Question Is my motherboard really a bad match with a Ryzen 9 5900x?

[EchoBaz]

I bought a Ryzen 9 5900x a year ago, but my brother couldn't figure out how to get my pc to start with it. Good news is that I know what I likely need to do. Bad news is that It's been a year, so I can't return it.

I'm talking to the partner of a best friend who is helping me upgrade my pc, and they said that it's gonna shorten the lifespan of my motherboards by a few years if I set it up. He has a computer engineering degree so I trust him, but my friends and family are asking to to get a second opinion

Here's my computer details. If you need any more info, please let me know.


Geforce RTX 3070
16 gb ram

Motherboard:
Micro-Star International Co. Ltd.
A520M PRO (MS-7D14)
Basebord Version 1.0

Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3600X 6-Core Processor 3.80 GHz

This is what they've told me:

the motherboard doesnt matter when it comes to running your GPU (unless we talking very high end systems)but, the motherboard does decide what cpu you can run, which What you currently have is a little slow compared the the gpu.its not bad, just not a great match. I highly recommend getting a 5800x3d, or a 5700x3d as an upgrade cpu instead of a ryzen 9 for a lot of reasons.

your motherboards ability to deliver power isnt a good match for ryzen 9.


Your motherboard is a lower tier board. Its VRMs (power delivery to CPU) are not cooled. And it doesn't have many of them. So the few it does have will strain to power the 5900x and they don't have a heatsink, so even more strained

Now also. 5900x is a dual CCD chip. This means it needs the bios to be configured in a certain way. AND it needs windows also configured in a certain way. If any part of your settings are wrong, it will actually run slower because of the dual CCD it has

5950x is also dual ccd

It is faster but only if setup 100% correctly. And it won't be faster in games even then. 5800x3d is faster in games

X3d means it has extra L3 cache - just means it can run games faster
5700x3d is also a fine upgrade.

Even 5600x3d will be a big uplift from your 3600x

These components around the CPU socket are VRM. Your mother board only has few and they are not cooled

So running higher end CPUs like the 5900 and 5950 will negatively impact the VRMs longevity

I used to have a amd fx9590. That chip was so hot that your motherboards VRMs had to be water cooled or they would shut down the system



To say it's unsupported at all isn't right. You can ask like like - is the 5950 a bad match for my motherboards power delivery

And some people want to always upgrade. But that means a whole new system. You currently run a 3600x, which means you'll get a lot of performance difference by just going to a 5700x3d

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

you have a long tier of rambled input,
are you asking for a particular answer;

particular motherboard series,
particular CPU series,
particular RAM SETUP that you should be aiming towards,
etc..?

 

[EchoBaz]

you have a long tier of rambled input,
are you asking for a particular answer;

particular motherboard series,
particular CPU series,
particular RAM SETUP that you should be aiming towards,
etc..?

I'm asking if the Ryzen 9 is 5900x is a bad match for the motherboard: A520M PRO (MS-7D14). A computer engineer says that is it, and the conversation is their explanation.

 

[Misgar]

I'm asking if the Ryzen 9 is 5900x is a bad match for the motherboard: A520M PRO (MS-7D14).

Simple answer. Yes, The 5900X is a bad match. It has a nominal 105W TDP, which is not a vast amount of power by modern standards, but the A520M has a limited number of VRM "phases" and no heatsinks.

If you check more expensive motherboards with "better" chipsets, you'll see they have more phases (up to 12, possibly more?) and big heatsinks on the VRMs. More power phases = lower ripple on the CPU supply and VRM heatsinks help keep MOSFETs around a nominal 100C (212F) under load.

However, the 3600X TDP is only 10W lower (nominal 95W) so you could argue the 5900X will still work, but you need to consider any short term power boosts on the dual-CCD 5900X which could raise its power output considerably. Even worse would be trying to invoke a long-term CPU overclock. This would stress the VRM MOSFETs and power inductors even further, leading to possible overheating and shutdown.

If you're determined to fit the 5900X or any CPU with a nominal TDP of more than 100W, don't run any CPU overclocks. Get a big air cooler with fans that direct air down across the VRMs. They will benefit from as much moving air as possible. If you fit an AIO, install a separate fan(s) to cool the VRMs, otherwise they'll cook.

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/new-motherboard-vrm-cooling-solution-is-actually-useful

When all said and done, it's your computer. If you already have the parts and the BIOS recognises the 5900X, give it a try, but keep an eye on VRM temperatures and don't run any silly stress tests. WinRAR file compression and Handbrake video conversion will also generate a lot of heat.

You might have to reflash the BIOS with the 3600X installed, before you can use the 5900X.

If it goes up in smoke, don't blame me. Just throw some more money at a new system.