BIOS and Overclocking …
Get fast to the right UEFI settings …
ASRock B365 Pro4 BIOS and Overclocking
ASRock B365 Pro4 UEFI BIOS Update
ASRock B365 Pro4 overclocking
ASRock B365 Pro4 memory settings
ASRock B365 Pro4 voltage settings
ASRock B365 Pro4 Overclock even easier
ASRock B365 Pro4 BIOS undervolting
ASRock B365 Pro4 Fan control
BIOS and overclocking …
Let us continue with the BIOS / UEFI Setup options and the UEFI overclocking. After switching on the PC, press the Del or F2 key to access the UEFI setup.
The ASRock B365 Pro4 UEFI has a graphical interface that allows intuitive operation with the mouse or can still be operated conventionally with a keyboard.
As usual at the latest ASRock motherboards, there is the ASRock EZ Mode – Easy Mode – which offers a clear input page with a lot of important information and still does not seem overloaded. It has Basic information such as time, date, CPU temperature, mainboard temperature, CPU voltage, first details about hardware, fan speed, hard disk configuration, RAID mode and fan settings with one click.
In addition, a few applications have been combined in one tools page.
Of course you can also use the EZ menu to set the time and date.
Many other functions can be operated using function keys, which can be called up by pressing F1. For example, if you want to publish a screenshot in our PC Forum, you can save it with F12 on a USB stick.
With the F6 key or the upper right button you get to the usual ASRock Advanced Mode, which you can also set as default.
The System Browser view at the ASRock B365 Pro4 motherboard can’t be found, but you will find the Full HD UEFI selection and the Active Page on Entry selection, where you can decide on which UEFI page you want to start in the UEFI setup. On the ASRock B365 Pro4 you will find the Active Page on Entry option and the Full HD UEFI selection in Advanced.
UEFI BIOS Update …
Before we start with UEFI overclocking, we update the UEFI BIOS to the latest version. Since ASRock regularly integrates new functions, better memory support and new processors, the BIOS update is recommended in most cases. For flashing the UEFI update ASRock offers several possibilities, e.g. the very simple Instant Flash or even the ASRock Internet Flash with a direct connection to the Internet. Via the so-called ASRock Instant Flash Option in the Tool Screen or via the F6 key when starting the PC you can access the ASRock Instant Flash Utility. You can simply install a previously downloaded ASRock BIOS without boot CD or similar by starting the ASRock Instant Flash Utility. Then select the BIOS Flash ROM from the desired drive, e.g. from a USB stick, which you have to unpack after downloading.
At the time of testing the UEFI BIOS version P4.00 was available as the latest download, which we of course installed immediately over the pre-installed P1.00 version.
After a reboot the new BIOS version will be available. Here you can see the new P4.00 Advanced BIOS entry page with the Intel Core i9-9900K CPU.
The Secure Backup UEFI option can be used to transfer a working BIOS to the second UEFI IC, which is automatically selected if the boot process is repeated several times. A LED on the BIOS IC indicates which one is used.
The My Favorite function is very helpful because it allows you to place frequently used menu items here, so that you can see them easily on a page and access them faster. You start with a blank page – by the way, it will be emptied after a BIOS update.
If you need technical UEFI support, you can even select the errors via the UEFI setup and even contact the ASRock Tech Service via a network connection.
On the Tool page of this ASRock B365 Pro4 motherboard there is again the ASRock Polychrome RGB LED entry, which is almost identical to the ASRock Polychrome RGB software, which we already mentioned on the previous page.
The Polychrome RGB LED menu has numerous setting options. So you can select the color in an RGB color selector.
You can choose whether you want to control the RGB headers separately or all together.
And you can set in the Polychrome RGB LED menu whether the LEDs should light up continuously, “breathe”, randomly or even to music. The user gets numerous possibilities how and how fast the LED Stripes should light up. And if you don’t need the lighting, you can of course deactivate it completely.
ASRock doesn’t offer an Easy Driver Installer option for the B365 motherboard, but makes the RAID driver installation very easy for the user by offering the Easy RAID Installer as an easy way to download the latest RAID drivers.
The handy SSD Secure Erase BIOS tool that we first saw at the ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 9 Mainboard is also integrated.
Simply select the desired SSD and it will be deleted quickly and securely – for example, for secure deletion before SSD sale or in the event of serious problems with partitioning. Great thing, but be sure to use it with caution!
ASRock B365 Pro4 Overclocking …
Now we come to the Intel LGA 1151 overclocking with the B365 chipset on the ASRock B365 Pro4 motherboard. ASRock divides the OC-Tweaker menu of the ASRock B365 Pro4 into CPU Configuration, DRAM Configuration and Voltage Configuration.
