The recent Ryzen 7000 CPU burnout issues have been officially linked to higher chip voltage, according to a new statement from AMD. Since we first reported the first instance of AMD’s Ryzen 7000 CPUs catching fire, the company and its partners have been working to determine the root cause. It appears that AMD has now officially acknowledged that the chip voltage was the issue, and that the recent AGESA BIOS updates from its board partners will ensure that your CPU runs steadily.
We have root caused the issue and have already distributed a new AGESA that puts measures in place on certain power rails on AM5 motherboards to prevent the CPU from operating beyond its specification limits, including a cap on SOC voltage at 1.3V. None of these changes affect the ability of our Ryzen 7000 Series processors to overclock memory using EXPO or XMP kits or boost performance using PBO technology.
We expect all of our ODM partners to release new BIOS for their AM5 boards over the next few days. We recommend all users to check their motherboard manufacturers website and update their BIOS to ensure their system has the most up to date software for their processor.
Anyone whose CPU may have been impacted by this issue should contact AMD customer support. Our customer service team is aware of the situation and prioritizing these cases.
— AMD
According to the claim by AMD, limitations have been placed on specific Ryzen 7000 CPU rails in order to stop the CPU from overheating.
The SoC voltage has also been capped at 1.3V in addition to the rails. Although AMD claims that this won’t interfere with users’ ability to overclock and use EXPO profiles, some types of overclocking may be hampered.
Asus AM5 motherboards were the subject of the majority of reports of burning-up motherboards and Ryzen 7000 CPUs, and the company has since released an official statement. Only the most recent BIOS firmware is available for users to download and update on their motherboards after ASUS removed all previous versions from its product pages. Due to the lack of restrictions in the earlier BIOS firmware, these problems initially appeared.
Community Notice – ASUS AM5 motherboard owners
An important update for Ryzen7000X3D processor owners
Several AMD Ryzen 7000X3D owners have reported CPU and motherboard failures. We acknowledge the incidents/issues and have been communicating with AMD to analyze the possible causes. We have also contacted affected users to provide support and collect additional information.
Ryzen 7000X3D processors do not allow for CPU ratio or CPU core voltage tuning (CPU overclocking) but do allow for performance tuning and DRAM overclocking via PBO2 and EXPO memory.
To support EXPO and/or memory overclocking at DDR5-6000 and beyond, SoC voltage has to be sufficiently increased to ensure compatibility and stability. The amount of voltage required varies between CPU samples. Some processors are more sensitive to overvoltage than others, and some are capable at running higher memory frequencies without needing as much voltage.
As confirmed with AMD, any intentional manipulation of these settings can damage the processor, socket, and motherboard. To mitigate this, we have been working with AMD to define new rules for EXPO memory and SoC voltage. To help protect the CPU and motherboard, we are issuing new EFI updates to limit the maximum available SoC voltage to 1.3V.
We recommend updating your motherboard UEFI BIOS to the latest release. Please also ensure the CPU is cooled adequately. Our recommendation is to use at least a 240mm AIO liquid cooler or high-performance air cooler. If you have been affected, please do not hesitate to contact ASUS support for your region.
FAQ – 1. When are the new UEFI releases going to be released? Our expectation is to have the UEFI BIOS updates posted and available through the service and support website within the next 24 hours. — Juan Jose Guerrero (ASUS)
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