PSA: AMD AM5 issue with over voltage requiring BIOS update

[SpyderTracks]

Still waiting on my system, currently in "Testing - problem" stage, hopefully nothing too serious!

I can see the BETA AGESA BIOS update for my board on the site now, assume I will have to update when my system gets here. Will ask for permission of course (as it may impact warranty) but I guess we have to update regardless. It's too important an update not to. ASUS have automated software in Windows too that does it all for you so risk is very low as long as you are not using BETA versions.

Asus have rolled out the non-beta to a lot of boards now, won't be long before it's available, I'd wait for that one rather than flashing the beta first.

Again, it's not something that damages instantly, it's overvoltage that ends up causing damage over 6 months or so.

 

[Scott]

TBH I'd avoid the Agesa update for now. Apparently it's completely borked and tanks the DDR performance. I've stuck with 1303 (I think, I've lost track).

I'm comfortable in the BIOS though so I've completely customised all the voltages etc. The IMC Voltage is very high with EXPO in my opinion. It's set to 1.4v and often sees 1.45v. I've capped this to 1.3v and not had any stability issues. SoC I've set at 1.2v, again no issues. Running the RAM with fairly tight timings at 6000Mhz. I've had 6200mhz and 6400Mhz running without any issues but just until everything is ironed out I've locked it all for maximum stability.

Hopefully the next proper AMD Agesa update will iron out these issues. I think it's due by the end of the month, they may put a "rush" on it though.

Interestingly the BIOS I am running at the moment doesn't have any iGPU configuration options. I think the option disappears after being set (I think I turned it off). Also, the EXPO profiles have vanished and been replaced with DOCP profiles, I know this is effectively the same thing but it just shows how much in flux the whole ASUS brigade are (And likely other vendors but I don't have their kit).

I really feel for anyone buying these rigs and not knowing how to tune in the BIOS, it's so precarious. I hope AMD and the vendors are giving this some proper focus. We need it to be right rather than rushed.

 

[LeeB]

Yeah just reading about the AGESA bugs. Seems 1.0.0.9 should be out pretty soon. Hopefully sorts out most of the issues.

Must be a lot of people out there though with machines like this bought months ago that would not know about these issues and would never think to check for BIOS updates. They may never find out until it's too late.

 

[Scott]

So, people like me then! Until last May when I had to troubleshoot, going into the BIOS was a big "I would rather drag my unmentionables across broken glass" I could barely manage to go in and change boot order without panicking. I did learn that flashing the BIOS was no biggie but I am still nervous about going in there, much less changing things.

Up till now, I am still running the pre-voltage limit BIOS as PCS support are taking their time getting back to me about updating the BIOS....whilst they all work in the same office, I am convinced that the request has been sent via Royal Mail from the initial support person to whoever decides if BIOS can be upgraded

I think the biggest issue for users updating the BIOS is going to be re-configuring it. When you flash the BIOS it hits you with all default options. This means that all EXPO, PBO and Curve settings are reset. This isn't so much hassle when the BIOS updates are coming thick and fast, I've reset my options multiple times in the last week or 2, but when they come over time it's difficult to remember exactly what you had set before.

I'm loathe to do a tutorial on it to be honest but I think it would be quite helpful. My default tweaks for now are:

EXPO/DOCP1 - Sets voltages slightly more aggressively than stock.
RAM Speed 6000 with 38 latency timings
PBO switched on
Curve -30 on all cores (-35 for benchmarking, -30 for stability. I've not tuned by core, yet).
iGPU disabled
SoC Voltage set to 1.25v cap (Seems to be stuck at 1.24v, but not complaining)
VDDIO I've capped at 1.3v, it seems to run 1.45v as stock which is far too high IMO.

Interestingly I've done exactly the same through the "Advanced" menu. I'm not sure why it doesn't translate through from the AI to the Advanced option, but I've done it all the same just in case.

Running stable as a rock, all voltages are pretty good and I'm seeing a 5.3Ghz peak from the chip which suggests a decent bin. Temperatures etc all seem pretty good as well, the power usage is low. Screenshot is after running for a couple of hours, gaming in VR, etc.

Mileage will vary with the curve for everyone, but most would get at least something from the optimiser.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Amazing in depth analysis by GamersNexus and their 3rd party silicon analysts

 

[Scott]

I totally nerded out watching that

I used to be around a fair bit of NDT, Xray & CT scanning in a previous life. This is complete next gen stuff though, so interesting!

 

[Scott]

Looking forward to the Asus vid now

 

[SpyderTracks]

Looking forward to the Asus vid now

Absolutely, will be very interesting.

