A few days ago, a Reddit user came onto one of AMD's support pages and found some pretty disturbing information regarding the use of aftermarket cooling solutions. According to the FAQ, users are voiding the warranty on their AMD processors if they don't use the included stock heatsink. Given the seriousness of the situation, the matter was immediately brought to AMD for clarification. In their defense, they have stated that the information in the FAQ is outdated, and the wording doesn't accurately describe the terms of the warranty with modern processors. Therefore, AMD got right on the task and has since updated the FAQ. To not make a short story long, users are free to use aftermarket CPU coolers as long as these heatsinks are capable of properly cooling the processor within AMD's TDP specifications.

45 Comments on AMD Updates Warranty Policy on AMD Processors and Aftermarket CPU Coolers

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#1 Durvelle27

Now what comes to mind is how will the determine if the cooler was the cause of failure resulting in voided warranty. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 19:32 Reply

#2 the54thvoid

Durvelle27 Now what comes to mind is how will the determine if the cooler was the cause of failure resulting in voided warranty. I would imagine it's the TDP (or whatever) of the cooler. As long as it matches the thermal design of the AMD version. How they prove you didn't use the one you state - I have no idea. I would imagine it's the TDP (or whatever) of the cooler. As long as it matches the thermal design of the AMD version. How they prove you didn't use the one you state - I have no idea. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 19:35 Reply

#3 Bones

Looked to be a PR disaster in the making when I first saw about them denying RMA's based on using the stock cooler or not - Knew if it were true this wouldn't last long.

At least they did come out and clarify things in a way that makes sense related to the cooler/cooling used. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 19:51 Reply

#4 LightningJR

Probably back when they released bulldozer. TDP and heat was an issue and they needed people to use proper cooling lol. Their heatsinks were only ever ok it's the fans that were insane lol. But yeah this could have been a nightmare for PR but a nice quick change. Nice to see. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 20:04 Reply

#5 cdawall

where the hell are my stars LightningJR Probably back when they released bulldozer. TDP and heat was an issue and they needed people to use proper cooling lol. Their heatsinks were only ever ok it's the fans that were insane lol. But yeah this could have been a nightmare for PR but a nice quick change. Nice to see. The 9590/9370 was typically sold WoF. The stock cooler provided for the 8350 was a joke at least at cooling an 8350... The 9590/9370 was typically sold WoF. The stock cooler provided for the 8350 was a joke at least at cooling an 8350... Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 20:07 Reply

#6 TheTechGuy1337

When it comes to warranties on almost any electronic device these days. Lying is your best friend and honestly the company would rather refund or replace vs having a customer leave unhappy. At the end of the day, they want your money. Warranties and customer support are important to any company. They generally give the customer the benefit of the doubt even if they know for a fact that the customer is in the wrong. It's easier to shell out a replacement than deal with the hassle of disgruntled customers.



For example, I've had phones, tablets, laptops, and gpu's come into work where the device had clearly been opened and or tampered with beyond factory conditions. Did we void the warranty? If the customer said they opened and voided the warranty, then we can choose not to replace their product. If the customer decides to lie and say they did not open the product and void the warranty. We are inclined to believe them....cough cough cough. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 20:43 Reply

#7 D.Crepit

Now who exactly uses an aftermarket cooler that isn't

bigger, better, QUIETER and (probably ) cheaper than the

cooler ALL OEMs include with their CPU???



It is rather hard to do ... wouldn't you say??? Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 21:21 Reply

#8 eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman Ok for those who failed to read the article.



AMD updated the policy as it was old-for FX/Phenom 2 CPUs. It now states you can use an aftermarket heatsink of your choice as long as it can handle the TDP of the Ryzen 1/2 parts.



