ASRock Links AMD Ryzen 9000 Series “Failure Fiasco” to PBO Settings, But Underlying Issues Could Be More Complex

The ongoing issues surrounding ASRock motherboards and AMD’s Ryzen 9000 series CPUs have escalated, particularly with regard to overclocking management from AMD.

ASRock Motherboard Failures Linked to AMD Ryzen 9000 CPUs: A Growing Concern

Recently, reports have surfaced detailing troubling failings where AMD’s Ryzen 9000 CPUs are experiencing failures when paired with ASRock motherboards. This alarming trend indicates that ASRock boards are becoming notorious for issues that can lead to hardware malfunctions. As of now, over 200 users have reported their experiences, with high-end processors like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D being notably affected. This situation has been under scrutiny for months, especially after Tech Yes City encountered similar burning issues. Fortunately, new insights may be illuminating the root cause of this problem.

ASRock Investigation into Ryzen 9000 CPU Failures

In earlier discussions, it was suggested that the complications may stem from fluctuating System on Chip (SoC) voltages, a scenario reminiscent of challenges faced with Ryzen 7000 series two years ago. The anomalies in voltage levels diverged significantly from AMD’s specifications, raising concerns that these discrepancies could be a primary contributor to the hardware failures. During a recent visit to Computex, Tech Yes City engaged with ASRock representatives who shared potentially critical information regarding these CPU malfunctions.

Well, when I sat down with the ASRock motherboard team, they told me it had to do with the EDC and TDC, which is the electric design current as well as the thermal design current. Essentially, they’re saying it’s a rampage problem that exists with the precision boost overdrive settings. In particular, these mid-range and high-end motherboards — say for instance a B650E or an X670E Taichi or even a B850 Steel Legend — have the ability to run Ryzen 9000 series CPUs at their maximum PBO settings out of the box.

– Tech Yes City

This phenomenon arises primarily from ASRock motherboards excessively adjusting Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO) settings, thereby stressing the Ryzen 9000 CPUs past their threshold. The elevated Electric Design Current (EDC) and Thermal Design Current (TDC) limits exceed AMD’s approved specifications, ultimately leading to overheating and burnout issues, particularly in systems utilizing high-quality cooling solutions. These heightened power limits enable prolonged damage to CPU components.

It’s worse than that. I was told by an engineer that simply installing certain versions of Ryzen Master will put your CPU in PBO mode automatically, but tell you/tell the software/tell the BIOS it’s not in PBO. It also can’t be blocked by a bios setting.https://t.co/2TJje5AB2k

— 𝐷𝑟.𝐼𝑎𝑛 𝐶𝑢𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 (@IanCutress) May 27, 2025

A tweet from @IanCutress sheds light on how AMD CPUs enter PBO mode automatically upon launching Ryzen Master. The only means of disabling this setting involves re-enabling and then disabling it through the software interface; critically, this PBO activation cannot be restricted by BIOS configurations. Such limitations create notable hurdles for users attempting to troubleshoot and optimize performance, particularly when combined with ASRock’s BIOS, which utilizes aggressive EDC and TDC thresholds—placing AMD in a challenging position.

What should consumers do in light of these developments? ASRock advises updating to their latest BIOS versions to mitigate the voltage limit problems. However, as of now, neither AMD nor ASRock has released an official comment clarifying the exact nature of these issues, leaving room for uncertainty. We will continue to monitor this situation closely and provide updates as more information becomes available.

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