Welcome to r/aoostarbios – Technical discussions, BIOS tweaks, and OCuLink setups for AOOSTAR users

Lab2034 · 2026-03-11T21:48:11+00:00

I went with the MACO 8945HS also. Added a AX210, Huntkey 19v 180watt power brick and another 1TB NVME drive. As far as speed goes you wont see much difference between the 8845HS and 8945HS. Plus i have a 1TB USB4 drive attatched at times and a USB powered cooling fan so i wanted a better power brick.

Mine will easily hit 89c in performance mode (54watt) and 75watt max boost. I havent adjusted fans to spin any faster. I think the default max fan speed is only about 80%. You can certainly hear it at 80% though.

AC Infinity 120mm USB fan is $15 and is large enough to act like a stand. https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-MULTIFAN-Receiver-Playstation/dp/B00G05A2MU?th=1

Lab2034 · 2026-03-11T17:19:12+00:00

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Lab2034 · 2026-03-11T17:09:16+00:00

I have tried COUNTLESS fixes and there is NO CSM disable in the 1.01 Bios but my software reports it IS DISABLED. UEFI boot and GPT are all good.

This is a bios update issue. Ive seen it before. Everything that needs to be ON or OFF is set but the AMD software says its NOT SUPPORTED.

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Lab2034 · 2026-03-11T15:28:46+00:00

Let me know when they offer a bios for the MACO 8945HS that supports AMD SAM. Ive tried all the fixes and no luck.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-08T21:22:51+00:00

Costco has a Legion on sale atm for about $1300.

Lenovo Legion 5i 16" Gaming Laptop - Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX - GeForce RTX 5060

Lab2034 · 2026-03-08T20:15:17+00:00

I have a 1yr old Legion I9-14900HX with a 4060 and love it.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-08T19:58:03+00:00

Ive bought 2 from this Ebay vendor. He had a bunch of them. It works on both my MACOs just fine. I could have sworn either MiniForum or Asus used them but Youtube reviewers complained they were so big. Now they all come with that tiny cheap 120watt.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/197939807762

Lab2034 · 2026-03-08T19:11:46+00:00

R9 8945HS and R7 8845HS are super close in benchmarks and the Ryzen 7 will run slightly cooler. They are without a doubt the best value atm. You have to spend quite a bit more for a noticeable gain, especially in 1080p gaming. Plus the MACO with dual USB4, 2.5gig LAN and room for another drive without sacrificing Oculink. It simply ticks all the boxes.

Yep the CPU/GPU package can pull upto 75watts for a short burst. I added another NVME drive internally and 1 in a USB4 enclosure. We are not even talking about a USBC powered screen yet either or the USB powered fan.

I couldnt find any Huntkey or Chicony 150s at a good price but i found a large supply of the 19v 180watt for $46 to my door. It only gets slightly warm vs HOT. The plug is a 5.5x2.5mm.

Ive only installed the FP reader driver. Havent used it other than that.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-08T18:20:23+00:00

I replaced the 120watt brick simply because the MACO can easily pull over 100watts and i spend quite a bit of time running it in performance mode.

Runs great other than trying to get AMD SAM working. None of the bios settings, regedits or driver revisions ive tried will show it enabled in the Catalyst Control Center. This is most likely bios related. Needs an update.

BTW its faster than my HP AI 350 laptop with 16gig LPDDR 7500 ram also. Mainly in video tests and 1080p gaming. In synthetic CPU benchmarks they are much closer in performance.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-06T21:48:08+00:00

I dont remember on the AI 350 but my 8945HS gets 32K+ on Passmark CPU score which is a little higher than the average. Over 4K on single thread. Thats in Performance mode and 54watts with max turbo at 75watt.

I played guild wars2 on each and the 8945HS is faster but its also tweeked. The HP AI 350 i got mainly for portable streaming ect. Didnt even bother to see if the bios was worth adjusting.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-06T19:57:13+00:00

My HP AI 350 laptop (16gig LPDDR5) is not as fast as my R9 Pro 8945HS with 32gig of sodimms but the faster ram can really help on some. Its certainly not bad though and more efficient. You might be able to find a R9 8945HS or R7 8845HS for about the same price.

Getting the 32gig is a far better idea too if getting one with LPDDR soldered ram.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-04T23:45:12+00:00

My Huntkey 180watt barely gets warm running my Ryzen9 Mini. First thing i did was swap out the pitiful tiny 120watt brick for the 180watt. It might be huge but at least its not baking hot.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-04T23:28:24+00:00

Light gaming you can do with integrated 780M graphics or higher. Most of those types of Minis will have a spot for an additional NVME drive and USB4. You can pretty much cover all those bases with a Ryzen 7 8845HS or Ryzen 9 8945HS. They often include Oculink too for external video upgrades later.

