Question Asus ROG Strix B450-F With Ryzen 3000

JBHapgood

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I'm planning a build with a Ryzen 3600 in the near future. At least for now, it looks like the ROG Strix B450-F would be my best choice for a B450 motherboard. (Thank you Darkbreeze and DMAN999!) I can find only a few descriptions of builds with a Ryzen 3000 and this board, but none of them mention any significant problems.

1. Has anyone here done a build with this board and a Ryzen 3000, particularly the 3600?

2. If so, was there a "Ryzen 3000 Ready" sticker on the motherboard package, or something else to indicate that it shipped with a compatible BIOS? According to the Asus support page, the earliest compatible BIOS is version 2301, dated 15 May 2019.
 

JBHapgood

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If the MB does not have the newer BIOS, then you can get the free boot kit from AMD. https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/pa-100

If the box does show "Ryzen 3000 Ready", that means the MB has the newer BIOS for the ryzen 3000 cpu.

I'm planning to buy the motherboard locally (Best Buy or Fry's) so I can look for the sticker before I take it home and avoid jumping through the hoops to get a boot kit. If Asus/ROG are indeed putting the sticker on boards with a compatible BIOS, that would solve the problem. The sticker would certainly make sense from a marketing perspective, but I don't know if they're doing that yet.
 

DMAN999

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You could probably pay a small fee to have Best Buy flash the latest BIOS (2501) for you. I don't know how much stock Best Buy moves but the motherboards they have on hand could be months old. If so it would most likely have an older BIOS version.
 

hftvhftv

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You're most likely going to need someone to flash the BIOS with an older chip first, or get a boot kit from AMD. I went with an X570 board since I'm impatient and wanted PCIe 4.0 for the future(I had PCIe 2.0 on my last build).
 

JBHapgood

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I wrote to Asus through their Web site to ask whether B450-F motherboards shipped with recent BIOSes would have a "Ryzen 3000 ready" sticker on them. This is the relevant part of the reply I received:

The BIOS of the B450 chipset motherboard is not yet compatible with the new Ryzen CPU out of the box, you need to use a previous generation of Ryzen for you to update the BIOS of it and use the new Ryzen, or you can contact AMD because they're provide an update tool kit for 3rd gen Ryzen for the update.

I also stopped at Best Buy today and talked to a "Geek Squad" technician. He told me they would not be able to update a BIOS. First, it's contrary to their operating procedures. And second, they don't keep spare CPUs around that would make such a thing possible. His only suggestion was to either use an AMD boot kit or buy a used compatible CPU on eBay. (The AMD Web site looks like there are a lot of hoops to jump through before they'll send a boot kit.)

That said, I find it hard to believe that Asus (and others) won't eventually ship motherboards with BIOSes that at least allow a Ryzen 3000 to POST and enter the BIOS to flash the latest update. The question is when that "eventually" is. If it's not resolved within the next month, I'll either have to build a system around a discounted 2nd generation Ryzen (and either upgrade it next year after the dust settles or just enjoy it as is), or spend the extra bucks for an X570 board that should at least POST and boot out of the box.

Newegg currently has a combo deal with a Ryzen 3600 and an ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 for $330, which is close to the price of the 3600 with a B450-F. The problem is that nobody has yet reviewed any of the low-end X570 boards. (I guess they're not sexy enough to bother with.) I'm not really comfortable going into something like that blind, even though it should (in theory) offer the best chance of a smooth build.
 

JBHapgood

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If you want someone to update the BIOS, how about the microcenter, it there is one near you. Or any local PC shop, or your friend ( but you have to order the boot kit)

There is no MicroCenter within a reasonable drive. And none of the local PC repair shops I called will flash a BIOS on a motherboard I bring in. If I order the boot kit I could most likely flash it myself. But according to AMD's Web site, I'd have to first attempt to RMA the board to Asus (or whoever) and request a replacement board with a compatible BIOS. If the manufacturer refuses, I'd need to submit documentation to that effect along with pictures of the processor and board, and then wait however long it takes for AMD to send and ship the boot kit. That sounds like a lot of effort, and possibly so much time that it would exceed the return window if the motherboard turns out to have problems.

