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TECH TALK

Intel issues fix for Raptor Lake degradation

EARLIER THIS YEAR, I wrote about difficulties I was having with a Core i9-13900K processor (see MPC230 Tech Talk). Little did we realize that we were only seeing the tip of the iceberg. While most complaints have involved the unlocked Core i9 Raptor Lake CPUs, it appears the instability problems build up and potentially impact many Raptor Lake—13th and 14th Gen Core—CPUs, with Intel identifying 22 different desktop parts. Jarred Walton

Everything from the Core i5-13600K and above rated for more than 65W base power, including i7 and i9 65W chips, is affected. That means T-class parts should be fine, as well as vanilla models like the Core i5-14600, but popular unlocked K-class processors are impacted. There are also reports of problems extending to server and laptop parts.

Intel has a microcode fix that has begun rolling out via BIOS updates. It supposedly targets the root cause, but if your CPU has already showed problems, there’s no fix other than replacing it. Intel isn’t issuing a recall, but I can smell the class action lawsuits. However, it has extended warranty support on the affected CPUs by two years. The official statement reads, in part: “Intel’s current analysis finds there is a significant increase to the minimum operating voltage (Vmin) across multiple cores on affected processors due to elevated voltages. Elevated voltage events can accumulate over time and contribute to the increase in Vmin for the processor. The latest microcode update (0x129) will limit voltage requests above 1.55V as a preventative mitigation for processors not experiencing instability symptoms.”

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Maximum PC
October 2024
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