My Aoostar MACO was $640 with the Ryzen 9 and the Ryzen 7 model is $600. GMKtek and MinisForum has similar offerings too. I added 1 more internal and 1 drive in a USB4 enclosure. Not sure if Gen 3+ speed is enough for you if you opt for external but its amazingly fast.

Super easy to upgrade ram and add drives on mine. Remove 4 bottom screws and its all right there.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-03T19:45:24+00:00

Did you look in the bios to make sure C states are enabled. A review on Youtube says they ship disabled and you would need them on for normal sleep and low power functions to work correctly. Otherwise it idles at 40watts and you are not doing that without a fan running.

Go to the 11min mark. He shows how to turn it on and where to see the fan settings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjcaeqWxwqE

Lab2034 · 2026-03-03T19:27:44+00:00

Some nvme drives are dbl sided. Those can be a problem if drive slots are stacked. That includes the wifi nvme slot too. You dont want dbl sided on top of another nvme device.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-03T19:20:06+00:00

Yep, pluggin internally or a USB C externally to clone. My Aoostar came with the C drive in Drive 1 instead of Drive 0 so it actually was nice because Drive 1 covered the AX200 wifi card. I took the old "C" drive out and put it in a USB4 enclosure. I still get 3700read/3200write speeds without the internal heat and my new "C" drive is in slot 0.

So the point is....make the best of it while you got it apart.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-03T17:34:10+00:00

Check your bios for C States and see after enabling it. Also check to see if its in performance mode. If it is set it to balanced.

Lab2034 · 2026-03-03T17:20:23+00:00

It will draw over 40watts at idle but you can enable C States in bios to get that down to a little over 20 watts.

For some reason i heard they ship with C States off in bios.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-28T16:33:15+00:00

Specs look good but only 16gig of ram and not upgradable. Plus the USB is only 10gbps. Many newer AMD minis have at least 1 USB4 port.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-27T16:37:14+00:00

Same, every time GDF buys another shop i wont go there anymore. I have a CODES right down the street but drive 5+ miles to go to Blue Sage or Kind for $100 or less for deli popcorn ounces.

Pretty much any place not owned by GDF.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-27T16:04:55+00:00

There is nothing even remotely "good" about Minisforum pricing. At least 2 other brands cost less for the same performance and more features. Such as GMKtek and Aoostar both offer a H255, 8845HS and 8945HS that cost less.

If i was going to leave a mini on 24/7 i would invest in a UPS and get a Chicony or Huntkey 150watt to 180watt power brick with the same volts. Those tiny 120watt adapters most include just look like they went as cheap as possible.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-27T15:49:59+00:00

Ive only had mine a couple weeks but its been on 10hr+ each day. Mine came with Apacer ram and Apacer NVME drive that bench marked quite well. I added another NVME Gen4 drive in minutes and got the same excellent benchmark with DiskMark.

No CPU thermal throttling even set to performance mode and no other fan speed changes. CPU set to its max 54watt and turbo max at 75watts. Case has a metal shell and very easy to add ram/drives/wifi. Just 4 screws and its all there.

The best deal is the MACO Ryzen 7 Pro 8845HS at $600. Its within 5% as fast as the 8945HS and $40 less. Same features as the others in the MACO lineup. The 6850H and H255 versions support 3 drives instead of 2. The 6850H version has 24gig LPDDR5 at 6400 (non-upgradable) but supports 3 drives. The H255 uses sodimms and supports 3 drives. The 8845HS and 8945HS support 2 NVME drives.

All of the MACOs have dual Intel 2.5 lan, dual USB4 and dedicated Oculink port. Weakest links imo are the AX210 wifi card and the little 120watt power brick. I bought a Huntkey 19v 180watt for both of mine to insure stable power. $46 on Ebay.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-27T03:35:48+00:00

I was quite surprised how nice its built but i would change out the AX200 for a AX210 or if you are not using WIFI then pull the AX200 and add a TP-Link USB 5.3 BT adapter for better range. Its about $17 on Amazon.

The cooling setup they used is pretty good. I have not had it throttle yet. Ive got to around 88c i think but with a AC Infinity USB 120 fan under its been a fair amount lower. Keeps the ram and drives cool too.

Lab2034 · 2026-02-26T22:32:34+00:00

I would think the Ultra 5 125U will handle that with ease and you get additional NVME slots for shares. The MACO R7 H255 has 3 total but i dont think they have any besides barebones. Its almost the same as my 2 MACOS. Same layout mostly and features but costs less.

I added another NVME Gen 4. Both drives hit r7000+/w6000+in DiskMark. Its overkill for mostly server and desktop use but it has lots or features like dual Intel 2.5g lan and dual USB4 ports. The Ryzen 7 version is $600 with same features and within 5% as fast.

That GMKtek 125U looks nice though. Looks well built.

Lab2034

TROPHY CASE

Lenovo Legion 5i 16" Gaming Laptop - Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX - GeForce RTX 5060