Since I'm planning to wait one more month before I buy anything, maybe the situation will be different by then. If the MSI Tomahawk MAX is available and fixes the problems (something I'm skeptical about), it may be the solution. Or maybe Asus will be shipping B450-F boards with a newer BIOS by then. Or else Tom's and similar sites will get around to reviewing the lower-end X570 boards.

Lots of options. The common denominator: PATIENCE!

(But I do think AMD really bungled the rollout of their new processors. They should have had a stable BIOS and AGESA worked out in time for launch, so that motherboards would properly support it. On the other hand, it seems they can rely on thousands of early adopters to do the gamma testing for them, allowing to roll out the processors before adequate support is in place. I've seen that too many times before, but with software.)
 
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DMAN999

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Honestly I have a Ryzen 5 2600 OC'd to 4 GHz and I am completely happy with it's performance.
I will probably upgrade to a 3700x next year (after all the BIOS bugs get worked out) but even then I don't foresee that it will be an absolutely necessary upgrade.
So building with a 2000 series CPU for now is still a very good option IMO.
 
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JBHapgood

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The most recent BIOS update (2501) just came out on 7/18/19 so I doubt if you buy a board now it would have that BIOS included. I would just get it via Frys or online and have Frys update it for you (maybe free if you buy the board from them).

I wouldn't expect a board I buy today, or even a month from now, to ship with the 2501 BIOS. But according to Asus' Web site, version 2301 supported the 3rd-gen Ryzen. That one is dated 15 May. So I don't think it would be unreasonable to find a board with that BIOS now. But apparently ASUS isn't shipping with it, perhaps because of its instability.

I called the nearest Fry's. The repair tech I talked to said they could not flash a BIOS, regardless of whether I bought the board there. (They supposedly carry the B450-F, but it has been "out of stock" ever since I started checking it.)

Unless the Max update conclusively fixes the problems too many people have been experiencing with the Tomahawk, I'm increasingly convinced an X570 board will be the solution for me. Newegg already offers CPU/mobo bundles that reduce the price gap. And maybe over the next month someone will get around to reviewing the un-sexy low-end X570 boards to provide some guidance.
 

WildCard999

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I wouldn't expect a board I buy today, or even a month from now, to ship with the 2501 BIOS. But according to Asus' Web site, version 2301 supported the 3rd-gen Ryzen. That one is dated 15 May. So I don't think it would be unreasonable to find a board with that BIOS now. But apparently ASUS isn't shipping with it, perhaps because of its instability.

I called the nearest Fry's. The repair tech I talked to said they could not flash a BIOS, regardless of whether I bought the board there. (They supposedly carry the B450-F, but it has been "out of stock" ever since I started checking it.)

Unless the Max update conclusively fixes the problems too many people have been experiencing with the Tomahawk, I'm increasingly convinced an X570 board will be the solution for me. Newegg already offers CPU/mobo bundles that reduce the price gap. And maybe over the next month someone will get around to reviewing the un-sexy low-end X570 boards to provide some guidance.
2301 was pulled previously when I tried to update my B450F so I wouldn't trust it to be stable. The X570 would work fine however that price is a bit much (IMO) for PCIE 4.0 and a few other features. MSI has that Flashback feature which allows you to update it without the CPU so that may be worth looking into.
 

JBHapgood

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Honestly I have a Ryzen 5 2600 OC'd to 4 GHz and I am completely happy with it's performance.
I will probably upgrade to a 2700x next year (after all the BIOS bugs get worked out) but even then I don't foresee that it will be an absolutely necessary upgrade.
So building with a 2000 series CPU for now is still a very good option IMO.

