• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

ASUS Proactively Responding to the Intel-identified Sandy Bridge Chipset Design Error

btarunr

Editor & Senior Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 9, 2007
Messages
47,243 (7.55/day)
Location
Hyderabad, India
System Name RBMK-1000
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix B450-E Gaming
Cooling DeepCool Gammax L240 V2
Memory 2x 8GB G.Skill Sniper X
Video Card(s) Palit GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER GameRock
Storage Western Digital Black NVMe 512GB
Display(s) BenQ 1440p 60 Hz 27-inch
Case Corsair Carbide 100R
Audio Device(s) ASUS SupremeFX S1220A
Power Supply Cooler Master MWE Gold 650W
Mouse ASUS ROG Strix Impact
Keyboard Gamdias Hermes E2
Software Windows 11 Pro
Intel on January 31, 2011 announced the detection of a design error in the new Sandy Bridge-based Intel 6 Series support chip, also known as Cougar Point. The shipment of existing Sandy Bridge products has been suspended by Intel, and the production of an updated support chip has commenced. The design error affects only the support chip, and not 2nd generation Intel Core processors such as the i5 and i7.

Acting on our philosophy and promise of inspiring innovation and persistent perfection, we've created a comprehensive response to this development to safeguard the best interest of ASUS customers around the world. We will provide total warranty services to maximize computing and usability, as each ASUS product is delivered with an uncompromising quality pledge. This includes the hassle-free return and/or replacement of all affected ASUS products. We're doing all this effective immediately - and as a first step, shipments of current ASUS Sandy Bridge-based products have been halted. The suspension covers all distribution and retail channels - ASUS only sells quality-assured products, at all times and across all product segments.

For all customers who already own any ASUS product affected by the design error identified by Intel, simply visit this page for detailed warranty and service hotline information. We'll be happy to address any questions or concerns you may have regarding this issue, as well as provide information on future updates to Sandy Bridge technology.

ASUS notebook and desktop products are covered by a warranty service that addresses the design error, with both swap and sales return offered as options to customers.

For motherboards, we've confirmed with Intel that the Cougar Point design error does not affect SATA ports 0 and 1. Additionally, ASUS has been a pioneer in including extra SATA 3Gb/s and SATA 6Gb/s ports beyond Intel specifications on a wide range of motherboards. These ports are not affected by this design error, offering customers an option for uninterrupted computing. However, we're also offering you the option of returning any possibly affected motherboard for a swap or sales return. All warranties for affected motherboards will be reset to give you enough time to carry out any exchanges.

ASUS has also started an initiative to contact customers regarding this issue, and we'll cover all channel partners, distributors and registered buyers of affected ASUS products. As mentioned above, you may opt to return any affected products to ASUS for a swap or sales return.

We'll post updates through our official website and other channels regarding any developments or fixes to Sandy Bridge products. Thank you for your understanding, support and cooperation, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
Joined
May 7, 2009
Messages
5,392 (0.95/day)
Location
Carrollton, GA
System Name ODIN
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X
Motherboard Gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite AX V2
Cooling Dark Rock 4
Memory G Skill RipjawsV F4 3600 Mhz C16
Video Card(s) MSI GeForce RTX 3080 Ventus 3X OC LHR
Storage Crucial 2 TB M.2 SSD :: WD Blue M.2 1TB SSD :: 1 TB WD Black VelociRaptor
Display(s) Dell S2716DG 27" 144 Hz G-SYNC
Case Fractal Meshify C
Audio Device(s) Onboard Audio
Power Supply Antec HCP 850 80+ Gold
Mouse Corsair M65
Keyboard Corsair K70 RGB Lux
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
Benchmark Scores I don't benchmark.
This is over reaching. It is not like this is crippling or going to affect anyone anytime soon. And the few people it would normally affect, hey, there are like 4 other ports that are just fine. And if you really need 6 ports, put the mechanical drive in the degrading ports and you will never see a performance lose.
 
Joined
Oct 2, 2004
Messages
13,791 (1.87/day)
But still, if you pay crazy high prices for it, why possibly have it in a crippled form? If you pay a price of a fully operational mobo, then you shoul also get such mobo. Otherwise they should take off 50 bucks from each and say it's a cripple discount.
 
