How do I determine if my CPU is a Chinese Fake?

Format _C:

2[H]4U
Joined
Jun 12, 2001
Messages
3,885
I was recently given an Asus X58 Sabertooth motherboard with what I assume to be a fake Xeon X5680

It had no ram or video card (Excuse me GPU LoL) I used some spare DDR 3 and an old Nvidia GT53o to test it.

It posts and say the CPU is an Xeon X5680 but I took the giant heatsink/fan (Zanman CNPS10X) off and all the CPU has on it is some Chinese letters and symbols so I assume it's a fake!

So my question is how do I measure performance to see if it matches what it is supposed to be able to do?

does Intel have any utilities to see if the CPU is genuine (Which it most likey is not) or a Chinese fake?

Also is it worth it at this point and time to try and find a real Xeon?
 
I don't think the Chinese quite have the tech for that yet.... What you likely have is a Chinese OEM chip. Still a legit Chinese market cpu, although it's specs might not line up with the NA/EU equivalent.
 
I was recently given an Asus X58 Sabertooth motherboard with what I assume to be a fake Xeon X5680

It had no ram or video card (Excuse me GPU LoL) I used some spare DDR 3 and an old Nvidia GT53o to test it.

It posts and say the CPU is an Xeon X5680 but I took the giant heatsink/fan (Zanman CNPS10X) off and all the CPU has on it is some Chinese letters and symbols so I assume it's a fake!

So my question is how do I measure performance to see if it matches what it is supposed to be able to do?

does Intel have any utilities to see if the CPU is genuine (Which it most likey is not) or a Chinese fake?

Also is it worth it at this point and time to try and find a real Xeon?
Post up a screen shot of cpu z, it will tell you if it believes that it is a fake. Run some benchmarks to see if the performance #'s are inline with the make and model of the cpu in question.
 
Post up a screen shot of cpu z, it will tell you if it believes that it is a fake. Run some benchmarks to see if the performance #'s are inline with the make and model of the cpu in question.
that^^^ and post some pics of it too
 
I don't think the Chinese quite have the tech for that yet.... What you likely have is a Chinese OEM chip. Still a legit Chinese market cpu, although it's specs might not line up with the NA/EU equivalent.
Never even thought about that.
The BIOS says 3.33GHZ so what are the differences (If any, other then markings?)
Post up a screen shot of cpu z, it will tell you if it believes that it is a fake. Run some benchmarks to see if the performance #'s are inline with the make and model of the cpu in question.
Any tools that I can run from a flash drive? I just booted it up and went into the BIOS no EFI/UEFI too old it's from 2010 it already has the last BIOS available for it.

Overclock and bench it. see what it can do.
any boot-able ones?
How? I don't know how to overclock a "Modern" PC the last one I did was an AMD K6/2 with jumpers and DIP switches 266MHZ to 333MHZ I was 13 I was a total NEWBIE and I just did the max that board supported I kept wondering why I kept getting BSOD's LoL!
 
Never even thought about that.
The BIOS says 3.33GHZ so what are the differences (If any, other then markings?)

Any tools that I can run from a flash drive? I just booted it up and went into the BIOS no EFI/UEFI too old it's from 2010 it already has the last BIOS available for it.


any boot-able ones?
How? I don't know how to overclock a "Modern" PC the last one I did was an AMD K6/2 with jumpers and DIP switches 266MHZ to 333MHZ I was 13 I was a total NEWBIE and I just did the max that board supported I kept wondering why I kept getting BSOD's LoL!
Should be through the bios. The lga 1366 xeons and i7s were pretty good overclockers and are still decent chips. I think we have a thread here dedicated to x58 overclocking but there are also plenty online.

Perhaps passmark for the benchmark?

The one built into cpuz is decent as well so maybe start there.
 
Post up a screen shot of cpu z, it will tell you if it believes that it is a fake. Run some benchmarks to see if the performance #'s are inline with the make and model of the cpu in question.

OK it is Here the benchmarks look to be inline with what it is supposed to be able to do. The SSD is the boot drive.


Screenshot 2021-11-16 at 12-57-11 Intel Xeon X5680 3474 23 MHz - CPU-Z VALIDATOR.png
 
OK it is Here the benchmarks look to be inline with what it is supposed to be able to do. The SSD is the boot drive.


