ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX LGA1155 and Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core

[croce]

UPDATE: I just checked the sticker on MOBO and it says P1.30-15B. I guess I will have to contact ASRock and have it replaced. This sucks.

Hello,

I recently bought these parts for a new build:

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
Motherboard: ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda ES 750GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Hard Drive: Corsair Force Series GT 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card
Case: Cooler Master Storm Scout ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Antec 650W ATX12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer

I'm still waiting for the EVGA card and thermal paste to set everything up but I have heard that I may run into problems with the BIOS of the MOBO not recognizing the i5-3570K CPU.

I figure if the BIOS is updated, it will not be a problem.

However, if it's not, I don't have another CPU to start it up with.

Is there an alternative way to update BIOS in this case? I appreciate your help.

croce

[profJim]

Contact ASRock > Support Request Form telling them what the problems is and ask them to send you an updated bios chip that will work with your cpu. I've read in several threads where they provided the bios chip for free.

An alternative is to buy the cheapest Sandy Bridge cpu, and use it to flash your bios to the most recent version. You could then sell the SB cpu for close to what you paid for it. It will probably cost you a lot more if you pay a local computer shop to update your bios.

[croce]

Hi Prof,

Thanks for the prompt reply.

I have emailed them already but will wait for a response after 4th of July is over of course.

I will also call them at this number tomorrow and ask for a chip.

Here's the info in case others have similar issues and need to call them:

Manufacturer Contact Info

• Manufacturer Product Page
• Website:HTPC, Home Theatre PC Manufacturer & Supplier - ASRock Inc.
• Support Phone: 1-909-590-8308
• Support Email:support@asrockamerica.com
• Support Website

Best,
croce

[profJim]

Good luck, let us know how you make out.

[croce]

July 4th: I sent an email to ASRock America through the contact info I have above, and also contacted Emily on this forum for my problem. She replied promptly (thank you Emily!) and sent my information to the US branch so they can ship my chip.

July 5th: I called the branch as soon as they opened (12PM Eastern time, 9AM in California) and they directed me to send the invoice to user@asrockamerica.com. I remember others here said the customer service was excellent, but I got someone who was in a hurry to get off the phone and didn't appreciate it, but didn't think it's too much to be bothered about- everybody's busy. I did send the invoice immediately and mentioned to them that I'm leaving next week on Wednesday for a 2 month trip, and that I'd like to have the chip immediately, in case of any of the parts that I bought are defective so to be able to return them for replacement.

After 5 hours (5PM EST), they replied to my email:

"We will mail you the BIOS Chip tomorrow by USPS first class mail.

Attachment is BIOS Chip Installation Instructions, Please follow the instructions to install the BIOS Chip after you receive it."

I said OK, maybe they forgot that I need this urgently, so I told them again and asked if there is a faster way to get the chip. This is their exact reply, without any modifications: "We send it by USPS first class mail. Therefore you should bereceiving it by Tuesday. USPS first class mail is the only way we can ship theitem to you, sorry about that. "

Now, I don't want to be the ******* who complains like a baby, but this is not a great way to retain customers.
- First off, first class mail, sent on Thursday from Cali to NY usually takes up to 7 days (I ship orders out regularly and this is average delay)- and they are sending on Friday instead, they had plenty of time to send a small part today.
- Second thing, this is the company's fault, they do advertise that the MOBO will work with 3rd generation Intel CPUs our of the box, but they don't mention that a BIOS update will take place. I don't have other CPUs to do this update. If the customer messes up, you better take care of customer. If the company messes up, you better take good care of the customer.

I don't know about you, but waiting for two weeks after purchase to see if everything is working, when it's the company's fault is too much. I asked for a faster way and I was inclined to pay for that to make sure I don't lose big bucks in case the chip arrives late and there are defective parts.

Well, that was a bad experience and I will learn from that. Hopefully the company will learn as well and train their employees to handle these situation better. I won't be buying from them again, and would have returned the motherboard if I had enough time to get another one before leaving.