AMD's latest AGESA 1.3.0.1b BIOS firmware offers much better DDR5 memory support and even lower voltages than past versions.
Using The Latest AMD AGESA BIOS On Your AM5 Motherboards Leads To Better DDR5 Memory Support & Lower Voltages
Leading motherboard vendors are rolling out the latest AGESA 1.3.0.1b BIOS firmware for their respective products based on the 600-series and 800-series chipsets. The main feature of this BIOS is support for the AMD EXPO ULL (Ultra-Low-Latency) technology, which was unveiled at Computex 2026. ASUS, Gigabyte & MSI are among the first to ship the latest BIOS, and it comes with several advantages, as a Chiphell user points out.
A user on Chiphell Forums used the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D CPU on an MSI MPG X670E Carbon board, and paired it with two 16 GB DDR5-6000 CL30 modules. The user proceeded to test three AMD AGESA BIOS firmwares on the same motherboard: 1.0.0.6, 1.2.0.0a, and 1.3.0.1b.
| AGESA BIOS | 1.0.0.6 | 1.2.0.0a | 1.3.0.1b |
|---|---|---|---|
| SOC Voltage (V) | 1.35 | 1.29 | 1.24 |
| FCLK (MHz) | 2133 | 2133 | 2200 |
| DRAM Voltage (V) | 1.43 | 1.43 | 1.40 |
| VDDQ Voltage (V) | 1.43 | 1.43 | 1.40 |
| VDDIO Voltage (V) | 1.43 | 1.39 | 1.26 |
| CPU PPT (W) | 96 | 94 | 93 |
| CPU Temp Max (°C) | 88–89 | 79–79.8 | 77–78 |
| Water Temp (°C) | 30–31 | 30–31 | 30–31 |
| Memory Latency (ns) | 58.7 | 58.7 | 60 |
| R23 Benchmark | 182XX | ±200 | ±200 |
When running the same memory, the AMD AGESA 1.3.0.1b proved to be the best, running the same kit at 1.24V versus 1.29V on 1.2.0.0a, and 1.35V on 1.0.0.6. The memory was able to maintain an FCLK of 2200 vs 2133 on the previous versions, and overall voltages were low. The user also mentions that enabling FCLK VDCI Mode can improve read and write speeds while costing just 1ns extra latency.
Since the memory was based on the Hynix A-Die, it can support even better OC support with speeds of up to 7200 MT/s at CL34 timings and at 1.4V. The tests were performed at an SoC voltage of 1.24V, FCLK of 2133, and VDDIO of 1.26V. The configurations that passed the testing include:
- 6400CL30-38-38-76 1.4V TIGHTER
- 6600CL34-40-40-105 1.4V TIGHTER
- 6800CL32-45-45-108 1.4V TIGHTER
- 7200CL34-45-45-115 1.4V TIGHTER
Another thing to note is that when running the latest AGESA 1.3.0.1b BIOS, the Ryzen CPU ran at much lower temperatures of 77-78 °C versus 79-80 °C in the 1.2.0.0a and 88-89 °C in the 1.0.0.6 firmwares. The same results were replicated by another user on an MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WIFI motherboard with a Ryzen 7 9700X, who reported that the new BIOS led to much lower voltages for his DDR5-6400 CL30 kit.
So based on the results, it looks like even those without AMD EXPO ULL memory can take advantage of the latest AGESA 1.3.0.1 BIOS releases, such as lower voltages, lower CPU temperatures, and better clock rates. The best part is that the BIOS is available across all AMD AM5 motherboards, but some vendors do focus on higher-end series such as X670 and X870.
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