How good is my Athlon XP stepping?

[OC Detective]

Yes but who decides its a XP1700+ and then assigns an incorrect code to it? Mystery most definitely not solved. Sure this company can say they send out refurbs (grade B) but this is not a refurb as it has been wrongly/illegally re-labelled. I have no issue with it being second hand but the info on the sticker is clearly wrong (something nobody seemed to pick up on I might add!) and I dont think an end user would go to the trouble of wrongly relabelling their XP1700+.

 

[douglasb]

I guess this pretty much ensures that I have to RMA it. And what nobody seemed to notice (myself included) is that CPUID says it's a TBred A, while BOTH of the stepping codes on it signify TBred B. Very strange indeed, since neither of them is a Duron stepping. At any rate, it looks like I'm going to have to RMA this one and then eBay the replacement. What a drag. All this hassle just to save a few buck, which I end up losing right back in the long run. I hope as many people as possible read this, so this doesn't have to happen to anyone else.

 

[OC Detective]

No a Duron (applebred) can be a 680 (family 6 model 8 stepping ID 0 in WCPUID) as they are based on the a Tbred core but with the cache disabled - the actual information on the label is wrong anyway as we know so can be disregarded. If anything it is another red flag to stay away from this company. BTW the picture of the model 8 I gave a link to is actually a duron modded and relabelled to be a XP2600 Tbred.....

 

[douglasb]

I have class tomorrow, so I'm going to sleep. Thanks-a-plenty to c627627 and OC Detective. I'm a little ticked off about this whole thing, but I'm grateful that there are people like you guys that I can come to whenever I need to know something. Thanks again!

 

[OC Detective]

c627627 you have to ask yourself why someone (even with limited knowledge) would be endeavouring to mod the cpu in that particular area (top right - where the L2 cache is potentially adjustable) rather than over to the left where the multipliers, fsb or mobile mod is done .....
Things are not always so easily solved lol

 

[c627627]

(Other) forums are filled with similar stories of other products being sold used, relabled, in plain boxes with no UPC code, etc. A semi-well known company called TigerDirect has master this art well, even signing up people who order their items for phone cards and such, in addition to not honoring rebates and having no or slimy customer service. People think they can complain to Better Business Bureau.

While you should definitely do that, look what happens when you do:
http://www.bbbsoutheastflorida.org/nis/newsearch2.asp?ID=1&strBCode=06330000&ComID=0633000027000500

...and they continue doing what they're doing.

I don't think the company specifically set out to relabel and mod a brand new CPU like that, it would appear they got a hold of it 'who knows how' already used-relabeled, then sold it to people looking to save $1 or two.

 

[c627627]

You'll see the name TigerDirect every once in a while on the Inquirer, I pointed this out to Mike Magee and he looked into it but found that only a limited number of Inq stories mentioned them.

Even so, since then, I saw the cursed TigerDirect name on the Inq several times ts-ts...

 

[Saruji]

wow, how interesting, its like a detective story. You guys sure do know a lot about the xp's oh the top of your hand.

 

[OC Detective]

(Other) forums are filled with similar stories of other products being sold used, relabled, in plain boxes with no UPC code, etc. A semi-well known company called TigerDirect has master this art well, even signing up people who order their items for phone cards and such, in addition to not honoring rebates and having no or slimy customer service. People think they can complain to Better Business Bureau.

While you should definitely do that, look what happens when you do:
http://www.bbbsoutheastflorida.org/nis/newsearch2.asp?ID=1&strBCode=06330000&ComID=0633000027000500

...and they continue doing what they're doing.

I don't think the company specifically set out to relabel and mod a brand new CPU like that, it would appear they got a hold of it 'who knows how' already used-relabeled, then sold it to people looking to save $1 or two.

No argument about the relabelling and the fact that such practices exist (as I stated in my earlier post) etc.
Where the case is not closed is what the cpu was originally and that is what I am trying to get to the bottom of! There is no argument to the fact it has been relabelled - presumably by AN Other, perhaps not the company he bought it from, for profit.

 

[douglasb]

OK, I took a good look at the CPU, and this is what the bridges look like: L1, L2, L3, L6, and L8 are all unchanged, all are closed. L5 is unchanged, only the first one is closed. L9 has all of the bridges changed, all to closed. L12 has only the first one modified to closed; the next 3 are closed, open, and closed, respectively. L11 has the 2nd one modified to closed, making them all closed. So what does it look like this has been changed from/to?

