AMD Fixes More Ryzen Issues with New BIOS Firmware Microcode

by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 03/31/2017 03:18 PM | source: | 56 comment(s)

Performance keeps on improving in games with Ryzen, that would be the generic message AMD is evangelizing in a new Blog post. It seems that AMD has made good progress on the software side of things. Yesterday we already reported on the Ashes update with a very significant performance boost. Today Dota 2 is getting that TLC. More importantly there is a microcode update planned that will improve memory latency, and thus again 1080p game performance.

The new microcode will go along with a BIOS update. With the AMD Generic Encapsulated Software Architecture (AGESA) 1.0.0.4 update the overall memory latency will drop with roughly 6 nanoseconds. By itself that doesn't sound huge, but as we have shown you in our reviews, memory timings, frequency and thus latency matters quite a bit for Ryzen relative to CPU game performance and sure, that would be a 8% imprivement in overal memory latency. The microcode update will help applications sensitive to exactly that, memory latency.

The earlier FMA3 benchmark bug also is fixed with the new motherboard firmware updates, but we reported on that one earlier already. Also an Overclock-sleep mode bug will be fixed. Last and not least, AMD Ryzen Master no longer needs the High-Precision Event Timer.

As a brief primer, the AGESA is responsible for initializing AMD x86-64 processors during boot time, acting as something of a “nucleus” for the BIOS updates you receive for your motherboard. Motherboard vendors take the baseline capabilities of our AGESA releases and build on that infrastructure to create the files you download and flash.

We will soon be distributing AGESA point release 1.0.0.4 to our motherboard partners. We expect BIOSes based on this AGESA to start hitting the public in early April, though specific dates will depend on the schedules and QA practices of your motherboard vendor.

BIOSes based on this new code will have four important improvements for you

We have reduced DRAM latency by approximately 6ns. This can result in higher performance for latency-sensitive applications.

We resolved a condition where an unusual FMA3 code sequence could cause a system hang.

We resolved the “overclock sleep bug” where an incorrect CPU frequency could be reported after resuming from S3 sleep.

AMD Ryzen™ Master no longer requires the High-Precision Event Timer (HPET).

The new BIOS updates with updated micro-code will be released in April. Below you can check some benchmark results (from AMD) on Ashes of the Singularity and DOTA 2.

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Mufflore
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#5414794 Posted on: 04/01/2017 01:40 AM

now you can use 3800mhz ram on this board=

ryzen itself alon can support 6000mhz ram
(50ftl graphic=4*1080) !!!!but for hard latency and high price ram above 3000mhz amd ask board creators to be under 3000 mhz

What a load of crap.
Unless you have proof ...

t2fighters
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#5414799 Posted on: 04/01/2017 01:47 AM

PrMinisterGR are you from GREECE?

Amx85
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#5414808 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:35 AM

Good news!

w0nderz
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#5414810 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:46 AM

From Core 2 Duo? I don't think you'll see much difference, to be honest. It's going to be like a sidegrade.

He's obviously being sarcastic.

Aura89
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#5414832 Posted on: 04/01/2017 05:04 AM

From Core 2 Duo? I don't think you'll see much difference, to be honest. It's going to be like a sidegrade.

um. Wtf are you on about now?

If that's not the biggest troll post in regards to ryzen, i don't know what is.

thatguy91
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#5414849 Posted on: 04/01/2017 06:52 AM

um. Wtf are you on about now?

If that's not the biggest troll post in regards to ryzen, i don't know what is.

Realistically, any upgrade these days is nothing more than a sidegrade.

Here's proof:

Any upgrade has to be done from the side! :bonk:

Going from a Core 2 Duo to Ryzen would likely mean a new case though, so no sidegrade :3eyes:

Kaarme
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#5414873 Posted on: 04/01/2017 08:31 AM

If that's not the biggest troll post in regards to ryzen, i don't know what is.

Alright. I'll stop cracking jokes here at Guru3D. It was not a troll post. How could it even be such a thing? It was a pure joke since the person was talking about such a major upgrade from an ancient CPU.

Fox2232
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#5414876 Posted on: 04/01/2017 08:44 AM

Maddness
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#5414885 Posted on: 04/01/2017 09:02 AM

I am currently working on an article with showing the benefits of memory timings, tweaking and overclocking. To show you how to get the best perf and experience on a Ryzen platform. I already started, but would really like to wait on the micro-code firmware update. BTW if you guys value adore tv, then really you should not even be visiting Guru3D.com.

