AMD acknowledges USB connectivity issues on X570 and B550 motherboards

[mood]

AMD acknowledges USB connectivity issues on X570 and B550 motherboards

If you've experienced problems, AMD wants to hear about them

 

 

In brief: Reports of USB connectivity issues on AMD X570 and B550 motherboards have circled the forums since the boards’ release, but the issue has recently come to a head on Reddit. AMD has responded with a simple statement: they’re not sure what the issue is, and they’d like to collect more data.

 

For the past few months, reports of sporadic USB disconnections on 500-series motherboards have been stacking up on the desk of AMD’s subreddit. Some users have reported that their keyboard will suddenly become unresponsive for 5 to 10 seconds, every few minutes. Other users complain that their mouse will slow down. Owners of sound cards are talking about crackling and distortion.

 

The strangest thing about the issue is that it seems to be new -- because X570 and B550 boards aren’t. While the first complaints were posted over a year ago, their frequency seems to have increased exponentially in the past month. Some Redditors recently compiled a statistics table for users to share their issues and system specifications, and it looks like the issue is mostly occurring in systems with new RTX GPUs.

 

But don’t worry, a flagship GPU isn’t a necessity. A mid range GPU and a few high bandwidth devices, like external hard drives, external capture devices, or VR headsets and tracking stations seem to do the trick just as well. And it’s not just the high bandwidth device that will experience the issue, anything connected to the same system can be affected, including internally connected devices like CPU coolers -- which is a very serious issue.

 

Some workarounds have been found by the community. The first port of call: turning off "c-states" in the BIOS. It won’t carry a penalty, and it can halve the frequency of disconnects. But if that doesn’t work, your remaining options are to switch from PCIe 4.0 to PCIe 3.0 or to go through the BIOS and disable every USB port/header you’re not using. Doing all three will stop the disconnections for most people, but not for power users. Streamers with a capture card, microphone, webcam, and the usual batch of peripherals are out of luck, basically.

 

That’s where AMD comes in. They’ve asked anyone experiencing issues to report them on AMD’s website. They’ll also be messaging some people who’ve commented on their problems on Reddit.

 

An Update on USB connectivity with 500 Series Chipset Motherboards from r/Amd

 

Hopefully, AMD will be able to resolve these issues quickly with a firmware update. In the meanwhile, for new system builders, our best advice is to opt for an AMD GPU to pair with X570 and B550 motherboards, as the combination seems to be almost devoid of issues.

 

 

Source: AMD acknowledges USB connectivity issues on X570 and B550 motherboards

[zanderthunder]

Oddly enough, motherboards with A520 series chipsets are not mentioned.

[mood]

AMD says to follow Reddit's advice if you've got USB connectivity issues

But don't worry, they're working on a better solution

 

 

In a nutshell: A fortnight ago, AMD acknowledged the swell of complaints surrounding sporadic USB disconnections on X570 and B550 motherboards. They’ve had engineers working on the problem since, but without success: for now, AMD’s official guidance is to employ the workarounds suggested on Reddit.

 

For the past two weeks, AMD has been collecting user reports to clear up some of the ambiguity. From the public posts on Reddit, it’s only possible for us to paint a picture of the problem in the broadest strokes: in systems pairing 500-series motherboards with 5000-series or 3000-series Ryzen CPUs, USB devices can suddenly disconnect or suffer from interference. But the issues seem to occur most frequently in systems with RTX 3000-series GPUs and high-bandwidth devices, according to some Redditors’ collation efforts.

 

In other words, the problem could be related to the amount of data flowing between components. Some workarounds proposed on Reddit try to reduce the volume of data flowing, by switching the system to PCIe 3.0, for example, or by disabling dispensable ports/devices. Another workaround, disabling global C-states (which is the CPU’s version of sleep), is an attempt to improve the system’s ability to handle the data.

 

 

One Redditor, fed up with an unusable system, asked AMD to refund their CPU. In their email declining the refund, AMD recommended updating the motherboard’s software, and if the issue persisted, to try disabling C-states and switching the system to PCIe 3.0.

 

AMD has since officialized the advice. In their words:

1. Verify that your motherboard is updated to the latest BIOS version and configured using optimized/factory default settings. Check your motherboard manufacturer’s website for BIOS update and download instructions.
2. Check if your Windows 10 is on the latest build and fully up to date. For information on updating Windows 10, please refer to Microsoft article: Update Windows 10
3. Ensure that the Ryzen chipset driver from AMD is installed and up to date. Latest Ryzen chipset driver version is 2.13.27.501 and can be downloaded here.

