ASRock Says ‘Cleaning’ AM5 Socket Resolves Boot Issues for Ryzen 7 9800X3D; No Damage Detected

ASRock has announced that improper maintenance of the AM5 socket could explain the recent failures observed with Ryzen 9800X3D processors. The company asserts that thorough cleaning of the socket can prevent the need for repairs.

ASRock’s Findings: Cleaning the AM5 Socket Restores Functionality

In recent weeks, there has been a spike in system failures affecting AM5 motherboards, particularly those paired with the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D. Although similar issues have been reported with boards from other manufacturers, such as MSI’s X870E Tomahawk WiFi, ASRock motherboards have received disproportionately more attention due to failures.

For those unfamiliar, mounting concerns had emerged regarding potential damage to Ryzen 9800X3D CPUs when used with ASRock AM5 motherboards. Numerous users reported catastrophic failures, including physical damage to their processors. However, in a recent press release shared via @unikoshardware, ASRock clarified that the motherboard is not the source of this issue.

ASRock conducted an internal investigation involving the collection of several affected CPU and motherboard pairs. Their testing revealed that many boards showed no signs of actual damage. Instead, the presence of ‘foreign objects’ in the AM5 socket was identified as the culprit preventing the system from booting or causing CPU damage. ASRock’s own before-and-after images clearly showcase the stark difference after the removal of these contaminants from the socket.

ASRock before and After cleaning AM5 — Image Credit: ASRock/Unikoshardware

Upon cleaning, those specific motherboards were reportedly able to operate normally and successfully underwent extensive burn-in and heavy-load testing without requiring repairs.

Investigation report updated! CPU burnout and abnormal startup of some processors encountered on AMD platforms.

We have been monitoring discussions on forums regarding certain AMD processors failing to boot under particular BIOS configurations and ASRock motherboards appearing to contribute to CPU damage. We take these incidents very seriously and have proactively contacted several affected users to gather relevant information, all the while recalling certain motherboards for further analysis.

In one investigation where a CPU was found burned, our tests on the associated motherboard revealed no visible damage or burning in the CPU power supply area (VRM), and all measurements corresponded with specifications. Following a thorough cleaning of the CPU socket and removal of foreign debris, the motherboard was successfully operational without any need for repairs, completing both burn-in and stress tests successfully.

– ASRock (Machine Translated)

Last month, ASRock issued a new BIOS update aimed at addressing these issues, initially believed to be linked to memory complications. However, the ongoing investigation has not substantiated any such connection. This leaves lingering questions: What caused the burn marks on the processors? Were they the result of user error, such as improper CPU placement, or were they indeed due to contaminants in the socket?

These failures have been pivotal, with reports of Ryzen 9800X3D issues documented across numerous platforms, including not only ASRock but also ASUS and Gigabyte motherboards (Reddit).The situation warrants a more extensive investigation, and an involvement from AMD may be essential to ascertain the underlying causes.

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