Odd Problem with RAM on DARK HERO Motherboard

[johnnified]

Before I get started with my issue here is my list of specs:

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 5950X @ 4.9GHz
CPU Cooler: Corsair iCUE H100i RGB Pro XT
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero
RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (4x8gb)
GPU: AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT SE Sapphire NITRO+ 16GB
Storage: SSD 480GB Kingston + 2TB 7,200 RPM HDD + 240GB Kingston SSD
PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 GT, 80 Plus Gold 1000W
Operating System: Windows 10 Pro 64-Bit

My RAM for my build is only running at the speed of 2133MHz. When I go into Bios settings to try and figure out why and increase it or put on ASUS's "XMP" equivalent my PC fails to Start. I cannot even manually change it to anything. Everything has to be put on "Auto" Or my PC doesnt start. I find this very strange. I know enough about computers to Overclock, Build them, and have them function but I am not a wizard.

It's the same reason I have no idea why my 5950x has a mind of it's own and stays no matter what a 60c Idle and will purposefully lower its voltage to maintain a 60c and never go above it. The thing wont even try to reach 4.9Ghz as advertised it just says as 4.4 Ghz while gaming.

Anyways besides the point sorry for the rabbit trail. For some reason my RAM Speed won't increase and I have had these random moments (doesnt happen much mind you) where i have had my entire PC freeze and just turn off and restart. No Blue Screen either and it acts the same way it would if I tried to do something to the RAM. I did post a forum on LinusTechTips and someone replied back saying "Corsair RAM has had trouble on ASUS Boards communicating with 5950x in the past, get different ram" Is this true? Does anyone else have any other ideas? Also before asking, No, there is no error code on the motherboard from it has done the random (few) restarts nor when I try to increase RAM speed because I really would like 3600Mhz if possible. Im just at a loss here. Maybe it is just a non-issue I shouldn't be worried about?

Speaking of which, how tight are you supposed to get the CPU cooler on an AMD? I like Intel coolers because the screws stop at a certain point but AMD ones with the two screws you turn to tighten on the latches just keeps going and going, if you do this too much can it damage the CPU Socket?

[Megascrypt]

There is something seriously wrong with Crosshair VIII Hero Dark boards. I had # of them with relentless similar issues, finally I gave up and went with MSI. There is a ton of users dealing with similar issues as yours as well and to date no fix, but I think the problem is deeper then Asus letting anyone know.

One thing I am curious, what Bios is your board on, if on 4201, that could be one issue right there, that bios is terrible, many other users reporting freezes, reboots, BSOD's and other things. Strange thing is, once you install that Bios,even after flashing back, that Bios does some damage to the board that is irreversible .

Curious...What production date is your board, It should tell you on the side of the box white sticker.

[dangerbass]

try placing vddg ccd and IOD at 1.0 and see if it works if yes then try lower values like 0.95 in both at a maximum of 0.9 i had a similiar problem and dunno exactly why this did the trick .

what ive been experiencing is that letting "Auto" values on asus bords tends to result in problems xD

[BillBittel]

My Dark Hero has been running BIOS 4201 since it was released. I have not had any problems with the mobo before or after this BIOS update. I was able to overclock my 32G of 3200CL14 RAM to 3600CL14 without too much trouble. My 59590X runs well.

I do recall a long thread on this forum about Crosshair VIII Hero boards that will not boot up until the PSU switch is turned off and back on. To my knowledge, Asus finally admitted this was a hardware problem. There was talk about an exchange or repair program but I think it fizzled out. My Dark Hero has never had this problem so I stopped following that thread. I am not an Asus fanboy by any measure, but they are my go-to company for motherboards. I have an X99, a Z370, and an X570 and have not had any problems with any of them. I did find out that Asus quietly completely changed the VRM design on the Maximus X Hero boards due to a component shortage. When a company makes a major revision to a mobo like that I feel that they should announce it rather than slip it in and hope no one notices.

Having a mobo problem that requires an RMA is one of my biggest fears when building a computer. I have read horror stories about support from Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI. Not sure about Asrock but they are probably terrible too. Dealing with the service part of these companies is just something you hope you never have to do.

Next time around I might try MSI. They were caught scalping their own products during the GPU shortage. Gigabyte had their exploding power supplies and factory water-cooled GPUs that were aluminum with a super thin coating that wore off within weeks, resulting in severe corrosion of the GPU blocks. Asus had the backward cap that was causing boards to catastrophically fail, sometimes catching on fire, and the whole won't power up without cycling the PSU switch saga on the Crosshair VIII boards. They have all had issues. To be honest, I think the quality control of Asus products has been worse since Covid came along, which is another reason I may try an MSI board next time. In the end, you do your research, make your decision, and cross your fingers that you don't ever have to deal with the service department. It's a shame that support for such a complex and expensive product as a motherboard is so lame.

[Megascrypt]

BillBittel wrote:
My Dark Hero has been running BIOS 4201 since it was released. I have not had any problems with the mobo before or after this BIOS update. I was able to overclock my 32G of 3200CL14 RAM to 3600CL14 without too much trouble. My 59590X runs well.

I do recall a long thread on this forum about Crosshair VIII Hero boards that will not boot up until the PSU switch is turned off and back on. To my knowledge, Asus finally admitted this was a hardware problem. There was talk about an exchange or repair program but I think it fizzled out. My Dark Hero has never had this problem so I stopped following that thread. I am not an Asus fanboy by any measure, but they are my go-to company for motherboards. I have an X99, a Z370, and an X570 and have not had any problems with any of them. I did find out that Asus quietly completely changed the VRM design on the Maximus X Hero boards due to a component shortage. When a company makes a major revision to a mobo like that I feel that they should announce it rather than slip it in and hope no one notices.

Having a mobo problem that requires an RMA is one of my biggest fears when building a computer. I have read horror stories about support from Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI. Not sure about Asrock but they are probably terrible too. Dealing with the service part of these companies is just something you hope you never have to do.

Next time around I might try MSI. They were caught scalping their own products during the GPU shortage. Gigabyte had their exploding power supplies and factory water-cooled GPUs that were aluminum with a super thin coating that wore off within weeks, resulting in severe corrosion of the GPU blocks. Asus had the backward cap that was causing boards to catastrophically fail, sometimes catching on fire, and the whole won't power up without cycling the PSU switch saga on the Crosshair VIII boards. They have all had issues. To be honest, I think the quality control of Asus products has been worse since Covid came along, which is another reason I may try an MSI board next time. In the end, you do your research, make your decision, and cross your fingers that you don't ever have to deal with the service department. It's a shame that support for such a complex and expensive product as a motherboard is so lame.

Nice to hear that your Hero runs great.
Can I ask what exactly production date is on your motherboards box please and thank you.