GIGABYTE has launched an exchange and refund program for its Z690I AORUS ULTRA motherboards for 12th Gen Intel Core processors after discovering that they may not play well with certain graphics cards that are connected and being run under the usual speed settings. A press release shared by the manufacturer suggests that these motherboards may result in system instability when select GPUs are running in PCIe Gen 4 mode, something that doesn’t happen when the speeds are reduced to PCIe 3.0 via the BIOS. Z690I AORUS ULTRA DDR4 and Z690I AORUS ULTRA DDR5 owners who purchased their motherboards from non-third-party retailers and are affected may submit a claim at GIGABYTE’s program website, which can be accessed here.
While investigating reports of customers experiencing issues with their Z690I AORUS ULTRA, we discovered that there are certain cases of system instability and WHEA PCIe errors when paired with some PCIe Gen4 graphics cards. Setting the PCIe speed to Gen3 through the BIOS will eliminate these symptoms.
To address Z690I AORUS ULTRA owners who are currently experiencing instability issues as detailed above, GIGABYTE is offering a special program to upgrade users to the Z690I AORUS ULTRA PLUS motherboard or equivalent models, or users will also be eligible to apply for a refund. https://www.gigabyte.com/Press/News/1990
The special program will be applicable for all customers who have purchased the “Z690I AORUS ULTRA DDR4” or “Z690I AORUS ULTRA DDR5” motherboard from non-third-party retailers. Users who have just started or already completed their RMA process will also qualify. Please note program details may differ according to region.
From May 10, 2022 through November 30, 2022, GIGABYTE customers will be able to register for the program by submitting a claim on the website link below. Users will need to provide their general information, the motherboard’s serial number, and proof of purchase.
Source: GIGABYTE