ASUS Maximus VIII Hero ATX Motherboard - Grey/Red/Black

Product Information

That being said, let's take a deeper dive into what ASUS brings to the table on one of the latest ROG offerings.

PCIe slots allow you to connect various components to the motherboard, such as graphics cards and sound cards. Customise static, strobing and pulsating effects or have the colours change in time with music or indicate CPU temperature. ports and perhaps most importantly from a modder/aesthetic-conscious PC enthusiast's point of view - two RGB LED strip headers that can be controlled using included software. At Crucial®, we ensure that the higher amount of RAM is rigorously tested and is backed by our compatibility guarantee.

The manual and software disc are standards in an accessory bundle, but that's about where the similarity between other brands ends. Lighting, big flashy heatsinks, shrouds and PCI-E slot covers are all on the menu and the new Asus Hero is vying for the top spot too as the ever image-conscious ROG range looks to bolster its feature set in other areas. Although very similar to the VIII Formula, the Hero Alpha sacrifices some SATA3 real estate for an extra, but welcomed ultra-fast U. ports in tow, Asus has had to opt for an ASMedia controller to bolster the lackluster four 6Gbps SATA ports (most Z170 boards have six). There are four USB 2 ports here as well so if you're just dealing with lots of peripherals, its combination of 7 USB ports will keep most people happy.

One example is that it allows encryption keys to be created in a secure environment, minimizing the risk of a hacker gaining access. This was quick and dirty because of time constraints, but I could go higher on cache and memory frequency. I am getting a little carried away here, but the block diagram on the right shows how the bandwidth is routed throughout the motherboard. These BIOS are similar to the Z97 and X99 range and, in all honesty, they very rarely have to change anything.As a gamer you demand stability and durability, so ROG integrates long-lasting, premium components plus exclusive smart DIY designs across the board — ensuring the best gaming experiences. Making use of Intel's feature-healthy Z170 chipset, Asus is targeting gamers who value premium aesthetics and enhanced gaming-grade features with the Maximus VIII Hero.

If they had chosen to continue with just black and silver their adaptable LED lights would have been much more rewarding. ports (the lowest one below the PS/2 connector is for USB BIOS Flashback), PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse, BIOS Flashback button, Display Port, HDMI port, 1x USB 3. The hardware base is a custom PCB using proprietary fiber weaves to maximize corrosion resistance and signal integrity through the traces in each layer. The back of the PCB is bare for the most part, but there are 10 red LEDs that light up the audio isolation pathway. Layout, on the whole, is excellent, with plenty of space around the CPU socket despite the huge heatsinks and shroud, plus you get angled SATA ports.It looks fantastic, performs well and has the high class standard we’ve come to expect from the ROG division. It provides improved performance by utilizing serial point-to-point links, allowing increased bandwidth and stability. After playing around with the UEFI bios and available performance software, it is safe to say the Hero is solid. ASUS's Maximus Hero series is known for being the more mainstream ROG motherboard, not as extreme as well the "Extreme", and not as tiny as the Gene, the Hero provides a balance of features and quality that is appealing to many enthusiasts. Record macros directly from the keyboard, switch profiles in moments, enable special functions with hotkey from F1-F10, start and even boost your PC from shutdown (S5 mode)!