-setups, it is possible to buy multiple videocards or very expensive processors - which is yet not required if you use a single screen. There is also a fourth class of consumers who need their computer for 3D Modelling and OpenCL/Cuda which we leave out it in this guide. Computers of this class are a lot more expensive and can easily hit the 3000€ range.


TYPE 1:
Videocard: AMD Radeon HD6570 1GB / 59€
Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 965 or INTEL i3 2100 / 80€ to 129€
RAM: 4GB DDR3 Memory of any speed from 1333mhz to 1666mhz etc / 40€
Mainboard: Any Phenom II or i3 supported motherboard / 39€ to 69€
Powersupply: Any 450W PSU / 49€

Hardware: 208€ (+Computer case and a technical service partner putting it together)
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Total: 289€ (*: Cheapest solution)


TYPE2:
Videocard: AMD Radeon HD7770 or HD7790 / 109€ to 139€
Processor: AMD FX Vishera 6350 or any INTEL i5 / 109€ to 179€
RAM: 4GB DDR3 Memory or 8GB DDR3 Memory / 40€ to 79€
Mainboard: Any FX or i5 supported motherboard / 49€ to 89€
Powersupply: Any 550W or 650W PSU / 69€

Hardware: 376€ (+Computer case and a technical service partner putting it together)
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Total: 449€ (*: Cheapest solution)


TYPE3:
Videocard: AMD Radeon HD7950 or HD7970 / 259€ to 349€
Processor: AMD FX Vishera 8350 or any i7 3000Series / 199€ to 299€
RAM: 8GB DDR3 Highspeed-RAM 1666 or 1866mhz / Max 139€
Mainboard: Any FX or i7 supported motherboard / 100€ to 159€
Powersupply: High-Efficiency 850W PSU / Max 199€

Hardware: Approx. 900€ (+Computer case and a technical service partner putting it together)
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Total: 1050€
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To finally come to an end:

I hope that this guide helps you to chose your next computer setup without buying things that you don't need. The general explanation in this guide is extremely compressed, a detailed approach would require several dozen pages. The prices in this list are taken from various internet offers on the 17.06.2013.

This is a guide for everyone who plans to buy a new computer - or maybe even your first computer. Nowadays theres alot of confusion among people due to the weird names of computer hardware and the variety of different products.

Before we start this guide, it is important that you know of which main components a pc consists. We will try to explain that as easy and simple as possible.

A computer mainly contains a "Motherboard", a "Videocard", a "Processor", a specific amount of "RAM-Memory", a "Powersupply" and a "Storage". In the following part we will explain the function of each of these parts.

1) MAINBOARD: Almost all of the components that were mentioned above are placed on the motherboard. It allows the several components to communicate with each other and connects them. Every computer requires a motherboard, since the hardware has to be placed into specific slots on the motherboard.
Figure1 - Picture of a motherboard: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Acer_E360_Socket_939_motherboard_by_Foxconn.svg


2) VIDEOCARD: The videocard, as the name implies, is responsible for what you actually see on your screen. As games look very realistic today, the videocard has to be considerdably fast if you want to play 3D Games, otherwise you will see a slideshow on your monitor. The videocard is an independant board that has to be put into the "PCI"-Slot of a motherboard.

The main characteristics of a videocard are its memory and the number of cores(=workers) in it. Modern mainstream videocards have about 800-1300 cores that are responsible for the complex calculations behind a realistic game. You can imagine it like that: You have two companies of the same business branch, one of them has 200 employees, the other company 2000.
If both of these companies get the same task, and all of the employees work together, the larger company with 2000 workers will be done alot faster and able to present a result very early, whereas the smaller company needs alot more time to accomplish the same task.
So if you want to play good looking 3D Games on your computer without stuttering, you want more cores, because they get the task done faster.

However, this is a very simplistic metaphor. The two videocard companies AMD and NVIDIA use different kinds of cores, that have different speeds and characteristics, just like employees with different qualifications. If you compare cores of these two different brands therefore, it could be that a lower amount of cores from "Company A" is faster than a higher number of cores from "Company B".

Secondly, more memory does not make a videocard instantly faster. If you use an old 1280x1024pixels screen, 768MB - 1024MB are enough for your videocard. If you have a 1920x1080p screen or even more, you will need 2GB - 3GB of memory. The reason: the more pixels your screen has, the larger the picture that is created by your videocard. So you should avoid using large screens with small amounts of memory if you want to play games.


3) PROCESSOR: The processor is responsible for running software and programs, aswell as your Operation System Windows itself. However, a fast processor will not only speed up your multi-tasking on desktop and reduce loading times, games may also run faster, because a fast processor transports the required information to each of the components faster.

A processor has two main attributes: The number of cores and their speed measured in Gigahertz. The cores work a bit different than the videocard cores, but mostly more of them will be faster, and the metaphor that was mentioned before applies to them too. There are too main brands: Intel and AMD. It could be that 3cores of Intel, for example, are exactly as fast as 4cores by AMD. So remember: More cores only mean more performance if you compare two products of the same generation AND by the same brand.

Moreover, if you compare processors of one brand, more Gigahertz means that the CPU will work faster. The common speed for 4Core-CPU's (Quadcores) is about 3ghz.