Fyi WraithMax in person is a sweet factory cooler which is great for OEMs/system integrators/power users. It is apart of the Processor in a Box package. Tis all good because My Ashura Heatsink is AM4 ready with a kit from Scythe. Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 22:33 Reply

#9 coonbro

LOL....AMD ...LOL



I guess now they need to test and make a authorized list of coolers , if not on the list its not covered under there warrantee .. as we all know cooling has never been a issue with AMD heck there chipsets made frost if I recall or was that can burn a house down ?..lol.... Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 22:57 Reply

#10 eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman coonbro LOL....AMD ...LOL



I guess now they need to test and make a authorized list of coolers , if not on the list its not covered under there warrantee .. as we all know cooling has never been a issue with AMD heck there chipsets made frost if I recall or was that can burn a house down ?..lol.... Stop spreading FUD would you? Stop spreading FUD would you? Posted on Apr 27th 2018, 23:03 Reply

#11 lexluthermiester

Durvelle27 Now what comes to mind is how will the determine if the cooler was the cause of failure resulting in voided warranty. They can't. There is no physical way for them to determine whether or not an aftermarket cooler has been used. And even if they could it is highly illegal to limit warranties in such a fashion. This whole drama is FUD and nonsense. They can't. There is no physical way for them to determine whether or not an aftermarket cooler has been used. And even if they could it is highly illegal to limit warranties in such a fashion. This whole drama is FUD and nonsense. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 0:04 Reply

#12 Patriot

TheTechGuy1337 When it comes to warranties on almost any electronic device these days. Lying is your best friend and honestly the company would rather refund or replace vs having a customer leave unhappy. At the end of the day, they want your money. Warranties and customer support are important to any company. They generally give the customer the benefit of the doubt even if they know for a fact that the customer is in the wrong. It's easier to shell out a replacement than deal with the hassle of disgruntled customers.



For example, I've had phones, tablets, laptops, and gpu's come into work where the device had clearly been opened and or tampered with beyond factory conditions. Did we void the warranty? If the customer said they opened and voided the warranty, then we can choose not to replace their product. If the customer decides to lie and say they did not open the product and void the warranty. We are inclined to believe them....cough cough cough. Good thing... Good thing... www.engadget.com/2018/04/11/ftc-warranty-warning/ Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 0:29 Reply

#13 eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman Patriot Good thing... www.engadget.com/2018/04/11/ftc-warranty-warning/ TheTechGuy1337 When it comes to warranties on almost any electronic device these days. Lying is your best friend and honestly the company would rather refund or replace vs having a customer leave unhappy. At the end of the day, they want your money. Warranties and customer support are important to any company. They generally give the customer the benefit of the doubt even if they know for a fact that the customer is in the wrong. It's easier to shell out a replacement than deal with the hassle of disgruntled customers.



For example, I've had phones, tablets, laptops, and gpu's come into work where the device had clearly been opened and or tampered with beyond factory conditions. Did we void the warranty? If the customer said they opened and voided the warranty, then we can choose not to replace their product. If the customer decides to lie and say they did not open the product and void the warranty. We are inclined to believe them....cough cough cough. Try telling Gigabyte about warranty repair, many cases of them claiming that parts were physically damaged and not covering when users sent them in the best possible packaging. Try telling Gigabyte about warranty repair, many cases of them claiming that parts were physically damaged and not covering when users sent them in the best possible packaging. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 1:17 Reply

#14 Flyordie

Told ya'll they were doing that. lol. FTC letter was pretty harsh for AMD. When I read it I was like.. "ooh, enthusiasts are going to love this one!" lol. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 4:09 Reply

#15 Patriot

eidairaman1 Try telling Gigabyte about warranty repair, many cases of them claiming that parts were physically damaged and not covering when users sent them in the best possible packaging. That is exactly what you do, you report them to the ftc and they get fined... Patriot That is exactly what you do, you report them to the ftc and they get fined... I have had asus "replace" my board and the same exact one came back still broken. That is exactly what you do, you report them to the ftc and they get fined...I have had asus "replace" my board and the same exact one came back still broken. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 5:09 Reply

#16 TheGuruStud

Has anyone ever RMA'd a CPU for any reason other than a hardware bug? I've seen ONE fail (stock clock pentium III 600 MHz). Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 8:04 Reply

#17 R0H1T

lexluthermiester They can't. There is no physical way for them to determine whether or not an aftermarket cooler has been used. And even if they could it is highly illegal to limit warranties in such a fashion. This whole drama is FUD and nonsense. Well there's always the oddball first time purchaser, who could (in theory) slap a really crap heatsink to his 2700x & then OC it. This move's probably to make sure such people don't get a replacement CPU, though denying warranty is still a bit of stretch unless the (same) guy brings the evidence of his clumsiness. Well there's always the oddball first time purchaser, who could (in theory) slap a really crap heatsink to his 2700x & then OC it. This move's probably to make sure such people don't get a replacement CPU, though denying warranty is still a bit of stretch unless the (same) guy brings the evidence of his clumsiness. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 9:20 Reply

