I’ve done 7 builds in the last 5 years with both Intel and AMD platforms – they all went smoothly and the design and build is an enjoyable hobby endeavor for me.
I’d read horror stories of others having frustrating experiences and assumed my careful attention to detail would keep me in a happy place…NOPE!!
My latest build X670E + 7950X took a couple of weeks to sort out with multiple returns and exchanges. The hobby/enjoyment aspect quickly devolved into WTF desperation! This included:
1) 4 motherboards (2 ASUS – X670E Crosshair Hero and 2 MSI – MEG X670E ACE). Three were confirmed bricked with manufacturer support – no amount of clearing CMOS, flashback BIOS would clear the hard hang during post.
2) 3 CPUs – 7950X that I bought and eventually returned after the 3 motherboards bricked. I then bought a 7900X from local Microcenter (they don’t carry the 7950X) which worked but delivered worse performance than the 5950X I was replacing. Ultimately returned the 7900X and ordered another 7950X which worked.
3) 2 different NVMe drives for OS build attempt.
4) 2 sets of RAM – returned/exchanged as last step before original CPU return.
With the first three motherboards, I was attempting to use the 7000 series internal GPU to keep it as simple as possible. I know bad CPU is unlikely but possibly something was bad in the CPU (with iGPU) that bricked the first three motherboards?? With the last motherboard, I skipped the iGPU and used a dedicated GPU to get a working build. I was now using a different CPU as well.
I never got a fully installed Windows 11 Pro with latest BIOS and drivers before the three motherboards bricked. All three bricked with the same symptom – GPU error light and GPU related debug code.
In any case, between motherboard and CPU swaps, I became as adept at mounting/dismounting CPU coolers as a NASCAR crew changing tires – funnier now than it was at the time.
Now that I finally have a working, fully assembled system, I can enjoy my hobby again!!
Sharing this experience FWIW…if this had been my first build, I’d likely would never have built another…
Any similar experiences out there???
I’d read horror stories of others having frustrating experiences and assumed my careful attention to detail would keep me in a happy place…NOPE!!
My latest build X670E + 7950X took a couple of weeks to sort out with multiple returns and exchanges. The hobby/enjoyment aspect quickly devolved into WTF desperation! This included:
1) 4 motherboards (2 ASUS – X670E Crosshair Hero and 2 MSI – MEG X670E ACE). Three were confirmed bricked with manufacturer support – no amount of clearing CMOS, flashback BIOS would clear the hard hang during post.
2) 3 CPUs – 7950X that I bought and eventually returned after the 3 motherboards bricked. I then bought a 7900X from local Microcenter (they don’t carry the 7950X) which worked but delivered worse performance than the 5950X I was replacing. Ultimately returned the 7900X and ordered another 7950X which worked.
3) 2 different NVMe drives for OS build attempt.
4) 2 sets of RAM – returned/exchanged as last step before original CPU return.
With the first three motherboards, I was attempting to use the 7000 series internal GPU to keep it as simple as possible. I know bad CPU is unlikely but possibly something was bad in the CPU (with iGPU) that bricked the first three motherboards?? With the last motherboard, I skipped the iGPU and used a dedicated GPU to get a working build. I was now using a different CPU as well.
I never got a fully installed Windows 11 Pro with latest BIOS and drivers before the three motherboards bricked. All three bricked with the same symptom – GPU error light and GPU related debug code.
In any case, between motherboard and CPU swaps, I became as adept at mounting/dismounting CPU coolers as a NASCAR crew changing tires – funnier now than it was at the time.
Now that I finally have a working, fully assembled system, I can enjoy my hobby again!!
Sharing this experience FWIW…if this had been my first build, I’d likely would never have built another…
Any similar experiences out there???
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