 

[Scott]

As if by some weird coincidence in timing:

An important update for Ryzen™ 7000 series processors on ASUS AM5 platform Motherboard

press.asus.com

I wonder if that's going to be considered a bit of a back peddle

 

[SpyderTracks]

As if by some weird coincidence in timing:

An important update for Ryzen™ 7000 series processors on ASUS AM5 platform Motherboard

press.asus.com

I wonder if that's going to be considered a bit of a back peddle

I really wouldn't be surprised if that's a reaction to the GN upcoming video.

GN are highly respected in the industry, their testing methodologies are amongst the most thorough and professional around, and they'll outsource stuff like with this latest video to really reputable scientific outlets.

Manufacturers really do HAVE to listen if an outfit like GN calls them out.

 

[Scott]

I'm curious what they are being called out on though. If it's the shady BETA warranty nonsense they put out then they absolutely deserve the backlash, and it would completely explain their current statement. If not though, I'm unaware of what they have done that would be considered shady..... other than ramp up the voltage specs and mask them, but I don't think its only Asus that fall on the sword there.

Just downloaded another beta BIOS from ASUS. Got it on overclockers off the books so will see how it goes.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I'm curious what they are being called out on though. If it's the shady BETA warranty nonsense they put out then they absolutely deserve the backlash, and it would completely explain their current statement. If not though, I'm unaware of what they have done that would be considered shady..... other than ramp up the voltage specs and mask them, but I don't think its only Asus that fall on the sword there.

Just downloaded another beta BIOS from ASUS. Got it on overclockers off the books so will see how it goes.

Ooo, be interested what you find with that Beta BIOS

 

[Scott]

Hitting 5.4Ghz on a few cores now. I'm blown away with the performance of this chip. I'd actually love to have a go with the 7950X3D as this 7800X3D is insane. Gremlins aside, something I'm quite happy to potter with, it's an absolute phenomenon in relation to my previous experience. Not noticing anything with 4012 that I hadn't already bypassed with manual settings anyway. The only curiosity I have is the VSoC is set to 1.24 no matter what I do. Also the NB menu has vanished which allows you to switch off the iGPU. I'm curious about these things, but not worried. It seems that the AiOC menu needs to sometimes correspond with the Advanced settings, as they don't seem to transfer over. Asus are in such a rush lately, it's pretty poor.

That being said, the MSFS vid that I posted the other day was encoded/rendered in around 1 minute. I used GPU rendering, as I always have, but it just absolutely annihilated it (latest Premiere). I always saw decent performance as anything better than 1:1. That was 6 minutes rendered in just over 1! I'm not even sure where the limitation was as I saw 25% on the CPU and 34% on the GPU throughout, so it could potentially have gone faster. I would be very interested to compare 4k rendering against a proper set rig as I don't think the gains would be that obvious.

Gaming is insane compared to the 9900K, even with me ringing its neck and clocking it to the max it just cannot compare. I'm almost double what I was getting in MSFS and I'm easily 30fps more in PC2..... just from this platform.

The real gem for me is the PBO & curve configuration. It's honestly so easy to tune it's unreal. I've pulled the RAM back to 6000Mhz for now as I get a performance increase. I probably need to tweak the voltage/timings to get it running better at 6200 & 6400Mhz, but for now I'm scoring very high on Firestrike, hitting all my targets in PC2 & MSFS at 6000Mhz. I know it's the "sweet spot" but that's out of the box, I can sense more from higher frequency.

AMD really did something special with this hardware. They need to fine tune the out the box experience with the supporting BIOS and hardware though as IMO it's below par for your average consumer. For me it's a paradise playground of riches

 

[SpyderTracks]

Oooo, @Scott youll enjoy this!

 

[QH7]

GN also posted this on their Twitter earlier.

 

[Scott]

Some of the comments are brilliant...

Asus is spearheading the best marketing campaign Intel has had in years

It's pretty much what I thought to be honest, and completely deserved. Got to give thanks to GN for this as it will definitely force a shift. I have no doubt that ASUS would cover the parts under warranty, regardless of the notes, but that's not the point. They're running about like headless chickens.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Some of the comments are brilliant...

Asus is spearheading the best marketing campaign Intel has had in years

It's pretty much what I thought to be honest, and completely deserved. Got to give thanks to GN for this as it will definitely force a shift. I have no doubt that ASUS would cover the parts under warranty, regardless of the notes, but that's not the point. They're running about like headless chickens.

Asus seriously messed up here, I just don't know what they were thinking.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Oooo, @Scott youll enjoy this!

A follow up by Jayz on Asus, he's dropped them as a sponsor

 

[Big_Rich]

Given the current well documented problems with Asus motherboards and X3D processors, has anyone here had an issue with a build from PCS? I recall seeing Gigabyte motherboards in the configurator a while ago, but now it's all Asus.

 

[Steveyg]

Chance for Gigabyte to get back to winning ways here with ASUS fumble. ASUS have been the go to for me now for years after Gigabyte falling in the quality department. It's a shame seeing them drop to such lows but hopefully it encourages the other alternatives to be more competitive