Joined
Apr 4, 2008
Messages
4,686 (0.77/day)
System Name Obelisc
Processor i7 3770k @ 4.8 GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z77-V
Cooling H110
Memory 16GB(4x4) @ 2400 MHz 9-11-11-31
Video Card(s) GTX 780 Ti
Storage 850 EVO 1TB, 2x 5TB Toshiba
Case T81
Audio Device(s) X-Fi Titanium HD
Power Supply EVGA 850 T2 80+ TITANIUM
Software Win10 64bit
I've got everything on my 4 sata 6 ports now. I won't ever need more than that. So I'm tempted to not even rma since I don't have a spare board, just worried about resale value. I may grab a better Z68 board then return the P67 board and sell it when it gets back.
 

newtekie1

Semi-Retired Folder
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
28,473 (4.10/day)
Location
Indiana, USA
Processor Intel Core i7 10850K@5.2GHz
Motherboard AsRock Z470 Taichi
Cooling Corsair H115i Pro w/ Noctua NF-A14 Fans
Memory 32GB DDR4-3600
Video Card(s) RTX 2070 Super
Storage 500GB SX8200 Pro + 8TB with 1TB SSD Cache
Display(s) Acer Nitro VG280K 4K 28"
Case Fractal Design Define S
Audio Device(s) Onboard is good enough for me
Power Supply eVGA SuperNOVA 1000w G3
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
This is over reaching. It is not like this is crippling or going to affect anyone anytime soon. And the few people it would normally affect, hey, there are like 4 other ports that are just fine. And if you really need 6 ports, put the mechanical drive in the degrading ports and you will never see a performance lose.

I don't believe so, this is just ASUS showing good business practice, and trying to create a better image for itself. Every motherboard manufacturer should be following their lead. After all, Intel is the one that has to pony up the cash in the end to fix the problem, so this is a no-brainer for ASUS.
 
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Messages
9,910 (1.85/day)
Location
Jakarta, Indonesia
System Name micropage7
Processor Intel Xeon X3470
Motherboard Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd. P55A-UD3R (Socket 1156)
Cooling Enermax ETS-T40F
Memory Samsung 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3
Video Card(s) NVIDIA Quadro FX 1800
Storage V-GEN03AS18EU120GB, Seagate 2 x 1TB and Seagate 4TB
Display(s) Samsung 21 inch LCD Wide Screen
Case Icute Super 18
Audio Device(s) Auzentech X-Fi Forte
Power Supply Silverstone 600 Watt
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Sades Excalibur + Taihao keycaps
Software Win 7 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Classified
I don't believe so, this is just ASUS showing good business practice, and trying to create a better image for itself. Every motherboard manufacturer should be following their lead. After all, Intel is the one that has to pony up the cash in the end to fix the problem, so this is a no-brainer for ASUS.

but for any reason we could take alook that the company has resposibility of their product and dont hands off of that
its kinda embarassing for big company to produce something like that but more embarassing if they aint take their responsibility
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2006
Messages
1,493 (0.22/day)
Location
Orange County, CA
System Name Battle Station
Processor AMD Ryzen 5900x
Motherboard Asus ROG Strix x570-I
Cooling Lian Li Galahad 240
Memory Crucial DDR4-3200 32 GB
Video Card(s) 1 x Gigabyte RTX 4090
Storage Adata 1Tb NVME
Display(s) Samsung G9 Odyssey
Case Hyte Y60
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar DX + Ultrasone Pro 900 + JBL SLR 308 speakers and SLR 310 subwoofer
Power Supply Corsair SFX 750W
Mouse Logitech G903
Keyboard The rabbit hole of custom mechanical keyboards
Software Window 10 Ultimate x64
I too just got Asus P8P67 Pro. Have the 2 SSD's on the Intel 6GB sata ports, 2 storage drives on the Marvell 6GB ports, and external sata/DVD burner to the soon to crap out ports.
 

faugusztin

New Member
Joined
Feb 2, 2011
Messages
4 (0.00/day)
Processor Core i5 750
Motherboard EVGA P55 SLI
Cooling Prolimatech Mega Shadow
Memory 2x4GB G.Skill RipjawsX DDR3-1333 CL7
Video Card(s) Gainward GTX570 Phantom
Storage Patriot Torqx 128GB
Display(s) HP LP2475w
Case Fractal Design Define R3 Arctic White
Audio Device(s) Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium
Power Supply Corsair AX750
Software Windows 7 Home Premium
I don't believe so, this is just ASUS showing good business practice, and trying to create a better image for itself. Every motherboard manufacturer should be following their lead. After all, Intel is the one that has to pony up the cash in the end to fix the problem, so this is a no-brainer for ASUS.

