Gigabyte Support has responded to the ticket I created earlier:
Dear customer,
Not every processor can be unlocked. 555 BE black edition processor has not validated on this board, please test with non black edition processor.
Refer to this web for processors which are validated on mother board.
http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3425
Best regards,
Gigabyte technical support team.
So if I understand the stance Gigabyte has taken on this issue, it's that in their list of supported CPUs the 555 Black Edition is not supported by the board officially, so there will be no forthcoming assistance or solution. There should be no fundamental difference in a BE and non BE processor, other than an unlocked multiplier. If you look at the Gigabyte list none of the processors listed have a BE tag, even processors like the 955 that only comes in Black Edition. So at best they are referring to compatibility list that has errors, or at worst they are using this stance that black editions aren't mentioned as an easy out to shrug this issue off.
Here is the ticket response I sent:
Hello,
Thank you for your timely response. I understand that not every processor can unlock stably, as there was likely a reason additional cores were disabled by AMD. The issue here isn't stability, but a complete inability to recognize disabled cores that are there for a fact. Actually the Core Unlock feature in the BIOS does not work at all on the CPU and only allows for disabling of one of the two AMD enabled cores.
I understand that the supported processor list for the motherobard doesn't explicitly state the Black Edition [BE] of the x2 555. I would like to know what the fundamental differences in architecture is between a regular x2 555 and a x2 555 BE, since both CPUs are exactly the same, except the BEs have unlocked multipliers. I would also point out that strictly Black Edition processors are found on the same list with out Black Edition being explicitly stated to denote them as special or this difference as significant, e.g. 3 models of the x4 955 are listed at the top of the list that are only available as Black Editions, i.e. there is no such thing as a non-Black Edition x4 955.
I was initially very enthusiastic about the responsiveness of Gigabyte after posting on the Gigabyte Support forums, but from the subsequent responses, and the response to this support ticket, I must say I am now quite disapointed.
Am I to understand that Gigabyte has chosen to use the lack of explicit BE tags on their supported list, although there clearly are BE processors on there that are not explicitly denoted as such, as the basis for refusing any support on this issue? Can I expect any further investigation on this issue, or is there no point in following up with requests for a solution?
Regards,
Richard
I've already delivered the system to the user as is, I mean it's fine as is. If you buy a dual core you get a dual core. If the Core Unlock functionality worked and I couldn't unlock any additional cores fine. But having the Core Unlock feature itself not work is a different matter, and a bit annoying. I understand that Gigabyte does its best for its customers, and they can't take time to handle every little issue and complaint. However, the responses from them to date on this issue have been subpar.
