It's been a while since I've posted anything, mostly because I haven't had anything good to post (like they say, if you got nothing good to tell).
Anyhow let's get down to it.
You have Windows 10 for reasons (dx 12 games, can't linux, insert device or software that can only be used on Windows, etc). Whatever the case is, you need Windows 10 to run as well as possible with your Crosshair V Formula rig.
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BEFORE YOU ATTEMPT ANYTHING, I WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE IF YOU BRICK YOUR MOTHERBOARD WITH THIS MODDED BIOS UPDATE!!! I DID NOT CREATE THIS MODDED BIOS, I'VE ONLY TESTED IT!
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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Ok so with the warning out of the way, this is how I pushed my build a little further until I have the ability to upgrade.
I found this modded bios at this link
Here are the details, this modded bios updates quite a few of the board components firmware.
Warning: This is for the Asus Crosshair V Formula and NOT for the Asus Crosshair V Formula Z
This is the latest Asus BIOS v1703 with the the following improvements:
Changelog (Original -----> Update):
[Changed] - CPU microcodes all updated to the latest (Last check 2017-06-11):
[Changed] - OROM AMD RAID MISC 4392 v3.2.1540.6 -----> v3.3.1540.19
[Changed] - OROM AMD RAID MISC 4393 v3.3.1540.17 -----> v3.3.1540.19
[Changed] - EFI AMD RAID v1.0.0.17 -----> v1.0.0.49
[Changed] - EFI AMD Utility v1.0.0.17 -----> v1.0.0.49
[Changed] - OROM LAN Intel Boot Agent GE v1.3.51 -----> v1.5.84
[Changed] - ASMedia 106x AHCI ROM v0.93 -----> ASMedia 106x AHCI ROM v0.97
[Changed] - AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.0 -----> AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.7
[Added] - -----> SAMSUNG_M2_DXE (New feature) Added support for boot from SSD with PCIE
[Added] - -----> NvmExpressDxE_2 (New feature) Added support for boot from SSD with PCIE
[Fixed] - -----> AMD AHCI ROM v3.3.2.0 for DEV_4391 (Missing module added) The module was missing in the original BIOS for the device 4391
Notes: ASMEdia ROM was updated to v0.97 instead of v3.80 because of the 3 following reasons that i tested myself using a GPT 3T Hard DIsk (i didn't test with a MBR HD but i doubt it would make any difference):
1- v3.80 is not working with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.2. (But it is working with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.0)(Not tested with 1.5.0.7)
2- v0.97 is working with all AMD AGESA OrochiPI versions.
3- v3.80 was made mainly as a ROM for eSATA for add-on cards using PCIe. (This is why there is no ASMedia ROM initialisation screen at start up if your disk is not on PCIE) For SATA on a BIOS motherboard, the usual v0.xx versions (ex.: v0.97) are recommended.
The addition of the missing module AMD AHCI ROM v3.3.2.0 for DEV_4391, if you use your system in AHCI mode, should give you an noticeable improvement in startup time of up to 13 seconds for Windows.
I use this BIOS and it is working perfectly so it is tested.
It seems that the latest AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.7 is causing the Cool and Quiet feature to not work at all (Thanks to Davey for reporting the issue) so the CPU is not downclocking when not in use.
If you need this feature, download the version with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.2 instead, the Cool and Quiet feature should work in this one. (Please report to confirm that it is indeed working, i didn't test it myself because i don't need it.)
CrosshairV-Formula-ASUS-1703.ROM with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.7 mod v5 (2017-06-11)
CrosshairV-Formula-ASUS-1703.ROM with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.2 mod v5 (2017-06-11)
If for some reason you prefer to have ASMedia 106x AHCI ROM v3.80 with AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.0 then download the version in the next post kindly provided by Thurask.
For example: I know some persons prefer v3.80 because there is no screen initialisation at boot start. (You may save 1 second of boot time there...) As for the difference between AMD AGESA OrochiPI v1.5.0.0 and v1.5.0.2, as far as i know, only AMD truly knows and keep it secret, but we can assume at least some bugs for BIOS stability were corrected and devices initialisation at boot should be faster.
ALSO RECOMMENDED: Update your ASMedia ASM-1042 USB 3.0 firmware:
[Changed] - ASM-1042 Firmware 110322_00_02_32 -----> ASM-1042 Firmware 130125_00_02_00
You can download the new firmware here: ASMedia Firmware v130125_00_02_00 for ASM-1042
First, make sure your components match these, if they don't you could brick. For example the Z model has a few different components includeing the USB 3.0 chipset has 3.1 apparently. I run the non Z version so all I know is I've tested on mine and had good results.
Alright so put that on a usb, go into the UEFI and use the updater to use that file, it's a good idea to have the backup file of a good 1703 bios straight from Asus just in case something goes wrong. Luckily Asus has that neat little update from a USB when a failed bios update has happened. If you are unfamiliar look into it before attempting this, it's a modded bios things can happen.
So we are at the point where you have done the update, you might notice a few differences, for example a new piece of the boot sequence shows some bookable items on a different table. Awesome, where do we go from here?
This is when we take a step back and make sure we know what USB 3.0 Asmedia chipset we have. For some reason some of the non Z boards ended up with 1042"A" instead of the main 1042 regular.
DO NOT FORCE 1042A, I've tested it, it works but you will lose 2 USB ports and are likely to burn out your chipset!
We can likely grab that chipset from the post as well, in the unlikely scenario it is down in the future I'll be adding a link below to cover some of the firmware.
Station drivers direct link in case the redirect does not work, find the asmedia drivers.
Alright, at this point we make sure to update all out drivers, Realtek, Asmedia USB and Sata controllers, anything else you can find. Every little bit helps with overhead, use Latencymon to figure out if one of your drivers is misbehaving.
Careful with the newer Realtek drivers if you happen to use Optical audio, for whatever reason it breaks in Windows 10, which is unfortunate because all the updates do give us better performance overall.
So lets load up a bootable USB, if you don't have one i suggest downloading a copy of
"Hirens boot CD" and use a guide such as this " Hirens boot USB"
Load up the boot usb with the firmware we will be using (again a good idea to make a backup of your current firmware in case something goes wrong, good idea to use a reliable usb for this by the way!) and start up the computer with it.
Go down to the dos options, next over the menus until you reach dos.
Few simple commands
C:
dir
cd "whatever directory you used"
filenameoffirmware.bat
Good idea to take a picture of the included instructions with your phone just in case, I believe the files are u.bat and d.bat etc.
So we have all that done, what next, well a good idea is to test and make sure everything is still functional, since there isn't a ton of support for anything running AM3+ anymore there is a chance you will have to keep an eye out for updates or do stress testing on your own. I've found quite a performance increase with the bios update and chipset update, things tend to run smoother overall and there is less latency with my inputs. It's not perfect, I would like a little more speed with my USB device inputs, I tend to notice it playing shooters but at the very least it is an improvement.
As for our Crosshair V Formula Z users I do not have the Z version of the board so I can not test this out myself but because the boards are very similar in nature most of this post will help you out, so I'll link the modded bios for the Z users here.
Crosshair V Formula for Z users
If you have any questions or any info on how to get more performance out of this rig post below!
Cheers!