BIOS Updates Bring Ryzen 5 Compatibility To ASRock Motherboards
ASRock released BIOS updates for its Taichi, Fatal1ty Gaming, and Pro series motherboards to support AMD’s new Ryzen 5 processors. The company also announced that it has entered a strategic technology partnership with Sapphire Technology, a Hong Kong component manufacturer and supplier, to “launch cutting edge motherboard, CPU, and VGA card configurations” to offer gamers a better price-to-performance value.
The BIOS updates can be downloaded from ASRock’s website. You’ll have to visit your motherboard’s page, click BIOS, and then make sure you download Version 2.0 from the list of available options. The company hasn’t yet updated its list of which motherboards support what CPUs to include Ryzen 5, but it did include this table in the press release announcing the BIOS updates and its partnership with Sapphire Technology:
| Chip | Model Name | BIOS Version |
|---|---|---|
| Fatal1ty X370 Professional Gaming | P2.00 or latest | |
| X370 Taichi | P2.00 or latest | |
| AMD Promontory X370 | Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 | P2.00 or latest |
| X370 Killer SLI/ac | P2.00 or latest | |
| X370 Killer SLI | P2.00 or latest | |
| Fatal1ty AB350 Gaming K4 | P2.00 or latest | |
| AB350 Pro4 | P2.00 or latest | |
| AMD Promontory B350 | AB350M Pro4 | P2.00 or latest |
| AB350M-HDV | P2.00 or latest | |
| AB350M | P2.00 or latest | |
| AMD Promontory A320 | A320M | P2.00 or latest |
| A320M-HDV | P2.00 or latest | |
| A320M-DGS | P2.00 or latest |
You can learn more about Ryzen 5 in our review of the 1600X. We’ve also reviewed the Ryzen 7 1700, 1700X, and 1800X; compared the Ryzen 7 lineup’s performance against Intel Core i7-6900K and Intel Core i7-7700K in popular games; and covered the first Ryzen game optimization as well as a new Windows 10 power plan that promises improved performance. You should have most of the info you need to get ready for Ryzen.
ASRock said in its press release that the Sapphire Technology partnership “will focus on the performance and features that gamers deserve,” but it didn’t offer details about how the companies plan to work together or when we can expect to see the fruits of this endeavor.
