REVIEWS / MOTHERBOARDS / ASUS TECHNOLOGY PVT. LTD

Asus Maximus V Extreme Review

07 Aug, 2012, 5:36 pm IST | by Roydon Cerejo | Motherboards

Motherboards

Good arrangement of SATA ports

Good arrangement of SATA ports
The OC Key works brilliantly in providing real-time information
Good layout and design
Four-way SLI and CrossFireX is possible
We wish there was a bit more room around the CPU area
Very good set of connectors

PRICE IN INDIA

29,800

TECH2 RATING

7.5

AVERAGE USER RATING

7.5

How we test

CONTACT

ASUS Technology Pvt. Ltd

 reachus@asus.com

 +91 22 6766 8800 / 18002090365

 www.asus.in


Features
One of the highlights of this motherboard is the OC Key. We had a chance to see it in action back in October when Asus had their X79 preview in Singapore and it’s very simple to set up. The OC Key acts as an intermediary between your monitor and the GPU and is activated via the ROG Connect button on the rear panel. Once it’s on, you’ll be able to see readouts of the CPU’s current voltage, temperature, etc. over whatever's on your monitor, and you can directly overclock these values right through the OSD itself. Pressing the ROG Connect button toggles your keyboard's input between Windows and the overlay interface. This works very well and is super easy to set up, giving you real-time information about your CPU. Another good thing is that the overlay can be accessed from any screen, even while Windows is booting.

Four-way SLI and CrossFireX is possible

Four-way SLI and CrossFireX is possible

 


Asus has thrown in some exclusive features like VGA Hotwire that lets you directly play with the voltages of your graphics card without having to use any software. This can also be monitored through OC Key. The board also has a feature called Subzero Sense that lets you monitor the temperatures when using liquid Nitrogen, and can read temperatures as low as -195 degrees Celsius. You also get the Extreme Engine Digi+ II technology, which includes a full digital power system and Japanese Black Metallic capacitors. This digital system lets you make very minor adjustments when overclocking, resulting in a more stable system. Finally, the UEFI dual-BIOS system gives you a very nice graphical interface for tweaking settings.

Test rig configuration

 

  • Processor: Intel Core i7-3770k
  • Memory: G.Skill RipjawsX 8GB (4GB x 2 @1866MHz)
  • Graphic card: AMD Radeon HD 6970
  • Hard drive: WD Velociraptor  300GB
  • Power supply:  Cooler Master Silent Pro 1000W
  • OS: Windows 7 Ultimate, 64-bit


Performance
Before we began testing, we made sure the BIOS was up to date. This was as simple as downloading the most recent update from Asus and putting it on a pen drive, which the BIOS is able to detect. Despite this, we had a tough time getting our RAM to work in dual-channel mode. We tried G.Skill as well as Kingston HyperX modules and while they both worked in single channel mode, it was impossible to get to even the EFI screen with them in dual channel. The debug LEDs kept flashing ‘55’, which indicates no memory modules are installed. We had no choice but to run the tests in single channel mode.

 

The OC Key works brilliantly in providing real-time information

The OC Key works brilliantly in providing real-time information

 

 

In PCMark 7, we got a score of 3584, which is a little less as compared to when we did the Ivy Bridge platform review. This could be attributed mainly to the lack of dual-channel memory. Cinebench R11.5 returned a OpenGL score of 88.9fps, which is roughly 8fps more as compared to the Intel DZ77GA-70K motherboard. The CPU score; however, was 6.98pts, which is a bit lower. In gaming, we received a similar score compared to our previous setup. In FarCry 2, with a resolution of 1600 x 900 and the Physics, Fire and Trees set to 'Very High', we got a score of 169fps. Dirt 2, with the same resolution and a mix of medium to low settings gave us a framerate of 146fps. Overall, the Maximus V Extreme could have performed even better had the dual-channel memory worked.


Verdict and Price in India
The Asus Maximus V Extreme can be yours for a street price of Rs. 29,800. This might seem like a lot of money for a motherboard, but then again you have graphics cards that cost Rs. 67,000, so that’s the price you pay for staying on the cutting edge of technology. As we mentioned earlier, this is no ordinary board  — in fact there’s nothing quite like it in the market. It’s designed solely for extreme overclockers and enthusiasts who are constantly trying to push the limit of their hardware to break benchmarking records. Asus has done an excellent job with the Maximus V Extreme, in terms of design and build as well as features and performance. Other than the snag we hit with dual-channel memory, the board is rock solid and its performance is very good as well. The OC key and VGA Hotwire are the highlights of the experience and if you are into competitive overclocking, this is one of the best motherboards money can buy right now.

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Features - Performance and Verdict


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Would you buy it?




 


How We Test

The Tech2 Labs receives many products every single week and each of them is tested with the utmost care and highest level of objectivity. There’s a constant effort to reduce and totally eliminate subjectivity. Each product is tested according to set test processes so the same test scenario is used.

Verdict
The ratings awarded to a product are derived from a number of tests and calculations, keeping certain important factors in mind. These factors consist of features, performance, quality and value for money. In case of software and some other categories, build quality might be replaced with ease of use or ease of installation. Products are compared with other products in a similar price range or product category.


Features
The features component of the score is rated based on the kind of features present on a particular product. Features are a big part of what people look for when they’re buying a new product such as a phone or a camera.

Performance
The performance score is derived from the benchmarks and tests run on the product. In case of the subjective scores, an average of the scores given by the group of reviewers is considered.

Build Quality
The build quality of a product is important so that it doesn’t fall apart after some use. The build quality scores from the way the product is designed and the kind of materials used in the product.

Value
Value for money comes from the fact that a cheap product is able to provide most of the performance of a higher priced product. Once again, value for money is judged by comparing pricing and performance of products in a particular price range or category. 

There are many other aspects of the product that are looked at such as the bundled software and accessories. All of these scores are aggregated together to form the final score.

What do the ratings mean?

Ratings are simple - higher the score, the better the product. A brief listing of the features and what they mean are given below.

1 - 3

The product is bad in almost every aspect. We strongly advise against purchasing this product.

4 - 6

An average product that isn't the best you can buy, but isn't the worst either.

7 - 8

Product with this rating is highly recommended because it's priced sensibly, has a good set of features and performs well.

9 - 10

Exceptionally excellent product with features and performance unlike any we've seen in the past. A must-have for everyone!

What is the Average User Rating?

We at Tech2 take product reviewing very seriously and every product is tested with the utmost care and level of objectivity. The end user who buys a particular product and uses it over an extended period of time has his own take on a product and there might be nuances that he or she can shed light on. The Average User Rating is present to help readers get the complete picture of how good or bad a product is. The Average User Rating is calculated by averaging the ratings by the thousands of readers visiting Tech2.com every single day. To record your own rating of a product, simply click on the user rating bar. If you disagree with our ratings or our community's product rating, please don't hesitate from voicing your opinion in the comments section below the review.

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