Huh ? Actually, ASUS is last of the big ones. MSI and Gigabyte stopped selling and asked shops not to sell their motherboards yesterday morning. ASUS is doing it only today.

And to the ones who think this is overreacting - no, it is not. It is simply more cost effective for them not to sell than to sell and then make a recall of all boards sold. Think about it - motherboards are not selling for even a one full month. Now imagine 2 more months of selling faulty products, just to recall all of them in april. Makes sense to you ? For manufacturers it does not.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2004
Messages
1,583 (0.21/day)
Location
Poland,Slask
System Name HAL
Processor Core i5 2500K
Motherboard Asus P8P67 Pro Rev3.1
Cooling stock
Memory 2x4GB Kingston 1600Mhz Blu
Video Card(s) Asus 560Ti DirectCuII TOP
Storage Kingston 120 3K SSD,WD Black WD1502FAEX
Display(s) LG 1440x900
Case Chieftec Mesh Midi
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Corsair TX750V2
Software w8
Right ASUS quality ended somewhere around P3BF boards. Had a P5K premium wifi AP which had a bugged SATA controller since start confirmed by almost all owners around their forums but ASUS ignored it never solving the issue.
 

Mussels

Freshwater Moderator
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
58,413 (7.94/day)
Location
Oystralia
System Name Rainbow Sparkles (Power efficient, <350W gaming load)
Processor Ryzen R7 5800x3D (Undervolted, 4.45GHz all core)
Motherboard Asus x570-F (BIOS Modded)
Cooling Alphacool Apex UV - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora + EK Quantum ARGB 3090 w/ active backplate
Memory 2x32GB DDR4 3600 Corsair Vengeance RGB @3866 C18-22-22-22-42 TRFC704 (1.4V Hynix MJR - SoC 1.15V)
Video Card(s) Galax RTX 3090 SG 24GB: Underclocked to 1700Mhz 0.750v (375W down to 250W))
Storage 2TB WD SN850 NVME + 1TB Sasmsung 970 Pro NVME + 1TB Intel 6000P NVME USB 3.2
Display(s) Phillips 32 32M1N5800A (4k144), LG 32" (4K60) | Gigabyte G32QC (2k165) | Phillips 328m6fjrmb (2K144)
Case Fractal Design R6
Audio Device(s) Logitech G560 | Corsair Void pro RGB |Blue Yeti mic
Power Supply Fractal Ion+ 2 860W (Platinum) (This thing is God-tier. Silent and TINY)
Mouse Logitech G Pro wireless + Steelseries Prisma XL
Keyboard Razer Huntsman TE ( Sexy white keycaps)
VR HMD Oculus Rift S + Quest 2
Software Windows 11 pro x64 (Yes, it's genuinely a good OS) OpenRGB - ditch the branded bloatware!
Benchmark Scores Nyooom.
This is over reaching. It is not like this is crippling or going to affect anyone anytime soon. And the few people it would normally affect, hey, there are like 4 other ports that are just fine. And if you really need 6 ports, put the mechanical drive in the degrading ports and you will never see a performance lose.

this affects 6 of the 8 ports on the boards. it can cause data loss too, not just performance degradation from what i read.


also, you seem to think two drives is all people need... i lol at that. i've got roughly 15 hard drives and yeah, all connected to the mobo. port multipliers are good.
 
Joined
Apr 4, 2008
Messages
4,686 (0.77/day)
System Name Obelisc
Processor i7 3770k @ 4.8 GHz
Motherboard Asus P8Z77-V
Cooling H110
Memory 16GB(4x4) @ 2400 MHz 9-11-11-31
Video Card(s) GTX 780 Ti
Storage 850 EVO 1TB, 2x 5TB Toshiba
Case T81
Audio Device(s) X-Fi Titanium HD
Power Supply EVGA 850 T2 80+ TITANIUM
Software Win10 64bit
15 drives? That sounds like a nightmare. So many failure points, wires, scattered data... my OCD is having a freak out at the thought. If I really needed the space I'd switch to a few raid 1 3tb drive arrays.
 

