Motherboard vendors have started releasing updated BIOS versions for Intel Core 13th/14th Gen motherboards that provide a new “0x129” CPU microcode to address an increasing number of Intel Core 13th/14th Gen processors that are causing instability issues and crashing errors. Intel has reported that in (Windows) testing, the 0x129 CPU microcode has a negligible impact on performance, but I wanted to benchmark this new CPU microcode on Linux.
Over the weekend, multiple motherboard vendors started releasing updated BIOS versions incorporating Intel 0x129 CPU microcode for Raptor Lake / Raptor Lake Refresh processors, including ASUS, which has already published beta versions for almost its entire portfolio of Raptor Lake (Refresh) motherboards. Over the weekend, we ran some preliminary Intel 0x129 microcode benchmarks on an ASUS PRIME Z790-P WIFI motherboard with an Intel Core i9 14900K processor.
These benchmarks looked at “pre” performance using the 1661 BIOS with 0x125 CPU microcode, and then repeated the same benchmarks after upgrading to the ASUS 1662 BIOS with the new 0x129 CPU microcode to address Raptor Lake stability issues. No other changes were made to the system hardware/software between the pre- and post-benchmarks, and all BIOS settings were kept at the same values between the previous and new BIOS versions.
This is just the first part of our testing of Intel 0x129 CPU microcode at Phoronix. We may publish further testing depending on reader interest levels and if we find any anomalies with other Raptor Lake motherboards and processors.
On a geographic average basis of 188 benchmarks performed, overall performance with this new BIOS / CPU microcode was flat… Performance was mostly the same, with a few exceptions… read more.
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