And if that fails, then "consider using either of the following workaround:"

1. Set PCIe mode from Gen4/Auto to Gen 3 in the BIOS
2. Disable Global C-States in the BIOS

In their email, AMD reiterates that their "engineering team is actively investigating this issue with high priority." While AMD’s deference to the community doesn’t say good things about their engineering team, at least they’re humble enough to recommend advice that works.

 

 

Source: AMD says to follow Reddit's advice if you've got USB connectivity issues

[mood]

AMD identifies and solves cross-platform USB connectivity problem with an AGESA update

But it could be a while before the fix is available in a BIOS update

 

 

TL;DR: After a few weeks of deliberation, AMD has solved the intermittent USB connectivity problem as reported by many users. An AGESA update containing the fix will be sent to motherboard manufacturers next week, and it will be up to them from there. AMD estimates that the first beta BIOS with the fix will be available in early April.

 

Reports of sudden USB disconnections and poor signal quality on AMD X570 and B550 motherboards starting becoming commonplace on Reddit at the end of last year. Three weeks ago, AMD finally acknowledged the problem and began collecting information from the afflicted. The severity of the problem was shown to fluctuate randomly, but the likelihood of its occurrence was correlated with taxing hardware like new GPUs and VR headsets.

 

AMD hasn’t stated what the problem was unfortunately, but one Redditor suggests that the cause could be a "timing issue trying to synchronize USB signaling with the faster symbol rates of PCIe 4.0," while another thinks it might be caused by "a controller reset triggered due to too many uncorrectable PCIe errors."

 

Given that Redditors found a workaround that was good enough for AMD to recommend, their comments shouldn’t be quickly dismissed.

 

Updated AGESA Coming for Intermittent USB Connectivity from r/Amd

 

If you’ve experienced the problem, put a reminder in your calendar for next month to check for an updated BIOS from your motherboard’s manufacturer.

 

 

Source: AMD identifies and solves cross-platform USB connectivity problem with an AGESA update

[mood]

MSI rolls out a BIOS update to fix AMD USB issues, but it’s still in beta
 

 

MSI is the first manufacturer to roll out a new BIOS update containing AMD’s AGESA 1.2.0.2 firmware, which should fix intermittent USB issues for those running a Ryzen 5000 CPU on a 500 series motherboard. The update is currently in beta, but installing it is a no-brainer if you’re already suffering with problems.

 

The issues have been around since Zen 3 processors launched late last year, but AMD only started investigating reports in February. The red team found a fix three weeks later, but the lengthy distribution time means it needs to go through motherboard partners before you can install it onto your system.

 

Fortunately, MSI’s been quick to the mark meeting the schedule, releasing the update for 21 of its motherboards since April 8. This is split across five X570 and 16 B550 variants, but don’t fret if you can’t see your model listed as there are plenty more updates on the way. Eventually, no one will be left out of the loop with the latest generation, X470, and B450 motherboards all getting the fix.

 

To check for yourself, just look out for ‘update to ComboAM4PIV2 1.2.0.2’ and ‘Improved USB device compatibility’ in the description and you’re good to go. Otherwise, here’s a rundown of motherboards and their corresponding BIOS updates:

 

MSI AMD X570 motherboards	MSI AMD B550 motherboards
MAG X570 Tomahawk WiFi	B550-A Pro
MEG X570 Ace	B550M Pro
MEG X570 Godlike	B550M Pro-Dash
MEG X570 Unify	B550M Pro-VDH
Prestige X570 Creation	B550M Pro-VDH WiFi
	MAG B550M Bazooka
	MAG B550M Mortar
	MAG B550M Mortar WiFi
	MAG B550 Tomahawk
	MAG B550M Vector WiFi
	MEG B550 Unify
	MEG B550 Unify-X
	MPG B550 Gaming Carbon WiFi
	MPG B550I Gaming Edge WiFi
	MPG B550I Gaming Edge Max WiFi
	MPG B550 Gaming Plus

 

 

There’s no word from Asus, Gigabyte, Asrock, or other motherboard manufacturers when their AGESA 1.2.0.2 update will land, but they shouldn’t be too far behind.

 

 

Source: MSI rolls out a BIOS update to fix AMD USB issues, but it’s still in beta