#18 Shamalamadingdong

R0H1T Well there's always the oddball first time purchaser, who could (in theory) slap a really crap heatsink to his 2700x & then OC it. This move's probably to make sure such people don't get a replacement CPU, though denying warranty is still a bit of stretch unless the (same) guy brings the evidence of his clumsiness. Well, that or wrong mounting of a cooler including overtightening resulting in too much pressure killing your CPU. Well, that or wrong mounting of a cooler including overtightening resulting in too much pressure killing your CPU. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 13:34 Reply

#19 TheGuruStud

Shamalamadingdong Well, that or wrong mounting of a cooler including overtightening resulting in too much pressure killing your CPU. Athlon XPs were a long time ago and I never killed one of those :laugh: Athlon XPs were a long time ago and I never killed one of those :laugh: Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 14:53 Reply

#20 Adam Krazispeed

the54thvoid I would imagine it's the TDP (or whatever) of the cooler. As long as it matches the thermal design of the AMD version. How they prove you didn't use the one you state - I have no idea. they cant.. plain and simple? they cant.. plain and simple? Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 14:55 Reply

#21 Vayra86

coonbro LOL....AMD ...LOL



I guess now they need to test and make a authorized list of coolers , if not on the list its not covered under there warrantee .. as we all know cooling has never been a issue with AMD heck there chipsets made frost if I recall or was that can burn a house down ?..lol.... Your logic is about as good as your grammar and spelling. How would AMD check anyway? Your logic is about as good as your grammar and spelling. How would AMD check anyway? Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 14:56 Reply

#22 Adam Krazispeed

Shamalamadingdong Well, that or wrong mounting of a cooler including overtightening resulting in too much pressure killing your CPU. seems that would just damage the socket/motherboard?



iv done it before.. on an intel. good thing it was a free machine/ first intel iv had in awhile so the hsf installed weird when i was used to the clips on AMD Skt 754 and up . never had amds 939 socket buy went from AM2-AM2+ and to AM3/3+,

but on the Intel machine, i only broke the MB & or socket, the CPU itself was fine, after i had it in another new mb it fired right up. CPU's nowadays are hard to damage, for the most part, unless you overclock with way too igh voltage like 1.6v when it only uses 1.2-1.4, 1.55 max, then the smoke appears.. tho iv never done that, I never change the cpu's voltage, ever seems that would just damage the socket/motherboard?iv done it before.. on an intel. good thing it was a free machine/ first intel iv had in awhile so the hsf installed weird when i was used to the clips on AMD Skt 754 and up . never had amds 939 socket buy went from AM2-AM2+ and to AM3/3+,but on the Intel machine, i only broke the MB & or socket, the CPU itself was fine, after i had it in another new mb it fired right up. CPU's nowadays are hard to damage, for the most part, unless you overclock with way too igh voltage like 1.6v when it only uses 1.2-1.4, 1.55 max, then the smoke appears.. tho iv never done that, I never change the cpu's voltage, ever Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 15:21 Reply

#23 Steevo

Durvelle27 Now what comes to mind is how will the determine if the cooler was the cause of failure resulting in voided warranty. Essentially with thermal management, if your cooler cannot keep cool it will throttle, so if you try to return a "slow/defective" chip for thermal or throttling they will deny warranty claims. If your chip burns up from no cooler.... well, no warranty. Essentially with thermal management, if your cooler cannot keep cool it will throttle, so if you try to return a "slow/defective" chip for thermal or throttling they will deny warranty claims. If your chip burns up from no cooler.... well, no warranty. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 16:30 Reply

#24 Jism

Consumers have choice in between, TRAY and BOXED.



Tray means just the chip, without cooler. BOXED means with cooler. AMD's warranty was based on BOXED CPU's. Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 16:49 Reply

#25 cdawall

where the hell are my stars Jism Consumers have choice in between, TRAY and BOXED.



Tray means just the chip, without cooler. BOXED means with cooler. AMD's warranty was based on BOXED CPU's. AMD sells boxed WOF CPU's to this day.







Here are two of them AMD sells boxed WOF CPU's to this day.Here are two of them Posted on Apr 28th 2018, 17:26 Reply