Critical Issues with ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming WiFi - USB Disconnects, Poor M.2 Performance, ...

[mctronken]

Hello,

I recently built a new system using the ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming WiFi motherboard, and I’ve been experiencing serious issues from the start. I would be very grateful for your assistance, as these problems are making the system nearly unusable.

Problems I'm encountering:

1) Random USB disconnections
All USB devices disconnect at the same time, several times a day. This includes devices connected to rear, front, and internal USB headers. Even my AIO and RGB hubs are affected. It happens randomly, and reconnecting them manually doesn't help for long.

2) Very poor M.2 performance
I’m using high-end SSDs (Samsung 9100 Pro and 990 Pro), but copying a large file from one to another starts fast (2–4 GB/s) and then drops to just 30 MB/s. This happens even when the drives are mostly empty. I’ve noticed that temperatures reach around 70°C. Could this be thermal throttling? Could enabling EXPO be affecting performance?

3) High temperatures and power usage
Despite using strong cooling (Corsair H170i AIO, six QX140 fans, and a well-ventilated case), the system runs very hot. Power draw from the wall is around 300W at idle and 900W during gaming. This seems excessive.

System details:

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D

• Motherboard: ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming WiFi (BIOS version 1203)

• GPU: ASUS ROG Strix RTX 3090 OC

• RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR5 96GB (2x48GB) 6000MHz CL30, EXPO enabled

• Storage:

  • Samsung 9100 Pro 4TB

  • Samsung 990 Pro 4TB x2

  • Toshiba MG10AFA 22TB

• PSU: Corsair HX1500i (2025 model)

• Cooling: H170i LCD, 6x QX140 RGB with iCUE LINK hub

• Additional PCIe card: HighPoint R1204

• Case: Lian-Li O11 Dynamic EVO XL

• OS: Windows 11 Pro 24H2

Planned actions:
I want to update to BIOS version 1401 and install all relevant firmware updates. However, I have several questions before I proceed.

Questions:

1. Do I need to update the BIOS before installing firmware updates?

2. Do I need to run Windows in Safe Mode for any of the firmware tools?

3. The support page lists the following firmware files. Which ones are required for my board, and in what order should they be installed?

   • ASUS LEGO IT8857GX Firmware Tool (V0203 and V105 are available)

   • ASM4242 firmware update tool

   • ASM2074 firmware update tool

   • USB 10Gbps Hub firmware update tool

4. Could EXPO settings be contributing to these issues?

Thank you very much in advance for your help. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Kind regards,
David

[Dragoon007 · Accepted solution]

Hy,
I have the same mainboard. If i installed it first time. I have done it in this order without problems:

1. Bios Update

2. No need to be in safe mode for that (run the installers as Admin)

3. Firmwareupdate: LEGO IT8857GX Firmware Tool V0203  (it should be ok to flash it with the newest version), then the asm, usb 10gb
I restarted after every firmwareupdate.

4. I use expo 1 without problems, but this depends from hardwareconfig to hardwareconfig

My setup:
cpu: ryzen 9 9950x
ram: 64gb corsair ddr5 5600 (4x 16gb)
storage: samsung 990 pro 1tb, 980 pro 500gb m.2 nvme 

I had this issues with usb before i upgraded the firmware too.

I hope this help you too!

[mctronken]

Hi,

I want to share what I did today in case it helps others facing similar issues with the ROG Strix X870E-E Gaming WiFi motherboard.

Here’s the full process I followed:

---

1️⃣ BIOS Update to Version 1401

1. I saved the BIOS file (A5557.CAP, version 1401) onto a USB stick formatted as exFAT.

2. I physically disconnected all monitors from my RTX 3090 except for my most reliable 27" monitor.

3. I entered the BIOS (I had to restart several times because F2, F4, F8, F10, DEL, etc. weren’t responding at first).

4. As soon as I entered the BIOS, I loaded the “Optimized Defaults” and restarted.

5. I entered the BIOS again (it took some time, possibly because the RAM was retraining).

6. I went to EZ Flash, selected the BIOS file from the USB stick, and started the update.

7. A message appeared saying the system would reboot and then start the update process.

8. I confirmed, the system rebooted, and after a short wait, it returned to the BIOS and began the update.

9. The update progress bar took about 5 minutes to complete.

10. When it finished, it confirmed success and said the system would restart.

11. Here I got nervous — it took over 10 minutes to boot, and the QLED showed a strange (non-numeric) code.

12. Finally, after roughly 15 minutes total, Windows loaded normally.

---

2️⃣ Firmware Updates (Run as Administrator in Windows)
13. Once in Windows, I ran ASUS_LEGO_IT8857GX_V0203 as Administrator. It completed successfully.
14. I restarted the system and went back into Windows.
15. I ran ASMx424X_FWUpdateV40013_u424241022200011AcmAPDV5, but it reported that the latest version was already installed.
16. I ran ASUS_2074FWUpg3003_230830150104_V5, and it also reported the latest version was already installed.

---

3️⃣ Final BIOS Tweaks and Stability Plan
17. I restarted, went into the BIOS again, and configured a few settings:

• Disabled the iGPU (integrated graphics).

• Set the system to restore its previous state after a power outage.

1. I shut down the system, waited a few seconds, powered it back on, and booted into Windows.

2. For now, I left EXPO disabled. I plan to leave it that way for a week to monitor stability. If no problems appear, I will enable EXPO later.

---

I hope this summary helps anyone else working through the update process!
Thank you Dragoon007 for sharing your experience, which gave me the confidence to go ahead.

Good luck, everyone!

[mctronken]

Well, I’m sorry to report that the new BIOS and firmware did not completely solve the problem.

Just a few moments ago, all the USB devices disconnected again, and the system froze entirely — I even had to restart the computer.

I’m out of ideas at this point. I’m using the default BIOS settings with only the minor adjustments I previously mentioned, and I’m not sure what else to try.

I reinstalled Windows 11 just a week ago, and I’ve barely used the system since — I haven’t even installed anything noteworthy.

[Qyoon]

i have a whole row of USB ports thats have stopped working on mine.

Not the only one with this issue, they work in bios, not on windows.

Asus answers is : "format windows"

Yeah each time my usb ports will randomwly stop working i will be there formating my computer, sure...

Not i like i already did that when installing their motherboead in the first place...

The four top post regarding issues are about the X870E Strix E Board.

[harrolito]

The support page for strix x870-e currently does not show any available bios for download

[Dragoon007]

Try to refresh the page after switching to bios. This helped for me. I think there is a bug on this page since 1 week.

[Zheega]

Try decreasing your VSOC voltage in BIOS and see if it helps. Try something like 1.2V.