ASUS Z270 Maximus IX Extreme Preview

Up Close

By coming out the gate with a photograph of the back of the box we’ve shot our bolt a little early. It must be that Springtime air. But yes, if you love the idea of a full-cover waterblock but find yourself falling into the category of someone who doesn’t like to void their warranties, or just hasn’t got the confidence to get down and dirty yourself, the Maximus IX Extreme is supplied with a full-cover waterblock that is fully covered in both the physical and warranty senses of the word. Once you accept this is a £200 chunk of alloy then the price tag suddenly makes a lot more sense.

As you would expect from something labelled Extreme, the Maximus IX comes with every possible accessory in the box, from the simple SATA cable, through stickers, hangers, adaptors, brackets and a whole array of doohickeys to keep you interested before you take the plunge into the full build. We know from experience that the time between opening the box and getting down to the dirty business of putting it all together is some of the most fun that there is to be had. Even if you’re an experienced builder there is always a little hiccup to take the gloss of the early moments, yet when the parcel has arrived and you’re no longer waiting for the courier the bit between opening the box and building is nothing but heightened expectations and potential awaiting fulfilment. 

When it comes to the Extreme we’ll leave you to soak in the details of it before we take a closer look on the next page at the main features on the next page. Whether it is the LED audio jacks that beam a light onto your wall so you don’t need to crane your neck to see the back of your tower, or the flow monitoring and plentiful AURA RGB features that form part of the monoblock, it’s fair to say that the Maximus IX Extreme wants for nothing.