Mussels

Freshwater Moderator
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
58,413 (7.94/day)
Location
Oystralia
System Name Rainbow Sparkles (Power efficient, <350W gaming load)
Processor Ryzen R7 5800x3D (Undervolted, 4.45GHz all core)
Motherboard Asus x570-F (BIOS Modded)
Cooling Alphacool Apex UV - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora + EK Quantum ARGB 3090 w/ active backplate
Memory 2x32GB DDR4 3600 Corsair Vengeance RGB @3866 C18-22-22-22-42 TRFC704 (1.4V Hynix MJR - SoC 1.15V)
Video Card(s) Galax RTX 3090 SG 24GB: Underclocked to 1700Mhz 0.750v (375W down to 250W))
Storage 2TB WD SN850 NVME + 1TB Sasmsung 970 Pro NVME + 1TB Intel 6000P NVME USB 3.2
Display(s) Phillips 32 32M1N5800A (4k144), LG 32" (4K60) | Gigabyte G32QC (2k165) | Phillips 328m6fjrmb (2K144)
Case Fractal Design R6
Audio Device(s) Logitech G560 | Corsair Void pro RGB |Blue Yeti mic
Power Supply Fractal Ion+ 2 860W (Platinum) (This thing is God-tier. Silent and TINY)
Mouse Logitech G Pro wireless + Steelseries Prisma XL
Keyboard Razer Huntsman TE ( Sexy white keycaps)
VR HMD Oculus Rift S + Quest 2
Software Windows 11 pro x64 (Yes, it's genuinely a good OS) OpenRGB - ditch the branded bloatware!
Benchmark Scores Nyooom.
15 drives? That sounds like a nightmare. So many failure points, wires, scattered data... my OCD is having a freak out at the thought. If I really needed the space I'd switch to a few raid 1 3tb drive arrays.

3 internal, one on top of the case, 9 in e-sata enclosures (4bay+5 bay). two that i recently removed made 15.

that still means i need 6 SATA ports off my motherboard, 8 counting the optical drives (of which i have two)
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2004
Messages
1,583 (0.21/day)
Location
Poland,Slask
System Name HAL
Processor Core i5 2500K
Motherboard Asus P8P67 Pro Rev3.1
Cooling stock
Memory 2x4GB Kingston 1600Mhz Blu
Video Card(s) Asus 560Ti DirectCuII TOP
Storage Kingston 120 3K SSD,WD Black WD1502FAEX
Display(s) LG 1440x900
Case Chieftec Mesh Midi
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Corsair TX750V2
Software w8
psst Mussels runs a mirror site for teh ScEnE
 
Joined
May 19, 2009
Messages
1,865 (0.33/day)
Location
Latvia
System Name Personal \\ Work - HP EliteBook 840 G6
Processor 7700X \\ i7-8565U
Motherboard Asrock X670E PG Lightning
Cooling Noctua DH-15
Memory G.SKILL Trident Z5 RGB Black 32GB 6000MHz CL36 \\ 16GB DDR4-2400
Video Card(s) ASUS RoG Strix 1070 Ti \\ Intel UHD Graphics 620
Storage 2x KC3000 2TB, Samsung 970 EVO 512GB \\ OEM 256GB NVMe SSD
Display(s) BenQ XL2411Z \\ FullHD + 2x HP Z24i external screens via docking station
Case Fractal Design Define Arc Midi R2 with window
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150 with Logitech Z533
Power Supply Corsair AX860i
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Corsair K55 RGB PRO
Software Windows 11 \\ Windows 10

AsRock

TPU addict
Joined
Jun 23, 2007
Messages
19,086 (3.00/day)
Location
UK\USA
I don't believe so, this is just ASUS showing good business practice, and trying to create a better image for itself. Every motherboard manufacturer should be following their lead. After all, Intel is the one that has to pony up the cash in the end to fix the problem, so this is a no-brainer for ASUS.

Which is really nice to see.
 
Joined
Mar 7, 2010
Messages
989 (0.18/day)
Location
Michigan
System Name Daves
Processor AMD Ryzen 3900x
Motherboard AsRock X570 Taichi
Cooling Enermax LIQMAX III 360
Memory 32 GiG Team Group B Die 3600
Video Card(s) Powercolor 5700 xt Red Devil
Storage Crucial MX 500 SSD and Intel P660 NVME 2TB for games
Display(s) Acer 144htz 27in. 2560x1440
Case Phanteks P600S
Audio Device(s) N/A
Power Supply Corsair RM 750
Mouse EVGA
Keyboard Corsair Strafe
Software Windows 10 Pro
ASROCK has a similar message on there website..

