B450M Steel Legend - Won't POST after BIOS udpate

[Time-Bandit]

Hi all,

In the process of fixing my system and getting it stable. Flashed an update from the ASrock page for my motherboard which had in the description 'Support for Ryzen 5000 series' I have noticed the BIOS update number is the same still as per the website which is version 3.60 however the description has now changed to saying 'optimized stability'.

I have now noticed since the BIOS flash when changing settings in the BIOS after reboot the system won't post. I remove the CMOS battery and the first couple of times it would boot again like normal. Now it seems to not be doing anything.

I updated as I am considering either going to a 5600x or 3700x.

I want to know is there info anywhere to confirm the current BIOS revision still has 5000 series support? If not is there a way I can flash back to an older BIOS? and I might just have to go with 3700x CPU.

I have tried to remove the CMOS battery for 1hr put it back in and power drain but still can't post.

Any suggestions on how to get this going would be great.

Cheers,

Bandit.

 

[dejo]

did you pull the power cable or flip the switch on psu while the mobo battery was out? is therre a clear cmos switch?

 

[Time-Bandit]

Tried all of that made no difference, I am wondering if this BIOS is buggy and perhaps they made a revision to it. That's why I was wanting to query if the 5k series would be supported if I flash the current one.

CMOS switch do you mean the pins ? if there is have not tried that. Have been waiting 1hr before booting the machine again as I saw online sometimes it might take that long.

 

[Ben333]

FYI the 3200G is actually not a Zen 2 chip. I'm wondering if by updating you may have lost the ability to run pre-zen 2 stuff. New BIOS may have gotten rid of old microcode and only support Zen 2 (3000) and Zen 3 (5000) series.

Just a guess. You could probably borrow a Zen 2 chip to flash it back to something working, or someone would do it for you. This is just a guess, I didn't look up the info on your BIOS.

 

[EarthDog]

FYI the 3200G is actually not a Zen 2 chip. I'm wondering if by updating you may have lost the ability to run pre-zen 2 stuff. New BIOS may have gotten rid of old microcode and only support Zen 2 (3000) and Zen 3 (5000) series.

Just a guess. You could probably borrow a Zen 2 chip to flash it back to something working, or someone would do it for you. This is just a guess, I didn't look up the info on your BIOS.

Good guess. The OP just needs to look up the CPU QVL list and see.

 

[Time-Bandit]

Think I lucked out, some miracle the system managed to boot so managed to get back into the BIOS and flash back to 2.90 which it was on when I got the board. It didn't power on right away and post again. Have not done a power drain however turned off power and leaving it off overnight hopefully it works again like normal.

What is a QVL list? I only see this for RAM/Storage - https://www.asrock.com/mb/amd/b450m steel legend/#Storage

Also not sure how to tell what is in the BIOS update either, the description with the BIOS on the page gives very little information. Is there some place I can go that has this info online??

 

[EarthDog]

QVL = Qualified Vendor List = Support list.

CPU Support list -> https://www.asrock.com/mb/amd/b450m steel legend/#CPU


The description is WYSIWYG. When you see things like "Supports 3RD Gen AMD Ryzen XT series CPU" or an AEGESA update, chances are it is supporting a new CPU (or tweaking). But yeah, WYSIWYG on these pages. There isn't more detail anywhere else.

 

[Ben333]

Think I lucked out, some miracle the system managed to boot so managed to get back into the BIOS and flash back to 2.90 which it was on when I got the board. It didn't power on right away and post again. Have not done a power drain however turned off power and leaving it off overnight hopefully it works again like normal.

Just so you know, you did not "get lucky". There is another issue at play. A BIOS will either work with a certain set of hardware attached, or it won't. So you did not need to flash back to an older BIOS if you were able to get into the setup utility while running the new BIOS. That said, it is somewhat possible that the new BIOS is less stable for you and your hardware than the one you were on before. If it is working now, I'd say leave it alone until you get a new chip in hand.

My guess is there was another reason it wasn't posting for you. Sometimes when stuff doesn't work out right away it is best to step back, get some fresh air. Take 5 minutes, come back with a clear head. Re seat the RAM, clear CMOS, and try again.

 

[Time-Bandit]

Think that BIOS I did flash (the new one) has issues with it, someone else on the ASrock forum with the same problem. After flashing back to 2.90 its working normally again.

 

[Mr.Scott]

FWIW, One of my compadres has four builds going on that board all with 5 series Ryzen for X-mas presents. All of them run fine.
There is nothing wrong with the bios.

 

[WhitehawkEQ]

As a rule of thumb, if you don't need to update the BIOS, DON'T unless your having issues with the PC or you are going to upgrade the CPU. If it's not broke, don't fix it.

 

[Time-Bandit]

FWIW, One of my compadres has four builds going on that board all with 5 series Ryzen for X-mas presents. All of them run fine.
There is nothing wrong with the bios.

So hes running the lastest BIOS rev out at the moment? do you know exactly what chips he is using out of curiosity?

I noticed the support page for my board the details on BIOS have changed for a 3rd time now stating 5000 and 4000 ryzen support.

It would be nice if they were to mention the changes to the current revision as the first stated 5k ryzen support, the second no longer stated 5k support and latest with 4k and 5k ryzen support.

- - - Auto-Merged Double Post - - -

As a rule of thumb, if you don't need to update the BIOS, DON'T unless your having issues with the PC or you are going to upgrade the CPU. If it's not broke, don't fix it.

