P67 Pro3 B2 Revision and VGA compatibility

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   Hi all. I've been in contact with support already but have not gotten a definite answer yet, so I thought I'd ask here as well.
I currently have the P67 Pro3 mobo (B2 revision), i5 2500K and AMD Radeon 6950. Been thinking about upgrading the GPU but have seen some reports about issues. So, I asked from support what are my options regarding BIOS update, if that is indeed needed. I currently have BIOS 1.70.

Support first offered to send me a chip with 3.30 BIOS but after I asked for confirmation that it works, they said it won't work with B2 revision. After that they sent me a BIOS version 1.91, but I have no idea what it does. And not really thrilled about trying it at this point. In the same email they also said it's best to stick with same generation GPU to avoid issues. So I'm not really sure why they offered that BIOS version at all. Sticking to same generation GPU obviously doesn't leave much choice for me.

I was wondering, what are my options? Is BIOS update needed for newer GPUs (either brand)? Is there any pre-Ivy Bridge support BIOS versions that would improve VGA compatibility? Like said, I'm not really getting definite answers from support.

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FinnFIN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2015 Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote FinnFIN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: P67 Pro3 B2 Revision and VGA compatibility Posted: 05 Nov 2015 at 4:26am
	Hi all. I've been in contact with support already but have not gotten a definite answer yet, so I thought I'd ask here as well. I currently have the P67 Pro3 mobo (B2 revision), i5 2500K and AMD Radeon 6950. Been thinking about upgrading the GPU but have seen some reports about issues. So, I asked from support what are my options regarding BIOS update, if that is indeed needed. I currently have BIOS 1.70. Support first offered to send me a chip with 3.30 BIOS but after I asked for confirmation that it works, they said it won't work with B2 revision. After that they sent me a BIOS version 1.91, but I have no idea what it does. And not really thrilled about trying it at this point. In the same email they also said it's best to stick with same generation GPU to avoid issues. So I'm not really sure why they offered that BIOS version at all. Sticking to same generation GPU obviously doesn't leave much choice for me. I was wondering, what are my options? Is BIOS update needed for newer GPUs (either brand)? Is there any pre-Ivy Bridge support BIOS versions that would improve VGA compatibility? Like said, I'm not really getting definite answers from support.

ASRock Expert Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Oct 2015 Location: Croatia Status: Offline Points: 220	Post Options Post Reply Quote ASRock Expert Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 05 Nov 2015 at 5:51am
	I have worked with that board many times. Used the same Sandy Bridge 2500K, and flashed the latest BIOS 3.30. It supports all new AMD graphics up to 3xx and Fury, and nVidia 9xx and Titans. http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/P67%20Pro3/?cat=Download&os=BIOS You should upgrade Your BIOS to 3.30 via Instant Flash. If anything goes bad (but it should not, Instant Flash is 99+% reliable), ASRock TSD will provide You a new BIOS chip via mail (real mail, where the letters come from, if anybody forgot it - it still exists).
	990FX Extreme 9 MOD P1.70 AMD FX 8120 4GHz 1.25V Thermalright HR-02 Patriot Viper 2x4GB 2133MHz Samsung 850 EVO 250GB MSI R7970 TFIII 3GB CORSAIR VX550W LanCool K62 Dragonlord ASUS Xonar D2X

FinnFIN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2015 Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote FinnFIN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 05 Nov 2015 at 5:53am
	Thanks for the advice. But my issue is that my board is B2-revision, and apparently BIOS updates wont work with that. Also, I only see Windows versions of BIOS updates, no Instant Flash?

FinnFIN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2015 Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote FinnFIN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 06 Nov 2015 at 5:55am
	Just to further explain.. Is BIOS update actually even needed to get newer gen GPUs working or should there be no issues anyway? I'm a bit hesitant in clicking that buy button for a new GPU in case I'd end up having to get new mobo as well. Especially since LGA1155 motherboards seem to be pretty rare, at least ones you can overclock with. Seeing a bit mixed reports about BIOS updates and B2-revision. From what I gather 3.10 and anything after won't work. But no idea about 2.xx for example. EDIT: Found this, wonder what this means: http://www.asrock.com/support/faq.asp?id=317 Edited by FinnFIN - 06 Nov 2015 at 5:57am

ASRock Expert Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Oct 2015 Location: Croatia Status: Offline Points: 220	Post Options Post Reply Quote ASRock Expert Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 06 Nov 2015 at 6:25am
	They do work - it's CPU based, not chip-set based. So, disable Your Anti-virus software, best if You have a spare hard-drive just for a clean install of the OS, and put the BIOS files into the ROOT of Your hard drive. Right-click on the EXE file, run as Administrator, the flashing process will start. After finishing, it will ask to reboot - don't panic, it will reboot and continue to the second part of flashing the BIOS. Then it will finish that too and reboot for the second time. It should work well in 99% of time (if you have a clean OS), remember, if Your OS is bad and You don't disable Your AV, it may get nasty. But look on the bright side - ASRock WILL provide You with a free new BIOS chip if it really don't go well. They support does not end after the warranty of the board - they have the best support in the world of motherboard manufacturers, I had justified that many times. So, do a clean OS install on a spare hard drive and flash Your BIOS.
	990FX Extreme 9 MOD P1.70 AMD FX 8120 4GHz 1.25V Thermalright HR-02 Patriot Viper 2x4GB 2133MHz Samsung 850 EVO 250GB MSI R7970 TFIII 3GB CORSAIR VX550W LanCool K62 Dragonlord ASUS Xonar D2X

FinnFIN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2015 Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote FinnFIN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 06 Nov 2015 at 6:55am
	Yeah they were already going to send me a chip with 3.30 in it, but they later realized it won't work, or that's what they said. Also, saw this http://forums.tweaktown.com/asrock/48596-ram-isnt-recognized-correctly-after-bios-update-3-10-asrock-p67-pro3-3.html#post428486 It seems with Windows installer, they excluded B2 from support.

FinnFIN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2015 Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote FinnFIN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 19 Nov 2015 at 5:56am
	Bump. Anyone have any experience with this board with 1.xx BIOS and GPUs from Radeon 7xxx/GTX6xx era or later?