Im totally happy with my SB,I will use it knowing I will get a new board when one comes available..
 

newtekie1

Semi-Retired Folder
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
28,473 (4.10/day)
Location
Indiana, USA
Processor Intel Core i7 10850K@5.2GHz
Motherboard AsRock Z470 Taichi
Cooling Corsair H115i Pro w/ Noctua NF-A14 Fans
Memory 32GB DDR4-3600
Video Card(s) RTX 2070 Super
Storage 500GB SX8200 Pro + 8TB with 1TB SSD Cache
Display(s) Acer Nitro VG280K 4K 28"
Case Fractal Design Define S
Audio Device(s) Onboard is good enough for me
Power Supply eVGA SuperNOVA 1000w G3
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
Huh ? Actually, ASUS is last of the big ones. MSI and Gigabyte stopped selling and asked shops not to sell their motherboards yesterday morning. ASUS is doing it only today.

ASUS actually stopped selling and asked shops to stop selling their motherboards at the same time. However, ASUS has gone the extra step to start alerting their actual end user customers, as well as set up a program specifically for handling the returns related to the Intel error, which AFAIK none of the other manufacturers have done. I'm not saying ASUS is the first to recall boards, I'm saying ASUS is the first to be proactive about it with the end user, that is what this announcement is about.
 
Joined
Dec 26, 2006
Messages
3,833 (0.59/day)
Location
Northern Ontario Canada
Processor Ryzen 5700x
Motherboard Gigabyte X570S Aero G R1.1 BiosF5g
Cooling Noctua NH-C12P SE14 w/ NF-A15 HS-PWM Fan 1500rpm
Memory Micron DDR4-3200 2x32GB D.S. D.R. (CT2K32G4DFD832A)
Video Card(s) AMD RX 6800 - Asus Tuf
Storage Kingston KC3000 1TB & 2TB & 4TB Corsair MP600 Pro LPX
Display(s) LG 27UL550-W (27" 4k)
Case Be Quiet Pure Base 600 (no window)
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220-VB
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex V Gold Pro 850W ATX Ver2.52
Mouse Mionix Naos Pro
Keyboard Corsair Strafe with browns
Software W10 22H2 Pro x64
"each ASUS product is delivered with an uncompromising quality pledge. "

LOL

ya until you have an issue of your own and it takes asus tech support 6 months to rma your mobo and get it back to you
 
Joined
Dec 2, 2009
Messages
3,352 (0.61/day)
System Name Dark Stealth
Processor Ryzen 5 5600x
Motherboard Gigabyte B450M Gaming rev 1.0
Cooling Snowman, arctic p12 x2 fans
Memory 16x2 DDR4 Corsair Dominator Pro
Video Card(s) 3080 10gb
Storage 2TB NVME PCIE 4.0 Crucial P3 Plus, 1TB Crucial MX500 SSD, 4TB WD RED HDD
Display(s) HP Omen 34c (34" monitor 3440x1440 165Hz VA panel)
Case Zalman S2
Power Supply Corsair 750TX
Mouse Logitech pro superlight, mx mouse s3, Razer Basiliskx with battery
Keyboard Custom mechanical keyboard tm680
Software Windows 11
Benchmark Scores 70-80 fps 3440x1440 on cyberpunk 2077 max settings
That is really normal, cuz intel must pay for the error, asus must take
 

WarEagleAU

Bird of Prey
Joined
Jul 9, 2006
Messages
10,812 (1.61/day)
Location
Gurley, AL
System Name Pandemic 2020
Processor AMD Ryzen 5 "Gen 2" 2600X
Motherboard AsRock X470 Killer Promontory
Cooling CoolerMaster 240 RGB Master Cooler (Newegg Eggxpert)
Memory 32 GB Geil EVO Portenza DDR4 3200 MHz
Video Card(s) ASUS Radeon RX 580 DirectX 12 DUAL-RX580-O8G 8GB 256-Bit GDDR5 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video C
Storage WD 250 M.2, Corsair P500 M.2, OCZ Trion 500, WD Black 1TB, Assorted others.
Display(s) ASUS MG24UQ Gaming Monitor - 23.6" 4K UHD (3840x2160) , IPS, Adaptive Sync, DisplayWidget
Case Fractal Define R6 C
Audio Device(s) Realtek 5.1 Onboard
Power Supply Corsair RMX 850 Platinum PSU (Newegg Eggxpert)
Mouse Razer Death Adder
Keyboard Corsair K95 Mechanical & Corsair K65 Wired, Wireless, Bluetooth)
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
Personally I just found out about this in Maximum PC (been away from the boards since I started work like 2 weeks ago) and the problem isnt that bad. It COULD happen but I applaud ASUS and other Mobo makers for taking a proactive lead in this. Very good customer service.
 
Top