2-minute boot time on PowerSpec 205 w/ OEM MSI B650-P WiFi – BIOS

fatguyinahonda

G717 Prebuilt :

I have a prebuilt PowerSpec 205 Mesh Vertical from Micro Center, running:

• CPU: Ryzen 7 7800X3D
• GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super
• Motherboard: MSI PRO B650-P WiFi (OEM)
• BIOS version: 7D78AZ1.1ME (custom OEM firmware)

What I’ve Tried / Know So Far:

• The BIOS version is an OEM version (7D78AZ1) — not the standard MSI retail BIOS.
• MSI offers a retail BIOS (7D78v13 and newer) that supports the 7800X3D and includes microcode and AGESA updates that might reduce boot times and improve CPU initialization.
• But PowerSpec hasn’t released any newer BIOS for this board, and their support forums say BIOS updates are rare unless there’s a major issue.
• Some Redditors and forum users have said flashing MSI retail BIOS onto OEM boards is risky — it could brick the system or break OEM-specific features.

Questions:

• Could the long boot time be caused by the outdated OEM BIOS not playing nicely with the 7800X3D?
• Is it worth risking a flash to the MSI retail BIOS (v13 or newer)?
• Has anyone here successfully done that on a PowerSpec or similar prebuilt with an MSI OEM board?
• Would using BIOS Flashback help reduce the risk?
• Any other settings I should tweak in BIOS before attempting a full firmware upgrade?

I know flashing retail BIOS on an OEM board is usually not advised, but the 2-minute boot is driving me crazy and I’d really like to know if upgrading to the latest BIOS could fix it.

Note: I could not find BIOS fixes such as enabling Memory Context Restore and Memory Power Down in the BIOS settings

Thanks in advance!

fatguyinahonda

Have MSI Engineers come up with their own Bios Update version to fix this issue? MSI releases fixed this issue almost a year and a half ago now. Boot time really should be in the 5-15 Seconds range. Not 2+ minutes. It's also missing the security patch/fix , the "boot time" issues and additional bug fixes that have since been addressed by MSI supported bios.

PowerSpec_MikeW

@fatguyinahonda

There's no more risk than any other BIOS flash on this board. Even less than previously, as you have the BIOS flashback function to save a bricked board.

We can look into it. Memory stability on AM5 with the 7000 series was a concern to us. The long boot is the memory training every single time. It's safer for long term stability, it's safer overall. MRC is the feature in the BIOS that should bypass it. You can try enabling that.