will this CPU work in my Mainboard?

David Turnbull · Oct 30, 2019

Thats very wierd, the z390 chipset is designed for 9th gen intel cpus, it was the z370 which needed bios updates to be compatible with the 9th gen intel.

is it deffo a z390 board youve bought?

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

David Turnbull said:
Thats very wierd, the z390 chipset is designed for 9th gen intel cpus, it was the z370 which needed bios updates to be compatible with the 9th gen intel.

is it deffo a z390 board youve bought?

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

Yup, deffo : https://www.gigabyte.com/de/Motherboard/Z390-AORUS-PRO-WIFI-rev-10#kf Online it says Gen8 & 9, no mention of BIOS updates. In the paper manual that comes in the box with the board it say only Gen.8, although on the box there is a piccy with Gen.9 too.
And on Alternates website, on the page with the board, it says " may need a BIOS update" The tech service at Alternate wasn't surprised at all, he just said "oh, it needs a BIOS update. Send it back to us, and we'll update it and send it back to you "
It should be back next week, if it still doesn't work, then the CPU is dead. The story continues....

RobertR1 · Oct 30, 2019

A 9700k should work on that board no problem. The 9700k is a launch chip. You sure something else isn't the issue here? I have that exact board btw

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

RobertR1 said:
A 9700k should work on that board no problem. The 9700k is a launch chip. You sure something else isn't the issue here? I have that exact board btw

What’s else could it be? The new RAM is on the approved list, and works in my old Board (Gigabyte Z170 with a Gen 7 i5 6600K) The PSU works In old Box too. The only other new component is the M2 SSD from Samsung, but the Board should at least Start, even without RAM and an SSD. And when it Power flashes at the start , the CPU failure LED blinks once, indicating a Problem with the CPU. Not recognised by the Board due to BIOS incompatabilty, or it's broken.

RobertR1 · Oct 30, 2019

GuitarTech said:
What’s else could it be? The new RAM is on the approved list, and works in my old Board (Gigabyte Z170 with a Gen 7 i5 6600K) The PSU works In old Box too. The only other new component is the M2 SSD from Samsung, but the Board should at least Start, even without RAM and an SSD. And when it Power flashes at the start , the CPU failure LED blinks once, indicating a Problem with the CPU. Not recognised by the Board due to BIOS incompatabilty, or it's broken.

Sounds like either your mobo or cpu is busted unfortunately.

I assume you plugged in all the table nice n snug and the 8pin eps at the top left?

RasmusP · Oct 30, 2019

RobertR1 said:
Sounds like either your mobo or cpu is busted unfortunately.

I assume you plugged in all the table nice n snug and the 8pin eps at the top left?

If Alternate-Store instantly states that they know the problem and that he should send it back for a bios flash I doubt that either board or cpu are busted.
Intel and the z390 Aorus boards are not really known for such problems.

Especially since the store page states it might need a bios update and the paper-manual saying the same.

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

RobertR1 said:
Sounds like either your mobo or cpu is busted unfortunately.

I assume you plugged in all the table nice n snug and the 8pin eps at the top left?

I'm 65, and a qualified Aircraft Systems Tech (and self taught Luthier) I always double check everything before I switch anything on. This ain't my first build

Vintagedriver01 · Oct 30, 2019

I’m the owner of an i7-9700k and an Gigabyte Z390 Aorus pro same as you, only without wifi. No problems regarding the i7-9700k.

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

Vintagedriver01 said:
I’m the owner of an i7-9700k and an Gigabyte Z390 Aorus pro same as you, only without wifi. No problems regarding the i7-9700k.

Thanks for cheering me up

I'll wait till the board is back from Alternate, and see what happens. The only other thing it can be is the CPU, and I bought that from them too. In fact, I ordered all the parts together.
Next week I'll know more.

Vintagedriver01 · Oct 30, 2019

GuitarTech said:
Thanks for cheering me up

No problem, keep on driving.

GuitarTech · Oct 30, 2019

Vintagedriver01 said:
No problem, keep on driving.

I've still got my old i5 Skylake box till the new build is sorted out. There are worse problems in my life

RobertR1 · Oct 30, 2019

GuitarTech said:
I'm 65, and a qualified Aircraft Systems Tech (and self taught Luthier) I always double check everything before I switch anything on. This ain't my first build

Cool. Seems like a dead cpu or board, in that case.

GuitarTech · Nov 7, 2019

RobertR1 said:
Cool. Seems like a dead cpu or board, in that case.

The next update: I got my board back today from Alternate, or should I say, a brand new board. It definitely wasn't the board I sent them for a BIOS upgrade, as it still had the protective plastic on, and I'm sure I'd already peeled it all off on the first board. Maybe the old board was really dead??
Who knows, the main thing is, the new board runs

CPU installed, RAM installed, power on, yes!
Booted first time, a quick look in the UEFI, and then WIN 10 Pro installed (this puppy is fast, the whole install took about 10 mins

)
Tomorrow I'll be installing my GTX 1080 and taking care of the cable management etc. And then installing my Steam library, and updating all the drivers etc. The usual stuff. It's been a long road, but I think it's been worth it in the end.
I can't wait to fire up rF2 with the new build