Actually, when I first started researching a new computer, the 2700X was my initial choice. (But I think you actually meant you're going to upgrade to a 3700X next year.) Then I saw that the upcoming 3600 would have the same clock speed, but at 65 watts. Noise and efficiency are more important to me than raw power, as is some degree of future-proofing. I have no interest at all in overclocking. Between that and the superior performance, the 3600 is just what I'm looking for.
 
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JBHapgood

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2301 was pulled previously when I tried to update my B450F so I wouldn't trust it to be stable. The X570 would work fine however that price is a bit much (IMO) for PCIE 4.0 and a few other features. MSI has that Flashback feature which allows you to update it without the CPU so that may be worth looking into.

Newegg currently has a bundle with the Ryzen 3600 and MSI X570-A Pro (with flashback) for $340. That effectively makes the motherboard price $140, compared with $127 for the B450-F. I think they've also got the X570 Gaming Plus (essentially the same board) for $10 more.

If you're willing to live with a low-end motherboard, the price is really very similar. And the gap narrows more when you figure the cost of having someone flash the BIOS or even driving to UPS to return an AMD boot kit. The relatively small price premium is for convenience, compatibility, and possible future-proofing rather than improvements that are basically irrelevant.

The only problem is that it's hard to assess any of the low-end boards due to lack of reviews and user experience. That problem will likely disappear with time.
 
Oct 16, 2019
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I'm planning a build with a Ryzen 3600 in the near future. At least for now, it looks like the ROG Strix B450-F would be my best choice for a B450 motherboard. (Thank you Darkbreeze and DMAN999!) I can find only a few descriptions of builds with a Ryzen 3000 and this board, but none of them mention any significant problems.

1. Has anyone here done a build with this board and a Ryzen 3000, particularly the 3600?

2. If so, was there a "Ryzen 3000 Ready" sticker on the motherboard package, or something else to indicate that it shipped with a compatible BIOS? According to the Asus support page, the earliest compatible BIOS is version 2301, dated 15 May 2019.
IT IS!!!!!! If you look at the motherboard on the asus website you can see it sas "ryzen 3000 ready"
 
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DMAN999

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I have seen a few people recently post that they received their Asus ROG Strix B450-F with the Ryzen 3000 Desktop Ready sticker on the box and it did have the BIOS updated to run a 3000 series CPU.

FYI,
I have a 3700x installed on my Asus ROG Strix B450-F now and it works Great.
Mine was an upgrade from my 2600.
See my signature for my full specs.
 

JC11

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I have seen a few people recently post that they received their Asus ROG Strix B450-F with the Ryzen 3000 Desktop Ready sticker on the box and it did have the BIOS updated to run a 3000 series CPU.

FYI,
I have a 3700x installed on my Asus ROG Strix B450-F now and it works Great.
Mine was an upgrade from my 2600.
See my signature for my full specs.
Good to hear. I was looking for similar Asus board b450-E which has Wifi BT and want to know how it works? What bios are you using currently.
 

DMAN999

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Good to hear. I was looking for similar Asus board b450-E which has Wifi BT and want to know how it works? What bios are you using currently.

The B450-E is basically a slightly better version of my B450-F.
The B450-E has a better VRM than my B450-F so will handle a 300 series CPU even better.
I upgraded my B450-F to BIOS 2901 when I had my 3700x on it and it worked very well.
I recently upgraded to an Asus X470-F with BIOS 5406 with my 3700x and re-installed my 2600 (OC'd to 4 GHz) onto my B450-F.
 

JC11

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The B450-E is basically a slightly better version of my B450-F.
The B450-E has a better VRM than my B450-F so will handle a 300 series CPU even better.
I upgraded my B450-F to BIOS 2901 when I had my 3700x on it and it worked very well.
I recently upgraded to an Asus X470-F with BIOS 5406 with my 3700x and re-installed my 2600 (OC'd to 4 GHz) onto my B450-F.
Thank you for sharing the information. Very much appreciated!!