Unlock i7 multiplier through BIOS mod?

Would it be at all possible that unlocking the i7 CPU multiplier could be done through a BIOS mod?

Would it be related to the CPU microcode in the BIOS?

What would happen if say the i7 920 microcode was changed to the i7 975 microcode?

I mean.. be able to detect it as a 920.. but run the code for a 975.

Should it in theory let me change the multiplier?

IIRC, Intel CPU's multiplier locks are done on the silicon (hardware lock), in which case it would not be possible.

So is the silicon for the different models slightly different... or do they test them, decide what to sell them as, and then mod them to the specific model number settings?

Originally Posted by cyclone3d

So is the silicon for the different models slightly different... or do they test them, decide what to sell them as, and then mod them to the specific model number settings?

They bin them for speed, decide how many of which SKU they are likely to sell, and then lock the multiplyers accordingly. The I7 920, 950, 975 are all essentially the same silicon except, in how well they binned, what Intel locked the muli to, and how they were packaged for sale.

Intel doesn't make many different model CPUs... they make a few, and bin the rest.

In other words... if you want a higher multi, buy a higher multi chip. The days of pencil mods are long over.