B660 gaming setup with DDR4 RAM and an Intel Core i5 13500 running in the latest F5 BIOS version.
B660 gaming setup with DDR4 RAM and an Intel Core i5 13500 running in the latest F5 BIOS version.
Hey there! I see you're having a bit of a puzzling situation... everything seems fine for now, but there are some details that might matter. You're using a Gigabyte B660 with DDR4 and Intel i5-13500, yet the BIOS says 13th gen Intel processors need F20 or newer. Your board only has F5, which is older. The main problem you're facing is enabling XMP profiles for your RAM—G-Skill Ripjaws 3200 is stuck at 2133 due to a BSOD. You've played games and used the PC without issues, so performance might be okay. Since you upgraded from i5-6500, it's likely the speed difference is noticeable. Regarding the BIOS update: if you're worried about bricking, updating with Q-Flash (without the "plus") could be safer than leaving it as is. Just double-check compatibility and back up your settings before proceeding.
It lacks dual-BIOS, but since it supports Q-Flash Plus I think you should always have the ability to flash via USB if the standard fails. I’d go through the steps to create a recovery USB before proceeding with the update. If the update works on an older BIOS version, that’s reassuring—I’d worry about power management issues then. My first action when installing a new motherboard is to flash the most recent (non-beta) BIOS.
I have four sticks. It wasn't obvious it would work if an issue arose during the update through the standard Q-Flash method. Seems like I should attempt the update now. Updated BIOS and the system is running. Still experiencing BSOD when choosing the XMP profile.