Hahaha. Well said.

Great to see AMD and RyZen are making great strides. Long may it continue. Now come on Vega.

Silva
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#5414910 Posted on: 04/01/2017 11:20 AM

I have no idea about Tech Epiphany, but if that video of theirs posted here has any merit, then WTF.

Hilbert Hagedoorn
Don Vito Corleone

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#5414944 Posted on: 04/01/2017 01:56 PM

I know right?
As a consumer and tech enthusiast, I just want the truth.

Also, it gets on my nerves the tech reviewers using the same 3 GPUs most of us could never afford plus not benching with anything from AMD to compare. At 720p and low settings you can't possibly run into GPU bottleneck with a RX480 (or a Fury). I know what they'll say: "oh, but it's old tech bla bla bla". Ya, the reviews look very biased to me now.

Reviewers will pick the faster/fastest single card GPU solution as they do not want the GPU to be a bottleneck and thus influence the results. I pick a GTX 1080 as it is more CPU bound in 1080p and more GPU bound in 1440p. Hence a good balance of the two.

moeppel
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#5414946 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:00 PM

Reviewers will pick the faster/fastest single card GPU solution as they do not want the GPU to be a bottleneck and thus influence the results. I pick a 1080 as it is CPU bound in 1080 and GPU bound in 1440p.

You have missed it yet, but AdoredTV (and now C't) has done some investigation and testing.

Turns out that Ryzen delivers unbelievable performance with AMD cards and the bottleck we have been seeing with Nvidia cards (i.e 1080(Ti)) are not in fact a CPU bottleneck but one of Nvidia's DX12 driver implementation(s). :infinity:

EDIT: http://i.imgur.com/OjSIcgM.jpg

Effectively reducing the gap between Ryzen and other CPUs we've been seeing in reviews. Of course, Intel remains champ

Creates some hype for Vega, if nothing else and highlighted that perhaps the fastest single GPU of both vendors should be tested.

Yxskaft
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#5414948 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:14 PM

Crossfire and Single card ain't comparing apples to apples. You add in scene one extra heavy thread for 2nd gpu, which only means 4C/8T will choke earlier compared to single card setup. On DX12 this extra thread is much lighter than it is under DX11. So it's not really fair comparision as it's own.

Also we can actually expect nvidia and AMD to release ryzen specific driver updates aswell.

The point is that when testing the GTX 1070 + Ryzen in DX12, it simply looked like a CPU bottleneck for the Ryzen.
But when testing RX 480 Crossfire + Ryzen, DX12 performance almost doubled compared to the GTX 1070. Had it been a simple CPU bottleneck, the performance for the RX 480 CF would have been similar to the GTX 1070's result.

I think he should have tested at 720p to minimize the GPU bottleneck though, and with a single RX 480.

Loophole35
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#5414956 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:40 PM

EDIT: http://i.imgur.com/OjSIcgM.jpg

Effectively reducing the gap between Ryzen and other CPUs we've been seeing in reviews. Of course, Intel remains champ

Creates some hype for Vega, if nothing else and highlighted that perhaps the fastest single GPU of both vendors should be tested.

I believe you are reading that chart wrong in all the games when tested with the FuryX the 1800x is still behind. The FuryX is not as fast as the GP102 but the two cards are effectively even on 1800x.

moeppel
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#5414958 Posted on: 04/01/2017 02:44 PM

I believe you are reading that chart wrong in all the games when tested with the FuryX the 1800x is still behind. The FuryX is not as fast as the GP102 but the two cards are effectively even on 1800x.

Check the 720p benchmarks and compare the 1800X with Nvidia Titan X (Pascal) to the Fury X results. (the green and red highlighted ones)

Occasionally, in 720p, the 1800X + Fury X will outdo the 1800X + Titan X.

That effectively shows that the bottlenecks we've been seeing aren't in fact CPU bottlenecks. Technically the Fury should easily be 50% less powerful than a Titan on average (if not more so) but manages to tip the tide into its favor - and not just marginally.

Thus the bottleneck presented by 1800X + Titan X Pascal is likely more a bottleneck of Nvidia's API implementation.

In Ashes the Fury X is roughly 17% faster (min + max) and RoTR almost 30% (max) and 19% avg.

Even in GTA 5 (DX11) the Fury magically beats the Titan ~16% (max FPS)

In all scenarios I'd expect the Fury to be equal to the Titan if Ryzen was the CPU bottleneck but never the better performing card.

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