 

[cujo]

No scanner either, but I do have a camera. ENET offered to RMA it, but I really want a refund. I ordered a Barton 2500 from somewhere else, so I'd like to get as much cash as possible for this.

take some pictures already!!!

also, why would you go out and buy a plain barton when several people have said get a mobile??? you've now made two purchasing errors instead of just one... i'm a student to and as a student i know the value of money. an extra 20 bucks for mobile goes one hell of a long way further.

 

[OC Detective]

On the L12 if it was originally, O-C-O-C it was a 100FSB cpu at default now at C-C-O-C it is a 133FSB at default. For L11 if it was originally C-O-C-C-C the vcore was originally 1.65V now at C-C-C-C-C its 1.85v at default. Only 100FSB at default is an older Duron or Tbird!!???

 

[douglasb]

take some pictures already!!!

also, why would you go out and buy a plain barton when several people have said get a mobile??? you've now made two purchasing errors instead of just one... i'm a student to and as a student i know the value of money. an extra 20 bucks for mobile goes one hell of a long way further.

The only camera I have is on my cell phone (320x240, poor resolution and no flash). So it's a lot easier for me to just tell the knowledgeable folks here what the bridges look like, rather than have everyone and their brother complaining and telling me how bad my camera sucks. As far as the mobile, it's more like an extra 40-50 bucks, not an extra 20. If you can find a mobile 2500 for under $70, I'd love to know where.

 

[OC Detective]

Well it has me stumped as to what it is - cant be an older product (100FSB) as the core is a different shape (tbreds have rectangular cores, older products square core as well the info being on the sticker instead of the core itself).
Perhaps this was a model 8 duron cpu earmarked for HP/Compaq machines and not for general retail?

 

[Susquehannock]

> "Perhaps this was a model 8 duron cpu earmarked for HP/Compaq machines and not for general retail?" <

AMD made such processors? If so that might explain a few things. By the way, I
identified that CPU as bogus at the start in the other thread. The codes didn't
make sense. Who said nobody noticed?

 

[c627627]

Look, you're a student, which means you have access to a campus.

Capuses have computer rooms, and those have scanners.

Simply scan it and we'll go on from there.

 

[OC Detective]

Well HP/Compaq have models such as 2900+ and 3100+ Tbreds (with non standard FSB's) so it is not beyond the realms of possibility.

 

[cujo]

The only camera I have is on my cell phone (320x240, poor resolution and no flash). So it's a lot easier for me to just tell the knowledgeable folks here what the bridges look like, rather than have everyone and their brother complaining and telling me how bad my camera sucks. As far as the mobile, it's more like an extra 40-50 bucks, not an extra 20. If you can find a mobile 2500 for under $70, I'd love to know where.

just borrow a friends camera. lots of students own them. the only reason i'm pushing pictures is cause i know that myself and many others here would love to see this with our own eyes. it's also possible that one of us may pick up on something that you've missed.

i can get a mobile for 115 cdn or a 2500 sempron for 95 cdn (store where i shop doesn't even have desktop bartons or tbreds anymore). you're telling me a desktop 2500 is 40-50 bucks cheaper than a mobile??? a desktop 2500 with it's 512k l2 will be more than a sempron with it's 256k.

 

[c627627]

Ha-ha, but he's talking B-grade Barton CPUs (j/k)

 

[douglasb]

i can get a mobile for 115 cdn or a 2500 sempron for 95 cdn (store where i shop doesn't even have desktop bartons or tbreds anymore). you're telling me a desktop 2500 is 40-50 bucks cheaper than a mobile??? a desktop 2500 with it's 512k l2 will be more than a sempron with it's 256k.

That's exactly what I'm telling you. I got a desktop 2500+ for $50 US, or about $60 Canadian. So the difference between that and the mobile is about $45 US, or $55 Canadian. Normally I would have gone with the mobile, don't get me wrong. I just got a great deal on the desktop from a relative who just got an A64 3200+. As far as the pictures, I plan on taking some over the weekend at the latest. Hopefully I'll have time to sometime in the next few days. I know that this sort of thing really needs to be seen to be fully appreciated.