Asus extends AM5 motherboard warranty to cover beta BIOSes and memory overclocking presets

AMD Ryzen U inside the new AM5 U socket
(Image credit: AMD)

Following recent backlash to its warranty requirements on AM5 motherboards, AMD Ryzen 7000-series Us burning themselves out.

Here's the latest Asus motherboard warranty information in full:

"We want to address the concerns that have been raised by our s about whether recent BIOS updates will impact the warranty of ASUS AM5 motherboards. We would like to reassure our customers that both beta and fully validated BIOS updates for ASUS AM5 motherboards are covered by the original manufacturer’s warranty. We would also like to confirm the following points:

  • The ASUS AM5 motherboard warranty also covers all AMD EXPO, Intel XMP, and DO memory configurations.
  • All recent BIOS updates follow the latest AMD voltage guidelines for AMD Ryzen 7000 series processors.

Furthermore, we would like to reiterate our commitment to ing the AMD AM5 platform and our customers. For any further inquiries about your ASUS AM5 motherboard, please our customer service for . Thank you for choosing ASUS."

To understand why this is a big development, you have to go back to the root cause of this sticky situation. 

About one month ago, statement on the burnout issues, as one of the motherboard manufacturers seemingly hit by whatever was causing the issue. 

You can clearly see the heat damage on both the U and the motherboard socket in this picture from Reddit Speedrookie. (Image credit: Reddit—Speedrookie)

Asus said at the time that it was aware of some issues, hinting at SoC voltage and EXPO memory as the likely culprits, and had implemented new thermal monitoring mechanisms. This was seconded by a later statement by AMD, which suggested that some voltages applied to its chips may have been in excess of product specifications.

AMD later released a follow-up statement. This time confirming that it had found the cause of the burnout issue and had rolled out new AGESA firmware to motherboard manufacturers to release within their BIOS updates.

"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 U from operating beyond its specification limits, including a cap on SOC voltage at 1.3V," the statement from AMD said.

Multiple motherboard manufacturers have since released new BIOS files with the updated SOC voltage cap, including Asus. However, the Asus BIOS (version 1410, which has since been replaced with a newer version) was released in beta, and this, the company claimed, meant that it was not covered under warranty.

Asus BIOS page for X670E motherboard

The updated BIOS page no longer has the disclaimer warning the warranty will be invalidated with this BIOS. (Image credit: Asus)

Asus BIOS  page.

The newer 1415 BIOS from Asus notes further changes and is no longer in beta. (Image credit: Asus)

Asus has since reportedly claimed that the warranty-invalidating copy attached to the BIOS files was simply boilerplate text that it has always put on beta firmware on its sites, and not a specific thing it had put in place for this particular issue.

Board walk

(Image credit: MSI)

Best AMD motherboard: your new Ryzen's new home

Gamers Nexus looked into the 1410 BIOS' behaviour in a recent video and found that Asus motherboards were still running EXPO memory profiles in excess of 1.3V, which as per AMD's previous statement is the supposed cap for SOC voltage. That high voltage is questionable in its own right, as the supposed cap from AMD is 1.3V, but add to that the lack of warranty now imposed on the customer—a customer that was, in theory, doing the most to protect their U and board by installing the new BIOS with the proposed SOC voltage cap.

That largely leads us up to today's development: Asus noting that its latest BIOS updates do conform to AMD's recent voltage guidelines, and making clear that it will cover under warranty EXPO, XMP, and DO memory profiles and beta BIOS releases for its motherboard. A new BIOS version 1415 has been released.

That's a good step towards better customer , as memory overclocking profiles have often been excluded from warranties, but undoubtedly this should've been the case all along in this instance.

TOPICS
Jacob Ridley
Managing Editor, Hardware

Jacob earned his first byline writing for his own tech blog. From there, he graduated to professionally breaking things as hardware writer at PCGamesN, and would go on to run the team as hardware editor. He ed PC Gamer's top staff as senior hardware editor before becoming managing editor of the hardware team, and you'll now find him reporting on the latest developments in the technology and gaming industries and testing the newest PC components.