Plan was flash now so when I get my hands on a 3700x I can sell my current CPU just incase I forget to flash the BIOS. I just missed out recently on the sale amazon had as 3700x was at 272 USD.

 

[Ben333]

You won't forget. lol

As long as the update doesn't break Zen 2 compatibility there isn't any real reason NOT to flash other than the 'ole If it ain't broke, don't fix it!.

I myself usually read over what is new in a BIOS revision, then decide if I think it's worth the bother.

 

[Time-Bandit]

Wasn't aware personally that I would lose compatibility with previous gen CPU support. Kind of an important detail that would have been nice to know on the website/BIOS page.

I was considering getting another one of these boards now that I have stuff that works with it for a spare machine, but that was assuming it would run all of the AMD Ryzen chips new/old.

 

[Ben333]

Well the idea is that there is only so much room for the supported CPU microcodes... Otherwise all chipsets & boards would work with any CPU that would physically fit in the socket.

The 3200G actually isn't a 3000 series Zen 2 tech based chip, I think it is Zen or Zen Plus. The idea was floating around that when you gain Ryzen 5000 support (Zen 3) that the origional Zen chips may no longer work.

For example, because when I built my PC in July the 3600 was out of stock everywhere I had ordered a Ryzen 1600. That is a Zen 1 chip, which never worked on B550 and someone on here let me know and I was able to return it quickly and order the 3600 when it eventually did come back in stock.

You'd have to read up on AsRock's website to see whether or not the latest BIOS will remove support for any chips supported in a previous revision. We already know you were able to flash back from the new BIOS to the older one you were running. So the new one you've already tried therefore must support your 3400G. Personally I'd wait to re-flash till you have the new chip in hand. Either way it will work though.

 

[Time-Bandit]

Yeah, Guess I will have to hang onto my old chip until I get my new one to be safe.

Since I am going with 3700x I should be able to stay with the BIOS version I am on now, I remember always being told update your BIOS to the latest and greatest which I guess isn't a thing now. In saying that I am wanting to run my machine for gaming then also run a VM with a GPU passthrough which I hear its better to be on a newer AEGSA version for.

 

[Zerileous]

Wasn't aware personally that I would lose compatibility with previous gen CPU support. Kind of an important detail that would have been nice to know on the website/BIOS page.

I was considering getting another one of these boards now that I have stuff that works with it for a spare machine, but that was assuming it would run all of the AMD Ryzen chips new/old.

It really wasn't left out. That's what the yellow "*ASRock do NOT recommend updating this BIOS if Pinnacle, Raven or Summit Ridge CPU is being used on your system." warnings plastered all over the descriptions was about. Your current CPU is Picasso and the 3200G has been supported since P2.60, this is the original BIOS you used and also contains the warning. That said, everything is dodgy because the BIOS chip size spec'd by AMD is really too small to support all of these SKUs.

You're really not going to find a board to support all Ryzen chips new/old that well. At least on a single BIOS revision. That said, buying new hardware for 3000 or 5000 series hardware, you're going to be better off using B550 instead of a retrofitted old BIOS.

 

[Time-Bandit]

Would be good if the BIOS update did effect Picasso that they would mention to not flash for these CPU's. In this case the system will be very on and off with a successful bootup so perhaps its not working all that well with Picasso CPU's. Either that or they don't know its an issue with Picasso CPU's.

Do you think I would be safe to flash the BIOS revision prior to the latest? I am being told the AEGSA update from a specific version makes VM use abit better hence the reason to at least flash up to that BIOS.

 

[EarthDog]

So... is it prior to the latest or flashing up/forward... im confused by your words.

If you're asking to flash back to a prior version, it should be ok, yes.

 

[Zerileous]

I know it was mentioned earlier that the 3200G is on Zen+ silicon not Zen2 like other 3000 series chips. I don't think this is an issue, although I initially thought it might be. I believe it has more to do with what the BIOS has in it's list of valid CPUs than architectural differences for the most part (of course each entry probably contains details specific to the CPU itself, that would be different with different architectures, I just don't think it's as simple as Zen+ support, Zen2 support, Zen3 support etc, each SKU needs its own entry.)

According to ASRock 3200G (YD3200C5M4MFH) is supported since P2.10 and 3200G (YD320GC5M4MFH) since P2.60.

I don't think it's an issue of not being supported as much as it's an issue of buggy BIOS. ASrock is not known for their BIOS quality in general. My BIOS (retrofitted for Zen2) has a bug where if I bump the power switch the PC will immediately shut down, but RGB and fans stay active. It does not respond to further inputs from the power switch in this state. The PSU needs to be shut off and I then need to leave it off for 10 or 20 seconds before flipping it back on. Then it will boot normally. Is this a big deal to me, nope, I almost never use the power switch. But I definitely panicked the first time it happened and I thought I had caused a no-post situation by locking up my GPU with a over-zealous OC.

If/when Zen3 chips ever become inexpensive will I be tempted to toss one in and see how it goes? Absolutely! Will I be prepared to replace the board if necessary? you bet! Am I still happy with this board, absolutely, at the time I was able to get a VRM competitive with $300 boards for $160. It's somewhat ironic how people (maybe different groups) will go after Intel for constantly releasing new chipsets even though they could theoretically support more CPUs, and AMD for having bad microcode. Two solutions to the same problem and neither makes everybody happy.

There is extra confusion as there was a large push to sell B450 boards that were out of the box compatible with Zen-Zen2 CPUs when Zen2 was released, some vendors were better about this than others. Namely MSI released a lot of boards with brand new BIOS chips.