But the view into the OC-Tweaker menu shows very fast disillusionment. You have a “K” CPU, but there are no settings for the multiplier or the BCLK and that’s what Intel wants for the B365 in contrast to the Z390. So you can’t increase a multi on an Intel B365 motherboard and currently you can’t even raise the BCLK a bit to overclock the CPU. Only a boot performance mode setting for the speed during the boot process is available.
Only the GPU frequency can be increased if the internal GPU is used.
For overclockers, an Intel B365 motherboard is the naked horror, because even an Intel Core i7-9900K CPU can only be operated with the standard or turbo clock. If we discover possibilities for B365 overclocking, we will publish them as usual in Intel OC Forum or directly with instructions in OC Workshop. Here you can see a CPU-Z screenshot of the Intel Core i7-9900K CPU.
ASRock B365 Pro4 memory settings …
In the DRAM configuration menu you can find all important memory settings.
Thanks to Load XMP Setting support, XMP memory modules are already correctly set with a mouse click in the UEFI BIOS.
Alternatively you can select the settings manually. With the DDR4 memory clocking you can e.g. select values from DDR4-800 …
… to a maximum of DDR4-2666, since no BCLK is increased.
All DDR4 timings can also be adjusted manually.
The ASRock B365 Pro4 also offers a DRAM tweaker menu with all SPD and XMP memory values for direct selection.
ASRock B365 Pro4 voltage settings …
Now we come to the different voltage settings that can be done in the BIOS. The B365 motherboard provides some voltage settings under Voltage Configuration. At the CPU Core/Cache Voltage you can set the value Offset or Fixed Mode. With Fixed Mode the VCore of the Intel Core i9-9900K Test CPU can be set to 1.520V or alternatively the offset. Furthermore, the B365 motherboard has the GT Voltage, GT LLC, 1.0V PCH Voltage, VCCST Voltage and CPU Load Line Calibration, as we have already shown in the technical details on the second test page. The DDR4 voltage can also be set in the Voltage menu.
ASRock B365 Pro4 even easier overclocking …
If you prefer to overclock in Windows, you can do the above mentioned voltage settings and GPU frequency with the ASRock A-Tuning Tool. The CPU cannot be overclocked here either.
Here you can see some settings of the ASRock A-Tuning Tool.
Once the desired settings have been found, you can save up to five different BIOS settings with names in the UEFI under OC Tweaker.
For example, you could store balanced BIOS settings, Undervolting values, Office or Gaming settings as Undervolting, Balance and Gaming user profiles to be able to quickly reload these values at any time.
Also interesting is the Save User UEFI Setup Profile to Disk option. Just click it to save your own UEFI settings on the hard drive or an USB stick.
BIOS Undervolting …
The downclocking or undervolting is also tested in this review. It was not possible to lower the Intel Core i7-8700K CPU frequency over the BIOS. You can lower the voltage to reduce the power consumption. Of course, underclocking is like overclocking outside of the manufacturers specification, so it is necessary to have some luck. ASRock gives several options for easy PC undervolting. There are many other UEFI settings to choose from, such as CPU Configuration, Chipset, Storage, Intel Thunderbolt, Super IO, ACPI and USB Configuration as well as Trusted Computing.
If you want to save power when using a PC with an Intel LGA1151 v2 PC or if you use Intel Virtualization Technology to support multiple, simultaneous operating systems, you should also check the CPU Configuration menu under Advanced.
But also the settings in Advanced Chipset Configuration with the individual speeds of the PCIe slots, selecting the first graphics card, etc. are interesting.
In the UEFI it is even possible to manually deactivate each individual USB port.
Fan control …
The UEFI Setup of the passive cooled B365 Pro4 motherboard also features an extensive temperature controlled fan control. The settings for the fan controller can be found in H/W Monitor directly below the temperature and voltage display.
Here are settings for the CPU fan, chassis fans or W_Pump switch.
You have the choice between Customize, Silent, Standard, Performance and Full Speed.
In Customize Mode, several temperature steps are available to which the desired fan speed can then be assigned. The fan settings are changed immediately and can therefore be heard immediately.
ASRock has also integrated the graphical user interface for controlling the fans in the UEFI setup. The FAN-Tastic Tuning menu item can also be found in the H/W monitor and can be used for all settings. Simply select the respective fan connector on the left side and then select the mode on the right side: Silent, Standard, Performance or Full Speed.
In Customize mode, you can set all values directly in the chart and save.
For the chassis fan connectors you can even select, which source you want to use for temperature measurement – Monitor CPU or Monitor Motherboard. Then click on apply and save the values.
And even the control of the 3-pin chassis fans is possible with the DC/PWM mode switch.
Who would rather set the values in Windows, you can use also the ASRock A-Tuning tool.
You can usually get along without an expensive Fan Controller, because the fans are controlled with this fan control based on CPU or motherboard temperature.
If everything is set, simply store the settings as usual with the F10 key and confirm with Z or on an English keyboard with Y.
ASRock B365 Pro4 energy consumption …