View attachment 413195
Looks good. See if it will do 4ghz? Ya have any plans for this computer. It could be pretty decent with a ssd and some cheap ram

Edit: I see it already has a ssd
 
Last edited:
post some pics of it too
OK Here!
PS: I Know the dust is insane but it was from a "Toner Explosion" I'm still finding Magenta toner particles in some places even 5 years ago damn Dell color lasers!

Asus X58 SaberTooth
Intel Xeon X5680
Various makes of 4GB DDR DIMMS
Nvidia GT530
Samsung EVO 850 500GB SSD
Hauppauge HVR-2250 (Only have the Low Profile bracket so I bent it so the card would not fall out of the slot)
CystralFontz 20 X 2 LCD
Teac DVD-RW/CD-R/RW
Both in a Dell bracket intended for their Optiplex and Precision business class PCs
 

Attachments

  • X58.jpg
    X58.jpg
    725.5 KB · Views: 0
  • X58_2.jpg
    X58_2.jpg
    468.2 KB · Views: 0
OK Here!
PS: I Know the dust is insane but it was from a "Toner Explosion" I'm still finding Magenta toner particles in some places even 5 years ago damn Dell color lasers!

Asus X58 SaberTooth
Intel Xeon X5680
Various makes of 4GB DDR DIMMS
Nvidia GT530
Samsung EVO 850 500GB SSD
Hauppauge HVR-2250 (Only have the Low Profile bracket so I bent it so the card would not fall out of the slot)
CystralFontz 20 X 2 LCD
Teac DVD-RW/CD-R/RW
Both in a Dell bracket intended for their Optiplex and Precision business class PCs
i did mean the chip but...
DDR3 though right?
 
i did mean the chip but...
DDR3 though right?

Oops Sorry :banghead:
Not taking that fan off again such a PITA with the screws and those fan clips.

Not a fan of one fits all heatsinks as they have way too many parts and are a PITA to assemble but this was on it already!
Does an X58 board with UEFI and not the old BIOS exist?

Yes DDR 3
 
It’s just a Chinese market Intel cpu. I have see a few of them from servers we collected from global offices. China is not faking intel Xeon cpus (yet lmao) and let’s be honest, when they do start making knockoff cpus, they will be branded with the same English markings of the chips their trying to clone.

Lap the CPU (or de-lid) and the markings are gone! Are people still doing that?
 
Lap the CPU (or de-lid) and the markings are gone! Are people still doing that?

Are you aware of why people did that 20 years ago?
It was all about mechanical imperfection of mostly CPU coolers.
Machinery / tools them flattening aluminum they were significantly improve up to 2010, nowadays (2010~2021) there is no such issues.
Mirror finish CPU, this is now a habit that belong at overclock-ers museum.
 
Are you aware of why people did that 20 years ago?
It was all about mechanical imperfection of mostly CPU coolers.
Machinery / tools them flattening aluminum they were significantly improve up to 2010, nowadays (2010~2021) there is no such issues.
Mirror finish CPU, this is now a habit that belong at overclock-ers museum.
:D Yes I’m aware it’s a old technique. I was doing on many many years ago. It was more of a joke, a way to make it no longer have Chinese writing on the lid that was concerning him.

Wasn’t just the coolers too. The Lids themselves had high corners. Kinda cup like. Very evident when you started the wet sand on a perfect flat sanding surface.
What are the differences between this and a USA market if any?
Shouldn’t be no. Your getting whatever CPUz is showing you. A x5680 is the same regardless of market.
 
Oops sorry this must have been the "Multi-quote" thing that I added one that I never used and accidentally added both to this thread sorry.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Nenu
like this
What are the differences between this and a USA market if any?
VAT, Warranty plan, pricing.
From time to time, the USA added export restrictions relative to high-tech goods.
I do not have proofs of INTEL CPU for China performance level.
Still they are chances to be a different grade of Chip.
 
VAT, Warranty plan, pricing.
From time to time, the USA added export restrictions relative to high-tech goods.
I do not have proofs of INTEL CPU for China performance level.
Still they are chances to be a different grade of Chip.
Highly highly doubt they are different grade chip. Warranty means nothing outside of its original server it was in.
 
Back
Top