AMD AGESA update 1.0.0.6 – Do BIOS updates matter?

AMD AGESA update 1.0.0.6 - Do BIOS updates matter?

AMD AGESA update 1.0.0.6 – Do BIOS updates matter?

 
Ever since the launch of AMD’s Ryzen series CPUs, improvements have always been promised in the form of AMD AGESA microcode updates as well as improved BIOS iterations from manufacturers like ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI and ASROCK.  
 
We have already seen with AGESA update 1.0.0.4 that performance gains are possible with AMD’s code updates, so today we will be having a look at whether or not AGESA version 1.0.0.6 will have a similar impact. 
 
It is already well known that AGESA 1.0.0.6 can do a lot to improve memory performance, opening up higher memory multipliers to enable memory speeds of up to 4000MHz, as well as unlock a large range of memory timings that can help end users achieve more performance and greater levels of stability. You can read further details about AGESA update 1.0.0.6 here. 

Today we will be looking at the performance benefits of AGESA 1.0.0.6 when used on ASUS’ Crosshair VI Hero, which is available in beta form in the board’s unofficial 9945 BIOS release. Here we will see if these updates do more than just add some extra RAM compatibility options in the BIOS and see if this update has a real-world impact on performance.  

 

AMD AGESA update 1.0.0.6 - Do BIOS updates matter?   

Test Hardware

We will be testing this new BIOS update on ASUS’ Crosshair VI Hero motherboard alongside AMD’s Ryzen 7 1700X CPU. Here we will be using Corsair’s Vengeance LED 3200MHz DDR4 memory on this test bed and use the same timings of 16-18-18-36 on both ASUS’ current and Beta BIOS releases.  

In time we hope to conduct further Ryzen memory testing on this platform, including the effects of memory speed and latency on the platform, especially in CPU-limited gaming scenarios.  

 

AMD Ryzen Game Test Rig
AMD Ryzen 7 1700X @ 4.0GHz
ASUS X370 Crosshair VI Hero
Corsair Vengeance LED 2x8GB DDR4 3200MHz
Corsair RMi650
Corsair H115i GTX
Nvidia GTX 1080 Founders Edition
Windows 10 x64 “Creators Update”

 AMD AGESA update 1.0.0.6 - Do BIOS updates matter?

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